Let’s call that a bad day at the track all the way around

That wasn’t even a good race if it had been a clean run.

So last week we did our traditional Kentucky Derby picks column and when the race came to its first end Saturday evening, I was already hearing a little “ching-ching” bells going off in my head.

Omaha Beach, one of my original picks, had scratched earlier in the week, and in choosing a replacement to bet on, I picked the horse with the next best credentials, Maximum Security.

By race time, the second Bob Baffert horse on my list was the line betting favorite going off at 9-2 odds. That win, on my modest $20 bet, would have returned me $110 and with a total of $60 invested at the betting window, I would have at least been ahead by some $50.

Then came the protest from two jockeys behind the first horse across the line claiming that the apparent winner had not only cut in front of them while coming off of the rail, but impacted at least one of the horses, impacting the progress of several horses behind him.

At first, when the disqualification was announced and I had no numbers in the final three finishers, I objected to the decision of the track stewards with the reasoning that if a horse is out in front, then surely he (or she) can pick its own path.

Then, after having the rules explained to me by those who actually know the sport and its rules, watching the replay again and again, and seeing the near catastrophic results that were nearly caused by Maximum Security’s “lurching” move, I changed my mind.

It was a good call and probably shouldn’t have taken nearly so long for the experts to make, but being the Kentucky Derby and all that was at stake, I’m sure they were looking for any way to not make the call to disqualify.

So, for 2019, the Kentucky Derby winner is . . . Country House (with an asterisk from here on out – I’m sure).

As for that jingle in my pocket that isn’t there – well there’s always next year. My one-time sports betting season is over, now that word has come that Maximum Security won’t be racing in the Preakness, meaning there will be no Triple Crown hopeful to bet on.

I’ll just chalk it up to a bad day at the track all the way around – except that no one, or no horse, got hurt, and everyone lives to race another day. That makes it a good day, after all.

Kentucky-Indiana All Star tickets now available.

Anyone interested in making the trip to Louisville next month, Friday, June 7, to watch Clinton County’s Jackson Harlan compete in the Kentucky-Indiana All Star game, tickets are now on sale.

Played at Bellarmine University’s Knights Hall, the boys’ game will tip at 7:00 p.m. central time and tickets can be purchased online for $15 at: kentuckybasketballcoaches.org

In the meantime – let’s take it outside for a few months!