Stephen Foster Weekend

 Summit of Speed / Canada Day / Foster Day

Saturday was a HUGE stakes day around the country.  In years past I would most certainly have been AT the races here in So Fla.  For many years the highlight day of the summer at Calder was "Summit of Speed" Day where there were multiple stakes races, all sprints and at least two of them were graded events.  The big name riders, trainers & horses would come down for the weekend and it was fun to be the center of the racing world.  When racing shifted permanently to Gulfstream they continued with this big summer day and I can remember as recently as four years ago being on track for the multiple stakes events, spending the day betting the races then meeting my most favorite former student and now adult gal-pal Kimmy for dinner afterwards.  But this year the "Summit of Speed" was A race - yes, one race - the Grade 3 Smile Sprint.  Ok, so there was a listed event on Sunday.....what used to be the Bobby Umphrey Turf Sprint was simply the Bob Umphrey Sprint because we're not doing turf racing, again, this summer as the turf course is being redone, again like last year.  WOW.  The racing kicked off at around 12:30 when I missed at Laurel but then I won the opener at Delaware.  This was a nw3L sprint and I was surprised none of the public handicappers even listed Need A Marker as a choice.  She was lightly race with only seven starts, had won two and been on the board in five....ALL in open company.  Everyone else had raced at some point in restricted races like this.  She pressed the pace three wide through the turn, opened up and held off the late closers to score at better than 2/1.

Missed three more before getting back in the winner's circle, and again it was at Delaware Park.  The second race here was a second level allowance sprint.  Chicks Dig Scars had run three consecutive Beyers that beat every lifetime best on the page save one which had been earned last November against cheap claimers.  Tracked the 6/1 front runner into the lane, surged to the front and won comfortably enough as the prohibitive favorite.

Over the next hour I had EIGHT "Pass" races, ran 2nd in three events and missed the board in three others.  One of the second place finishes came in the American Derby at Ellis Park where I "cashed" on $10 of the $15 bet thanks to a "bet back" promotion.  Got my first stakes win in Delaware's Alopasca Stakes despite the fact that my top choice scratched out.  Only four runners were left in the field and when I noted how much money Lightning Larry was taking in the early betting I pulled up the past performances.  Compared to the other three he deserved to be odds-on.  Pressed the front runner through the turn, got to the front.....dueled to inside the 16th pole and then finally edged clear with Paco Lopez doing the piloting here today, in from his usual Jersey Shore home base.

Another hour past and EIGHT losses in a row to show for it.  I told myself, "Hang in there, you KNOW the wins WILL come."  And they started about quarter after 3pm.  The first of the many stakes races at Ellis Park - which had been transferred from Churchill Downs - was the Kelly's Landing.  IF we were running in Louisville I'm pretty sure I would have made Bango a BIG TIME bet (maybe $50) because he LOVES that track and his next win will make him the all time leading winner at Churchill with ten wins.  But we were at Ellis, so that had to be a consideration.  Still, he just looked so much the best.  He had back-to-back triple digit Beyers that were nearly "paired" - indicating he'd probably run even better today.  And Tyler Gaffalione was on board.  I noted that in all the wins showing on the page for Bango, Tyler G had been riding.  Right to the front but pressured all the way into the lane.  Dueled without ever giving way and edged clear late with my "prime time" wager on board!

At Gulfstream I truly DID think My Shea D Lady looked best in their sixth, a MSW for 2yo.  But I must also admit that I WANTED this filly to win because like several horses who share the "Shea D" in their name, they always remind me of my gal-pal Kimmy's partner in crime and also one of my most favorite formers, Christy who's Facebook "handle" is "Sea Shadey."  The filly tracked the pace through the far turn, rallied wide and drew off as handily the best.

"My girl Shea D Lady" had no longer crossed the finish line before they were loading into the gate at Woodbine for the first of their graded stakes, the Grade 3 Marine for 3yos - a prep for the rich Queen's Plate - the Canadian version of the Kentucky Derby - later this summer.  Chad Brown's Turf King was my choice here.  He'd debuted with a sharp win over the GP synthetic then won on the turf before last time out trying the Jersey Derby, finishing third.  Despite the last two being on the grass I believed that Brown would not have sent his colt north of the border, stepping up in class to a Grade 3, to run on the synthetic unless he felt he had a good shot at it.  He was well back into the far turn, then began picking off runners.  Hit the top of the longest stretch in North America and shot through a very narrow opening along the rail to get to the front and edge clear!

A distant 6th at Monmouth interrupted my winning ways before I was back "in" New Castle, Delaware for the Grade 3 R.G. Dick Memorial on the turf.  This eleven furlong marathon event looked to me to come down to one of the two former European runners with my choice being Sopran Basilea.  Like her rival she could boast Group wins in Europe and a solid Beyer here in North America.  But to me what separated them was that 'Sopran had only been out once here when finishing 2nd in a Grade 3 on Preakness weekend while rival had already had two starts and her big figure in NA had been in an entry level allowance.  Much like the Turf King race, Sopran Basilea was at the back until they hit the far turn.  Looked to have no where to go behind horses and then the jockey saw the narrowest of openings and squeezed through at the 16th pole to burst to the front just in time to win.  She had been one of the betting choices from the time wagering opened but in the final minutes all the money went to the "other" Euro import.  This allowed Sopran Basilea to somehow drifted all the way up to 7/2 post time odds.  With my triple investment on board I cashed for almost $70.  YAY ME!

The 7th at Laurel wasn't a stakes event, but this conditioned allowance carried a purse of $70 - compared to the stakes events carrying $75K purses - AND the field contained several stakes winners.  It was a six furlong dash and while I could make a case for several it looked like multiple stakes winner Princess Kokachin would take them gate to wire.  The Delaware went official and I flipped screens to Laurel to see Princess Kokachin trotting back to the winner's circle.  WHOOO HOOO.  Watching the replay I saw I'd indeed been correct - right to the front and never looked back.

In Belmont's Grade 3 Dwyer I went with the slight upset choice of lightly raced Saudi King to upset Bob Baffert's Fort Bragg.  Wire to final jump before the Baffert colt was up in time.  Back to Ellis Park  as Hoist The Gold went wire-to-wire in a money allowance to close out a 6-for-8 run to get my winning percentage back up again.

Another skid of five losses - two of which were "prime time" / big bets that ran 3rd & 4th - and a 2nd place finish at 2/5 in the Grade 2 Fleur de Lis at Ellis Park in a three horse race, wow before back in the winner's circle.  The finale at Delaware was a starter optional claiming sprint going just five and a half furlongs.  Wild Behavior's last two speed figures topped 205 of the 207 combined career figures earned by the rest of the field and NEITHER of those appeared on the page.  Sent off as the prohibitive favorite he easily disposed of the field to give me my tenth winner on the day.

Last year's 2yo filly champion Wonder Wheel just had not looked the same this year over the winter, but I thought MAYBE she'd run well returning to her home base in Toronto for Mark Casse in the Grade 3 Selene Stakes.  Was right there to the turn and stopped.  Time to stop believing she's going to get back to that juvenile form.  The Concern Stakes at Laurel provided my next score as Prince Jericho tracked the pace setters to the top of the stretch, swung six wide into the lane and exploded to the front to post the win.

Lost four in a row with three off the board, but when Set Piece rallied to be third in the Grade 2 Wise Dan (to a $90 winner ridden by top national jockey Flavian Prat!) I got my money back on the Twin Spires promotion.  Now it was time for the national highlight race, the Grade 1 Stephen Foster at Ellis Park which was a Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" race.  There were SIX millionaires in the line-up and I thought that at least five of them had very legitimate shots at the win.  West Will Power had lost the Grade 3 Alysheba last time out at 3/5 odds when dueling all the way to the top of the lane, but I thought today jockey Flavian Prat would have him loose on the lead.  Well, partially right.  He sat just off the front runner into the far turn while the two of them were well clear of everyone else.  He easily coasted to the front and looked home free.  But then Rattle N Roll came flying at the end to make it interesting, but too little too late and I had the winner.

Minutes later it was time for the one and only "Summit of Speed" stakes, the Grade 3 Smile Sprint.  Dean Delivers looked way the best of these and I was amazed he was not sent off at 1/5 odds or lower from the way I perceived the chances of everyone else.  Right to the front in complete control and coasted home under wraps with my "prime time" wager on board paying an uber-generous $4.40 to win.  How is that possible?

The Grade 3 Dominion Day at nine furlongs over the Woodbine synthetic was next and I wrote in my analysis that I believed Tyson could be an emerging star in the older handicap division.  He'd earned "paired" Beyers, the most recent a third in the Grade 2 Eclipse - the prep for this - and was third off the shelf today.  As the rain began to come down he swept up EIGHT wide into the lane, got to the front - dueled and edged clear late.  And the best part - he was allowed to leave the gate at better than 4/1 odds so I cashed for nearly $60!

I thought my three race winning streak was coming to an end as I watched the finale from New York, a maiden claiming two-turn turf event.  Miracle Mike not only trailed from the get-go, but as the field straightened into the stretch he was still dead last.  Being ever the optimist I did have the briefest of hopes as he was making up some ground.  As the camera swung to cover the field, 'Mike was out of the picture and then all of the sudden you could see he was getting three strides to every one of the rest of the field!  And even at the 16th pole when still mid-pack I thought, "he's going to catch them all!" and he blew by - WOW, make it four in a row!

Closed out the day with my SIXTEENTH winner on the day when Xigera rallied through the stretch - after a long weather delay in Kentucky - to win the Tepin Stakes on the rain-soaked turf.  Seemed only appropriate that Julian Leparoux was on board the filly as he'd been multiple graded stakes winning Tepin's regular jockey!

The final race of the day for me was the Grade 2 Nasseau where my choice, Moira went off as the 4/5 favorite but ran 2nd - BUT got my money back again thanks to the wagering promotion.  So for the day I went 16-for-46, a 35% winning clip.  But I also got money back on three races to boost my "cash" rate to 40%

Sunday July 2
I had bets at Monmouth but when almost half of them scratched I looked through the entries on the day and added some "fun bets" to keep me "interested."  Won with three of them - the only win at Monmouth - ironically the ONLY win on the Jersey Shore all weekend (went winless there Friday and Saturday) was with No Salt in the third who paid a generous $8.40 allowing me to cash for $40 and change.  JohnnyZ From Albany wired a Laurel sprint at low odds.  Then I closed out the day with a prime time win when Zozos wired the Hanshin Stakes at Ellis Park.

With the calendar turning to July this weekend I ran my figures for the month of June - pretty impressive if I do say so myself!

June Totals

Social Media this week......

The first "social media" story wasn't so much in the media but happened to Kim and I on Sunday at dinner.  Kim and I decided to celebrate the 4th of July early and go out to a nice restaurant, J.Alexander's in Plantation.  I showed Kim I was wearing a light tan sport coat with a button-down shirt and she put on one of her cute new dresses she'd purchased for our upcoming trip to France.  As we walked in and the hostess took us to our booth we passed a booth right in front of ours that had two girls seated there.  One was "ok" looking, but the blonde facing us as we approached was very cute.  OK, I did take notice.  When we'd finished dinner I asked Kim if she wanted to split a dessert to take home and she said he'd only eat a couple bites but she'd seen online that they had what looked to be a delicious carrot cake with thick icing.  No thanks, I don't want all the calories and we paid, and got up.  As we passed the booth with the two girls, Kim and I both paused as there in the middle of the table was THE carrot cake - it was huge and just dripping with thick icing.  The one girl saw us looking and said, "It IS delicious."  I replied that it sure looked it and that it had to have so many calories.  The cute blonde then looked me in the eye and said sweetly, "You should try a bite.....go ahead, you can take a bite."  I hesitated, Kim was smiling at me.  The other girl said, "Yes, please....take a bite.  Grab a fork from that table and try it."  I glanced at our table but the silverware was already cleared away and the cute blonde pointed to an empty table behind us with the place settings wrapped in the napkins.  "Grab one of those forks and take a bite!"  Kim said, "Go ahead, I think you should."  So I did.  "So good, right?" said both the girls and I agreed they did.  As we walked out Kim said, "I knew you'd try it."  I replied, "Well, first of all I was NOT going to turn down a chance to taste what looked like an oh-so-delicious carrot cake, especially with all that icing.  But second, if a cute blonde girl asks me to do something, I am always going to have a hard time refusing." We both smiled at the "adventure." - AND Kim has had me repeat the story several times since.

While not the ACTUAL two girls - you get the picture....just HAD to illustrate this adventure!

Amber is one of my former students and was in fact the very first student in the WISE program that I mentored.  She and I have kept in touch as she's gotten married, had two little ones and moved to Vermont.  But this week I saw a couple of posts that seemed to indicate that she and her husband were getting divorced in an amicable break-up.  Having been there, done that I messaged her and she replied.

Brianna was half of a mischievous duo of cute girls I had in class (with Leah who've I've posted pics of previously) and it was her birthday so I reached out to her. 

Tati is one of my all-time favorites, and she will tell you that she IS my all-time favorite - though I'd imagine gal-pal Kimmy would have something to say about that!  Anyway, Tatianna graduated for the final time with her last medical degree and I congratulated her.

Our "Panthers Girl," Emma sent out an email with a special offer for a suite at the arena for a series of concerts over the summer.  I wrote back that she was "suite" to offer but we had travel plans for the summer and she responded with a sweet email.

I reached out to my girl Kimmy and told her I was thinking of her, again, as it was four years ago on THIS day in racing that we last met for a "dinner date" at Gulfstream, which always seemed to be "our spot" to get together.  She and I then exchanged some text messages.

But the best interactions was a series of week-long interactions with gal-pal, CBS-Miami anchor Lauren Pastrana.  First, much like last week when I reached out to her about her change in hair color, I've become more comfortable in our "friendship" to reach out with a comment like below where she had on a "cute little black dress" and I noted it.  Note - like so many other times that she answered WHILE ON THE AIR.  Then later in the week she had on a bright "sunshine yellow" dress and I reached out to her just after the evening news telecast had started at 5:11pm.  Note that in less than five minutes, WHILE ON THE AIR she replied to me :)  Finally, Lauren and I exchanged messages twice when she hosted an excellent thirty-minute program on Alzheimer's disease.

Northern Stars Night / Ohio Derby Weekend

 June 21 - June 25

Summer 2023

It was an extended weekend of racing as Summer 2023 kicked off.  I always look forward to the racing at Canterbury Park - especially since I have been there twice.  And one of the highlights is their "Northern Stars Turf Festival" program.  I'd enjoy playing the program regardless, but that it's on a Wednesday instead of Saturday is a plus and even more so that it's an evening program make it extra special for me.  I didn't win as many races as I would have liked but I came out a winner for the night because I played on Xpressbet which was offering a money-back promotion on the entire card.  The opener was a starter allowance event which looked to come down to either Reckoning Day or Kierkegaard who'd faced off last month.  The former had run away with that contest but the latter had been a short priced favorite and I thought stood a good chance to rebound this evening.  In the end, I went with Reckoning Day to extend his four race winning streak with the top rider on board and he was being heavily backed.  And because of that I upped my bet to make him a double investment.  Right to the front and never looked back, widening the margin through the lane.

Ran 6th in the first of the stakes and then was second in the Curtis Sampson Oaks as the 4/5 favorite.  But got cash back on that one.  In the Lady Canterbury I liked Regal Realm who was an improving filly being ridden by Florent Geroux tonight.  Her last two Beyers made her strictly the one to beat.  Was away a bit slowly in the two-turn mile turf event, but rated comfortably outside in the clear to the far turn.  Asked for run she swept by the field in hand and drew off as she pleased.  

I didn't win any of the final three events - two with minimum plays.  In the Dark Star Turf Sprint it looked like a crap shoot so I went with a price play - 4th at 7/2.  In the Canterbury Derby I had the 8/5 second choice - who'd never been on the turf.  One In Vermillion set the pace to deep stretch and weakened in the final 50 yards - so at second I got my money back.  And in the finale I ran 2nd at 2/1 so I got my money back.  In the end I cashed on five of the seven races I made wagers.

No racing for me on Thursday, but I watched the morning races from Royal Ascot and then on Friday I made a play at Royal Ascot when "everyone" seemed to agree that the 3yo filly, Tahiyra was a star in the making.  Went in for prime time and watched her draw off impressively late to cash my first ticket on the day.

There was a lot of weather on the Jersey Shore so racing was off the turf.  Friday cards are always an abbreviated eight races, and I had three "PASS" races already.  Take out the picks for off-the-turf racing and I had only two horses that I bet money on.  In the third Lord Mio was sent off at even money, carrying my minimum wager.  Confidently tracked the pace setters into the turn then took off in hand.  Collected just a little over $10 on the $4.20 payoff so when I lost the second and final bet of the day (third at 5/2) I made money at Monmouth - along with the profit from the Royal Ascot bet.

Saturday:  Ohio Derby Day
I'd considered going out to Gulfstream today as Kim was out of town and I was going to be here alone.  And with that in mind I handicapped the Gulfstream Park card along with Ellis Park, Belmont, and Thistledown where the Ohio Derby stakes card would play out.  I'm not sure how serious I was about really going, but when the local weather forecast called for 60% chances of thunderstorms with localized flooding I reasoned that I'd see maybe four races live that I was betting on and the rest of the nearly 30 bets I'd make I'd be watching on a small computer screen with limited if any sound.  AND I'd drive 45 minutes, perhaps in rain storms and/or get drenched coming to or from the car - OR I could be in the comfort of the "Sunshine Simulcast Center" and watch the races of a big screen HD TV with full analysis and race calls.  So I stayed home.  Missed on the first three and again had the thought run through my head - "stick with it, you'll get your wins before the day is over."  And then they came in a bunch!  The third from Thistledown was a MSW for two-year-olds and there were some intriguing first time starters in the field.  BUT City Scene had been a sharp second on debut and in that race the 2yo filly had faced the colts!  Today facing unproven runners and back with her "own kind" looked to make her have a big advantage.  I planned to double the bet but she was being hammered early on so I upped the bet a notch.  She went right to the front but was joined by a debut runner.  They dueled to the turn before she began to edge away.  Once clear in the stretch she took off to win by open lengths as much the best and I had my first winner.

I was surprised when I was an off-the-board fourth at 3/5 in Monmouth's 2nd but then I went on a nice tear winning Seven of the next eight over the next hour and a half.  In the second at Gulfstream Fly The W just towered over the field.  I get it, and I've often said it....you start with the favorite and then you have to decide if they are a likely winner or not.  Many like the "value play" strategy but for me I either like the favorite because they are going to win and I bet them, or I don't think they will win and I try to beat them.  The idea of "I think that's the most likely winner but I'm going to bet someone else JUST to get a better price doesn't fly with me" (no pun intended LOL).  Fly The W was not a mortal lock but he HAD won four of his last seven over the synthetic here and in two of the losses it appeared to me the rider had taken him out of his comfort zone by putting him on the lead.  I knew he'd be a short price, but I also felt awfully confident he'd win.  Today he got the right ride tracking in fourth into the far turn.  Collared the leader mid-turn and then took off, drawing away as much the best.

In New York I got what turned out to be my only win there (from limited picks) when second time starter No Show Sammy Jo showed the improvement I anticipated and ran away as easily best in a MSW mile turf event.  Then got my first win at Ellis Park when Roja Ligera asserted her class edge in this $20K nw2L sprint.  She'd never seen restricted runners and when she burst out of the gate to a daylight lead it was quickly all over.

Ran third at even money in a 2-lifetime Belmont event before scoring again at Ellis.  You COULD have made a case that Sahlabiya didn't want to win as she'd already been out five times with three second place finishes and a third.  But for me I thought she was ready to run huge.  After two good efforts for Chad Brown as a 2yo he sent her to the Woodbine Oaks.  Then a barn change and she ran sharply off an eight month layoff at the GP Championship Meet for Brian Lynch before last time setting the pace and weakening to be second going 9 1/2 lengths at the tough Keeneland spring meet.  Meeting Ellis maidens would be a far easier task I thought - and third off the layoff often produces a big effort.  I tripled the bet.  Right to the front and clear by daylight.  Was collared on the turn, dueled to the top of the lane and put that one away as she spurted clear.  She was getting weary going the mile and a sixteenth after dealing with the pace challenge but she lasted by open lengths.  Two "PASS" races, a scratch and a "game time decision PASS" made the next bet the fifth at Ellis and I won again as Pigalle who was last heading into the turn before sweeping by the field and drawing off.  

The seventh at Thistledown was a nw3L allowance and I noted in my analysis that I was betting Fit To Fly but the wager would in part be determined by how Onasa ran in the 5th at TDN.  Both were trained by Larry Rivelli and were shipping in here.  Onasa was exiting a maiden win going wire to wire and I just wasn't convinced enough to bet but Fit To Fly had already won a few times.  Not a fan that his last win had been at 5f on the turf AND that he'd never been beyond 5 1/2 furlongs as he entered this 6f dash.  BUT he looked "good enough," and if Onasa ran well......And that one was a convincing winner so I not only played but upped the bet.  Dueled from the time the gate latch sprung to the top of the lane then edged clear through the final furlong for win #7 on the afternoon.

Ended the strong run with another winner at Gulfstream.  Many "value player" handicappers would look at Hot Foot Susie as an excellent opportunity to get a good price on someone else.  She had already been out TEN times and was dropping in class today from a pricey $40K level to this basement $12.5K price.  Red flags for sure.  But TO ME the sharp barn was finally putting her where she could win.  Right to the front and whistled the opening quarter in :21 and change going the abbreviated 5 1/2 furlong distance.  Would she tire?  Was well in hand turning for home and drew away showing she was well deserving of the short price AND my bet.

Over the next hour and a half and six bets it was a "return to normalcy" as I ran 2nd at 6/5 at Gulfstream then won at Monmouth when I didn't know if Justintimeforwine would set the pace and tire as she'd done oh-so-many times.  But under great front-running rider Jose Ferrer I thought she looked like the lone speed and MIGHT steal it as a price.  Never looked back at a pleasant 5/2 price with my minimum play on board.  Then I missed on four straight (one third and three off the board finishes.

Got back on track in the Monmouth featured event, the Goldwood Stakes.  If you'll recall from the Friday program in New Jersey we'd been off the turf, so I was uncertain what would come of the Saturday program.  But the rain had gone away and while it was overcast, races had been on the turf (i.e. the Justinthetimeforwine race).  But as the horses came onto the track for this 5 1/2 furlong turf sprint the skies opened up.  It didn't start to rain, it was POURING.  Right to the gate and off they went.  I thought Train To Artemus was a clear favorite and a very likely winner - but what about in the pouring rain over a grass-slicked course?  Broke sharply then took back off the pace.  Angled outside then split horses at the top of the lane and ran on to be much the best under Paco Lopez with my triple investment on board.  And minutes later I got my third win from Gulfstream when Local Abarrio was much the best.

Looked like my prime time play on Gerrymander at Belmont was solid when she led in hand to the top of the lane.  Looked to me like Joel Rosario wasn't paying attention and thought he could coast home.  When another filly came to her with all the momentum he reacted too late - in my opinion to put up a fight and I finished second.  Rallied to be second in the Lady Jacqueline at Thistledown at even money, but got my money back as Xpressbet offered money-back on the stakes events, so I made my stakes bets there.  The final race of was the featured Grade 3 Ohio Derby featuring Kentucky Derby runner-up Two Phils.  By the numbers he looked to be an easy winner and he was, drawing off as he pleased.

And so I closed a great day with numbers of 12-for-27 and a clear profit.  

An interesting story to kick off Sunday.  It was at some point shortly after the Ohio Derby that I was on social media and I saw a tweet that Equinox was running in the Group 1 Takarazuka Kinen in Japan.  If you follow my racing you may recall that on Dubai World Cup Day I was watching the races getting ready for my day at the track and Equinox was preparing to run in the Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic on the turf.  All the TV handicappers said he was the "best horse in the world and should be an easy winner."  I did a quick Google search and confirmed that opinion then watched him win so impressively that I actually said outloud "WOW" as he ran through the lane effortlessly to score.  So when I saw that he was running in Japan I thought I'd bet him.  Thought I'd go "prime time" on him and then add a secondary wager using the two platforms and bankrolls I have.  So I opened up Xpressbet and found first of all that the race from Japan had a 2:40 am EST post time.  OK - I won't be staying up for THAT!  And I made a $20 bet.  Opened up Twin Spires and discovered that for some reason Twin Spires allowed betting on Races 1-9 from Japan but the three big stakes races were "no bet" contests through their platform.  I could never figure out why, but I decided maybe it was a sign that I should be content to let the $20 bet ride.  Went to bed and fell asleep soundly.  I always seem to wake up at least once if not a couple times during the night and I did again.  Raised my head to check the time, and it was as though I had an internal "post time clock" as the time was 2:35 am - I can watch the race!  Opened up Xpressbet and saw that with minutes to post time Equinox was the prohibitive 1/9 choice in a 17-horse field and that at least ten of the runners had $0 bet on them.  OH MY.  I quickly upped the bet from $20 to $50 to make him the BET of the Week.  The announcers noted that the eleven furlong race had a short stretch and that was a concern for me as Equinox - who I'd seen go wire to wire in Dubai - quickly dropped to the back, 16th of 17.  But the rider seemed awfully confident.  Into the final turn and still at the back....what about the traffic and the short stretch.  Eased the champion into the clear and still was not showing any urgency.  Some 5-to-10 wide into the short stretch, still mid-pack when Equinox, always within himself lengthened stride and easily went on by to win!  Smiled, shut down the computer and headed back to bed with my first winner of "the day" in hand.

The Monmouth card on Sunday saw us again off the grass with the torrential storms at the end of Saturday's program.  The ten races carded included four grass races and when I handicapped the card Saturday morning I was mindful that the previous day's turf races had been rained off so I was uncertain what racing conditions would be.  I found only five races that I liked from the ten and two of those were on the turf.  In the opener I liked a runner but ONLY if it stayed on the grass.  Races were off so he scratched.  My second bet, which turned out to be the first of the afternoon was a "Paco play" because he had landed on a maiden runner who'd been to the gate TWENTY-FIVE times.  An automatic "NO" for me under normal circumstances, but at Monmouth with first time Paco I was willing to risk the minimum.  Speed to the stretch and stopped.  Oh well.  In the fourth I really liked Hair Point who again had Paco aboard.  My oldest Jeff was visiting for the day and I said to him prior to the race, "the biggest reason this horse may not win is that the first three races saw the favorite win twice and get beat in a photo after stumbling badly at the start."  But 'Haig looked strong to me on the strength of the move to the Jorge Delgado barn - he had all the stats.  Took the lion's share of money and left the gate as the short-priced 4/5 favorite.  Missed the break by a step or two, but advanced behind the leading trio to sit fourth through the turn.  The rail opened up like the parting of the Red Sea and he looked home free, but the leader was still clear and dove down inside putting 'Haig in a tight spot.  Behind by 3/4 of a length he looked done, but at the 16th pole Paco implored his horse for more and he muscled through and got clear in the final fifty yards for the win.  ANYBODY but Paco loses that race.  Strong ride - well done.

The next race, in the middle of the card was the featured Tale of the Cat scheduled for a mile and a sixteenth on the turf.  I had a pick for both turf and dirt, and with it moving to the main track there were only four runners left, including my pick, with Sammy Camacho up.  Tracked fourth of the four to the far turn, slid into the clear, dueled to the final 100 yards and edged clear.

Missed in the finale, but when my pick was cold on the board I backed off the bet, so finished the day 2-for-4 at Monmouth - 3-for-5 counting the early morning Japan race - and a clear profit again.  So for the week I was 16-of-37 with a $2.13 ROI overall.  A very good week!

Social Media this week.....
Multiple interactions again this week - it IS important to me as I've mentioned of late because I have very little in person contact.  Worth repeating since Lauren Pastrana is a social media friend that I frequently interact with.  On Monday her hair looked different and - because we ARE friends - I tweeted out to her and she answered right back that indeed she had changed her hair.

Again I had several exchanges with my gal-pal Karli Barnett.  The first two were "very interesting."  You'll recall that I have a "deal" in the works with Viking TV to do an episode about my travels, maybe a series.  So I'd sent a personal message to Karli and she thought that was cool.  That was last week.  So I responded to her and asked if she would be a "guest" on my program.  And she replied she would if her contract allowed that.  Interesting....so I then pursued the conversation and said that if her contract did not we should co-host and travel the world together.  And added - because I know she's expressed a desire to go to Greece - that we should do "our" first show from Greece.  Nearly always when I send a personal message to Karli it's multiple days before she replies.  I sent this out and within the hour she replied, "Sounds amazing!"  Wait....WOULD she really go with me?  INTERESTING.  Had another exchange with her on the weekly live chat.

Gal pal and former work buddy Melissa posted a picture from yet another of her workouts - she's so dedicated.  And I noted that I loved her hat, a Florida Panthers hat.  Made me feel all fuzzy when she responded "I wore it for you."  :)

Good gal-pal to both Kim and I, Shelly posted about being on a vacation with her family to Montana.  Pics looked great, as Shelly always does.

Finally, former student and social media friend Michelle posted the first of a series of photos from her wonderful trip to Scotland.  Then she posted about it being her birthday.  She reacted to both my comments.  She was one of THE sweetest girls I ever had in class at Cypress Bay.