Horse Racing: Now it's going to get exciting

Well everybody, it's February again and that means another Kentucky Derby trail. This is a great time of year for racing as we have several series of Derby preps going on in different circuits.

The Florida route has become a good one in recent years, with great races and good horses. The Florida Derby is a big race on the trail.

Fair Grounds is the new upstart, with good trainers opting for the deeper track. Most of those hoses go to Oaklawn.

Out west there are the California horses, who have run their races and had much success in later years.

The New York route has been disappointing in the last few years going in, but has produced on the back-end.

So where does a handicapper concentrate?

The answer is everywhere. There are a lot of good horses and it should make for good racing. Some of these races will be good to watch, possibly better races than any of the Triple Crown races later this year. My advice is to enjoy it all.

We have 446 horses entered in the Triple Crown so far, and not all of them will make it, but we have a great chance to develop favorites and outsiders. It's a great time to watch. This is the time of year where you might find that long shot who might pull off a great win during the Triple Crown races.

So, my big advice for the Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown season, in early February, is to watch as many of the prep races as you can and enjoy them.