Today's list of horrible race calls
 

Sa4
Op2

Risen Star.. Fair Grounds.. Good Lord! That was aweful!

Are you out of your flipping mind?

That was an awesome race call

Call me crazy then.. Personally did'nt like it.

If you didn't like that race call then Battalgia has to be your favorite race caller.

He did drop the ball on Pyro. It was painfully obvious the horse was last far before the start of the stretch run.

Just think it could have been called better. Pyro was making a huge move and not a word was mentioned until he won.

I was watching the race live just inside the 1/16 pole cheering for Z fortune and then in an instant Pyro flew by my vision through my binocs. As a race caller i would think that after making a mental note that Pyro was not in contention and not gaining at the top of the stretch, that he naturally focused on the leaders inside the 1/8 pole. I actually believe he caught Pyro just a few strides after he swung out for room, and made a nice call thereafter.

I think it was a very good race call. There was a handful of horses in contention all down the stretch and he was picking up each one.

very sharp post!!! John G. is just about as good as it gets!!

I've watched the replay and I disagree. The call was fine.

i thought it was a good call. :o

Guess I will have to watch the race again on replay. I was in a hurry when I watched it the first time, so perhaps it gets better the next time around.

The race was no big deal so it kind of got lost in the shuffle with the other Stakes races, but my man Terry Wallace absolutely blew the Second at Oaklawn. It was almost like he was some place else.:confused:
Like so many Oaklawn fans, we don't like to be critical of Terry, but Gee Wiz, he made the guys at HRTV run into the ditch. The powers that be at Oaklawn, can't be happy.

Trevor completely blew this one. He not only called Stop The Humor "No More Humor" three times but turning for home he said he was in the center when he was on the rail and emphasized some other horse as Stop The Humor drew off by five lengths. The Risen Star call seemed ok and was applauded by the hrtv crew.

basement bob
 

:) i thought it was a good call. it's amazing how the quality of race calling is so much better in canada. if you ever get a chance, listen to the guy at assinaboia downs in winnipeg, he's very good, i believe his name is darren dunn.

Any call by Terry Wallace could qualify as a bad call. He even surpasses Richard Grunder[Tampa] as the worst race caller.

c'mon, everyone knows battaglia is the worst.

john g. dooley call was very good. hope he stays at fair grounds for a long time. best one they ever had.

Day in-day out he is......

Anybody that didn't like Dooley's Riser Star call is probably deaf, or a non-excitable person and wants a Battilgia call every single time. BLAH.

That call was called to the exact thoughts of the people betting Pyro, like "HOLY **** PYRO IS ****ED, OH MAN HERE HE COMES, HOLY CRAP he is FLYING"

WTF do people want from these callers? Dooley MAYBE makes one name mistake out of 150, where Denman makes it every 20-25, and don't give me that 2nd language crap or whatever the heck he is.

Excitement gets people interested in racing and race calls, not friggin split calls, wrong names, and focusing on the leaders the whole friggin time.

I liken this conversation to people bitching about Vic's Lava Man calls, THERE IS AN EAGLE, A BALD EAGLE, or whatever he said, and then the one where he fought back and yelled Lava Man real loud.

My guess is that people that didn't like this Pyro call, didn't like the Tiznow DOES IT FOR AMERICA call either.

I just saw the race today and thought the call was great. Dooley continues to be one of the best and most underated guys in the game.

Agreed!

I was there on the apron near the rail and for those that actually go to the track, you know it is always hard to see what is happening, espcially if your short. Sometimes I can't even see the tote screen if tall people get in front of me.
We do get boxes but I just prefer to be in the paddock and on the rail.

We knew the whole race what was going on because of John Dooley.
When he called Pyro last the crowd was so quiet, then when he called him coming thru midway on that long stretch the crowd just ROARED, it was really exciting.
Now that I've watched it on the DVR it is even better than when I was there. I just don't see what there is to criticize.

I just love his Dooley-isms, he is a fun and accurate caller, I also hope he stays here at The Fair Grounds for a very long time.

This is THE best of the Worst
 

Tampa Bay 2/9 Race #1

Here is the link:

http://www.tampabaydowns.com/DailyReplays.aspx

"Caricaturist is shortening stride, but he's STILL clear (like there was no way he could be caught..." well, you know the rest...

I thought Dooley's call was - as usual - very good.
I think he is the best caller in the country, and I think he demonstrated that again on Saturday.

basement bob
 

:) i don't mind grunder's calling, theres a whole lot worse (bataglia)

basement bob
 

:) dooley dose a good job. but! did he not steel that job from the guy that dose hollywood? one other question. what ever happened to ken miller? he was awsome.

I'll defend Grunder anytime. His enthusiasm for his job and unabashed love for all that is Tampa Bay Downs overcome his occasional (;)) error of mispronouncing names of horses. He is woven into the fabric of Tampa Bay Downs and will be sorely missed by me when he departs.

There isn't a soul in the world I would rather have calling TBD than Grunder.

How about that call in the John Campbell @ Laurel.....race caller had the leader 20 lengths ahead at the top of the stretch, only to get caught late by Nite Light.

A Tough Day At Oaklawn
 

Today in the fifth at Oaklawn Terry Wallace notes the big outside move from Just a Nibble and calls him the winner on the wire.

Except it wasn't Just a Nibble. It was Badger Barry.

You could tell Terry was a little rattled after that race. In the eighth race call, he had some five second gaps while he double checked who was making a run on the backstretch.

In Terry's defense, (and every racecaller for that matter) it was raining and hazy at Oaklawn today. Folks watching the race on television should remember that the view the announcer has might not be anywhere near as good as the view afforded the pan shot camera. If you are in the pressbox behind glass and rain is falling directly on to the pane, your binoculars are useless.

DMM