Visibility became an issue during a snowstorm Saturday evening at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky. Track announcer Jimmy McNerney was unable to see the horses rounding the far turn in the fourth race due to the snow, and got a little bit creative with his race call.
“They continue to race around the turn, and your guess as good as mine with about a quarter mile to go,” McNerney said on the live feed. “Up top it's somebody who just leads somebody there in second, and a couple lengths back somebody is coming after a quarter in 1:13 and four. They run to the top of the stretch, it's absolutely wide open!”
Watch the race from far turn through the stretch run here:
McNerney laughed about the call when reached by phone on Monday, saying he'd received a lot of positive feedback from racing participants and fans.
“You just try to pick them out, relay what you see, and when you can't see you just don't want dead air,” said McNerney. “I've always had some things in my head, especially if it was football or baseball season or something, but obviously there's nothing going on right now because of COVID, so that's just what came out!”
McNerney is also a jockey's agent, representing Turfway-based riders DeShawn Parker and Rafael Hernandez.
Saturday's race reminded McNerney of a similar issue with visibility at Turfway under retired track announcer Mike Battaglia. On Jan. 22, 2012, a dense fog covered the backstretch of the track, and Battaglia used the time to make up an advertisement for the track's gift shop.
Watch Battaglia's call here:
The post ‘Your Guess As Good As Mine’: Announcer McNerney Gets Creative During Snowstorm At Turfway appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
