Agreed, NCT, this thread sounds familiar.

But throughout the thread, no one has mentioned that the leading trainer in the US in number of wins over the last few years is currently serving a six month suspension. The reason that this suspension is not mentioned is that this trainer's operation continues to grind along in the names of assistant trainers who are no doubt in constant contact with their boss via phone, fax and email.

My point is that when the cheaters are identified, the punishments meted out have to be a little more Draconian, to use one of TGJB's favorite words.

I monitored with interest a previous exchange between you and Boscar; in that exchange, Boscar accused Shug McGaughey of using performance enhancing drugs. You quickly and properly pointed out that BO had made a fairly irresponsible allegation.

I have put Shug on my "all clean" team, certainly a man whose position with the Phipps family gives him access to great bloodlines (CTC may take exception to this) and the time necessary to develop his runners the old fashioned way.

To be fair however, I have noticed that a lot of Shug's horses have moved up dramatically in the past 3 months (of course I have not been reading TGs every racing day). Maybe someone at TG has been on top of this-- I guess I can check Shug's trainer stats off Good Reward's T-graph in the Redboard Room.

Baseball Note: All I have heard from some of my bartender friends lately is how much extra money they are going to make in October as the Mets and Yanks advance through the playoffs towards a Subway Series which everyone in NY is treating as a "lock".

But they play the games on the field, and imagine the emotional (and financial)devastation if both Mets and Yanks tank in the early stages,and we end up with a rematch of the 1984 World Series (Padres/Tigers).