All is said and done and we had a fine banquet. They didn't post any results or tell who did what until the banquet, but this guy from NTRA came by the table and said hello, how are you all doing? Where are you from? I responded "Colonial Downs" and he got this little twinkle in his eye, hesitated a minute and said: "stick around, you guys are getting a check". That was cool - at least we knew we were in the top three.
Earlier today, some guy from the team we thought was in second was standing at the contest "tote board" figuring out numbers for various teams. I chatted with him and told him I was with Colonial and thought we were doing well. He said his team was currently in the lead or second and said, hey, if your team or our team wins why don't we split the pot. His team had the contest winner as part of it. I mentioned it to the team and no one was interested with the sentiment that we're gamblers, lets gamble. We hit the last race with first and second, they missed it entirely and they finished out of the running. We got first and split $25,000 amongst the four of us. And got a Waterford Crystal horse and stand and a NTRA sweater/coat thing - which we didn't get tonight. The niftiest thing about winning the team contest is that all four of us were within 10 bucks of each other, more or less, so we all were really part of the win.
I finished in 25th place - about 26 bucks out of top ten. I'm happy with all of that - it was a really fun week end of horseracing. To spend two days with folks with common interest is really a treat. Jim from Prairie Meadows was next to me, Mike from Lone Star was a spot away and John from CNL was next to him. Between the four of us we worked together to make sure no one missed a mandatory race, all had enough betting slips and cheered for each other's horses. No one really minded my whooping and hollaring - or at least they were polite enough to say they didn't. I think Andy Beyer once said that no one should go bananas at a horse race unless they had won (or lost) their annual income on a horserace, or something to that effect. Well, since my annual income used to be in the $10 range, I fit that category so I yip and yell a wee bit.
Good night - tomorrow I don't get up at 4:15. And no horseracing (who's running at Aqueduct?)
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!
You now have major braggin' rights. A team win. IMPRESSIVE. A 25th place finish. EXCELLENT.
Thanks for keeping all of us in the loop with this blog.
BTW- forgeddabout coming home today or tomorrow. We have a major snowstorm coming our way.
Posted by: Bob Kahn | January 25, 2004 at 08:58 AM
Congrats to the CNL team. I've been annoying Sara all weekend with the standing updates, but she is impressed this morning...If you can work it in she wants an autograph from this SELEN DEION person....Hope Darryl got you the shirts....Great Job....You guys were definately focused and confident.....Handicapping legends...
Great Job....I'm sure Colonial wants to bring you on the Off To the Races TV show on a Tuesday night....WHAT A BUNCH OF HOOPERS.....
Posted by: Nick | January 25, 2004 at 09:04 AM
From the Daily Racing Form....
Players also competed as members of four-person teams in a separate team contest based on where they qualified. The championship-winning team hailed from Colonial Downs. The quartet of Harry Damgaard, Dave Durkin, Berkley Kern, and John Vitale totalled $542.60 and won first prize of $25,000 ($6,250 each). Teams from Horsemen's Park ($499.90) and Arlington ($493.10) finished second and third. The Horsemen's Park team won $10,000 ($2,500 each), while Arlington won $5,000 ($1,250 each).
Posted by: Nick | January 25, 2004 at 09:09 AM