Vibe Check: Siro's Cup
Meeting mystery men at the official kickoff to racing season. Plus: bikes for all, NYCB prep and more.
If you’re going to Siro’s Cup, you want to be seen. But that doesn’t mean you want people to know your name.
“My married name is Slippery Pete,” one particularly evasive attendee told me at the Center for Disability Services fundraiser on Wednesday evening. “I’m a drifter.” Clearly none of that was true, and through some serious investigative reporting (20 Questions) I deduced that he’s Steven Schaap, president of Albany’s Safeguard Waste Solutions. I think. “Talk to Greg instead,” Slippery Pete said, trying to divert my attention to a friend. “He’s the most interesting man in the world.”
Then there was Money, formerly known as J Money, formerly known as…well no one’s really sure. “He goes by J Money—that’s actually a true story,” Melissa Osick explained after I snapped a picture of them. “I don’t know his real name. I’ve called him that for five years. Even his wife calls him that. But he recently dropped the J.”
And I can’t forget the relative of a divisive New York congresswoman, who cringed visibly when I asked him for his name. “Matt…” he started. “…Stefanik. OK, I’m leaving now.”
Of course, there were plenty of guests at the 30th annual event who needed no introduction: Kim and Leigh McConchie, who we just featured in the new issue of Saratoga Living; Sackatoga Stable Managing Partner Jack Knowlton; Yono’s co-owner Dominick Purnomo; Jim and Tina Bond of Bond Racing Stables, who were the evening’s honorees; and Vibe Check alum and my favorite Saratoga couple Dave Wojeski and Amy Fernandez, aka Wojo and Yes Please. “I still don’t have a f***ing pool,” Amy said, picking up the conversation about Dave building a pool in her backyard right where we’d left off at this past December’s murder mystery dinner. Dave, on the other hand, was preoccupied with insulting my friends and me in the way only he can. “Oh, is this your OnlyFans?” he asked when I handed him my business card.
After spending some time on the dance floor getting down to music by Ten Most Wanted, we caught back up with Dave, Amy and a slew of other party attendees at The Coat Room, which was a fitting nightcap for an event of Siro’s Cup’s caliber. (The fact that it was Siro’s Cup night hadn’t quite registered with the bar staff, who had gone into their shifts thinking it’d be an early night.) We shut the bar down before heading to Desperate Annie’s, where the impending opening day energy was palpable and the bathroom was just as grungy as I remember. We easily got to talking with a group of racing fans at the bar, one of whom was from California. While both of us knew we’d most likely never cross paths again, that didn’t stop him from bidding me farewell in the proper Opening Day Eve way: “See you tomorrow!”
—Natalie
Scroll down to the bottom of this post to see more party pics from Siro’s Cup.
Addendum
In a crazy coincidence, I did run into the Californian on opening day—in the box seats of all places. “Aren’t you the guy I was talking to at DA’s last night?” I asked. He didn’t seem to hear me, walked away, then registered what I had said and turned around. “I don’t know,” he said, seemingly appalled that I would bring up his presence at a dive bar in such a setting. “Maybe.”
Quote of the Week:
“My second wife isn’t even born yet.”
—Overheard at Unified Beerworks
Like Riding a Bike
Thanks to a donation facilitated by Saratoga Shredders, students in all six Saratoga Springs elementary schools will now be able to learn to ride a bike, regardless of financial barriers. Each school received 24 balance bikes, pedal conversion kits and helmets, as well as a learn-to-ride PE curriculum. “We’ve seen the impact that access to mountain bike programming has had on girls in Saratoga Springs,” said Saratoga Shredders founder Anna Laloë. “We know that we can affect the entire district and generation of kids with this initiative.” To learn more about Saratoga Shredders, check out our SLAH Ride Along.
We’re Floored
Most people don’t know the amount of work that goes into New York City Ballet’s summer residency in Saratoga Springs. While media are invited to attend Monday’s annual load-in of all the costumes and sets, the work that went on behind the scenes this week wasn’t publicized. “We had to rig all the backdrops that will be used for different scenes throughout the ballet,” says Saratogian Sam Hartz, who sets up for SPAC shows as a side job. “There were 108 pieces of hardwood ballet floor that needed to be put down, and then we had to lay down an air-tight black mat, which the lighting crew marks up. Then we took it all up for Dave.” In total, about 60 people worked 9am-5pm on Monday, 2pm-midnight on Tuesday and 2pm-5am on Wednesday. And that’s just on the one project. “There’s a whole other team coordinating truss mounts for lighting, electrics and riggers up top,” Sam says. “DMB has nine tractor trailers for their show and Jason Aldean has 13.”
ICYMI
Saratogians’ love for the racetrack is never so evident as in the wee hours of opening day, when a line forms outside the gate to reserve a coveted picnic table for the afternoon’s races. When the gates open, avid racing fans take off, sprinting to their favorite table, tablecloths in hand. The Time Union captured the fervor perfectly above. You can also check out a video of the mad dash on CBS 6 News’ Instagram.
From the Mag
In addition to the opening of the track, this week also marked the release of “The Races!” issue, Saratoga Living’s biggest edition of the year. Read the digital version here, or check out our stories on NYRA analyst Acacia Clement, artist Nick Martinez’s 2023 Saratoga Race Course painting, and new track announcer Frank Mirahmadi.
More Scenes From Siro’s Cup
