Back in '94, I had a Labrador named Jake. One day I stopped at what was basically a 7-Eleven to grab a six-pack. I was only going to be inside for five minutes. Jake stayed in the car. When I walked back outside...my car was gone. At first, I wasn't even worried. I lived only two or three blocks away, and I figured one of my college roommates had played a prank and taken the car home.
Remember, this was 1994. No cell phones.
So I walked home. When I got there, none of my roommates knew anything about it. That's when reality hit. Someone had stolen my car...with Jake still inside.
I called the police and filed a report, but there wasn't much else I could do except hope.
Three days later, the police found my car at a boat ramp about 25 miles away.
It was out of gas. There were ashes all through the inside. But there was no Jake.
It appeared a couple of crackheads had stolen the car, gone on a joyride, and somewhere along the way Jake had disappeared.
I was devastated.
Then came the fourth morning.
I was asleep, dreaming, when I vaguely heard my neighbor outside say, "Is that you, Jake?"
I honestly thought it was part of the dream.
Then I heard paws racing up the stairs.
A second later...
A dog launched himself onto my bed.
I opened my eyes.
It was Jake.
Somehow, after being taken more than 25 miles away, he had survived, escaped, and found his way back home.
To this day, I have no idea how he did it.
But I'll never forget waking up from what I thought was the best dream of my life...
...only to realize it was real.
Jake had come home.
One of my favorite Saratoga Opening Day memories...
Back in July of 2010, I flew from Panama to Norfolk, Virginia, where I met my father. From there, Captain Slammy drove us 14 hours to reach Opening day at The Spa. It felt more like a fraternity road trip than a horseplayer's pilgrimage.
Somewhere outside New York City, my dad was buried in the past performances. He looked over and asked,
"Who are you handicapping?"
I smiled.
"What's Saratoga's area code?"
"518," he answered.
"Perfect... I'm boxing 5-1-8 in the first."
He laughed.
"Good luck."
Then, just before the first race, the racing gods rewrote my ticket.
The #8 scratched.
So I substituted the #7 and boxed 5-1-7 instead.
A few minutes later...
They hit the wire in a photo finish.
It felt like an eternity waiting for the numbers to flash.
Then the tote board lit up...
5-1-7.
I just stood there staring at the board.
That trifecta box turned into more than $15,000.
My dad just shook his head and smiled.
For the rest of the Saratoga meet, everyone called me "The Area Code Boy."
To this day, it's still one of my favorite Saratoga memories....What's yours?
🚨 THE BIGGEST BILLFISH TOURNAMENT ON THE EAST COAST!!
The 68th Annual Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament returns to Morehead City, NC 🇺🇸🎣
💰 Projected Purse: $7.7 MILLION+
📍 Big Rock Landing
📅 June 5–14, 2026
Blue marlin. Big money. Legendary boats. Absolute chaos at the scales.
If you love offshore fishing, this is the Super Bowl of sportfishing 🐟🔥
Whose your boat?
Lets Go Kennedy Carol!
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Cain't wait til https://t.co/Ig1u7y0hZa is live on Saturday the 6th of June. If you have not tuned into the show...get ready. He is going to analyze every race on the card at Saratoga with TrackBuddyAI.
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