Rapid Redux

[lamboguy]

i think he thinking back to the old days when maryland tracks weren't corporate ownership. today this is the trend. the days of private individual's owning race tracks are gone, lou smith gone, edna kranz gone, de frances gone, bill veck gone. when individuals owned these racetracks it was a different game. there was no such thing as big paychecks for management, the family's ran things with a tight fist.

but i do agree, frank is not even close to being the problem with racing.

[proximity]

Originally Posted by lamboguy

i think he thinking back to the old days when maryland tracks weren't corporate ownership. today this is the trend.....

no i was thinking to future days when maryland horsemen could have raced for enormous purses (you too) and maryland gamblers could have parked for free in nice parking garages and then walked into the track for free too. then after the card they could have played slots and (probably someday) poker and blackjack without having to drive to delaware, charles town, penn national, or some shopping mall. this is the trend today. mr stronach was handed the slots on a silver platter and totally, totally bungled things.

[lamboguy]

i just bought 3 maryland bred 2 yo's sight unseen. one of them by eclisiastic, not sure of spelling. i spoke to rodney jenkins, he told me the msw purses are going up to $35k this year with a $5k bonus for the maryland bred. i sent them down to my partner in ocala and said they looked decent for the short money i bought them for.
i just mentioned this because i wanted to prove that i am bullish on maryland racing these days.

[proximity]

Originally Posted by lamboguy

i just mentioned this because i wanted to prove that i am bullish on maryland racing these days.

so you're the one?

seriously though, good luck with those horses!!

[Tom]

Originally Posted by Midnight Cruiser

I think I just read an article where the owner indicated that he would retire after this race and that he is looking for a "retirement home" for RR to spend his golden years...

It is so obvious......they need to breed him to Zenyatta!
Then plan for a 39 win streak!

[PaceAdvantage]

Originally Posted by keilan

Frank's isn't what's wrong with racing but go ahead and babble because he's a easy target for many Americans

"For many Americans???" Are you implying he's a target because he's a Canadian citizen?

Seriously?

If so, wow...

[FenceBored]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

"For many Americans???" Are you implying he's a target because he's a Canadian citizen?

Seriously?

If so, wow...

Perhaps he's implying that non-Americans don't see the things for which he is targeted as being worthy of the fuss. {shrug}

[Phantombridgejumpe]

Looking for a silent partner?

[Bruiser1]

Originally Posted by cj

Many horses were entered in the last 5 or 6 races without the connections having any intention of actual showing up in the gate. Favors, bribes, whatever, you be the judge, but the whole things smells. This isn't news, it was so obvious the first few times anybody could see what was happening if they wanted to see it.

Our sport is so desperate for attention it ignores the shady stuff, right or wrong.

You've been beating this horse for quite a while now. Either the Wells/Cole connections are extremely powerful, or maybe other entrants really don't want to run against RR. Taking into account the purses we're talking about, running for the place money doesn't look too enticing.

[classhandicapper]

Originally Posted by RXB

and there shouldn't be any surprise when connections of other horses often decide to wait for another spot after the entries are published and they see RR on the list. He's almost like an automatic 60% purse cut.

I have no idea what's going on behind the scenes, but this is often true.

If you know you are running for 2nd money with a horse capable of winning or your horse is spotted poorly because of running style, you are going to want to scratch. In some cases the racing secretary has to work hard to fill races like that because no one wants to run. That's why they become weak fields to begin with. Of course that doesn't mean people weren't pulling stings to help out also, but there may be two things going on.

RR has been in the rather unique position of not running in claiming races where someone could take him away if he was way below his appropriate level and where he wasn't running out of conditions. So that has contributed to both the winning streak and the willingness of others to run against him.

Honestly I don't see what the debate is.

He's not a great horse but it has been a marvelous accomplishment for the connections to keep him this consistent and this sharp for so long with this many starts. If he had won only 15-18 of the races because he got dueled into defeat a few times it would be the same thing to me.

[keilan]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

"For many Americans???" Are you implying he's a target because he's a Canadian citizen?

Seriously?

If so, wow...

Can't get anything passed you!!

[Dahoss9698]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

Honestly I don't see what the debate is.

It's pretty obvious what the debate is.

If the connections were doing shady things behind the scenes to make sure Rapid Redux's streak stays intact....it's unfortunate. It speaks more about THEIR need and desire to be in the spotlight than anything.

[cj]

Originally Posted by Bruiser1

You've been beating this horse for quite a while now. Either the Wells/Cole connections are extremely powerful, or maybe other entrants really don't want to run against RR. Taking into account the purses we're talking about, running for the place money doesn't look too enticing.

Just to be clear, it is a horse. I've never said one bad word about the horse. When people participate in things that reflect poorly on their integrity, I'll certainly speak out about the connections.

As I've said before, people can believe what they want. Where there is smoke, there is usually fire, and I believe there is a lot of smoke. None of anything I've said has to do with horses legitimately scratching out.

[classhandicapper]

Originally Posted by Dahoss9698

It's pretty obvious what the debate is.

If the connections were doing shady things behind the scenes to make sure Rapid Redux's streak stays intact....it's unfortunate. It speaks more about THEIR need and desire to be in the spotlight than anything.

Like I said, I have no idea what's going on behind the scenes.

IMO, the goal of the owner and trainer is to maximize the purse money earned and the value of the horse. So they should be looking for easy spots, small fields, etc.. where their horse is dominant and the purse good enough so it makes sense to run there instead of a tougher race for more money. The idea is NOT to look for tough spots that might get your horse beat in order to satisfy handicappers that think the horse is overrated or want to seem him get beat.

If people are making behind the scenes phone calls or deals to try to keep the streak going, it is what it is. It's shady and/or takes away from the accomplishment. But those that are agreeing and allowing it to happen must feel it's in their own best interests and/or the best interests of the track to go along. I don't even know if that's legal or illegal. If it's illegal, then it's a problem.

I once heard a rumor that the connections of Ghostzapper and the connections of Roses in May agreed to not go after each other and slow down the pace of the BC Classic. IF true (big IF), that's a lot worse than asking someone or paying someone to scratch to improve your chances.

It just seems like a big deal is being made because the horse has won so many races in a row and it's annoying some people. To me the win streak is irrelevant because we aren't even talking about a Grade 1 horse whose place in history is relevant. People are just enjoying him because it's fun to see if he'll keep firing his "A" race and winning.

[cj]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

It just seems like a big deal is being made because the horse has won so many races in a row and it's annoying some people. To me the win streak is irrelevant because we aren't even talking about a Grade 1 horse whose place in history is relevant. People are just enjoying him because it's fun to see if he'll keep firing his "A" race and winning.

I thought I've been very clear on what is going on without trying to get PA into any hot water. Of course, I'll stand behind what I said and I'm not anonymous. I'm not making things up, this stuff happened. I'm not sure why you think I would have some secret agenda against a horse.

Isn't it just possible I am annoyed because of a total lack of integrity being displayed by the connections and the stupid press following right along rather than that I am worried about some streak? You know me better than this.