FINAL TOURNAMENT OF THE YEAR

Who will be crowned Handicapper of the Year?
Are you up to the challenge of producing your best tourney result of the year?

So this Saturday is your last chance of the year to take on the challenge of outplaying about 60 others in the Player’s Choice handicapping tournament to share in $1,750 in prize money.

It will also result in the crowning of the Handicapper of the Year which will merit a trip to the Horse Player World Series in Las Vegas or a cash buy-out. And, of course, will give the title-holder bragging rights forever. Retired salesman Trevor Tilston-Jones tops the leaderboard and transit driver Roger Jones is 11 points back.

Never played in a tournament? It’s a great way of taking your mind off COVID isolation. The entry fee is just $25--which you can pay by credit card by calling the ASD mutuel desk at 204-885-3330 ext. 225 by 5 p.m. tomorrow. Then bet $2 win/place/show Saturday in your HPIbet account on a horse in 10 races all day until 10 p.m. Bet thoroughbreds, quarter horses or standardbreds, your choice.

See the previous tournament results here. See the leader board for the HOTY title here.

ASSINIBOIA RACING CLUB

Time is running out . . .
. . . to share in horse ownership in the 2021 live race season

John Field Coordinates Assiniboia Racing Club

Time is running out for you to join the Assiniboia Racing Club (ARC) to become partners in a horse or horses during the 2021 racing season.

A share is $500 which includes everything for the season including buying a horse(s), trainer fees, feed, vet bills--the works. Then you cross your fingers hoping your horse burns up the track. HBPA director John Field coordinates ARC activities. He expects about 50 members for 2021. This is the ARC’s sixth season.

Field said Devon Gittens will be the Club’s trainer and is currently looking for a horse. At the 2020 race meet Gittens had seven wins out of 35 starts (20 per cent) and finished second in two stakes races: Purrsistent in the Distaff and Prairie Magic in the Buffalo.

ROAD TO THE KENTUCKY DERBY

Turfway Park's status soars
The Jeff Ruby Steaks is equal to Florida Derby, Santa Anita Derby and other biggies

Turfway’s Jeff Ruby Steaks is now worth 100 points; John Battaglia is new prep

Turfway Park with its brand new Tapeta surface has become a major player on the road to the Kentucky Derby. The track’s Jeff Ruby Steaks (yes, the spelling is correct) is now worth 100 points to the winner compared to its previous 20 points. That puts the race on the same level as the Florida Derby, the Santa Anita Derby, the Blue Grass Stakes, the Wood Memorial, the Louisiana Derby, the Arkansas Derby and the UAE Derby. It will be run on March 20, the same day as the Louisiana Derby.

In other words, the Florence, Kentucky track has joined the big leagues. Which seemed pretty inevitable, I guess, given the fact that Churchill purchased Turfway Park. And Churchill has added another prep race to the road to the Kentucky Derby to act as a prep race for the Jeff Ruby. That race is the John Battaglia Memorial Stakes to be run on Feb. 6. That stakes has been running since 1982--but never before as a Derby prep. So, the John Battaglia is to Jeff Ruby as the Fountain of Youth is to the Florida Derby. Get it?

The Jeff Ruby Steaks has that name because the Jeff Ruby Steakhouses sponsor the race. It’s a neat play on words--and makes me long for a sizzling steak every time I write about the race.

HANDICAPPING

This is war
Racing gods have had their final bit of fun with "I won bigger" betting group

No chinks in group’s armour this week?

You’re got to hand it to the racing gods. If the “I won bigger” betting group shows the slightest vulnerability they swoop in and shred the tickets. Every week, they seem to find something. Four weeks ago was the worst, of course, where the mistake of not double-checking tickets before they were played cost the group $25,000.

So where was the vulnerability this past Saturday? Not pausing to examine the late entry of an also-eligible horse into one leg of Tampa’s pick-5. A huge effort went into producing the initial tickets for the five 2-year-old races. That included a discussion with a breeding specialist, buying stats on sires, back-and-forth with a couple of the best handicappers at the track (whose keys, incidentally, both won) and weighing the views of DRF analysts.

Problem was, the also-eligible horse #11 wasn’t part of all those discussions; it was discovered at the last minute and was hurriedly dismissed. Calm reflection would have resulted in adding that horse because he came from Delaware Park where, the previous week, two legs of the pick-5 were won by horses from Delaware and DRF analyst Kenny Peck had good things to say about his debut trip. That omission cost the group about $3,000.

But that’s it, racing gods. While we congratulate you for your ability to find and exploit a weakness each week, we put you on notice there will be no chinks in our armour playing Tampa this Saturday. Every "t” will be crossed, every "i” will be dotted. The group dares you to find an opening.

THE WEEK THAT WAS

There is actually a book on horse tricks

WHAT DOES A HORSE REALLY WANT FOR CHRISTMAS? Reading an article entitled “Six Things Your Horse Really Wants for Christmas” in The Horse magazine, I was totally unprepared for Point #4: “Teaching Them a New Trick.” What? “Horses really appear to enjoy being taught a trick,” a horse behaviour specialist is quoted as saying. “If you haven’t trained your horse to do a trick before, you will be amazed at how easy and fast it is.” Which made me think that a patient trainer at ASD could teach a horse to bow in the Winner’s Circle when the horse wins a race. Or whatever. Read that article here.

51-DAY SEASON PROPOSED FOR HASTINGS IN VANCOUVER: The B.C. racing industry is seeking a 51-day race season that would start on Kentucky Derby Day May 1 and conclude in mid-October. Training would begin Feb. 6--when the crocuses are coming into bloom.

“STABLE GENIUSES” HAVE HAD THEIR RUN: It appears “stable geniuses” in the racing world have had their run. After breaking her maiden at Finger Lakes a year ago and then finishing third twice, 4-year-old New York-bred filly Very Stable Genius was sidelined in October after finishing 10th at Presque Isle. Meanwhile, Kentucky-bred 4-year-old gelding Stable Genius, hasn’t returned to the races since finishing third in a maiden special race at Santa Anita a year ago.

OOPS! Thanks to an Insider reader for pointing out that Double Bear, the declared winner of the 2017 Canadian Derby, was (and still is) trained by Rod Cone and not Tim Rycroft as reported in last week’s Insider. Rycroft actually trained third-place finisher Trooper John. He DID train Double Bear as a baby but Cone claimed him.

TOP 3 NFL PICKS by TravyFootball: Week 14

Giants over Cardinals (Sunday noon): Don’t look now but the NFC East might actually be producing not one, but TWO decent teams. The Giants have won four games in a row and they are doing it with defense. The Cardinals on the other hand have lost three in a row and Kyler Murray doesn’t look nearly as good as he did during the first half of the season. 

Seahawks over Jets (Sunday afternoon): Well, the Jets almost got their first win of the season last week but, on the last play of the game, former Jets defensive coordinator (I say former because he was fired the next day) Gregg Williams called an all-out blitz which might go down as one of the worst calls in the history of football. That ultimately cost them the game. Seattle is coming off an embarrassing loss to the Giants last week but shouldn’t have a problem beating the other New York team this week. 

Saints over Eagles (Sunday afternoon): The Eagles have seen enough of Carson Wentz and have decided to bench him in favour of second-round draft pick Jalen Hurts. The rookie QB is going to have his work cut out for him against one of the top-ranked defenses in the league. Since taking over for the injured Drew Brees, Taysom Hill is undefeated. His passing is very basic but he’s getting it done. 

LAST WEEK’S PICKS (1-2): The Dolphins actually had to put some effort into beating the Bengals despite the fact the Bengals were playing without Joe Burrow....After crushing the Titans, the Browns want people to take them seriously. . .The 49ers couldn’t generate a pass rush against the Bills and Josh Allen made them pay for it.