Breeder's Cup Aftermath

[km]

WINNERS
--------
=Santa Anita and its fans, community support is big, even Magna gets a feather in its cap today
=Europeans who came out in force and won most of the big ones
=Pro-Ride Surface and horse safety
=Disney/ABC/ESPN for some great coverage, but mostly for hanging in there and supporting the sport
=Good weather which makes horse racing a much more enjoyable day
=Br Cup expanded program
=Everyone on this bbs who played in our contest; "Gambler" Ed P. from PA was the victor at the end

There are plenty of accolades to spread around with the Br Cup as it was probably the most successful ever in terms of the depth of the competition, the beautiful weather, huge crowds at Santa Anita, excellent t.v. coverage and sponsorship. The PRO-RIDE surface was under severe scrutiny today and it came through as there were no accidents or breakdowns that i was aware of and all the races seem to have a logical outcome. Europeans will be strongly positive about returning to an Artificial surface at a warm weather track. The additional races and two-day format was a success and it allowed smaller fields in some of the more important races (such as the SPRINT) while permitting more good horses to get involved. Horse racing got an A+ today, and isn't that a nice surprise :)

[DanG]

Agree 2,000%!!!

Sorry to a certain segment of the racing press who was wishing So Cal ill will under their breath, but it was a great / safe / logical event start to finish. Unfortunately the only way we were going to get major national press was through a catastrophe and fortunately…we avoided it.

Huge thanks to HTR’s velocity numbers who really help separate some of the power finishers who made all the exotic difference imo. :cool:

[ejt2112]

=Europeans who came out in force and won most of the big ones

Almost an understatement. The Euros really took it too us today. Personally, I think its great for
the sport. With today's success how many Euro's do you think we'll see next year?

Pro-Ride Surface and horse safety

There will be quite a few people who complain (Asmussen did 30 seconds after the race.) about the artificial surface but I think it was fantastic. Everybody came back safe and the racing was absolutely formful.

I didn't make a dime today but I don't care.
You don't get to say this often - Hooray for horseracing!

[OPM]

Yes, I agree wholeheartedly but there are some things that should be worked on. The temperature of the track surface reached close to 150 degrees, something that needs to be looked at and ways found to dissipate the heat.

I believe if we run these races on Artificial Surfaces we will attract some of the best horses in the world but it will be have to attract the best US horses also.

[DanG]

Yes, I agree wholeheartedly but there are some things that should be worked on. The temperature of the track surface reached close to 150 degrees, something that needs to be looked at and ways found to dissipate the heat.

I believe if we run these races on Artificial Surfaces we will attract some of the best horses in the world but it will be have to attract the best US horses also.
Fair points about the temps Gupta; but it is the same for all animals and the humidity is so low in So Cal it helps. I've heard many a trainer say it’s the humidity not the temps that get to animals. (Are you listening Calder in August! :eek: )

As far as attracting the best US based; I didn’t see too many missing. I thought it was ironic that the DRF was going off on Vineyard Haven “avoiding” the juvenile stating it was Frankel’s protest toward syth’s. :rolleyes: Yet Frankel says the animal’s next start will be at Hollywood.

A solid day and you certainly made a great call about Sadler.

Now the real issue; I have live with and wait a whole year to get even after you beat me in the contest! :D

[OPM]

Yeah, I had an okay 2 days, some royal screw ups however. Missed the first pk 4 because we wanted to save a couple of dollars. One thing that I realize is that I need to play these major days only and not continue with the weekend grind. I will have some more thoughts on money management in another thread if you don't mind taking a look at it.

[Valupix]

Yes, I agree wholeheartedly but there are some things that should be worked on. The temperature of the track surface reached close to 150 degrees, something that needs to be looked at and ways found to dissipate the heat.

I believe if we run these races on Artificial Surfaces we will attract some of the best horses in the world but it will be have to attract the best US horses also.

What would a typical surface temperature be for a dirt course on a similar day?

I kept waiting for Caton to put it in perspective. But if she did, I missed it.

[Justralph]

I took my laser thermometer outside after listening to Caton talk about it.

I was in Charlotte NC and the outside air temp was about 72..........Severe Clear (very sunny)

The lawn out front was about 84 deg

The concrete sidewalk next to the lawn was 89

The small dirt patch I found was 87 Deg..............

This a middle of the road thermometer (99 bucks) from my days in HVAC, Accurate? Who knows?

Not sure what the hell any of this means..........but maybe a little perspective ?

This might be the tenth time I have used the thing.............:D

[BillW]

From what I have seen, synthetic material is less dense than "natural" dirt. Which would make it less of an issue walking over it. It is not the temperature of a surface but the amount of heat it contains that burns the feet. Think fire walkers (or Dudley Moore walking across the sand in the movie "10" :D )

[km]

Leave it to Steve Asmussen, notorious drug trainer, to cry foul.

"It absolutely was the Pro-Ride surface that got him [Curlin] beat"

Amazing statement. Every other horse that rallied wide on that track, including Zenyatta was successful. Curlin was the only hanger. He ran a strong 1 1/4 mile in under 2:00 minutes and got beat anyway. I don't think any excuses washes except a crybaby trainer who needs to take out his own garbage instead of handing it out. Lose gracefully Steve - you are a poor sport - champions don't make excuses.

[tbrown]

Hard to make a case for your horse being a champion when everyone else handled it.
Almost as pathetic as the IEA guy with his unsubstantiated story about death threats on Belmont day.
A pox on ESPN for giving him a forum.

[OPM]

Never trust a druggie, they will lie, cheat and steal every time you give them a chance . I also guess it was the grass that caused his loss in July. I got it maybe it was the smog in LA.

However about Raven Pass, 6,000 miles, never been on Pro-Ride, wider than Curlin and still won. I think Asmussen needs to take some lesson from a real trainer.

[jbw]

I realize this is not the correct place to post but since the contest post sites are closed I am here. Due to a family emergency I had to unexpectly leave town and did not have a chance to post prior to closure.
Just wanted to thank Ken and Rick for running a great contest. Also thank you Rick for responding to my scoring questions so quickly. I felt like a minnow swimming with sharks for two days but the challenge was the most fun stress since last year's NHC trying to chase our champion Richard and make sure Sally, who was seating next to me, kept Richard from having a heart attack the last part of the contest. I must say although we have attended several Breeder's Cup, staying in New Orleans this year and playing in the contest was one of the best BC ever! Congratulations to Ed and Jim. SA was such a closer's day on Sat. but you two refused to surrender - certainly the class of the field!! Hats off to the whole group. The group of HTR handicappers force you to "kick it up a notch" in these contests! We look forward to particapating in future HTR contest.

Judy W