Saratoga on Travers Day

If you believe we are in a down economy maybe we are. However the attendance at Saratoga (over 47,000) on Travers Day indicates some people are not. The crowd bet over $10 million on the Travers Stakes alone and $41 million for the day.

The weather was perfect, the racing card was exceptional and the races were very competitive. Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lucas got the money in the big race with Will Take Charge and his backers were rewarded with a $21.20 mutual. The 77 year-old former school teacher and basketball coach also announced his upcoming marriage. Evidently his fiance has not read the past performance charts of his previous relationships.

When Lucas hires assistant trainers he tells them they will only be part-time employees. In D.Wayne ‘s world, that means 12 hours a day, seven days a week.

He rises each day at 3:30 a.m and is at the track by 4 a.m. to work his steeds. Reminds me of Calvin Borel, who once told a trainer who hired him to work a horse in the early morning. “If I’m not here don’t call my house, call the hospital.”

The Sunday card also brought out the punters to try their luck against an 11 race card. In the feature race, The Personal Ensign, Mike Smith booted home Bill Motts’ 1-2 betting choice, Royal Delta. The bridge jumpers were out as Royal Delta had $301,074.00 of the $366,419.00 bet in the show pool wagered on him. They were rewarded with 10 cents for every $2.00 bet. I guess that is better than the banks can give, but not as secure.

Also on Sunday the 30,000 fans were all silent after the fourth race. It was like the Star Spangled Banner was being played for a second time. The fans were glued to the TV monitors to honor and say goodbye to Ramon Dominquez. All the riders were in the circle as former rider Rich Migliore hosted the tribute. Ramon, one of the classiest people in sports, retired this winter due to a head injury. Saratoga is just not the same without Ramon.

The site area sits on 350 acres. It can accommodate 6,000 parked cars and there are 1,830 stalls housed in the 91 barns. The place can hold 70,000 fans (and please note that I did not say comfortably). For the wagering public they have 700+ betting windows and many voucher machines. If you can’t get a rail spot there are 1000+ closed circuit TV monitors for your viewing pleasure and if you run short of betting capital and can’t find Billy Fuccillo in the house, there are six ATM stations on the grounds.