Notes from the Racing Underground

I was a boy when my father first took me to Del Mar race track to watch the horses run. I grew up in the North County of San Diego. I was and still am a surfer.

I still remember the feature race at Del Mar that June gloom over-cast summer day. Willie Shoemaker won the race with Pincay getting beat at the wire. From the sound of the crowd and the sound of the starting gate a light came on inside me. I was now a new fan to this wonderful sport.

I soon realize that this sport is about what happened in the past. Once handicappers realize the correlation between the past and the present, the puzzle starts to unfold and one can understand what makes up each race. Pace makes up the race with trainer/jockey angles in this mix. This is based on visualizing the race before the race has started. A Zen like Hermann Hess vision of pace,class,speed figures,fitness,pedigree and trainer/jockey angles. After visionalizing the final outcome of the race the contenders stand out from the pretenders. By osmosis and racing experience will the present race come into focus.

Then step back again after handicapping the race and take another look at the pace. Visionalize the pace again before you single on a horse in the race. It is easy to miss this step in picking the contenders from the pretenders. The puzzle hopefully will unfold.

Questions like who is the speed and can they really get the distance of the race. Who is the speed and who are the stalkers and mid-pack stalkers not far back off the pace. Who are the stone cold closers. The race should materialize and each horse you will be able to know where each horse should be at each furlong pole in the race. Hopefully the jockeys will be a asset and not a liability.

Speed figures with pace make up the basic element of who the stand out contenders in the race are.  Trainers and what they do is as important as speed figures and pace figures.

I will post my picks for Wednesday at Gulfstream Park. Yesterday I miss most of my picks at Gulfstream Park. At Santa Anita I miss my early pick three's. I did hit the late Pick Four for $820.00. I placed $20 across the board on P-Val who won the last race. I singled him in my late Pick Four.


                    Update from last week at Santa Anita

Premier Pegasus by Fusaichi Pegasus turned for home in the San Felipe Stakes and just smoked the field kicking clear by 8 lengths at the wire. Derby Time I hope with Jeff Bonde colt Sway Away.

In the Santa Margarita Miss Match a horse I over-looked beat Switch at the wire. She was ridden by Garrett Gomez and trained by Neil Drysdale.

I was impressed by the filly Shezabigbroad trained by Mike Puype. She ran and looks like a sophomore Miss that might be a future star.


Silky Sullivan is back and she is named Cambina who was awesome yesterday when she put her killer closing kick down the lane. Her turn of foot is impressive!! To say the very least.

Saturday is the $150,000 Santa Ana Stakes a Grade 2 race. Sunday host the San Luis Rey Stakes and the Santa Paula Grade 3 Stakes!



                  Thanks for visiting my blog   Michael