New Haven Independent

Burton stood with his friend Bob Ochman amid a crowd of thousands at the Sports Haven off-track betting arena Saturday. At 6:04 p.m., all eyes turned to the wall of the enormous atrium, where the much-awaited Kentucky Derby race flashed across four screens. (Click on the play arrow above to watch some highlights.)

Ochman and Burton (left to right in photo), who’ve been buddies since high school, had front-row seats at the Shark Bar in the center of the room. Burton was rooting for an undefeated chestnut colt named Big Brown, who was favored 2-1 to win.

“Big Brown” had a special meaning for the pair: It was also the name of Burton’s 1960 convertible Pontiac Bonneville, in which they could be found cruising a few decades ago.

“We sunk it in Fairfield once,” on a flooded road road that dipped below the railroad tracks, Ochman recalled with a chuckle. “There were six feet of water. It was floating.”

The friends said they took an extended smoke break and returned when the water had receded. They rescued the car and kept cruising on.

Burton has since moved to Branford. Ochman lives in Westville. They don’t see each other all too much — just for the Triple Crown, the series of major horse races kicked off by the Derby in May. They reminisced, finishing each other’s sentences, between sips from ice-filled cups.

“C’mon baby!” cried Ochman as the spirit of their departed cruiser broke through the pack and zoomed to a first-place finish.

The colt won by a definitive 4 and 3/4 lengths.

“Yeah Big Brown!” exclaimed Burton, raising one for his old Bonneville, now resting in its grave.

Over 4,200 people poured into the arena Saturday to place bets on America’s greatest horse race.

The grand event brought together old friends like Ann and Bernice, two widows from West Haven who took up horse-watching after their husbands passed on. Ann (pictured) was rooting for her son’s namesake, Colonel John.

“I’m having a great time!” she said, even though the bar had no mint juleps. “All this excitement for two seconds!”

Mario Bonetti and Harold Morrison (pictured, left to right), who met that afternoon while sharing a table, exchanged picks before the game. Morrison, who’s from New Haven, was rooting for horse Number Eight. (He couldn’t recall the name.) Bonetti, of the Shelton Senior Center, was pulling for Eight Belles, the only female in the race.

“If she wins, it’s going to be a new era,” said Bonetti. The last time a filly won the Derby was 20 years ago.

Eight Belles’ rise to the top proved tragic: After crossing the finish line in second place, she collapsed. She had broken her two front ankles. She was euthanized right on the track.

An End Of An Era?

Perched at a table mid-morning placing some early bets before the arena turned into a “zoo,” two regulars pondered the end of an era.

Joe and Tony, two white-haired Italian men, have been betting on horses at Sports Haven ever since the iconic arena opened at 600 Long Wharf Drive in 1979. The pair, who declined to give their full names, have been friends for 40 years.

“We used to date sisters,” Tony said. “He married one. I didn’t.”

Tony lives in East Haven. Joe lives in West Haven. They meet at Sports Haven three times a week to bet on the many horse races showing on the TV screens.

“The only way you can be a winner is if you win and you don’t come back,” said Joe, who’s been betting on horses for 50 years. In the pari-mutuel betting system, the house always win, since it takes a cut of the pool before bettors get paid. Joe said he doesn’t come expecting victory — just some excitement and fun.

Last fall, the men learned that owners had put their favorite hangout on the market. Staff cited dwindling crowds: While Derby Day found the arena brimming with cheers and tickets, most Saturdays only draw a few hundred bettors, leaving tiers of balcony seats empty.

Sports Haven has committed to relocating within New Haven, at a downsized site, according to Karyn Gilvarg, who heads the New Haven City Plan Department.

“We love Sports Haven,” Gilvarg said. In addition to property taxes, the arena gives the city a cut of wagering revenues, paying the city a total of about $1.5 million dollars per year. The 10-acre property is currently assessed at $7 million.

“If I had all the money I’ve lost, I probably could have bought it,” said Tony. He and Joe headed home to watch the game from the comfort of their living rooms.

A Good Luck Charm

Meanwhile, betting fervor ran high as the arena filled with the whoops and curses, high hopes and empty pockets that come with a day at the races.

On a fourth-floor roof overlooking the Long Island Sound, patrons of balcony VIP suites stepped outside for a cigarette break.

“Keep off my tomato plants,” joked a longtime Sports Haven enthusiast. He directed smokers away from a small garden section, complete with freshly watered basil.

The tomato guardian said he’d been placing wagers since he popped out of his mother’s womb: “When the doctor slapped me on the ass, I said 8 to 5 I don’t breathe for three seconds.” He took out a good luck charm from his breast pocket — a small, white, hand-carved horse head.

“It’s never let me down,” he said, heading back inside.