FOUR WINS On The Card
Today I came out to Gulfstream for a short period of time and brought with me my cousin Karen. My cousin Karen grew up in Louisville where my Mom would take my brothers, sister, and I twice every summer. It was a regular routine to at least once each visit meet at our Uncle Tody's house and there would be Karen and all her brothers & sisters. We have not seen each other in AT LEAST forty years. But recently we found each other on Facebook and we arranged to meet today. The plan was - as I understood it - she would be here around noon and we'd head out to Gulfstream to play the majority of the races. I had bets in the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th, & 8th. We had agreed to have lunch there so the plan seemed simple - get there by 12:30 watch the 1st-through-5th, have lunch and then the two final races. Well, she called about 11:30 and said she was leaving, and not that we were on a schedule but her home is at least 1 1/2 hours from mine. We won't make the first three races for sure, but it looks like we'll make the fourth - which just so happens to be my "best" of the day. She was just a little behind what time I thought she'd arrive, and of course we chatted with Kim and her twin Karrie who was visiting with Kim's parents Ed & Peggy. Then we drove down. I was thinking this would be close to getting there for my "best" pick on the day. As a precaution I'd bet the earlier races online - you never know. As we walked in - and to be fair Karen was having a hard time walking with a limp from a fractured femur over a year ago, and she was chatting away as we got to Gulfstream and I picked up our seat tickets. I looked up at the screen in the paddock and even thought I did not have my glasses with me I could tell that my pick, #7 Genre, was NOT the favorite, but appeared to be 3/1. Nice. We crossed into the simulcast area and we both stepped up to the window and said, "Gulfstream, $10 to win on #7 please" and out came the ticket and we continued our conversation. As we walked up the stairs and I was so proud of her to do this because she REALLY had to work with her leg, I was telling her the story from last Saturday about the ticket on the wrong race. As the horses left the gate and hit the first turn announcer Larry Colmus called out that Genre was racing on the fence in fourth. But CLEARLY #7 was at the back. As they moved up the backstretch again he mentioned that Genre was inside of horses, while it was obvious that #7 was beginning to move on the outside of horses from the back. I turned to Karen and said, "What is he talking about, Genre is clearly on the outside!" The #7 came flying up on the outside but the #5 had moved first and held on to win. So close. So, again, I said to Karen that I'd clearly heard him calling Genre's name, but it did not match at all with the #7. So I showed her Ron Nicoletti's picks and he had listed #7 Genre as one of his picks. I knew I had the right number. Then Colmus said, "the unofficial winner is Montclair, hold all tickets until it's official." Wait a minute, I recognize that name, he's one of my selections! I asked to look at Karen's program and there it was, Race 4, #7 was indeed Genre. WHAT IS GOING ON! I turned to race 5 - there was #5, Montclair - are we on race 5? And then I saw it, #2 in the fifth race was JONRAH. WOW. We'd missed the 4th race and got here just in time for the FIFTH race, where I had the winner - Montclair - at a big $12.60 price!
But we'd thought it was the fourth race! If only we'd said to the teller, "Gulfstream, Race 4, $10 to win on #7" as you're supposed to. I explained to Karen what had happened, and I felt badly because a $10 win ticket for her would have returned $63 in cash! We walked to lunch and now I felt doubly bad because when I looked up the result of the 4th race Genre had indeed won! Back-to-back winners that we could have cashed on if our original travel plans had worked out :( Fortunately I had bet the races online. And in the third race, which was approaching the post as we'd left the house was ANOTHER winner for me!
So after running third at even money in the opener, I had rattled off three straight wins - Mongolian Chrome had edged clear as the 8/5 favorite in a non-winners of two lifetime going a mile in the third and then Genre had been the 4/5 favorite when he was a clear winner for Todd Pletcher in the 4th; followed by the nice price play on Montclair.....and poor Karen had NONE of them!
I showed her on her sheet I had no play in the next race so we went to lunch. Before we went to the Yardhouse restaurant we made bets on the 7th & 8th. We enjoyed catching up over lunch and fortunately I was able to pull up the live feed from the track and we watched our horses. In the 6th, the race I passed my top choice won - no bet for either of us. In the 7th Kenitra tracked the leader into the stretch going 8 1/2 furlongs on the turf in a maiden claiming event, surged to the front at 7/2 and I thought we had it......nailed inside the final 100 yards, second. In the 8th my top choice was 2/1 and was an event 4th. Lunch was over and I asked if she wanted to head back because of her long drive, or did she want to stay.....it didn't make any difference to me. She asked about my picks, and I said I didn't have anything in the 9th or 10th, but I MIGHT have a pick in the 11th. She said, "let's stay for one more." My top pick was a big 16/1 but ran like it. Before we left I checked her program and I made a bet on the final race. Why was I so up in the air? Jockey Trevor McCarthy is the leading rider in Maryland, and he's not had a single mount here. He was listed to ride #3 Regal Roma in the finale, a 7 1/2 furlong turf route for maiden claiming three-year-olds. I've seen this before. An out-of-state jockey is named on the horse, but obviously they are coming to Florida to ride in a routine race - maybe for a big stakes event and if he's already here maybe some routine claiming or allowance races. Adding further to my doubts that McCarthy would be here was he wasn't listed on ANY OTHER horses all day. Check it out:
So, when I'd looked on the "Changes" online for the day, there was no rider switch on Regal Roma. When we got to the races I checked online again. So before we left I asked to see her program and there was McCarthy listed. So, as I indicated in my analysis - if Trevor McCarthy is flying up here today to ride a single horse, I have to believe that one is well meant. And so we left. Our wonderful visit continued on the drive home and she left shortly after we got back to the house. I went to the computer and watched the replay of the finale. You HAVE TO KNOW what happened.......Regal Roma, WITH TREVOR MCCARTHY UP, slipped up the rail and held off the late closers to WIN!
My fourth winner on the day and Karen missed them all. I felt bad. But for me, it was a great start to the month of February!
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