Bodemeister
May 17, 2012
It was cool and sunny on Thursday morning in Baltimore and the backside was heating up with lots of visitors coming by to see the horses. Several of the Preakness contenders were out this morning, including Kentucky Derby winner I'll Have Another and his stable pony Lava Man. You can check out all the entries for the Preakness here.
Bodemeister made his first visit to the main track at Pimlico Thursday morning, galloping 1 1/2 miles under exercise rider George Alvarez after the renovation break.
"He was not looking around. He was all business out there," Alvarez said of the colt who was shipped to Pimlico on Wednesday from Churchill Downs.
Analyzing the top Preakness contenders - trying to select a winner by matching each to the profile of a Preakness winner using many of the more popular angles and statistical trends.
Creative Cause
May 17, 2012
Creative Cause boarded a plane in Los Angeles at around 5am Pacific Wednesday for the journey back East. The son of Giant's Causeway embarked on his third cross-country venture since last fall, when he went to Churchill Downs for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. The flight made a stopover in Louisville to pick up the Churchill-based Preakness contingent before heading onto Baltimore for a van ride to Pimlico Race Course with an estimated arrival time of 3 p.m.
"He's a good traveler," said 71-year-old trainer Mike Harrington, who will be saddling his first Preakness runner for owner Heinz Steinmann.
He did not go out on Thursday morning.
Cozzetti
May 17, 2012
Cozzetti went out after the renovation break and galloped 1 ½ miles under exercise rider Mary Doser Thursday morning at Pimlico Race Course. The gray colt flew in from Louisville on Wednesday. "He's doing good; he ate everything last night," said Doser, who is acting as assistant trainer until Dale Romans arrives Thursday night. "He tried to bite everybody, so I guess he's all right."
Daddy Nose Best
May 17, 2012
Daddy Nose Best walked the shedrow at Barn 38 Wednesday morning and was scheduled to be shipped to Baltimore later in the morning. Bob Zollars said that he and trainer Steve Asmussen waited a week before deciding to try the colt in the Preakness. "We just determined that we felt like he had completely bounced back," Zollars said. "As much as you can make a determination of that, he appears to be ready to go.
It's a short turnaround. I was concerned how well he would bounce back. We've done blood work on him and checked him out. He's very perky, so we think that he's ready to run again."
He came out very early on Thursday morning before I arrived.
I'll Have Another
May 17, 2012
I'll Have Another had a typical morning at Pimlico. Trainer Doug O'Neill said, "He jogged about a half-mile straight off and then got into a seven-furlong gallop and finished up great. We're very happy with his energy and the way he's training on a daily basis."
Optimizer
May 17, 2012
Optimizer went out for a "restrained gallop" of about 1 1/2 miles very early on Thursday morning at Pimlico. Had certain circumstances been different, trainer D. Wayne Lukas admitted he might have chosen to run Optimizer in Saturday's James W. Murphy Stakes instead of the Preakness Stakes. "I'm not so sure if the grass race here had been a mile-and-an-eighth race, I wouldn't have run him on the grass here and taken a soft approach and tried to win the Belmont," Lukas said.
"But because it's a mile, I don't think he could get up here."
Went the Day Well
May 17, 2012
Went the Day Well galloped a mile, stood in the starting gate and galloped another mile at Pimlico Race Course Thursday morning. Trainer Graham Motion, who shipped Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom to Pimlico last year on the morning of the Preakness, has opted to ship in Went the Day Well from Fair Hill Training Center a few days before Saturday's Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. "I thought the track was a little deeper," said Motion, who sent Went the Day Well to Pimlico on Wednesday.
"I never saw a horse come back with so much dirt in his face."
May 17, 2012
Zetterholm galloped under exercise rider Mario Madrid Thursday morning after the renovation break. "He did really well," said assistant trainer Blake Dutrow, 20, who is handling Zetterholm for his uncle, trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. "The track is a little better, so we let him do a little more. He handled the track very well. He got a little more out of his gallop today and seems a little more tired.
That's OK."
May 17, 2012
Lava Man , winner of 17 races and over $5.5 million, is enjoying his retirement as a stable pony for trainer Doug O'Neill. He was getting a lot of attention from fans, many of whom wanted their photo taken with him.
May 17, 2012
It was cool and sunny on Thursday morning in Baltimore and the backside was heating up with lots of visitors coming by to see the horses. Several of the Preakness contenders were out this morning, including Kentucky Derby winner I'll Have Another and his stable pony Lava Man. You can check out all the entries for the Preakness here.
Bodemeister made his first visit to the main track at Pimlico Thursday morning, galloping 1 1/2 miles under exercise rider George Alvarez after the renovation break.
"He was not looking around. He was all business out there," Alvarez said of the colt who was shipped to Pimlico on Wednesday from Churchill Downs.
Analyzing the top Preakness contenders - trying to select a winner by matching each to the profile of a Preakness winner using many of the more popular angles and statistical trends.
Creative Cause
May 17, 2012
Creative Cause boarded a plane in Los Angeles at around 5am Pacific Wednesday for the journey back East. The son of Giant's Causeway embarked on his third cross-country venture since last fall, when he went to Churchill Downs for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. The flight made a stopover in Louisville to pick up the Churchill-based Preakness contingent before heading onto Baltimore for a van ride to Pimlico Race Course with an estimated arrival time of 3 p.m.
"He's a good traveler," said 71-year-old trainer Mike Harrington, who will be saddling his first Preakness runner for owner Heinz Steinmann.
He did not go out on Thursday morning.
Cozzetti
May 17, 2012
Cozzetti went out after the renovation break and galloped 1 ½ miles under exercise rider Mary Doser Thursday morning at Pimlico Race Course. The gray colt flew in from Louisville on Wednesday. "He's doing good; he ate everything last night," said Doser, who is acting as assistant trainer until Dale Romans arrives Thursday night. "He tried to bite everybody, so I guess he's all right."
Daddy Nose Best
May 17, 2012
Daddy Nose Best walked the shedrow at Barn 38 Wednesday morning and was scheduled to be shipped to Baltimore later in the morning. Bob Zollars said that he and trainer Steve Asmussen waited a week before deciding to try the colt in the Preakness. "We just determined that we felt like he had completely bounced back," Zollars said. "As much as you can make a determination of that, he appears to be ready to go.
It's a short turnaround. I was concerned how well he would bounce back. We've done blood work on him and checked him out. He's very perky, so we think that he's ready to run again."
He came out very early on Thursday morning before I arrived.
I'll Have Another
May 17, 2012
I'll Have Another had a typical morning at Pimlico. Trainer Doug O'Neill said, "He jogged about a half-mile straight off and then got into a seven-furlong gallop and finished up great. We're very happy with his energy and the way he's training on a daily basis."
Optimizer
May 17, 2012
Optimizer went out for a "restrained gallop" of about 1 1/2 miles very early on Thursday morning at Pimlico. Had certain circumstances been different, trainer D. Wayne Lukas admitted he might have chosen to run Optimizer in Saturday's James W. Murphy Stakes instead of the Preakness Stakes. "I'm not so sure if the grass race here had been a mile-and-an-eighth race, I wouldn't have run him on the grass here and taken a soft approach and tried to win the Belmont," Lukas said.
"But because it's a mile, I don't think he could get up here."
Went the Day Well
May 17, 2012
Went the Day Well galloped a mile, stood in the starting gate and galloped another mile at Pimlico Race Course Thursday morning. Trainer Graham Motion, who shipped Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom to Pimlico last year on the morning of the Preakness, has opted to ship in Went the Day Well from Fair Hill Training Center a few days before Saturday's Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. "I thought the track was a little deeper," said Motion, who sent Went the Day Well to Pimlico on Wednesday.
"I never saw a horse come back with so much dirt in his face."
May 17, 2012
Zetterholm galloped under exercise rider Mario Madrid Thursday morning after the renovation break. "He did really well," said assistant trainer Blake Dutrow, 20, who is handling Zetterholm for his uncle, trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. "The track is a little better, so we let him do a little more. He handled the track very well. He got a little more out of his gallop today and seems a little more tired.
That's OK."
May 17, 2012
Lava Man , winner of 17 races and over $5.5 million, is enjoying his retirement as a stable pony for trainer Doug O'Neill. He was getting a lot of attention from fans, many of whom wanted their photo taken with him.
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