The First Saturday in May

So on the first Saturday in May I have a bit of a ritual. I peruse the local paper, the internet, place my meager bets,  and get all ready to enjoy the most exciting 2 minutes in sports.

There are many things to consider when betting 20 to 25 dollars on some horse you have never seen run. You would think the most important thing would be the jockey. Make that the second most important thing. The horse should maybe be your first consideration. Things like his bloodline, his win/loss record should come into play. Then you might want to think about the track. Has the horse raced on dirt like the Kentucky Derby track or is he more of a hard surface track kind of horse? Then you have to think about the starting position. No one likes their horse to be in the number one spot. (Bear in mind, I’m no authority on race horses, but I read this on the internet. That makes it gospel). Traffic is too heavy there. Historically more horses have won the derby from the middle of the pack.

Now you have a good idea of where to start. I don’t mess around with any of this stuff which could be why I am not a big winner. My first consideration is the horse’s name and why he was named that. Several years ago a horse by the name of I’ll Have Another was in the lineup. I thought the name was kind of catchy and more so when I discovered the owner liked cookies and would ‘have another cookie’. A horse called Wicked Strong appealed to me last year. New England owners came up with that one.

This past Saturday after throwing darts at the lineup list rather than going with some logical selections it occurred I needed the proper attire. The next step was to create a proper and fitting hat. I have lots of hats (one of my many fetishes) but none proper for the Kentucky Derby. Lucky me. I just happened to have a wide brimmed straw-looking hat. It was sort of scrunched out shape but that was part of the appeal. All it took was some silk flowers and a bit of ribbon. Was I stylin’?

I might add that none of the horses I wagered on did anything. I’m pretty sure the three I bet on did cross the finish line. But Bonnie, our canine princess, looked better than any of the horses with her not rose wreath.

Now on to the Preakness.