Remembering Playing the "Mudders"

A recent morning at Clockers' Corner, Santa Anita, I chatted with an old friend, Jackie Barnes, about our respective recent handicapping successes... or lack thereof on my part. Jackie recounted her latest adventure in wagering on the Belmont Park simulcast during heavy rain in New York. I suggested she put the story in writing so I could share it with my blog readers. Always game, Jackie lost no time in dashing off an email to me, as follows:

This horseplayer was thrilled to see the torrential rain during the races at Belmont Park on Saturday. It brought back many happy memories of being at Santa Anita during those cold wet days, when water stood on the track and I watched the horses splashing their way to the wire. I am sure many old horseplayers will remember when you got your Racing Form early so you could start checking the fields for mud marks.

For those who don’t remember mud marks, an asterisk (*) was for a good, an (X) was for excellent, and an X in a circle denoted a superior mudder. Those rainy days made for a lot of fun, close finishes and good payoffs. Ah... those were the good old days. But I did hit a nice pick three at Belmont. -- J.B.