Just back from a wonderful day at Belmont. Fairmount flew in from St Louie last night and made the journey with us. We had seats but spent the first 7 races in the backyard with Magicnight,Trackjohn & Belmont 3 along with a few non TG friends.
Richie AKA Fairmount accomplished what I did in 1978, live for all 3 jewels of the crown and witnessed a crown winner. Pretty special......
The young drunks got a bit too roudy and the soon to be deceased backyard a bit too crowded on a gorgeous day. Per usual on a TC Belmont day. But it was a fun time for the first 7 dances. Richiebee you missed a fun day with good friends.
The wagering did not go well today for moi but managed a modest profit for the 3 day festival. Thanks to her Majesty the Queen on Friday. A truly international good thing which cost some friends in Costa Rica about 300K in a Euro off loading frenzy ðŸ'Ž
So Baffert has better dope than anyone else and it works in NY for sure 7/7 last 2 Belmont days did not happen on hay, oats & water. This is the world we live in and point blank he does the 5 week Bataan Death March of the Crown like none before him.....
In the immortal words of Hyman Roth in GF 2
“This is the business we have chosen, I didn’t ask who gave the order†pretty much sums up Racing at all levels. After all Chad had Gronk for all of 3 weeks to run a 6-7 point new top.... New Hay,some bad ass oats and Elmont water BABY.....
See Youse Guy’s at the Spa after all Travers is a mere 11 weeks from yesterday😎
I\'m sorta wondering if youse guys got those, what-a-deal $341 reserved seats. In any event it sounds like a fun if not rowdy gathering.
Speaking of which I read (but could not find the video) that the Gronkowski party bought sixty nine (69) place tickets on their slow starter. In part because that was the date. Probably the only reason his win streak was broken today.
I am envious of you Bon Vivants and remember how much I enjoyed the social aspect of the game, years back, good for you.
EDIT - That could be a $69.00 place bet. I saw a couple of articles and I\'m not sure now.
The Good:
The Weather, the Tgenerate Convention, the Competition....and (according to Fairmount).....the Fashion Show!
The Bad:
GW Bridge traffic (1 1/2 delay.). Left Pa. at 7 am and missed the 11:35 1st post. Definitely a SLOW PACE designation!
The Ugly:
No internet connection on track for 5 hours.
NYRA WiFi signal too weak, unsecure and constantly disconnecting, prompting for password.
No charging stations for devices.
Grub: 5 Stars for the carb freaks....Cheesesteak, hot dog & pretzels. That was about it. Even the food trucks, if you could find them, did not offer much.
In the clubhouse, noticed a lot of place settings undisturbed in some of those $500 per/seat dining options.
Still, despite the many management shortfalls, having attended over 45 Belmont Stakes live, still a great day for racing fans
Was great seeing Frank D. and meeting Fairmont and Belmont3... terrific card and weather... Grandstand was absolutely packed (drunks appeared a bit early, way before the 7th)... Clubhouse was busy but not crazy.
One shout out to the Jeff from the Thoroughly/NYRA team and Donny from NYRABets...the amenities wete greatwere great!
John..
Amenities were great!
John,
Glad that you had a good time. Many thanks for the kind words!!
TG Jeff
Many thanks to the TG backyard band! Always welcoming people and it is enjoyable to put faces to a name. trackjohn said his best weather days were behind him but loved how engaged in the races you were from the moment we met. After seeing record Derby and Preakness weekend rainfalls, the perfect weather you delivered was much needed and worth the price of admission to the backyard alone.
Magicnight should be a front man for Thorograph traveling the country hawking TG\'s wares in exchange for travel costs to the big days. He has just the personality for meeting new people, engaging them, and with his industry connections could position himself in prominent places at every track. It would also position you well for your bi-weekly writing requirements! As I said, you and Frank (and richiebee) should do a Bluegrass/Ark Derby next year. It will an experience you will never forget esp if richiebee goes as he knows the terrain of those parts from yesteryear. (April 6 and April 13 presumably)
Belmont3 was as affable as ever and always a pleasure to spend time with you! The fashion was terrific as you say but it was more the lack of fashion on many of those patrons that was unbelievable! Summer time has arrived in New York we can all confirm!
As for the backyard, if it is soon to be deceased as FrankD wrote, it is a real shame. That was my first time to Belmont and it was just a terrific experience like a mini-Saratoga backyard. I don\'t know of any tracks with a true backyard (trees, grass, picnic tables, benches, tellers, rest rooms, etc) setup like Belmont and Saratoga. (Keeneland\'s Hill is like a mile walk across the property not next to the building). Belmont and Saratoga\'s backyards makes for such a great experience even if you have seats inside or in the grandstand also. You can watch the races live in your seats if you want (like the Belmont) and hang out and relax without being confined to a seat all day in the backyard when you want. Casual fans don\'t want to sit in one seat all day to watch races. And the concrete areas underneath grandstands isn\'t the fun place either for new fans. If Belmont is doing away with it for other profitable and hospitable measures (hotel?), that\'s too bad.
But I guarantee Saratoga\'s backyard will still be alive and well for as far as we can see in our lifetimes. With that said, I\'ll be there for Travers and hope I meet all of you again and Uncle Bill and richiebee better be there! I might sneak a Whitney or Alabama weekend in if someone twists my arm or if cheap flights still remain for me to buy!
It was great to hang out for a while with such a choice selection of Spa TGenerates. And very nice to finally meet up with the well-traveled Fairmount. Good to run into you again later down at the paddock (before the big race, getting a look at the big horse). You are the kind of guy who makes going to the racetrack fun, and I look forward to seeing you up at the Spa and elsewhere.
Bob