Tales From The Turf
.....by Richard Koss
The sixth was a $10,000 maiden claiming 6 furlong sprint. The field was
pretty weak and they were betting the morning line co-favorites, two
4-year-olds who both had over 15 starts apiece and were dropping down from
maiden special weights company. I was unimpressed with all of the other
entrants except the one horse, Swaggering. The 4-year-old had been out 11
times and had taken the lead out of the gate in each of those 11 starts.
Unfortunately, he stopped badly in most of those races and his best finish
was fourth two races back. His past performances showed no races on off
tracks and by now the track was one sloppy mess. There was absolutely
no other early speed in the race and from the number one post position, he
was sure to get the early lead. As I examined Swaggering's previous 1st
quarter fractions, I anticipated him having at least a five length lead over
the rest of the field at the 1st quarter.
Glancing at the odds board, I saw that Swaggering was 50-1, the second
longest shot on the board. Since there was no trifecta or perfecta wagering
on this race, my decision on how to bet the race was easy. By now the rain
was coming down so hard and with the cracking and flashing of thunder and
lightning, the post parade was reduced to a quick march towards the starting
gate. It was virtually impossible to distinguish the horses' colors, let
alone their numbers. If there was ever a day to steal a race, it was today.
I just hoped Swaggering liked the mud.
I got in line with 4 minutes to post. The line seemed to be moving slowly
and I got a little antsy when I heard 2 minutes to post and there were still
three people in front of me. The horses were moving in the gate when I
bought my twenty dollar win ticket on number one. I figured he was going to
win or run out altogether so I never thought of backing him up.
As I was leaving the window I heard the elderly man behind me ask for "
Thirty to win on the one" but after looking at his ticket and the program in
his hand he realized his mistake and blurted out in a panic, "No, I wanted
the four!"
Before he could get the clerk's attention the bell rang and they were off.
Now the man began screaming and cursing at the mutuel clerk, demanding his
money back and accusing her of deliberately stalling instead of cancelling
his wager. He continued to carry on so that the veins in his neck looked
like they were ready to pop while the poor girl stood there obviously
shaken.
Although I was somewhat stunned myself by this man's tirade, I was able to
glance at a nearby video monitor to see that the inside horse had a sizable
lead as they approached the 1st quarter. The angry man, showing no signs of
calming down, was totally oblivious to the ghostlike equine barely visible,
running for his life in a pool of mud and goo as the black sky poured forth
its relentless rains, with thunder and lightning completing the eerie scenario.
With a touch of larceny that’s inherent in all gamblers, I interrupted
the man’s tantrum and shouted, "Hey! Give the poor girl a break, it's not
her fault." I already had a twenty and a ten in my hand and shoving them
almost in his face, I said, "Here! I'll buy your god-damn ticket." The man
ceased his ranting immediately and with absolutely no hesitation,
simultaneously handed me his $30 win ticket while snatching the two bills
from my hand. I took a quick glance at the ticket to be sure it said $30 to
win on number one, then walked away heading for the nearest monitor.
By now Swaggering was well along the backstretch approaching the top of the
homestretch. His lead was at least 8 lengths. As I stood among those
gathered in front of the video monitor, I began to get some strange thoughts
like what if that horse leading isn't Swaggering? After all, it was
impossible to identify any numbers or colors and with the thunder and crowd
noise, I couldn't really hear the track announcer very clearly.
As the lead horse turned for home about 9 lengths ahead I knew I had a
winner when I heard the familiar voice of the once angry, now apparently
happy, elderly man barking out, "He's out of gas already. He'll quit like
he always does, the quitting pig."
Swaggering won by 11 lengths and paid $88.40 to win. I walked out of the
track a little over two thousand ahead after giving a twenty dollar tip to
the girl who sold my "friend" the $30 win ticket. I never saw that man
again nor did I ever see Swaggering run again. Weeks later I asked the girl
if she ever saw the man after that and she said no but she thought she heard
him a couple of times.
ed note: Dick Koss says this is a true story. It happened at Thistledown, near Cleveland.
The rain continued to fall as the skies grew darker by the minute. It was
the first Saturday I had off in months after a rough tax season, that April
of 1984. After five races I hadn't yet cashed a ticket and I thought about
leaving since I didn't see anything that really interested me in the
remaining five races. Nevertheless, I decided to take one last look at the
upcoming sixth race. The rain, which had now become a downpour, was joined
by thunder and lightning as the skies turned almost pitch black.
I should be so lucky!