I do try to go to the Racecourse at least once a year and yesterday I went with
my friend Debbie. I live within walking distance to the racetrack so parking thankfully wasn’t an issue.
I had exactly $41, I very consciously go to the track with very little
money. I can never understand why others waste several hundred dollars or more there.
I paid $3 for admission (I personally think Saratogian’s should be offered free admission but thats just me)
I paid $3.50 for a program that Debbie and I shared and when I went to grab a pen,
the lady behind the booth informed me that pens were .50 cents.
In my haste to get over to the track I neglected to pick up just one of the hundreds
of pens I have in my house, and as a writer I am rarely without a pen. I just can’t bring myself to pay .50 cents for a pen. Debbie and I decide to go pen-less for the afternoon. We are just that resilient.
Then we realize that we are thirsty, did I remember to bring bottled water? Of course not. Bottled water costs $3.50, we buy one and decide to share and refill in the womens room or at a water fountain (which we discovered there are none)
As we look over the racing entries and decide on what our betting behavior will be; are we gonna pick horse that are the favorites? longshots? ones that we simply like the name of etc.
Debbie decides to get a Nathan’s hot dog, I am tempted to give in and spend a whopping $4.75 for a hot dog. But then I remember my rule, I only eat Hebrew National hot dogs. No I am not Jewish, but since when are they the only people with standards?
For the first race I decide to bet on a horse named Classofsixtythree, a 20-1 longshot only to find out its been scratched. I then decide to place a $2 bet to win on Exquisite Option and $2 to win on Artisan, both long shots. Yes I know I am betting against myself. Both horses lose. Debbie doesn’t have much luck either.
We vow to have better luck in the second race. I choose Swashbuckler, I don’t remember what my friend bets. There are only six horses in this race, how hard could it be right? but we still lose and we laugh at how pathetic we are.
I have Debbie hold on to my wallet while I make a trip to the ladies room and on the toilet paper holder I discover someone’s wallet with cash and credit cards in it.
I run up to lost and found and as I do I search the wallet for some I.D. and a possible phone number. The owner of the wallet is Stella Hyndman, she is from out of town. Being the good citizen that I am I turn it in to lost and found and I make sure that they fill out the necessary paperwork and count the cash in there and document it. I leave my name and number so she can contact me to say thank you. I have yet to hear from her.