Humans are Disappearing Far Below the Streets in the $100,000 ESR Zygon Invasion

A field of Nine New York Bred’s ages Three Years Old and Up will enter the Vermont starting gate in the $100,000 ESR Zygon Invasion. The race will be run at Nine Furlongs over the Turf Course. “This is your country. Protect it from the scary monsters. And also from the Zygons.”

MAYBRY’S STRIKE – the 4-Year Old Light Grey Colt by Maybry’s Boy out of a Smart Strike suffered the worst defeat of his career LTO when he finished more than 35 lengths back in the ESR Meemaw Materialization; the five prior starts for the ace trained NY Bred were just short of spectacular, and his 3^rd place finish in the ESR Locomotion Interruption, a race where multiple Graded winners were entered, more than qualifies him for top billing against the Local circuit; I wish I could easily toss out that last start and blame it on the distance, but he’s shown that, even if not his ideal distance, is certainly one he can navigate;  comes back off a two month layoff and does run well fresh…your call

AB FAB III – the casino trained 4-Year Old Bay Colt by Alpha out of a Medaglia D’oro mare has certainly been a different horse since switching over to the Turf Course; turned in a sharp effort LTO in the ESR Time of Angels sprint, but it is his win in his previous start in Open Allowance conditions that earn him high marks in today’s affair; has all the looks of a horse ready to advance to the next level and finds himself in a good spot to graduate…on edge

THRILLHOUSE – the beisbol connections undoubtedly saw something in this 4-Year Old son of Trinneberg when they claimed him for 40k back in November; maybe it was his win in his only Turf appearance or the presence of Theatrical on the Dam side that prompted the bold move to enter into a Turf Route Stakes, but the decision paid immediate dividends when the NY Bred finished 3^rd in the Local Bred Win Stakes at 9-furlongs; continued success against the Local circuit over the Turf Course encouraged his new connections to step out into an Open Company Allowance LTO where he turned in a credible effort but was denied his late foot in the stretch drive; back with his own kind in this ESR feature, expect an improved effort and a stretch presence from this Bay Gelding…chance off best

LT’S SHARK – desperate to come up with an entry for this ESR feature, I tossed my 4-Year Old Bay Colt Dirt sprinter into a 9-furlong Turf Hot Race LTO to see if he would make a good candidate for this race; after all he did run a decent Turf sprint as a 2yo and he is a son of Smart Bid, so a Turf route was not out of the question; alas beating a weak field with a 70-speed figure left me no wiser than I was coming into this race…must show more NINE ROADS – kingab has been loading up on his NY Breds which may spell trouble for ESR Residents somewhere down the road, but his current crop hasn’t been too bad and this 3-Year Old Bay Colt by Bellamy Road, although in tough here, may be one to put on your Watch List going forward; still in the experimental stage, connections are willing to enter him competitively against the ESR circuit; but his best racing will come in the sprint variety of 6.5 / 7-furlong distances…not with these

KNICKERBOCKER AVE – you have to admire the confidence the ruffian36 connections have in the veteran 6-Year Old Bay Horse by Boys at Tosconova; the NY Bred never backs down from a fight as evidenced by his seven starts in Open Company Stakes races; the elder statesman of the field has had some success in ESR Races, finishing on the board in two of three starts, but winless in almost 2 years and a preference toward sprinting minimize his chances of breaking that long drought; could find himself facing the knife after start #33 and a claiming tag away from the winner’s circle…glory days

TIME TO ENDORSE – claimed for $12.5k from the gowans stables, the 5-Year Old Brown Horse by Rule has not met with the usual kind of results we have grown accustomed to seeing from an aladar claim; Turf routes have been less than spectacular, and in his 32^nd start, it’s hard to see this NY Bred improving enough to compete here…look elsewhere I BET CADET – I’m usually find mysef waxing poetic over cadet ESR entries, and while this 5-Year Old Brown Gelding by Desert Party not without merit, I am left as uninspired with his HOT Race win LTO as I am with my own horses Hot Race win; having said that, this NY Bred has a little more Turf foundation than mine with wins in 3 of 6 starts over the lawn, and while moving up in Class, could turn in a solid effort…might surprise

TOHO PRO – second entry from the aladar stables, this 5-Year Old Dark Grey Horse by Polish Pro looks the stronger of the two; sure, this NY Bred is way over his head, but don’t tell him that, with first or second place finishes in 14 of 17 lifetime starts, he knows only one thing; compete…popped a 104 LTO, a career best and first triple digit of his career, so you know he is in top racing form…stranger things have happened

Handicapping the Field This is an unusual race as far as ESR races are concerned in that the race in that there is no real clear-cut choice and the horse that is racing in top form might have a distinct advantage despite Class.   AB FAB III just looks like a horse that’s about to turn the corner, hails from solid connections and should have little trouble navigating the 9 panels; THRILLHOUSE is a much-improved horse that has big race potential; MAYBRY’S STRIKE is certainly the horse to beat here, but his last start is a major concern; slight edge to I BET CADET over LT’S SHARK.

The Picks AB FAB III – just looks ready

MAYBRY’S STRIKE – taking a leap of faith here

THRILLHOUSE – connections like this one, so do I