Silver Charm Wrote:
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> Thanks for the input and I would like to think we
> can spend the next week with handicapping
> discussions and not THE DEATH OF RACING or
> CLUELESS NYRA CLOWNS strings.

Hear, hear Silver. This is no time for nattering nabobs of negativism (unless of
course we are talking about negative TG #s!).

A brief look at Friday's races:

Juvie Turf: My best bet of the Friday BC races is Commemorative, for the
Juddmonte folks. One of the few Euros in the Juvie turf events who has raced at a
mile or beyond, winning a G3 at Newmarket in his last. Wesley Ward has a
formidable pair in Hootenanny and Luck of the Kitten, both training at Keeneland,
which suffered surprising declines in attendance and all sources handle after
switching from synthetic to dirt.

Juvie Fillies: Many folks whose opinion I trust have extolled the virtues of Chad
Brown's Lady Eli, last seen winning the Miss Grillo at Belmont, where the
attendance at the Fall meet was just embarrassing, we're talking less than 2000
souls on most weekdays and less than 5000 on most weekend days. Even the crash
dummies entrusted with the future of this storied franchise have stopped talking
about live gate and customer experience; they are waking up and improving their
website and the HD feed. The day of racing I watched at Woodbine on October 19
left me reason to believe Euros will prevail in the Juvie turf races, as they
have in the last 2 years.

Dirt Mile: previously discussed. Goldencents, trained by Leonard Mora, subbing
for habitual offender Doug O'Neill, looks a solid favorite. Also liking Tapiture
and Carve, though neither has any SA experience.

BC Distaff: Favored Untapable and Close Hatches both drew outside. Those who
think Close Hatches will improve off a lackluster final prep should look at Royal
Delta's last two races last year. I think Untapable, trained by Steve Asmussen,
the victim of an inside hatchet job by some of racing's bluebloods, might come up
a little short at the eighth pole after a demanding albeit brilliant campaign.
Dont Tell Sophia has never run outside the midwest time zone and gets a true test
here. Liking Iotapa, who likes SA, and Belle Gallantey, who won over SA in a
previous life as a humble claimer way back when.