ROI Results 4/25 @ Oaklawn

[cal828]

Even though Oaklawn has certainly handed out quite a few beat-downs to us, we may look back wistfully at our stay in Hot Springs when we're playing at Evangeline or Canterbury or some such, assuming that some of the other venues like Santa Anita or Churchill or NY racing are still not available.

[Real Quiet]

Out of four weeks we had two beatdowns and two good performances. I was thinking the same thing today in that we could have spent 4 weeks in a venue with 5 horse fields and few wagering options. While I definitely took an Oaklawn beatdown I felt good, I felt strong while capping the cards.

[JolyB]

Even if my wagering results don't reflect it, I've enjoyed the 4 consecutive weeks at Oaklawn and am really looking forward to next Saturday. The racing has been very competitive, the competition for the jockey's title has been interesting to follow and could go down to the final day. I happen to like Vic's style of race calling, and his pre-race analysis with Nancy H. has been most informative.

On first look, a number of the entrants in the Arkansas Derbies don't have the look of grade 1 horses, especially in the first division. Charlatan didn't draw the greatest post, but seems to have a strong edge over the field. The second division could be much more interesting. It will be a very useful yardstick to have Charlatan and Nadal running in races only a half hour apart to be able to see how they might stack up against one another in talent. I do hope whoever gets to choose the venue doesn't elect the full card. 14 races with very full fields would be a real platterful.