Wild Weekend

Saturday May 17, 2008
I think it might be time to use the "S" word. After Big Brown romped around the Pimlico oval and added another chapter in his brief record book, I could see Secretariat's Belmont. To compare the two, even 2/3 through the triple crown trail isn't wise. Big Red was certainly one for the ages, but Big Brown looked like one too.
Around the racetrack trainers and jockeys use the word freak. This is a supreme compliment. Miesque, who won the Breeder's Cup Mile two years in a row, was such an individual. A trainer I know who ran against him told me before the race that they were all running for second place. Such was the case Saturday. When Kent Desormeaux angled out for a bit more room turning for home, Big Brown eased to the lead with remarkable fluidity. His rivals looked desperate, ears pinned, legs churning, hearts broken. Big Brown pricked his ears crossing the wire, geared down, having hardly turned a hair.
I turned to the guy standing next to me at the track and said, "Wow." I turned back to the monitor and said, "Wow...Wow...Wow." Yes the race was dull in it's predictability to some; yes the bettor's were beside themselves, not knowing what to do, or if they should do nothing and just watch the race. (not an option for most)and yes, it is a complete downer that this newly crowned champion will run only one or two more times before heading to the breeding shed, but for now, and for the upcoming Belmont...Wow.