131st Kentucky Derby

[Tigercat]

Gotta love horse racing in Kentucky. Not only has the local NBC channel been doing Derby coverage since 930est this morning, but there are commercials for horses for stud that air during the commercial breaks. I've heard commercials for stud horses on the radio around here, but seeing them advertise on TV is even stranger.

[QuikSand]

Well, WARNING ZONE either was outclassed or just didn't fire in the 7th race... so there goes my next win bet and my pick six ticket. Eh, was fun while it lasted.

[QuikSand]

Current odds, from ESPN:

BELLAMY ROAD at 5-2
AFLEET ALEX at 4-1
BANDINI at 6-1
HIGH FLY at 8-1

... pretty much where things started. FYI

[Schmidty]

This is making me want to play a horseracing/breeding game. Any good ones out there for PC or Xbox?

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

Originally Posted by Tigercat

Gotta love horse racing in Kentucky. Not only has the local NBC channel been doing Derby coverage since 930est this morning, but there are commercials for horses for stud that air during the commercial breaks. I've heard commercials for stud horses on the radio around here, but seeing them advertise on TV is even stranger.

At least you got racing coverage. Im stuck with Poker on NBC.

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

Ok is The race today the only race today or were there other races earlier?

[Tigercat]

The Derby is the 10th race of the day at Churchhill.

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

WOW! A real Fight to the Finish there! There was at least 6 lead changes in the last 200 yards.

[CHEMICAL SOLDIER]

Bellamy Road just got shuffled back. Poor Kid. Ih well I guess it's off to the glue factory.

[Thomkal]

Originally Posted by Schmidty

This is making me want to play a horseracing/breeding game. Any good ones out there for PC or Xbox?

Schmidty,

There is an online horse racing simulation that I've been playing for four or five years now that might interest you and others. Go to:

http://thoroughbredracing.net/hr/ then click on Quick Start Guide. It can be very overwhelming at first, especially if you aren't that familiar with horse racing. It's well worth the effort though, and I'll be glad to help anyone out who wants to join.

[JeffNights]

I'M RICH I'M RICH!!!!

GIACOMO YEAHHHHh!!!!!!!

[cthomer5000]

rough day at the races for me.

[Senator]

Me too. Except my sister had a $10 Win/Place/Show on the winner.

The rabbit made the difference.

[TargetPractice6]

Originally Posted by Senator

Me too. Except my sister had a $10 Win/Place/Show on the winner.

The rabbit made the difference.

Jesus... $10 across the board on 50-1 odds? Talk about cleaning up on a $30 bet...

[QuikSand]

I, of course, cash nothing. But a co-worker who "liked the name" had him to win. I'm just glad I actually put in the bet, rather than booked it myself as I frequently do in such situations.

[Senator]

This was not a good day for the folks who "know" horse racing. My sister liked the name as well.

[Scoobz0202]

Originally Posted by Schmidty

This is making me want to play a horseracing/breeding game. Any good ones out there for PC or Xbox?

I know you want to play one now, but I saw this the other day for those interested in a good horse racing simulation. Comes out in September...
http://sportsgamer.blogspot.com/2005....html#comments

Breeders’ Cup video game for home consoles set for September release

Bethesda Softworks will release in September a horse racing game called Breeders’ Cup World Thoroughbred Championships for PlayStation2 and Xbox.

The game is officially licensed by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association and Breeders’ Cup Ltd, and game races will feature NTRA member tracks including Aqueduct, Belmont Park, Del Mar, Emerald Downs, Keeneland Race Course, Monmouth Park, Oaklawn Park, Sam Houston Race Park, Saratoga Race Course, and Woodbine.

The game offers more simulation than a typical video game and many aspects of Thoroughbred racing such as breeding, training, racing, and betting are featured. The NTRA work closely with the software company to ensure realistic simulation of those elements, and the game’s betting simulation is designed to imitate typical self-service betting machines at racetracks.

Thoroughbreds such as Man o' War, Seabiscuit, Ruffian, Personal Ensign, Winning Colors, Silver Charm, Tiznow, Funny Cide, and Smarty Jones appear in the game. The voice of the Breeders’ Cup Tom Durkin calls the races.

"Breeders’ Cup will appeal immensely both to horse racing fans and to gamers unfamiliar with our sport," said Ken Kirchner, senior vice president of product development for the NTRA. "It conveys virtually all of the compelling qualities of Thoroughbred racing to a mass audience in a fun, fresh new way. We couldn’t be more excited about it."

[Wolfpack]

I was out during the race and didn't catch it live, but heard a replay on the radio when I went to get dinner and I heard "Jockamo" (Giacomo) and I was thinking back to this thread and going, "Huh? I don't remember the guys saying that name as a contender." They later mentioned he was 50-1 or 60-1 and I'm like, "Oh, so that's why they didn't mention him." Sounds like a lot of people got jammed up by this one, but for those who let serendipity be their guide, it paid off.

[Airhog]

QS: Thanks for the advice. Even though I didnt win anything today, I kinda enjoyed it.
It is interesting to note that a lady at the track we were at, won 60k dollars today on the Kentucky derby after she correctly picked a trifecta. I didnt catch the bet amount, but I imagine it couldnt have been much with those odds.

Anyways, back to my time at the track. We recieved a free racing guide, which is the same as a Daily Racing form quick sheet? Most of the information went right over my head, but It definately pointed me in the right direction I thought. My only complaint actually, was the lack of distance races. There was only 1 race over 400 yards. Actually the only other problem i had, were that 5 of the 7 races we stayed for were all claiming races and such. at least 3 of those were for horses that had either never won a race, or never won more than 2 races. I thought that made it especially tough to try and bet on. I actually would'nt mind going again next year for derby day and laying a few bets on the Kentucky derby.

[SirFozzie]

Damn.. Look at the payouts.


But the winner was only the beginning of the absurdity. Behind Giacomo came a veritable cavalry charge of Who's That -- runner-up Closing Argument at 72-1, fourth-place Don't Get Mad at 29-1, fifth-place Buzzards Bay at 46-1 and sixth-place Wilko at 22-1. Afleet Alex, who finished third after taking the lead briefly in the final sixteenth of a mile, was the only horse among the top six at odds of less than 20-1.

The result -- Powerball payouts on exotic wagers. The exacta paid a Derby-record $9,815. The trifecta was a Derby-record $133,135. The superfecta from a $2 wager was a Derby-record -- and scarcely believable -- $1.7 million.

[FishFan]

Interesting day. More to come later.

[ISiddiqui]

Haha... this was a great race... the long shots had their day. Though with 20 horses, things get messy.

Saying that, Afleet Alex had his chance at the end, with daylight in front of him and only a few to go, but Giacomo and Closing Argument had more in the tank and overtook him at the end.

[Honolulu Blue]

GIACOMO? CLOSING ARGUMENT?? What the... well, at least my exposure was limited.

Congratulations to the Giacomo team. Like the Sting reference; he's one of my favorite singers.

On to the Preakness.

[Raven Hawk]

Anybody hit the superfecta? Lol. That was a great race to watch. I've got it TiVo'd and have watched it at least 10 times. I was about to drop a bunch of $ on Noble Causeway. I'm glad that I didn't make it out to the OTB . . .

[MrBug708]

Whose the dumbass trainer that said the West Coast horses wouldnt have a shot?

[FishFan]

From my earlier post...

Originally Posted by FishFan

Let's take a look at the field...
10 GIACOMO: I have this horse in the first KY Derby Futures pool at 50-1, which I thought was a great price at the time. He's 50-1 on the morning line. Despite an excellent workout this week (6f in 1:11 and 4), I'll toss this horse, too. He's just one of several bad west coast runners.

18 CLOSING ARGUMENT: Here's another horse that likes to be near the lead. He was on my radar several months ago but fell off after a lengthy layoff. He reappeared in the Bluegrass and had a troubled trip. Intriguing horse, but the pace will probably kill this one, too. Toss?

12 AFLEET ALEX: If you like betting with history, this is your horse. Of all the legitimate horses in this field, he's the only one with a solid 2yo campaign, at least three prep races as a 3yo and is coming into the Derby with a race in the previous four weeks. He's only run one bad race (gave up at the 3/16 pole in the Rebel) and had an excuse for that one (breathing issue). He rebounded with his best performance to date and could be coming into this one in great shape. Definitely playable.

17 DON'T GET MAD: This horse out of STEPHEN GOT EVEN ("don't get mad, get even" - get it?) has won three races in three tries at Churchill Downs. But, I view this horse as a closer in sprints and mile races. I don't think he can get the 1 1/4 distance, but could pick up pieces if the race falls apart.

During the first futures pool, I was looking for a horse I could possibly get higher odds on than what the horse would be heading into the gate. I looked at GIACOMO, who had finished a length behind DECLAN'S MOON in December, a very good 3yo that suffered an injury and was taken off the Derby Trail. Then, GIACOMO could not catch early speed at Santa Anita, losing to speedster GOING WILD in one of the prep races out there. That was on February 5th and on the 12th, I booked my bet on GIACOMO when I saw he was 50-1 on the futures morning line. I thought he could go forward from that race, win a prep and go in the gate around 10-1. Apparantly, many other horseplayers thought the same thing and knocked GIACOMO down to 25-1 during the first pool (which I was unaware of until yesterday). I tucked that ticket away and watched GIACOMO flounder through two more prep races leading up to the Derby. I noticed he worked out well this week, I discounted him because of the terrible races that were run out West this year. So, insted of playing $50 to win on GIACOMO going into the gate at 50-1, I got $50 to win at 25-1, a bet I made on February 12th. When he crossed the line, my brother-in-law had to tell me that I was a winner, knowing that I had bet that horse several months ago.

That $1300 payoff saved the day for me. Looking at horse I support in one capacity or another (i.e. a win ticket, exacta, pick 3/4, etc) looked like a train wreck: YES YES YES and NATURAL SPRING in the 1st, PREMIER PERFORMER in the 2nd (year, I picked two horses that finished dead last in the first two races), ELIJAH'S SONG and WORK in the 3rd, TEMPERED STEEL in the 4th (after deciding between him and MIGHTY MILITARY, the eventual winner), HARVARD AVENUE and GOLD STORM in the 5th, WARNING ZONE in the 7th, MADCAP ESCAPADE in the 8th, A TO THE Z in the 9th (another last place finisher), and NOBLE CAUSEWAY and BANDINI in the Derby.

After winning the futures bet, I was new man, though. I hit a horse at Hollywood Park, TEMPTRESS in the 4th race, that should have been the 3-5 favorite instead of the 5-2 second choice. She won by 10 lengths and paid $7.60. Then, two races later at Hollywood Park, I hit a $30 exacta several times. I also hit winners at a few other tracks, as well. This came after scraping the bottom of my day's bankroll, sraping together a few extra dollars to hit a 9/2 shot at Tampa Bay Downs about an hour before the Derby to allow me to actually place a Derby trifecta ticket that I promptly lost.

Meanwhile, a buddy of mine who is more of a gambler than a horseplayer, like, for whatever reason, AMERICA ALIVE in the 9th race at Churchill (this horse was coming from the same race as my dud, A TO THE Z). Anyway, he wanted to play the pick 3 heading up to the Derby and was thinking about playing a ALL-AMERICA ALIVE-ALL ticket for $180. I told him he could save some money and key MADCAP ESCAPADE in the 8th, but he did not listen to my wise advice and went up to the window to lay down nearly $200. When AMERICA ALIVE won the 9th after MADCAP ESCAPADE lost for the second time in her career in the 8th, my buddy was a winner and knew he had a large payout looming. With that in mind and in typical gambling fashion, asked me how much it would cost to play an ALL-ALL exacta in the Derby. I quickly told him $380 for a $1 ticket and we had to restrain him from going to the window. We went back to handicapping, my buddy disappeared, and my brother-in-law was putting together a $100 losing trifecta ticket. We watched the race, were stunned with GIACOMO's win, and I got over the initial shock of winning a futures bet which also happened to be just my second winning ticket of the day. Anyway, while waiting for the payouts of the Derby, my buddy asked what the odds were on the horse that finished second. When I told him 75ish-1, he inquired about the possible exacta payout. Knowing that I cost him a lot of cash, I told him, in these words: "Oh, only about ten grand." Expecting him to blow up, I was surprised when he, with a sheepish grin, pulled a $1 ALL-ALL exacta ticket out of his pocket. Between the two of us (albeit, only $1,300 from my investments), walked to the window to collect nearly $17,000 in PK3, exacta, and futures winnings. And, I can kind of say I picked the Derby winner this year (my first in 84 years, it seems), although I took that stand in February.

I don't know what the moral of this story is, but needless to say, we had a very good evening out on the town last night...

[FishFan]

Dola.

All this said, I can't wait to bet against GIACOMO in the Preakness.

[QuikSand]

Fun thread.

I remember backing Noble Causeway here, but would not have been able to recall liking Coin Silver even if you had given me the list of starters. Giacomo was the winner was a true WTF moment.

So... for bonus points... any chance anyone could figure out what word search pulled up this post? Hints: (1) I was not looking for horse racing, and (2) it was unintended that the word I searched for happened to be in one of my own posts here.