don't forget about 'looking for loose change'.

Does anyone else think Morty killed Gales, took his identity, and is now posting under his name just to screw with us?

When to stop.

new ntra top 3 yo poll is up in my newspaper. rachel #1, POTN #2, and mine that bird is #3.

Why did any of the Horses have to handle the mud in the first place. Why didn't the track super open the track up and at least try and dry it out. It didn't rain Sat. anytime after dawn.

I didn't see a whole lot of difference in the weather here from Friday to Saturday. They worked the track for the whole card friday, and it was fine by Oaks time. Why not at least try to dry it up for the first half of the card...and if it ain't happenin'...reseal it.

They did harrow the track repeatedly Saturday. I know they floated it (not sealed it) for the Derby.

I can just see that becoming the new craze. But nothing, for sheer idiocy, can top D. Wayne Lukas putting 3 inch nasal strips on top of a horse's nose. Like those little strips would've made any difference.

After the number of races they had by the time the
derby went off, I think it is safe to say there were
many inconsistencies in the surface.

So if people want to use the race as reliable
information for horses at the Preakness, more
power to them. People freak out enough about
the inconsistent nature of judging horses going
from syn. to dirt, and then make
sweeping proclaimations about that track and race...

Inconsistent in itself.

I know Chuck has told me he doesn't believe he can see a difference, but there is valid science that shows they do decrease the chance of bleeding (EIPH) via pulmonary system pressure changes; and as a horse can't breath through it's mouth, keeping the nasal passages open (especially in animals where narrowing due to allergy and inflammed upper airways are common due to their environment) makes sense.

Nasal strips definitely work for human athletes, tons of football players wear them regularly (different reason in humans, though, mostly allergies, deviated septums, etc. narrowing nasal passages). Pat Day used to wear them riding. You ever wear them? Try it. You get more air, it's true.

I tried em running. They did not help as far as I could tell
time wise and how I felt. Of course there is a fallacy that
people should only breathe through their nose, or mouth.
I have seen both. By far the most efficient method imo
is the mouth and nose for humans, but most air clearly
comes in through the mouth when running distance.

I will also note that Candy Ride had huge nostrils.
What this has to do with anything, I dont know.

Churchill had a pretty constant breeze on Friday, while there was no such thing on Saturday. I think they did the best they could with that track considering just how much it had rained on Friday night.