Re: Post Positions for Preakness (472 Views)
Posted by:
bobphilo (IP Logged)
Date: May 16, 2007 10:08PM
Chuckles_the_Clown2 Wrote:
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> To my eye, Hard Spun looks fast enough to pull
> past Xchanger and settle near the rail to bide his
> time. Making the pace didn't earn him the Crown
> last, so I tend to think they'll rate and finish
> with more energy this trip. All things considered
> thought he finished with good energy last.
>
I agree that rating would be the way to go for Hard Spun. However, it seems that Pina gets fooled into think his horse is not going fast because he pricks his ears. That’s why he worked so fast and that’s why he went so fast early in the Derby. He ran great there but could have run even better, as you noted, had Pino rated him a bit, however he said after the race that he wasn’t going fast because of the ears. It’s just an idiosyncrasy of the horse and even if it does mean he’s relaxed, he’s still burning glycogen.
In the Preakness he faces even more pace pressure, which would not be a problem if not for the fact that Pino is apt to misjudge how fast he’s really going.
Bob