Today’s angle is all about weather. Snow, sleet, rain and dark of night are all in the forecast for the next two days at Parx. Although horses in snow make pretty Holiday card images, horses racing in snow makes for difficult handicapping. Visibility changes, footing changes, even the jockeys change since they need to stay both warm and dry. And if it starts sleeting….pain from both above and below as ice smacks the horses in the face from the sky and the kickback. But unlike slop, most horses have never been asked to race in these conditions. Therefore the angle is to go with the brave ones. Look for off track success but look for horses that run through adversity.
Picks for February 11:
Cold and wet with snow and ice mixed in for good measure. Monday should be mostly snow, albeit a wet snow, so good conditions may prevail. Mick is not a meteorologist but he knows a trying day for handicappers when he sees one.
Parx Race 1
Maiden Special Weight for PA bred 3 year old boys at 6f. Another maiden race where the experienced runners have failed in their previous attempts, even when well placed. Look to the firster from Ned Allard 3-Rules to impress here. Although his works are pedestrian, the breeding screams off track proclivities and Trevor McCarthy hops on board here. Of the others, 4-Word On a Wing looks promising after getting some time off following his only start. The 90+ days away angle is strong for Kate Demasi so he will be ready but is he good enough?
$10 W/P/S 3-Rules
$2 Exacta 3/4
Parx Race 4
$25K n3 for older boys 8 ½ f. 6-Grit’n’grind seems both well suited and well named for action today. His only holdback is the extra distance, a challenge which may be more than he wants. The pedigree is fairly sprint oriented and the lack of recent success at a route distance is a concern. The other angle is to take class dropper 1-Legacy’s Prince on the return to the level of his success. His best race was at this distance, as well, albeit in maiden company.
$10 W/P/S 6-Grit’n’Grind
$2 Exacta box 1/6
Parx Race 7
6 ½ f race for 3 year old fillies for $20k. Lots of question marks here as several of these were pointed to bigger and better things and let connections down. 2-Clever Sarah has run in 3 Stakes races but shows up here for her third barn in 6 starts after failing in this condition last out. Instead look one stall outside to 3-True Upgrade, a greatly improved sort following the addition of blinkers.