Top 10 Things To Do On Train Ride to NYC

Tweet On our way to Barnes & Noble yesterday to make our weekly $25 investment in a new book and a latte we discovered a book sale (who could miss the 40 foot high 80% off sign) at the old B&N store and decided to check it out after breaking several traffic laws in the process (U-turn, improper lane change, speeding, etc. - now you know why the train choice). Well, we hit the motherlode. Four racing books, one business book, one Charles Barkley autobio and $32 later, it was all good. The register guy inquired..."you must like horses." Yep, that's correct, we exchanged pleasantries about the Belmont, the quarter crack and the like. More importantly, I added four nice books to my growing racing collection: Funny Cide by Sally Jenkens and the Sackatoga Team, Jerry Bailey by Bailey and Tom Pedulla, The Race for the Triple Crown by Joe Drape from The Rail, and My Turf by William Nack. Not one was more than $4.99 and all hard covers.

It's Belmont week and it's time to start planning the 8 1/2 hour train trek to Penn Station. So what better way but to blog the top ten things to entertain myself while chugging along to the Big Apple. Here goes:

1) Reread Steve Crist's Exotic Betting. Focus on the chapters on exacta, trifecta and multi-race plays. Stash away Dave Liftin's Expert Handicapping, always a good read and is DRF's Belmont handicapper who was on fire last year on Belmont Day.
2) Handicap the Belmont undercard, focusing on the $1M guaranteed late Pick Four ending with the Belmont. Note to self: Perform #1 before Performing #2.
3) Wait til the Space Gal falls asleep and flick her nose. Always high entertainment.
4) Call docgian on cell for important handicapping tips, he being one of the $133K '05 Derby trifecta ticket possessors. Me, I had Giacomo and Afleet Alex (3rd) in an exacta box, Closing Argument did me in, docgian, he had ALL in the two hole. Nice.
5) Get the reality TV update from the Space Gal. Tell her The Hills is "scripted," watch her face color change. Grab belly. Laugh.
6) Listen to newly downloaded song on ipod "Bad Luck" by Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes. Continue listening to ipod and try and catch a few winks to store up for what should be a sleepless weekend.
7) Sleep on side facing window to protect nose from counter-flicking.
8) Email the Toga Rez and crew at noon to see where rendezvous point is for happy hour.
9) Introduce diet coke to 50ML bottle of Bacardi (nice to meet you).
10) Repeat #9 until train pulls into Penn Station.

Those are the things I have planned for now (subject to change), I did find a site that posted what I can do if I'm bored after churning through the above....8, 10 and 16 are keepers.