I'm one of those seasonal sports followers whose interest sharply peaks during iconic annual championships, and horse racing is a case in point. Today's Kentucky Derby for the best three-year-old thoroughbreds, held at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, stands as the premier event in this sport. The original favorite for this 20-horse field was Omaha Beach, which was scratched just recently due to an entrapped epiglottis that interfered with the horse's breathing...minor surgery should correct the problem. Now we're left with a long list of longshots and a small number of contenders, the three favorites so far, Game Winner, Roadster, and Improbable, having the same trainer...Bob Baffert, who interestingly was the trainer for both recent Triple Crown winners American Pharoah in 2015 and Justify in 2018. It should be a fun race to watch, but with post time set for 6:46 pm I'm going to be pressed to see it since I'll be preparing for my own race, the May Day Glow Run 5K, taking place in Tioga a little ways west of Gainesville...that one begins at 8. Just for fun and without any special knowledge of the horse, I picked Tacitus out of the lineup to root for in the Derby...it has respectable odds (10-1) at this writing and stands out visually, being grey. We'll see what happens...by the way, the race and all of the hype preceding it for hours will be broadcast on NBC starting at 2:30. Whoever wins this race will not be facing a recovered Omaha Beach in the remaining Triple Crown races, his trainer hoping he'll be ready for the year-end Breeder's Cup...of course by then I'll be completely ignoring horse racing like I usually do...
Later...Maximum Security, which leapfrogged over the other contenders to be the betting favorite on race day, pretty much headed the pack from start to finish and impressively won the 2019 Kentucky Derby. Now let's see what the next race, the Preakness, brings...
A few minutes later...wow, Maximum Security was just disqualified due to interference and longshot Country House proclaimed the winner...I don't think there will be a Triple Crown winner this year...
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