There are not many magicians who will take you back stage and reveal the truth behind the magic. – I’m not much of a magician unless you count making money disappear at the windows from time-to-time. – I set myself a $200 bankroll for last Saturday and I was wanting to build a bankroll […]

The good, the bad, and the ugly. – This is one way of categorizing your day at the races. For the longest time, I’ve watched the cyclical trend of having a good run go cold. I look back and wondered what was the cause, or were there any signs I should have been on the […]

                  I stand up every race and look out the windows for a few minutes. I’m looking for the longtime faces that have been coming to the races as we both have gained a little age to our looks. – The fans are the best part of […]

Nothing like a cliff note version of what’s going on. Don’t think of it as a cheat sheet as there are many issues that deserve a fuller explanation. – But here are a few items that caught my eye and as usual, the opinions here are just that. Remember what your high school teacher used to […]

There are good days, great days, and ones you would rather forget about. For me, the most painful losses used to be getting snapped right at the wire. You know the feeling where you have the lead and even start believing you may hang on as the wire is coming. Only after what seems a […]

Another month in the books and “The Happy Horseplayer” enjoyed every minute. – The eternal optimist looks forward to more fun in the sun as racing is just starting to heat up. The past month left me with fond memories, nice scores, and a few bad beats. But all in all, I wouldn’t trade it […]

What a weekend for showing the ups and downs of Thoroughbred racing. Arrogate has the racing world scratching their head and the bridges around the country had standing room only as he tossed in a clunker. – Fast forward to the next day at the Spa. Bob Baffert still hurting from Arrogates lack of interest sent […]

I was going to River Downs for years before I started working in the parking lot as a kid. Beulah Park was a once or twice a year trek. – Years later, I returned to RD as the director of marketing. I was 1A of “The Regular Guys” and fun in the sun was the […]

  We sat around the small transistor radio waiting for the call-to-the-post bugle on WNOP 740 am. We were transported to the track magically as Leo Underhill would take us right to the rail with his smokey voice. – This would be the follow-up to finding a newspaper and gleaning the entries and guessing who you […]

If there was a copy of the secret sauce for your favorite burger, wouldn’t you go home and give it a try ? – There’s no reason we shouldn’t be constantly looking to improve our handicapping tool box. The idea hit me when I watched two long time race trackers holding a track betting guide […]