Larry Collmus no longer NYRA announcer

[classhandicapper]

Originally Posted by dilanesp

I grew up with Dave Johnson at Santa Anita. His national work was a little hit and miss (although if you gave him a close finish he could deliver a great call, e.g., the 1988 Kentucky Derby), but he was great, and beloved, out here.

May favorite Johnson call of all time (and no one will remember this except maybe Andy Serling) was for a horse called Soy Numero Uno. He was a very nice horse in the middle/late 70s. In one of his very early races (maybe first start) he took the lead impressively and Johnson shifted the stretch call into Spanish, which back then I guess had more of an impact than it would now.

"Soy Numero Uno en frente de cinco cuerpos"

It was something like that. For some reason as a teenager listening to that call I thought it was so funny and never forgot it.

[the little guy]

Soy Numero Uno was a cool horse. He broke his maiden on Opening Day of the Fall meet at Belmont at a short price for trainer Homer Pardue, and followed it up with a win in the Futurity shortly thereafter. He was a bad fourth at 1:5 in his next start in the Cowdin, which was a big race back then and the final prep for the Champagne in the days that horses ran with frequency.

Honest Pleasure galloped in that Cowdin…..and went on to have a much more storied career, though Soy Numero Uno ( I am Number One ) won his share going forward.

[wisconsin]

Originally Posted by Jayhawk6191

Dave Johnson. I watched those early 80's triple crown races specifically for that call.

Many have no idea he was in commercials

YouTube

Also for Charmin (after Mr. Whipple), and Mobil.

[v j stauffer]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

You must love that OP job. Nice track, nice town, great racing, good live attendance, and one of the few tracks on a big upswing. Best of luck.

You couldn't be more correct. OP is such a perfect job for me. After Hollywood Park closed I wasn't sure I'd ever call again. Oaklawn offers world class racing in a city the embraces the program with great enthusiasm. Needless to say a truly great horse can run here. American Pharoah, Mitole, Midnight Bisou, Accelerate, Queenie and many others.

The town of Hot Springs is also terrific. So much so that Tina and I are building a new home about 15 minutes from the track on Diamondhead Golf Course.

Upswing is certainly correct. We've just added live Black Jack and Craps to our Casino. As well as sports betting. In 2021 we'll be opening a 200 room 4 star hotel smack dab on the clubhouse turn.

I am a truly blessed man.

[Redbullsnation]

Damn

[classhandicapper]

The town of Hot Springs is also terrific. So much so that Tina and I are building a new home about 15 minutes from the track on Diamondhead Golf Course.

Congrats

I liked Hot Spring a lot when I was there.

[dilanesp]

Originally Posted by classhandicapper

May favorite Johnson call of all time (and no one will remember this except maybe Andy Serling) was for a horse called Soy Numero Uno. He was a very nice horse in the middle/late 70s. In one of his very early races (maybe first start) he took the lead impressively and Johnson shifted the stretch call into Spanish, which back then I guess had more of an impact than it would now.

"Soy Numero Uno en frente de cinco cuerpos"

It was something like that. For some reason as a teenager listening to that call I thought it was so funny and never forgot it.

He never did anything like that out here that I remember, but he was really on his game for the big Santa Anita races. The crowd would roar when he brought out the "and down the stretch they come", or when a closer was flying at the leaders. He also had a natural projection in his voice- it really blasted out of the speaker system.

He was especially good with Vigors, Affirmed, and Spectacular Bid. It wasn't at Santa Anita, but he also delivered the fitting close to John Henry's career (a horse he knew very well) at the Meadowlands- "the old man, John Henry, taking command!". To this day, he's what I think of when I think of an on-track announcer; the only people who I have enjoyed listening to over a racetrack's speakers close to as much as I enjoyed him would be Trevor Denman and Vic Stauffer.

[Suff]

I heard larry opening a b & b in saratoga. I also heard he’s writing a book. Racing From Baltimore. Its a word play.

[CheckMark]

Originally Posted by Suff

I heard larry opening a b & b in saratoga. I also heard he’s writing a book. Racing From Baltimore. Its a word play.

I thought he was going to write "My almost $750,000 year at the Races" like the title of Andy Beyer's book "My $50,000 Year at the races" instead Larry puts the 7 in front of the 5

Wishing him all the best in his actual book.

[mountainman]

Originally Posted by v j stauffer

You couldn't be more correct. OP is such a perfect job for me. After Hollywood Park closed I wasn't sure I'd ever call again. Oaklawn offers world class racing in a city the embraces the program with great enthusiasm. Needless to say a truly great horse can run here. American Pharoah, Mitole, Midnight Bisou, Accelerate, Queenie and many others.

The town of Hot Springs is also terrific. So much so that Tina and I are building a new home about 15 minutes from the track on Diamondhead Golf Course.

Upswing is certainly correct. We've just added live Black Jack and Craps to our Casino. As well as sports betting. In 2021 we'll be opening a 200 room 4 star hotel smack dab on the clubhouse turn.

I am a truly blessed man.

A sharp player at simulcast gave you effusive praise several days ago for clearly explaining why a seemingly ineligible horse did, indeed, qualify to run. The race in question was some sort of "tri state" restricted.

I much respect your making a point of that, because in my opinion, enlightening or educating the audience on concrete aspects of racing they may be uninformed about constitutes the highest form of analysis, easily trumping opinion and picks. And no analyst incapable of educating viewers should be sitting there.

[cj]

Larry got a very good chuckle at the number(s) thrown around in this thread. I'll leave it at that.

[paulbenny]

NYRA is a quasi governmental entity. They would have to publish this, or they would be in deep trouble. If they did, they would be in even deeper trouble, because at 750K is is absurd. Regardless of the level of pay you think, or your biases about quality, no track announcer singly at one track would command this today based upon common sense.


My two cents is that even Frank M. is competitive with Larry. Larry is decent. John is a super guy for the company and a devoted racing man, and New Yorker. Larry is OK. Again, the amount of pay could not have exceeded anything paid to the deposed Chris Kay former chairman, because they would be hammered by the media and politicians. These things get out. Who is better or worse is subjective, but really the money is not even real just for NYRA. Maybe he has multiple income streams and that is all good and well, with NBC and so forth. I personally did not enjoy him and would rather listen to Dave Rodman or Frank M. with John I far ahead of them. He is a pro. Travis is super too.

[FantasticDan]

Originally Posted by cj

Larry got a very good chuckle at the number(s) thrown around in this thread. I'll leave it at that.

Only one poster here claimed the $750K number, and his basis for that claim was "my brother told me."

The only other numbers being "thrown around" were based on Durkin's known salary..

Even the Louisville Courier-Journal was speculating on the payday that was luring Collmus away from Churchill..

https://www.courier-journal.com/stor...ncer/17601523/

[dilanesp]

Originally Posted by FantasticDan

Only one poster here claimed the $750K number, and his basis for that claim was "my brother told me."

The only other numbers being "thrown around" were based on Durkin's known salary..

Even the Louisville Courier-Journal was speculating on the payday that was luring Collmus away from Churchill..

https://www.courier-journal.com/stor...ncer/17601523/

I don't think NYRA needed to offer that big a salary. The NYRA job is the biggest on track glamour job in racing.

[FantasticDan]

Originally Posted by dilanesp

I don't think NYRA needed to offer that big a salary. The NYRA job is the biggest on track glamour job in racing.

True, Collmus probably agreed to like $80K cuz of all that sweet extra glamour