Space Invasion: Toronto eh?

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I made my long awaited trek up to the Great White North up the "Queen E" yesterday to catch the daily double of afternoon racing at Woodbine and the nationally televised Bills game at the SkyDome (Rogers Centre). It was smooth sailing to Toronto from Buffalo and we posted a sub 1:45 to the entrance of Woodbine's racing emporium. I spent the afternoon in the Champions Lounge, a very comfortable place to catch the afternoon's events and ran outside for the first couple races to watch live.

I had the good fortune to finally meet Keith from TripleDeadHeat and enjoyed our time together both at the track and the football game. I also was introduced to activist Alex Brown and I enjoyed our time chatting about horses, racing and life in general. I hadn't been to Woodbine in several years and actually it was the first time I had ever seen the paddock setup (inside/underground) which is quite unique to say the least. We had a few beers and a few laughs and lost a few bucks (quite a normal combination for me).

With a serious headwind all day long and 40 degree temperatures, it was a good day to be spending in the Champions Lounge. I could see them holding a Breeders' Cup here again, with expansive parking lots and some great views from the grandstand. It's a major metropolitan city which could easily handle the event. One of the issues that would need to be resolved is setting up admission booths as it currently is a free walk-in facility.

A close finish in Race 2 with longshot Jet Set Exec taking it at $22.70.

A shot of the indoor paddock area and Eurico Da Silva jumping about Street Gold before Race 3 (he finished third).

Madam Inspector ($6.50) took the third just ahead of my selection (do you notice a pattern here?) Sweet Dahlia in Race 4. Hot bug boy Omar Moreno up.

From Woodbine, it was off to downtown Toronto to catch the Bills/Jets game. Just outside the Rogers Centre is one of the world's coolest structures, the CN Tower which looms over the domed stadium.

Not the best result for Bills fans last night, but we did end up in some pretty decent seats on the 40 yd line. All in all it was a great day in metro Toronto.