Quote of the Day

From McGrupp:

"I only got two other Christmas cards... one from my broker in Boulder, CO and the other from an ex-girlfriend turned Jesus Freak. One just wants my money and the other thinks I'm a hedonistic sinner. I haven't figured out which one is which."

Horseracing Film to Debut in May

I had the privilege of seeing the Hennegan Brothers amazing film, "The First Saturday in May" on Wednesday here in Tucson.

It has been said before in many places, but I will reiterate: This movie is absolutely fantastic and has the potential to reach the masses. I stopped counting the number of times I got the chills while watching at 6, and even welled up in the eyes a few times!

The producers/directors/filmakers Brad and John Hennegan, announced that they will be releasing the film via Mark Cuban's "Independent movie theaters" this April, hoping to piggy back off of the mainstream medias "Derby Freakout" period.

Here's the Bloodhorse story on it from today.

The brothers mentioned the film would be released in about 12 cities nationwide in April, leading up to a full DVD release sometime thereafter.

Here's some interesting information on the Mark Cuba/independent theater situation.

Peace, Love and a Cornucopia of Double-Digit Wins

On this Thanksgiving Day Eve, I just wanted to extend some love and thanks to the world.

It's so easy these days to let events get high-jacked by commercial interests. Thanksgiving is one national event that I am thankful to be able to block out the corporate infiltration and the static noise that can build up over the course of time.

T-Day is a day for family and friends. A time to put down the blackberry, set aside the computer, cell phone and one dimensional spreadsheets, and take a nice, long, much needed, well-deserved deep breath amongst those closest to you.

It seems that life these days has an uncanny ability to slowly suck the joy out of being and this day of thanks allows us a respite, albeit brief, from the slow drip of looming monotony and gloom.

I'm thankful for being alive, healthy, and able to pursue a life that is challenging, fulfilling, enjoyable and full of endless curves of the unexpected.

It's what makes life, LIFE.

Sometimes it sucks. Sometimes its hard. And, sometimes it just plain sucks hard.

But sometimes it's not.

And that's LIFE.

Stepping away for a short-time and giving thanks can be extremely cathartic and undeniably healthy.

This is what I love about Thanksgiving. A day to catch up mentally.

I'm thankful for who I am and where I've been. I'm thankful for the way I was raised and the people I've met along the way.

I'm thankful for the warm sun (no more Portland winters for me!) and thankful for cool nights.

I'm thankful for every life experience I've had - both painfully difficult and amazingly simple or joyful.

I'm thankful for today and hopeful for tomorrow.

I'm thankful I'm not the Green Monkey.

I'm thankful I'm not the Green Monkey's Owner.

And, I'm thankful I'm not the guy who advised the Green Monkey's owner to purchase him!

I'll leave you with two final thoughts:

1) A line I came up with earlier in the week (and the subject of this post) that has caused much hubbub throughout my office:

"Peace, Love and a Cornucopia of Double-Digit Wins" (from the bottom of my heart)

2) A little music video of some boys having a good time. Feelin good and performing to the delight of many in 1997 and even today - 10yrs. later after they've thrown in the towel as a group. Giving the gift of music and helping all of us along on our respective journeys.

Have a great Thanksgiving!



Click here for a bunch of guys having fun (if you reading on RSS)

California...

Where men are men,
Horses are horses,
And earthquakes are still scary as hell.

(as long as no one was hurt, it was kind of fun).

This city's biggest earthquake since 1989 (Oak. vs. SF World Series).

BC Saturday Selections (Just Avg.)

Race 4: Juve - #9 Smarty Deb
Race 5: Juve Fillies - #12 Salute the Sarge
Race 6: FM Turf - #9 Danzon
Race 7: Sprint - #7 Idiot Proof
Race 8: Mile - #13 Excellent Art
Race 9: Distaff - #9 Teammate
Race 10: Turf - #3 Better Talk Now
Race 11: Classic - #1 Lawyer Ron

Good luck and have fun!!

Friday's BC Selections

Race 8 (BCFM Sprint): #5 JAZZY

Race 9 (BC Juv TURF): TURF ONLY - #12 DOMESTIC FUND

Race 10 (BC DIRT MILE): #2 LEWIS MICHAEL

Saturday's to come soon...

Two Weeks from Today: Breeders' Cup 2007

WOO HOO!!!!!

This is an AWESOME video put together by "derbydanx" over at the DMFF

If you weren't excited, this should help you get into the mood a bit:


To view the video, click HERE

Tis Almost Time....

Click HERE for Video 1


Click HERE for Video 2


Click HERE for Video 3

My new favorite song

(not the greatest sounding version, but I promise, if you go and buy the album, "Chained to the Chariot" you will NOT be disappointed.)

Keep an eye on Rotary Downs, I'm thinking they've got some cool, big things ahead of them....

I'm Betting Against

Somewhere around 11:00am Saturday morning, I'll roll into the first floor of Portland Meadows to watch and wager on one race - the 4th at Belmont.

In the 4th at Belmont I will be betting against Even Money ML favorite and $16mil. purchase The Green Monkey.

My money will go elsewhere.

As my racing compadre said, and I whole-heartedly agree, "I hope he finishes dead last, or breaks the track record."

I'm not saying he will do either, but my money will be saying that he doesn't finish 1st or 2nd.

For those of you keeping score at home, I'm taking SixThirteen to win and boxing an exacta with Holla Bend. That's, Sat., Belmont, Race 4, #1 WIN, #1,5 EXACTA BOX.

So the racing world isn't perfect. Somehow, everytime we seem to lament and are in the midst of a slow-period, something extremely interesting pops up on the scene.

THIS is why we love this game.

Exclusive Footage

No wonder it's taken this long! What is Pletcher thinking with training methods like this?...

....and if you didn't think he was worth $16,000,000, then you haven't seen this

I love horses and I love horse racing. I love being involved in this crazy business.

Sometimes, however, one needs to expand horizons.

The following are some pics of expanded horizons (don't get me started on Teuflesberg, one of our BCFL stables' draft steals could have earned us some needed points at Turfway. Good thing we've got Lawyer Ron...)

The Big House - EMPTY

The Big House - Full (109,733)

I think that's officially called "maize"


If you "click to enlarge" you'll see the score: Oregon 39 Michigan 7

Tailgate

Autzen Stadium - Eugene, Ore. (good seats on the field)

Qwest Field (Seattle, Wash.) - Empty

Qwest Field - Full

Qwest Field w/ dt Seattle in background (I feel like I took the same exact shots last year!)

Beautiful Hood River, Ore.

A blurry Stevie Wonder (if he comes near your town, fork over the shekels, it's way worth it)

Mongolian Grill

Dancing Nancie

Could this be the end of racing in Oregon?

Can't say I'm surprised at this development.

I know for a fact that OTB's can make money in this state. I wonder if MEC is willing to sell those rights separately.....?

In honor of Dwight Manley's resignation today from the Jockeys Guild, I thought I would (re)post an interview I did with Mr. Manley last year during Breeders' Cup week on the 5th floor at Churchill Downs.

Click here for the interview/post from 11/3/06.

Enjoy. Comment. Or don't.

A few quick links...

Maybe this article should be posted in every jocks' room across the country?

Did anyone else know that Bo-Rail has a "blog"? And that the NYRA is hosting it?

I'm really hoping people don't confuse me with him/this.

Looks like they WILL be racing here in Oregon, despite an ugly political mess.

Finally, I am sure everyone knows already, but there was a provocative Jockey Club Roundtable meeting Sunday at the Spa. Some people are NOT VERY HAPPY about the discussions.

Crist has yet to offer his thoughts (free sub. reqd)

In case anyone has similar tastes in music, Kid Rock has a new album/single coming out. Before you completely poo-poo or dismiss this, go see him live or check him out with Hank Williams here from CMT's Crossroads program. Good stuff.

Awesome for many reasons...

"...Whatever you do, take care of your shoes"

(not horse related. life related.)

Even if...

...you're on vacation.

This is a very interesting read from the Oregonian.

It's really a shame when pieces and people of the industry, unconcerned for the overall health and viability of the game, are exposed. Who knows how this ends up. Probably years of motions and hearings and lots of attorney fees.

One thing's for sure: The industry loses no matter what with publicity like this.

h/t to Bojack

There are only certain people who can appreciate this...

...which is one of the reasons a blog is necessary.

This made me SOL (scream out loud), and I looked around and thought about who I could actually relay this to who would, at the very least, chuckle lightly.

This is a post pulled from the DMTC Fan Forum (Wed. 8/8):

posted by white hat:

Let me set the scene....Del Mar racing office with a couple of minutes to post for Saratoga's 2nd. The crowd starts to gather, trainers and jockey agents by the dozens, Joe Harper comes out as well all to watch Baffert unleash Malmonides. They break from the gate and the horse runs big as he is widening in the lane the room is silent and good ol Julio Canani breaks out this one right next to Harper: "That's a nice horse, who owns him anyways?"

AWESOME! I don't know Canani personally, but I think I love him now....

Guess Who's Back? (Tell a friend)....

It feels good to actually take some time and blog again. Let me take this moment to welcome myself back.......

Ahhhh, much better.

I haven't really missed too much, as I have been following everything going on lately. From opening day at Saratoga, to Polytrack theories on the west coast and CEO's chatting with fans....oh, and what's this? A new addition to the horse racing blogosphere?

"...In the meantime, I was beginning to read the numerous racing blogs that have emerged in recent years. They're no substitute for actual journalism and some of them are simply dreadful..."

Yes, I know most everyone has read that already. However, this writer, contributor, and fan will have no part in any defensiveness, anger or tit-for-tat regarding Mr. Crist. W eare fully aware of the quality of blogs out there (including our own Avg. little site right here). However, I will post this video (short, only 2 minutes) that is a good companion piece for Mr. Crist's inaugural blog post:

Click here for the video via RSS.


-Buried in the comments section of Left at the Gate was a great fan link to some opening day SPA photos. Gee, didn't see too many like these (from a fans prospective) in the MSM... (ok, that's it no more cheap shots from me. I absolutely love the MSM and all they offer the world. What, with all of their fact checking and copy editing...what's not to love?)

Click here for some very cool opening day SPA photos (photos courtesy of "Jim L." via Left at the Gate)

-Breeders' Cup CEO Greg Avioli spent some time answering questions on the Bloodhorse's weekly chat session. Kudos to him, as well as to my man Ray Paulick for getting BCCEOGA (nice initials, huh?) to show up and field some queries.....

...Mr. A did mange to make me shout out loud at the computer screen with this little beauty:

Boston, MA:
Will we see the Breeders' Cup go to colored saddlecloths? You can't see your horse on TV, and everybody else has gone colored in the last 10 years including the Triple Crown.

Avioli:
This is a tough issue balancing tradition (what makes Breeders’ Cup different from other days at the races) and customer convenience. I think much of this issue will be solved with broader adoption by tracks of the Trakkus system or comparable computer/gps systems that allow real time tracking of horses on the track with colored “chiclets” on computers, television or infield jumbotrons.

Now, please tell me if I'm wrong here, but doesn't the answer above completely contradict (or run against) an answer given later on in the chat:

Avioli:
The hardcore racing fan, like those reading this chat, generally understand the nuances to our season and how, say, the winner of the Whitney was very likely to be a contender for the Breeders’ Cup Classic. But if there are 40,000 people at Saratoga this Saturday, under the old system I would guess that about 80% would have no idea of the link between the Whitney and the Classic. With the Challenge, that link is direct and meaningful in a way that is easy for casual fans to understand and appreciate. It gives us the chance to start telling the stories of the Breeders’ Cup contenders sooner, and it gives Saratoga the chance to link directly with our event and garner marketing benefits and television exposure by doing so.

Seems, like the majority of these people might enjoy actually FOLLOWING THE HORSE THEY WAGERED ON during the biggest day of the year, no?

Instead of relying on some private company selling their multi-million dollar technology to individual tracks, JUST CHANGE THE SADDLECLOTHS!! (BTW, I submitted the exact same question as Boston, MA regarding this issue)

And...not to knit-pick,(and who knows who was actually typing Mr. A's words) but if you are going to ask companies (i.e. racetracks) to invest millions in a product, you might want to start by spelling said product correctly - only one "k" in Trakus.

-Finally, I subscribe to a "newsletter" called "The Lefsetz Letter" written by Bob Leftsetz. It is a music industry blog/newsletter and Mr. L. enjoys writing multiple "posts" each day which then wind up in your inbox via free subscription.

With each of his posts, I become more and more amazed at the many parallels (that I can see) between the music industry and the racing industry. Mr. Lefsetz does a great job breaking down the hits and misses of the music industry on a daily basis. Here's a tidbit from the other day which I thought had some resonance for our little industry:

...He (Paul McCartney and his recent Starbucks release) wanted to know how he could sell the most albums, he didn't ask how he could get his music in the most hands. Asking this latter question is going to lead to the answer. Prince asked this latter question and came up with an innovative solution that worked for everybody (except the old wave businessmen).

Instead of an ever-diminishing music business, instead of labels encroaching on touring and merch income to make their bottom line, acts and labels have got to think how can they get music in everybody's hands.

Computer companies did it. Dell lowered the price, the Net blew up, and now many people have multiple computers.

I don't know anybody without a cell phone.

And everybody didn't acquire an iPod until you could get one for under a hundred bucks.

What don't the labels get here? You lower the price and you increase the volume. That's the formula, not raising the price."

To sample Bob Lefsetz writing click here
To subscribe to The Lefsetz Letter click here

If you've seen this guy at your local track or OTB, please alert the authorities immediately. Do not approach. Subject may offer you hair-brained handicapping theories and/or techniques. (there were no horse t-shirts available)



Another GREAT promo by The Simpson folk. Go here to create your own Simpson's avatar.