The following appeared in The Martinsville Bulletin and was written by Ben Williams 

COLLINSVILLE-The Windmill at the Quality Inn Dutch Inn opened its doors Saturday, bringing off-track betting back to Henry County.

Roy Chambers, general manager of The Windmill, said that Saturday was a soft opening for the establishment and that a grand opening will take place later this month, possibly around St. Patrick’s Day on March 17.

The Windmill is located within the Dutch Inn where The Flying Dutchman bar was formerly located. Those familiar with the Flying Dutchman shouldn’t expect that same experience when they come to The Windmill, Chambers said; after massive renovations, The Windmill is – if you’ll pardon the expression – a horse of a different color.

The Windmill OTB features 45 TVs and 10 betting stations. The site handled over $36,000 in its first day March 3rd.

“We have all new fixtures and all new equipment,” Chambers said. “We’re running 45 televisions, which was a big conversion. 22 of the televisions will be running races all day long. We’ll be doing an array of sports channels on the other televisions.”

The Windmill will feature a family-friendly sports bar atmosphere, Chambers said, as opposed to the more adult atmosphere of the former Flying Dutchman.

The sports bar also features a new menu, Chambers said, which staff spent weeks designing in an effort to create dishes that both fit the off-track betting/sports bar theme and are also unique from other restaurant offerings in the area.

One of the main draws, of course, is off-track betting: State-sanctioned satellite wagering on horse racing. The satellite wagering is operated by the Virginia Equine Alliance (VEA) operating as “Virginia Bets.”

If someone is interested in wagering on a race but doesn’t have the first idea where to get started, Chambers said not to be intimidated. Staff at The Windmill will be happy to offer a helping hand.

“The Virginia Bets folks are going to be here,” Chambers said. “We have people working at the teller stations. The manager will be helping people. If you want to learn how (to wager), we’re going to teach you. Don’t be put off; just come in, and we’ll have somebody that will help you in whatever direction you want to go.”

“If you don’t want to bet, we’re still happy to have you,” Chambers continued. “We want you to come in and enjoy a beverage and our new menu and watch basketball, football, baseball, boxing … we’re going to have a wide selection of sports on TV as well.”

Chambers estimated that the renovations necessary to create The Windmill cost a little more than $400,000.

“It’s a big difference,” he said. “A lot brighter, a lot fresher. It’s a whole different atmosphere from what the community had been used to.”

Already, Chambers said, The Windmill has received a strong response. He estimated that about 15 people called the Dutch Inn per day over the last two months asking when The Windmill would open.

“I think that’s also going to help us as well with our occupancy for the hotel rooms,” he said. “We’ve gotten calls from as far away as Charlotte, N.C. and Fredericksburg.”

The creation of The Windmill also added about 30 jobs in Henry County, Chambers said, between additional Dutch Inn staff and Virginia Bets staff.

“This is a fresh new look, a whole new way of doing things and a great benefit to Henry County,” he said.

The following appeared in The Paulick Report March 4th.

Woodslane Farm’s Sadler’s Joy went around the entire 12-horse field, bursting from last-to-first to win Saturday’s Grade 2 Mac Diarmida at Gulfstream Park. The 5-year-old son of Kitten’s Joy, ridden by Julien Leparoux for trainer Tom Albertrani, was off as the 9-5 favorite. In his first run since the Breeders’ Cup, Sadler’s Joy completed 1 3/8 miles over the firm turf in 2:12.93, besting frontrunning One Go All Go by a half-length on the wire.

“It was kind of the same old running style with him,” said Albertrani. “He makes you sweat it out for two minutes. He doesn’t really pick up his feet from the time they leave the gate. He finally picks up the pieces late. He has such a strong kick. He really turns the motor on.”

Sadler’s Joy, raised at Woodslane Farm in The Plains, VA, captured the Grade 2 Mac Diarmida Stakes at Gulfstream. Photo courtesy of Coglianese Photography.

One Go All Go jumped well from the gate, streaking to the lead around the far turn for the first time. He tried to run off with Chris Landeros a bit heading into the stretch, but settled into a rhythm to set fractions of :24.06, :48.48, and 1:13.41 in the early going. One Go All Go was tracked by Mark It Off and Big Bend, with Oscar Nominated not far behind on the outside.

Approaching the wire for the first time, Oscar Nominated moved into a joint second with Mark It Off. Meanwhile, Sadler’s Joy and Leparoux were totally relaxed trailing the field, behind the leader by about 12 lengths. Though both Oscar Nominated and Big Bend challenged One Go All Go for the lead around the far turn, it was the ever-patient Leparoux who waited until the straight to give Sadler’s Joy his cue.

Sadler’s Joy burst into the clear and easily ran down the frontrunning One Go All Go to win by about a half-length on the wire. One Go All Go ran very well in second, while Nessy wound up third ahead of Oscar Nominated.

“The plan was to break a little bit better, but he just broke slow, so I just kind of bided my time with him and saved ground around the first two turns,” Leparoux explained. “He had his usual kick that he does in the end, so he ran a big race today. I was patient with him. I had so much horse at the end, I just wanted to make him finish and he did great.”

Bred in Kentucky by his owners, Sadler’s Joy is out of a daughter of Dynaformer. The Mac Diarmida was his first start of 2017, and improves his overall record to 6-1-3 from 15 starts for earnings of $1.3 million.