Just wanted to give TG kudos for an outstanding Belmont Day product.

Had I been kinky enough to come up with Birdstone - the horse I gave a solid chance to here before the Derby, the day would have been a lifetime top for me.

Instead, standouts Country Judge, Board Eligible, Fire Slam, Meteor Storm and Prep School ( 2nd at 30-1 ) carried the day.

Well done.

Looking forward to Travers Day,

pg

Seems to me the best bet in the Belmont would be exacta and tri\'s with Purge, Eddington and Rock.

Exactas figure to be 70$ - $150 and tri\'s would be big if SJ comes up as empty as logic and long term strategies would suggest.

...going to win the Triple Crown.

Sorry,  I\'m a little slow to catch on.

Purge is second and Eddington and RHT battle it out for 3rd and 4th.

If he didn\'t already have \'em over a barrel, SJ draws the 9 hole.

I had previously mentioned my negative lean towards the retop in spring time 3\'s and while doing a speed run through the Belmont Archive, I noticed two things :

Point Given had the classic retop and exploded to a big new number.

Derby favorite Stephen Got Even entered the Belmont off a flatter retop line and regressed.

I\'m curious if anyone has any thoughts or facts to share on the subject.
I\'m aware that there are many variables involved in the line in question, such as timing,  the nature of the middle race, trainer, etc.

The other thing I noticed is that there were some pretty slow horses in some of those years.

Had the Belmont been run on May 15, the 1 1/2 miles would have been no problem.

I\'m not so much of the opinion that he can\'t handled the distance,  but rather that he will be unable to handle it on June 5.

Reserves of speed and stamina ?
Can there possibly be any reserves left ?

What he\'s done these last 2 months and what many expect him to continue to do defies logic.

Can he run an X ( 1 1/4 or worse ) and win ?

Maybe.

Have neither his sheet or form in front of me, but I\'ll say that I\'m not crazy about retops in 3yr. olds leading to a new top next time out.
Seems like a stronger angle with 4\'s.
TGJB or others may have numbers that prove me wrong, but it\'s been something I\'ve noticed lately.
Beyond that and how lightly raced he is, I \'ll look to you CtC for enlightenment.

Must agree Class.

I don\'t see SJ running better than a 0.  I used to use 3 straight efforts as the cut-off until War Emblem came around.  Now SJ enters the 1 1/2 mile Belmont off 4 straight freaky efforts.

RHT appears to like the surface off his work the other day.  Saw it on TVG and it was truly effortless.

There appears to be at least 2 ( Purge ) capable of running a zero and another who\'s love of this surface has been documented for awhile now.
Still believe Eddington can move forward to a 0 as well since his retopped 1 3/4 indicates to me it\'s nowhere near the end. I also think that he was uncomfortable being between horses down the back side and only responded when JB got him outside.

Will we see history ?
Indeed.
Add another to the list :

Silver Charm
Rel Quiet
Charismatic
Funny Cide
Smarty Jones

TGJB

1) Actually, you\'ve hit on the one topic I know less about than horses........

2) Guys in your office seem to have a thing about Meatloaf lyrics.

And finally,  thanks, I\'ve read it and I\'m now more enlightened.

Bombasm deserves abruptness.

HP,

The off race Najran ran was as odds on at Keeneland.  I think the whole field beat him.
I remember the dominating win at Belmont, which may have actually been a classic 0-x-2 in terms of both figures and the betting pattern by the public.  That is the part of the 0-x-2 that is frequently overlooked or not understood by users. Big  price - short price - bigger price.

Thanks for the info and the wake-up call.

Well done.

what were those figs ?

HP,

All you need to do as add the part about them running in lanes with curtains and I\'d swear I was listening to Lenny and Lenny....

And while your at it,  keep up the good work.

The question is a general one may have already been discussed.  These figs keep getting faster and faster of TG and yet no records fall.
How ?
Are they all 6w6w carrying 126 ?

It really doesn\'t matter since it\'s all about cashing tickets and beating the \"that\'s my number\" guy sitting next to you, but can you honestly see a scenario where Secretariats move in the Preakness or Belmont leaves him second best.

Again,

Please.

Why aren\'t there any track records falling anywhere, except at Los Al and 5f grass sprints at GP.....

Yeah, yeah, the track surfaces are all changing.

\"Smarty Jones has left Secretariat in his wake. Big Red is still moving like a tremendous machine but no match for the great Smarty Jones...\"

Please.