Thoroughbred Connection's WeBLOG

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-175583252011-11-09T02:40:53.169-08:00Thoroughbred Connection's WeBLOGThis is the WeBLOG of Thoroughbred Connection, the Internet's #1 horse racing broadcast. Join veteran racing broadcasters <b>John Hernandez</b> and <b>Dick Harbin</b> for the latest news, opinions, interviews, and analysis in the world of thoroughbred racing!John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.comBlogger261100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-68571389862783510302007-08-27T16:43:00.000-07:002007-08-27T16:48:06.819-07:00The Top 10 Things That Drive Me Nuts As A Horseplayer!

1. All payoffs should be shown in $2 increments: How many times have you heard someone say "Is that payoff for $1 or $2?" All payoffs should be shown in $2 increments, on a uniform nationwide basis. If the player can't calculate the winnings for his $1 exacta or even his 10-cent superfecta, he should either stay home or bring a calculator 2. Surface changes need to be in bold print across

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-52459877107534028952007-08-10T20:57:00.000-07:002007-08-10T21:07:49.029-07:00Dick Harbin Comments On Victor Espinoza's "Race-Riding"!

If you wagered in good faith on the talented filly Balance in last Sunday's Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar, you are due a refund. Of course, that refund will never be coming, but a refund is in order. One of the very basic tenets to placing a wager is that your jockey will ride that horse in a manner that gives the horse the best possible opportunity to win that race. Instead of riding Balance to

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-39376979474657472362007-08-08T12:07:00.000-07:002007-08-10T21:08:27.188-07:00Article from Las Vegas Racing Critic Warren Eves

I recently had a chance to have a lively and entertaining dinner at Joe's Stone Crab & Steak House in Las Vegas with longtime racing friends Warren Eves and Richard Eng.We discussed a lot of subjects on the overall theme of "the state of racing in America." Last Friday, Warren called me just before air time for Thoroughbred Connection's Friday Night Touch to tell me about his frustrating and

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-84353298235433007712007-07-19T21:08:00.000-07:002007-08-10T21:07:15.558-07:00The BEST Opening Day In All Of Thoroughbred Racing!

Over the course of my 25 years in thoroughbred racing, I've attended many opening days at all three major Southern California race tracks. But there's only one opening day that qualifies as a truly special day, an OPENING DAY in BIG BOLD CAPITAL LETTERS! And that's, of course, the one they had Wednesday July 18 at the "seaside oval" known as Del Mar, MY home track, the one that's exactly 15

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-48731001463752122272007-07-13T15:34:00.000-07:002007-07-13T15:44:41.160-07:00Get Ready For The NEW Del Mar!!!

Get ready for a Del Mar Opening Day like you've never seen before!!!When the horses break from the gate for "the lidlifter" on Wednesday July 18, they will contest the first "polytrack" race at the "Seaside Oval."What happens after that will produce a myriad of questions! How will the track play? Will it favor speed? WIll it favor closers? How should I handicap for the rest of the day? How should

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-42025845490015758432007-07-05T07:07:00.000-07:002007-07-13T15:45:00.484-07:00The Monster That Are Monday!

AKA... MY Pick Six ticket "sucked!" Yep... dead after two races ... only two wins after my "free and clear" winner got nailed at the wire in the finale!If only I had known BEFORE the sequence what jockey G. F. "Gonky" Almeida told TVG's Chris Kotulak AFTER barely getting home the heavy favorite "from the clouds" in the opener ... "the track is loose, it's very hard to come from behind."That's not

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-44070877590838734812007-07-02T06:05:00.000-07:002007-07-02T07:54:31.017-07:00Hollywood Park Pick Six Ticket For Monday July 2!!!

DISCLAIMER: THIS TICKET IS STRICTLY FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION ONLY ... THERE'S NO REALISTIC CHANCE THAT I WILL PLAY IT ON MY OWN ... I WILL LIKELY PARTICIPATE IN A GROUP TICKET!!!A $172 "bomber" in the sixth race Sunday July 1 fuels a record four-day Pick Six carryover of $3,274,505.48 for a rare Monday racing card at Hollywood Park. Since Sunday bettors wagered about $3.5 million chasing a $1.3

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-41746981322999447542007-06-27T13:37:00.000-07:002007-06-27T14:43:37.799-07:00Just A Handful Of Polytrack... !!!

"Just a handful of polytrack .. !!!" With all due respect to Mary Poppins, exactly WHAT IS IT the racing industry is trying to accomplish with the figuratively INSTANTANEOUS decision at so many facilities to scrap dirt tracks in favor of artificial surfaces? I mean, we're talking about a game that LITERALLY waited DECADES before it scrapped antiquated procedures like keeping medication

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-8707172567610554102007-06-13T16:37:00.001-07:002007-06-13T16:44:25.543-07:00Get Ready For The Ultimate Selector!!!

We're excited to have The Ultimate Selector as our scheduled guest Friday June 15, 2007! If you've been following his exploits on any of the popular thoroughbred racing message boards, you know he's developed somewhat of a "love-hate" relationship with his fellow racing fans!!!Without giving away the interview or his secrets, The Ultimate Selector has figured out a way to use his computer skills

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-9392101928128365352007-03-05T19:26:00.000-08:002007-03-05T19:59:36.741-08:00Add These To Your "Must See/Do" List: The DRF Horseplayers Expo & Wynn Las Vegas!

I’m just back from a weekend at the fabulous Wynn Las Vegas for the 2007 DRF Horseplayers Expo. I’m gonna tell you this NOW and I’m gonna tell you this again before I finish up. You MUST visit Wynn Las Vegas and you MUST attend the next DRF Horseplayers Expo!Let’s start with Wynn Las Vegas! What a place! DEFINITELY a five-star resort in my estimation! Great rooms, great amenities, a great spa and

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-16307903484051175342007-01-30T08:37:00.000-08:002007-01-30T08:49:57.565-08:00Thank You Barbaro! You Could Have Been The Triple Crown Winner!

Considering the reports out of Pennsylvania the previous weekend, the sad news of January 29 was not unexpected. But, still, the news that 2006 Kentucky Derby winner BARBARO had been euthanized after an eight-month struggle for survival hit me like a punch in the stomach. I was SO convinced that his stunning victory on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs gave us legitimate hope for a

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-87668615022819363742007-01-23T10:47:00.000-08:002007-01-23T11:09:28.685-08:00My Final Thoughts On The Eclipse Awards Voting & Banquet

Monday January 22nd’s 36th Eclipse Awards banquet at the beautiful Beverly Wilshire hotel didn’t provide much in the way of suspense or surprise when the results of the voting for 2006 honors were released, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t anything to talk about!As far as the voting went, it’s hard to argue with any of the results. INVASOR IS and SHOULD be Horse Of The Year and he easily

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-86524461882455816032007-01-17T14:31:00.000-08:002007-01-18T06:26:28.237-08:00Owner's Stable Mourns Death Of Founder Thomas Thompson

When Owner’s Stable founder and managing partner Thomas Thompson fell seriously ill in early December, his popular Southern California-based partnership stable was enjoying its most successful year. In its six-year history, Owner’s Stable has sent out 359 runners and visited the winner’s circle 58 times, mostly on the tough Santa Anita/Hollywood Park/Del Mar/Fairplex circuit with additional

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-33542497732716010522006-12-22T10:27:00.000-08:002007-01-18T06:24:42.205-08:00A Look Back At 2006 ... A Look Ahead To 2007!

I'm convinced that the older you get, the faster time flies! It sure seems like just YESTERDAY that we watched that visually impressive victory by BARBARO in the Kentucky Derby.But that was almost eight months ago and so much has transpired so quickly that it’s hard to get my arms around the events of 2006.For me, the year 2006 was filled with both personal and professional HIGHS and LOWS.On

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1162851262135398242006-11-06T13:57:00.000-08:002006-11-06T14:14:22.196-08:00My On-The-Air "BC Bombers" Strike Big At Churchill Downs!

I "gave out" these Breeders' Cup "Bombers" Saturday morning... all except one at least 10/1 on the ML!JUVENILE FILLIESAdhrhythm Satulagi Quick Little MissJUVENILEStreet Sense = WIN $32.40 Teuflesberg Pegasus Wind UD Ghetto FILLY & MARE TURFDancing Edie My Typhoon Satwa Queen SPRINTAreyoutalkintome Too Much Bling Kelly's LandingMILEBadge Of Silver = 3rdMiesque's Approval = WIN $50.60 Aussie

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1162151779007762592006-10-29T11:49:00.000-08:002006-11-06T13:55:53.576-08:00My "Short Lists" Of Win Contenders For All Eight Breeders' Cup Races!

JUVENILE FILLIESDreaming Of AnnaUntouched TalentBel Air BeautyCash IncludedJUVENILEGreat HunterStormelloScat DaddyCircular QuayFILLY & MARE TURFWait A WhileGermanceHoney RyderOuija BoardSPRINTToo Much BlingSiren LureDubai EscapadeHenny HughesMILEAragornGorellaAd ValoremAraafaDISTAFFFleet IndianLemons ForeverBushfireAsi SiempreTURFCaciqueHurricane RunEnglish ChannelRed RocksCLASSICBernardiniLava

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1161545322245974092006-10-23T07:00:00.000-07:002006-10-22T12:39:59.273-07:00It's "Hurry Up And Wait" Time With The '06 BC 2 Weeks Away!

Thoroughbred Connection’s annual road trip to the Breeders’ Cup starts November 1 with my flight from San Diego to Louisville.I’ll headquarter at the Galt House in downtown Louisville along with co-hosts Dick Harbin and Derek Simon. We’ll be at Churchill Downs early Thursday morning, then likely tour some Lexington “Blue Grass” breeding farms before returning to Louisville for the big VIP party

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1160957996162140682006-10-15T17:16:00.000-07:002006-10-15T17:23:49.896-07:00A Great Visit With Trevor Denman On Thoroughbred Connection!

On Sunday October 15, Derek Simon and I has the pleasure and the privilege of interviewing the legendary track announcer Trevor Denman, who will call the Breeders’ Cup races for the first time November 4, on Thoroughbred Connection.In my opinion, and taking nothing away from NYRA’s Tom Durkin, who has done a great job calling every Breeders’ Cup race since the inaugural BC at Hollywood Park in

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1160431217325878382006-10-09T14:59:00.000-07:002006-10-09T16:26:15.703-07:00Stage Set For BC Classic Showdown At Churchill Downs 11/4!

The results of the two most significant Breeders’ Cup prep races on “Super Saturday” were as expected … the brilliant three-year-old BERNARDINI won the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park under wraps and Santa Anita Handicap/Hollywood Gold Cup/Pacific Classic hero LAVA MAN was victorious in the G2 Goodwood Breeders’ Cup Handicap at Oak Tree Santa Anita in their final tune-ups for the BC

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1159830118622999202006-10-02T16:01:00.000-07:002006-11-04T07:48:20.166-08:00"Super Saturday" Strong Even Without Invasor In Gold Cup!

It’s still “SUPER SATURDAY,” with no less than eight Grade One Breeders’ Cup prep races on the docket 10/7 at three different racetracks across the country, but a little bit of the mustard is off the hotdog with the news that Whitney winner INVASOR (ARG) will not be on hand for a showdown in the G1 10F Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park against three-year-old sensation BERNARDINI after spiking

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1159242052571365462006-09-25T20:40:00.000-07:002006-09-25T21:10:01.763-07:00Oak Tree Opens Wed 9/27 ... Three G1 Races On Tap Sat 9/30!

This past weekend certainly qualified as “the calm before the storm” in terms of Breeders’ Cup prep races go, although there were a couple of races run that will have some impact on the BC Classic and the BC Mile.In the G2 Louisiana Super Derby, STRONG CONTENDER scored a one-length victory over one-time Triple Crown contender LAWYER RON. The win was the second G2 tally for the John Oxley-owned

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1130020127007803282006-09-18T19:00:00.000-07:002006-09-20T08:31:38.656-07:00R. I. P. Lost In The Fog ... P Val Returns With Win!

It seems like every week thoroughbred racing loses another one of its equine stars and this week is no exception. The Eclipse Award winning sprinter of 2005, the hero and the heartthrob of Northern California racing, LOST IN THE FOG was put down Sunday September 17 at Golden Gate Fields, just three weeks after veterinarians found inoperable cancerous tumors in his spleen and along his

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1158688058300021422006-09-11T19:00:00.000-07:002006-09-19T11:05:40.240-07:00BC Contender Electrocutionist Dead In Dubai!

The sudden and unexpected death of Dubai World Cup champion ELECTROCUTIONIST over the weekend took a leading star away from this year’s Breeders’ Cup and caused a shakeup in the new NTRA Breeders’ Cup World Championship polls.The Godolphin stable color-bearer, the five-year-old ELECTROCUTIONIST (RED RANSOM), died of an apparent heart attack only days after a cardiac abnormality was first detected

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1158690431699658762006-09-04T19:00:00.000-07:002006-09-19T11:59:50.363-07:00Premium Tap And Pomeroy Win In New York!

The two graded stakes races on closing weekend at Saratoga were supposed to shed some major light on both the Breeders’ Cup CLASSIC and the Breeders’ Cup SPRINT, but they left many more questions unanswered than they did answered!In the 7F Forego, Tracy Farmer’s COMMENTATOR was favored to make it two straight wins in two starts this year and remain perfect at Saratoga after winning his first two

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1158695295496314802006-08-28T19:00:00.000-07:002006-10-12T20:44:41.453-07:00Bernardini Romps In Travers ... Henny Hughes Wins!

He’s only a three-year-old, but Darley Stable’s immensely talented BERNARDINI has moved to the top of the Breeder’s Cup Classic rankings off his 7½ length victory in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga. Watching the race on ESPN’s extensive coverage of the four major stakes races at The Spa, it was pretty much “game, set, match” shortly after the start of the race, as BERNARDINI and Javier Castellano

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17558325.post-1128643392258470772006-08-28T12:00:00.000-07:002006-12-21T22:18:11.400-08:00Welcome To Thoroughbred Connection's WeBLOG!

Thank you for visiting Thoroughbred Connection's WeBLOG! We will endeavor to keep this BLOG current with news about our radio program and our viewpoints on significant developments and events in thoroughbred racing!

John Hernandezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02815764165817472709noreply@blogger.com2