You Should Always Respect Your Elders!
May 20, 2013
Dear Readers,
Well my picks for
the Preakness did not fare so well when all was said and done. Mylute put in
the race we have come to expect from him, he’s such a nice horse and I suspect
he will be around for awhile. He should be a better four-year-old, showing more
strength in his now familiar turn running style. He tends to grind it out down
the lane, passing tiring horses, rather than shifting into another gear and blowing
by all the competition in a commanding performance in the last few strides.
I would love to see Mylute start his run down
the lane rather than the big move he makes on the turn―leaving him hung out at least six wide in nearly
every race. I am not sure additional ground, like the 1 ½ mile distance of the
Belmont is going to make the difference one might expect, given his style.
The pace of the
Preakness was so slow―most
of the horses were working out prior to
the race considerably faster than the race was run in. I would say it was the
track condition alone, perhaps it was dull, except for the fact that Gary
Stevens was handling Oxbow like he was giving him a light workout. With fractions of 1:13:26 for six furlongs,
1:38:14 for the mile, you are not going to catch an uncontested front runner of
this quality?
If the track was dull, it was equally dull
for all of the participants, Stevens gauged the pace like the experienced old
hand he is and frankly stole the race. Having said that you can’t steal a race
without the right horse and on Saturday Oxbow looked terrific pricking his ears
for over a mile.
Those of you who
have read “Casual Lies – A Triple Crown Adventure,” already know D. Wayne Lukas
shows up in several chapters. The man I met was charming, wickedly clever and
never missed an opportunity to improve his professional capital.
Characterizing Lukas and Stevens as two wily old
professionals would not be inaccurate. Together Wayne and Gary took everybody to
church in Saturdays Preakness Stakes, and good on em I say.
I will close with a
couple of comments on Orb; I think if you look back to my May 11th “I Surmise” posting, it seems surprisingly
accurate. Orb may have faltered in the
Preakness and he may or may not run in the Belmont Stakes, but you cannot marginalize
the thrilling run he made in the Kentucky Derby through a dirt filled wall of
water. Three weeks resting in Belmont will do him a world of good, and if Shug
decides to pass on the Belmont and wait for the fall classics, more power to
him―he’s the man.
Gone are the days of a Million dollar runner-up Triple Crown
Bonus, taking with it the added incentive to push a three-year-old through
three incredibly tough races in the space of five weeks. We should see some new
faces in the Belmont, making it fun for the handicappers.
I’ve put some new features on the website www.shelleyriley.com please head over
and take a look. Reviews are good and I am looking forward to several speaking
engagements and book signings. A video trailer is in the works, which will be
added to the website in the next view weeks, so keep checking back.
Take care,
Shelley
Riley
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