It's sunny and 27 degrees this morning... I've been to the grocery store, and noticed how the sun has melted the snow off the south side of the mountains and hills. Nedi and Lovey are happy to have me home again, and I'm happy to be here. (Not to disparage Finn and Skippy's company, but I should have stayed home a few days before I started house-sitting after my vacation. .... At least I know that now.)
If I had actually placed my $2 win bets yesterday, I would have ended up $158.60 ahead. Out of the 15 Breeders Cup races run over the two days, horses descended from Forli* won 8 of them. That's not a bad percentage! And I picked seven of the nine winners yesterday, so I don't feel too badly myself. - I was disappointed that Goldikova was not able to win her fourth Breeders Cup - but she is still a great champion! No other horse has been able to win three in a row, as she has. I was sad to learn of the injury to A. U. Miner in the Marathon race. The race was never shown in it's entirety on ABC or ESPN; the win, place, and show horses were named, and it was mentioned that "one of the European horses was eased" due to the gooey surface. But A. U. Miner's injury was never mentioned, that I heard. That disappointed me. He was pulled up at the last turn, after his left foreleg gave way, and was taken off the track in an ambulance. It was determined that his left fore sesamoids were broken, and he was taken immediately to the Rood Equine Hospital. He will undergo surgery to repair his ankle on either Monday or Tuesday. He has a 70% chance of full recovery, though he won't be able to race again. - And the pay-outs yesterday on $2 betting tickets were astronomical! I'm very happy I'm not a gambling addict!
In the Breeders Cup Marathon, there were eleven competitors, racing 1 and 3/4 miles. Afleet Again*, a come from behind runner, and with his grey coat covered with a tan-orange glop, burst from the rear of the pack to win the race, going away. Birdrun, a Florida-bred, was second, and Giant Oak ran third. The pay-outs for a $2 ticket were $85.20 to win, $7.20 to place, and $6.80 to show. For a $2 perfecta ticket, the return was $668.40; a $2 trifecta paid $4,147.40; and the superfecta paid $39,533.20 for a $2 bet. (I placed my two $2 win bets - all imaginary - on Afleet Again* and Meeznah*, who was eased in the stretch.)
In the Juvie Colts Turf, run at 1 mile, Gung Ho* was scratched before the race. That left 14 two-year-olds carrying 122 pounds. Wrote* won the race, paying $25.20; Excaper, the grey that I liked, ran second and paid $30.40; and Farraaj* was third, paying $7.80. The $2 perfecta paid $964; the trifecta paid $8,131.20; and the superfecta paid $90,140.40. (That last amount is not a typing error!) - My "bets" were on Wrote* and Animal Spirits* (who finished fifth).
The Sprint, run at 6 furlongs, was a wide-open affair. If any of the nine entrants got a good, fast start, it was possible for them to win. Amazombie* won, Force Freeze ran second, and Jackson Bend*, a Nick Zito trained Florida-bred, ran third. (I had "bet" on the first and third place horses, as they are Forli* bred.) The payouts for a $2 bet were: win, $17; place, $7; and show $3.20. The $2 perfecta paid $145.20; the trifecta paid $610.40; and the superfecta paid $5,554.60. Amazombie* has a strange and crazy story: His current owner and trainer was contacted by the manager of a lay-up barn, asking if he was interested in purchasing any horses. The owner told him that money was tight, and he offered $5,000 for one of the horses. The previous owner wanted out of the business, and gave the second horse, Amazombie*, away with the first horse. The new owner/trainer was amazed when the farm manager told him that both horses were on the way. And, yesterday, Amazombie*, the free give-away horse, won the $1.5 million race....
In the Turf Sprint, I had chosen Regally Ready* and Caracortado as my "bets." I was surprised when Regally Ready* won, paying $6.60 for a $2 win ticket. Country Day was second, paying $24; and Perfect Officer ran third, returning $6. (Caracortado placed fifth; his name means Scarface.) The perfecta paid out $188; the trifecta paid $1,542; and the superfecta returned $21,196.80. Havelock, who I liked the looks of, finished last.
In the Dirt Mile, my husband would have bet on the two greys, The Factor* and Irrefutable*; they finished eighth and ninth in a field of nine. I chose Shackleford, the Preakness winner, and Tres Borrachos*, whose name means Three Drunks. Caleb's Posse won the race, Shackleford was second, and Tres Borrachos ran third. Returns on a $2 bet were: $15.60 to win, $6.40 to place, and $10.80 to show. The $2 'fecta tickets paid: $112.80 for the perfecta; $2,220.80 for the trifecta; and $10,170.20 for the superfecta.
The 1 and 1/2 mile Turf race had a field of nine; six of them Forli* bred. My "betting choices" were St. Nicholas Abbey* and Midday*, a mare. The big story in this race was that Irish trainer Aidan O'Brien had chosen his 18 year old son as the jockey for St. Nicholas Abbey*. Joe (Joseph) O'Brien is extremely tall for an American jockey, standing at 5 feet 11 inches (and still growing), and weighs in at 124 pounds.(With saddle and saddle cloth, he hits the scale at 126 pounds even.) He could continue riding as a steeplechase rider, or jump jockey, in the States or Europe; but he is getting too heavy to ride horses on the flat, where most horses carry 126 pounds at the peak of their careers as handicap racers. Joe O'Brien became the youngest jockey (18 years, 161 days) to win a Breeders Cup race yesterday. St. Nicholas Abbey* won the race, paying $15.60; Sea Moon* was second, paying $5; and Brilliant Speed came in third, returning $7. The perfecta payout was $76.20; the trifecta paid $1,221.80; and the superfecta returned $4,536.80 for a $2 bet.
Thirteen boys started in the Juvenile, and the overwhelming betting favorite was Union Rags*, an unbeaten bay colt trained by Michael Matz. I liked the looks of Hansen and the pedigree of Prospective, and so placed my "bets." One won, one finished last. Such is horse racing. Hansen, the light grey colt, flew out of the starting gate and never looked back. The last time any horse won any Breeders Cup leading from gate to finish line was in 1988; now it's yesterday. Hansen won the race, with Union Rags* a closing second, and with the gelding Creative Cause in third. Payouts for a $2 ticket were: $16.20 to win, $3.20 to place, and $3.60 to show. The $2 perfecta returned $46.20; the $2 trifecta paid $223.60; and the superfecta earned $1,907.20.
I was cheering for Goldikova to win her fourth attempt in the Turf Mile race. It was announced by her owners that this would be her last race before being retired, and after being a European Champion for 4 years straight. The record still stands at three wins, and it belongs to Goldikova. She finished third in her last Breeders Cup, and had to withstand a riders' objection and a Steward's inquiry to stay on the board. The race was won by Court Vision, a six-year-old bay; Turallure (one of my betting choices) ran second; and Goldikova was third. Coming around the turn, Goldikova's jockey suddenly angled to the right, causing Patrick Valenzuela on Courageous Cat to almost stop dead. Courageous Cat finished last in the race. Goldikova's right turn caused a ripple effect through all the horses behind her - they all had to slow down and/or change courses. It is really amazing that Goldikova wasn't disqualified completely. My Forli* breds finished in fifth and eighth positions (and I had my other $2 bet on Byword*). Court Vision paid $131.60 for a $2 win ticket; Turallure paid $10; and Goldikova paid $2.40. The perfecta paid $1,979.60; the trifecta earned $9,955.20; and the superfecta was worth $26,926.80.
The Classic had a 4-year-old filly, Havre de Grace, facing 11 boys over 1 and 1/4 miles. So You Think*, a highly praised racer from Australia, New Zealand, and Europe, received a lot of attention. The filly got a lot of attention. The two colts belonging to flamboyant owner Mike Repole, Stay Thirsty and Uncle Mo, got a lot of attention. The other big draw, a sentimental favorite, was Flat Out, a 5-year-old bay colt , trained by Kentucky hardboot Scooter Dickey, aged 70. Mr. Dickey was born into the horse racing business, has worked in it all his life, and Flat Out is the first graded stakes winner he has trained in his long career. Mike Smith, the jockey of Zenyatta who lost the race by a nose last year, was riding Drosselmeyer, a chestnut colt who hadn't won a race since the 2010 Belmont Stakes. (I placed my "bets" on Havre de Grace and Flat Out...) Drosselmeyer won the race, coming up from the back of the pack like a freight train, beating Game On Dude by a head. Chantal Sutherland was aboard the Dude, was trying to become the first female jockey to win the Classic, and is Mike Smith's ex-girlfriend. Ruler on Ice finished third, with Havre De Grace fourth, and Flat Out fifth; So You Think* was sixth of twelve. The payouts in the Classic for a $2 bet were: $31.60 to win, $13.60 to place, and $9.80 to show. A $2 exacta paid $444.80; the trifecta paid $5,427.40; and the superfecta paid $47,631.80.
What a super Breeders Cup! Of the 177 horses that raced in the 15 races, 57 were related to Forli*. In each race, the horses who finish in the first through fifth places earn a portion of the purse. Out of 75 possible money winners, the horses related to Forli* got 25 of the purse divisions. That's 33 1/3%! Personally, I think that's pretty good!
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