Breeders’ Cup 2009: Filly & Mare-athon Day

The Breeders’ Cup is finally upon us; from my vantage point (watching TVG), the weather looks perfect. We’ve had a few scratches – Kera’s Kitten in the Juvenile Turf, and Allegre from tomorrow’s Turf – but at least in the case of the former race, the Ramsey barn has so many talented Kitten’s Joy offspring floating around that they’ve been able to slot Dean’s Kitten in as a replacement.

While it does throw off our analysis a bit for that particular race (scroll down here if you missed any of ‘insights’ into each race), on the whole, we’re sticking with our picks. Any exciting wagering wins will be reported – as will the usual ‘why did I toss him/her out at the last minute?’ wails.

We’ll be following along in real-time (except when day care pickup beckons) and will be posting some notes here, but you can get the most current thoughts on Twitter.

Good luck and safe journeys to all the horses and jockeys – I do apologize for today’s title.

Thoughts -

Marathon
What a fantastic finish – really outstanding efforts from both winner Man of Iron and runner-up Cloudy’s Knight. Here’s something to ponder: imagine what Better Than Honour’s stud fee would be if she were a stallion.

Juvenile Fillies Turf
I’d gone off Lillie Langtry last night after hearing about how she’d been taking to California (not well); Smart Seattle didn’t have a good trip, so I’d draw a line through this one for her, but I’m very glad I threw a last-minute bet on Tapitsfly. I assumed she was going to be close to her morning-line odds, but when I noticed she drifted up, I was very excited. Nice win for the grey filly.

Juvenile Fillies
Well, I did get a piece of the action with Blind Luck’s third – really good effort from She Be Wild. Poor Biofuel did not get the best of it.

Filly & Mare Turf
Should have stuck with my gut – I jumped off Midday before the race. Whoops.

Filly & Mare Sprint
So much for my Sara Louise/Ventura exacta. I had no good reason to ignore Informed Decision, just didn’t like her odds. Handicapping FAIL.

Filly & Mare Classic
Life Is Sweet is pretty sweet on her own. Without Zenyatta to overshadow her, she was a game winner. Careless Jewel just ran off. Nice run from Music Note as well. One wonders if trainer John Shirreffs had any pressure to run his two star mares in different races – it’s always a good idea to spread the risk!

I’m very encouraged by Julien Leparoux’s day so far – I would love to see him win the Classic on Einstein tomorrow. See you then!