The Insider – Assiniboia Downs

Thursday, September 20, 2018

Vol. 13 No. 37 (Issue #655)

By Ivan Bigg

Weekly Horseplayer Report and Fun Stuff

(If this column looks askew in your email, click here for an online version.)

BETTING

Spread the word: $122 in FREE bets

Each new HPI sign-up gets $22 immediately plus $100 more after betting $100

Each sign-up gets this free

If you or your friends don’t have an online wagering account called HPIbet, then $122 in free wagers awaits you or them. Let them know. Here’s how you or they can take advantage of this astonishingly generous offer.

Phone 204-885-3330 ext. 225 (the mutuel department at ASD) and say “Sign me up for an HPIbet account.” (HPIbet is a Canada-wide betting service operated by Woodbine Entertainment)
An account will be set up with $22 in free deposits to kick off wagering: $20 courtesy of Assiniboia Downs and $2 courtesy of HPIbet.
After 30 days, providing you have made wagers totalling $100 or more. HPIbet will deposit $100 more free into your or your friends’ accounts

It’s obviously a deal not to pass up. It’s a chance for you or your friends to find out about online wagering on your computer or smart phone—without spending any personal money to do so. In other words, there’s nothing to lose and everything to gain. Email this Insider to those you think may wish to give it a try.

Bullet briefs . . .

Top 10 ASD horseplayers
Badrie continues his winning ways at Century Downs
Will McKinzie live up to billing in $1 million Pennsylvania Derby?
Covfefe crushes field in Churchill debut. Tweet THAT, Mr. Trump
What's delicious: ASD announces new appetizer and weekend dinner specials

“3 FOR THE MONEY” CONTINUES SATURDAY WITH INCREASED PRIZE: Since no one correctly predicted the winner of three designated races at last Saturday’s feature track, Woodbine, in the new “3 for the money” contest, $25 more has been added to the $50 initial prize, making $75 in wagering vouchers available to the winner this Saturday. Feature track: Parx where the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby for 3-year-olds and the $1 million Cotillion for 3-year-old fillies will be held. Look for program pages and entry ballots in the Race Book Saturday.

Official stations of horse racing.
Click to listen

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DO THE DOWNS

Want highlights for the next 10 days? Click calendar.
What tracks are running in September? Find out here.
What are today’s $$$ carryovers? See them here.
Want to follow sports in the Race Book? Bombers, NFL

FREE VLT TOURNAMENTS: Enter in the Club West Gaming lounge every Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. Get into the draw for 10 chances to win $20 in free VLT spins tonight. Top winner from each night participates in a month-end finale for more spins and $250 in prize money.

EVERY FRIDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT: $10 buy-in poker in the clubhouse on the second level. Registration from 8:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Game starts at 8:30 p.m. Maximum of 60 players. No late registration. Royal Flush progressive jackpot for Friday, September 21 is $13,785.

SATURDAY'S FEATURE CARD

Million dollar races headline Parx card

McKinzie favoured in Penn Derby, Monomoy Girl in Cotillion

$1m Pennsylvania Derby at Parx Saturday

Two $1 million races for 3-year-olds at Parx race track in Bensalem, Pennsylvania will highlight Saturday’s simulcast cards at the Downs. Trainer Bob Baffert’s McKinzie—who has been shelved since March 10 with a leg injury--will be the likely favourite in the 10-horse Pennsylvania Derby and the eight-for-nine Monomoy Girl will be the filly to beat in the Cotillion Stakes.

Program pages for those races as well as the first leg of the late pick-4 will be available free in the Race Book for the “3 for the money” contest. There’s $75 in wagering vouchers at stake and a chance to be invited to the hottest press conference in town next spring, the kick-off to live racing.

Other horses in the Derby include Hofburg who finished third in the Belmont Stakes and Bravazo who was third in the Travers Stakes that was won by Catholic Boy who is pointed to the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Note there will be a cross-country Parx/Belmont pick-4 Saturday afternoon.

HANDICAPPING

Fourth-last ASD tournament is next Saturday

$10,500 in prize money still available; McKellar leads Handicapper of the Year contest

As the race for Handicapper of the Year intensifies, there’s still $10,500 in prize money to be given away to ASD’s top handicappers this year. Four monthly tournaments remain with $1,750 in prize money each. The next one is next Saturday. And $3,500 will be distributed to the top 10 finishers in the Handicapper of the Year sweepstakes.

The top 10 in that race are:

Brian McKellar – 242 points
Chuck Whalen – 225
Greg Earl – 211
Alan Hampton – 203
John Whitehill – 201
Doug Evans – 199
Ron Phelps – 198
Kathleen Buckoski – 192
Roger Bamburak – 190
Earl Grantham – 189

McKellar and Hampton are looking to win the HOTY title for the second time and Phelps for the third time. Good luck to all! See full HOTY leader board here.

YOU NAMED ME WHAT? Covfefe. Who didn’t laugh while listening to Churchill announcer Travis Stone calling the name of this 2-year-old filly crushing a maiden allowance field Sunday at Churchill ($3)? Covfefe, of course, was the strange last word in a late-night President Donald Trump tweet a year ago: “Despite the constant negative press covfefe . . .” If Covfefe becomes a prominent stakes winner, that nonsensical word will be forever immortalized by a horse.

Prayven Badrie
Wins two at Century

A BIG SHOUT-OUT to jockey Prayven Badrie, ASD’s co-title holder for 2018, for continuing his winning ways at Century Downs near Calgary. This past Monday, he won a maiden allowance race with Lionel Joseph’s Master Macho Man ($8.90) and the day before won a $15,000 claimer with Colleen O’Hagan’s Stay Glad ($17.60), beating 3-5 favourite Willy Be Smart by a nose. That gave him two wins out of six starts at Century in two days of riding; he also had a third. Those two wins earned him $1,760.

THE WEEK THAT WAS

TURF RACE IS BEING ADDED TO PEGASUS WORLD CUP: The Pegasus World Cup will have company when Gulfstream runs the dirt race in late January. A turf Pegasus has been added and the entry fee has been reduced to $500,000 for each race. The purse for the dirt Pegasus will be $9 million and the grass Pegasus $7 million. This past January, $16 million was the purse for one race and $1 million was the entry fee.

WINX WINS 27TH RACE IN A ROW: The 7-year-old Australian wonder mare, Winx, won her 27th race in a row on the weekend. Despite her domination, her races are all exciting because she’s like Zenyatta, coming from well out of it – which gets the viewer wondering: Will she get there this time? And, of course, she always does but there’s always that moment of doubt. Enjoy watching her latest win, the George Main Stakes, here.

"Big" group was looking for big score

“BIG” GROUP GOES FOR GUSTO, MISSES HO-HUM PAYOFF: Last Saturday’s “I won big” betting group played the $2.5 million Jackpot Hi 5 at Woodbine with the intention of landing a big payoff because the race condition was a $10,000 non-winners of two races lifetime claimer. “Stuff” usually happens in that kind of condition, especially in a 14-horse field. But not last Saturday; it paid only $630 when the most-bet horses finished in the top five positions and the favourite won. Which the group didn’t have because it played a bunch of bombers looking for a big score. Oh, well. The group will be back at Woodbine races 2 to 7 again this Saturday, looking to do what it did in two sessions a year ago: winning about $9,000. Say after me: “History repeats, history repeats, history ….. " Saturday, 10:30 a.m. on the Clubhouse plaza.

THE BEST OF BOB: What two jocks dominated a decade?

Do you remember the names of the two jockeys who won the leading rider honours at the Downs a total of 10 times from 1962 to 1972? Bob has the answer and their stories here.

DINING

New daily and weekend features announced

Corn Dog bites with chipotle ranch dip and veal parmesan are among the tempting specials

Corn Dog bites

$11 WEEKEND DINNER SPECIALS (Friday to Sunday 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.)

Veal Parmesan and Penne Alfredo served with a garlic bread stick
BBQ Ribs, fries, baked beans.
Perogies, grilled onions, sour cream served with garlic sausage.

HAPPY HOUR SPECIALS (3 p.m. to 6 p.m. every day, also Sunday to Thursday 9 p.m. to closing)

Prime Rib Sliders -- 2 for $7
Corn Dog Bites with chipotle ranch dip -- $5
Soft Tacos – chicken or beef -- 2 for $7
Classic Canadian Poutine -- $6
Chef Gerardo’s Pizza -- Margarita, Veggie, Pepperoni -- $10
Drinks: 5 oz. wine $4; house highballs and domestic beer $3.50, ASD Caesar $5.50

* * *

Bacon Bourbon Brownies
ASD's signature hot dessert treat

CERTIFIED ANGUS PRIME RIB BUFFETS BEGIN NEXT THURSDAY: Home-style soup, fresh warm buns, salad bar, pasta station, super-tender certified Angus prime rib, other entrees, wide selection of desserts including self-serve ice cream and ASD’s signature hot dessert treat: Bacon Bourbon Brownies. All you can eat $27.95. Opportunity to spin the Wheel of Fortune for up to $100 cash. Reserve with Samantha at 204-885-3330 ext. 0.

DATES TO CIRCLE

Great Benjamins Circus tomorrow to Sunday

Today: Little Brown Jug storied harness race from Delaware County Fairgrounds in Delaware, Ohio. Today’s first post 10:30 a.m.

Friday to Sunday, Sept. 21-23: The Great Benjamins Circus. Tickets available at www.benjaminscircus.com
Saturday, Sept. 22: $1 million Pennsylvania Derby, $1 million Cotillion Stakes
Thursday, Sept. 27: Thursday night certified Angus prime rib buffets begin. New addition this season: Chef Gerardo’s famous Italian pizza. Reserve with Samantha at 204-885-3330 ext. 0.
Friday, Sept. 28: Santa Anita fall meet begins 3 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 29: Player’s Choice horseplayer tournament. Feature track: Belmont -- $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup.