Thoughts and Mid-West

[trotman]

First off let me say I have saved myself tremendous agony and my wallet by staying out of any race with a Mid-West entry. It does not matter who trains. In the south it's Brad Cox, in Chicago it's Roger Brueggemann and in Florida and up the East coast it is the main man Jamie Ness. Complete rightoffs by other competent trainers suddenly are transformed into can't be beat chalk winners. Yes you expect all the high priced trainers and huge outfits to have the steroid filled horses and the finest of vet care legal or not, but in low end races these horses no matter what have no bottom to them, they look so huge that on looks alone a $5,000.00 Ness claimer could beat I'll Have Another. Ok maybe that's a stretch, but what I'm saying is, in this game there are enough tough beats and negativity, why subject yourself to questioning yourself and the way you handicap. As spring was getting near I had the chance to talk to some local trainers who for years wintered in Tampa and they all said next year they will stay home. This is the state of the game, the smaller juristictions either don't care or do not have the money to police the game. We and our money are the fuel for the engine of this game of Horse Racing, without us there is nothing. To go after the trainers and rid the game of the crooks is not the answer, go after owners like Mid-West who if it wasn't for them these trainers probably would get out because they never could train in the first place, but they were just as greedy as the owner was.