The only good thing I can say about racing being cancelled last weekend at Del Mar is that I didn't have to lose another round in the track's Beat Ray Everyday online handicapping contest.
But with the return of racing on Friday kicking off a four-day, stakes-packed weekend at the seaside track, I am loaded for bear … literally.
Chris Fallica, the ESPN College GameDay personality known as The Bear and a skilled horseplayer in his own right, has been recruited by Del Mar to trounce challenge me in the second celebrity round of Beat Ray Everyday.
As its name implies, Beat Ray Everyday is an online contest offered every racing day of the Del Mar summer meet. It's free to play and you can still sign up here. All you have to do is bet a mythical $100 each day on the selected contest race in win, place or show bets on any horse or horses. You can read the specific rules here. At the end of the meet, the player with the highest bankroll with those wagers becomes the “Beach Boss” and wins two VIP tickets to the 2021 Breeders' Cup at Del Mar. Other prizes are available to top finishers and anyone who finishes ahead of me is entered in a drawing for even more prizes.
Every Saturday, a racing or sports celebrity will be a guest handicapper and take their turns beating me like a drum.
The Bear will join fellow handicapper Michelle Yu and me on Saturday at 11 a.m. PT on Del Mar's social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube) to handicap the day's contest race, the Grade 2 San Clemente Stakes for 3-year-old fillies going a mile on turf as the ninth race. Tune in to hear our handicapping strategies and our bets for the contest.
Based on his Tweet, The Bear seems a bit overconfident going into this round.
I've spent hours reviewing replays and poring over past performances for the San Clemente. By any estimation, it's a wide-open race, though I'm pretty sure I've found the right horse, the late-running Irish-bred Croughavouke from the barn of Jeff Mullins. She's 6-1 on the morning line and overdue for a winning race after recording three seconds and a third in seven U.S. starts.
Despite that confidence Croughavouke, I'm placing a hedge bet on 15-1 outsider Over Attracted, who spent her early days in France and will be making her second U.S. start for trainer Carla Gaines and jockey Mike Smith.
Ray's Beat Ray Everyday plays:
July 10: $100 win on Hit the Road. Result: Won and paid $5.20 ($260 total)
July 11: $100 win on Voodoo Song. Result: Fifth as 2.90-1 favorite
July 12: $100 win on Going to Vegas. Result: Sixth at 6.10-1
July 24: $50 win/place on Surrender Now. Result: To come
July 25: $40 win/place Croughavouke; #20 win Over Attracted: Result: To come
The post Beat Ray At Del Mar Online Contest: A Bear Trap On The Beach appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
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