Railbird 2004–2019

Saratoga

One Fast Rose

Our Amazing Rose gets a Beyer speed figure of 91 for winning the fifth race on Thursday at Saratoga by 7 3/4 lengths. She went the five furlongs in :57.68, or .59 seconds faster than stablemate Corfu did winning the second. Both making their career debuts for trainer Todd Pletcher, of course. Watch the replay.

Posted in Racing on July 26, 2013 / Tagged Buzz Babies, Corfu, Juveniles, Our Amazing Rose, Saratoga, Todd Pletcher

You Got It! No, You Got It!

I didn’t win on opening day at Saratoga, but at least I caught both winners of the Schuylerville as they were leaving the paddock with my camera:

Brazen Persuasion and jockey Rosie Napravnik.

Favored Bahnah.

And here they are, at the wire:

Photo of the 2013 Schuylerville dead heat, courtesy of NYRA.

A few more photos from the day:

Stonestreet owner and Racetrack House of Style contender Barbara Banke (right), beautifully accessorizing with Chanel and the Daily Racing Form.

The field turns into the stretch in race six.

Hessonite walks to the gate for race four.

Ireland, a full sister to Dublin, before her career debut in race three.

A pleasant reminder of one of the 2012 meet’s best moments.

Posted in Racing on July 24, 2013 / Tagged Saratoga

Lasix-Free Delta

Well, that’s interesting:

Mott said Royal Delta probably never needed Lasix to begin with and probably won’t run on it for the remainder of the year.

Royal Delta is aiming for a repeat win in the Personal Ensign at Saratoga on August 25 following her second straight win in the Delaware Handicap on Saturday. She was given a Beyer speed figure of 105 for that performance.

Posted in Racing on July 22, 2013 / Tagged Champions, Distaffers, Lasix, Raceday Medications, Royal Delta, Saratoga

Pletcher Baby ROI

Everyone knows that trainer Todd Pletcher is dominant is Saratoga juvenile races, but he’s profitable, too, in certain scenarios: His five-year win stat for first-time starters in dirt sprint maiden special weights is 32%, with an ROI of $2.57. In the same conditions, restricted to state-breds, he’s 46%, with an ROI of $3.25. “Perhaps the time to take down a Pletcher juvenile firster is in maiden special weight turf routes,” writes Dan Illman, who pulled the preceding numbers from DRF Formulator. Good luck getting a big price in any circumstance, though: The longest juvenile shot Pletcher has won at Saratoga with in the past five years is Interactif, in the 2009 With Anticipation. He was 16-1 at post time. The only other Pletcher winner with double-digit odds was Lawn Man, in a 2012 six-furlong MSW. He was 10-1 going into the gate.

Posted in Racing on July 18, 2013 / Tagged Betting, DRF Formulator, Handicapping, Juveniles, ROI, Saratoga, Statistics, Todd Pletcher

How Things Change

Jeremy Plonk has a realization re: how betting is changing at Woodbine:

It reminds me a lot of playing online through Xpressbet and other ADW outlets. We trust ourselves and trust the technology every single day we play. We just don’t typically do it at the racetrack, because we’re often too stuck on tradition to realize how society has changed.

Journalism changes, too: Steven Crist on 35 years at Saratoga.

Posted in Racing on July 12, 2013 / Tagged Betting, Media, Portabubble, Press Box, Saratoga, Technology, Woodbine