belmont help

[mistermoose]

May be attending Belmont on July 4th. If I am flying in to JFK(best flight for me) what would be the best way to get to the track,aside from renting a
car and hitting long island 4th of july traffic. The only two times Ive been
there we stayed in Manhattan and took an express train from Penn station and
that was great.

[toppled]

Belmont is less than 10 miles from JFK.  The best thing might be a cab ride if you don\'t want to rent a car.  
The trip isn\'t long enough for traffic to become much of a problem.
Here are the directions:  
 https://maps.google.com/maps?q=JFK+airport+to+Belmont+Park&ie=UTF-8&hl=en

[Lost Cause]

Are you going straight to the track from JFK?  

They have that same Penn Station express train service you took stopping at Jamaica before going to the track.  From JFK you can hop on the Airtran to Jamaica station and transfer to the LIRR Belmont Express train.  **Warning, the Airtrain will cost you $5 and the Express train will run you $6** so it could get more expensive than hopping into a cab if you have multiple people traveling with you, not to mention the convenience.

Schedule for the Express train is below but it leaves 11:19 and 12:01 to the track and departs 3:42pm and around 6pm (30 mins after last race).  You should call to confirm these times becuase sometimes they make announcements on holidays for extra trains.

http://www.nyra.com/belmont/assets/4/7/Belmont_Park_Summer_5-20-13.pdf

If this doesn\'t work there are a million taxis out there by the Kiosk but they will give you the evil eye when you say Belmont park because they want to drive back into the city.  Pay them no mind..

[mistermoose]

thanks a lot guys! Sounds like 2 good options

[Lost Cause]

I would highly recommend the cab ride ...Trying to coordinate the Airtrain with the LIRR and the cost of both would not br worth the convenience of the cab ride and they will drop you off right in front of the admission gate..

[mbeychok]

I would also get the number of the cab company and make sure you get a return ride. finding cabs outside belmont can be a bit of an issue after the races.

[elkurzhal]

In my experiance, don\'t expect the cab driver to know where Belmont Park is or speak english (write down the address in advance just in case)...

[Rick B.]

elkurzhal Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> In my experiance, don\'t expect the cab driver to
> know where Belmont Park is or speak english (write
> down the address in advance just in case)...

The reason this kind of cab driver exists is because
we tolerate it.

Thanks to smartphones, we can put up with the guy that
doesn\'t know where we want to go, but if you get in a
cab and the guy doesn\'t speak United States, do what I
do: get out.

[Al Caught Up]

um... have you been in a cab since 1975, elkurzhal? Most NYC cabbies are not only fluent in English commands but fully able to follow basic directions. It\'s not that hard to get from JFK to Belmont.

[BenevolentDictator]

Shouldn\'t you fly private and take limos to the track.. Just kidding.

[mistermoose]

thanks for all the help. Taking the cab by consensus,private jet is in for repair(just kidding dictator). Now do any of you native New Yawkers have a
prediction on track/turf conditions before I handicap this thing today? I have
found accuweather to be garbage and not very specific to an area,so curious
about any local forecasts. Hoping for the best and looking forward to a fun
and hopefully profitable day at the big sandy.

[elkurzhal]

Al Caught up....  Went to the Belmont last year, only time in NYC.   Car service from the Hotel to Belmont - driver barely spoke english, didn\'t know belmont park either, I ended up giving instructions (by hand signal) using the gps on my phone.  First cab attept to get back from the Times Square area was looking like the same deal, so we bailed and the next one was better.  Maybe bad luck but 1 of the 3 drivers I had spoke decent english.

[magicnight]

mistermoose, we typically defer all weather-related queries to Frank D, but I\'ll step on his toes to tell you that the NY-area weather these days is both predictable and totally unpredictable. The predictable part is that there is always a chance of afternoon thunderstorms, every freaking day. The unpredictable part is where they will hit, as there are a lot of scattered cells playing hit and miss across the region. Today is muddy and good, with three of the six carded turf races off the turf (for now). As far as forecasts go, I would suggest looking at the radar, and making your own call. Good luck.

[FrankD.]

Bob,

We have 2 weeks to break this pattern before the Spa opens, it will be an ugly mess if it continues. Lot\'s of turf races in the first condition book per usual.

I was in a 3 day handicapping contest last weekend that encompassed Belmont, Churchill & Hollywood. We all saw what happened at Churchill on Saturday night and Belmont was supposed to be a wash out weekend with gloom and doom predicted every day and not a drop of rain all weekend.

Good Luck,

Frank D.

[Lost Cause]

mistermoose Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> thanks for all the help. Taking the cab by
> consensus,private jet is in for repair(just
> kidding dictator). Now do any of you native New
> Yawkers have a
> prediction on track/turf conditions before I
> handicap this thing today? I have
> found accuweather to be garbage and not very
> specific to an area,so curious
> about any local forecasts. Hoping for the best and
> looking forward to a fun
> and hopefully profitable day at the big sandy.


Looks like no rain today..good luck

Here is a cab service that\'s close by..lots of english speaking drivers
Queens Village car service
(718) 776-8787