Curlin beating Lawyer Ron in the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont (Charles Pravata)

It’s looking like that’s what Curlin will be next Saturday in the Man o’War! The licensing issues are still not totally worked out, but inching closer with the expectation of it being finalized in the beginning of the week.

The licensing issues could be resolved at the beginning of the week when a Kentucky civil-court judge is expected to formally transfer the assets of two Kentucky attorneys who own a minor interest in Curlin to those who won a civil-case judgment against them.

Not only does it look like we’ll see him in New York, but it seems to be shaping up to be a turf war, so to speak, with Breeders’ Cup turf champions Red Rocks and Better Talk Now also expected to run.

And in other good news on the turf, my boy Thorn Song , back at his best distance of a mile, beat the impressive Einstein by about a length and half in the Firecracker at Churchill today, not that I could wager on it with my TWINSPIRES account (ludicrous!).

Happy 4th y’all!

Posted by dana on Jul 04 2008    
Filed Under: 2008, Steve Asmussen, Twinspires, Signal Wars, Einstein, Thorn Song, :), Belmont, Fans, Curlin, Turf, Charles Pravata, Racing

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Fabulous Strike & Ramon Dominguez pulling an upset win in the Vosburgh at Belmont (Sarah K. Andrew)

Apparently Fabulous Strike scared them off at Delaware Park today. I just tuned into Twinspires TV to see Fab Strike effortlessly beat The Vin Man and Joey Carson in the Vincent Moscarelli Stakes as the other 4 would be opponents scratched.

Posted by dana on Jun 21 2008    
Filed Under: Internet, 2008, Twinspires, Sarah K. Andrew, Sprint, Ramon Dominguez, Simulcasting, Fabulous Strike, Racing

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New York is sucking right now (ardenstreet)

At least not at the moment. Let’s review.

As Val’s comment indicated, one of Curlin’s imprisoned owners has an expired racing license and according to the newly launched Paulick Report, it’s looking like the New York State Racing and Wagering Board won’t be renewing Shirley Cunningham’s license in the “best interest of racing”. This means Curlin will not be racing in New York.

As mentioned yesterday, the new OTB bill boosts the take out on NYRA tracks by 1% starting in the fall. Here are some unsavory particulars…

For example, a New York bettor who makes a win bet on a race at Churchill Downs through NYRA’s account-wagering operation will be paid off as if the takeout is 17 percent, instead of 16 percent, the takeout charged by Churchill. NYRA would keep the difference.

So glad I never opened a NYRA account… thank you NYRA for never answering my email, which convinced me to never open a NYRA account!

Rest assured NYRA Rewards customers, “NYRA plans to increase rebates to customers of its NYRA Rewards Program”. However, that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to watch race replays on NYRA’s site (hat tip to Power Cap). Currently displaying on NYRA’s race replay page:

For regulatory purposes, NYRA is not permitted at this time to provide a link to our race replays. NYRA understands and regrets this inconvenience for our fans who have come to rely upon these services.

Please be assured NYRA is doing everything within its power to work with the New York State Racing and Wagering Board to restore this link to our web site as soon as possible.

And there you have it. While I couldn’t wager on Churchill using Twinspires this weekend (things are strange all over), at least I can watch NYRA replays there! And will the 1% be added to my payouts via Twinspires on NYRA tracks since I’m a New York resident (and presuming I ever cash a ticket again)?

If you’re interested in learning more about the thievery known as take-out (look up breakage while you’re there too), check out Track Thieves and specifically his chart of the takeout rates at various tracks on various pools.

Have a nice day!

Posted by dana on Jun 18 2008    
Filed Under: Internet, 2008, Twinspires, Industry, Greed, :(, Gambling, Curlin, OTB, NYRA, Racing

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Pyro that is! He just cruised to a gorgeous victory in the Norther Dancer, winning handily over My Pal Charlie in second and Visionaire in 3rd. Had I been able to wager I would have had the exacta, which only payed $35.20, but that’s not the point, plus I would have wagered more than $2.

I’m surprised by Recapturetheglory, I would have imagined him to be in the mix up front, but not today.

At any rate, I’m really glad to see Pyro back on form!

And needless to say, go CURLIN!

Posted by dana on Jun 14 2008    
Filed Under: Churchill Downs, Shaun Bridgmohan, 2008, Twinspires, Sweet Vindication, Pyro, Curlin, Simulcasting, Come Back, 3yo, Racing

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I had fully intended to play the Stephen Foster card at Churchill today. I assumed I would be able to do so by using Twinspires. Not the case. I then moved on to my YouBet account. Again, no luck.

Truth be told it’s probably for the best, I haven’t exactly been on fire at the windows. The good news is that I can watch the card using the pretty snazzy beta of Twinspires TV (I wish their race replays used the same interface, which would make them larger and easier to see). The other bit of good luck is that I’ll be able to watch the Stephen Foster on the aforementioned Channel 71 as the race day will be over at Belmont.

Naturally I didn’t discover this until I had gotten pretty far into my handicapping. I was uninspired by the 6th (Hysterical Lady just crushed) but here are my thoughts on the Regret and Northern Dancer.

In the Regret I’m not convinced by Pure Clan as the favorite. CJ’s Leelee, Zee Zee and Magical Theater is where I would be looking and given the current odds I might focus on Magical Theater.

As for the Northern Dancer, we all know I love Pyro and the pace looks to be right up his alley. I’m bummed that Tiz Now Tiz Then scratched as I think he might have helped to tire out Recapturetheglory. That being said, if I had access to some wagering I would probably take a shot with Pyro over Unbridled Vicar. Unbridled Vicar had a nice confidence builder last out and can close off a slow pace. I’m not convinced Visionaire and Texas Wildcatter will like the pace.

Ok, they’re loading in the gate for the Regret. Good luck to all!

Update: my inability to access wagering is already working out for the best as Pure Clan just won the Regret! CJ’s Lee Lee and Zee Zee placed and showed respectively.

Posted by dana on Jun 14 2008    
Filed Under: 2008, Twinspires, Picks, Signal Wars, Churchill Downs, Technology, Handicapping, OTB, Simulcasting, Pyro, Racing

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