Happy New Year, Space Cadets

Tweet Happy New Year to all that follow this blog. 2010 has been very good to me and I owe a debt of gratitude to those who visit, have befriended me and have provided me opportunities over the past year.

2010 had a lot of highlights for me and the blog that included:

- The entrance of the Space Filly in November, whose barely a month old. I look forward to her first track visit, she's got some catching up to do!

- A successful initial endeavor with ThoroFan resulting in a new collaboration with the TBA to provide a weekly Handicappers' Corner. I'm told that it generates a solid number of weekly hits and we've given out some terrific winners in 2010 (highlighted by Joe Nevills' 20-1 shot Exhi in the Blue Grass Stakes). We'll be gunning up the 2011 Corner in January for a second consecutive year.

- Speaking of ThoroFan, I was honored to be asked to sit on their Board of Directors in October and look forward to a long relationship with this non-for-profit 501c3 into the future.

- I participated in the inaugural Wireplayers.com Derby Dozen which was a great exercise that we all had a lot of fun with.

- I was fortunate to add 3 more initial track visits (Space Invasions) this year, Finger Lakes, Aqueduct and Pimlico (for the Preakness), ironically two of the three are located in my home state.

- My Belmont Stakes streak is intact at five. The Space Gal and I watched from the finish line to see Drosselmeyer upset the field and had a great day at Big Sandy.

- Calling the Derby exacta cold (and hitting the Oaks-Derby Double cold with my man Ernie), and winning an iPad to boot in a Horse Racing Nation contest.

- The Space Kid added the fourth track to his young life in January on Sunshine Millions Day at Gulfstream. By age two, he's been to Churchill, Keeneland, Saratoga and Gulfstream....not too shabby.

- Finally, in the being in the right place at the right time category, being asked to fill the huge shoes of Bob Summers as the racing correspondent for The Buffalo News, was certainly the highlight of my "racing year." You can check out my year in review from yesterday's paper. Thanks to everyone who helped me make this leap of faith from the blogging ranks.

I'd say 2010 was quite a year after reviewing the highlights above. I look forward to 2011 and am resolved to continue to post and have fun with this blog. I appreciate the regular readers and commenters (Norm!), my fellow TBA'ers and those who happen to stop by on occasion to see what's cooking in the Space Lab. And finally a special thanks to the Saratoga Resident who introduced me to this sport a short seven years ago....who knew?

Happy New Year.