Churchill Over/Under Bet

Churchill has a new over/under bet. The wager is whether the sum of the program numbers of the first three finishers will be over or under a certain number.

Judging by the charts the bet is off to a horrendous start. The total pool for Monday's first race was $222. Perhaps Churchill was trying to appeal to the crowd that does not like racing. Maybe the first timers who want to bet something really easy and simple. The same people that like to sit at slots like zombies, pushing buttons till their bankroll is tapped. Appealing to this crowd is very difficult at a racetrack and multiple attempts by different tracks have led to failure after failure.

Handicappers like action and with a slew of big paying exotic bets on every race, the over/under has little appeal. If this bet was a dirty magazine it would be the J.C. Penney womens underwear catalog, not much appeal there for the hardcore player.

New Pick 3's At Belmont

A new surprise for the Belmont meet is that pick 3's will roll in all races. The daily double and late pick 4 are no long shielded from the pick 3. The wagering menu at Belmont indicates that two new pick 3's will be available. There will now be pick 3's in the first and sixth races where there never was pick 3's before.

Dutrow So Confident In Big Brown

The racing game disdains the kind of confidence that Dutrow is dealing when he speaks about Big Brown. While I admire his confidence, Dutrow is double dog daring the looming hand of racing luck to smack him and his horse down.

"Until somebody shows me the beast, this is not a tough horse race," Dutrow said in a typical recent interview. "I'm training this horse for a horse race; I don't care what the name of it is. I feel he's the best horse in the race - I feel he's going to win the race. Anything else is going to be extremely disappointing to me.

"I know there's no one going into this race as good as he is right now. If he breaks clean, it's a mismatch to me on paper."

Usually one can get away with this attitude for only so long before the game gives out a maximum dose of bad racing luck. Try going to the track with this attitude and making wagers, talk about a humbling experience. This type of talk is very polarizing, I see that Big Brown can go one of two ways. He is either going to run a fricken' hole in the wind and drop jaws or the horse is going to be up the track. If this horse does not win, he will not hit the board in the Kentucky Derby. Big Brown's performance is going to be something extraordinary or something commonly dull. When this horse gets beat it is going to be ugly.

Curlin Connections Eying The Turf

It looks like the turf may just be in Curlins future after all. A recent interview with Steve Asmussen on Capitol OTB TV hints that a trip to Paris is under consideration.

Is the Arc in Curlin's future?... Interviewed this weekend by host Mark Cusano on Capital OTB-TV's 'Down the Stretch', Steve Asmussen indicated that a trip to France this fall is possible for the reigning HOTY.
Cusano: "Have you mapped out any tentative plans for [Curlin]?"
Asmussen: "I think the debate needs to be with where the Breeders' Cup's run this year -- what kind of track they decide to put down at Santa Anita, and then if that's acceptable, if we want to move towards that or have an alternative goal for the rest of the his year. I believe that he physically can do about anything we ask of him so another trip out of the country is not impossible."
... Cusano: "A race out of the country -- I guess the first thing that would come to mind is something like the Arc d'Triomphe. Is that under any consideration? Are you looking to possibly test him on turf?"
Asmussen: "That is a race that Mr Jackson has mentioned."

Perhaps the original post about Curlin on the turf was a pipe dream but it looks like the connections are considering a very interesting yet sound line of thinking. A trip to Paris for the Arc may just be better than a trip to Los Angeles to run on a questionable surface in burning hot Arcadia California. Curlin's first run on the Turf should be in the Arlington Million.

Belmont Closing the Third Floor Grandstand Most Days

While I know that it is important for NYRA to cut
costs closing off the entire third floor grandstand
at Belmont is a horrible mistake that marginalizes
one of Belmonts best attributes. The 3rd floor
grandstand seats provide some of the best views in
all of sports and that area is one of the most
popular sections of the plant during the Belmont
meet. The great view from those seats are one of the
best parts of going racing at Belmont and it is
unique to all tracks. A few sections of the third
floor grandstand near the finish line should remain
open for all racing days. I hope I misunderstood the
website or NYRA re-thinks this decision. E-mail NYRA
and let them know what you think.

nyra@nyrainc.com

Third floor & portions of second floor closed most day to cut expenses, electrical use, security costs and to facilitate better customer service (closed areas will be reopened on Belmont Stakes Day and other major days)Expanded picnic amenities, West End, Grandstand apron

TVG Giving NYRA The Shaft

Ever since TVG lost exclusive rights to NYRA, the races from Aqueduct have been given a very low priority. In fact Aqueduct has been given a lower priority than Bay Meadows and other Harness tracks.

TVG Priority List
1) So-Cal TB racing (Hollywood or Santa Anita)
2) Keeneland (They love this track and send people there to host, very close to So-Cal)
3)Los Alamitios ( Gets great coverage from them complete with hosts and top billing)
4) Meadowlands Harness- This track has its own hosts and its own show. Nothing will trump MED harness when it is running)
5) Bay Meadows- (This track gets top billing and even has its own on site reporter)
6)NYRA- (They will usually show NYRA races live as long as the one of the 4 tracks of higher priority are not running. However NYRA does not have its own hosts on site)
7)C Type tracks like Suffolk Downs or Tampa Bay ( These tracks get only Stretch Calls and are often shown 30 mins after the race is run)


Fifteen minute delay on showing Aqueduct race eight today. The Aqueduct race went off at about the same time as a 3 furlong Hollywood two year old race but the Hollywood race was shown live. Then they chatted about the excitement of the Hollywood two year old dash and showed repeated replays from all angles. Then instead of showing the now completed Aqueduct race TVG elected to show Keeneland Race 8, then they showed a Bay meadows 3K claimer. With the Aqueduct race now official TVG then chatted about Keeneland results. Then they went to a commercial. When they returned the Aqueduct race was long over but they went right to the Hollywood prices. Then they showed a stretch call from Tampa. At this point I thought I missed the Aqueduct race as the hosts began to talk about the next Hollywood race. After setting up the next Hollywood race, they showed the prices from Keeneland and Bay Meadows. Finally after all that they showed the Aqueduct Race 8. New York is getting the shaft from TVG

23APR Play Of The Day

Race 6 at Aqueduct
#4 Wild Vicar fits the condition to a tee winning last on 17OCT. The only one who has not been running in restricted company lately. The clear play here on the cutback.

W#4

20 3-3-1
strike rate 15%
cumulative return $37.00
ROI $1.85

Breeders Cup Trials In The UK

The Breeders Cup and a new UK track are forging a partnership. They will run a Breeders Cup trial card at Great Leighs where they will race over polytrack. The winners will be part of the win and you are in promotion. This is excellent news as the Breeders Cup has seen sagging European participation in the last few years. With the dollar crashing in value and the races at far flung and sultry Santa Anita the next two tears, the breeders cup needed to do something to ensure international participation.

Ascot is also getting into the breeders cup act and three new races have been designated win and you are in. The three new races, all run at one mile on the turf, will be held at the Ascot Festival are: the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (G1), sponsored by Sony, for 3-year-olds and up; the Meon Valley Stud Fillies’ Mile (G1) for 2-year-old fillies and the Juddmonte Royal Lodge (G2) for colts and geldings.