FAIRMOUNT PARK THOROUGHBRED RACING

The graceful beauty, intelligence and strength of horses has always fascinated me.

When I was offered the opportunity to go to see Fairmount Park Thoroughbred Racing
in Collinsville, Illinois I went.

Gambling does not intrigue me but the whole experience of walking next to the track, with the horses up close as they thunder by, muddy track or no, was and is exciting to me.

As we walked to the paddocks, every so often the sun pushed away the clouds.  We passed men, women and children milling about in the brief moment of sunshine.

In the stands, or sitting in chairs brought from home, the crowds wore vivid, colorful clothing and hats of all kinds. Some spoke quietly to each other while others were laughing or arguing enthusiastically.

Just before the races began, I looked over the program which listed tables of statistics on the
horses, owners, jockeys, trainers, betting favorites and odds all of which looked like a mathematical
maze to me. So I devised my own system to determine which horse I wanted to bet on.

I selected three races and picked  my horses, Chanceymeeting U Here, Hopeful Sweeper, and
Betty's Ginger.  Two came in fourth and the last one was scratched because it got away from
the handlers at the starting gate and began running away in the wrong direction to the finish.

I enjoyed the day but the comedy relief to the serious business of betting reminded me of the crazy race to pick a nominee to run for president which is also headed in the wrong direction.

SEE YOU AT THE POLLS!