Opening Day attendance this year was the biggest in the track's history - it even surpassed the attendance set on the day in 1976 when Dare and Go beat Cigar in the Pacific Classic (this is Del Mar's big kahuna million dollar race). In 1976 the attendance was 44,181 - this year's Opening Day attendance was 44,907. However, just because I didn't subject myself to all the craziness that is known as "Opening Day" I still placed my bets. The track has "Early Bird Betting" wherein one can go to the track between 9 and 10 AM and make one's bets before the track opens at noon (gates open at 11:30 on the weekends). Opening Day usually results in chalky (the "chalk" is the favored betting choice) payoffs, due to part to the fact that a goodly portion of the people who come on Opening Day don't have a clue as to how to handicap the races and bet, resulting in screwed up odds. However, this year there were a few races that proved semi- profitable for long shots bettors such as me. Let's hope the remainder of the meet starts bringing in those long shots Del Mar is known for!
