Preakness Weekend

 May 17 - 18

After winning just two races on Monmouth's Opening Weekend last Saturday & Sunday - I'll chalk that up to jet lag and being distracted from the trip - I had an excellent weekend of handicapping for the second leg of the Triple Crown over Friday Black-Eyed Susan Day & Saturday Preakness Day.  I started the week off by playing the Twilight Thursday card at Churchill.  Had to wait until the final bet of the day before scoring, but when Elliptic crossed the line I collected enough to make the day a minimal loss.  It was a good warm-up for the big weekend of racing!

Friday Black-Eyed Susan Day saw the first post go off in late morning at 11:30am and I wasted little time getting onto the board.  Castle Island had begun his career for Bob Baffert on the west coast but had later been moved to the mid-Atlantic and into the barn of Brittany Russell.  Dropped in for a tag he responded with a new career top on the stretchout.  Claimed away he "paired" the figure for the new barn in a conditioned allowance.  Now "dropping" into an entry level event around two turns I thought he looked solid.  Tracked the 2/1 leader through the far turn, put that one away and opened up to the wire for my first win on Old Hilltop!

I came right back to score at a nice price in the second race of the day, another entry level allowance, but this one going five furlongs on the turf.  Had To Have Him had raced against two of today's rivals a month ago and they finished 2-3-4 under the wire, but I thought Had To Have Him had license to improve more than the others as that had been his first, ever turf try.  At the top of the lane I appeared to be out of it, but he found a seam, got into the clear and was FLYING down the outside....PHOTO FINISH!  When the official photo came up I was in front and at a generous $10.60 payoff!

Missed on the next four, but fortunately for me TwinSpires was offering the popular "Bet Back" promotion if you ran 2nd or 3rd and the first two of the four hit the board to allow me to "cash" despite not winning.  I got my first stakes winner of the day in the Allaire Dupont Distaff with Shotgun Hottie.  She was a Gr 3 winner and what I liked best was that her two best efforts had come when Paco Lopez was riding, and he was in town to ride today.  Tracked the leaders into the stretch before Paco gave not one, not two, but three "condescending" looks under the arm and drew off as easily best.

The next race was the Hilltop Stakes for 3yo fillies going a mile on the turf.  She Feels Pretty had suffered her first loss in the Gr 1 BC Juvenile Fillies Turf as the favorite.  While she was coming off the layoff and you never know if they will be as good or better at 3 as they were at 2 I thought she looked awfully solid with the drop out of graded stakes to the $100K listed event.  Sat chilly in mid-pack to the far turn, split rivals and opened up to run away by daylight as EASILY best of all.

I had two seconds and a fourth in the next three selections before it was time for the big race, the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan for 3yo fillies.  Clearly all of the "star" 3yo fillies had run two weeks ago and none of those were in here.  But that made for a wide-open race with some potential future stars.  Just looking at the horses and the past performances, I thought Gun Song was the most talented and a likely winner.  But when I handicap, the human connections play a big part in my decision-making.  Trainer Mark Henning used to have solid numbers, but that has not been the case of late, especially at Gulfstream this winter.  So his 7-for-85 resume for the year made me wonder about the legitimate chances for Gun Song to perform to her ability.  Still, I couldn't find anyone else that was a likely winner so I bet the minimum.  Well, today she truly ran to her ability - albeit against somewhat softer competition.  Pressed the leader into the far turn, took over willingly and ran off.  It was a cool moment to watch the post-race interviews with the owner and trainer who both acknowledged they had not had the best racing luck, or horse talent of late, but that this one felt really good.

Saturday Preakness Day dawned with a lot of weather in Baltimore.  I checked the scratches and changes and saw that we were still on the turf.  So I made my first bet and watched some hockey highlights of our Panthers epic win in Boston last night to move into the Eastern Conference Finals.  With a couple minutes to the mid-morning (10:30am) post time I turned the sound back on for the FanDuel TV broadcast and the first thing I hear is that just 30 minutes ago, while I had the sound muted, the first race had been moved to the main track.  I looked at the odds and my pick, Irish Heartbeat was the 6/5 favorite so I stuck with it.  She tracked the other short-priced runner through the turn and took off for the wire, clear by daylight.  As she crossed the finish line, track announcer Dave Rodman said "she was a popular winner, but went off at 2/1."  What?  Her odds had floated all the way up to 2/1?  Wow what a gift from the bettors, so I cashed for over $30 to kick off the day.  

But through the next two and a half hours I could only manage a second and two thirds from six selections.  As we approached post time of the Grade 2 Gallorette on the turf the analysts on the TV broadcast were debating exactly what had been wondering - was Fluffy Socks a "I'm ok to finish 2nd and 3rd" kind of horse, or was she the victim of just being against better runners over the last year?  The Chad Brown mare had seen nothing but Gr 1 and Gr 2 competition and had run second or third in all six since a win last May at Churchill.  The analysts on air were divided with most saying she was untrustworthy, and the one who agree with me saying she was simply the best horse and would be a clear and decisive winner.  Of course I was right as she drew off to win by nearly a pole and I cashed on my triple investment for my second winner on the day and first stakes win.

Ran 2nd and 3rd in two Pimlico stakes before scoring at Monmouth.  In a MSW turf event I thought Self Confident looked very solid.  But sitting fourth through dawdling fractions (:25 - :50) she had a LOT of work to do through the lane.  Suddenly found another gear and was FLYING through the final furlong....PHOTO FINISH!  Kim was nearby and said, "Did you have that?" And I replied I thought I did, and if I did I would be cashing for $40......I DID, and the price was even better as I cashed for almost $50 :)

I had really liked Todd Pletcher's Tuscan Sky in the Sir Barton Stakes, a 3yo mile and a sixteenth test, but he scratched out.  I looked at my analysis and saw I'd listed Shug McGaughey's Corporate Power as my next choice and I stuck with him.  In February this colt had been considered for the Florida Derby and the Kentucky Derby, but the connections ran him in an allowance event in New York instead, and he was second as the 8/5 favorite.  The addition of blinkers today told me they still thought he had talent.  He looked to be spinning his wheels at the top of the lane, but surged late and was just up in time.  An INQUIRY and OBJECTION made me wait to collect but when I saw the head-on replay I knew I had to be the winner.

Less than ten minutes later and we were in the gate for the feature at Monmouth, the Spruce Fir Handicap, a six furlong sprint that featured last year's winner Mia's Crusade.  She was following the same pattern as last year, coming in off a layoff.  Instead of wiring the field like last year she tracked the leaders in fourth to midway on the turn, made her move to collar the leader.  But that one was determined and they dueled to the final 100 yards before the champ edged clear for another winner on my page.

When looking at the calendar of races for today I'd been delighted to see that Canterbury Park was opening late this afternoon.  I have fond memories of that track as I met my great, late friend Jim Anderson there several years ago, then Kim and I went to Minneapolis for a racing weekend getaway.  On that trip I had scored with Thealligatorhunter in the Minnesota Derby, but this guy had now been sprinting of late and he was the key to the opening race of this the 30th season of racing at Canterbury.  He was dueling from the rail through the opening quarter mile, then was in tight and checked back to third losing at least two, if not three lengths.  But he swung into the clear in the lane and mowed down the leaders with my triple investment on board to give me my first winner of the summer in Minnesota, dontchaknow :)

It was "Downs After Dark" at Churchill and I had handicapped the races here which would run until after 11pm!  In the second I really liked Green Light on the turf.  Pressed the longshot leader through soft fractions while well in had through the far turn, then drew off by a pole as MUCH the best.

The featured Preakness was next.  I - like many racing fans - had been waiting for weeks to see Bob Baffert's talented Muth run away here as the best 3yo in the country, but he was a late scratch.  I didn't have the winner, but I was all smiles as 89 year-old D. Wayne Lucas posed for photos with the his horse who was a MyRacehorse colt who went wire-to-wire to upset the 2nd jewel of the Triple Crown.  I got my next winner, but hardly made any money when Disarm went into the gate at Churchill Downs in an allowance event.  The only two times this colt had NOT hit the board was when running fourth in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy and fourth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby.  He'd been 2nd in the Grade 1 Travers and boasted four straight triple digit Beyers.  All alone on the front end I thought this would be a cake walk, but again it just went to prove that nothing is ever certain in horse racing as he turned for home ready to run away, but was confronted by a rival and a stretch duel ensued.  Finally edged clear to win, but hardly like you'd expect a 1/5 prohibitive favorite to do.  Still, I'd played a "prime time" bet and cashed.

Missed twice at Churchill, one with my "best" there in the Gr 3 Louisville when Bold Act just didn't fire, and once at Canterbury before cashing my last two bets in Minnesota with Honorable Mischief in the sixth and Distorted Pro in the 7th.

The long, twelve-hour marathon day of racing was winding down as I had the west coast hockey game playing on TV they went into the gate for the 10th at Churchill on the turf.  I was surprised that Highway Robber was not one of the top betting choices but when he was near the back heading into the far turn I thought, "well, that's why he wasn't bet."  But they he began to pick off horses, weaving through the field and swung into the clear turning for home.  Was there enough stretch for him to catch the leaders?  At the furlong pole he noticeably accelerated and not only caught but drew off to score.  And the price was a big 7/1 allowing me to cash my final ticket of the day for over $40.

It was a good two days of racing as I scored with 40% of my picks, but the best news was that the TwinSpires "Bet Back" promotion had seen me "cash" on NINE additional races and collect $85 in "winnings!"  That was a nice boost to the bottom line ROI!

Sunday at Monmouth was an "ok" day of racing.  The "best story" of the day came in the opening three races.  Perennial leading rider Paco Lopez was on my three choices.  In the third race I liked his horse enough for a minimum bet; in the second race I thought he was a nearly certain winner.  And in the opener I thought he had a chance but not enough of an edge to bet.  So I decided to play an early double for a mere $2.  Paco was 6/5 as they approached the gate.  Gave the horse a great ride and somehow scored at the inflated odds of 5/1!  The double had ballooned up from a $3 payout to $13.  But then he ran 2nd at 4/5 and was off the board at 3/2.  Figures, right?  Race Track Logic that the only Paco horse I did NOT bet paid $13 to win and the others lost.  WOW.  I did cash in the feature Speaking defended his crown in the JJ Reilly Handicap, outdueling Paco Lopez's horse to win :)  We went out to dinner with Jeff and Trista, so Jeff and I watched the replay of the finale as we both had bet Electric Eel who went wire to wire to finish off another excellent weekend of racing for me.

For the four days of racing.....

Preakness Weekend Highlights

Recapping our trip to Greece and the Mediterranean

When last I wrote in this journal we had just left Greece and were headed up the coast.  Among the many amazing things about our trip was the fact that every day, and I mean EVERY day, at the end of what ever our excursion was and/or at dinner Kim and I would agree that it had been a great day.  Every single day.  And the other thing that stood out about the trip was the scenery.  On each and every day we had the most amazing vistas - so many that you'd look at the photos and wonder "did I really see that" and recall that yes, this was not a "googled" photo but we'd actually been there.  Check out the video highlights below.......

Greece Highlights Part 1

Greece Highlights Part 2

While we were gone we had an exceptional amount of friends and family who followed our trip in one fashion or another as we had well over 1,500 social media hits on our posts & pictures.  Thank you to everyone who followed along, especially to all "my girls" that are such great friends online (see below).

Social Media .......

While we were gone, and once we returned I continued to (a) see few people "live" but (b) have most of my "human contact" with friends online.  And far and away the one person I "talked to" every day, and most days more than once was gal-pal and CBS evening anchor Lauren Pastrana.  I so very much enjoyed that SHE enjoyed having me send daily "best of" photos from our trip.  And once we returned we continued to find things to exchange comments about.  But let's start with some of the other pals who made my "highlight list" of peeps that followed our trip.  My all-time favorite former student Kimmy has always been interested in what goes on with my life and after wishing her a Happy Mother's Day she reached out to let me know she'd appreciated following along.

Jayce Birch is a morning anchor that I don't often exchange with but twice she posted pics that I reacted to and she reciprocated.

Our "adopted daughter" Jillian.....well, just look at this recent photo she posted.  It's hard to believe that the "little girl" that used to play with our son each day has blossomed into this stunning woman.  We exchanged messages over Mother's Day as well.

I also heard from gal-pals Jen Cook and Petra after we'd returned - and they had been among the many friends that had followed our trip with "likes" and comments.

Another highlight shortly after returning home was I woke up to a message from gal-pal Karli Barnett.  I used to be more "active" with Karli - especially with travel - than Lauren.  But since Facebook Messenger no longer is linked to Instagram I've found it difficult to reach Karli, other than through her FB live chats.  Still, I'd sent her pics hoping she would eventually see them.  When I woke up on this particular morning she had "found" the photos and sent me a message.  I'm hopeful we can begin to reconnect as we once did.  I like that Karli also enjoys my sharing of our trips.

And the last of the "other girls" ..... late in the week former WISE student Amber posted a photo of her with a guitar and I inquired about concert tix :)

OK, onto the Lauren stories.  For the first - and as it turned out the only time while we were gone - I was able to watch a bit of the local news and let my CBS peeps know that I was still watching despite being halfway around the globe.  Captured a pic of Lauren's "pretty in pink" look and posted it.  On the final day of the cruise we explored an amazing castle and then went far underground into some amazing caverns.  When Lauren saw those pics she sent me a message of "wow-ness!"

Twice towards the end of the trip I sent pics to Lauren and once remarked that I would have liked to be able to watch her broadcast - she replied that SHE wished she were on a cruise :)

Once we were home, Lauren and I continued to "chat" - she replied back to me after I'd wished her a Happy Mother's Day and sent a photo of her when I explained I do like to travel very much, but also enjoy watching her on the news.

We also exchanged messages as our Florida Panthers advanced in the Stanley Cup playoffs.  The night of Mother's Day we got to see our 'Cats claw out a narrow win 2-1 and I shared with Lauren that I was taking partial credit for the win after I'd changed jerseys I was wearing during the game and THEN the Panthers rallied for the win.  She wrote back almost immediately telling me I'd better where that same jersey for the next game :)

On the broadcast prior to Game 5 I snapped a photo of Lauren on the desk in what I labeled Panther red; unfortunately we lost that game, at home, in a wild/nerve-wracking 2-1 decision.  That was on Tuesday following our return.....then on Friday morning prior to Game 6 in Boston I captured Lauren on air and asked if she could please call the outcome as she'd done last year when we clinched in Boston.  That night, on the air Lauren was in a pretty orange outfit and she'd "curled" her hair.  The CBS team did a feature on the game and I posted a Twitter pic of her with a bright smile.

With 1:33 left in this intense battle to move on we scored to win.  I almost immediately reached out to Lauren and within minutes she replied back to me.  I get it, it's me - and I also get it I don't have many "in person" friends.  But STILL I find it rewarding or a "feel good" kind of thing that Lauren and I have become close enough friends that not only do I feel comfortable connecting with her in moments like this, but that she responds as well.

When on Instagram during the news following the game I noted that Lauren had posted a "plea" to the Panthers to please end the game in regulation so that she could "be smiling like this" during the 11pm broadcast.  And the photo she used for her Instagram and Facebook reel - WAS the picture I'd taken of her.  So I "liked" the post and remarked what a "great photo" that was :)  And of course she replied.

But perhaps the biggest highlight to our conversations this week came at the end of the week when I twice had "issues" with our upcoming travel plans.  I reached out to Lauren twice and said she should do a feature on "Travel Tips" and that I would love to share some of MY experiences since I'd traveled "a little."  I had been hopeful for a reply but didn't think I'd get one....but after the second message I sent Lauren wrote back and said she would pitch this idea for a story to her producers this upcoming week.  Even Kim thought this would be VERY COOL if I were featured on the local news.  And I would particularly enjoy finally getting to meet "my girl Lauren" in person were this to all unfold.  Stay tuned!