Kentucky Derby Beginner's Guide

[pmayjr]

https://www.coachella.com/forum/show...=1#post3011417

Hi Guys.

The past few years I've made a beginner's guide to the Kentucky Derby. It's not my picks or predictions. It gives a little bit on the basics of the race. Then I give an UNBIASED look at each horse. Positive points on each horse, and negatives. That way people can hopefully make a more informed decision on who they wanna bet on or cheer for.

I know it doesn't do much for you guys, because you guys really know your stuff. But I'm sure we all have friends and family that aren't into the sport that much, but are interested in the Derby. Feel free to pass this along to them to help them out.

I don't profit from this, and I don't even have a blog. I post it on another (non-horse racing) message board I frequent. But you don't need to belong to it or register for anything to view it.

Also- feel free to critique if you feel I need to add something or cut something from it. But please remember, the target audience isn't for you guys, it's for novices and casual fans.

Thanks and good luck on Saturday!

[GenuineRisk]

I'll gladly forward it on. Good stuff.

[pmayjr]

Thanks. Will be minor edits/updates when Post Positions come out, but otherwise I hope you guys find it informative

[Dunbar]

Very nice work! I read a few of them and thought they covered a lot of ground, all of it well written. I especially liked the write-up on Firing Line, who I think will be one of several overlays in the Derby.

As an intro to the Derby field, the only thing lacking, IMO, was a mention of the comparative speed with which the horses won their races. For example, no mention that Carpe Diem has yet to run a particularly fast race. But I can see where speed figs may be beyond your target audience.

Thanks for posting it. I'll point a couple of friends to the post.

--Dunbar

[pmayjr]

thank you for the kind words....

Yeah that's the tough part. At what point am I throwing too much info at a novice audience? And with info like that, where I did mention pace of the race in a few of the write-ups, how do I phrase it where they can understand it?

[jms62]

Originally Posted by pmayjr

thank you for the kind words....

Yeah that's the tough part. At what point am I throwing too much info at a novice audience? And with info like that, where I did mention pace of the race in a few of the write-ups, how do I phrase it where they can understand it?

How about like a bike race. If you are alone on the lead you can coast and reserve your energy. If you are battling for the lead with one or more bikers you have to peddle furiously to keep up and/or get the lead. This will burn up your energy leaving you tired and vulnerable to being passed in the later stages of the race.

[pmayjr]

that's an awesome analogy. In terms of overall race times I don't mention anything about that. But I do mention slow and fast race paces. And what happens to a horse in the lead and/or coming from behind in those scenarios.

A sample- When covering Stanford:

[*]The horse has one goal, and he seems to be pretty good at it- Get the lead early, and hang on late. He will be one of the front-runners early in the Kentucky Derby. The key to his Louisiana Derby success (and his chances in the Kentucky Derby), was how he was able to settle in on the lead and slow down the pace. If you're a front-running horse, your goal is to slow the pace of the race down as much as possible, and hope to lull the field to sleep. He was so successful at doing so, he had a ton of energy left at the end of the race and almost fended off International Star. No other horse came close to passing him.

[OldDog]

I have got to say that this is first rate stuff. Well done!

[richard burch]

...And Don't Forget!!!!!!

Kentucky Derby Post Position Draw Info

When: Wednesday, April 29 at 5:30 p.m. ET

Where: Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky

Where To Watch: NBC Sports Network

[pmayjr]

Thanks guys. It may be edited/updated slightly after postposition and odds are updated.

[pmayjr]

Originally Posted by pmayjr

https://www.coachella.com/forum/show...=1#post3011417

Hi Guys.

The past few years I've made a beginner's guide to the Kentucky Derby. It's not my picks or predictions. It gives a little bit on the basics of the race. Then I give an UNBIASED look at each horse. Positive points on each horse, and negatives. That way people can hopefully make a more informed decision on who they wanna bet on or cheer for.

I know it doesn't do much for you guys, because you guys really know your stuff. But I'm sure we all have friends and family that aren't into the sport that much, but are interested in the Derby. Feel free to pass this along to them to help them out.

I don't profit from this, and I don't even have a blog. I post it on another (non-horse racing) message board I frequent. But you don't need to belong to it or register for anything to view it.

Also- feel free to critique if you feel I need to add something or cut something from it. But please remember, the target audience isn't for you guys, it's for novices and casual fans.

Thanks and good luck on Saturday!

Final edits have been made. Feel free to pass it on to anyone who might benefit from it. Thanks!

[pmayjr]

The Stanford scratch means I did an additional write up on Frammento. All edits have been made for the link above.