Cuvee Uncorks A Thriller

I woke up at 9:42am, on a gray and overcast Saturday morning. Today we were going to celebrate my birthday a couple of days early, because I would have other obligations on Monday, that would throw off a tradition that we had started when was thirteen. The tradition was that every year on or around my birthday we would go to DE Park and watch the races, last year I stood at the rail watching Adriano charge down the stretch to win the Kent Stakes. This year even topped that, but to get the full affect of my day you'll have to start at the beginning with me, so lets back up to a couple hours after waking up....

My dad wanted to have me open my birthday gifts before we left, because he and my sister had a soccer match to go to, that was four hours away, so it was decided that after the races they would go to a hotel, and that would mean not being around for the ceremonial opening of the presents. Well, if you know what breyer horses are, my sister gave me a custom made version of my thoroughbred, Tray, in the breyer horse form of Big Ben. I have to say that it looks just like him, and even extremely similar to a picture of him I have. My next give was a GPS, because honestly, I am directionally challenged, and normally have to use my sister as a GPS. Needless to say I was extremely happy with all the gifts. Thanks Mom and Dad, thanks Sis!

Now, since the drive up to DE Park was a fairly uneventful one, I will fast forward to the races. For anyone who doesn't know, I am a horse racing fanatic, and love to sit over a program and handicap races. Today I was on a roll! In the first race I called the first two finishers, the second race one of the three I picked won, the third was my only clunker, the fourth, and my two came in first and third. By this time I was pretty confident in myself and was will to make a bet. In the fifth race I went up to one of the computers and placed a Tri box on the 2,3, and 7 horses, and I bet $20, and if I won I would have gotten $120. Guess what, I won! A couple races later I went up to a teller, only to be told that the ticket had been misprinted and i had played a straight trifecta. The order of the horses had been 7, 3,2 and my ticket had 2,3,7. Now in a box, the horses can come in any order as long as they are in the top three, a straight they must come in that exact order, so it turns out that misprint cost me, and I lost. But don't worry we won some of it back later.

Now here is where the name of my blog comes in. In the ninth race on the card a there was a filly named Cuvee Uncorked, who was owned by long time friends of the family. The owners had, for a long time been strictly Arabian racing, and only recently started into thoroughbreds. Cuvee Uncorked was never raced a two year old, but in her first race she won while up on a swift pace of 22.95, 44.91, and 1.10.99. She again would go six furlongs, this time in an allowance/optional claiming (she was not run for a tag.) At post time she was 7/2, I believe third favorite. One by one they loaded into the gate until all stood in a perfect line, there was only a few seconds of silence as we waited the Brrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggggggggg!!!!!!!

They were off, and Cuvee Uncorked was on the lead! She was soon joined by two others, but stayed, again right up on the pace and they flew an opening quarter, in mud, in 21.4! I stood my eyes glued to the horses, trying to keep her in sight. She from the start of the race had been three wide, and after a quarter like that, and never racing in the mud, I wondered if she could still have anything left. As they rounded the far turn Uncorked was making her run at the leader, and looked like, as they entered the stretch, like she would run right by her. But the other filly dug down when Uncorked drew even with her, now it was time to see if Uncorked had the same fight, and she did, fighting back with a vengeance. Down the stretch they charged, neither one wanting to give in, then in the final yard Uncorked gave a final surge of speed putting her head in front, then under the wire they came, with Cuvee Uncorked the winner by a neck.

It was quite a race, and had me screaming the entire stretch, I think the guy standing next to me is now probably deaf in his right ear. As soon as it was over I found her owners and congratulated them. One of them asked me had any of us placed a bet on her, and it turned out, my mother had a $5 be on Uncorked and won back $44. This is one talented filly, and I would next year watch out for her in some stakes races. Maybe if she's talented enough she will run in the Breeders Cup Filly and Mare Sprint, who knows. All I know is that I am so elated, after today I am on cloud nine, even despite my mishap with the ticket. All I can say is you'd better watch out, because when that filly gets some more experience under her belt, I think she'll be a force to be reckoned with.