Getting Drunky in Kentucky ... Safely

Pardon me from just patently stealing more Ville Voice headlines, but right now Lou is still dealing with treatment for breast cancer (ONE MORE CHEMO AFTER TODAY) and now the Hurricane in Kentucky that took out her kitchen and sole bathroom. It's a bit too much, you know?

Especially right now as I sit at Norton Suburban getting poison pumped into my body when I would much rather be at IF08. Very sad.


But remember when we won that sister city contest from Bushmill's Irish Whiskey? Some of that dough was meant to support safe drinking programs. Here's the latest from Rick at the Ville Voice:

If you’re having a big meal at Artemisia, and hang on for a drink, or two, or three, a city-backed program is interested in getting you home safely without risking a DUI.

Metro Government is teaming up with the Louisville Originals and CityScoot to provide a discount and encourage tipsy customers to call CityScoot. The company’s driver shows up in a collapsible two-wheeler, puts it in your trunk, and drives you home in your car.

The published rates for the service on the CityScoot website is $10 for the pick-up, then $2 per mile. The press release on the service says you can save 47 percent if you call from an Originals restaurant.

The city is pitching in $6,000, and the Originals $5,000, for the three-month trial. Only restaurants inside or near the Watterson Expressway are participating.

OHNA - NIMBY Hmmm...

You may have noticed Lou's silence on the whole Original Highlands Neighborhood Association vs. Wayside Christian Mission moving into Mercy Academy's old building on Broadway issue.

And Lou thinks she'll keep in that way. Her knee jerk reaction is to be horrified by the Not In My Backyard folks. Then again, she does live on the opposite end of the neighborhood, so technically Wayside would not be in her backyard. But I do think everyone has to admit that East Broadway isn't Bardstown Rd. It isn't Highland Avenue. It already has a plethora of social services and health services-- including those running up and down lower Barret. The Mercy building was already a school; that neighborhood would have already have had to learn to live with high pedestrian and car traffic, noise, and a bit of nuisance here and there (uh, kids can be a pain in the tuchas).

Again, I have not gone to meetings or responded to surveys because I just don't know the real ins and outs of it, and I've had bigger fish to fry this summer. That being said, Wayside needs to be somewhere. And the residents of Wayside would be very ill-served by being hidden away in some already impoverished, underresourced, depressing neighborhood (as would said neighborhood be ill-served by a Wayside move there).

I just re-watched the movie Dave last night-- I recommend it to anyone suffering election lethargy. It's a good pick me up. One of the central controversies in the movie is over a homeless shelter whose funding the Karl Rove-y character sneakily vetoed. And Dave fixes the problem by calling a budget meeting with his entire cabinet and saying (I paraphrase), "I need you guys to cut back on some of the pork. We're talking about homeless kids here. You can't say no to helping homeless kids."

And all the cronies start slashing their budgets to find the money to help keep the shelter open. A flurry of cuts of a million here and a million there to eventually add up to more than $650mil. It's this lovely warmhearted scene, where even the most stone-faced wonk bursts into smiles and applause.

Because what can you say when someone says that they want to help homeless kids? No? NIMBY? I don't know.

Original Highlands Art & Music Festival, Sept 13

I keep waiting for the Original Highlands Art and Music Festival to expand to two days. Each year, they secure a line-up of music that could easily be a bit diluted and spread out-- this year includes Peter Searcy, Love Jones, Leigh Ann Yost, John Gage, Brigid Kaelin, and the Louisville School of Rock Band.

And, hands down, the OHNA always chooses one of the nicest weekends of the year.

This year's festival is part of the Ryder's Cup Festival and includes an even larger number of artists and previous vendors.

Pet Peeve: as an "art" festival, can't they come up with a poster that doesn't look like an ad for happy hour at Phoenix Hill? This summer, I visited my aunt on Martha's Vineyard and admired her more than 30 posters from as many years of the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Fair, each one more charming than the next. I wouldn't spend $6 at Hobby Lobby for a cheapo frame for this poster.

Note too-- as I mentioned before (just weeks before I was diagnosed and suddenly became elligable for membership)-- some of the proceeds for the event will help support Gilda's Club.

Bats & Boobs

Speaking of baseball (I was, this morning), next Tuesday, August 26 is Komen for the Cure night at Louisville Slugger Field. Come see our playoffs-bound Bats in action and help support the cause. Pink mini-bats will be on sale for $10, with all proceeds going to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

This Lou will be there with her Young Survior sisters. I'll be the one in the pink shirt! ;)

Loueyville About to Be A Little Less Weird

Speaking of local celebrities, a source in the know told Lou that "the pink and black attack," Louisville's own "dating Goth" celebrities, Kynt and Vyxsin, have packed their patent leather bags for a move to LA. (In fact, their MySpace page lists LA as home.)

"There are only so many gay pride events in Louisville," says the source. "Every time they travel, they're booked solid for events."

Kynt and Vyxsin have parlayed their Amazing Race fame into appearences on two of Rosie's family cruises, modeling gigs for Hot Topics stores, and a profile in this month's Gothic Beauty magazine.

Also, it's "their" episode of Amazing Race that's been nominated for six emmys this year. (The episode, titled "Honestly, They Have Witch Powers or Something" is the one where they're elminated in India).

I'm sorry to see them go. I never met them, but I liked having them around. Unlike Tracee Dore, who seems to have dropped off the face of the earth-- a google search yielding articles in local newspapers all lead to dead ends-- Kynt and Vyxsin did their hometown superproud.

(Gasp! While digging around for stuff on Dore, I discovered oodles online that Mikey V., the cop from Miami, was suspended from the Miami PD over allegations that he appeared in a gay bondage adult film called Rope Rituals, 1996!! And that he's not only gay but very out and for some oddball reason HGTV sat on that fact, despite being so very gay friendly. Weird.)

Mapother in the CJ

Mama isn't big on celebrity crushes (although she has been secretly married to Bono since she was a teenager), but there's something about this William Mapother guy that makes her all googly inside.

Starting this week, Mapother stars in Actors' production of Glengarry Glen Ross, the first play of a packed season. According to his website, Mapother threw out the first pitch for a Bats game while Lou was cavorting around New England. That right there is a double-header of goodness in Lou's world-- Mapother + baseball = sigh.

Today's C-J features an article about the actor and the play. More of Lou's crush here and here.

Garden & Gun's Favorite Hotel: 21c

If you'd ever told this decade-and-a-half subscriber of The New Yorker that her favorite magazine would be replaced by one called Garden & Gun, she would have laughed her brown-thumbed, critter-lovin' ass off. But since its inaugural issue a little more than a year ago, this gorgeous magazine has offered some of the best writing and certainly the best photography and artwork on the magazine rack. From Roy Blunt Jr.'s regular column to features written by luminaries from Jimmy Buffet to Clyde Edgerton to Rick Bragg, Garden & Gun is worth reading from cover to cover; even the advertising smacks of stunning, classy taste.

This month's Garden & Gun arrived yesterday and the cover article led me to furious thumbing through the thick magazine: "Best of the New South: 50 People, Places, and Things We Love." (By the way, the cover model/musician is Miranda Lambert who is third billing-- seriously? third??-- on the closing act of the Kentucky State Fair. After reading the article about her, I could ALMOST pony up the $41 bucks to see her if it didn't mean also suffering through Trace Atkins and Keith Anderson.)

I couldn't be prouder that my favorite magazine chose to recognize one of my very favorite-est things about Loueyville; G&G's "Best Hotel" is our very own 21c.

Yes, I admit, my love affair with 21c began with the penguins. I'm a sucker for penguins. And on my very first trip to Loueyville, when I was interviewing for my current job, I first came across the curious penguins atop the building on Main Street and was smitten. Since then, 21c has been a regular stop for me whenever I happen to be in downtown.

I've had so many little "moments" courtesy of 21c. And when I say "courtesy of," I am stressing that these experiences are FREE. 21c's art is free and open to the public always. And that's the very best thing about the hotel/museum. Shortly after I moved, a cousin visited and we sat in the lobby and watched the moving sand-sculpture-installation-coffeetable for the better part of a half hour (and it was the middle of the day and there had not been any alcohol consumed at the time). Two dear friends stayed at 21c when they came to the Ville; Roommate and I passed a half an hour in their hotel room and opened the door to find one of the penguins standing guard at the door. I have spent an inordinate amount of time lingering by the elevators watching the boggling video installation of letters that rain down upon your reflection and settle upon your shoulders and hair (or in my case, lack thereof). I purposely make time to visit the loo, where the water runs off the edge of the infinity sink and where two-way mirrors wreak havoc on your sense of privacy.

In fact, I have a poster of the penguins in the hallway of my house and a throw pillow of the red penguin on my couch (those, of course, were not free). If there were a fan club, I'd have a membership card. I've promised myself that once I get through my chemotherapy and can truly enjoy an evening downtown, I will splurge and get a room at 21c to celebrate.

So congratulations to one of my favorite Loueyville places for earning an honor from my favorite periodical. It's a lovely match. While I have not yet drunk the Austin, TX Kool-aid (and admit it's been more than 15 years since I was last in Austin), it seems a good fit that 21c's plans to expand into that "It's in Texas, but it's not Texas" city (not to mention that Austin originated the whole "Keep ____ Weird" campaign that Louisville has so embraced).

NYT: Louisville (Kansas?) Sling

Today the New York Times published a recipe for a "Louisville Sling." I caught the mention on the 'Ville Voice this morning and figured I would send the recipe over to Roommate who is currently vacationing in Australia for a month and a half. Thought he might wanna introduce a little Louisville Love to the bartenders Down Under, a number of which I'm sure he already knows by name, personal history, and drink preference by now.

My poor brain sizzled as I read the recipe over and over, trying to figure out what was wrong with it. Surely I was overlooking the mention of a jigger of Maker's Mark or a couple of shots of Woodford, right? Had the Gray Lady issued a misprint?

No! In fact, the Louisville Sling is a non-alcoholic beverage. Well, sort of. While the recipe is billed as a "No-Alcohol Refresher," it does include bitters "for serving." Bitters, of course, being a(sometimes potently) alcoholic beverage. Precious.

Anyway, the absence of significant alcohol -- especially bourbon-- in the Louisville Sling indicates to me that the eponymous Louisville being slung is not our fair city, but rather Louisville, KS, population 209.

From the "We Could Have Told You That" Department

According to today's CJ, WFPK will be named "Station of the Year" for the medium to small markets at the annual Radio and Records Triple A Summit in Boulder, CO.

I'll say it again, our public radio stations belong on anyone's top 20 reasons to love the Ville list.

Design Star Fades

Sorry to those of you who've Tivoed but not watched yet...

A belated "buh-bye" to Ms. Tracee Dore. Seven hours shopping? Seriously? Girlfriend punched her own ticket with that move.

(A couple weeks ago, Roomie and I had lunch at Jennica's-- big yum!-- and I nearly tinkled myself when I saw that her store is RIGHT NEXT DOOR! Weenie that I am, I didn't pop in or anything. But still-- fun! I'm such a dork.)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HUNTER S. THOMPSON!!!

He would have been 71.

Also, in Hunter S. news: Gonzo opens today at the Baxter. Unfortunately with The Dark Knight and Mama Mia also opening, well... I'm thinking that's where people's theater dollars will be spent this weekend.

Hey... on that poster, Hunter S. kinda looks like Lou!

Quick Bits and Happy (Belated) Anniversary to Me!

My previous post was my 100th post AND unwittingly posted on my two year anniversary of my move to Our Fair Ville. (Leave it to me to have my 100th post and my anniversary post be a somewhat snarky one... ).

A few quick newsy bits that have fallen through the cracks while I've been laid up.

First of all, the US Conference of Mayors named Loueyville the "most livable" large city in the US! Huge deal. Big news. And well deserved.

Secondly, next weekend is Lebowski Fest, easily the city's coolest counter-culture landmark event. Unfortunately, this Lou will most likely be out of town for the event, but even if I didn't consider myself an Achiever, I'd still want to hit this particular Fest because it will feature a guest appearance by Duff "Ace of Cakes" Goldman and one of his custom cakes. (Believe me, when you're laid up for more than a month, a whole world of TV opens up to you-- Ace of Cakes on Food Network kicks ass. It's like that motorcycle show for food geeks.)

Anyway, stay tuned, Friends of This Lou. I know I'm just dribbling posts at this point, but hopefully as my health evens out, so will my output.

BTW: I have a new goal-- the bloggers at the Ville Voice were named the best in Louisville in this month's issue of Louisville Magazine. I'll never be as current events-y as they are, and Rick and Jake ARE quite good... but some day (let's give it two years) that title will be mine. Oh yes. It will be mine. :)

Reality (TV) Hits Home Again

Tracee Dore is no Kynt & Vyxsin.

Ms. Dore, interior designer and Louisvillager, may have exquisite design sense as showcased by her design company's beautiful website, but girlfriend is pitching some shocking fits and is in the process of alienating all of her fellow reality show castmates on Season 3 of HGTV's Design Star.

While Kynt and Vyxsin charmed on The Amazing Race, Tracee (at least in the first two episodes) is being set up as the resident bitch in the Nashville-based show. New shows air each Sunday on HGTV. I feel terrible, but I am rooting for her to be voted off ASAP just so she stops making Louisvillagers look bad. (I have no doubt that once the season-- or her season-- is over, we'll be treated to an in depth article about how she's really a sweetheart and that the bitch was all in the editing... but still).

Speaking of K&V, the duo was given the honor of becoming Kentucky Colonels this weekend! Well deserved!!

(BTW: this is Lou's new goal... Now that Lou got her t-shirt, her next goal is to be a Colonel!)

Friends!

Remember back in SEPTEMBER, when THIS Lou had a bit of a tiff when she found out that there was ANOTHER Lou lurking out there claiming to be a cheerleader for this underappreciated city???

Remember how THIS Lou hoped for a mention on THAT Lou's website-- or at least a super cute t-shirt that reads "I [heart] Louisville... and that's not just the Bourbon talking" in a size small????

Well, THIS Lou JUST received her t-shirt LAST WEEK. Thanks Lou!

It's nice that THAT Lou keeps his promises. Albeit belatedly.

After all, he's been pretty busy-- the Friends of Lou campaign has been rocking the VIP thing a lot lately. Sign up now.

Expo: Memorial Day Flea Market-- Crap You Can Use

Again, it's hard to believe that I have lived here for two years and have not availed myself of the monthly flea market at the Expo Center. Usually the last weekend of the month, the Kentucky Flea Market has several big, blowout weekends: Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day.

I dragged poor Mama to a Flea Market when we were vacationing in Florida this spring, and it was a massive disaster. Stall upon stall of Crap Nobody Uses, lots of socks, Avon stalls, and used books at new book prices.

The Kentucky Flea Market, on the other hand, is wall-to-wall Crap You Can Use. Mostly. At least every fifth stall was something worth looking at, mostly because of the cheap prices and "exotic" goods. (And that's a pretty good average-- 20% good stuff to 80% poo.)

The whole first two rows were bargain groceries, the kind you find at places like Big Lots. Overstocks, discontinued stuff. I'm not above buying discount groceries and toiletries from time to time, but I question the sanity of anyone who purchases discount condoms at a flea market (above). Methinks said purchasers are not all that committed to planned parenting.

I enjoyed taste-testing salsas and instant coffees. For some reason, I'm always sucked in by those booths featuring the little bags of dip mix that you add to sour cream. Why do they always taste so good? Artichoke and parmagan? Bacon and cheddar? Spinach herb? So good. What do they put in there? I only managed to keep myself from purchasing them (3 for $10) because of my upcoming need to pay better attention to what I eat. (Whatever they put in there to make them taste so good, can't possibly be good for you.)

What did suck me in, however, were the two stalls featuring vintage tv shows on DVD. Specifically, a bootlegged copy of Tales of the Gold Monkey, a favorite tv show of mine when I was a wee wee lass (it aired from 1982-1983), starring Stephen Collins as an Indiana Jones-ish pilot of a seaplane named the Goose in the 1930's South Pacific. I was more than happy to shell out $20 for the entire 22 episode run.

That show (along with Bring 'em Back Alive, which ran duing the same general time period and starred Bruce Boxleitner as Frank Buck, and was also offered at another stall) is somehow a hallmark of my childhood. So much so that when I went to the Museum of Television and Radio in NYC and was allowed to watch a tv show of my choice in their library, I opted for the pilot of Tales out of all of the shows ever featured on TV.

It's taken a lot of self-control to not skip out on this lovely, lovely day (it's 83 and sunny-- and don't worry, Lou is on her computer outside) and camp out on the couch and go all Veronica Mars on my new purchase (ie. consume it like it's a bottle of Jack Daniels and I'm... me. Kidding. Mostly.).

Other things I could have bought but restrained myself: Season One of MacGuyver for $16; Bath & Body Works products for half the retail price; a solid wood curio cabinet for $159... Other things I could have bought but was kind of grossed out by: aforementioned condoms; sugar gliders (poor things); knives up the Wazoo.

But I dropped $20 on something I couldn't get elsewhere and will get 20+ hours of solid entertainment from (and $5 on parking), and enjoyed the truly diverse crowd (more Big Hair there than I've seen in a while, though). Overall a good day.

Loueyville Anniversary

BTW, my brothers and sisters in Loueyvillagerhood, I will be under the knife on the day of our actual anniversary. Just in case I don't get the chance to post between now and then, thank you so much for reading My Loueyville this past year. 5300+ posts ain't bad with no promotion or what have you.

And, in an open thank you to Louisville in general: I came here practically sight unseen. I came here because I lost my job in New Orleans after Katrina, and I couldn't imagine staying there with no job security, with no security in general.

The folks at my school here in Louisville recruited me relentlessly; they may me feel a sports hero. I was kind of broken back then-- Katrina had hit me hard, psychologically-- and it felt so nice to feel so wanted. Roommate discovered this neighborhood by accident (but after much driving around) and told me that this was where I needed to be. I bought the second house I looked at. I moved here after being here twice, briefly each time.

I feel so lucky. I started this blog after my first school year of being here because I truly wondered at the fact that this city was so totally undiscovered. I have been thrilled that in the two years that I have been here that there have been so many Louisvillagers who have sought to spread the Good Word about this place.

New Orleans remains the city of my heart-- cut me some slack, I lived there for nine years and dreamed about living there for years beforehand. But if the winds had to blow me to some city that was not New Orleans-- and they did-- I feel blessed to the hilt that they sent me here. I live in the greatest undiscovered city in America, and in the best neighborhood in that city.

Thank you, Louisville, for bringing me home.

(I still HATE the winters... can anyone do anything about that??)

xo
Lou

Louisville Slugfest and summer preview

It's an utter travesty that I have lived in Louisville for almost two years and have never set foot in the Louisville Slugger Museum (unless you count the gift shop). Tonight I had a work related shin-fest at the Museum and enjoyed my tour immensely. In fact, it seemed like, in my tour group, I was the only person truly transfixed by every aspect of the factory.

Sure I've been to Fenway a few times, but where else can you plant a "good luck" smooch on Manny Ramirez's actual bat???? My heart was a-flutter, lemme tell you. I did get some strange looks when we exited the tour to a room featuring a HUGE portrait of David Ortiz and I said, "Big Papi! My boyfriend!!" Lou has no boyfriend, per se, but lots o' "boyfriends," including half the Boston Red Sox (special love to Lowell, Papi, Manny, and Lester), Bono (my original boyfriend), Glen "Big Baby" Davis of the Celtics, John Edwards, and countless others...

Last weekend, I went to a function downtown and left to go to my car and saw that the BIG Louisville Slugger Bat outside the museum was lit up in pink light to honor the MLB's pink bat, breast cancer fundraiser. I had to pause a moment because I was so choked up. But I did manage to get a picture of it.

Um, yeah, y'all don't need a map to point you into the direction that Mama Lou's health crisis has taken her.

That being said, contrary to most summers of her teaching career, Lou will be right here at home for the bulk of the summer. So while there may be some dead time, (ew, blech, bad, bad, bad slip o' the tongue) I should be able to report on all the summer goings-on.

Bonnaroo may be a no-go for me. But we still have the AAA All-Star Game and the Ryders Cup and For'castle Fest to look forward to... Stay tuned Louisvillagers. Lou will be just fine.

TBC: To Be Continued

Unfortunately, Lou has been diagnosed with a fairly serious health problem. It could be months before she's able to return to her regular blog.

Please send your good wishes Lou's way. Even though she is a godless heathen she still appreciates all prayers and love transmitted in her direction.

Mama loves all of you. Louisville rocks.

xo

Eight Belles

Like the rest of America, I watched the end of the Derby horror-struck, sickened, unable to process my surging adreniline and the flood of grief. The party I was at took on a funeral air for the most part, and after several numbing mint juleps, I went home. And sobbed through six tissues.

Eight Belles was a pretty horse, a horse with tremendous heart. And though it may be somewhat crass to admit this, I don't know that collectively we would have despaired the loss of any horse in this year's Derby in quite the same way that we've felt the loss of this horse. For all the speculation and admiration that followed horses like the incredible Big Brown and the other favorites, Eight Belles was the story. The filly who skipped the Oaks to race with the boys. A filly more evenly matched with Derby colts than most people recognized. Her numbers put her flat in the middle of the pack-- even before she raced, it was clear that at least half of the field didn't measure up to her.

And, again, probably not a popular opinion, but the fact that she was a girl, I think, plays on our collective sympathies even more. Her trainer and owner and jockey fawned over her in a way that people don't fawn over colts. Called her "sweetheart" and "baby." And speaking for myself, as a woman, I loved the "girl power" aspect of the story. If I'd been able to bet on Derby day, I would have put my money on her (and, of course, my Denis of Cork-- bless his heart to come from 20th to finish 3rd-- he's still a horse to watch), especially after seeing her on TV on Derby Day. She just looked like she had a win in her.

I like to talk a good game, but in reality I know bupkus about horse racing in the grand scheme of things. And, like many people, my knee jerk reaction to the tragedy was to think, "I don't know how I can ever watch horseracing again." I felt that way when I watched a horse die in the paddock area of Keeneland last fall, a senseless and incomprehensible death where the horse reared, fell down, and broke his neck on the bricks.

And that was my gut reaction: "I don't know if I can watch horseracing again" not "should horseracing exist."

But that's been a question that's been raised in the wake of this horrible loss and in the wake of the loss of Barbaro. In some online news sources, I've seen pundits speculate about whether or not there's a difference between horseracing and dogfighting. Speculation that we condemn one and celebrate the other only based on the socioeconomic differences between the fans.

Again, I stress that I come from no place of expertise when it comes to horseracing. But I can honestly say that for the most part I have more concern for the treatment and well being of the humans who work on the backside of the track than I do for the horses on a day-to-day basis. And yes, that does concern me.

The questions that should be raised-- and are being raised by many-- are ones about reform to the sport. Should all tracks move to Polytrack? Tracks like Santa Anita have seen dramatic reductions in catastrophic injuries since moving to Polytrack. Should we be looking at reform in horse breeding? European racehorses are more hearty than their American counterparts. Should we be doing more when it comes to horse medicine? There is now sophisticated medical imaging technology that can detect even the most delicate fracture.

There are always going to be things about horseracing that upset me. But that doesn't necessarily set it apart from other sports. Athletes in general risk injury or worse for the love of the sport and for their fans. The level of excess at the Derby is generally appalling, but events like the Superbowl have it beat.

I will say this categorically: I really, truly, passionately wish they'd ban whips.

But I do think, for the most part, horses are very well cared for. I believe they have generally good lives. And I do believe that they love to run. It's hard not to believe that when you watch a horse race.

What happened to Eight Belles was a senseless, incomprehensible tragedy. And as I still try to recover from the news, I'm reminded by other news today that life is just goddamned full of senseless, incomprehensible tragedies. 10,000+ dead in Myanmar. Six sea lions shot dead while trapped in humane traps on the Columbia River. 12,000 kids in China sick with a deadly virus.

It doesn't make this any less sad. Nor is the answer to shuttle it off as just one more thing to outrage and appall us.

Online today at the NYTimes, this was posted in the comments of The Rail blog:

Michael Blowen, of Old Friends (http://oldfriendsequine.com) sent me this
e-mail on Sunday that he received from a young fan:
Hello. My name is XXXX,
and I am 11 years old, and I won money off of Eight Bells at a Derby party
yesterday. I feel so bad about what happened to her that I can not enjoy my
money that I won. So, I am going to donate my winnings to your organazation and
so is my mom. I found out about you on the internet last night. Your farm sounds
like a very nice place. I am asking everyone that I know if they also won money
off of Eight Bells, and if they would like to dotate their money as well. Some
people that I am asking are donating money just to be nice. So I just wanted to
let you know that as soon as I collect the money, my mom will send you a check.
From, XXXX
— Posted by alex

Also worth checking out: Jane Smiley's Op-Ed column.

Lou Loves the Longshots for Derby

Forgive me if this blog entry is a little soggy. I'm still drying out after yesterday's Oaks.

Yesterday was a washout. Buddy and I got there just before Race 5 and around an hour before the rains started. And what rains they were. Big drops blown sideways by hard winds, thunder, lightning. At one point Churchill had to lower the score boards. Buddy and I were, of course, among the riff raff on the infield. Finally, after having spent more than an hour off and on in the shelter of an ATM tent, we grabbed a giant recycling sign, held it over our heads, and made our way to the Grandstand where we dried off a bit and watched the Oaks on the monitors.

Honestly, it wasn't much fun. I was dressed for the 78 degree morning and not the 62 degree wet afternoon. We froze our tuchases off. I did have my annual julep, and then a woman next to me bought a Filly and asked if she could pour the drink in my empty glass. I must have looked at her like she was crazy because she said, "I'm in recovery. I just wanted the glass." I didn't have the heart to tell her that she could get one at Walgreens for $2.50.

All and all it wasn't a bad day for my pocketbook. Lou has once again proven that she's decent at picking the second or third place horse (but never, ever first). Out of the five races I put money on, my horse placed in three. I had the impressive Little Belles for the Oaks and she came in 2nd. I wasn't betting super long odds-- most were 7-1 or 8-1. Belles was 5-1.

That being said, Mama loves her the underdogs, and with most handicappers drooling over Colonel John, Big Brown, and Pyro, I think the Derby field is a good place to look for the longshots to shine.

After spending about an hour with the C-J Derby Preview, here are my choices for double-digit odds that could pull off a win.

Of course, my baby, Denis of Cork. He's 20-1 morning odds. Definitely underrated and his fifth place bomb recently has caused a lot of people to put blinders on when it comes to Denis. The only things this puppy has going against him are (a) I've got my money on him and (b) he's named after a priest from Ireland. Last year's religiously named horse-- Dominican-- was also "my" pony, and he came in middle of the pack. This is science, folks!

Recapturetheglory (20-1) has great Best Beyer and BRIS numbers, but his Dosage is 5.00, the highest of the field (and no, Lou has no idea what these numbers really mean). In the Illinois Derby (during which he beat Denis), he ran the last 3/8 in 36.2 and the last 1/8 in 12.2. Killer numbers bested in last starts only by favorite Colonel John and Visionaire.

So that's why Visionaire makes the list. Visionaire (20-1) has less stunning numbers, but had an amazing finish in the Bluegrass. He came in 5th but rocketed at the end.

Eight Belles' (20-1) numbers are better than Recapturetheglory's and she's among the fastest horses out there. A filly hasn't won the Derby since 1988, so let's face it... we're way overdue. She gave up a chance to trounce the Oaks field for a shot at the Derby. You gotta love those guts. And her stablemate Proud Spell took the Oaks, making this a possible storybook weekend for Larry Jones.

Bob Black Jack (20-1) is my final longshot. Second best numbers in the field after Big Brown. Finished second after Colonel John in the Santa Anita... handicappers like him as a longshot. But he's my least favorite longshot. Will bet him only if odds stay at 20 or better.

There you have it, Colts and Fillies. Bet at your own risk; I'm not really a handicapper, I just play one on the internet. Good luck! Go Denis of Cork!!