I’ll Bet Ya

by Ed Meyer

posted on June 16, 2010 in General Discussion | 1 Comment >>

I have a pal who is a single gent who loves to wager on the ponies, trotters, dogs, and jai-alai… It doesn’t matter. His specialty is mules…. Mules… Believe it or not… He is the most enthusiastic gambler I know…. And the best part is that he calls into our Internet radio show every week…You should write down his picks in pen…

Pete Aiello is a gambler, a punter, a track-rummy, and a good guy… He can play the cheapest of cheap horses at a win clip I have only heard about…. Funny thing, he never gets tired. Oh, he may have to reload his account. But he never gets tired. He is a long distance runner and an all-day hunter.

I tease him about the mules, and have a dozen names for these animals.. This goes along with the immense respect I have for the man… Kinda sounds like a love story, huh? Not the case at all… It is every day that he can expect a call from my desk as I ask for the “Cowboy” plays of the day… He just laughs it off, as a cowboy in my directory of names is one who thinks they have a winner. The difference between Pete and “The Cowboys” is that he actually does….So, that name does not fit, but I like to have a little fun at the expense of one of the best handicappers I have ever known….I don’t think he has taken into consideration that I have played in many major contests, and sat with NTRA champs… I have played with them all, and he ranks at the top..They couldn’t hold his hat…..

The cheaper, the better… I have argued with him about good horses holding form longer. His smack is that cheap horses have cycles…. I never really gave it a thought, but it takes countless hours of watching the races to see which cheapo is better than the other… We were having our “Cowboy” conversation yesterday, and he told me he loved a runner… He was all-in, as they say in poker, and needed him as his single. When he went to post at 6-1, I hoped he had a shot… But at the 1/8th pole, when it was time to march to the windows, I knew what trip handicapping and his cycles were all about… He could battle with the best writers or prognosticators. He won’t be talking Belmont, Monmouth, Churchill, or Hollywood… But ask him about mules, and you’ll get a lesson. He is already making plans to be at the fair next year at this time… Pete loves the races, and don’t complain about cheap races as you are in his house. The only “cowboy” move you will see from Pete is getting on his horse and getting to a mutuel machine…..