There were still a few hours until the race and Mike Ambler was antsy, chomping at the bit you might say. It was the Whitby, ON resident’s biggest day as a horse owner; 10-fold bigger than any race day he has been involved in through his 10 years with a small stable.
His 2-year-old-filly, Catch a Glimpse, also owned by his friends Jeff Begg and Greg Lang as well as U.S.-based movie producer Gary Barber (more on that later), was set to run in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Filly Turf at horse racing’s 32nd edition of the two-day showcase of the best horses and humans.
The Breeders’ Cup host track this year, the elegant Keeneland racecourse in Kentucky, was crammed with celebrities, dignitaries, horse folks and fans. Ambler had snuck away from his friends and family to place his bets on the day’s races early. He waited in one line only to be told he was in the wrong queue. He went to the next line, waited again but when he got to the person behind the counter he was told he could not bet there.