Originally Posted by brianwspencer

I think once you read the BTE, you'll get more of what I'm saying.

I've never said that there are not cheaters and that there are not races in which jocks plug a horse in. That's not my point.

My whole point was that the righteous attitude (titling a thread "Fixed Race on XMas Eve," not "suspicious" or "hey what do you all think about this.") ken by a poster regarding this "fixed" race had very little numerical backing. If a horse were going to be plugged in in a race like that, it jsut wouldn't make sense. The horse only improved his career best race from earlier last year by something in the vicinity of 2 lengths. That sort of improvement wouldn't even gaurantee him a spot on the board in that race, just a shot at it. Had the horse actually run a number that was wildly out of this world compared to his career top, there may have been a conversation to have.

My whole point has been that it's a whole lot of risk and work just to cheat to get a horse to improve such a little bit....to a point where that improvement may still have meant only a 4th place finish had the other horses in the race actually shown up that day.

It is really a "dead horse" so to speak. There is not much to add to it. Some think that a longshot running the best race of his life (even if ever so slightly), is indication that it was plugged in.

Others think that the numbers show that that performance wasn't as outrageous as it was made out to be.

It is what it is, and I'm touching it again only because you're new here and it came up in this thread. Bells can think whatever he wants, and I will think whatever I want. I just prefer the logical approach (how do these numbers stack up) as opposed to the anecdotal approach (he cheated before). But that's just me,and you and Bells are free to feel how you do.