Omen Bets for this week: Anything Rainbow related

Ah here we are, right as the Commonwealth Games get underway, we’re getting set for the last Saturday of the season with the rain pissing down on either side of the country, and like the event we didn’t really need, Moonee Valley returns for the first time since the night of the William Reid back in March.

In case you missed a bit of racing action this week, the midweek races at Doomben were delayed after Race 2 due to police having to access the back straight of the course to chase down a duo who had escaped from a stolen car, before the duo then jumped onto the roof of the stables at the 900m marker, where they were eventually apprehended:

Welcome to Queensland.

And last night, noted expat Sydney trainer Annabel Neasham had a horse running in the Magnolia Cup at Goodwood…

The only difference was, she was the jockey.

Zhui Feng finished 2nd, which isn’t that surprising when you remember Neasham is a Mongol Derby winner.

Other than that, what a forgettable Saturday ahead as we look forward to the horse’s birthday on Monday, which just happens to be the same day as the Darwin Cup at Fannie Bay, but first they’ll have to run the Palmerston Sprint, alongside other highlights like the Kimberley Cup at Broome, the listed Lightning Stakes at Morphetville, the most interesting thing to happen in South Australia since the Grand Prix, the re-running of the Listed Winter Challenge at Rosehill.

So as you can see, in a word, forgettable.

So it’s on to Crazy Colin, and I say with great delight that this is Colin’s last appearance as a substitute before Crazy Craig returns with an atomic sized bang next week, and in the time Colin has filled in for his lunatic mate, he’s picked up 1 win and 2 placings, and had just as many runners scratched due to poor weather.

A performance for the ages, so to go out a winner Colin has asked for an upbeat song to start him off, so I’ve plucked out Break My Stride by Matthew Wilder!

Pick of the Day: Chief Altony (No.14, Barrier 9) in Race 8 at Moonee Valley (MR9), 5:05pm AEST

1600m BM100 Ranvet Travis Harrison Cup

Trainer: Alex Rae, Jockey: Will Price (a1.5), 53kg

Hello hello everyone it’s Craaazy Colin here, and I’m bloody glad I don’t have to write this crap anymore, because I’m so bloody unlucky that if I fell over I wouldn’t even hit the damn ground!

Horses getting scratched due to rain, runners getting blocked for runs when they were going nicely, it’s ridiculous I tell you!

Maybe I’ll have to start doing what Craig does, giving himself good luck by stealing money to pay for scratchies that he then donates to other people!

Anyway, I’m going to see if we can go out a winner in the feature race at The Valley on Saturday, with the Travis Harrison Cup, named after a late young man who happened to be a cousin of Craig Williams, and I’ll do a Gary Harley and pick the favourite to win, CHIEF ALTONY.

The Chief as he likes to be known, ran in the Listed Winter Stakes at Randwick last start, and that was a very notable run, because he was going UP in grade and DROPPING BACK from 1600m to 1400m, and after being a travesty beaten in a run at Caulfield, he stuck on well and finished 3rd in a Listed race, which surely must translate well for this!

And, in addition to the form, the track conditions won’t be an issue, he’s run very well twice at The Valley before (Runner-up twice from 2 runs), and the young apprentice Will Price goes in the saddle, so instead of going in on the minimum of 53kg, he gets 1.5kg off and runs around with a featherweight of 51.5!

It looks like a decent bit of placement from trainer Alexander Rae, so all told I think Chief Altony is going to run a bottler, because he’s my PICK OF THE DAY.

Value Pick: Aramis (No.14, Barrier 3) E/W in Race 7 at Rosehill, 2:50pm AEST

1800m BM78 CG&E Special Achievement Shelby Sixtysix Handicap

Trainer: Mark Newnham, Jockey: Tyler Schiller (a2), 53.5kg

No idea what an Aramis is, but he was the Grafton Guineas winner last start, no weight on his back on a bog track…. I like it knackers, I LIKE IT!

Bruce Springsteen Value Pick: Born To Run (No.5, Barrier 8) in Race 2 at Morphetville (AR2), 12:28pm ACST

The highway’s jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive
Everybody’s out on the run tonight but there’s no place left to hide
Together Wendy we can live with the sadness
I’ll love you with all the madness in my soul

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Someday girl I don’t know when
We’re gonna get to that place
Where we really wanna go and we’ll walk in the sun
BUT TILL THEN TRAMPS LIKE US,
BABY WE WERE BORN TO RUNNNN!

Tramps like us,
BABY WE WERE BORN TO RUNNNN!

So that’s all from me, thanks for being amaused, and as always friends, stay safe, look after each other…. and don’t steal your neighbour’s tomatoes, but do feel free to drink his beer!