Belmont Stakes

Real Quiet, the 1998 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner, was sidelined in California yesterday for at least the remainder of the year with a cracked splint bone in his right front leg.Real Quiet's injury was announced just five days after Victory Gallop -- the horse that denied him the 1998 Triple Crown with victory by a nose in the Belmont Stakes -- was retired because of a torn suspensory ligament, a serious lower-leg injury.Mike Pegram, Real Quiet's owner, and Bob Baffert, his trainer, said the 4-year-old colt will be given 90 days to heal on his own.After that, they said, they will decide whether he can return to racing or will be retired.

For about 40 minutes, the $140,000 Baltimore Breeders' Cup and three other races were in jeopardy of being postponed.A monsoon-like storm hit Pimlico yesterday, accompanied by lightning and blinding rain, and the stewards delayed the start of the eighth race while the horses remained in the paddock.But the weather abated and when the running resumed, Testafly was ready.The 7-1 shot broke smartly from the outside post, then ran away to an eight-length score over the rallying favorite Hot Brush while capturing his third victory in the past four starts.

Because of a computer error, fractions were dropped from an article on the 25th anniversary of Secretariat's Triple Crown in Saturday's editions. The colt won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness by 2 1/2 lengths, and he won the Belmont in world-record time for 1 1/2 miles.The Sun regrets the errors.It has been 25 years since Secretariat took America on a white-knuckled joy ride, but his fans refuse to let go of the reins.Fresh flowers adorn the grave of the Triple Crown winner, nine years after his death.

What: 130th Belmont Stakes, third leg of horse racing's Triple CrownPost time: Today, 5: 27 p.m.Where: Belmont Park, Elmont, N.Y.Distance: 1 1/2 milesPurse: 1st -- $600,000; 2nd -- $200,000; 3rd -- $110,000.TV: Chs. 2, 7Weather forecast: Sunny, breezy, low 70sField:PP Horse Odds1. Hanuman Highway .. .. ..30-12. Thomas Jo .. .. .. .. ..30-1Basic Trainee .. .. .. .99-14. Chilito .. .. .. .. .. .30-1Parade Ground .. .. .. .20-16. Classic Cat .. .. .. ...15-17. Limit Out .. .. .. .. ..10-1Real Quiet .. .. .. .. ..6-5Hot Wells .. .. .. .. ..30-1Raffie's Majesty .. ...20-111.

WHAT horse racing needs these days is a few superstars. By just a nose at Belmont Park over the weekend, the industry lost its chance to create a new fan attraction.The first winner of the Triple Crown -- Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes -- in 20 years was about to be proclaimed as Real Quiet neared the finish, only to see the prize snatched away by a furiously closing Victory Gallop.It was a crushing loss that proved again the truth about "the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat."

ELMONT, N.Y. -- After Silver Charm's third race, a come-from-behind victory in the seven-furlong Del Mar Futurity last September, lightning struck in Bob Baffert's head.He picked up the telephone and called the colt's owner, Bob Lewis. According to the two men, the conversation went like this:"Bob, I think we not only have a good horse here, we very possibly have a great horse," Baffert said. "It's going to take a lot of patience, and we might miss some big opportunities along the way, but -- with your permission and understanding -- I'd like to map out a plan that would take us to Louisville on the first Saturday in May."

OCEANPORT, N.J. -- After critically acclaimed stops in Kentucky, Maryland and New York, the traveling roadshow of 3-year-old thoroughbreds comes tomorrow to the Jersey shore.Touch Gold and Free House, the two surviving stars of the Triple Crown series, head the cast of the $1 million Haskell Invitational Handicap here at Monmouth Park. The other pair of stars, Silver Charm and Captain Bodgit, are sidelined -- Captain Bodgit permanently with a strained tendon, Silver Charm for the year with a blood disorder.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- The 129th Belmont Stakes turned into a battle of jockeys.Although only seven horses contested the 1 1/2 -mile course, their jockeys had journeys in mind. For starters, none wanted to be near the rail, described unanimously as "dead."So the jockeys of the first three finishers -- Chris McCarron on Touch Gold, Gary Stevens on Silver Charm and Kent Desormeaux on Free House -- kept their mounts far off the rail toward the middle of the track.Also, McCarron didn't want Touch Gold in the lead.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- Bob Baffert, trainer of Cavonnier, was visibly shaken after his horse pulled up in the homestretch of the Belmont Stakes yesterday and was loaded into an ambulance."

ELMONT, N.Y. -- The Kentucky Derby winner isn't here. Grindstone was retired with a knee injury five days after his photo-finish Derby win.The Kentucky Derby favorite isn't here, either. Unbridled's Song, fifth in the Derby, is sidelined with a sore hoof and ulcer.But consider who is here at Belmont Park for today's 128th Belmont Stakes -- the Triple Crown's final jewel that might have ++ lacked luster but has turned into one of the year's most intriguing races.A bulging field of 15 -- matching the largest field in Belmont history -- will embark at about 5: 30 p.m. on a 1 1/2 -mile adventure worth $734,800, of which $440,880 is reserved for the winner.

Omar S. Jennings Jr., who owned a popular Catonsville bar and restaurant known for its traditional Baltimore menu, died of lung disease Tuesday at St. Elizabeth's Rehabilitation and Nursing Center. He was 79. Born in Baltimore and raised on Holmehurst Avenue, he attended McDonogh, Mount St. Joseph's and Catonsville high schools. Family members said Mr. Jennings' father had operated the old Pimlico Hotel on Park Heights Avenue and bought a Catonsville men's bar, Shooky's Tavern, in 1958 and changed its name to Jennings Cafe.

ELMONT, N.Y. - -Kent Desormeaux and Calvin Borel not only took different paths around the track in Saturday's 141st running of the Belmont Stakes, with Borel going outside and Desormeaux hugging the inside, but the two jockeys also used different pre-race tactics. Desormeaux rode in a handful of early races on the card, winning three straight at one point, while Borel didn't ride until the Belmont. While Borel might have been better rested, Desormeaux said he felt as if the extra confidence he picked up from those victories helped him. He also got a good feel for the track, something Borel might not have had, considering he had not ridden in the Belmont Stakes before Saturday.

BELMONT, N.Y. -- Unless you were one of the few to place a bid on him, hardly anyone remembers that Da'Tara won the Belmont Stakes last year. All the focus was on Big Brown's bid for the Triple Crown, and when he completely flopped, Da'Tara's improbable wire-to-wire victory at 38-1 odds seemed like an afterthought. Trainer Nick Zito doesn't mind, however. In fact, he kind of likes flying under the radar. He has certainly had success at the Belmont. In 20 chances, he has won twice, finished second six times and third three times.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- D. Wayne Lukas was walking to the podium, preparing to give a brief interview about his two horses entered in the 141st Belmont Stakes, when he decided to inject a little comedy into the news conference. With the grace of a much younger man, the silver-haired Lukas, 74, snagged Chip Woolley's crutches and pretended to hobble to the stage. The entire room, including Woolley - who has been on crutches since he broke his leg in a motorcycle accident before the Kentucky Derby - laughed as if they had just watched Steve Martin perform a stand-up routine.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- Chip Woolley waited patiently Wednesday morning for Mine That Bird's name to be called at the Belmont Stakes post-position draw. Woolley, though, isn't the most patient man on the planet. So when racing announcer and master of ceremonies Tom Durkin paused to ask Woolley which of the two remaining positions he would prefer - the six or the seven - Woolley shot him a look that contained equal parts bemusement and impatience. "It don't matter none," Woolley said. Mine That Bird ended up with the seventh position and will begin the week as a 2-1 favorite in the 141st running of the Belmont Stakes.

Mine That Bird, the smallish gelding that ran first and second under different jockeys in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, could have a third different rider when he runs in the Belmont Stakes. Mike Smith, who was aboard for Mine That Bird's second-place finish in the Preakness on Saturday, is unavailable for the Belmont. Because of a prior commitment, Smith will ride Madeo in the Grade I Whittingham Stakes at Hollywood Park on June 6 instead of Mine That Bird, ESPN reported Monday. That could open the door for a return by Calvin Borel, who won the Kentucky Derby on the gelding as a 50-1 long shot but switched to filly Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- The morning after Big Brown's stunning last-place finish in the Belmont Stakes, his trainer didn't show at the colt's barn, so it was left to others to try to explain why the overwhelming favorite was a flop. And at least a couple of horsemen offered a guess that perhaps Big Brown had breathing problems caused by a displaced palate. Dr. Nick Meittinis, owner of the Maryland Veterinary Group, which cares for horses stabled at Pimlico Race Course, Laurel Park and the Bowie Training Center, said yesterday: "I don't think we'll ever know what happened in that race.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- Trainer Rick Dutrow leaned on the rail at the Detention Barn a half-hour after Big Brown had been pulled up in the Belmont Stakes and momentarily dropped his forehead onto his crossed arms. Dutrow's thin brown hair was soaked. His blue shirt soggy. His hopes for history lost. Banished with the loss of a Triple Crown. Da' Tara, trained by Nick Zito and a 38-1 shot, went straight to the lead out of the starting gate yesterday and wired the field, winning in 2 minutes, 29.65 seconds and paying $79. Behind him, coming out of the turn for home, jockey Kent Desormeaux shocked a surprisingly small announced crowd of 94,476 at Belmont Park by pulling up Big Brown and easing home far behind the rest of the field.

Elmont, N.Y. -- At Churchill Downs, the black limo was completely out of place amid the pickups and ponies along the backstretch. It was parked outside the barn last month, and Big Brown's connections emerged. The horse's owner wore a dark blazer and Versace sunglasses, his eyes focused on a glowing cell phone as he indifferently answered reporters' questions. At Pimlico Race Course, arriving from Kentucky 10 days later, Big Brown was nearly two hours late to the track and the last horse to exit the trailer.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- Temperature above 90 degrees today? No problem, babe. The 1 1/2 -mile Belmont course? Big Brown's cool. And a third race in five weeks? Just forget about it. That's the opinion of Big Brown's trainer, Maryland native Rick Dutrow. But will all those things combined with the competitive presence of nine challengers be too much for the favorite as he goes for history and the first Triple Crown in 30 years? "I don't see it. I don't see it," Dutrow said. "I don't see that this horse has been dragged through the mud and made to run in every dance.