Kentucky Derby 2016: The Year of the Dark Horse?

An Early Correction: Oscar Nominated was Born March 26th and Is Not a Twin! Thank you, James!

Trying to handicap this year's Kentucky Derby has been no easy matter, if you have been reading the columns of the handicappers (and with Mercury Retrograde). While there is a clear favorite in the undefeated Nyquist, many are betting against him because — and this is true of all of the horses — he suffers in comparison with last year's Triple Crown Winner, American Pharoah and the year before's California Chrome. As some have put it, this year's crop has a "case of the slows." This makes the race wide open — and opens up the possibility of a long shot — and the ability to leverage a $2 bet into a lot of money!

Twins, Twins, Twins, Twins

Once again, I have ferreted out the contenders' birthdays, and what do you think? This year, we have three (3, not 4!) pairs of horses with the same birthdays: Suddenbreakingnews and Mohayman on May 2nd, Gun Runner and Outwork on May 8th, and Trojan Nation and Brody's Cause on March 17th! (See table below.)

Never have we needed astrology more. Never did the stars look murkier than they do this year. Why? Well, all we have is the birth day. We do not know the hour of birth, which would tell us the all-important Rising Sign (the Sun goes through the zodiac every day) and, in some cases, where the Moon was exactly, which would enable us to distinguish among these pairs.

The Day's Aspects

What are the Heavens telling us or giving us today (that is, Saturday)? The Sun, of course, is in Taurus, the goodly, Earthy Sign which helps us to Make Money. The Moon moves from being New in Taurus the day before, Friday, into Gemini, ruled by Mercury (which I believe governs horseracing). And Mercury is Retrograde (appearing to Go Backward in the Sky).

The dominant aspect in the sky is Sun in Taurus trine Deep Pluto in Capricorn, at 9:03 AM EDT. This may favor The imagery reinforces the idea of power coming from deep below.

Hey, wait! Isn't the New Moon called the Dark of the Moon? Isn't Gemini the Sign of the Twins? Doesn't Pluto signify genealogy and heritage coming from way underground? Are we beginning to get a picture, maybe of the Proverbial "Dark Horse," the long shot horse, but with deep pedigree, that comes from the back of the back to snatch the win? Maybe a "closer," as they call it in handicapping circles? Someone who will catch up with and beat the faster horses toward the front of the pack? And aren't there a lot of gray horses in this year's field?

Well, we needed something more.

Something More: Where Fortuna Sings

And just in the nick of time, I have came up with a Stunning Idea, an idea which I think will help in picking this year's winner (and may be even a Trifecta or Superfecta)! The insight came from looking at the chart of Songbird, the beautiful filly, which everyone thought would be the sure winner of the Kentucky Oaks! Now, Songbird is a three-year-old, and many judge her to be the absolute best three-year-old thoroughbred around — male or female. Unfortunately, she came down with a fever and she will not be competing at Churchill Downs this meet. (Her connections say that she will be okay, however — what a relief! — and is sure to run many other races in the coming months.)

But let us consider the chart of this phenomenon. She was born on April 30th of 2013, and thus has her Sun in Taurus and Moon in Capricorn — very Earthy. But what else made her special? Well, it was Fortuna, one the largest asteroids in the main asteroid belt, "dark in color." Fortuna is the Roman goddess of luck, both good and bad, and in Songbird's case, she conjunct Songbird's Mercury, the planet ruling horseracing! No wonder Songbird is so fleet of foot! Very interesting!

This discovery led me to study American Pharoah, California Chrome, and other Kentucky Derby winner's Fortuna positions. What a motherlode of gold! In the cases of California Chrome and Secretariat, Fortuna was trine (harmonious 120-degree angle) Mercury! In other's cases, Fortuna was found at 0 degrees Capricorn or conjunct Uranus (thought to be the "higher order" planet of Mercury). Rachel Alexandra, the 2009 winner of the Kentucky Oaks who went on to beat the boys in the Preakness, the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Haskell Invitational, and the Woodward Stakes at Saratoga, had Fortuna trine Mercury. Eureka! To make a long story short, this resulted in the findings in the last, "Fortuna," column in the table below.

The Dark Horse Short List

You can come to your own conclusions, but adding in the Fortuna aspects, I came up with this "short list" of Fortuna-blessed horses: 1 - Lani, Fortuna conjunct Mercury, 2 - Majesto, also with Fortuna conjunct Mercury, 3, 4, and 5 - Gun Runner, Nyquist, and Outwork, Fortuna at the Aries point (0 degrees Aries), and 6 - Creator, Fortuna sextile (60-degree, initiating angle) Jupiter, thought to be the Luckiest Planet in the Solar System. Put in some points for deep closers and horses with 10-furlough, sterling pedigrees and there is "plenty of fodder" there for some nice Trifecta or Superfecta combinations, many of which would add up to very large payoffs! (Also see Oscar Nominated, with Fortuna conjunct his Sun and Uranus!)

Not a "dark horse," since he is the favorite, but it is interesting to note that Nyquist was born on a New Moon day, showing his constant ability to renew himself, start over, and come up with a win. This may be the astrological reason why he is the current Number 1.

There you have it for Kentucky Derby 2016, which I believe will be the "Year of the Dark Horse"!

And please, if you bet, do not wager more than $8-10 a day! Remember, you can only win if it's "Your Lucky Times"! Good luck!!

Yours in Good Fortune,

Lucky Star

* Please do not use these as the post numbers, if you are playing. Consult your own cards to lay any bets.

** Sextile = 60 degrees, an "initiating" angle that "gets things started"

*** Aries point is 0 degrees Aries, a "World Point," like 0 degrees Capricorn