A Saratoga wrap up, best and worst
 

This is one of the darkest days of the year for many. The meet we await all year is done. The thing that makes Saratoga special above the racing is the fact that its the only time all year long that everyone gathers in the same spot. The company is enjoyed as much as the races. Heres a personal wrap up of the meet.

Best Performance by a horse- Bernadini's Travers was the performance of the meet. It was one of those races that noone will ever forget where they were standing and watching when he turned the Travers into a personal romp. WIns this hands down.

Worst performance by a horse- Flower Alley's Woodward. After he returned to the races this year, many who thought he was HOY material were awaiting his Spa races. After failing in the WHitney, the Woodward was his chance to redeem himself and get back in the picture. To watch a horse who had battled so nicely in the BCC as a three year old run as horribly as he did officially burst his bubble and put him out of the picture.

Best single ride by a jockey- Johnny V's ride on Baymont in a 40 claimer for fillies and mares has to be seen to be appreciated. It was mind blowing.

Worst ride by a jockey- Garrett Gomez ride on Milwaukee early in the meet was as bad a ride as any I have ever seen. In trouble for a mile and 3/8th's of a mile and a half race. Has to be seen to be appreciated.

Best performance by a jockey at the meet- Julien leparoux may not be the best rider up here, but his meet was incredible. Not only did he smash the apprentice record up here, he won stakes and allowances and MSW's with very cool and competent rides. Its very hard for a bug boy to do well at the Spa. Its also very hard for a Kentucky rider to ship iin win a lot of races. As good as pat Day and Shane sellers ever were, neither one ever came here and set the place on fire. Its hard to hustle mounts from NY trainers when all your connections are KY guys. WIth the exception of Blasi(who leparoux rarely if ever rides for) the Ky contingent was awful up here and Leparoux had to build a client base of Ny trainers. he started slow but once he had the momentum and had won folks over, he rode extremely well.

WOrst performance by a jockey- I didn't really see any jock who rode poorly the whole meet. It was the deepest colony in history and even the guys who only eeked out a small number of wins actually rode well considering who they were up against.

Best performance by a trainer- Although Todd won more races and stakes races than anyone else, I also have to give Kudos to Scott Blasi who deserves one HELL of a lot of credit for his performance up here. He managed to win a high percentage number of races, two juvenile stakes races including the Spinaway, and accomplished this while on his own while Asmussen serves a suspension. His horses really fired, and it looks like his two year olds will be heard from throughout the fall. Especially that Tiznow freak.

Worst performance by a trainer- Its a tie for the Kentucky contingent of Dallas Stewart and Dale Romans. Both were hitting on all cylinders in KY all year long before coming to the Spa and going ice cold. Stewart never got a win, and Romans underperformed beneath his usually gaudy win percentage. ATM usage was at a record high this meet when those guys ran early in the meet before anyone figured out that they were cold. It just wasn't their meet.

Best performance by a host- Stevie fed literally hundreds of guests all meet long as well as hosting TG's seminar and and saving picnic tables so that friends of his could enjoy the races. On a scale of 1-10 as a host, Steve is a 50!!!

Best performance by a newspaper- When the Saratoga Special first started back after Sean Clancy was injured in a jump race and switched professions, it was a small paper that seemed like a passing fad. In its short history its become a saratoga tradition. Incredibly well written late into each night, it provides a vast array of current news and previous days happenings, interesting interviews with players in the game, hysterical quotes from the backside, and very good editorials. WHat these guys have done is incredible. They've taken a small paper written in a small office, and brought it to MUST READ status in a small amount of time. They work their butts off and know what they are talking about.

It was a good time and after all of the many bets and atm withdrawls, finished the meet pretty much okay. Cashed 4 meaningful tickets to offset about 50 losing bets. Enjoyed meeting Hooves, Ateam, Gales for the first time. Was pleasantly surprised when GolfproKev called me on Sat morning to tell me he was flying in for the last 2 days of the meet, although we got our butts kicked yesterday, we had a great time. Steve, as usual, was a gracious host and its always a pleasure to reaffirm my selections (Thanks by the way for agreeing that Galluscio's Honour Old Glory had a huge shot last Monday, that saved my meet). I missed Randall both times he was here but hopefully will see him and the NY gang at Belmont on Oct 7th for a reunion! Oracle kept the laughs flowing even when times got tough.

322 days left until next season. Can we make it without placing one single bet until then? Sure we can :confused:

Yes Tim there are truly some great folks on this board.
Enjoyed meeting Hooves, seeing Ateam again, meeting Billinct, Epburns, Brock, Hickory Hill Hoff, seeing randall again, seeing Kev again(if he lived here I would be in real trouble, we just click too well) and meeting so many others.
Wasn't anyone from here that I met that I didn't really like a lot. Great bunch of folks on this board, thats for sure.

Driving Kev to the airport at the crack of dawn was classic today. Picture 2 hungover and tired guys driving down the street each proclaiming that it was indeed time for a gambling break and both a little glad the meet was over. We drive 3/10ths of a mile and what do we see? Horses working out on the Oklahoma track, backdrop is the sun slowly rising. A little funny and sad.

Its refreshing to get back to normal life again. Feels like opening day was many months ago.

Oops, sorry to leave out meeting Dell on my first trip to the track this year, too many Saturdays ago to remember!

Oh those Chitown guys were awesome, what a group!! And Bold Brooklynite as well, can't forget him!

As the trees get ready to turn, the horse trailers are loaded up, and the quiet of Saratoga returns. Another summer is taken away from us, as your thoughts turn to the Breeders Cup, cutting and stacking firewood, Must winter be on its way ? Another long wait till the Magic of the Spa comes to life again next July. Wouldnt it be grand if I got one wish from the ""genie in the bottle""....and wished for a Breeders Cup @ the Spa ? Is it just me or do i need ONE more big weekend from the Spa ? Maybe if we all take a minute tonight and gaze upon the stars and just make One wish, the form will have entries for this weekend @ Saratoga !
I enjoyed everyones post and insight into the summer of saratoga, please keep up the good work & winning tips !!

Btw.... when does Toss the Feathers run again....LOL:D

You know Bill,
The reasons they say they won't run the BC at the Spa are absolutely ridiculous. WIth the Oklahoma training track and its barns, and the cool weather that would make the Euros feel at home, and the fact that they would sell out to an incredible capacity crowd, it simply makes no sense not to have it here. I will never understand it. Airport is in close proximity for shippers, and obviously big days up here each year are the norm. A Wednesday- Saturday meet which ended in the BC would be a smashing success like none ever seen.
The reason I hear most often is tha lack of heat within the plant. I'm not quite sure that anyone would care. It gets cold in other places where they have the BC as well. I won't ever understand why they can't hold it here. I guess the juvenile races would have to lengthened like they did at Arlington, but other than that it would be a smooth fit.

worst rides of the meet
 

You must of been sleeping on the few rides Ramon Dominguez layed down especially yesterday aboard Olaya. Talk about a career going in the wrong direction. A couple of years ago everybody was excited about the possibility of Ramon riding full time in New York. Now he couldn't bump Rudy Rodriguez off a mount

Had he ridden full time here he would get mention.
I agree with your asessment of him. How about that ride on Olaya? What the hell was he doing out there? I just can't believe he flew all the way up here for the privilege of grabbing a stalking horse VERY hard and strangling here way behind a soft pace being set by a one run closer.
He rides that way all the time at delaware but usually gets away with it because hes on 1-2 shots in each race.
He and his agent made a huge mistake going back to Delaware this spring. In order to be one of the best you have to ride against the best on a daily basis. There is always going to be a learning curve where you will struggle before becoming better. Gomez finally stopped making daily mistakes about half way through the meet after being in NY for 3 1/2 months. Looked like he finaly learned that the hole was rarely, if ever, gonna open up for him and if you watched his last three weeks he made wide moves or went to the lead.
He finally adjusted his style to fit the circuit he was riding on. His rides on that Violette turf maiden who got beat by Stag Dancer and his ride on Milwaukee earlier in the meet were two examples of him still refusing to understand that you can't wait for a hole to open in Ny, they aren't gonna give you one. To win in Ny you have to keep your horse in the clear.

If they can make it work @ Momouth Park along the seashore, Im sure they can do it @ saragota. Heck with the winters (global warm.) we been having it probably will not be that cold to start with & maybe no thunder showers...lol If somehow a ground swell could be started of racing fans and maybe for the Magic of Saratoga and the 25th anniversary of the Breeders Cup !

Gomez was the best jock of the meet by far. His numbers were incredible. He had the highest win percentage of any jock. He had the highest in the money percentage by far. Not only that, he was doing it on price horses. Look at the prices of some of his horses lately. Keen Lassie pays $12.80 to win, Corryville pays $10.20 to place, Second of June pays $19.00 to place, Tiz Wondeful pays $12.60 to win, Zanjero pays $6.50 to place, Sipsey pays $16.00 to win, On the Catwalk pays $15.20 to win. Those are just a few of the horses he rode the last 3 days. He's the only jockey you could bet on every race and make money. He is so far the best that it really isn't close. He will often times move a horse up by 3-4 lengths. I'm glad that most of you don't get it. I'm glad you think that Edgar Prado is just as good as Gomez. That's like thinking that David Toms is as good as Tiger Woods. It's absurd. They're not in the same league.

If anyone has the stats, I'd like to see the ROI on Gomez' horses at Saratoga compared to Prado and the other jocks.

I do agree Gomez is a great jockey and question his constant criticism, but I dont agree with your golf analogy. Thats insane. Saying that Prado is just as good as Gomez isnt even close to saying David Toms is as good as Tiger. David Toms isnt even the 2nd or 3rd best golfer. And in golf, the players are the ones who do all the work. While aided by very sharp caddies, they have to make every swing. They arent helped like jockeys are with brilliant horses, like Bailey, Prado and Johnny V have been.

And Tiger Woods is a once in a lifetime athlete. I dont think any jockey in the history of time is as good at his craft is Tiger is at golf.

Prado is a proven star and he is consistent. Gomez needs to actually win a title here first, LOL! He then needs to even out his good week/bad week style. "I won the races I tried to win" are his words, not mine. And everything you need to know about him is summed up in that statement.
Professionals like Prado always show up and give you an effort. They don't pull Milwaukee's. Rupert, I know you can't do this, but go ahead an try. Find on ride by Prado or Johnny the whole meet that was 1/2 as horrible as Gomez's ride on Milwaukee. Good luck.
Thats what seperates the very best, the ability to not destroy a horse witha ride like that.

not winning a god damn cent saratoga was all the worst for me, ****in pure incentive costing me a few thousand dollars

Not to turn this into a golf thread, but Tiger just won his 5th tournament in a row, 1 short of his personal best 6 in a row which he did in 99-00.

Comparing Prado and Gomez is a very valid comparison. They are both great at what they do and both aided by the fact they ride the very best horses.

There are times Prado is better and there are times when Gomex is better. They both ride in streaks.

David Toms couldnt shine Tiger's shoes.

If you watch these two guys ride on a horse coming down the stretch, you can't compare the two. It's not close. Toms and Tiger are closer in ability than Gomez and Prado. It's just hard to prove because there is no way to prove how much is the jockey and how much is the horse. In addition, horses don't run the same every time, so even if a horse improves by 4 lengths the first time Gomez rides it, you can't say for sure that it was a result of the jock switch. The horse may have simply been feeling better that day.

I'm still not sold on Prado. Over the year, I've seen guys dominate in New York that can't ride a lick. I admit that Prado must be a smart rider. He's obviously doing something right but when you watch him coming down the lane, he really doesn't look like he can ride much. I would say the same for Ramon Dominguez. It's amazing that Dominguez could be the leading rider anywhere. He can't even ride and whip a horse at the same time.

Damn--made me wish that I had gone up there for a few.

Nice wrap-up,Oracle.

Milwaukee had nothing when she found room. I knew she wouldn't win when she came back unless she faced a really weak field. I hope you didn't bet her yesterday.

I agree that it is laughable to argue about who was the best jockey at the recently concluded Saratoga Meet. Gomez was easily the best and the numbers dont lie. This is a jockey that was NEW to the toughest racing circuit in the country and still managed to lead in percentage and dollars won. Quite a feat.

I dont agree that he is that much better than Prado though. By the mere fact that he is Edgar Prado, the prices on his mounts will be shorter. I am more comfortable saying that they are equivalent and that Gomez outrode him a little bit this meet.

Thanks jack. My real wrap up just occurred over on the Oracle or gander thread. If you really wanna know what it feels like when it closes, read that. Its the only time of the year when you get to see friends both near and far just about every day for 6 weeks. People put aside reality and whatever else to make sure that they are there. The rest of the year you may see friends at certain gatherings but its only once in a while and never in an atmosphere like that. Its pretty depressing. 5 1/2 weeks ago after the Jim Dandy I went out to dinner and then went swimming at a late night bbq party with friends at their house around the corner. The older you get the more you realize just how great a warm summer night like that is with the beer flowing and splashing around in a pool with friends after a great day of racing with another one on tap for the next day.
There will be football gatherings, baseball gatherings, and big race day gatherings still to come. But sitting in a house earing jeans and drinking beer watching tv while its cold outside and getting dark early can never in any way compare to what goes on here. Ask anyone who comes here or lives here, its not the races in the afternoon that matter. Its the warm and sunny mornings watching the horses workout, and the nights with friends. You can't get that at any other place.

The Spa meet isn't the only time everyone in the industry gets together
what about the horsemen out at Del Mar?
I'd consider the Derby and the BC more of an all-inclusive gathering
I'm not saying it isn't great, I'm sure it is
but when East meets West, and toss in Mid-west and International
to me, you'd have to rate that as higher horse racing affair

Bellamy you really don't get it.
Not everyone goes to the Derby or the Bc. Trust me, everyone goes to the spa.
At those events you can't even watch workouts without a badge or paying to get in.
Its not about the horse racing Bellamy. You can watch that on tv, and most people do.
saratoga's daily attendance is the highets average in the USA. Dwarfs every place else. Now why do you think that is when they could all stay home and watch on tv?
You really should come here once before you make a statement like that. I don't know how you could compare them without attending it.
I could go forever without attending a BC, and not care one bit. I love the derby and Kentucky, but if given a choice between never being there again, and attending the Spa. It would take less than a nanosecond to make the choice.

Lemme put it a better way. A guy like GPK comes here last year, and then actually flies into town the last two days this year on the spur of the moment just because he can't bear the thought of not being here for at least a day.
Del Mar? No sales there, so I don't know how you can say the whole industry gathers there, because they don't. Saratoga is attended by people all over the world. Many who pick up and ship outta wherever they live and rent overpriced houses and rooms or hotels. They don't do it to watch racing Mike. Everyone now can watch races in there homes and quite nicely at that. You don't drop everything you have going on, spend a fortune on rent, and head to Saratoga for the racing. The racing is only part of it, and in most cases its not the whole reason. Its the social gatherings, seeing friends, the nights out, and the mornings watching graded stakes horse after graded stakes horse prance onto the track to work out as you sip coffee in a clubhouse box while mary Ryan drones on and on.
You ever make it here, lets see what kind of tune you are singing after you leave. Maybe next year!!!

Have you ever been to Del Mar? It used to be great. It's not that great any more because both the dirt and the turf courses are all messed up. I don't like running horses on either surface down there. I won't have to worry about the dirt any more because they are geting rid of it but that turf course is a joke. It's like cement.

Prado is fine. If you put him on the best horse, he will usually win. However, he's not going to move horses up by a few lengths like Gomez.

Rupert,
I have always wanted to see del mar more than any other track. I've never tried to compare the atmosphere or ambience of the two because I couldn't do so in an intelligent manner obviously.
My friends are all unanimous in their praise of its women, atmosphere, and climate. All the folks I know give it a huge thumbs up.
The racing stinks there these days but I still wanna see it someday. It just doesn't work out for me because it starts before we start here by a week and overlaps. Someday though I'm gonna fly out of here on Tuesday(today) and catch the last two days and the Futurity. Maybe someday get to meet you and Alysheba and the West Coast guys on here.

I have never attended the Spa but you guys sure make me want to. My take on Del Mar(which I have attended] is kinda kike Texas stadium. The true Cowboy fan is not there . Its a place to be seen and the true fan watches at home. Texas stadium is nothing like Philly or Wash. I would like to throw another venue out there for you to attend . Oaklawn, sounds as if it comes close to the spa except it dosent have the magnitude of the everyone is there but the atmosphere sounds very similar.

Pops, the only reason its easier to accept the meet ending up here is because of the weather. Its now colder and dark today and the weather makes up so much of the atmosphere here. Those warm and sunny mornings and evenings and hot afternoons in the sun give it a certain flavor. People walking around in shorts, women in light summer dresses, etc.
If anything, I always thought NYRA should consider backing the meet up a week and ending before labor day. But they never will because the difference in handle and attendance at Spa the last week(though down from the other 5 weeks here) still dwarfs what they used to do at belmont back when they went home a week earlier.

The Saratoga Meet
 

As Usual It Is Over Rated .. Some Good Horses ..a Lot Of Not So Good Ones .. Small Fields In Big Races Was The Norm .. It Is Only Your Arrogance That Keeps You From Realizing That This Meet Is No Better Than Any Other New Yawk Meet, Give Me This Belmont Meet Coming Up..it Is The Best Bar None.. Sackatoga ,thank God It Is New Yawk, So Its Ego Driven Meet Stays In The Least Part Of The ****ry

Well 13 grade one races in one meet is the most of any meet in the country, even though its only a 6 week meet. The stars are on display.
I won't argue that with the expansion to 6 weeks that cheaper races are run more often than they ever were.
But I really don't think that if the meet was as you describe it that so many folks would come from so many places to be here for it.

Saratoga
 

Saratoga is a special place during a special time of the year.....
My favorite month of the year is August and my favorite place to be is Saratoga. Too bad it is so far away from the SF Bay area.

If you love horses then Saratoga is the place to be.... Especially, in the mornings - being on the backstretch, leaning over the rail at the Oklahoma track, walking around the barns.

The afternoons are special too. Sitting behind Steve's place and just hanging out with other horse players, friends.... The scenery is spectacular and the racing top notch. The best horses, jockeys and trainers all converge in this small town. It is truly a celebration of our sport....

I can not imagine what it is like living there and being able to participate on a daily basis.... ALso, what it feels like today, the day after the meet has concluded and the numerous vans take away the horses to Belmont and Aqueduct.

I need a break given the last six months of non-stop racing at the Mecca. That said, it won't be long until i start dreaming of the last Wendesday of July 2007 approaching and making my plans to travel 3,000 miles to once again be part of The Spa. Next year, it will be for one full week and i will be bringing my family this time.

Thanks for a great meet everyone. Until next year at Saratoga Springs....

PSH

Steve's piece on this site pretty much sums it up. When you are sitting in the freezing cold in the winter, or on a gloomy fall day, you ask yourself what the hell you are doing here.
Then your mind shifts back to that one great day that was even better than the other great days during the meet. The day when you won a pile of cash, or watched some great races and went out to dinner and then went laet night swimming at a bbq with the beer flowing and were talking about the days races and what was on tap for the next day. You close your eyes and remember that day and tell yourself that more of those are coming the next summer, and you make it through.

Theres just something special about this place. I've been to a few California tracks and while nice to look at, there just seems to be something very social and "meet specific" lacking. The vast majority of people that I see are there because its something to do, a novelity. At Saratoga, people actually plan vacations around the track and as someone who lives here, there was only 1 weekend this entire meet that we didnt have guests from out of town up to visit. I've really come to appreciate the quality of racing here, its very easy to take for granted, especially if you dont compare it to other tracks like Delmar which has in general a very consistently weak quality of racing.

I need a break as I went more this summer than I have in a very long time, but 322 days is a little too long!

I guess I will just have to hope the next 32 days go by very quickly.

It's 100% my fault....I was the one who insisted we go over to the harness track and bet the simulcast..as if the 10 races at Toga were not enough..God I have issues...:o :o


and those words keep ringing in my head...."And here comes ROCK LOBSTER.."

Dont sweat it Kev. If it wasnt last night it would have been Friday or Saturday. Now that I got that out of my system I actually feel better.
There will be many Rock Lobsters that will make us scratch our heads and talk to ourselves. As long as you continue to gamble on this crazy sport, get use to it :cool:

That should read "major" issues.

It should??? That was more self depricating than anything. All in all, I'm an okay guy.

It's the harness betting that pushes it tremendously hard into the "major" issues category.Think about it.You're accepting them confiscating your money just because a harness horse breaks stride.You got to be weak to keep accepting that after a week or so.I mean,many of us play it for fun,but we are then again reminded why it can't be considered acceptable activity for very long.

I dont know Scuds, I played 2 horses at Delmar who got absolutely abysmal starts, that were very much the equivalent of a harness horse breaking. One was Vice Admiral and the other was Soldier. Both horses made up tremendous amounts of ground in the stretch to finish 3rd and 2nd (I think).

Didn't bet a single harness race last night....that was where we had to go for the simulcast. If I bet harness racing 1 time a month, thats alot. I haven't bet harness racing on a consistent basis in well over a year.