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Flashing back to this moment at Saratoga: Fortify made me proud by winning me my first in-person exacta bet over Todd Pletcher’s entry El Duro. It was something like $34 for $2. EEEEEE!

Holy Bull, how is it March already?! (Feel free to adopt that expression)

I get emails from Xpressbet, which I have been an account member with for some time. Until recently, my inbox had almost 2,000 messages that I finally either deleted or archived with some emails dating back to a few years ago. It was a spurt of organization, what can I say? Anyway, I still had my original email congratulating me on starting a betting account at Xpressbet on January 15, 2012 and presumably, within a day or two I made my first wager since August 14, 2010. All in all, that does not give me a wealth of experience when it comes to playing the ponies with any serious intent or reward, but after seeing that email it made me think of how I have changed since I first approached racing and wagering more than a year ago:

A year ago… and if you were to dig through the blog archives, you would find some evidence of…

• I never used speed figures at all.
• I almost always played to win, place, or show. I did not understand exotics yet. I did play a Pick 3 once at Gulfstream though… and won… something small like $17 but still!
• I stuck to familiar tracks and faces… EDGAR PRADO? I LOVE HIM! I particularly loved Gulfstream when I first started and disliked Aqueduct.
• I was actually unafraid to play claiming races. Unsuccessfully, yes, but still unhindered! Now I rarely play them!
• I was leery of turf and synthetic. I just wasn’t that familiar with them until the last year.
• I focused a lot on “visual handicapping” and then from there based my picks on connections and pedigree. I still use these facets, though lately not as much as I learn and feel out new methods. 
• I never bet more than $2. PIGEON BETS FOR THE WIN.

Here and now, I am:

• Tirelessly trying to beat the favorite when I can, especially when it’s a favorite I am naturally biased to try to beat i.e. a Todd Pletcher maiden
• An exotics fan, albeit an unsuccessful one. I haven’t hit the almighty trifecta yet, but have landed several exactas. 
• An occasional bettor of more than $2. I’ve put up $20+ in some situations where Awesome Feather, Union Rags, Game On Dude, and a select few others were running. Overall successful return on those leaps of faith.
• A growing fan of turf and synthetic, the former because it’s a more open affair and a lot of days I’m better at it than dirt. Synthetic is fun because it’s more of a challenge and with better odds on the upsetters.
• I use speed figures a bit more often, though I am still suspect of many of them being accurate foretellers of performance and ability. 
• I still believe in heart bets. :’)

And now for the Zenyatta part of this reflection. Yup, I am a fan and probably will always be one. When I first started the blog I thought she was something marvelous, but over time I ran into a lot of naysayers about her greatness. She will always be a personal great to me, and no I wouldn’t know who would win on their best day, Zenny or Rachel, but as I have grown to know more about racing, I can justify her appeal in some ways:

• She was a mare. With excellent bloodlines. Who raced until she was 6. Twice in the Classic, almost winning her second time.
• I naturally love closers because of her, but after seeing her run it has made me realize how difficult a task it is to win coming from behind. There’s traffic, there’s pace, there’s timing, there’s being ready and able to get the win. She did it so many times.
• She was always fit and was always on her A game. How many good horses today run until they’re 6 without getting a major injury or appearing frustrated and tired?
• I wish she would have tried turf…

To those of you on the social media sphere that follow America’s Best Racing, I’m making my debut in the ABR Notebook this Friday with “My Eleven Months of Union Rags.” Perhaps I can make this a regular thing and drive some more eyeballs here.

THANK YOU MR. HESS! Spectacular Bid Stakes winner Merit Man, who shipped from the Breeders’ Cup back to his homeland of Florida for that win, will stick to sprinting and ignore pursuing the Derby.

East coast bias: I would like to work for someone like HRTV, but they’re on the west coast and I have issues with the thought of leaving the east. I mean, the west coast is literally living in the past… they celebrated the New Year 3 hours after we did!

In an effort to continue the “don’t fall in love with Pletcher horses” conversation, whatever happened to Broadway’s Alibi? She has no logged recent works after being second in the Kentucky Oaks to Believe You Can. (She was also a top favorite in that race… even I liked her!)

True story: I was depressed when I found out that I could never share an actual birthday with any racehorse I knew. Nobody is foaled in August!

Oh, biscuits. They’ve outsmarted me… even CAMPING. OUTSIDE. IN A TENT. WITH NO HOOKUPS. would cost me a good deal in Saratoga. $180 a week. >.>

I mentioned a while ago that I strongly disliked the Disney Secretariat movie, which I bought, watched once, and haven’t touched since with the exception of putting it in a box when I moved. Cinematography’s great, but not only is it very phony, but after watching footage of the real Secretariat I still can’t trick my mind to accept the movie Secretariat. He’s so puny and too mild-mannered to be Secretariat!

Goldencents is the current points leader for the Kentucky Derby, because you know, a mile-long race in January is telling of a developing horse’s potential in early May. Lest we forget his grandsire is Harlan’s Holiday. #guffaw

By the looks of the nominees and past results, you’d swear Eclipse voters never follow horse racing throughout the year and just reference the earnings list/number of G1 victories in determining who gets their vote. Especially when it comes down to the winning owner/breeder.

I think I said it last year too, but I think this year will be huge for Mucho Macho Man.

A non-racing fan friend told me he thought a mention about Union Rags said “Onion Rags” at first. WHAT A PERFECT UPSET NAME!

I always wish I still lived in south Florida around this time of year. Animal Kingdom, among others, will be racing at Gulfstream soon and it’s been in the single digits all week.

What better news to have as we’re on the cusp of a new Triple Crown road but the return of Gary Stevens. I was sad to get back into racing and realizing how many classic races I missed that were won by greats like Stevens, Pat Day, and Jerry Bailey. Let’s hope he has more in him!

Tweet o’ the Week: He’s back!

I had some fun this year: by my count, I got to see 14 of the Breeders’ Cup contenders somewhere this year in-person. Let’s hope one of them gets to win!

I dare you to read Mary Cage’s blog about Miss Fifty and not feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

A year later, I feel a bit foolish now that I’m more “in the know” about not considering Drosselmeyer more than I did for last year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic (I). Sure he didn’t win anything and was more a Marathon type being a Belmont (I) winner, but he was a closer that was working really well at Churchill (which I even mentioned!) and was probably right at his peaking point. Dang.

Looks like Weemissfrankie isn’t coming back after all after her injury earlier this year. She was a fun horse on the California circuit.

DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT F—KING ME OVER BREEDERS’ CUP WEEK, FRANKENSTORM. I went through that last year *shudders*

Stephanoatsee won last weekend, Afleeting Lady this weekend… SHACKLEFORD IT’S YOUR TURN THIS COMING WEEKEND! Props to Mama Oatsee. #perfecthunchbet

I just now got around to reordering a replacement lens cap for my camera. If you happen to be at Saratoga next year and find a Nikon lens cap, probably somewhere near the saddling paddock, THAT’S MINE!

I’m a bag of mixed feelings about Chantal Sutherland’s retirement. I for one couldn’t live very long without cheeseburgers and Pizza Hut.

I still have the 2011 Breeders’ Cup app on my iPod. I’m a digital packrat.

How creepy weird am I to have been thinking about Rodman earlier this week (I was thinking about F&M Turf, thought about Nahrain [GB], thought about cool blazes, instantly thought of Rodman) to find out he died from a bad infection? All the sad in the world…

I can’t think of a better, more deserving stallion of your attention and his recent retirement: 10-year-old turf horse Musketier has been a graded winner from age 2 and 10!

So Buffum finally won a stakes? I guess not all well-bred, ritzy maiden smashers have it easy.

Tweet o’ the Week: