Saratoga

[jahura2]

I am planning a month of wagering focusing on Saratoga only. Does anyone wish to share any insights on the Spa. i.E Oklahoma Training track vs. main track, how weather (rain) affects all 3 surfaces, small stables that generally do well, any past observances on bias or any other opinions and ideas regarding Saratoga.

[lamboguy]

the last time i went to saratoga they had a great food court. the hot dogs and hamburgers are the best. and they try to pour cold beer.

[jahura2]

That goes without saying!!

[burnsy]

i mentioned in another thread....weather affects the turf courses the most. when the weather is dry the turf courses get hard. when this happens it will be speed favoring. the main track is more of a "day to day" deal. they usually seal the track at the threat of heavy weather. that makes things tough. but speed does well on most days.

[offtrack]

Fast workouts over either surface are positive indicators of readiness.

Belmont form does not hold up in many races. Instead refer back to prior SAR races, or even AQU races.

Trip is very important on the inner turf. Keep notes of horses the are aided or impeded by their trip.
The Mellon course is more foregiving.
During the meet the turf on both courses gets torn up and plays a role in who can win.
Early speed can hold on when the turf tracks are dry and hard.

If you can, get to the paddock and watch the young horses before the race. If you are away from the track Andy Serling and Maggie Wolfendale post updates on Twitter.

Last years trainers that did well:
Chad Brown
S Asmussen
R Rodriguez
K McLaughlin
P Serpe
M Hushion
R Dutrow
G Contessa
J Kimmel
J Sheppard
J Fisher
J Bond
M Trombetta

Early Meet trainers:
G Motion
M Matz
C Englehart
J Terranova

[1st time lasix]

% takeouts on trifectas...supers...pick threes and pick fours are generally high. The win pool, the exacta pool and the double pool are much more reasonable. I find myself making bigger wagers in those pools.... rather than the three or four horse exotics. Love their two year old racing. Some well bred hoses make thier debuts. Probabbly too many NY bred races...and turf sprints for my liking....but it is....what it is. Love Durkin on the calls. Good luck!

[appistappis]

p j's bbq joint just south of town.......mmmmmmmmmm.

[riskman]

Just a side note. NYRA will offer guaranteed wagers during the 2012 Saratoga Meet: a $500,000 Guaranteed Late Pick 4 on Saturdays and a $1 Million All-Graded Stakes Late Pick 4 on Travers Day, Saturday, August 25. There will be a .50 cent minimum wager on late pick four on regular Saturdays, not sure what the minimum is on Travers Day.

You may want to look at this from Brisnet- Saratoga At a Glance from the 2011 meet.
http://www.brisnet.com/cgi-bin/editorial/article.cgi?id=342

In dirt sprints horses with top early pace and turn time ratings do well depending on the race shape. Good luck.

[jefftune]

Trainers I like to bet at Sar.
-Mike Hushion
-Michael Maker
-George Weaver

all have a positive ROI over the past three years and win their share of races.

-Jeff Tune
www.angelfire.com/pa/tune (http://www.angelfire.com/pa/tune)

[Shemp Howard]

You get all the "live" horses at a place called Siro's. Bring plenty of cash and stay away from the women named "Trixie."

[Mr G]

Last years trainers that did well:
Chad Brown
S Asmussen
R Rodriguez
K McLaughlin
P Serpe
M Hushion
R Dutrow
G Contessa
J Kimmel
J Sheppard
J Fisher
J Bond
M Trombetta

Early Meet trainers:
G Motion
M Matz
C Englehart
J Terranova

I noticed Pletcher and Rice are not on your list.....may I ask the reason why?
Thanks.

[offtrack]

The reason neither Pletcher, nor Rice were mentioned:

They are MOTO* names, that were not generating a positive $Net.

MOTO: Master of the Obvious

[offtrack]

Here's the top trainers list (Level 2) from the first 22 days at Saratoga:

Trainer Starts 1sts 2nds 3rds Pct Rtg $Net IV PIV
__________________________________________________ ___________________________
2 PLETCHER TODD A. 72 18 12 9 25 35 $2.01 1.92 1.08
2 BROWN CHAD C. 43 14 9 7 33 45 $1.86 2.86 1.27
2 ASMUSSEN STEVEN M. 34 7 8 3 21 33 $2.07 1.75 1.16
2 RODRIGUEZ RUDY R. 36 7 5 3 19 27 $2.36 1.59 1.20
2 WEAVER GEORGE 28 6 5 21 24 $2.91 1.92 1.94
2 MOTT WILLIAM I. 42 5 8 5 12 23 $0.89 0.99 0.81
2 DUTROW, JR. RICHARD E. 29 4 6 4 14 26 $1.20 1.05 0.87
2 GALLUSCIO DOMINIC G. 22 4 3 2 18 26 $3.51 1.41 1.61
2 CLEMENT CHRISTOPHE 22 4 1 4 18 23 $1.92 1.64 1.05
2 SERVIS JASON 8 4 2 50 62 $5.39 4.41 2.80
2 SCHERER MERRILL R. 8 3 1 2 38 47 $4.60 3.01 3.49
2 POMPAY TERESA M. 8 3 1 1 38 45 $3.34 2.99 2.28
2 DUTROW ANTHONY W. 19 3 4 3 16 28 $1.47 1.22 0.85
2 MCLAUGHLIN KIARAN P. 22 3 2 4 14 21 $1.17 1.10 0.84
2 LEVINE BRUCE N. 22 3 6 2 14 28 $0.88 1.12 0.71
2 MCGAUGHEY III CLAUDE R 18 3 1 1 17 20 $2.72 1.30 1.16
2 ALBERTRANI THOMAS 27 3 4 4 11 20 $0.44 0.88 0.83
2 JACOBSON DAVID 27 3 3 1 11 17 $0.67 0.95 0.92
2 RICE LINDA 28 3 1 5 11 15 $1.05 0.89 1.04
2 ROMANS DALE L. 29 3 2 3 10 15 $1.41 0.85 0.84
2 CONTESSA GARY C. 36 3 5 2 8 16 $0.48 0.73 0.82
2 STALL, JR. ALBERT M. 12 3 2 4 25 38 $1.73 1.88 1.20
2 TROMBETTA MICHAEL J. 13 3 2 3 23 34 $3.26 2.01 1.90
2 SCHETTINO DOMINICK A. 13 3 3 1 23 35 $2.22 1.92 1.57

Type 2: Top 15 618 115 91 78 19 28 $1.77 1.53 1.15
Type 3: Top 30 279 38 29 41 14 21 $2.15 1.12 1.05
Type 4: Other 752 44 77 75 6 12 $1.65 0.51 0.68