Macca

I remember having a vivid dream prior to the 2013 season where in the dream we won 8 of our first 9 games playing scintillating football ... I went on to post as such in a thread covering our fortunes for the 2013 season. Of course we actually lost 8 of our first 9 games so the numbers were at least right. But aren't our dreams supposed to be the answers to tomorrow's questions? It might be a case of watch-this-space @Wiseblood & @A F

Best bet ... Rosehill Race 7 No.4 Invinzabeel $6.00 Very consistent horse and has drawn to do very little work with the inside gate. Trained by Waller with Shinn on board, it's also been tipped to win by Gator & Brad Davidson. The 1400m is the horse's ideal distance and it races well at Rosehill.

Yep ... good post PSD although I'd allow only 10 rotations per team per game. There is a great divide growing between the 'leave the game alone' people and the 'fix the sport' people but the bottom line is that those who want change are turning away from the game. The conflict that might arise between both groups should be avoided because both groups need each other. The sport is basically unique to Australia only so the AFL needs to be the clear premier sport of chouce ... but that top spot is under threat with TV viewers dropping off in decent numbers. I am at least happy that the AFL is recognising that it has an issue. How they deal with it all is an entirely different matter. I have yet to come across anyone who doesn't like or want positional footy ... so to get to that position change will have to occur.

According to this article on racing.com a horse can be penalised 3-5 points for winning and 1-2 points for finishing 2nd or 3rd. That's the short answer but there are discretionary powers at play as well. El Magnificence may go from a rating of 62 to 63 or 64 but I'm only guessing Wadda. Those extra 2 ratings points amounts to 1 extra kg in a BM64 race. The winner would probably be penalised to a point where it might have to race in higher benchmark races. If Gator Picks Voodoo Lad I'm on it ?... may or may not make it my best bet though. There's a few others in a few of the other races that I've got my eye on as well. And the Nature Strip/Sunlight match-race has quinella written all over it ... the exacta will pay more but which horse wins? They've both got speed to burn.

I got the 4.20 for the place on offer on Monday but the money did come for El late ...ran on well considering if was pushed quite wide by the horses inside it nearing the turn. Just didn't quite have the pace to go with Illumicon from the jump. It will run in easier BM64's but I'm not sure how that whole benchmark system works ... does a 3rd placing push up a horses rating by much @Dee Zephyr @Wadda We Sing ? Anyway, any time you can more than triple your outlay is a good result from a punting perspective. By my reckoning they ran a very handy time for the 1000m on a Soft6 too - around 58 seconds flat or thereabouts.

Racenet.com has a results section where the times and last 600 are available the next day ... the data goes back 12 months which is a handy aid. As for the El-Mag race, if one could figure out the right trifecta or F4 combination, there's some money to be made. There's about 5 or 6 winning chances and up to a dozen horses could run a place! $4.30 the place with a little on for the win might be the go?

Well there's only the one turn at Sandown over the 1000m and from the barriers there's a 500m straight run to that turn ... as you can see from the image below the turn isn't a sharp one either. It's got a fair amount of good early speed so it should be able to get into a good position with a bit of luck. The top 3 fancies in the race have got some reasonably decent form but none of them are Nature-Strip like or even Gold-Mag like. It's a chance. By the way, the winner broke 34 seconds for the last 600 on a Soft5 in El's last race at Sandown.

I hope they just persevere with barrier trials until it's obvious that the horse isn't interested ... it's not like Chautauqua has refused to jump on 10-15 occasions. It's a gelding so the connections have got nothing to lose. Apart from anything else it's one hell of an intriguing conundrum DZ and if they retire the horse there will always be that 'what-if' question surrounding the horse. Oddly enough I've never backed the horse (for some unknown reason) so I'm not talking through my hip-pocket. Or maybe I am in terms of the future ha ha ... if it ever races again I'm getting on!

Devastating news DZ ... I hope they give the horse another chance to jump although the chances of that happening aren't great. Such a shame but I suppose the horse is telling us it just doesn't want to race again.

Nice pick Wadda (and Gator) - thanks! Bonus bets at work again. Well, we went 2 from 3 today and I was betting with house money with the win bets on our picks. Terrific acceleration by the horse too - it's got some real speed.

Yep ... it is a better percentage play just as long as we get 1 winner! With the 4 best-bets 1 winner is line ball but 2 winners should produce a profit. And it's good knowing that we all put a fair bit of thought into our best bet too. As previously stated, at this time of the year I'm looking out for what Gator or JJ like.

Well if we always get 1 of the 3 up we should, in theory, get our money back and cover the multi bet if we back each of the 3 to win (using enhanced or booster odds) 2 winners turns a profit and 3 winners delivers a very good payout. When BM returns we'll have 4 best-bets going but the same principle applies.

Laddies gave me some more bonus bets again Wadda so I loaded up on the win as well ... ran on nicely didn't it? Could it be our day? ... those bonus odds you got could be an omen DZ!

And if you'd thrown 4 darts and come up with 13, 10, 16 & 17 you'd have won $57k. ha ha Or Oliver, Brayshaw, Kent & Frost as favourites ... the first 2 yeah and I do like what Frost offers ...

Got my first collect for the day in the 4th at Randwick ... a trifecta! Only a small collect but it's nice to get on the board DZ.

Yeah I certainly looked at Miles of Krishnan DZ but I decided to go with Gator & JJ today with a series of small win bets ... had So Splendid going in the race but no go today. You have to pick them at the right time but that's racing ... however, I'm reasonably confident of breaking even (at least) on the day.

I like to watch 'Get On' & Sky's 'Form Line' but often on fast forward due to time constraints like yourself Wadda ... but I always listen to what Gator has to say. He is a font of knowledge with regards to the horses. We're slowly but surely getting a number of the better horses back in preparation for the Spring ... things start getting interesting from next weekend onwards with the Bletchingly Stakes And next Monday at Rosehill we'll see a star-studded trial featuring Winx, Chautauqua and a whole host of other topliners - see the full field here Australian Group & Listed Races

A couple of value bets from Gator - he reckons both horses are paying overs. If he is unsure or non-committal I disregard but when he is confident, it often pays to take note. Flemington Race 1 No.8 Absolute Heaven $8.00 (enhanced) Randwick Race 9 No.8 Sanctioned $13.00 (boosted) And James Jordan's best bet ... Morphettville Race 2 No. 7 Embecee Lil $5.00 (enhanced) Good luck to all tomorrow! And go the mighty Demons tomorrow night ... any sort of win will do!

I'm trying a different strategy this week DZ with a series of small win bets and just a couple of trifectas ... following Gator & JJ as well. Gator does alright in Sydney too so I've noted his picks at Randwick on Saturday. Haven't come across a standout NSW racing tipster although Brad Davidson & Ron Dufficy are quite good. Gator & JJ are very good though so both are worth following. At this time of year I'd rather rely on the experts ... the 'I Thought So' race is a good trifecta race so I'll include your choice as a top chance as well as in a multi with our 3 best bets. We're due!

Best Bet ... Flemington Race 6 No.1 Brave Song $4.00 All the tipsters have marked the horse on top in this race and it should at least get into the finish. Although it's only raced 8 times it's first up form is excellent ... and it was running against some very good horses in the Autumn before being spelled.

We're in the Alps for the next 3 days and also in the Alps on the weekend for another couple of mountain stages ... what a shame that Richie Porte won't be there to put the pressure on Froome and the Sky team. Rotten luck breaking his collarbone again. Official Site CyclingNews.com Tour Tracker Here are the stage profiles for the next 3 days ...

Here'a a few short articles that might be worth a read ... Nature Strip Vs Sunlight in Lightning Stakes (July 28) Redkirk sights now set on Flemington Voodoo Lad, Brutal, Saturday's sectional stars And here's the Grand Prix de Paris (3YO Derby) that was run at Longchamp at the weekend ... n.b the jockey (Ryan Moore) ended up winning 2 Group 1 races on the same day in 2 different countries! (The July Cup & Grand Prix de Paris) What an amazing feat. And the winner of the race is an outside chance to be brought to Melbourne for the Cups in the Spring.

Thanks for all the correspondence from Russia, DJ ... we've thoroughly enjoyed the accounts of your travels & exploits. You made the tournament feel much more alive for us onlookers. The whole event was great viewing throughout and the best team won. France had the toughest path having to beat Argentina, Uruguay, Belgium and finally Croatia to win the prize ... a well deserved winner. Australia took it right up to France as well. And we have a winner in the tipping comp (Demonland's version of the Ballon d'Or!) Well done DZ ... you got the margin correct in the final as well! Final Tally in the Tipping Competition 22 - Dee Zephyr 19 - John Demonic 15 - Macca To the victor go the spoils ...

Well we're likely to see at least 2 American horses in the 'Everest' field following the commanding win by 'US Navy Flag' in the July Cup - joining 'Bound for Nowhere' with probable slots for the race. The race is shaping up as an absolute beauty ... Aiden O'Brien could walk away with the chocolates too. What a master trainer he is - and he's got a real soft-spot for Australia and the racing scene here too. You'd reckon he'll be lining up a few of his horses for the big 3 feature races in the Melbourne Spring too. Read more here ... US Navy Flag Everest bound following July Cup win

Redkirk started well and it looked like it was leading the field up until the last 2 furlongs. Didn't have the usual finish up the hill to the line though. It was checked after 400m but I don't believe that can be used as an excuse. Anyway, nothing ventured nothing gained ... the Merchant Navy win more than makes up for the disappointment of the Redkirk Warrior campaign. Flemington awaits the return of the horse.