Monmouth Park Racetrack Oceanport, NJ

Monmouth Park Racetrack is one of the oldest thoroughbred horse race tracks in the country. It was started in 1870 on what is now part of the Fort Monmouth base. It was then moved to its present location in 1946. Although the racing season has changed numerous times it has always occurred during the warmer months of the year. It is one of the major attractions for the Jersey Shore during the summer. The race track is a major source of revenue for the local restaurants and businesses.

Tour of Monmouth Park Racetrack

The race track has offered free behind the scenes tours called Dawn Patrol in the early morning on weekends. They take you to the stable area, jockey lounge and on the track to watch the horses do warm ups. They have always tried to create a family atmosphere and hold special events during the season. On Sunday’s the have family fun days with pony rides and clowns. There are also various festivals held during the year. Below is a video of the Crab Cake Festival held at the track.

Picking a horse is like seeing through the fog. Just guess.

Some people handicap horses, some pick numbers, some pick colors, some pick jockeys, and some pick trainers. None of the choices is ever a sure thing. As the track announcer calls this race above he just guesses until they get closer to the finish line due to thick  fog covering the track. The track is a 1 mile oval and the back stretch is fairly far away from the grand stand area.

Haskell Invitational 2010

The Haskel Invitational is the biggest racing event of the year at Monmouth Park. It is always televised on either ABC or ESPN. It generally attracts the top horses in the country. Most of the horses that race had just competed in the  Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes.  Many times the horses entered in the race have won some of the triple crown races. The purse for the race is 1 million dollars.

Breeders Cup Classic 2007

In 2007 Monmouth Park Racetrack gained international attention by hosting the Breeders Cup which is considered the premier racing event each year. Numerous top horses participated in the race. In the video above, Curlin won the classic which is considered the top race during the Breeders Cup event. The track was updated and expanded to accomadate the large crowd that attended the event.

Behind the scenes with Larry Collmus calling a race

In the video above, Larry Collmus explains and takes you behind the scenes to see him calling a race. It really is amazing to watch him memorize all of the horses and call the race just using binoculars. You  would assume he would have been watching on a monitor that are found throughout the race track to get close up views of the race.

Celebrities visit Monmouth Park

Because of its proximity to New York City and Philadelphia, the race track has always attracted famous people to view the races. There are several nice boutique hotels in the area as well as vacation rental homes for people to stay. The night life areas of down town Red Bank, Pier Village in Long Branch, and the Asbury Park shopping and boardwalk area makes the area a destination point for out of towners.

Mickey Rourke and Eric Roberts in The Pope of Greenwich Village Movie scene at Monmouth Park Race Track

Because of the beautiful appearance of the track, many movies and television shows have used Monmouth Park as the backdrop for scenes. Above is a scene with Mickey Rourke and Eric Roberts in the classic film The Pope of Greenwich Village. Many years later Mickey Rourke would film most of his film The Wrestler in Monmouth County. The film’s title song was written and recorded by Monmouth County’s own Bruce Springsteen and appears on the album Working on a Dream. Below a movie starring Jennifer Aniston called the Bounty Hunter was filmed in the grand stand area of the race track as well as in the parking lot area.

Jennifer Aniston in the Bounty Hunter at Monmouth Park

Due to the budget issues facing the State of New Jersey, Governor Chris Christie has plans to lease the race track this year to a private racing entity. There has been a lot of interest from the top horse racing organizations in the world. The leasing agreements should be in place prior to the start of the 2011 meet which usually begins around Memorial Day.

With all that Monmouth County has to offer, it makes selling real estate an easy job in promoting the benefits of this great area. If you would be interested in a career in real estate with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, please email us at info@bhgmoves.com

Living in Ocean Twp, NJ

Ocean Township consists of several sections in the town.  West Allenhurst, Colonial Terrace, West Deal and Wanamassa are located in the southeastern part of the town. The Oakhurst section and Elberon Park  are located in the Northeastern section of town and the Wayside section is located west of Route 35. There are also many zip codes in town (07712, 07755, 07711, 07723, and 07740). The town is approximately 11 square miles.

Television talk show host, Wendy Williams, graduated from Ocean Twp High School. She was nice enough to return home and celebrate Dr. Seuss’s birthday with the children from the schools in town at the relatively new Ocean Twp Public Library on Deal Road which is part of the Monmounth  County Library System.  The library is located in a historic building that was preserved and renovated just a few years ago. The Ocean Township School System has always been rated as one of the top public school systems in the area (#3 behind only Holmdel and Rumson-Fair Haven). Recently Ocean Twp High School was listed as one of the top  High Schools in New Jersey as well as number 1484  in the Country by Newsweek Magazine.

Bamm Bamm Bigelow at one time lived in the Wayside section of Ocean Twp and his children  attended the schools here.

Former Oakland Raider Linebacker,Phil Villapiano, also lived in Ocean Twp and attended Ocean Twp High School. Here is a video where he returned to Oakland to cheer the team on with other former great Oakland Raiders from the 70’s.

Ashley Tisdale grew up in the West Deal section of Ocean Twp and went on to become one of the Disney Channel stars as well as a star in Disney’s  High School Musical movie series. Here is an interview with her promoting her first cd called Headstrong  

Bruce Springsteen lived and recorded in the Wanamassa section of Ocean Twp in the late 60’s and early 70’s at Eastern Challenger Surf Board Factory.

00/03/69 – CHALLENGER EASTERN SURFBOARDS, WANAMASSA, NJ

Complete set details are not known. CHILD conducts it first rehearsal at new manager Carl “Tinker” West’s surfboard factory. Tinker, a legendary surfboard designer/shaper with San Diego-based Challenger West Surfboards, had come to the Jersey shore in 1966 to set up a Challenger East business. Tinker (a guitarist and skilled harp player in his own right) had recently set up a concert promotion business called “Blah Productions”. Tinker was interested in new artists who performed their own songs. It was Vini Lopez who knew Tinker and brought Bruce to meet him – resulting in Tinker agreeing to manage the group. Vini Lopez has mentioned the Springsteen composition “Jennifer” as one of the songs played at this Challenger rehearsal.

“As it looked like in the late 60’s – the legendary Challenger East factory, the major Springsteen rehearsal center and band hangout from 1969 thru mid 1971. That’s Tinker West second from the left, with several members of Challenger’s Pro Surfing Team”.

There is a home in the Colonial Section of Ocean Twp that has had it’s fair share of celebrities visiting or living there. Prior to Billy Howerdel becoming a guitarist with A Perfect Circle and Ashes Divide he would stop by to play pool. A few years later, film maker, Kevin Smith, would rent the home for actors Ben Affleck and Jason Lee during the filming of Chasing Amy.

Shortly after that,  record producer, Ron Frangipane called this house, home. He played keyboards in the real band for the cartoon characters The Archies. He also produced numerous songs for artists such as John Lennon. 

Helping maintain the Jersey Shore as one of the premier music spots in the world is Ocean Twp based Petillo Guitars. They are considered one of  the best guitar craftsman in the country. Besides all of the Jersey Shore tallent that they serve (Nicole Atkins, Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Stone Temple Pilots); they have also provided service to some of the top performers in the world  including Tom Petty, James Taylor, Elvis Presley, and Jonny Cash. Here Bruce Springsteen acknowledges how great Phil Petillo was.  

Eric Nies from Mtv’s The Real World Season 1 is also from Ocean Twp. His father Jack Nies was a long time NBA referee.

Ocean Township is a very convenient location for commuters. Route 18, Route 35,  and Route 66 all run through the town and provide easy access to Garden State Parkway exits 102 and 105. The North Jersey Coast Line runs along the eastern boundary of the town with train Stations in Elberon and Allenhurst. There are also a lot of national retail stores in the town in the various shopping centers located along Route 35. Some of the larger retailers include Wegman’s, Kohl’s, Target, Sears, Staples, Panera Bread, and Starbuck’s. There is also a Clearview Cinema with 10 screens.

The beach area is easily accessible between Asbury Park and Long Branch for the residents of Ocean Twp. There are  private and semi-private beach clubs in Loch Arbour, Allenhurst, Deal, and Long Branch along with the public beaches in Long Branch and Asbury Park.  The Southeastern part of Ocean Twp borders Deal Lake.

Ocean Twp has several municipal parks. Joe Palaia Park on the corner of Deal Road and Whalepond Road is host to several popular events each year including the 4th of July Fireworks Display and the Italian Festival that attracts tens of thousands of people each August. The town also has a swim club and lighted tennis courts on West Park Avenue for the residents of town. The town recently purchased the Colonial Terrace Golf Course to create a public course. There are also two prestigous private golf clubs in town. Deal Country Club and Hollywood Country Club. Hollywood’s golf course is rated as one of the best golf courses in New Jersey.

If you would be interested in living in the Ocean Township area, please call Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Preferred Properties at 732-224-9200 or email us at info@bhgmoves.com . You can also down the I-phone BHG App to locate shops and restaurants as well as other features. 

If you would be interested in a career in real estate, you can try the Real Estate Simulator.

Living in Rumson NJ

Rumson, NJ has always been rated as one of the best places to live in the country. Here Mo Rocca interviews the Mayor of Rumson and takes a tour of the town.  

The town borders the Navesink River to the north and the Shrewsbury River to the South and East. Just across the Rumson/Sea Bright Bridge gives the residents of Rumson easy access to the Jersey Shore beaches in Sea Bright. The median sales price of a home is around 1.2 million but homes start around $300,000 and go well into the millions of dollars for riverfront estates. The public school system has always been rated as one of the best in the State of New Jersey. Rumson is also a relatively easy commute to New York City. The ferry-boat terminals are located approximately 10 minutes away in Atlantic Highlands as well as Highlands and Belford, NJ along the Sandy Hook Bay. The ferry service takes approximately 45 minutes to arrive at Pier 11 in the Wall Street area of New York City. The North Jersey Coast Line has nearby train stations in Little Silver, Red Bank and Middletown to take commuters to Penn Station in New York City. Another benefit to living in the Rumson area is the fine restaurants located here. If you like great water views you can visit Salt Creek Grill or Barnacle Bill’s.  A well reviewed Steak house is What’s Your Beef?. Chef David Burke owns the upscale and highly rated Fromagerie Restaurant.  You can make everyday  St. Patrick’s Day at Murray Mac Gregors. To experience an authentic Italian Tuscany meal visit Undici Restaurant. For casual dining and pizza you can visit Val’s Tavern. An original speakeasy called Murphy’s Bar can be found  in the basement of a home in a quiet residential neighborhood.

Rumson has some nice boutique  shops and is also close to the upscale shopping areas of downtown Red Bank and The Grove shopping center in Shrewsbury.  

Rumson has always been home to successful and famous people. The list includes musicians Bruce Springsteen, John Bonjovi, and Richie Sambora. Actresses Heather Locklear, Cher, and Queen Latifah have resided here. Film maker Kevin Smith lived in Rumson in the early 2000’s and below is a photo from his movie Chasing Amy where Ben Affleck and Joey Lauren Adams were filmed at a riverfront park in Rumson. Sports figures Bobby Ojeda (NY Mets), Phil Villapiano (Oakland Raiders), Randy Foye (LA Clippers), Rob Petitti (New Orleans Saints) as well as sports announcer Melissa Stark (ABC, NBC and ESPN) have called Rumson home.

If you would be interested in living in the Rumson, NJ area, please contact Better Homes and Gardens Preferred Properties located at 105 East River Road in Rumson, NJ. The phone number is 732-224-9200 or email info@bhgmoves.com

Jersey Shore Beaches

It’s been pretty cold outside lately but here are some videos to remind you of summer time at the Jersey Shore.  The summer season along the beach area is the primary reason why people choose to live in the Eastern Monmouth County area.  Several times a year due to either nor’easter or Hurricanes passing along the coast, the waves can get extremely high and make the area perfect for surfing. Although not the norm, waves can exceed 10 to 12 feet a few times a year and some hurricanes in the past have created 18 to 20 foot waves along the coast. Normal waves are usually in the 4 to 6 foot range. You can check out the daily surf report to see the current ocean and beach conditions.

Pier Village in Long Branch, NJ is a newly created oceanfront development of stores, bars, restaurants and housing. It is one of the few Oceanfront shopping districts in New Jersey and the most popular oceanfront destinations in the Monmouth County area.  The complex was created using eminent domain. Long Branch has agreed not to use eminent domain any longer as a way of redeveloping the city. They lost a court battle last year with some of the residents just north of the Pier Village development. The Ocean Place Hotel at Pier Village was recently acquired by United Capital Corp.

Ocean Place Hotel Long Branch, NJ

Asbury Park is also creating a new Oceanfront commercial and residential area through redevelopment. The boardwalk area now has many popular restaurants mixed in with their well-known entertainment venues such as the Stone Pony located along the oceanfront area.  Asbury Park recently was voted as one of the top beach areas in New Jersey for 2010. During the off-season such as yesterday (Dec 7, 2010) Bruce Springsteen filmed an up-coming show at the boardwalk in Asbury Park.

The real Jersey Shore is not the one depicted in the popular Mtv reality show although visitors from a neighboring state may act that way while vacationing here as identified by Governor Christie in the video above. The video below is a spoof of the Mtv show from Saturday Night Live. The show is filmed at Seaside Heights in Ocean County. Most of the Monmouth County beachfront areas have become family friendly areas and have moved away from the night club atmosphere shown on the reality show.

The job of  selling real estate at the Jersey Shore is not a difficult one. Most realtors  here would agree that they truly believe in their service of locating housing for people in one of the nicest areas of the country. If you would be interested in a real estate career at Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Preferred Properties, please contact George Coffenberg at gcoffenberg@bhgmoves.com or visit our website at www.bhgmoves.com