Belmont

[slotdirt]

I believe folding chairs are allowed in the park area.

[GenuineRisk]

Folding chairs are allowed, though if you get in early enough to plant yourself near the fence, you'll have to fold them up at some point prior to the race or risk getting smooshed under a mob of people.

I was there for Charismatic, Funny Cide, Smarty Jones and Big Brown. I'll never forget the absolute silence that fell after Birdstone passed Smarty.

I just love Belmont on a TC year, even though I hate crowds. I know the Kentucky Derby is mobbed every year, but then, there's also a Derby winner every year. At Belmont on a TC year, there's just that great feeling of expectation all day, that maybe, maybe, this year, history will happen. I can't think of any other sporting event where just about the entire crowd is rooting for the same athlete. Horse racing runs on gambling (one of the things I love about it), but the Belmont in a Triple Crown year is the only race that transcends wagering and becomes about hoping to see a horse do something incredible.

You can bring in coolers and beverages that aren't in glass bottles, but no alcohol on Belmont Stakes Day. Though there is plenty for sale (yay, souvenir glass).

I went to AQ yesterday to fill out the application for tickets. Maybe 40 or 50 people were waiting to go up at 11:30 when they opened up the office. Annoyingly, the people who made sure we knew they'd been there SINCE TEN THIRTY, WAITING, SO DON'T GET IN FRONT OF US, hadn't even seen the Preakness. Aspiring scalpers, I imagine.

[Port Conway Lane]

Originally Posted by GenuineRisk

Folding chairs are allowed, though if you get in early enough to plant yourself near the fence, you'll have to fold them up at some point prior to the race or risk getting smooshed under a mob of people.

I was there for Charismatic, Funny Cide, Smarty Jones and Big Brown. I'll never forget the absolute silence that fell after Birdstone passed Smarty.

I just love Belmont on a TC year, even though I hate crowds. I know the Kentucky Derby is mobbed every year, but then, there's also a Derby winner every year. At Belmont on a TC year, there's just that great feeling of expectation all day, that maybe, maybe, this year, history will happen. I can't think of any other sporting event where just about the entire crowd is rooting for the same athlete. Horse racing runs on gambling (one of the things I love about it), but the Belmont in a Triple Crown year is the only race that transcends wagering and becomes about hoping to see a horse do something incredible.

You can bring in coolers and beverages that aren't in glass bottles, but no alcohol on Belmont Stakes Day. Though there is plenty for sale (yay, souvenir glass).

I went to AQ yesterday to fill out the application for tickets. Maybe 40 or 50 people were waiting to go up at 11:30 when they opened up the office. Annoyingly, the people who made sure we knew they'd been there SINCE TEN THIRTY, WAITING, SO DON'T GET IN FRONT OF US, hadn't even seen the Preakness. Aspiring scalpers, I imagine.

Originally Posted by slotdirt

I believe folding chairs are allowed in the park area.

Thanks for the info !

[slotdirt]

Honestly? I don't think the entire crowd was rooting for Big Brown to win the Belmont. I also think there was a pretty early letdown there when the horse was pulled up around the far turn. Contrast that with the feeling when Birdstone ran down Smarty Jones in 2004, and I can't believe they were both racing for the same place in history.

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by slotdirt

Honestly? I don't think the entire crowd was rooting for Big Brown to win the Belmont. I also think there was a pretty early letdown there when the horse was pulled up around the far turn. Contrast that with the feeling when Birdstone ran down Smarty Jones in 2004, and I can't believe they were both racing for the same place in history.

Ah, Big Brown- I wanted the horse to win the Belmont, and yet felt absolutely no disappointment when he didn't.

You're right, of course, that Smarty Jones' Belmont was a whole different story.

[Thunder Gulch]

Reading this thread I'm starting to think horseplayers are anti-social. I love big crowds, people watching, seeing new faces, and meeting interesting people. Beats sitting in front of a computer.

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by Thunder Gulch

Reading this thread I'm starting to think horseplayers are anti-social. I love big crowds, people watching, seeing new faces, and meeting interesting people. Beats sitting in front of a computer.

Dealing with crowds is easier if you're tall, I imagine. When you're not, it's a lot of watching the back of people's heads and shoulders.

But yeah, meeting people at the track is always fun.

[Thunder Gulch]

Originally Posted by GenuineRisk

Dealing with crowds is easier if you're tall, I imagine. When you're not, it's a lot of watching the back of people's heads and shoulders.

But yeah, meeting people at the track is always fun.

I'm not tall but I make up for it by being a loudmouth.

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by Thunder Gulch

I'm not tall but I make up for it by being a loudmouth.

[Grey Lag]

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