Paul Daley drove to Rockingham Park last Saturday looking forward to placing a Kentucky Derby future wager, only to be told by a teller that he couldn’t — the track wasn’t taking any pool two wagers, even though they had taken pool one bets. “Churchill Downs uses United Tote as its wagering system and we use AmTote, and we felt that the tickets, which would say ‘Oaks/Derby Future,’ would have been too confusing for the bettor. As the races will be run eight weeks from now, bettors may not remember whether they had a Derby or an Oaks ticket and that the winning number on one ticket may be different than the one on the other ticket,” explained Rockingham general manager Ed Callahan. Too confusing? May not remember? Thank you, Rockingham, for watching out for cognitively-challenged bettors. We need all the help we can get. (Lowell Sun)
Posted by JC in Betting on 03/16/2005 @ 10:55 am / Follow @railbird on Twitter
It’s no secret that trainer Nick Zito is flush with solid Derby prospects. Steve Haskin quotes one rival telling this joke in the latest installment of his Derby Trail column: “I heard that he now plans to conduct his own race, the inaugural Nicholas P. Zito Derby, 1 1/8 miles, Palm Meadows. The only problem is the race is restricted to 10 starters and Nick has 27 horses he wants to run.” Funny.
Posted by JC in Racing on 03/15/2005 @ 6:50 pm / Tagged Kentucky Derby / Follow @railbird on Twitter
“I said things I didn’t mean and shouldn’t have said,” trainer Jeff Mullins said in a TVG interview on Sunday night. “Believe me, I’d take them back if I could. I didn’t mean to offend anybody.” Thank you, Mr. Mullins. Let’s put the affair behind us now. (LA Times)
Comment: I’ve been surprised by the vociferous reaction to Mullins’ remarks about bettors being “idiots” and “addicts.” Had D.G. Van Clief or Frank Stronach said such things, I’d understand the outcry. Had Mullins said these things in a horsemen’s meeting and all the other trainers around him nodded in agreement, I’d probably be offended. But all the outrage of the past week over the angry words of one trainer who’s seen his win percentage fall from 30% to 9% in the wake of a positive milkshake test seems out of proportion. This was something to laugh at and dismiss — not to get into an uproar over.
Posted by JC in Trainers/Training on 03/14/2005 @ 6:05 am / Follow @railbird on Twitter
