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A Dinwiddie good day
to you, folks! And, especially,
a Dinwiddie good day Sunday. Ryan Dinwiddie, of course, is
the reserve quarterback called up to lead the Blue Bombers to a Grey
Cup victory Sunday, replacing broken-armed Kevin Glenn.
 Big
fun is planned at the track for Grey Cup day including Pigskin 'n' Ponies, described
below, but let's kick off right now with a little contest I've dubbed: Let's win with Din. How many smaller words can you find in the
name "Dinwiddie" by re-arranging the letters? Make a list of the words and bring it
to the Race Book at the track on Grey Cup Sunday. The person finding the most words
will receive $50 in betting vouchers.
The award will be made at 3 p.m.
Sunday afternoon,
two hours before kick-off of the big game on giant screens. I'll get you started with your first
word: wind.
But
this weekend is stellar in many other ways starting with the quality of
racing since this is the Thanksgiving weekend in the U.S. (Happy
Thanksgiving to our southern friends!)
Here's the schedule. Pick
your fun:
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Friday: Watch the other big football game of the
weekend from Toronto Friday
night--the U of M Bisons in the
Vanier Cup--while you play "almost live" racing from Remington Park and win a
seat to play poker. Also, 9
p.m. marks the deadline to enter Saturday's horseplayer
tourney. Entry fee $25.
•
Saturday at 11 a.m. You're welcome to attend the pre-tourney
horseplayer seminar in the Finish Line. $100 BONUS: If you're entering the noon tournament,
bring your three best bets to the seminar and enter them in
a free bonus contest. If
your best bets prove to be better than those of other
entrants, you'll receive $50 in betting vouchers. If those
bets also outperform my
three best bets or those of my seminar partner, Everett Shade, you'll get an
additional $50 (and copious bragging rights). The award will be made after the
tournament.
•
Saturday at noon. Players' Choice Horseplayer Tourney for
$500 top prize begins in the Clubhouse. The highest closing bankroll
wins. Watch for the awards
presentation at approximately 5:15
p.m.
in the Race Book.
DID YOU KNOW
THAT? The second place
finisher in the 2007 Manitoba Lotteries Derby, Rage Til Dawn,
was recently claimed in Woodbine for $12,500? And, guess what folks,
he's coming back here next year as a potential top older horse because
he was claimed by Shyman Farms and
trainer Marty Drexler! And, speaking of the Derby, the winner, Weather
Warning, has been retired to stud duty. He will stand
at Windfield Farms for a fee of $ 5,000.
Did you also hear that a
horse that raced here this summer for Lorna Gray, Daisy Mountain, was found to be related to a recent stakes winner
at a major track? The shrewd Winnipeg owners put her in the recent Keeneland sale as
a broodmare prospect and sold her for $77,000. For local
ownership, that is a huge score!
TRIVIA TEASER: Where did the term "horsepower"
originate? (a) by measuring how far a horse can lift
a heavy object in one minute (b) by measuring the speed at which a
horse could plow an acre of land
(c) by seeing how many
horses it takes to pull a deadweight ton of rocks one mile (d)
it has never meant a real horse at all (See answer at end of column.)
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OTB gem: Looney's sports bar at the Quest
Inn at Carleton & Ellice.
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Movers and
shakers (from
left): Nicole Croteau,
bartender, Ken Blair,
president, Blaine Johnson, "everything" manager, Rick Mackiw, operations manager.
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WANT OFF-TRACK COMFORT? The Quest rocks
The
best-kept secret in comfortable off-track betting facilities is the
Quest Inn at Ellice and Carleton in downtown Winnipeg. As you may know by reading this
column, I'm heavily into ambiance and the Quest--specifically Looney's
sports bar--has it in spades.
Dark natural wood pillars and paneling, real brick, track
lighting, liquid-screen TVs, over-sized and soon-to-be wall-sized
projector-screen racing, jumbo breaded slightly-spicy chicken wings
.... the ambitious managers are providing the
whole package. In fact, seldom
have I seen a management team that has so enthusiastically embraced the
objective to provide the best off-track facilities possible. Obviously, I highly recommend the
place. It feels like a total
escape from the world and you don't want to leave.
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Jumbo
breaded wings
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COME
OUT FOR FUN-FEST AT LOONEY'S! As an
introduction to Looney's sports bar and OTB facility, you're invited to
a horseplaying fun-fest there next Wednesday
at 7
p.m.
AND BRING A NEWBIE! Allan and
Chelsea from the Downs promo
deptartment will be handing out free bets, contest bucks and
horseplaying advice. I'll be
there with a projector and screen to point out prime plays on the evening
race cards. And Quest's go-to
man, Blaine, will be dishing out free jumbo (and very delicious) chicken
wings. It promises to be a great night of horseplaying fun in one of
the most comfortable venues around!
Looney's sports bar. Quest Inn. Ellice
and Carleton. Next Wednesday. 7
p.m. Plan to come? Email agray@assiniboiadowns.com
LAST WEEKEND'S CONTEST WINNERS: Poker: Gerry
Cavers scooped $100 in betting vouchers Friday after defeating nine
others in Texas hold 'em. NOTE:
This Friday is your second-last chance to play poker. The final poker match of 2007 will be
Friday, Nov. 30. Show
parlay challenge: $50 in betting vouchers (which included
$25 carryover from last week) was awarded to Barrie Outar who increased his
imaginary $10 to $67 in three races at Remington Park on Friday.
HORSEPLAY TIP OF THE WEEK:
Beware of quitters
I'm
the first to advocate betting on a horse that has a giant pace number
way ahead of other horses in the field--but I'm the last to bet on that
kind of horse WHEN THE HORSE IS A FRONT-RUNNER WHO IS A PROVEN
QUITTER. Beware of this kind of
horse. You'll note this kind of
horse is always a few lengths ahead of other horses for the first part
of the race, then seems to stop on his
own. To be a prime bet, the
horse should have been DUELING for the lead last time, not on top all
by himself.
BON APPETIT, CHER AMI: Oui, tonight's
all-you-can-eat cuisine in the Terrace Dining Room is French and I
don't mean fries. Stupid joke, I
know, but still with a morsel of humour, n'est-ce pas?
Feast on Coq au Vin, Beef Bourguignon,
Sole Meuniere, Potato Lyonnaise,
French salads, creme brule
and much more. Great ambiance. Tip: Even the house wines are delish! From 5 to 8
p.m.
$14.95. Next
Thursday: Chinese
followed by--ta-dah--Mongolian, a
taste-teaser I'm looking forward to.
UPCOMING EVENTS: Play Pigskin 'n' Ponies Sunday
Cheer
on the Bombers in the Race Book in a party atmosphere with happy hour
bar prices all day, appetizer specials, free betting vouchers and cash
giveaways through the evening!
Double your chances of winning by getting into two separate
games:
(1) Pigskin game: The first 100 at the track (starting 11
a.m.)
can ask for a free score that could net them $50 each quarter and $100
at the end of the game. In
addition, the score is eligible for a $2 voucher each score change.
(2) Ponies game: Earn squares, each with a different
score, by predicting the outcome of races at Woodbine, races 3 to
8. You earn points when your
predicted winner finishes first, second or third. Pick up a free entry form in the Race
Book Sunday. Prizes: same cash awards as above. Betting voucher for each score change
will be $5.
THREE NEW MEETS OPEN: Fair Grounds today at 12:30 p.m., Sam Houston tomorrow at 7 p.m. (watch for injured Downs rider Carlos
Marquez to attempt a return to riding), Turfway Park Sunday at 12:10 p.m.
BEST RACES THIS
WEEKEND: Read Allan
Gray's Races
to Watch. Will be posted by tomorrow morning.
A SAD LOOK BACK: It was exactly 44 years ago today a titan of a man, President John F. Kennedy, was
shot in Dallas. One of his many famous quotations
that has stuck with me: We
should use time as a tool, not as a couch.
NEXT INSIDER: Your predictions of when Florida will finally
join the common-pool club.
Answer to Trivia
Teaser: Answer is
(a). About 200 years ago, a Scottish scientist at a coal mine from
which water was being pumped by horses concluded a strong horse could
lift 150 pounds a distance of 220 feet in one minute. When a steam engine replaced the
horse and duplicated the task in the same time, it was referred to as
one horsepower. When the engine
pumped larger quantities of water or did the job more quickly, it was
said to have increased "horsepower."
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Let's sweep the 'Cups!
Go Bisons! Go Bombers! |
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