typical MP afternoon

Saturday's Breeders' Cup was more on the lame side than anything else. The weather and racing were both lousy. Let's recap:

Juvenille Fillies: Indian Blessing goes wire to wire at 8/5. No action for me, but a gentle reminder that this is Monmouth, after all, and I should expect a fair amount of chalk.

Juvenille Colts: War Pass at 2-1 goes wire to wire. Nobody really runs much behind him in a rather uninspiring affair. Colt will not wear roses next spring; Derby winner likely still in the allowance or maiden ranks as of this weekend. No action for me.

F/M Turf: Lahudood!!! My girl scores at 11-1, handling the soft going without much trouble. I have her strongly in pick 3s, but goofed by not playing her to win at that price. Not a major slip given her form over the going in the past, but a boo boo. Race pretty much holds to form, but the winner and second place finisher, Honey Ryder, are the only two to bring it on the big day.

Sprint: Midnite Lute (5-2) kills my pick 3s by rallying from dead last to blow by Idiot Proof (one my guys) in the last eighth. Benny the Bull, another key for me in the race, doesn't handle the ground all too well, finishing fourth. Winner is actually helped by a slow start that forces him to settle way back off of a hot pace before making his run. Really nice horse, but hard to love at short price. Welcome to Monmouth Park. That's 3-3 favs on the main.

Mile: Kip Deville (8-1) sits a perfect inside trip and holds off the favorite, Excellent Art, at the wire. I'd never have the winner, as it was just this week that his final breeze was delayed due to a filling in his leg. My boy, Host, rallies from way back to finish 5th at 15-1. Pace was too slow and he was too far back early, but the old man really fired over the soggy going. My day is over.

Distaff: Ginger Punch (9/2) wins an awful race, sitting a perfect trip and battling with tough-luck second place finisher, Hystericallady (wide all the way), through the lane. Race is slow, balance of field doesn't do much. A good spot to have taken a break to wash your hair or something.

Turf: English Channel (3-1) sits a good inside trip, doesn't get too rank and draws off on the field in the lane. Dylan Thomas is nowhere over the soft going, but it was likely the nine starts this year that finally caught up to him. Winner gets credit for sitting the trip, but let's not forget that this was a Grade 3 rendition of the turf. I mean, he was stalking Fri Guy out there. My ten bucks on Shamdinan at 25-1 is a good bet (first of the day); he finishes second and I never would have covered with the winner for the $152 exacta (which seems a bit light). Race is just proof of the general direction of the breed.

Classic: Curlin (4-1) is a man among boys and puts on the most impressive show of the day. In retrospect, I should have had the exacta with Hard Spun (paid $70). I didn't like the older horses (Lawyer Ron was dead on the board for some reason) and thought the 3yos were just better. I didn't like Street Sense, either, so would have had to play Curlin, Tiago and Hard Spun in some combination. Maybe the trifecta was a miss, too, ($645) but that would have required a stand somewhere, and I didn't like Curlin enough over the track, nor Hard Spun at the distance. No harm done, anyway.

Driving home, I realized that it was only appropriate that a MP Breeders' Cup leave such an empty feeling come the end of the card. Could have made thousands if I had handicapped with that notion in mind going in. Indian Blessing, War Pass, Midnite Lute, Kip Deville (Dutrow at MP!) and English Channel would have all been locks. Thankfully, it's over and we can focus on Wed. at the Meadowlands now. I understand NJ officials are already talking up BC 2014. Nothing like locking up the seven-year job security, I guess.