Sunday Notes

It's like Rachel versus Zenyatta.

Today's early NFL game has New England traveling to Denver with the winner heading to the big game. All week, and even before then, the Brady versus Manning narrative has filled both the airwaves and in print. If you read some of the inside football press there is an us versus them narrative. You can't be a Brady fan and a Manning fan. You have to pick a side.

I'm not sure who the "synthetic specialist" is, or whether its Brady or Manning who "sucked at four", but it's out there.

In the mainstream press - e.g. the AP - it's different. This is one of the more well-balanced articles I have read on the two, and the game itself.

In Harness Racing Update today a letter talked about 'kicking':

"We have a great opportunity to present harness racing as the exception to the public's perception that horse racing is animal abuse controlled by petty criminals who win any way they can. Leo Burns is the model I would like drivers to emulate, not the aforementioned pretenders."

Early on, it was considered odd to talk about kicking (on twitter and elsewhere). It was like you were 'out there' or 'just didn't get it' or something. Over the last few months, more and more people are speaking about it. Jeff Gural mentioned it at a driver meeting. People know it's going on and are letting people know it has no place in the game. 

Also in HRU - a good look at the Pacing Machine, Cam Fella.  Cam Fella has been nominated for the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.

Todd Pletcher won trainer of the year, and in my opinion, like most trainer votes, it's based on sheer numbers. In the NFL there is a narrative that if you "can't win a big one" you are not deserving. In racing it's all about gross wins, not wins like the Breeders Cup, Derby, or Dubai World Cup or others.

Remember five or six years ago? We need free video, free pp's and a strong distribution of your signal and we'll bet you, cried many. Also, remember the "trap races" in pick 4's (that we still inexplicably see at some thoroughbred tracks). They're gone in harness racing too. Now, at places like Woodbine, deep pick 4's are carded and there's free everything. On a nondescript Friday two days ago, Woodbine did $1.7 million.

Have a great day everyone.