Delaware #s

[davidrex]

I believe its been stated before on this board by smarter folks than I; DO NOT USE DEL. PK. FOR COMPARISON TO OTHER TRAX.
And by all means;don\'t rely on speed figs to dominate your decisions for this track

[TGJB]

David-- right. Delaware, more than anywhere else, is the home of the move-up trainer, with the rest of the mid-Atlantic tracks close behind.

[fkach]

Would it be possible for you to list the tracks where this problem is most common?

It is much more difficult for individual handicappers to try to accumulate evidence of this over many months than it is for the person making the figures.

[TGJB]

As I said, the mid-Atlantic tracks (Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia) have the most extreme issues, but it\'s more a question of which trainers than which tracks, and there are some everywhere. There were rumors for a while that they were shooting clenbuterol directly into the horses\' tracheas down there. (And on that note, the recent California move to go switch to blood tests for that drug is a good idea).

I will have more to say about the drug stuff in a couple of months. Especially if diplomacy fails.

[miff]

\"There were rumors for a while that they were shooting clenbuterol directly into the horses\' tracheas down there. (And on that note, the recent California move to go switch to blood tests for that drug is a good idea).\"


The old throat shot trick. At Del,Scott Lake and Tony Dutrow(to name a couple)have many runners that throw gigantic figs when they first get them but I\'m sure it\'s just hay and oats.

[TGJB]

Feleciano, Vaders, Pino, Capuano and Wolfendale also have had some remarkable move-ups.

[miff]

Not familiar with those other trainers because they don\'t ship to New York very often.

[Michael D.]

TG tends to give the wicked fast figs to the crazy sprint performances at these mid atlantic tracks, when other figure makers seem reluctant to do so.

while i haven\'t done any statistical comparisons, i often find horses matching these fast figs at other tracks, often at big prices.

[Bally Ache]

I agree with Michael D.  If a horse can run 1:10 & change or 1:45 or less (after adjusting for track speed that day) at Delaware, you had better watch out for him when he\'s entered elsewhere.

The reverse is true of Philly. By and large, a horse shipping from Philly will not be able to duplicate his fast times elsewhere.

[miff]

Big fig Delaware, Finger Lakes and Phil Park shippers to New York have generally faired poorly. If they are winning,it\'s not too much in New York.

Mike

[flushedstraight]

From the NJ Racing Commission

\"The Commission completed an analysis of its medication testing program in 2006. In the coming year, the Commission plans to implement the results of this review in an effort to create a more consistent environment with neighboring states regarding this issue.\"

Considering Delaware and Philly Park are both only a few miles from the Jersey line, and given the implications of this thread... what exactly does this mean? With the spotlight of the Breeder\'s Cup this year, is the NJRC all talk (and no action), as opposed to no talk (and no action)?

In addition, with the big EPO case I can only wonder if there is a legit crackdown in Jersey or just timely window dressing, possibly using the Ledfords as scapegoats as they were basically outsiders to the local guys and were maybe taking too many slices of the pie?

In any case, with this gloomy month for many players and fans coming to an end let\'s hope Feb starts with Gulfstream delivering big time on Saturday, with a great card and return of the champ.

[NoCarolinaTony]

Flushed

Do you think the NJ State Troopers were really in on \"getting those outsiders\" so  the NJ cheaters can continue to cheat and keep the money in state?

Not so sure I buy into that.

NC Tony

[flushedstraight]

Tony

I assume the NJ state police act on behalf of the racing commission. They are both part of the same organization. If there\'s an issue the commission cannot resolve without the use of force, they get the guys with guns involved. This is how governments operate, as far as I can tell. I also assume there are a handful of horsemen currently operating in Jersey that are cheating, based on their abilities to consistently improve performance after barn changes. Maybe it\'s better hay, but I assume it\'s more illegal than that.

So I question why these guys are still allowed to operate, while Ledford was busted. The main thing that was different about Ledford was he burst on the scene from Chicago and was winning at a much higher pecentage than anyone else. I can only assume this pissed a lot of people off, including some of the established (ie. connected) locals, and the wheels were set in motion to set things right (by their standards). Now this gets more into speculation but maybe he was asked \"politely\" to leave or cut down on the shenanigans to \"acceptable\" levels and he did not comply so the attorney generals office and cops were called in and started putting a case together, culminating in the raid & arrests.

I\'m far from being an insider so I can only make best guesses on why things happen the way they do, but I\'m fairly certain there is stuff going on that is not public knowledge, for better or for worse. I\'ve witnessed too much to believe otherwise.


PS.  I know this is the wrong breed but it\'s the same \"vigorous oversight\" that is ensuring Monmouth operates in a \"fair and responsible manner\" and I\'ll take 1-9 that anyone who happens to read this will have action on least one race there this year.