I watched the Derby with more than the usual interest this year ...

George Steinbrenner's horse Bellamy Road was a big favorite and a damn good looking horse, but he finished 7th, which has to be as disapointing to George as the fact that his Yankee's are in last place in the American League east ...

The favorite at our house was Afleet Alex ... a great feel-good story and it would've been story book stuff if he'd won, but it was not to be and he finished 3rd.

Winner was Giacomo, a 50-1 longshot, the second longest price winner since 1913 ...

BUT ... what truly boggled the mind was the payouts for a $2 like MrsS and I put down on those rare occasions when we go to a horse race ... those who correctly picked the Derby exacta were paid a Derby-record $9,814 ... not a bad day at the races, eh? ... better yet, those who got the trifecta right won a Derby-record $133,134 which would cure the financial woes of most folks ...

Here's the real news ... anyone who plunked down their $2 on a correct superfecta pick won an astounding $1.73 million ... had MrsS won a bet of that magnitude you just gotta know, she'd STILL be jumping up and down ... as would most any one of the rest of us.

The exacta paid a Derby-record $9,814, the trifecta a Derby-record $133,134, and the superfecta an astounding $1.73 million,

Sitting in the living room watching with a friend and since I had no personal interest in race.....picked Giacamo to win, because he was only grey horse in race......should have entered a bet or two, but did not!

Booooo hooooooo! Race was more of a bump a thon than a race, as field of 20 horses is just to damn big! Should limit field to 12 to 14 horses so that doesn't happen!

Charlie

I don't watch horse racing and had no plans to watch this race, but I went to see my Mom on Saturday, I was out of town on Sunday, and my Dad was watching the race. Good stuff right to the end.

Too many horses in that race. I think non of those top 3 will hit the board again in the Preakness or Belmont

Charlie

you are absolutely correct. it was more like the running of the bulls in spain.

It was an exciting finish. Nice Pay Day for Some . . . It should be interesting to see the Preakness, being it is a shorter race. I will never forget seeing Secrateriat in that incredible win in the Belmont. . .

If I were Giacomo's owner, I'd probably not run him in the Preakness. Mike Smith, Giacomo's jockey, rode brilliantly. If Giacomo is entered in the Preakness, Smith will have to have a very different strategy.

The Preakness is a true race, since it generally has a small field on entries, and we do not get the bumper car and hockey tactics of Kentucky Derby. Do not get me wrong, I love the Kentucky Derby and all the tradition that goes with it! However, they need to size down the field of entrants to at least less than 15 in order to avoid the bump tactics and collsions that occured on Saturday!

Charlie

What Charlie? And turn down all that entry fee money, and stabling fees, and I'm sure lots of other $$$$? For the sake of the race? You must be insane. /sarcasm