Lo Duca

[blackthroatedwind]

Originally Posted by ScottJ

Bringing Paul LoDuca to the Saratoga Live broadcasts does come with some advantages. First and most obviously, Paul has been a West Coast handicapper and does come with that experience and might bring with him the West Coast audience that would be potentially watching from 1:00pm-3:00pm Pacific time.

Second, Paul does have very solid handicapping views and was consistently strong at forecasting how races might be run. He was able to make the value-argument in wagering better than just about anyone on TVG.

Now, there are some drawbacks. He tends to be very monotone (to my ear) and can be very deadpan. If the TV threesome panel is Greg Wolf, Andy, and Paul, that might not be as fun a dynamic as having Gabby on camera.

The other drawback is of course who is left out of the equation : Ernie Munick, Anthony Stabile, David Aragona, and visitors like Mike Beer or Frank Mirahmadi.

Hopefully, all of this will build a great summer presentation!

I'm glad you like Paul and I think he's a great addition to the group. Let me just address a couple of things...

Maybe because I'm inside of it, I have trouble seeing it from outside, however, I often wonder how people come to certain conclusions, or maybe I should say that I get confused as to how many people don't come to the right conclusion. While I haven't discussed it, last Summer's Saratoga shows had these groupings....Greg and Mig on the roof, Maggie in the paddock/Winner's Circle, Gabby and/or Tom and I in the paddock set. Given that Paul is filling Mig's spot, why would people expect he and I to be on the set together in Saratoga? Given that we perform very similar functions, doesn't it make even more sense that we would be separate? Don't get me wrong, I would be happy to share a desk with Paul, and imagine I will at some point in the future, but based on last year, if there was a betting line, I would say we are 1:9 to be on separate studio desks in Saratoga.

Now that we have that out of the way let's move on to the group of substitutes you mentioned...let me be clear, I like all of them, and enjoy working with all of them, however, they have only filled in during shows where someone was absent ( which happens fairly rarely ). The only reason you have seen more of them lately is because Mig left. The only reason you saw some of them during the last week of Belmont last year, and will again this week, is because I take this week off. None of them were on a single Saratoga Live episode last year. We are fortunate to have talented people like them to fill in on short notice, but they aren't being "left out of the equation" as their roles were to fill-in if needed.

OK...I feel better. See everyone in Saratoga.

[gamblin4ever]

DoLuca seems to be more insightful and handicaps better when he is paired with a more serious personality than when he is with Schrupp, who clowns around to much for me.

[ScottJ]

Originally Posted by blackthroatedwind

I'm glad you like Paul and I think he's a great addition to the group. Let me just address a couple of things...

Maybe because I'm inside of it, I have trouble seeing it from outside, however, I often wonder how people come to certain conclusions, or maybe I should say that I get confused as to how many people don't come to the right conclusion. While I haven't discussed it, last Summer's Saratoga shows had these groupings....Greg and Mig on the roof, Maggie in the paddock/Winner's Circle, Gabby and/or Tom and I in the paddock set. Given that Paul is filling Mig's spot, why would people expect he and I to be on the set together in Saratoga? Given that we perform very similar functions, doesn't it make even more sense that we would be separate? Don't get me wrong, I would be happy to share a desk with Paul, and imagine I will at some point in the future, but based on last year, if there was a betting line, I would say we are 1:9 to be on separate studio desks in Saratoga.

Now that we have that out of the way let's move on to the group of substitutes you mentioned...let me be clear, I like all of them, and enjoy working with all of them, however, they have only filled in during shows where someone was absent ( which happens fairly rarely ). The only reason you have seen more of them lately is because Mig left. The only reason you saw some of them during the last week of Belmont last year, and will again this week, is because I take this week off. None of them were on a single Saratoga Live episode last year. We are fortunate to have talented people like them to fill in on short notice, but they aren't being "left out of the equation" as their roles were to fill-in if needed.

OK...I feel better. See everyone in Saratoga.

Thinking back to last season's Saratoga Live, you are of course correct that there were two panel desks as opposed to the single desk for Belmont Live which was how I was thinking about the host chairs.

As for the fill-in talent, I have really enjoyed some of the Belmont Live shows this season. Your discussion with Frank on race strategy was perhaps the best 15 minutes of viewing for the entire Spring-Summer season. Also, I have enjoyed both Ernie and "The Big A", but that is the "New Yorker" speaking as opposed to thinking about the national audience.

Thanks for writing, Andy. Enjoy your time away and see you at the Spa!

[KidCruz]

Originally Posted by blackthroatedwind

I'm glad you like Paul and I think he's a great addition to the group. Let me just address a couple of things...

Maybe because I'm inside of it, I have trouble seeing it from outside, however, I often wonder how people come to certain conclusions, or maybe I should say that I get confused as to how many people don't come to the right conclusion. While I haven't discussed it, last Summer's Saratoga shows had these groupings....Greg and Mig on the roof, Maggie in the paddock/Winner's Circle, Gabby and/or Tom and I in the paddock set. Given that Paul is filling Mig's spot, why would people expect he and I to be on the set together in Saratoga? Given that we perform very similar functions, doesn't it make even more sense that we would be separate? Don't get me wrong, I would be happy to share a desk with Paul, and imagine I will at some point in the future, but based on last year, if there was a betting line, I would say we are 1:9 to be on separate studio desks in Saratoga.

Now that we have that out of the way let's move on to the group of substitutes you mentioned...let me be clear, I like all of them, and enjoy working with all of them, however, they have only filled in during shows where someone was absent ( which happens fairly rarely ). The only reason you have seen more of them lately is because Mig left. The only reason you saw some of them during the last week of Belmont last year, and will again this week, is because I take this week off. None of them were on a single Saratoga Live episode last year. We are fortunate to have talented people like them to fill in on short notice, but they aren't being "left out of the equation" as their roles were to fill-in if needed.

OK...I feel better. See everyone in Saratoga.

Oh it was Greg hosting the show last year from the roof? My memory must be going . . .

[blackthroatedwind]

Originally Posted by KidCruz

Oh it was Greg hosting the show last year from the roof? My memory must be going . . .

Is it that hard to remember from one year to the next?

[alysheba4]

Hopefully I can get the channel in the Los Angeles area. 7 straight hours of TVG is tired.

[KidCruz]

Originally Posted by blackthroatedwind

Is it that hard to remember from one year to the next?

Racing these days: big profit hungry corporations where people are just head count and are immediately removed from memory as soon as they are no longer in the head count. Sad.

[blackthroatedwind]

Originally Posted by KidCruz

Racing these days: big profit hungry corporations where people are just head count and are immediately removed from memory as soon as they are no longer in the head count. Sad.

I understand, you're being a jerk. You extrapolated from what I wrote something I never even implied in order to suit your own twisted agenda. It's hardly original.

That's what's actually sad.