Nov 19
2014
Maggie Wolfendale at Aqueduct
I went on a spur of the moment trip to Aqueduct and I contacted Maggie Wolfendale to see if she’d be willing to meet my wife Deb, and spend some time with us in the paddock. She said, “Sure, no problem.” Maggie is the paddock analyst for NYRA, and we introduced her in a prior article. Click here to read more about my first visit with Maggie at Saratoga in August.
This meeting was more informal than my first time with Maggie at Saratoga. For the most part, we just conversed on whatever topic came to mind as we were watching the horses in the paddock. Deb was very intrigued by the whole experience, and asked most of the questions. As I mentioned in the prior article, she’s a big fan of Maggie. Here, in no particular order, is a list of some topics that came up.
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Nov 14
2014
Being mostly an East Coast horseplayer, I rarely give much thought to racing venues west of Kentucky. For the majority of the year there is plenty to keep me busy without having to “go west young man.” But, with the introduction of a Fall Meet at Del Mar, and me pining for the warmth and sunshine that left Saratoga with the horses, I decided it was time to dip my toes in the racing sands of southern California.
John Lies
But before making any serious wagers, I decided to get some help from a friend that has a birds-eye view of the racing at Del Mar. John Lies is the on-track & simulcast television host that reports live from the paddock at Del Mar each race day. In addition to that, John is the track announcer at Lone Star Park, Will Rogers Downs, and Kentucky Downs. It was the latter track where I first got to know John and wrote a recent article about Kentucky Downs and described John’s “natural teaching qualities.” In addition to that, in 2013 we did a full interview with John.
In a recent conversation with John, I asked him for some tips for horseplayers unfamiliar with Del Mar. The following Question and Answer dialogue took place, and I’d like to share it with you.
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Nov 10
2014
A frequent question asked by new fans trying to learn more about horse racing is, “Where do I begin?” My immediate response is generally, “Get to know your trainers.” While learning about topics like distance, class, and pace are important … in my opinion, none are as important as learning about the tendencies, strengths, and weaknesses of trainers. With that thought in mind, we continue our series of articles called “Know Your Trainers.”
In this series we will dig into the statistics of some head trainers and try to make sense of the numbers we find. We thought it might be fun to present the numbers in a “competitive” manner by pairing trainers. With that said, we are not trying to judge the trainers or claim that one is better than another. Our intention is to pair trainers who have statistics in comparable categories and present some plausible reasons why they might differ.
So let’s continue with two of the big names in California, Bob Baffert and Jerry Hollendorfer. Our focus will be in these areas; Graded Stakes, First-Time-Starters, Del Mar, and a couple of profitable angles we uncovered along the way.
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Oct 29
2014
In a prior article we introduced TimeformUS and a list of our favorite features. Click here to read that article.
Included in our list of favorite features was “expanded trip notes.” In addition to these, TimeformUS offers additional “Perspective Comments” that are available for the majority of races that were run in Europe. These comments are extensive and quite often provide more than just trip related information. For example, sometimes there are comments that reflect the quality of the competition in the race and/or prior races. At other times, there are comments about where the horse is headed next, whether or not the horse is suited to try different distances, go up in class, etc. With the influx of European horses for the Breeders’ Cup, this type of information can provide the horseplayer with an edge over players who do not have access to these comments.
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Oct 27
2014
In a prior article we introduced the Art of Visual Handicapping and included an example from the 2013 Breeders’ Cup. Click here to read that article.
In this article we are going to put the spotlight on four horses running in the 2014 Breeders’ Cup and explain what caught our attention when watching some of their video race replays.
Before we show the videos, there is one caveat: We are not making any selections (picks) in this article. The videos were chosen because we felt they represent a good example of the concepts covered in the article on visual handicapping. Hopefully you can incorporate what you learn from each video into your thought process, and in the end, make a better selection. Also, we hope that these examples will give you ideas for things to look for when you are watching race replays of other horses involved in the Breeders’ Cup.
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Oct 24
2014
In a prior article we provided an overview of Santa Anita turf course and how it’s unique configuration might impact the running of Breeders’ Cup races in 2014. Click here to read that article.
In this article we are going to cover the Santa Anita dirt track, and although it isn’t quite as unique as the turf course, there are still factors to consider for each distance run in the Breeders’ Cup races.
For example, where is the starting gate position for each race? How close is it to the first turn? Is there an advantage to inside or outside post positions at each distance? How does the Santa Anita track layout compare to other racetracks?
Breeders’ Cup Dirt Races
To the right is a table listing the Breeders’ Cup dirt races that will be contested at the various distances. You can see that other than the two Juvenile races, every other distance is only run once for Breeders’ Cup races.
For some distances, the location of the starting gate is very similar to other racetracks. For other distances, it is much different … even when the size of the oval (1 mile) is identical to that of Santa Anita.
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Oct 23
2014
We classified this article under the “Trips” category, but in fairness it involves much more than the “good” or “bad” trip approach to handicapping. Trip handicappers are always on the lookout for circumstances where a horse ran worse than expected, but had one or more excuses that explain their sub-par performance. This can offer value when other bettors jump off that horse’s bandwagon.
On the flip side, discovering that an above average performance was bolstered by a favorable trip can offer value on other horses in an upcoming race. For example, maybe a horse benefited from a speed duel, and was sitting in the “garden spot” immediately behind dueling leaders who tired dramatically in the stretch. If circumstances in his next race are different, he might not fare so well.
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Oct 19
2014
Breeders’ Cup 2014 is right around the corner, and we thought it would be a good time to feature an article about the unique layout of the Santa Anita turf course and how it might impact the running of the Breeders’ Cup races this year.
We will limit our review to include only the four distances of Breeders’ Cup races contested over the turf course. To begin, we will show a diagram of the turf course layout and include the starting gate position (in colored boxes) for each distance included in the 2-day set of Breeders’ Cup races. And we will discuss how post positions are affected by the location of the starting gate and it’s proximity to the first turn at each distance. Distances of 1-mile or more show the furlong equivalent for individuals (like myself) who think in terms of furlongs.
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Oct 14
2014
Thomas Brandebourger
In a prior article about Christophe Clement, we noted his ability to attract talented and loyal staff. Over the past few months we’ve spent some time with one of his assistant trainers, Thomas Brandebourger. In doing so, we discovered a man working quietly, out of the limelight of the racing world, tending to a string of Clement’s horses, seven days a week.
Thomas is 29 years old, a native of France, speaks three languages … loves horses, soccer, and a good coffee. Since the age of three he has wanted to train horses. His father bred and sold horses in France, and Thomas grew up on a farm. But, as Thomas said to me, “The exciting thing for me was the racing. I just wanted to be as close to the racing as possible.”
As a teenager, during his school vacations, Thomas worked with several trainers learning how to train and ride horses. Then at eighteen, he stayed and worked with an accomplished trainer in France, Robert Collet, for five months. After that, he told his father that he wanted to go to America, to “see what is going on there.” So, at nineteen years old, Thomas picked up his tack and moved to America, for what was supposed to be a few months. He never went back to France.
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Oct 12
2014
Website founder Neal Benoit
This website was launched eighteen months ago with the primary purpose of promoting the sport of thoroughbred horse racing through education and entertainment. In that short time, we have seen our readership steadily grow. In September we surpassed 100,000 hits for the calendar year 2014.
Our traffic and reader comments suggest that we are reaching an expanding number of people and we’d like to learn more about you and where your interests lie. For example:
- What type of articles have you read on our website?
- What topics would you like to see covered in the future?
- What individuals would you like to learn more about?
- What is your level of experience?
With this interest in mind, we have prepared a short survey. A link to the survey appears at the bottom of the page. Your feedback will help us determine where to focus our efforts in the future and allow us to continue to grow this website in a meaningful way.
We sincerely THANK YOU for your support and interest in our website.
*** Please CLICK HERE to launch our Reader Survey. ***
By Neal Benoit
