Weekend BBV

One of the great things about racing is that it always leaves you wanting more. There is no final level; you can't "beat" the game.

It's for that reason that BBV, a common term in certain poker circles, is a good way to present personal racing information as well. BBV stands for Brags, beats, & variance (or beats, brags, & variance).

BBV Fountain of Youth edition:

Brag: I didn't list Buddy's Saint on my top ten Derby watch before the Fountain of Youth and told anyone who would listen that I didn't like him to hit the super, let alone win.

Beat: Buddy's Saint was only bet heavy in the win pool. The exotic payouts indicate that winner Eskendereya and runner-up Jackson Bend were bet more in those pools than they were in the win pool. $20 WP on Eskenderya would have returned $140 (7-to-2). Instead, I keyed him in various gimmicks and ended up only getting back about 5-to-2.

Variance: I considered a big dime super play but didn't want to put $70 in. I would have hit... for $70.22.

BBV Risen Star edition:

Brag: Discreetly Mine was the play of the day, and there wasn't a lot of drama in the race as he coasted home at 5-to-2 to close out a 311-to-1 pick four, which paid pretty well considering it included two faves and a second choice.

Beat: I also started a pick four with Discreetly Mine, but couldn't get that 2,200-to-1 number home after going four deep in a five-horse race and failing to land on the winner. I can't even say I saved $8 by not using the winner because I really think he was overmatched by the other five in that race. The pace figured to benefit him, though, and he was getting weight, so in retrospect it was a horrible toss. In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm talking about Stonehouse.

Variance: When all was said and done, I ended up getting about 3-to-1 on my money singling Discreetly Mine in various P3s and P4s and in exactas. He paid 5-to-2 to win.

BBV Triple Crown Fantasy League edition:

Brag: There's actually not much to hang our hats on after this past week. Mike really liked Sidney's Candy, and I was a big Discreetly Mine fan.

Beat: We got neither of them.

Variance: We didn't waste the fourth pick overall on Buddy's Saint

BBV Keeneland simulcasting edition:

Brag: Plenty of new TVs (certain signals in HD) to follow the action plus free WiFi for easy TwinSpires access.

Beat: Things got busy around the stakes races, and I was without a beer for about 30 minutes there.

Variance: No obnoxious fans, but that means no funny stories about said fans either

BBV TwinSpires.com Streak to the Derby edition:

Brag: I hit all three races to start the contest and need to bet $10 on the winner of the Sham Stakes to complete my first streak.

Beat: The winners were third choice Eskenderya, second choice Discreetly Mine, and favored Connemara, so I'm not overly pumped yet that I'll scoop the $25,000 pool.

Variance: I've become obsessed with the dynamics of the contest, figuring out percentage chance that people had all three winners, etc. It's a fun exercise in probability, but probably not worth an hour of my time on Sunday morning for a free contest.

BBV Lexington edition:

Brag: Peeped two decent new (to Lexington) restaurants yesterday.

Beat: The Horse Capital of the World does not offer nighttime simulcasting. So even though three guys had the fever, we had to pack up and leave Keeneland because Sam Houston, Delta, etc. wasn't an option.

Variance: Went and got wings instead but still tasted them this (Sunday) morning.