For a sport that is niche — and I don’t think anyone who watches horse racing thinks it’s anything but niche — the telecast is great. On a Saturday afternoon in May, when many “casual” fans who watch might be working around the house or Spring cleaning, the three-hour event that is the Derby is something a person can put on TV and leave on in the background while doing other things. For me, this is the ideal weekend sporting event.

Yesterday, I got a bunch of things done with the Derby on in the background. I mowed the lawn, organized the garage, and worked on my bicycle, all while keeping an eye on the races throughout the afternoon. Isn’t that what NBC, who aired the Derby really cares about?

When it was time for the main race of the day – the actual Kentucky Derby – I stopped what I was doing and watched it. I was productive and entertained simultaneously throughout my day. It was a nice afternoon.

The Indianapolis 500, Olympics, the Daytona 500, some random events like curling when it’s on TV, and the final round of Majors in golf and tennis are usually like this as well (though tennis has really dropped off since there are fewer and fewer American stars).

All of the above allow me to enjoy a day and provide me with something to put on in the “background” while I get weekend chores done.

The NFL Draft used to be like that. I cared about it at the beginning and left it on for the rest of the day. In recent years, I haven’t watched ANY of it because it’s not on a weekend. By the time the later rounds roll around on the weekend, the fun is over and there are other things to entertain me.

The same is becoming true with the NCAA Tournament’s first week. If there were already tournament games on for four of the previous five days, I’m somewhat on overload by the time the weekend arrives. I don’t have as much excitement in general about the round of 32 because there has already been so much tournament. The additional weekday games cause me less and less to plan my weekend around a sporting event like the NCAA Tournament. Additional NFL games during the week have watered down the excitement of a full Sunday in similar ways.

As Animal Kingdom made a late break and glided to the finish, I couldn’t help but feel great. The most exciting two minutes in sports was over. I’d watched the telecast for three hours. And I’d been really productive. An altogether positive way to spend my Saturday. I wonder what tomorrow or next weekend’s lineup will offer…

On Sunday afternoon, the Dodgers pitching again held up their end. Chad Billingsley didn’t allow any runs through eight innings. Unfortunately, the scene was all-too familiar. Including the game in Colorado, I had seen the Dodgers score exactly zero runs through the first 17 innings I watched live this year.

I saw Juan Uribe swing at pitches I quit swinging at when I was 11 years old. I saw Matt Kemp thrown out trying to steal on Yadier Molina. I watched horrible at-bats from Rafael Furcal, Tony Gwynn, and even Andre Ethier. A few guys got to third base. Rod Barajas’ 400 foot foul ball in Colorado was the highlight through almost two games.

In the top of the ninth inning on Sunday, Jonathan Broxton brought my Dodgers happiness to rock-bottom. I hadn’t been high on them (in case you haven’t noticed), but I was about to reach a new low in watching them get shut out 3-0 and 1-0 in consecutive games I’d seen in-person.

Then Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp brought me back from the brink. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Ethier led off with a double. Not trying to do too much with the ball, Ethier drove it into the right field corner and hustled to second base. After a pitching change, Kemp continued his patient approach. After working the count in his favor, Kemp drove a pitch over the left-center field wall. All my frustration with the Dodgers, momentarily at least, vanished. I jumped around in circles in the aisles at Dodger Stadium and screamed like a girl. One swing. And all was well again.

And it was as hot as it looks...

It was as hot as it looks....

As Kemp came to the plate, the thought did cross my mind to take out my Droid and start videotaping the at-bat. I have done that in the past with no positive effect on what happened in the game. Instead of doing so, I put myself in the moment. Too often I’ve tried to record things only to have them come out worse than expected. And then I’m left with a compromised fan experience.

So I watched as Kemp hit his home run. And I wasn’t any less excited that I couldn’t show it to my readers- sorry folks. I’m sure you can see the highlight on MLB.com if you really want to. It was pretty awesome.

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But enough about the Dodgers. We are in my FAVORITE sports time of the year. March through the beginning of June. March Madness, the start of baseball season (with the promise of Spring), 40 games in 40 nights, the Kentucky Derby, the Indianapolis 500, the Masters, the NHL Playoffs, the beginning of MLS, and so many other great sporting events dominate evenings and weekend days.

Especially when you’re on the Central Coast, the option is always there to stay outside all day in the sun and then spend the evening relaxing with a cold beverage and enjoying some of the best sports times of the year. And I’m loving every minute of it. I’ll say it again- what a great time to be a sports fan.