At the Racetrack...

[Shanghailander]

So Saratoga Springs opened their track (thoroughbred, mind you, not the trotters) a few weeks ago. I went up for opening day and the rest of the weekend. Great weather, great crowds, and a lot of fun. Even hit a few exactas and one superfecta.

For opening day I wore a white linen suit (it was close to 90 degrees) and brown and white spectators.

Even hit a few exactas and one superfecta. (Only a ten cent bet but it paid me almost $60!)

The other days were just as fun. Great weather. Wore linen.

Unfortunately, most of the patrons dressed like they were going to sit around the backyard pool. The age of elegance really is dead.

To celebrate our big wins, we had dinner at Siro's, right by the track. Note the guy below seated at the table in some loud suit, wearing his hat at the table.

I wore my spats one day. Only one person commented on them.

Here's my vintage luggage.

The second largest piece is known as a "Three suiter" because you can pack three suits into it. Has bakelite hangers and a bar which keeps your suits folded in place with virtually no wrinkles.

I'll head up a couple more times before the season ends at Labor Day. The track is pretty incredible and is amazing vintage architecture.

The only disappointment is the lack of sartorial sharpness. Most of the women have no idea how to wear their hats, and the lids on the guys are few and far between, and mostly cheap. I had one employee, an older gent, actually thank me for reminding him how classy the place used to be.

See you at the track!

 

[Fading Fast]

⇧ you guys look fantastic and all your suits, ties, shirts, shoes and (that incredible) luggage are awesome and harken back to the Golden Days of Saratoga (I'm sure you've seen all the historic photos they sell in the shops, etc. of Saratoga back when people dressed).

While I haven't been there in a few years, for about a decade or so, my girlfriend and I went for a long weekend every summer. It's a wonderful racing venue with a great vintage vibe just outside of a town with a lovely historic feel (that little "pocket" park is incredibly beautiful). As you noted, very few dress anywhere as nice as you two do and most dress - as is the way now - extremely casual. But even so, the place just feels great (love all the old Victorian houses you pass if you walk out from the town to the track).

Also, we stayed at the Adelphi (pre the recent renovation) which is the oldest hotel in the city and still had a surprising amount of its original architecture. I fear its recent 2+ year renovation did away with much of its special charm as most people today just want new, fresh and shiny - sigh.

Siro's a special place - just a great feel to it. Seven or eight years ago, they opened a Siro's in NYC, it closed a few years ago, but oddly, nothing has moved into the space (as of six months ago) and the Siro's signage is still there. Always feels odd when I pass it.

Glad you had a fun - and winning - time.

 

[Fading Fast]

Shanghailander, as noted back in our August exchange, Siro's opened and closed in New York (guessing from memory) about 7 or so years ago.

Part of the problem, IMHO, was they chose a boring location in a nondescript '60s office tower and not in one of New York's many older buildings with charm - like the charm Siro's has in their Saratoga location. So, if they were trying to cash in on all those New Yorkers familiar with the Saratoga location, they failed by not re-creating some of the vibe of the original place.

Anywho, here it is, many years later, and the only evidence of its failed effort is its sad awning.

Sad awning (note how faded the name is on the front, it's okay on the side):

Logistically hard to get a shot of the full building, but this is what is above the awning - no character or charm to echo the original location:

 

[MondoFW]

That luggage looks great. I would love the one you use to display the ties and shirts.

 

[Anthony_Eden]

Wow, I too find the luggage excellent, and your outfit too, both elegant and fitting to the climate and occasion... Superb spats too, I've almost never seen any apart from one orchestra conductor... No braces?

 

[Shanghailander]

Locked in the icy grip of winter, I dream of summer at the track....