Gomez Leading Standings at Saratoga But...

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by paisjpq

you are right on rupert...go-go seems to run so hot and cold that you don't know what you are going to get from one day to the next. I don't bet him for that reason, even though I think he is a terriffic rider.

Yes, he has definitely blown his fair share this year. But while he may blow one on the best horse, he will come back the next race on the 3rd or 4th best horse and win the race. He can sometimes move a horse up a couple of lengths. I think that is one of the reasons his winning percenatge is still high this year. He may lose a race that he should have won but then he will come back and win a race that he probably shouldn't have won. He has a great gift of getting horses to relax and to settle into the pace that they are most comfortable running at. Every horse has an ideal pace that they want to run at. I think Garret is good at finding that pace.

Now that he's been in New York for a while and he's getting good mounts, I would expect him to start to relax more and I think you will see a big improvement in his riding. He's given plenty of great rides this year but he has been a little bit inconsistent at times. I've seen him at his best and I know that he can ride much better than he's been riding this year. I don't see any reason why he won't start riding his best.

[paisjpq]

I agree again. I'mhoping that he evens out his highs and lows as he becomes more comfortable...I'm sure though that the first time I bet him or need him I can kiss my money good bye (it's a gift I have)

[ArlJim78]

Didn't we have some bold predictions some time back regarding how bad Gomez would stink up the place at Saratoga? How all the regular east coast riders would do nothing but school him each day? And that when Johnny V came back for Pletcher, Gomez would sink like a stone amongst the leaders?

I vaguely remember a post or two alone these lines.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by ArlJim78

Didn't we have some bold predictions some time back regarding how bad Gomez would stink up the place at Saratoga? How all the regular east coast riders would do nothing but school him each day? And that when Johnny V came back for Pletcher, Gomez would sink like a stone amongst the leaders?

I vaguely remember a post or two alone these lines.

Yes, you are correct. There were a few posters on here that were saying how poorly Gomez would do in New York and how JV and the others would school him. I told them they were completely wrong. I feel somewhat vindicated since Gomez is leading the standings at Saratoga but I don't feel totally vindicated because I know that Gomez can ride far better than he's been riding. If he starts riding his best, I think he will totally dominate in NY. I want people to see him at his best so they will know how good he really is. When he gets into "the zone", he is absolutely spectacular.

[ArlJim78]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

Yes, you are correct. There were a few posters on here that were saying how poorly Gomez would do in New York and how JV and the others would school him. I told them they were completely wrong. I feel somewhat vindicated since Gomez is leading the standings at Saratoga but I don't feel totally vindicated because I know that Gomez can ride far better than he's been riding. If he starts riding his best, I think he will totally dominate in NY. I want people to see him at his best so they will know how good he really is. When he gets into "the zone", he is absolutely spectacular.

Well no one stays in "the zone" all the time. Even if he's not at his best like you say, he's shown that he's one of the best around. What's funny to me is that I never paid much attention to him until I started reading the posts about how horrible and inconsistent he was. After paying more attention, I began to realize how good he really is.

After the ride he gave in the 9th race today you have a hell of a lot of nerve trying to tell me this guy is anything but stupid. He may be lucky but that will run out, either that or he will head back to rehab. Anyone who wants to see a very sick joke should watch the replay of Gomez' ride on #7 Milwaukee in the Waya today at the Spa. I watched with another Derby trailer and he was even more sickened than I was. By the way, Johnny schooled that junkie very nicely in the last race today!!!

[Gander]

Anyone see the ride Edgar Prado gave Shared Dreams in the feature today?
Now that was one of the better rides I have seen this meet.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by oracle80

After the ride he gave in the 9th race today you have a hell of a lot of nerve trying to tell me this guy is anything but stupid. He may be lucky but that will run out, either that or he will head back to rehab. Anyone who wants to see a very sick joke should watch the replay of Gomez' ride on #7 Milwaukee in the Waya today at the Spa. I watched with another Derby trailer and he was even more sickened than I was. By the way, Johnny schooled that junkie very nicely in the last race today!!!

Yes, I saw that race. What was unbelievable was that the race was 1 1/2 miles and the horse was in trouble for over 1 3/8 miles. But it had nothing to do with stupidity. No jockey wants to be in tight, checking the entire race. It was just one of those things where everything went wrong. The fact that the filly was a little rank and pilling the whole time had a lot do with it.

Sometimes it's simply bad luck when a jockey gets into trouble. But obviously the bad jockeys tend to get into more trouble than the good jockeys. When you see the same jockey always getting into trouble, you have to think that there is a problem. I'm not sure why Gomez has been getting into so much trouble this year. Last year he always seemed to avoid trouble.