I'm looking for a big effort from Copper Town in here.

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General Jim wears Fort Bragg down... to get it!

The return of Quip! He could be tough to beat in this spot after the long lay-off.

My other choice would be Tale of Silence, coming off a $200K win in his last. He's the least risky horse with solid LP figures.

Play On in the 9th, baby! Dominating performance.

Brad Cox knows what he's doing. The track handicappers commentators just said, 4 for 8 (50%) shipping into GP.

Another son of Super Saver, #9 in the Loop, running a maiden race in the 10th. No figures on these horses, but they like him.

JORR will have a fit if he wins.

Uh Oh. Watch out for thrown projectiles and beer cans from the North side.

What a gutsy performance. Found himself in a duel and he kicked it home. Classy horse!

I've been grinding all day and finally caught one:

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General Jim wears Fort Bragg down... to get it!

Kenzou's Rhythm making it look easy in the 9th at S.A. That was a lay up at 5-1 with his 93 figure in his last.

Commentators weren't wrong going with Curlin's Rd. Just too pricey at 8-5, when you could beat him.

JORR- how in god's name did end up throwing fifty to win on that horse? Do you play Oaklawn a lot? I don't think I would have put $50 in Monopoly money on that horse to win. Nice hit.

26-1 or so, eh Jorr?

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Hawaii (fuck) You

I don't particularly focus on Oaklawn, but every morning I sort the races using Optix keywords. The "EX" grade (EXCUSE) she got the last time she ran in a stake that was similar to today's race caught my eye and caused me to put some time into handicapping the race.



She was definitely going to need to improve off her last to be competitive today, but I thought that was likely, especially as Broberg was her trainer.

The expected figure range to win today's race was 81-73. She had run a 68 her last out but that was at Prairie Meadows. Looking back at her Oaklawn races from last year, she ran a 67 in that little stakes race where she got the "EX" grade. That was close to being competitive here even with all the trouble she had that day. And better yet, she had broken her maiden at Oaklawn with an 82 fig, that was probably going to be able to win today's race or at least put her right in the thick of it. She was coming off a 287 day layoff but that didn't bother me, particularly since she had broken her maiden at first asking.



When we look at the plot projection, she figured to be forwardly placed. I didn't really expect her to be on the front, but I thought it was a definite possibility. In any case, I was sure she would be close. The race figured to have a lively pace but that didn't bother me at the distance. I thought the 2-horse would be up close, probably on the front with my horse stalking. I was certain the 2 would not be around at the finish. As you can see, Usual Suspect is a relatively large circle in Quadrant I. A large circle isn't necessarily good, but QI is the place to be, especially at 6 furlongs. And she was very lightly raced so the circle didn't scare me. QI circles win at 11.5% at the distance. QI squares win at 19.6% (4-horse here) and QII squares win at 15.2% (7-horse who was the favorite at $1.40/1).

I'm not complaining, but I played three $20 exactas with the logical horses, 6 with 4,7,9. I couldn't believe the 1 kept coming the way she did. As it turned out, I was just glad she didn't run me over at the wire. It got a little scary for a moment.

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General Jim wears Fort Bragg down... to get it!