Belmont

When M.C. Hammer showed up on the Belmont Park W backstretch Friday morning, he lent a little excitement to an otherwise mundane pre-Belmont week.The 27-year-old rap star and his entourage of about 10 mad their way from barn to barn, turning heads and drawing whoops. Hammer had his picture taken with Lite Light, Strike the Gold and even Meadow Star, but when asked to pose with Media Plan, he refused because the colt had not yet won for Oaktown Stable, the outfit owned by his family. "Got to win first," he said.

D. Wayne Lukas will not be in his accustomed favorite's role today at Belmont Park with his top 3-year-olds Thunder Gulch and Serena's Song. Each will face a tough older runner on the track's Breeders' Cup Preview card.In the $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup, Thunder Gulch will go against Cigar, the Maryland-bred 5-year-old who is a heavy choice to win his 11th consecutive race.Local trainer Bud Delp said weeks ago he feels Thunder Gulch "doesn't have a prayer" against Cigar.Serena's Song will face Heavenly Prize in the $250,000 Beldame Stakes.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- After an unprecedented three-day break in the racing schedule, New York's best non-striking athletes returned to Belmont Park today for the 40-day fall meet and its slew of stakes races that lead to the Nov. 5 Breeders' Cup.Until football season starts in earnest, thoroughred racing remains the only game in town. So for baseball-starved fans, NYRA has added an incentive to come to the track for the first three days. Anyone wearing a Mets or Yankees cap was to be admitted free today through Sunday.

After five years of contention, Howard Community College is putting Belmont, its secluded 18th-century estate in Elkridge, up for sale. The unanimous decision by the college's board of trustees comes as college leaders confront a growing demand for money to expand the main campus in Columbia. With the state cutting operating funds, tuition increases are likely even as more students seek financial aid. "There is concern this might not be the end of cuts for the year," Howard Community College President Kate Hetherington told the board of trustees at a meeting Wednesday night.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- Charismatic's bid for a Triple Crown and his racing career ended yesterday in front of a record crowd at Belmont Park. His life nearly ended as well.After finishing third in the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the three-race series for 3-year-olds known as the Triple Crown, Charismatic pulled up suddenly. His jockey Chris Antley jumped off, lost his balance and fell into the dirt. He struggled to his knees and reached for Charismatic's left front leg.The handsome chestnut colt, a near twin to his great-grandsire Secretariat, had broken two bones in his left front ankle.

ELMONT, N.Y. - Most Americans handicapping the Belmont Stakes will look at the past performances of Dr Greenfield and shake their heads. How do you make sense of a horse who has run only four times, all in England, and only once on dirt? Ask Barry Irwin, president of the Team Valor syndicate that owns the colt, and he smiles. "He's a big horse, and he can run all day," Irwin said. "We're very confident." When Team Valor starts a horse in the Belmont, it pays to listen to Irwin. In 1992, Team Valor supplemented the English-bred My Memories to the race.

ELMONT, N.Y. - D. Wayne Lukas is a Hall of Fame trainer who's won four Belmonts. He'll try to win his fifth tomorrow with a horse who's raced only three times and won only one race. Lukas is in the same position with A.P. Arrow as every other trainer throwing horses in against Afleet Alex, winner of the Preakness, and Giacomo, winner of the Kentucky Derby. "My gray area is," Lukas said, "I don't know if he's good enough." Lukas referred to A.P. Arrow's breeding; he's a son of A.P. Indy, winner of the Belmont in 1992.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- The misspelled sign from Bernardini's Pimlico Race Course stall gate hangs on the wall of trainer Tom Albertrani's office in Barn 10 at Belmont Park, an indication of just how unexpected Bernardini's Preakness victory was in the middle jewel of the Triple Crown. The sign, which spells the horse's name "Bernadini," brings a smile to Albertrani's well-tanned face. Belmont Stakes Saturday, post time 6:35 p.m. TV: 5 p.m., chs. 2, 7

ELMONT, N.Y. - John Kimmel said before the Kentucky Derby that his colt Wheelaway was probably a race away from an optimum performance. Wheelaway, a long-shot member of the Derby mutuel field, finished fifth. Five weeks later, on the eve of the Belmont Stakes, the trainer says Wheelaway is primed for battle. The gray son of Unbridled has trained sharply and impressed onlookers with his professionalism. "He's hitting his peak stride and peak form," Kimmel said. "We're looking forward to the Belmont."

Howard County Executive James N. Robey is moving to take over Belmont, the historic Elkridge estate that has become a hotly contested issue between nearby residents and Howard Community College. The move comes after months of contention over management by the college of the 68-acre, 18th-century property and increasing pressure from nearby residents and preservationists to remove the property from the college's control. Robey spokeswoman Victoria Goodman said the executive will use money for parkland acquisition in his forthcoming capital budget to buy Belmont, and transfer control of $2 million planned for renovation of the barn and carriage house to county recreation and parks officials.