Sports

A RAY OF SUNSHINE

OCEANPORT, N.J. – If ever a racing state has an albatross around its neck it’s New Jersey.

Its thoroughbred industry has been in steep decline for 10 years because the political establishment is in the casino industry’s pocket.

Six years ago, the racetrack brass made a pitch for the Breeders’ Cup, with the idea of shoehorning the big event into their undersized Monmouth Park.

They got the nod, came up with $30 million to renovate the dilapidated premises, then set about transforming it into an acceptable venue. It was a monumental task, heroically executed against the odds.

Then three days before the launch, the rains came, turning Monmouth into a slush pile. This, after a summer drought. Finally, they caught a break in mid-afternoon Saturday when the sun shone through and Curlin unleashed one of the most memorable triumphs in the Cup’s 24-year history.

Then, in an instant, tragedy struck with the breakdown and destruction of George Washington. It was the last straw. Well, almost. Yesterday, for the post-race celebration breakfast, not one winning trainer or jockey showed up. They took the millions and ran.

New Jersey may not be God’s Little Acre, but it deserved better from the politicians, the elements and the participants.

If anyone suffered a bigger jinx at the Cup than New Jersey it was – me. Didn’t pick a winner, not one damn winner, all day. Yet I left the track Saturday evening with a pocketful of cash. Here’s the story:

Last week, as we shot the breeze on the backstretch, a guy came out of the crowd, introduced himself as Tommy Galeta, and asked if I would like to look at one of the best three-year-olds on the grounds who was a lock to win the Pegasus Stakes at a price in the first race on Saturday.

When a stable insider says he’s got a lock at a price, it tends to perk your interest.

“Who’s got him?” I asked Tommy.

“Bob Dibona,” he said. I had never met Dibona, but as a regular Monmouth patron I knew he was coming off an excellent meet with a high winning percentage.

We went to Barn 8. Dibona, a 45-year-old eager-beaver from Boston, showed me the horse, a handsome bay named Actin Good.

Bobby told how he and his lifetime school buddy, Darren Aikens, had bought Actin Good for $142,000 at the Ocala sales, a price way above anything they had ever bought.

It was a big gamble, but they had been down that road before. “After we left school, Darren and I went partners in a bar in Boston,” Bobby said. “We had it for 10 years, then one night we had a stabbing in the bar. We put it up for sale next morning and sold it.

“I went off to Hawaii for a week, taking the horse trainer’s book. I studied it on vacation, came back and got my trainer’s license.”

He and Darren began dabbling in horses, leading up to the Actin Good purchase. Right off, the horse showed promise – second in the Tyro, second in the Sapling at Monmouth last year.

After a shocking race at Gulfstream in January, they gelded Actin Good, freshened him and set him for the Pegasus. To get a race into him, Bobby, like a homing pigeon, took him up to Boston in an allowance around two turns at Suffolk Downs.

With Bobby’s favorite jock Cornelio Velasquez aboard, Actin Good cruised by nearly four lengths at 6-5. He was primed, ready for the kill in Jersey.

“The Pegasus is not an easy race, but he’ll love the slop and he’ll love going long,” said Bobby. “Besides, they’ve got him at 10-1 on the morning line and Cornelio and I have a 32 percent winning percentage.”

I wrote about Bobby’s confidence in Friday’s Post.

At the jump, Actin Good was 10-1 on the tote, with my money down. Velasquez put Actin Good on the lead and was never headed to win by a neck.

The winner’s circle was a riot with Bobby and Darren and the crew celebrating their first stakes winner, a $250,000 jackpot – and the promise of more to come.

Well, that was my Breeders’ Cup – a fiasco rescued by some good luck. How was yours?