Coast-to-coast

At Fair Grounds our third choice won at a juicy 10-1, but we couldn't manage to fill the underneath spot to collect a gimmick. In SoCal, the state-bred stake was a strike-out, but we did OK with the grass marathon. Unfortunately late scratches reduced the field to five which made our wagering pattern virtually value-less.

On the plus side, one winner in seven races (Santa Anita, 3.00), and the feature at Aqueduct provided us with the majority of our treasure on the day. We also picked up some gimmick $$$ at Oaklawn.

WAGERED: $356.00
COLLECTED: $255.75

Ladyecho 9-2
Lizzy Cool 6-1
Reign Of Tara 3-1

Wager: $5 WP on Reign Of Tara.
Ran 3rd.
...$3 exacta box top two.
Ran 3-6.
...$1 exacta box top four.
Collected $43.50 on the ex box ($87.00/$2).
...$1 tri box top four.
Collected $136.25 on the tri box ($272.50/$2).

Reign Of Tara...A slight and tepid vote based on experience. It's not much of an edge in this field but she has a couple of good tries over the track including a near-miss in a stake last time. Services of the meet's top jock might be a bonus too.
Harford Ghost...Blasted a big win for Dutrow here on 1/18 and should garner plenty of support off of that effort. Could easily be this good.
Lizzy Cool...Edged top pick in stake last time, wiring field for second time in a row. Knock here is that trainer has cooled down somewhat after blazing start this winter.
Ladyecho.

Lion Tamer 6-5
Strength Within 10-1
Crafty Guy 8-1

Wager: $5 WP on Cajun Beat.
Ran 6th at 7-1.
...$2 exacta box top two.
Ran 1-7.
...$1 exacta box top four.
Ran 1-3-4-6.
...$1 tri box top four.
Ran 1-3-4-6.

Cajun Beat...Maybe the negatives are positives: Will have to go from the one-hole, but has shown speed and should be able to find forward position early which is a plus on this surface. Lack of experience might help the value -- and these early 3YO preps are the place to shop for value.
Lion Tamer...Purchased by Tabor after big alw win here last time. Improving with each start and might be something special.
Scrimshaw...Cuts back to a sprint after going two-turns last time in SoCal. Lukas on the schneid so far at this meet.
Crafty Guy.

Trust N Luck 9-2
Supah Blitz 33-1
Midway Cat 6-1

Wager: $5 WP on Ten Cents A Shine.
Ran 6th at 5-2.
...$3 exacta box top two.
Ran 3-6.
...$1 exacta box top four, sub next if scratch.
Ran 1-3-6-8.
...$1 tri box top four, sub next if scratch.
Ran 1-3-6-8.

Ten Cents A Shine...Normally you might feel his closing style would not be suited to the 8.5F at Gulfstream -- except he's coming off of a nice alw win at the trip here a couple of weeks ago. Gotta feeling this is a legit Derby contender from McPeek.
Midway Cat...Here's the value in the race. Improved significantly in 3YO debut (with addition of blinkers and lasix). If able to build on that success even slightly he'll "juicy-up" the gimmicks.
Ozzie Cat...Has put in a couple of nice tries at the trip in '03 and though he'll need to bump up the Beyers a little, he might be ready to do it.
Trust N Luck.
Offlee Wild.

Belle Of Perintown 10-1
Afternoon Dreams/entry 5-2
Rebridled Dreams/entry 5-2

Wager: $5 WP on Souris.
Ran 4th at 5-2.
...$2 exacta box top two.
Ran 4-5.
...$1 exacta box top four, sub next if scratch.
Ran 1-4-5-6.
...$1 tri box top four, sub next if scratch.
Ran 1-4-5-6.

Souris...Not particularly excited about the rail post but has shown enough speed to be able to find position early. Asmussen having a solid meet and this one never runs poorly.
Allspice...Record would really jump off the page if not for the two runner-up finishes to the very good Lady Tak at this meet. Still quite impressive and that opponent is in the barn today. The one to beat.
Belle Of Perintown...Looked to be becoming a nice stakes performer in Kentucky last fall. Let's forgive flop in last and hope it adds some value to the tri.
Golden Marlin.
Arrival Time.

Red n'Gold 9-2
Reason To Talk 9-2
McKinney 13-1

Wager: $5 WP on Reason To Talk.
Collected $12.00 on the WP (xxx, 4.80).
...$2 exacta box top two.
Ran 2-7.
...$1 exacta box top four.
Collected $24.20 on the ex box ($48.40/$2).
...$1 tri box top four.
Ran 1-2-6-7.

Reason To Talk...Is on a two-race win streak including a similar stake in Texas last time.
See How See Runs...Stellar 8-5-3-0 record. Would probably rate higher but off since 9/2. Will be tough if ready.
Eagle Lake...Undefeated in five starts since moving into new barn last summer. First race since 12/7 but a nice work last week -- will take them as far as she goes.
Red n'Gold.

The Tin Man 1-2
Special Matter 9-1
Harrisand 3-1

Wager: $5 WP on The Tin Man.
Collected $13.50 on the WP (3.00, 2.40).
...$3 exacta box top two.
Ran 1-3.
...$1 exacta box top four.
Collected $7.20 on the ex box ($14.40/$2).
...$1 tri box top four.
Collected $19.10 on the tri box ($38.20/$2).

The Tin Man...The distance is a question mark but these marathons are often won by lone speed and this guy has those credentials.
Harrisand...Frankel runner might be primed for big effort in third start back from layoff.
Continental Red...A just miss second in this race last year -- although the form coming in was better. Hmmm. We'll give him a shot with his good record at the trip.
Special Matter.

Long Term Wish 14-1
My Kai 9-1
Market Garden 28-1

Wager: $5 WP on Denali Cat.
Ran 5th at 9-2.
...$2 exacta box top two.
Ran 4-5.
...$1 exacta box top four.
Ran 1-4-5-7.
...$1 tri box top four.
Ran 1-4-5-7.

Denali Cat...Won a similar stake in No Cal last time. Seems to like this trip.
Humorous Lady...One of those hard-to-gauge types. Seemed like something special last summer -- culminating with G2 win at Belmont. Not much since, including a trouncing in state-bred stake two back. Last showed enough promise that she might be regaining her good form. We'll see.
Valentine Dancer...Thrown to the wolves last time in third career start -- but should benefit from the experience and show a better effort today.
Long Term Wish.

Note: Pages on this site are labelled with the equidaily.com logo. Some links are for information only and lead to pages at other sites. equidaily.com is responsible only for the pages on this site. equidaily.com assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Always check with official sources to verify info.