Who’s in your five?
I thought I’d piggyback on Jessica’s post to A) introduce myself and B) post my own Derby five as of Tuesday night.
My name is Ed DeRosa, and I am news editor of Thoroughbred Times. More importantly for the purpose of this exercise, I am a race fan and avid bettor who thoroughly enjoys many of the racing-related blogs both in and out of the TBA.
I’m a frequent reader/commenter on Railbird, Handride, Thoroughbredblog, Cristblog, and on the Thorograph forum. I have enjoyed the dialog and now look forward to dissecting the Derby with Jessica and her readers.
I’ll be in Louisville “on assignment” beginning Friday night and hope to bring some on-site perspective to one of my favorite racing blogs. Michael Tynan of fellow TBA member Thoroughbredblog will also be on site.
So who’s in my five?
1. Z Fortune… this horse is starting to pick up steam, but I can’t imagine him being anything less than a $20 horse, so I’m on board.
2. Gayego… There’s a horse like this every year—the horse who “can’t get the distance,” and the price improves because everyone just keeps repeating that mantra. More on this later, but for now I like him at the price. Obviously I think the Arkansas Derby is a key race.
3. Colonel John… This is more a “I think he deserves a top three ranking” selection than a “I’ll play him in all my tris” selection, but it’s hard to fault what he’s done so far and the consistency with which he’s done it, and if I like Gayego, I have to like Colonel John at least a little bit right?
4. Big Brown… Depending on which numbers you trust most, he’s either the fastest by a lot or fastest by a little but clearly the fastest. It’s hard to ignore Dutrow’s enthusiasm for this horse, and that type of attitude is infectious Derby week, but I’m going to stay away at a short price.
5. Smooth Air… My Derby budget (for the race itself) is usually about $100, which doesn’t give me a lot of wiggle room to get too jazzy, but if I strike it rich on Oaks day or during the undercard, then I might try to just single this guy underneath to hit the tri. He’s consistent and fast enough to make an impact.
Thanks for having me, Jessica!
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