Derby Coverage in the Newspaper Suffers from a Bad Hangover

2012 Kentucky Derby Winner: I'll Have Another

 Fort Worth Star-Telegram Copy Editors: We Had Too Many

There's nothing quite like opening up your Sunday morning newspaper to read of all the Derby news and excitement from the previous day.  The Kentucky Derby is known as The Most Exciting Two Minutes In Sports:  The thunderous charge of horses as the gates spring open, the roar of the crowds, the cheers, the tears, the exultation and glory of crowning a new Derby Winner.

A sports event of this magnitude ended up relegated to page 10C of the Star-Telegram (motto:  "If it's happening in Fort Worth, it's news to us!") - behind the Mavs losing, the Rangers winning, and Yankees' Mariano Rivera tearing some ligament in some knee.  Regardless, the Derby feature article was by Beth Harris (AP).

However, when I went to review the chart I was stunned!  The Star-Telegram published last year's chart! (Click to enlarge)

Whoa!

2012 Kentucky Derby Selections

Today we're passing up mint juleps in favor of frozen margaritas because, in addition to the running of the 138th Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands, it's Cinco de Mayo! And frankly, frozen margaritas are a whole lot tastier than anything made with bourbon. Regardless of your Derby and/or Fiesta libation of choice, it's time to post Derby selections.

 Last year I looked like a handicapping genius; Animal Kingdom et. al. were right on the money.  And there was money!

Bodemeister, installed as the morning line favorite at 4-1, is appealing and promising, especially after his impressive Arkansas Derby win last month. But no matter what I do, I just can't get past that one miserable statistic:  Horses that do not race at age two are 0 for 129 years.  Curlin couldn't even do it and Bodemeister is no Curlin. But I'll definitely put him in the mix.

I love Hansen!  Okay, maybe I'm not the biggest fan of front runners at 1 1/4 miles but in this case I don't care.  I love how he's raced.  I love how he looks.  I love how his owner is somewhat eccentric and just wants to make horse racing fun.  And Hansen's sooo beautiful!  He would make the perfect Poster Child for horse racing, looking regal and immaculate, accessorized with roses.  I was surprised to find bestowed on him a morning line of 10-1, however I should think the odds will not be that generous at post time.

From a purely handicapping standpoint, I like Gemologist.  Truthfully, I haven't even watched him race, but he displays every positive angle that I use:  successful  trainer (Pletcher), regular rider (Castellano), increasing speed figures, success at Churchill Downs.  Most notably, he's undefeated.  And undefeated is undefeated, a statistic that should never be overlooked nor ignored.

And finally, it's "déjà vu all over again":  Went The Day Well has me giddy as a longshot.  He's been a little of a world traveler in his brief career but he's exclusively run routes and, from the appearance of his past performances, has run them well. His speed figures are on the rise - a trend that appeals to me as a handicapper. I watched his Vinery Racing Spiral Stakes victory last night and he really fired up in the stretch. Graham Motion isn't sure if lightning can really strike twice or if Went The Day Well is as good as Animal Kingdom, but if Went The Day Well goes forward from the Spiral, he could very well hit the board at a fat price.

Have a great Derby Day!  Good luck!

Texas Mile Today. Pool Party Next Week.

Today Lone Star Park takes a break from its concert schedule to feature a horse race, the $200,000 Texas Mile (Gr. 3).

The race has attracted a nice field of 10, with a couple of notable shippers. Canonize, winner of the Santana Mile, ships in from Santa Anita and clearly looks like the horse to beat. Rumor has it that once he discovered an element called "dirt", he turned into a new racehorse.

Trainer Eoin Harty brings in Endorsement. He recently ran some nice allowance/optional claiming races at Gulfstream. You may remember him from winning the Sunland Derby in 2010. With visions of roses dancing in his head, he unfortunately sustained a non-displaced right front condylar fracture in a workout at Churchill Downs the week before the Kentucky Derby. He's owned by one of our favorite owners and pseudo-fan of Post Parade, Bill Casner.  

Coyote Legend returns to Lone Star Park, where he's enjoyed success. He's trained by Bret Calhoun, who's on a hot streak and just recently enjoyed his 2,000th win. And he'll have hot jockey and Lone Star's all-time leading rider, Cliff Berry, aboard.

 However, I never pass up anything that trainer Donnie Von Hemmel puts on the racetrack, especially here at Lone Star Park. He saddles Moonshine Mullin who recently raced at Oaklawn Park. He's eligible to improve in his 3rd start of his cycle. And at nice odds (morning line of 12/1), he would help pay for that pool resurfacing that I so badly need this spring.

Looking for Dollar Day? Well, Search No More.

Google query: Lone Star Park Dollar Day

Teeming millions have been on a recent cyber-treasure hunt, searching for one of the most popular promotions ever cooked-up by Lone Star Park: Dollar Day. It's not listed on the 2012 Calendar of Concerts Events, and many are thinking, "Clearly, the omission of Dollar Day is a mistake! Why, it must be an oversight!"

Well, query no more, oh Band of Dollar Day Diehards. There is no mistake. There is no oversight.

There is NO Dollar Day this racing season.

I asked Vice President G.W. Hail to shed a little light on the decision; perhaps offer reasons and insights. He responded, "As with any promotion, we always evaluate them from year to year. This year we decided to offer more concerts tying into our new themeline 'Racing That Rocks You.'"

Interestingly enough, Dollar Day originated in the spring of 2004. I had always heard through anecdotal information that it was created prior to Lone Star Park hosting the 2004 Breeders' Cup to draw a small horde of bettors, providing a "practice run of insanity", if you will. However, G.W. set the record straight, "It was a late addition to our promo schedule to fill a date and didn't receive any media support other than a direct mail letter and a spot in the Kentucky Derby telecast. We projected 10,000 and were pleasantly surprised when over 20,000 customers showed up." Completely unrelated to Breeders' Cup hoopla.

So there you have it.

Rock on.

Bar! Bar! Bar!

Last night Global Gaming Solutions, LLC (GGS), which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Chickasaw Nation, ushered in a new era at Lone Star Park. Their Trifecta for the Pursuant of Entertainment, Gaming and Racing is comprised of:

Horse racing
Concerts
Bars

Not necessarily in that order.

Gone is Chef Jake and his Cajun Kitchen; in its place is the Dash for Cash Bar. The beloved Blue Bell Ice Cream kiosk, a must on hot days and/or when kids are in tow, has been eliminated - replaced by a gift shop kiosk because said former gift shop is now a bar. And, as mentioned previously, the former Post Time Pavilion is now the wildly popular Bar & Book with more beers and drink specials than Triple Crown nominees.

There are 9 concerts on the schedule. Additionally, there are concerts after concerts at the Bar & Book. It's conceivable that the Bar & Book could end up staying open until 2:00 a.m. Australian racing, anyone?

One can surmise with all the changes at Lone Star Park, including discarding Dollar Day, there is a notable shift toward adult entertainment.

And how does this Mom - a horse racing fan and bettor whose companions, on occasion, are her children - feel about these changes?

Frankly, Global Gaming is calling a spade a spade: horse racing is gaming. And you don't create a small empire on Exit 1, Oklahoma, by being The Family Fun Park.

Opening Night Notes
Almost 9,000 were in attendance last night, up 3% from last year. According to Vice President G.W. Hail, the Bar & Book was "packed because of Happy Hour specials from 4-7 p.m."

The $50,000 Premiere Stakes, shortened from 1 1/16 mi to 6 1/2 f, was won by Gold Element, trained by Bret Calhoun; winning jockey, the up-and-coming Lindey Wade. As a matter of fact, Lindey had two winners on the card last night. And he's still a real cutie-pie and I would adopt him if I could. (Sorry, Mama Wade).

And I made a new friend: The Yard of Margarita!


Purchased at the Bar of the Former Gift Shop for a reasonable $9.75 for 500 ml of pure frozen delight, it presented itself with a couple of minor flaws:

Melts before completion, leaving wino with a short straw

Finally, it was great to have the evening end with our good friend, trainer Dallas Keen, in the Winner's Circle with Hy Lime Time. That would be a horse, not some exotic cocktail served at the Bar & Book.