Month: May 2014

Playing the 15% takeout Pick-4 at ASD

Playing the 15% takeout Pick-4 at ASD

by Rob Nine race days at ASD are complete and an alarming trend has begun to occur in the highly lucrative 15% takeout Pick-4. Six of the race days have had medium sized Pick-4 payoffs between $302 and $624 for a $2 wager. The other three race days have ended with...

Chalky Pick-4 results in many winners, but losers impress

Chalky Pick-4 results in many winners, but losers impress

by George Three favourites and a second choice made for slim pickings in the Pick-4 on Friday night at the Downs, but there were some excellent horse and jockey performances to take note of. The best performance in a non-winning role went to jockey Jalon Samuel in the...

New jockey, new horse, win debuts at Downs, Ladies saddle longshots

New jockey, new horse, win debuts at Downs, Ladies saddle longshots

by George New jockey Jalon Samuel won with his first mount ever here, trainers Lorna Gray and Sherri Laing owned the longshots of the night, and a new 3-year-old filly named Aware definitely made us that with a powerful stretch drive in the finale on a sunny Wednesday...

June 6, 1976 – The day the mighty Thor ravaged the Downs

June 6, 1976 – The day the mighty Thor ravaged the Downs

by Bob In the world of Norse mythology, Thor is recognized as the God of Thunder, but he is also closely associated with lightning and storms. On Sunday, June 6, 1976 Assiniboia Downs was the victim of his wrath! The day started off like any other, with me and my...

Betting on Breeding Part 1: Manitoba Stallions

Betting on Breeding Part 1: Manitoba Stallions

by Rob To kick off the 2014 blog series for myself, I thought it would be great to discuss one of those topics in racing that is much talked about yet foreign to many people: the actual breeding of a race horse and how it affects the parimutuel wagering side of...

Jet Again impresses again on Saturday night, Deanna says YES!

Jet Again impresses again on Saturday night, Deanna says YES!

by George Top 3-year-old Jet Again came storming home to win his second in a row, trainer Shelley Brown won her first race of the season, and the $2 Pick-4 paid $412.70 on a rainy Saturday night at the Downs. Jet Again, a 3-year-old chestnut gelding by Going...

Robert Joseph Franklin, the quiet man from Iowa

Robert Joseph Franklin, the quiet man from Iowa

by Bob Bob Franklin was only 72 when he was called to heaven's backstretch on May 1, 1990, but he crammed a lot of living into his time on this earth. Much of it at Assiniboia Downs. Bob was a simple, quiet, black man from Clarinda, Iowa who knew all about racial...