Friday, September 4, 2009

Saratoga Race Track, August 12, 2009, Saratoga Springs, New York

Every summer I spend a day/night up in Saratoga Springs, New York and it is always such a great day I can't wait to get back. The highlight of the year in that area of New York is what they call "track season" as it seems the entire populations of Albany and Troy descend on Saratoga for six weeks of horse racing. Obviously there are tracks all over the country and I'm not a serious horse player so I've only been to a precious view but it seems to me that for an regular day at the races, nothing beats Saratoga.

One of the first things you notice is how well most people dress. I don't know why people dress up for the track. At one point it was known as the sport of kings but those days are long past. Alongside all the well dressed people are the people you expect to find at any gambling establishment: lots of tank tops, tattoos and general unattractiveness. Still, a high percentage of people still dress up to spend a day at the races and everyone really looks great. An attractive woman in a sundress and hat is just a classic good look. It really raises the question of why women don't get dressed up more often. On a nice day a sundress highlighting the assets takes a five to a seven and an eight to a nine and a half. A hat brings even more improvement to the ratings. Nevertheless it seems a rarity that women take the opportunity to dress up (and a $400 pair of jeans doesn't make any one dressed regardless of the expense!) And if it is track season that inspires the improvement in attire then I'm all for it. As for objections to this sexist sentiment it should go on the record that I wore a tie. It certainly didn't mean I looked attractive but I certainly was making the effort.

Another aspect of the track that fascinates me is how well everyone mingles together yet there remains a significant split. The split that I'm referring to is the contrast between the people buying $5 clubhouse tickets opposed to people purchasing the $3 general admission tickets. As you can guess the GA crowd is a little rougher around the edges and they can't see the race in person from the area they congregate in. Instead they can see the horses in the paddock getting ready for their respective races and then they watch the races on TV monitors set up out by the stables. I don't think it's the $2 extra keeping people out of the clubhouse. The country may be in a recession but these folks are up here to gamble so I suspect the $2 premium isn't dissuading them from getting up to the rail to watch the race in person.

Unfortunately my description of the general admission area makes it sound like the 51st parallel separating the two Koreas when it is the exact opposite. People with clubhouse passes continually walk out to the GA area and both groups gather around the paddock and mix easily. Ideas are shared between men in seersucker suits and guys in muscle tees and each opinion is taken seriously.

One of the best example of how well the crowd mixes is watching the jockeys march right through the crowd. For the jockeys the path from the paddock to the track isn't roped off or protected in any way from the crowd. Instead there are two painted white lines where the jockeys walk after the race and it goes straight through the heart of the crowd. Yet despite this proximity, people leave the jocks alone. No one who lost a bet goes up and screams at the jock who may have blown the race. No other sport works like this. Can you imagine Derek Jeter walking through the crowd at Yankee Stadium. He is a beloved icon in the Bronx yet the crowd would tear him apart.

After a day at track there is only one place to go, Siro's. Siro's has become one of my favorite bars. So many of the positive aspects of the track spill right into the bar: the mix of people, the women all decked out, and horse owners and horse gamblers all recapping the day's events. What a great crowd! Cougars and cowboys all congregate at Siro's (possible slogan??). My only complaint is the number of bartenders. Four bartenders just doesn't cut it to handle a crowd that big and waiting ten minutes for a drink is a major buzz kill.

Up to this point I've been giving my overall perspective from all my annual trips. As for this year's sojourn there were definitely some highlights. First we started out the day with a round of golf at Saratoga National. Just a terrific course! I lost 11 balls and still had a great time. I know I am supposed to be more sophisticated but I thought it was cool to see lockers for Bill Parcells and Jim Burt in the locker room. It's not like they were actually there but it is a brush with fame nevertheless.

During our day at the track I got my biggest laugh from the featured race of this particular day, the $150,000 Cab Calloway. What makes Saratoga such a popular place for serious horse players (I do not remotely qualify if you were wondering) is that every day during track season Saratoga has a "stakes race". A "stakes race" has a serious purse (over $75,000) and this appeals to jockeys, trainers and owners who bring up their best horses to ring the cash register.

A $150,000 race is a handsome purse and I suppose the track wanted to make a big deal about the race. Hell, even Cab's granddaughter was there to hand out the oversized novelty check at the end of the race. However, prior to the start I think the track tried too hard or not hard enough. I still can't decide. Some background, before they run the Kentucky Derby the entire Churchill crowd stands and sings My Old Kentucky Home. I'm a guy from New Jersey and that scene still brings a tear to my eye. For the Cab Calloway the track announcer got on the PA and sang the first verse of Minnie the Moocher, complete with the "Hi-De-Hi-De-Hi-De-Hi." Think about that for a second. A guy who's primary job is to speak as quickly as possible, a la John Moschitta from the FedEx commercials of the 80s, is tasked with singing an American classic? No one else was available? Frank Stallone, Corey Hart or any member of the Blowfish outside of Hootie would have jumped on the chance for the price of a grandstand pass.

To compound the lack of effort the track's trumpet player was the musical accompaniment. This is a guy who wears a bright red jacket, white pants and a black riding hat. Everyday during track season this guy comes to the track and plays the same 10 notes before every single race. You'd recognize the tune. It's the ba-ba-bumba-bumba-bumba-bumba-baaaa tune that calls the horses to the starting gate. Do you think this guy looks forward to the Cab Calloway all year as a chance to show his musical chops? I'll bet he woke up today thinking, "Today's the day I knock `em dead." Interestingly enough the trumpet man always goes to Siro's and all the regulars seem to know him.

Toga. Siro's. Save me a seat and order me a drink cause I'll be back next year.