Hawthorne Racecourse (3/24/12)
Contact: Jim Miller
(708) 780-3700
Overcast but dry at Hawthorne
We kick off the day with overcast skies, but thus far the rain has stayed away. We have a drying out track and our crew is currently working on floating the remaining water out of the track in preparation for today’s races. If we were to start racing right now, we would be listed as Good but over the course of the next 3 ˝ hours we may be able to get to Fast by the opener.
Yesterday was a day where we just couldn’t duck the raindrops until late in the card. A system from the South kept pushing rain our way and made for a sloppy track. The slop led to some upset victories, but some smart rides produced some fine winners. Jockey Julio Felix, recognizing the outside was a bit better, made outside moves in both the second race, aboard Misty Eyed, and the third race, on Kentucky Gal, to narrowly get the best of odds-on favorites in each of those races. Jockey Angel Stanley found the same path in the 4th with longshot winner Naughty and Nice, Harry Vega rode the outside to victory in the 6th aboard Mark Thescore Even, and Constantino Roman won via DQ with his outside move on Hip Hopper for a longshot score in the 8th. Current leading rider Francisco Torres grabbed victories in the first and the last, both times keeping horses who made early moves further out. With a drying track today, expect the inside to improve, but just how much won’t be known until we get into the card.
We have another pool party today at Hawthorne as Mark Grote of WSCR Radio will be joining us to select horses, place wagers and provide some fun for our fans. Mark is very knowledgeable on all Chicago sports and today we will add racing to his knowledge base. The pool party is only $20 and with that $20, fans receive food and drink for 2 hours. Mark will place $500 worth of wagers and any money he makes back will be returned to those who join the party. For details, or to sign up, visit Guest Services on the first floor of the grandstand.
We have three carryovers today on the nine race card which is very competitive. Also, only minimal early changes:
Today’s Early Changes
Main Track – Good, hopefully Fast by the opener
Race 3
Scratch #1 – Julie Bugs
Race 4
Scratch #1a – Tsunami King
Race 9
Scratch #2 – Swedish Beauty
