I have been talking about going to the track since it opened in July. Unfortunately, the season is almost over and I was afraid we were going to miss it! I really don’t understand why they race for months and months in NY – even when the weather gets really cold – and they only race for 6 weeks over the summer here in San Diego, when they could be racing 12 months a year! Can someone please explain it to me?
We got a late start this morning. I was up, working on the computer while Eric slept, and then I went back to bed and actually fell back to sleep! We had talked last night about going to the race track today, and Eric thought it was a great idea.
It was a perfect day for the races – sunny, cool, with a beautiful breeze blowing. The racetrack is wonderful with beautiful architecture, fountains and flowers.
We arrived a little after 1:00pm and the first race started at 2:00pm. As we were walking to buy our tickets (General Admission is $10), we heard a guy saying he had Clubhouse tickets for $5. We bought two (saving ourselves $10) and actually got fabulous seats right by the finish line! I got us a snack of iced tea and potato chips and we just relaxed and hung out until the first race.
We were looking at the race book, but didn’t bet the first race. We’re not gamblers, so the betting isn’t the most important thing, but we decided to put a few bucks on the 2nd race, just for fun.
I always pick my horses by their names, but Eric looks at the odds and tries to be a little more mathematical about it. I liked a horse named Key Rose (since my Grammy’s name was Rose) and we also put a bet on Chelcee’s Hope and Awesome Feat, so if any of them came in we’d win a few bucks. Unfortunately, none of them did!
After the first two races we decided to get a bite to eat and watch the third and fourth races from the restaurant. The menu was pretty limited – lunch basics – so I ended up getting a grilled shrimp taco and Eric got a turkey breast sandwich. Nothing fancy, but it was good and satisfying.
Then, we went back to our seats, we decided which horses to bet for the 5th race. We picked Nsync Lynx but, unfortunately, the horse was scratched, so Eric came back empty-handed. We bet Silver Vista in the 6th race, but had no luck. In the 7th we bet Tranquility, but that lost, too. Our last bet was Runaway Dancer in the 8th race, but it just wasn’t our day. We only bet $2 on each horse, so we lost less than $20. I sure would have liked a win!
There was one more race, but it was almost 6:00pm, so we decided to leave. It was a really fun way to spend an afternoon, and I’m glad we got to experience it before the season ended. We enjoyed going to the track for a few years before we left NY, since our friends own horses and would take us to Belmont for the day.
It’s always exciting for me, because I love horses so much. They’re just such majestic animals. My favorite part is watching them just trot out for some warm-up exercise, and the walk they take after the race, to cool down. That’s when you really get to see them. When they race, they’re so fast it’s really just a blur! It all happens so quickly and then it’s over!
When we got back we watched PSYCH and then took a nap (what else?). When we woke up at 8:00pm we started watching THE 101 FUNNIEST SNL MOMENTS on E! It’s fun to remember all the great characters created on that show. I’ve watched SNL religiously since it started. I never got tired of it, even when there were years that didn’t produce many classics. I always thought it was funny and I think it’s really been great for the past 10 years. I may not be able to stay up until 1:00am on a Saturday night, but I’ve always recorded the show and Eric and I enjoy it on a Sunday morning!
Tomorrow I’m going to have brunch with the girls at the Hotel Del Coronado (where they’ve been staying since Friday night). I love brunch, I love the Hotel Del Coronado, and I love the girls. What could be more lovely?