"Happy to be upset"

While it sounds like a complete contradiction, that was my quote to Jamie when we talked after Dawn Raider's race. When it became clear that I would not be able to join Mark K. and Dan K. on their trip to Chicago, I told Mark that I hoped to regret the decision. Not only were Dan and Mark rewarded with a trip to the winners circle, they also hit the late Pick 4 that paid a little over $7k - now that's what I call a good day at the track.

Back to the race, 365 days (leap year) after Lite Brigade was victorious on the Arlington turf, Raider put in an equally impressive performance today. The other 8 horses came into the race with combined lifetime earnings in excess of $2.1 million. He got the perfect ride and had enough left in the tank to prevail. In the words of my favorite race caller (John G. Dooley), Raider "refused to lose".

Up next ??? One more week at Arlington to put our perfect 2 for 2 record on the line. Also one more week in Iowa to put our 2 for ?? record to the test. At Remington Park, Classic Trouble should be close to his debut and it looks like we might get one more race from Balsero in Canada. Also in Canada, Lumpy was nominated for a stakes race and may go there next weekend if we can't find a race for him in Chicago.

Stay tuned.