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If you spot a Woodbine Entertainment Group executive smiling today, there’s a good reason. The $1.5 million Pepsi North American Cup was run at Mohawk on Saturday night and much like the Saturday before when perfect weather, a great crowd and an exciting race made for a thrilling day of racing, this harness racing moment was also blessed.

It was a balmy clear summer night and the field - much like the gang that burst from the gate for the 150th Queen’s Plate - appeared very competitive and that tends to encourage prolific betting.  

Keep It Real was the lukewarm favourite, bet down to $1.90, but Well Said and Dial and No Dial also attracted the players cash. This race was an example of how driving strategy can mean everything in a harness race. If I Can Dream and George Brennan gunned for the lead and cut the opening quarter in :26, but by the half, Keep It Real and Steve Condren had moved first over in a sizzling :54.3. Also on the move at that point were Dial and No Dial, steered by Brian Sears and that allowed Well Said and Ron Pierce to get a nifty second over trip. In the stretch, benefiting from an efficient two job, Well Said exploded off cover and barreled home in an eye-catching :25.4 for an authoritative win by over three lengths with a hard charging Art Colony grabbing the place by a long nose over Keep It Real. That place photo caused some grief to writer Perry Lefko who shared my table in the dining room with Triple Dead Heat blogger Keith McCalmont and his girlfriend Amy. Since our table was located a little past the finish line, the angle tended to favour the inside horse, so when I announced that I thought Art Colony had finished second, Perry challenged me.

“No he didn’t,” claimed Lefko, “I’ll bet you $5 on it.” Fortunately for me, Lefko hadn’t heard Ken Middleton’s call of the race. From his cozy nook high above the finish line, Middleton named Art Colony as the runner-up and the photo finish picture confirmed that.  I grabbed Lefko’s fiver.

So some of the winner’ss share of the $1.5 million purse goes to Americans - c0-owner Jeffrey Syder is from New York and Pierce drives regularly at the Meadowlands…but how about the final time.. 1:48.1 - that’s the fastest ever for the North America Cup.

WEG guys must be happy about the handle . There was $3,200,000 poured through the windows at Mohawk, a week after the Queen’s Plate players had wagered $5,700,000. We may be in the grips of a major recession, but apparently nobody has informed the horse players! 

It was the perfect storm for Woodbine on Queen’s Plate day. First of all, there was no storm, as the weather was picture perfect for the first time in many weeks - lots of sun and not so warm as to be oppressive. Also, the fact that the US Open could not be resolved on Sunday possibly inspired some to abandon their tvs for the track. The Blue Jays were on the road and playing the very bad Washington Nationals, so there wasn’t a lot of competition for the attention of sports fans.

From my point of view, it was the largest crowd in maybe 15 years at Woodbine. They don’t charge admission, so an exact count is hard to determine. Michael Burns, track photographer sent me a great shot of the Plate field going down the backstretch and you can see in the background that the stands were full. You will be able to see this picture in the next issue of Down The Stretch, Canada’s most entertaining and informative racing newspaper. We should be in our bins at Woodbine by Thursday June 25.

The race was phenomenal.  I had been asked many times before post-time if I was going to bet on Plate Trial winner Eye of the Leopard and my answer was always the same -I don’t bet favourites, but I hope he wins, because I would love to see jockey Eurico Rosa da Silva get a Queen’s Plate. And da Silva sure deserves this one after making his first Plate ride a winning one. He kept Eye of the Leopard slightly off the pace and when Mike Smith launched Mr. Foricos Two You to the front with an eighth of a mile to go, da Silva began riding Eye of the Leopard in earnest. The final 100 yards of the 150th Queen’s Plate may be responsible for a huge spike in nitro-glycerin sales. Mr. Foricos Two You looked as if he would be the champ, but Eye of the Leopard, while drifting a little into the middle of the track was using long athletic strides to whittle the margin and while that was happening, Stewart Elliott had the filly Milwaukee Appeal flying between horses. It might have been a different outcome 50 yards past the wire, but where it counted the most, Eye of the Leopard won by a head, Mr Foricos Two You was second by a neck over Milwaukee Appeal.

The back story to this is certainly bittersweet. This is the fifth Queen’s Plate for Sam-Son Farms. Trainer Mark Frostad sent out Scatter The Gold and Dancethruthedawn in the early 90s for Sam-Son. But the last 18 months have been sad for the Samuel family. In January of 2008, Tammy Samuel-Balaz, who was running the operation, died of cancer and her mother Elizabeth passed away about 10 weeks after that.

I had a lovely moment yesterday. My good friend David Onley, now the Lieutenant Governor for the province, was representing the Queen and when my date, Eleanor and I worked our way to the walking ring right before the Plate, David saw us and asked that we get our pictures taken. We were immediately ushered to his side as cameras clicked. me and the Lieutenant Governor. Real tight. Hope he didn’t bet my tips. I told him I liked Rapid Release and Active Duty. They finished 8th and 12th respectively.

The Queen’s Plate is always an exhausting day for me, but yesterday’s version was especially so. Not only was I compiling pictures and info for the fast closing deadline of Down The Stretch, Canada’s most entertaining and informative racing newspaper, but I also phoned in 7 reports for 680News. Historically, when I’m working the Plate, my wagering suffers as I don’t assign the appropriate time necessary to really handicap competently. Conversely, when I’m trying to bet the races, my reportage tends to suffer, because I’m not really paying full attention to the writing and delivery as my mind is wondering who to bet next.

So, aside from the flawed reports and the losing bets, it was a terrific day at the track. 

You would think that in the days leading up to the 150th Queen’s Plate, I would be blogging a lot, but man, this has been avery busy week for me.

On Monday, I attended the Queen’s Plate Barbecue. This might be the 30th of these I’ve gone to. I’ve got videotape of me at a QP BBQ older than some of the jockeys in this race. Actually that’s true. One of the first people I ran into Monday was white-hot jockey Tyler Pizarro who is this month’s Jockey of the Month in Down The Stretch, Canada’s most interesting and informative horse racing newspaper. Pizarro is only 23 and I believe my first Plate Barbecue was 1977. So do the math.

On Tuesday, I interviewed our Lieutenant Governor, His Honour David Onley. This is for a page in the Down The Stretch. David will be representing the Queen at this year’s Plate and normally I’m not a huge fan of the pomp and ceremony ( What do you mean post time will be 20 minutes late because of the Musical Ride?), but the Lieutenant Governor and I go back many years as reporters with City-TV. David Onley’s story is quite the amazing narrative - he suffered from polio as a child - and even though he walks with great difficulty, he has charted his career from radio through some brilliant stuff as science and tech reporter for City-Tv to being named the province’s L-G. In that capacity, David is making some remarkable statements about accessibility. He told me on Tuesday that one of his greatest thrills in the first two years as Lieutenant Governor was when he was called by Foreign Affairs and asked to lead our contingent at the Paralympics in Beijing. For me, it will be very exciting to see him being driven down the stretch in that Bentley.

Wednesday was wet and miserable which meant the annual Queen’s Plate media golf tournament at Royak Woodbine was a bit of an ordeal. I hit three good shots and our team was far off the leader board. But we were fed well. Woodbine’s Glen Crouter knows how to handle a room full of rapacious reporters.

At the draw for post positions yesterday, the fast filly Milwaukee Appeal drew # 4 and she will likely be the post-time favourite and why not. She ran the mile and an 8th of the Canadian Oaks two seconds faster than the colt Eye of the Leopard ran the Plate Trial the week before. The boys have one advantage in that they have had the extra week off. Tasy Temptation second to Milwaukee Appeal in the Oaks leaves from post 11 and has Patrick Husbands aboard. Tasty Temptation was favoured in the Oaks but had a horrible start, then worked her way back into the race to finish second. She will be dangerous, assuming an untroubled trip which is kind of like assuming honest politicians.

Of the colts, even though I’d love to see Eurico Rosa da Silva win a Plate, I’ll take a stand against Eye of the Leopard. I’m scared of both fillies and will use them liberally in my exactors, but I’m shopping for a price and I’ll get it with Rapid Release and Active Duty. The former is trained by Roger Attfield and will be ridden by Jono Jones - that’s the same combination that took the Plate last year with Not Bourbon. Rapid Release was third in the Plate Trial just ahead of Active Duty who is trained by Mark Casse and will be ridden by Corey Fraser. I always take a look at the horses that finish second, third and fourth in the lead-up races because it’s always about the horse that peaks at the right time.

And let’s give Woodbine their props for pouring $150,000 into the Pick six on Sunday. They’re going to do this for several Sundays in a row and the smart bettors understand what a good deal this is. With a free $150,000 in the Pick Six, there is a great opportunity for a life-changing payoff that will come at profoundly lower odds than any major prize in 649. The idea from Woodbine’s point of view is to attract attention from the players in the U.S. and to give the heavy hitters a real reason to push their bets in with both fists. Considering the big crowd on Sunday and the exposure in simulcast betting at most tracks in the United States, this pool should grow to close to half a million .

With the next issue of Down The Stretch, Canada’s most informative and entertaining horse racing newsaper coming out in less than two weeks, it was time to consider who would be our next Jockey of the Month. We have a promotional relationship with Shortman Brown’s who make terrific suits and stuff for men who are vertically challenged ( a description that applies to me).  The first two winners of the $250 gift certificate have been Patrick Husbands and Jim McAleney and even before he lit up the board a few times this week, I had decided to annoint Tyler Pizarro as the next recipient (don’t tell him by the way, it’s meant to be a surprise.)

Pizarro did some good work last season, but this year, it’s as if every week, he’s getting better and the racing charts are full of examples this week. On Wednesday he brought in Me the Sea and GT  to win the $125,000 Bold Ruckus Stakes at odds of 23-1. Me the Sea and GT broke the track record by speeding six furlongs in 1:08.65, .14  better than the previous record.

Then yesterday, Pizarro had a great day at the track. He won the 6th race on Heidi’s Bay trained by his mother Donna, getting up by a neck in the final strides at the end of the six furlong race for maiden claimers. Heidi’s Bay was 14-1 and paid $30.40 to win. The very next race, Pizarro was in the winner’s circle again and again his timing was perfect as he rallied Hate Your Money from far off the pace to score by a head.  No one hated the money they won on this horse, which went off as the 2-1 favourite. Scott Fairlea is the trainer of Hate Your Money.

Less than half an hour later, Pizarro completed an impressive triple by winning the 8th race on Mighty Fenian. Mighty Fenian, trained by Sam di Pasquale, also came from off the pace and made it to the wire about three quarters of a length the best at odds of over 6-1. The last pick three of the card was all Pizarro and it returned a healthy $936.35 for $1.  

Pizarro’s neat week has him with 28 wins in 166 rides, good for fourth in the jockeys standings. Patrick Husbands looks uncatchable with 57 wins, Chantal Sutherland is second with 37 and a very Emile Ramsammy is third with 30.

The 150th Queen’s Plate is one week this Sunday and surely the connections of the filly Milwaukee Appeal must be thinking about sticking their girl in against the boys. Milwaukee Appeal, ridden brilliantly by Stewart Elliott, won the Canadian Oaks for fun last weekend and her time for a mile and an eighth was almost two seconds faster than Eye of the Leopard recorded the week before when he won the Plate Trial. I’m not sure if we have a stellar cast of colts capable or really running a mile and a quarter this year, so surely the filly, if she’s fit should take a shot.

One of the more appealing aspects of Horse Racing is that the girls beat the boys with regularity. Chantal Sutherland and Emma-Jayne Wilson win almost daily and the Queen’s Plate does have a history that includes fillies. The last lady to win the Plate was Dancethruthedawn in 2001 and she, of course is a daughter of Triple Crown Winner Dance Smartly who included the Plate in 1991 among her sweep. The first Queen’s Plate I ever attended - in 1967 - was won by Conn Smythe’s filly Jammed Lovely. And if you’re looking for some kind of mathematical karma, 100 years ago, the Queen’s Plate in 1909 was Shimonese, a filly.

Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird is listed as 2-1 to win the Belmont on Saturday and while I expect he’ll be much lower than that - I’m figuring 8-5 - numberswise, he towers over this field. Let’s look at the chances and past performances of each horse.

Mine That Bird:  the ‘Bird’ has 5 wins in ten lifetime races. No other horse in the field has won more than 3 times. Four of the ten horses are seeking their second win. Huge advantage for Mine That Bird. His last two races, of course, justify his low odds; that remarkable win at 50-1 in the Derby and a similar rally from last place to be second to the great filly Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness.  No other horse in this field has a race equal to either of those.  Mine That Bird should win simply because of his recent skill level, a comfort zone he’s achieved now that he knows he can dominate these. Also, having Calvin Borel back on top is like the cherry on a Triple Crown sundae. Is Mine That Bird a sure thing? Not at all. The mile and a half is a rarely navigated distance and Belmont’s dirt track can be hard on horses’ legs. There’s a few fresh horses in this field who just might be sitting on a lifetime best race ( as ‘Bird’ did in the Derby). Also - and this could really matter to Mine That Bird - There isn’t a single pure speed horse in the race. If there’s no pace whatsoever (let’s say the three quarters goes in 1:14) , Mine That Bird will find it much harder to swoop the field.

Brave Victory:

Trained by Nick Zito, Brave Victory is over his head here. He has just two lifetime wins. a maiden and an allowance score, came third beaten over 5 lengths by Charitable Man in the Peter Pan and has won only $110,000. Both his wins were in sprints; 12 furlongs probably isn’t his preferred distance.

Charitable Man:

Most likely the second favourite on June 6. Charitable Man has won three of his four races. His last quarter in winning the Peter Pan went in a credible :12.4. What is most scary about him is that in stalking the pace in the Peter Pan, Charitable Man was timed in 1:09.2 to the six furlong mark, which means if he decides to cut the pace and no one challenges him, he might not be caught. Definitely the horse with the best chance to deny Mine That Bird.

Chocolate Candy:

  I liked this horse in the Kentucky Derby, but he was squeezed at the start and ended up 5th. he does have four wins in ten races and a strong come off the pace talent.  His bets Beyer figure of 95 is much inferior to the 106/105 back to back posted by Mine That Bird. He would have to run much the best race of his career to be first or second here.

Dunkirk:

Another lightly raced colt who had traffic problems in the Derby. Dunkirk won the Florida Derby in a strong time (1:47.3 for nine furlongs) and a 100 Beyer and he has worked out nicely since the demolition Derby. If he’s at his best, he will hit the top three.

Flying Private:

In spite of a nice fourth place finish in the Preakness and a 104 Beyer, this one doesn’t get me excited. His dozen starts makes him the most experienced in the field, but he’s also the most experienced at losing with 11 also-rans to go with just on maiden victory. Went off at 46-1 in the Derby and was beaten by 43 lengths. Discuss amongst yourselves.

Luv Gov: 

   Way out of his comfort zone in this race. Luv Gov broke his maiden on Derby Day and then was beaten by almost 9 lengths by Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness. A pair of 94 Beyers in his last two races suggests he won’t get within half a dozen of the winner on Saturday

Miner’s Escape:

    Although he did win his last two races( what is the Federico Tesio 73K, anyway?) Miner’s Escape is the slowest horse in this field with a high Beyer of 89.

Mr. Hot Stuff:

  Like Mine That Bird, Mr. Hot Stuff likes to sit at the back of the pack. Unlike Mine That Bird, Mr. Hot Stuff isn’t likely to make a huge move to the front. He has just one win and no seconds in eight races. He did come third, just 2 lengths behind Pioneerof the Nile in the Santa Anita Derby if you’re looking hard for some kind of justification to bet him.

Summer Bird:

  This Bird was 13 lengths behind the other Bird in the Kentucky Derby. In three previous races, Summer Bird did show a nice come off the pace ability. There is a myth about coming off the pace in the Belmont; that it’s such a long race the front-runners will grow weary and yield to the back of the pack. The reality is that the Belmont is so long, the horses that trail become too tired after a mile to mount the kind of energy it takes to make up real estate between themselves and the leaders.

What to bet: Huge exactor boxes on Mine That Bird with Charitable Man and Dunkirk.  Tris with Mine That Bird top and bottom with Charitable Man and Dunkirk with the field in third.  

A hamster was instrumental in a nice score for me yesterday. I was betting all the tracks availed so kindly to me on channels 420/421 on HPI and in my confusion, failed to notice that the 10th and last race at Woodbine was moments away. When I looked up, they were loading into the gate.  As I scrambled to call HPI, while wondering what to bet with seconds to spare, I heard Dan Loiselle naming the horses as they were entering their stalls..

“and there goes I’m a Moon Too,” announced Loiselle and a lightbulb went off in my head.

I’m a Moon Too had won at odds of 17-1 on opening day. I remember this, because I was taking a pari-mutuel beating at Woodbine and put my last six dollars $3 win/place on I’m a Moon Too. In that race, I’m a Moon Too seemed disinterested at the head of the stretch, but jockey Stephen Bahen persevered and got his horse into late along the inside for the win. My 11-year-old  daughter Emily was with me at the track that day and had been pestering me all day to buy her a hamster. When she saw I was flush, she asked again and off we went to PJ’s pets. My payoff had been $85; the hamster, food and cage  cost $86.

We ended up naming the hamster Orbit after I’m a Moon Too, the horse that financed his new digs..

Anyway, as soon as I heard ‘I’m a Moon Too’, not knowing his odds or even the type of race he was in, I pounded in $4 win/place on him and he ran a remarkably similar race to the one he ran on April 4. Bahen kept him close down the backstretch and he entered the stretch run in third…then seemed to flatten out. However the last furlong was run in slow-mo and I’m a Moon Too got into it in the final 100 yards to win by a half a length. Imagine my pleasant surprise when I heard Loiselle intone,

“I’m a Moon Too at 30-1!”

Actually he was 33-1 and my $4 win/place kicked back $190.00. The hamster gets extra food today.

Thanks to two races at a mile and an eighth at Woodbine yesterday, the Queen’s Plate, booked for Sunday, June 21, is a lot clearer, though perhaps not for El Brujo.

In the Plate Trial, El Brujo was bet down to 1.65-1, but tired noticeably in the final quarter mile to stagger in 9th and second last. By far the best horse of the day was Eye of the Leopard who parlayed a very wide trip to an impressive win by about a neck over Southdale. Ridden agressively by Eurico Rosa Da Silva, Eye of the Leopard came down the middle of the track gobbling up real estate enthusiastically and denying Southdale and Emma-Jayne Wilson at the wire. Both of the top two horses in the Plate Trial are very lightly raced, so either one could improve dramatically for the Plate. Time for the Plate Trial was 1:51.4, about three lengths faster than Gallant and Patrick Husbands went in winning the race before, a maiden test, also at a mile and an eighth. Gallant won it by a nose over a late running Stardust Ziggy and Jerry Baird. Big Brown Brewski had led until deep stretch and wouldn’t that be neat if Big Brown won the Queen’s Plate? Disappointing finished by Dr. Funkenstein ( 7th), Yorkville (8th), Dance Into Heaven (9th) and D’Artagnan (12th) certainly puts their Queen’s Plate participation into question.

Back to the Hamster. In the latest issue of Down The Stretch, Orbit the Hamster is seen selecting Utterly Cool as the winner of the Plate. I’m not explaining this here, get an issue of Down The Stretch and see for yourself. Unfortunately for Orbit’s usually strong handicapping skills, I happened to run into trainer Sid Attard Saturday and when I pointed out that a rodent had picked his horse to win, he told me that Utterly Cool would not be running in the Plate.

  We also learned on the weekend that Rachel Alexandra would not be running in next Saturday’s Belmont. Her people, quite wisely have elected not to subject her to the stress of running a distance for the third time in five weeks. That means Calvin Borel will return to Mine That Bird and based on the relatively weak opposition, Borel had a real chance to become the first jockey to sweep the Triple Crown on different horses. Borel and Mine That Bird won the Derby, then he combined with Rachel Alexandra to win the Preakness.

So the Belmont won’t be a very intriguing race, except to watch Mine That Bird execute another of his rallies from far back. A first in the Derby, second in the Preakness and a win in the Belmont would still make this an incredible story for a horse that lost his first two starts of the year in non-descript minor Stakes races at Sunland, New Mexico.