Games people play

[Jen]

I don't know if this is a game or not, but my dad (Whiskey Fisk) and I used to look at topo-maps and try and find bits of abandoned New England to explore. The best stuff can be found along old Rail Road trails.

Now I'm trying to find the same places I once explored with Coppertop.

I think that's a grand game!

 

[Jen]

ponies

Every time I pick a pony to win, and just bet in my mind, it loses, so I stay away. When I bet money at a casino (the single time I did), I was so very sorry to have to say goodbye to the cash that I stopped. I like to play poker if it's for nickels or garments.
But I do pretty well in stocks. Did the same trick of picking stocks and pretending to buy them - I hit well so often that I started using real money. A computer company stock I own is worth about 6 times my investment now - I used a small portion of the profit to buy a very nice new computer from that company, with every feature I could stuff on it, the whole thing essentially free. Now THAT'S fun.

What method did you use to handicap?

 

[scotrace]

*shrug*

Not being near a major track, I have to go on pre-race publicity and instinct. Could be why I stink at picking ponies.

 

[Jen]

Ah, there's nothing better than being able to look at them in the paddock and the post-parade!

Pre-race gossip is best found in The Bloodhorse and The Thoroughbredtimes (the Daily Racing Form has been known to print misinformation!).

Handicapping is a lot like picking stocks (except that you have the unpredictable, wonderful horse): analysis of information. Pedigree, past-performance, trainer, jockey, surface conditions, distance, etc. all come into play. If you're interested, www.equibase.com is a good source.

But sometimes, it's just nice to groove on the pretty ponies. Something I can do at Belmont, but not at the NYSE...

 

[El Jefe]

What, nobody hits the dogtrack???
That's vintage, baby...

 

[Brad Bowers]

Those are a blast!

One of the things my Dad used to do with us kids when we were young was take us to the dogtrack. I have many fond memories of that. My wife and I used to go up until a couple of years ago. They don't seem to have dogtracks in Utah.

Brad