The 134th Preakness

[57pbass]

The 134th Preakness By Jerome A. Keel

One down two to go. Will the eagle ( Mind That Bird ) fly ? By late Saturday afternoon we will know.
This Saturday at the old hill top racecourse Pimilico in Baltimore Maryland they will run the 134th Preakness.

Let’s take a look at the field.

Big Drama:
Has won five out of seven starts. Has early speed. Won his last start The Swale Stakes but was disqualified for inference and placed second.

Flying Private:
Finished last in the Derby. Has the right trainer in his corner to win a Triple Crown race. D. Wayne Lukas. Will have to improve a lot to be a factor.

Friesan Fire:
Had a world of trouble in the Kentucky Derby. He grabbed a quarter (hacked off a chunk of his left front hoof with his back hoof) he was also bumped and squeezed in the race. He finished next to last. Has had a nice workout over the Pimlico racetrack. With a clean get away he will be there at the finish. If the track turns up sloppy this guy can run on it.

General Quarters:
He to had a rough trip in the derby. He was forced to steady twice. Musket Man has beaten him twice already.

Lov Gov:
Only broke his maiden in last start. Won by six lengths on the sloppy track. Will he be wear sock’s like New York State Governor Spitzer?

Take The Points:
The only thing he has going for him is his jockey Prado, two for two on him.


Terrain:
Was beaten by Friesan Fire and Papa Clem in the Louisiana Derby.

Tone it down:
Ran second in last start over the track.

Mind That Bird:
Won the Derby with powerfully closing move. Was it a fluke? Loses jockey Calvin Borel. He will get the services of Mike Smith. He will have to make his move sooner then in the Derby. The Preakness is a sixteenth of a mile shorter in distance. His performance in the derby was a monster. Will he be able to duplicate that effort? Would help if the track came up sloppy.

Musket Man:
Was closing in the stretch in the Derby. He finished third. If he can race closer to the pace in the Preakness he could be a major factor. Has won five of seven starts.

Papa Clem:
Finished a nice fourth in the Derby. He acted up in the post parade in the derby that might have hurt his chances a little.

Pioneerof The Nile:
Looked like he was on his way to win the Kentucky derby past the eight pole but Mind That Bird came up the rail to win the race. Pioneerof The Nile finished second. He showed that he would fight it out not to let other horses pass him. He answered the question that he can run on dirt and an off track. Can stalk the Early leaders and then pounce in the stretch.

Rachel Alexander:
She has just one bad race in her career. Her first start. Has won five Stakes in a row. She has Calvin Borel as here jockey. He gets off his winning Derby mount Mind that Bird, that’s a first. Borel stated that she is the best horse he’s ever ridden. The filly is looking to make history. No winner of the Kentucky Oaks has won the Preakness .The last filly to win the Preakness was Nellie Morse in 1924. Her speed figures are much better then the colts. Is she the second coming of the great filly Ruffian? We will see. She’s can handle an off track she won for fun on one. She’s the one to beat.


And Now My selections:

# 9--- Pioneerof The Nile
# 13—Rachel Alexandra
# 5--- Friesan Fire
# 2--- Mind That Bird
Good Luck to all the horses and their Jockeys.

See you at the Windows.

May 14, 2009

[57pbass]

Bump...

Musket Man / Terain / Pioneerof the Nile and Lov Gov...I will bet a few bucks on these horses

[lhoward]

The lady won. First in 80 years I understand. No Triple Crown Winner this cycle.

[hbarcat]

WOW! Exciting finish.

[JacoLesFlea]

great race but I wish Calvin would have rode mine that bird again cause they would be one race away from the triple crown...Mine that bird is obviously a great runner from 12 place to 2nd place....I was hoping to see a triple crown winner this year.

[Lady Kayri]

History has been made! In a way, Ruffian has been vindicated...

Pat

[57pbass]

That was a very exciting race..too bad Mine That Bird came in second..he is for real and the Derby was not a fluke..the Fillie is a beautiful horse and will be tough to beat...

[Ripper]

watching the replays, you can see that mine that bird would've had her had he not had to hesitate coming through the gap when he finally turned it on. it was amazing though that the filly took the race from start to finish...

and maybe borel will win the crown as a jockey... just not on the same horse

[WickedPissah]

I wanted Pioneerof The Nile to win.

[Ripper]

oh... and did anyone else get mad at the post? they got all the horses in and didn't open the gates right away... that was not fair at all

[fo shizzle]

Originally Posted by Ripper

oh... and did anyone else get mad at the post? they got all the horses in and didn't open the gates right away... that was not fair at all

You saw the reason, right? The #1 horse threw his rider off in the gate. They had to pull the horse out and reload. It happens........

[Ripper]

yea... but they should've opened before the rider got thrown... he got thrown at least 10 seconds after they had already had everyone posted