Whichever one you select (I agree with you about the Slim Pickens), I plan to be watching the Red Smith at the Big A. A neighbor of mine walks his dog just about the same time I go to the street to get our morning paper. He and his wife are very close friends of the couple who own Trinity Stables, the owners of Red Knight, a New York bred gelding who has been nominated to the Red Smith.
You might remember that Red Knight won an allowance race at Saratoga last summer on a date when it was our contest venue (I think it was the Travers Day). My neighbor and his wife had the thrill of being invited into the winners circle presentation after that race, and not surprisingly have become fans for life. Many mornings when I go to get the paper, I will receive a report of the plans that the owner and Bill Mott have made for his next race or workout. Red Knight has run in two stakes races for New York breds since Saratoga, but the Red Smith is his first attempt at non restricted graded stakes competition. It will be a stiff class test, and the nominees include some tough opponents. The race was chosen because it will probably be the last chance to run at a distance of ground on the turf in New York, and Red Knight thrives on turf marathons. The owners want to determine whether it makes more sense to ship him to Florida for turf racing or give him a break over the winter and wait for next year's NYRA turf races.
One potential fly in the ointment is the possibility that the race could be taken off of the turf. The Northeast is supposed to get heavy rain tonight and tomorrow, and then we could see a wintry mix or rain on Friday morning. I guess for that reason Del Mar is probably the safer choice for our contest, to avoid the risk of having to include the MTO's in our picks. In addition to the Red Smith, the condition book for AQ lists 3 other turf races for Saturday.
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