Rhodes College horse racing lessons and handicapping.

Lesson 1 - Lessons from horse race gambling.

Lesson 2 - Handicapping

The Best of the Funny Economist: Marshall Gramm and Randy Parker have a new friend.

Fun at the Breeder's Cup.

Here we are at last weekend's Breeder's Cup. I am representing my school as you can see. ECU has been good to me and my family so I'm going to show some school spirit. Also there is a picture of me and my degenerate horse race gambling buddy Marshall Gramm. Also that's me with my brother Rick and ECU Wall of Fame member Francis Vaughn. A good time was had by all.

The First Saturday in May.

Ok boys and girls, here are the old professor's rules of horse race gambling that have been purchased in blood and treasure over the years. Do yourself a favor and apply them to life. You'll get farther faster. Remember you heard it here first.

I am hard core handicapping. Good luck to all on Derby Day!

Professor Trackman's Rules of Horserace Gambling:


1. Do your handicapping for yourself.
2. If you can’t take the losses don’t bet.
3. Greed Kills.
4. Winners correct their mistakes next time out. Losers bet bigger trying to cover…which will never cover in the end.
5. Never get too high or too low.
6. Scared money don’t win.
7. Women and booze don’t mix with horses.
8. Don’t bet a beaten favorite coming back trying to do something he has never done before, anything.
9. Exotic bets should supplement straight bets and never supplant them.
10. Eat your betting money but don't bet your eating money.
11. Every time that gate opens, expect to be humbled.

The Best of the Funny Economist: Pick 4 heart break.

My degenerate horse race gambling buddies and I hit the late Pick 4 last weekend at Churchill Downs. We had the "All" in the last race so we won for sure...just a question of which horse would win and for how much. It was for as little as $750 on a $2 Pick 4 ticket or as much as $13,500 in the unlikely event that a 35-1 bomb managed to clunk up and hit the wire first. But that had about as much chance of happening as the world seeing the natural conception of Richard Simmons Jr. Guess who comes from second to last way at the back of the field, running six wide at the top of the stretch way on the outside and continues the charge at the end and makes me have a coronary...that's right, the $13,500, 35-1 bomb horse. His name is Even Aly and he is the #14.





The Pick 4 still paid $1070...but I cried for 90 minutes.

Down...but not out.

This is me with my #1 degenerate horse race gambling buddy Marshall Gramm. I went with Creative Cause last Saturday and paid the price. Well that is why they run horse races. I had Dullahan a number of times too but only to win and place. So I missed there too. But I did hit the late pick four on Friday and that was very nice. On to Baltimore! P.S. Since I did have Dullahan to hit the board my gig at Pirate Radio 1250 goes on.

The key to winning at the track.

http://www.funnyeconomist.com/CRIST%20ON%20VALUE.doc

Breeders' Cup 2011 @ Churchill Downs.

The shiny, happy winners from the left, bottom row: my nephew Rick and his wife Meagan, Victoria Vaughn with husband Francis Vaughn ECU Wall of Fame member and Class of 1991, my sister-in-law Ginger and my brother Richard. Back Row: my wife Monica and me.

Kings and Queens for a day! Let's do the Riddler Dance one more time.....

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!!!

HOOOOORAY!!!!!! Hit the early pick 4, the $3 pick 3 and a $6 daily double into race 7 yesterday. Walked away a total winner! For all you horse players out there, I had to have my picture taken by the Feds before they would cash the ticket. You know what that means. BTW, I probably processed at least 30,000 and maybe as much as 50,000 independent points of data on the racing form for the Friday and Saturday racing cards. It's a tough business, but God help me I love it so. I even did the Riddler Dance after the seventh race. See the video below. I learned it from Marshall Gramm.





OK all you degenerate horse players out there, time once again for Professor Trackman's rules of horse race gambling. I have purchased these with blood and treasure. I give them to you free: 1. Do your handicapping for yourself. 2. If you can’t take the losses don’t bet. 3. Greed Kills. 4. Winners correct their mistakes next time out. Losers bet bigger trying to cover…which will never cover in the end. 5. Never get too high or too low. 6. Scared money don’t win. 7. Women and booze don’t mix with horses. 8. Don’t bet a beaten favorite coming back trying to do something he has never done before, anything. 9. Exotic bets should supplement straight bets and never supplant them. 10. Eat your betting money...but don't bet your eating money. 11. Every time that gate opens, expect to be humbled. Whatever you do this weekend, Good Luck!

Secretariat and the Belmont...enough said.

Jockey eye's view.

A Day at the Races at Santa Anita Park

I recently went to Los Angeles as an invited participant/speaker at a conference on the Great Depression. The conference was over Sunday March 13 and rather than fly right home, I decided to stay an extra day and go to Santa Anita Park. It was beautiful and for once I walked out of the track a winner! I went with the Class of 1997 ECU Econ Alumni Hall of Fame member Phil McPherson who resides in Newport Beach, CA. From the top left:

1. I saw my brother again who asked me for $50 bucks.
2. Me at the gates of Santa Anita Park.
3. Class of 1997 ECU Econ Hall of Fame Member Phil McPherson studying the form.
4. Horse racing Icon "Jimmie the Hat" walked right by me. I yelled at him and took his picture.
5. A short video on the beauty of Santa Anita.

Fun and stuff at the Fairgrounds last November.

Every year I go down to New Orleans to go duck hunting and enjoy the city for a few days. Of course I can not seem to ever resist the urge to go to the track. Seeing how North Carolina has no horse racing at all, it is a treat when I can get out of town and go. I left NC at 6 am to get to New Orleans at 9 am to start the fun. The top picture is the simulcast room at the Fairgrounds, which is the track in New Orleans, at 12 noon. Note the TVs with racing on from all over the country. And note also the drunks and the degenerate gamblers. The second picture is of a dude who would come to me and every one else who would listen to him after each race and tell us "Hey, I hit the superfecta that race! You have the super?" One of his buddies came over to me and said "don't pay him no mind, he does this all the time." I said "No problem. But does your buddy know Marshall Gramm?" Lastly, there is a picture of my brother all tanked up at 12 noon. I had not seen him in years. I did not have the heart to wake him.

"Dialed In" deserves a close look as a Derby Contender. Runs a great race here.

This is what it takes to make any money in horse racing or gambling in general. And even then it's a 5% edge.

http://www.leggmason.com/thoughtleaderforum/2007/conference/crist.html

Hey! Will you get the hell outta the way?

Happy Retirement Rachel A.

Say what you want about Zenyatta. She is a great filly. But nothing will change the three-year-old campaign of Rachel Alexandra. After Secretariat, she is the best horse I have ever seen. Had her in the Preakness too at 9-5.

Horse racing is on the way down...and perhaps for the count. 20 years from now there will be the triple crown and the Breeders'Cup and 10 tracks.

http://www.economist.com/node/16507659

Fun with Tom Durkin.

What happened to the fun?