I’m back here at Del Mar for the second and final day of the stay, and there’s plenty of interest being generated by a $488,667 carryover in the pick six.
The pool just closed and there’s virtually $2.5 million in the pot, though there’s none of my cash in there. Hitting a daily double is taxing enough for me – unless my new best pal Mary can give me some more picks like her $61 winner yesterday.
The weather here is quite pleasant with no humidity, though it’s somewhat confusing to an East Coast guy. Driving here at 10 a.m., I thought I was in London as my car was engulfed in the fog. That’s melted away into a mostly bright day, though there is a lot of haze in the sky.
The card is immensely playable, which spells a pretty enjoyable day at the place where the Turf meets the Surf.
Speaking of wagering, time out for a bit of a recap.
Had a very nice day at the windows yesterday, especially since Mary posted on my “Connecticut Yankee Goes To Del Mar” blog a tip on Win for M’lou, who paid $61 in the seventh race.
Also thought another tip came up a winner as I followed up the suggestion of poster Michael and went out to the far end of the grandstand to watch the last race on Thursday’s card, and hopefully cash a big double on Mary’s tip. Missed the double but it was an idyllic place to take in a race. It had a great view of the track, which seems to be right on top of the fans, and to the left you can see the ocean. Fellow visitors, check it out.
So far today, I’m one for two with my picks. Westwood Pride took the second at $13.80 but Black Coyote was third in the third.
All in all, not bad. Not as good as Mary, but not bad.
Speaking of gambling, a couple of other things:
It was interesting to get out here early and see west coast folks wagering on New York racing after seeing it the other way for years. Del Mar has a simulcast area that was filled Thursday as well as an overflow area that had rows of people watching and wagering on Saratoga, Calder and Arlington Park at 11 a.m. their time.
One quick point that came to mind was about tracks’ mutuel handle. You hear a lot of talk about eastern tracks’ higher handles, but you have to wonder how many western handicappers are tapped out betting on Saratoga before the first race post parade at Del Mar. Certainly understand that the opposite can happen with a big New York score fueling a huge betting day at Del Mar, but given the difficult nature of the Saratoga cards I would think this scenario favors the tracks that start earlier.
Also found that simulcasting is not what I’m used to seeing back east. The fans are quieter out here.
For example: My first wager at Del Mar featured a $20 win bet on Snow Top Mountain in the fourth at Saratoga, who was horse number 9 in the race. Watched the race outside the simulcast area, with no race call and no one saying anything.
As the field turned for home, Snow Top Mountain moved up on the outside and the loud mouth New York native in me came out as I started shouting, “C’mon 9, C’mon 9. Keep going!”
Snow Top Mountain seemed a sure winner at the eighth pole, except that she decided to hang like my living room drapes in the final furlong and the 6-5 favorite rallied to beat her.
I was quiet when my number nine passed the wire second until a seasoned pro seasoned seated next to me, looked over and said. “Damn horses never listen to you, do they?”
No they don’t.
And now I know why everyone was quiet. Horses never listen.
One final point on the card, involves yesterday’s mention of Goggles McCoy in the El Cajon today.
This has some sentimental value to me – and some friends – largely because of an escapade a few decades back at
Saratoga where a certain group of workers at a Stamford, Conn., newspaper devised a futile plan to “borrow” a 10-foot plastic chicken from a Chinese restaurant. The group that included your truly and wayward characters the likes of Vinny and Bobbo and JQ, now a prominent Philadelphia newspaper sports executive, was called “The Chicken Syndicate” after that eventful night.
Now if the Chicken Syndicate had a favorite horse it was Big McCoy, a front-running New York claimer who once triggered a big betting score after one of us got a tip on him on at Esposito’s, a bar near Belmont Park.
Bobbo passed away earlier this year, and in his memory today seems as good a day as ever to resurrect the old “Chicken Syndicate” and chase another McCoy, who is also a frontrunner.
Just wish he wasn’t the favorite, and Bobbo could place a few bucks on him.
As for the travels around Del Mar, here are a few more thoughts:
- I’m developing a liking for palm trees. Something soothing about them. I’m considering bringing one home to Connecticut with me, but a guy from United Airlines hung up on me when I asked if a 40-foot palm tree could be considered carry-on luggage.
- If you visit Del Mar, wherever you decide to sit, you have to go to the clubhouse and see the mural painted by Peb. It’s a classic. It’s just like the one at Belmont Park, and it serves as a timeline for all of the great personalities who made Del Mar such a great destination. It mixes horsemen, and even horses, with the famous movie and television stars who used to be Del Mar regulars.
Being old enough to actually remember stars like Bing Crosby, Oliver Hardy, Jimmy Durante, Lucille Ball and Red Skelton, it was a joy to look at the mural and read the key below it to see who everyone is. I didn’t recognize Robert Taylor right away.
Looking at the mural, it stood out at that the celebrities faded from sight as you looked from left to right and saw the faces of modern day Del Mar. Tim Conway seems to be the only living celeb on the mural. I was a big McHale’s Navy fan, so I won’t make a crack about that. But I do think it’s time Hollywood’s elite start venturing out to Del Mar once again. Can someone send a tweet to Jennifer Aniston and tell her to stop moping about Brad and making bad movies and get out to the racetrack? If it was good enough for Betty Grable and Dorothy Lamour, it’s good enough for her.
Get a hold of Tom Cruise after that. He should have some free time on his hands.
- If you’re in a nostalgic mood, you might also check out Bing’s Celebrity Grill on the third floor of the clubhouse. The walls are filled with great pictures of the celebrities that helped make Del Mar famous.
- I’m going back and forth on the Trackus images on the two infield screens. I do like being able to see exactly where my horse in the pack. The computer generated images on the other screen do a good job of replicating the race, but it’s not really the race, if you know what I mean. Why do I want to watch images of the real thing when I can see the real thing? Sorry, if that sounds like a Yogi-ism, but you should get the idea.
Well, let me get this filed before the webmaster back east falls asleep.
Before checking out, my thanks goes out to Mac McBride and Dan Smith and the rest of the first-class Del Mar publicity staff for their help and hospitality out here.
It was a load of fun being out there and the best tip I can give to racing fans is to get out here at Del Mar and have a blast.
|
