Borel, Swell

I’d pondered whether or not a jockey had ever won the Triple Crown when riding different horses. As it turns out, if the radio station I listened to on my return trip from getting my hair cut is correct, no. This has never happened.

Today, there’s a chance that it could come to pass. Calvin Borel, riding Derby winner Mine that Bird, rides the Derby winner again in today’s Belmont Stakes.

Much as I’d like to see a four legged Triple Crown winner, I’ll settle for one that walks on two. Especially since I picked Calvin’s mounts in my last live track outing1, and they did fine by me.

-k-


1 When my handicapping skills deserted me, which was often.

Toolin’ up

UPS delivered my shipment of Andrew Beyer books last last week, and I have just returned from the Daily Racing Form website, where I signed up for a free account.1

I poked around the DRF site shortly after the end of the most recent Search for America Tour, and was intrigued by their Formulator, which is an application to manipulate and filter data from the DRF. We used to buy the dead tree edition; it’s great, and I marvelled at the volume of data captured in just a few column inches of newsprint. Simultaneously, I realized the effort required just to capture the data in a format conducive to some electronic analysis was huge indeed. As I said before, the TRS-80 is long gone; we gots us some real computers now.

Still, when I clicked on DRF’s Formulator link, the first thing I saw was Windows. As interested as I am in this effort, running Windows is a show stopper. Another click on the site, and I see that the Formulator is now a full-fledged web application. WooHoo! I was taken by this observation from the FormulatorWeb FAQ:

What does Formulator Web mean for you?

No more software downloads.

No more clashes with Microsoft Vista or Macs.

No more missing pieces.

Don’t know what the “Mac clashes” were, but I can imagine the hand-to-PC combat that must have taken place in the Microsoft world.

The only outlay on this little quest thus far has been for the books. I’ll read those, get familiar with the recently acquired DRF tools, and go from there. So, I’m off, bursting forth with the power of ten billion butterfly sneezes, as it says up top there. I got my actual blog title into a post; first time in over three years.

-k-


1 Oh yes, they have non-free accounts. I’m sure they’ll be delighted to upgrade my account when the time is right. When that time comes, and it will, I’ll whip out the AmEx.

Racin’ Research Commences

My equine handicapping crusade has started; I just ordered via Amazon, a bolus of Andrew Beyer books1. Andrew Beyer makes the dry, nuts-and-bolts mechanics of racing pleasant to read, and they will help me get reconnected with the principles of successful wagering that I’ve either forgotten, or sporadically employed, for a good long time.

Just reading the books again will be a treat; none of them has the subtitle The Definitive Guide; $DAYJOB has enough of that book genre.

And They’re Off!

-k-


1 Some of which I think I “loaned” to Brother-in-Law a few years ago. No worries; he has actually cashed a pick six ticket in his track forays.

Becoming a Jaded Roué Looks Easy

I made several posts over the last few days about my freshly rekindled interest in horse racing. Until last week, it had been 15 years since I’d been to a track during the live racing season; the last time, our good friends Dale and Kathy spent a couple of days with us; they were on a Search for America Tour of their own. We all went to Pimlico; MLB cashed about $400.00 worth of tickets that day. As I recall, Dale, Kathy and I enjoyed the great crabcake sandwiches, a few libations, and each other’s company; we also gave thanks for our day jobs, our handicapping being our greatest handicap, falling far short of being remotely capable of supporting us in the lifestyle to which we’d have loved to become accustomed. But, as the old saw goes, a good time was had by all.

Dale and Kathy went back to Augusta; MLB and I settled into the rut of day-to-day life, and time just rolled on. We still liked the ponies, and watching the Triple Crown coverage on teevee scratched the racing itch.

My early interest in computers was partially fueled by my interest in compiling and analyzing racing data1. When we lived in the same small town in Northwest Kansas in the early 80′s, Dale and I were both sure that given the proper tools, proper analysis of the data, and astute money management, we could live relatively unencumbered lives, on our own terms, and still provide for our families.

28 years bring many changes; the TRS-80 of byegone times has given way to computing and storage power unheard of in the 80′s; the internet has brought the Daily Racing Form from dead tree media, into a fully customizable racing tool.

Sadly, Dale passed away about 6 years ago. I think of him often, and wish he were still here to enjoy the techno-marvels of race handicapping. It may still boil down to Bet on the gray horse, but we’d have had a blast.

So, on a lazy, cold Sunday afternoon, I’ve been trolling the internet for racing tips, tricks, and tools. I think I’ll sign up with Daily Racing Form on some type of low-cost plan, follow one track or so, and play on paper, like we used to do, update results, and get some good data.

Then, in a total non-shocker, I found online horse wagering sites. Once the system looks good, I’ll back it with a few bucks at one of these online places, and see how it goes. Even if the system winds up being Bet the gray horse, with every ticket cash, whether on paper or for real, I’ll raise a glass and toast my friend Dale.

-k-


1 This whole subject merits a post of its own; stay tuned.

Chalks

The MLK Day racing card at Oaklawn was a reasonably easy one as far as ticket cashing was concerned. I cashed 3 wins and an exacta in the first 8 races. Problem was, favorites dominated the day, so payoffs were light. Combine this with my new-found love of boxing in a longer shot, and profits were razor thin. This indicates I need a review of money management, a crucial, though often overlooked element of any kind of gaming.

On the plus side, the 5 horse in the 4th race was a mortal lock for the win. This horse, named Meeither, paid $8.20 to win, and won handily. I had 4 bucks on this one; two for me, and two for James. Not much of a contribution to the Slusher kids’ scholarship fund, so I’ll just suggest that James and I turn the bounty into some type of liquid refreshment, when next we meet.

I’d forgotten just how enjoyable horse racing is. Man, I had an absolute blast. And Oaklawn is a beautiful place.

-k-

A Day at the Races

Brother-in-law and I ventured out to the investment bank known as Oaklawn on Saturday afternoon. We had modest results, so we may still both safely be numbered in the working stiffs category.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been to a live horse race, though we go to Oaklawn for simulcast wagering on nearly every visit here. Live racing is much better than simulcast, and also drives home the point that my greatest handicap in wagering is, well, my handicapping. I can still read the racing form OK, the small print notwithstanding. Then I struggle over all the strategies that can be applied to this small mountain of data, the “going up in class” ploy, the “going down in class” idea, the “bid, but hung” angle for the last race, the switch from turf to dirt, and on and on. So it was probably fitting that I adopted a simple stategy; I boxed a near-favorite and a resonable, though longer odds horse in an exacta bet, and then bet the longer shot to win. 6 bucks per race, and hence a maximum $54 outlay over the 9 race card.

And the method bore fruit in the 4th race, as a 10-3 exacta fetched $54.40. And again in the 6th, as the 1-5 exacta brought another $21.60. This last win was the outcome of a 1-5-12 exacta box bet; had the 12 horse at least showed, this would have been a nice little ticket to cash. It is worth noting that both these races were maiden claiming races, and hence there was a paucity of data on these lightly-raced horses. So maybe pure dumb luck was my source of success. The money’s just as green, though. We left after the 6th; the hardness of the concrete, and the chill of the day got to us. As it was, I walked out $18 ahead, after paying admission, program, eats, drinks, and wagers. Any day in the black is a good day.

Frequent commenter James left a coment on my last post, wherein he requested that I place a bet on the 5 horse in the 4th. I’d have happily placed the wager on Mrs Stoner Creek, who, if memory serves1, went off at 15-1 or so, 2 pounds overweight, and wound up in 5th or 6th. I’ll probably head back there today, where the 5 in the 4th is named Meeither; morning line is 6-1, with the comment:

Meeither won twice here last year with better speed ratings than most in the field and may surprise today in deep stretch.

So, I’ll probably have the ladies drop me by the track this afternoon; brother-in-law will walk down the hill from his job(he’s working today), and meet me. More yarns will be spun. More wagers will be made. More lies will be told.

This is great!

-k-


1 The paper with the results has already hit the recycle bin; brother and sister-in-law are efficient like that.

Arkansaw

We arrived safely at 3:30 PM local time yesterday. Still bitterly cold. Would have posted this yesterday, but brother-in-law’s beer was just way too handy.

Oh, and the car is a Cadillac DTS, not a CTS as previously documented. A sweet ride, whose lifetime fuel economy went up to 19.2 mpg on yesterday’s leg of the trip.

So, MLB and her sister will be entertaining their mother. Brother-in-law and I will be left to our own devices. We’ll probably wind up at this fine investment bank, and see what the $2 window can do to augment our retirement nest eggs.

-k-

Derby Day

I always enjoy the Kentucky Derby, not that I’m any great judge of horseflesh. I’m not above dropping a few bucks on the ponies, and don’t get much of a chance to do it any more. SWMBO likes horse racing too, and as pleasant as her company is, women and men just bet differently. She can’t read a racing form; I can. I never notice cleverly-named horses; she does. I never notice the colors of the jockey’s silks; she does. She never bets to win; I do.

She and I and another couple or two used to go to the horse races quite a bit. Many of the male participants in these memorable outings have passed on, and I remember them all, even though I still miss them. Nothing like a friend with whom to order another beer, and discuss how our scientific picks went so wrong, while watching the women scampering to cash a $2 show ticket on some plug who was previously rejected by the glue factory.

-k-

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