Saratoga the Adirondacks Our Heaven on Earth is near

[DonGuido]

Both will have a key spot for Patty and me in Heaven, assuming we both get there (me I'm not quite sure). The Adirondacks, south central, at 7th Lake (part of the Fulton Chain) Inlet NY, very close to Old Forge was an awesome and very needed part of my summers growing up in the Southern Tier of NY State. My heart rate lowers by 10 beats just thinking of the summer (short two week) visits there. I prefered the sunny "hot", in the mid 80's days, to swim and boat in the spring fed lake and fishing early in the morning and evening until the sun went down behind the continuous curtain of norther pines that lined the shimmering, calm water..

But even the rainy days had memories of fishing and walking through the woods to get to my favorite spots crunching pine cones as every step lifted the intoxicating odor of wet pine needles that had laid a carpet for years on top of years. On those rainy days, we'd play games in the Bed and Breakfast Lodge my dad's friend owned and when it got real cold at night (and it could), they would start up a dancing fire that crackled like popcorn in the fireplace. Outside of baseball tournament travels we made as I grew older into my teens, those mandatory mind soothing stays at the 7th Lake Lodge were always there.

As I matured just a little and found my lovely wife, she told me about Saratoga and described it like Heaven on earth. I for sure was game enough to find out for myself with her. We had made trips to the Finger Lakes Track and Garden State Park in New Jersey, so that's all I knew until of first of many, many trips that took us to The Spa. It turned out to be soothing in a different way than my 7th lake days and exciting too . . . being able to watch such beautiful horses saddled under the trees and the crowds with picnic baskets all around. We wagered a bit while I took in everything that Patty knew before I stopped at a window. She was maybe 21 but had thoroughbred horse sense of a seasoned veteran. We won more than we lost because of her insight and her keen eye to pick out the best as they were saddled and paraded to the track with jockeys up. Our small earnings were much more than I can muster know because I've wrongly convinced myself I now know more than she does. SILLY ME!!! She's forgotten more that I will ever know.

We've had the great fortune to have visited many tracks around the country during our 53 years together from the west coast to the east coast and the middle jewels of the sport and meet great people at each stay. We've been very lucky to visit farms . . . get up close and personal with these magnificent animals, petting there noses, smelling their breath and stroking their powerful necks, but all those great times rolled together will never equal our times at Saratoga and the Adirondacks, Our Heaven on Earth!

PS - it's been quite awhile since we've been back to Saratoga, Joly B will remember the year of our last trip I'm sure having the good fortune to meet him there., and I sure hope we have at least one more trip in us while we are still able.

[cal828]

^^^

That was downright poetic Don. Hope you and Patty make it back to New York and Saratoga one day. Covid pretty much spoiled the notion of travel for all of us. Surely, one day, we will all be able to enjoy travel again and can do it by air once again without the fear of the consequences. However, for the moment, it looks like things are just getting worse. Hard to read about and even think about. Good to have our little racing group to take the mind off of things, even if it is just a brief respite.

[JolyB]

What a great trip down memory lane. The Adirondack Park was always a wonderful destination for us, either as a place to visit, or a place to traverse on the way to somewhere else; have delightful memories of some days at Blue Mountain Lake, where my former sports car road rally partner had rented a summer home; to my Niece's wedding at a typical Adirondack "camp" on the shores of Saranac Lake, soaking in the history at the Revolutionary War battlefields near Saratoga and at Fort Ticonderoga, RV camping along Piseco Lake or just driving into the Park in search of a B&B after a day's racing at Saratoga. I've always marveled at the foresight of those who carved the Park out of the center of New York State, creating the ideal public-private partnership and keeping land forever wild.

It will be a very unusual Saratoga season coming up. Watching the races without seeing the usual crowds surrounding the paddock will take some getting used to. More difficult yet will be seeing the approach of the season at the Spa without being able to plan at least one day trip to see the races in person and have a leisurely dinner before starting the long drive home. Don, I very much enjoyed the opportunity I had to meet up with you and Patty at the Spa; it seems like a long time ago now, in a very different world.