Comments on: Another Saratoga First

By: EJXD2

EJXD2 — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 02:21:24 +0000

Linda Rice has always been a capable horseperson and one that I never had problem backing with my opinions or dollars, but the fact that she won the meet given the stock she has shows how the quality of Saratoga is mostly a myth.

The 2YO racing and stakes were top notch. All the other filler ($35kN2L daily, tons of NYBs) was really subpar.

By: o_crunk

o_crunk — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:03:11 +0000

While some may say that all her wins came in restricted company or in turf sprints (In historical perspective both are relatively new novelties for the Saratoga condition book in the number races run nowadays), it’s still a huge achievement considering the number of runners a guy like Pletcher can throw out on the track.

Now, however, the word is out on Rice runners (if it wasn’t already, it’s going to be more overstated) and with the way both Rice and Pletcher emptied their barns during the last week of the meet to try to win the title, I think it would be wise to *now* start trying to beat them in the wagering pools, even though it became fashionable to try to beat her runners *during* the meet.

When Mott went bonkers at Saratoga in 2007 he came to Belmont in the fall and went ice cold and stayed that way. I would think we could be looking at the same scenario again.

By: Keith - Triple Dead Heat

Keith - Triple Dead Heat — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:23:51 +0000

I spent the weekend handicapping Saratoga and it was next to impossible to toss out a horse trained by Rice.

I’m glad she was able to win the training title and hope to see her get the opportunity she deserves.

By: dana

dana — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:08:10 +0000

It will be interesting to see if she does get “better horses”.

By: ljk

ljk — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:47:05 +0000

I’m glad Linda won and I’m impressed with the job she did all summer. I do believe her accomplishment is diminished slightly by the high percentage (my perception, I don’t have the numbers) of wins that came in restricted company. Trainers like Mott and Pletcher don’t have many horses to run against that undeniably softer competition.