Preakness Friday

Is there something in the air? On Blood Horse they're dropping like flies.  So many deaths of late of the human kind. 

Preakness--maybe toughest in awhile?  Orb seems man among boys with best training job to boot.  Funny how that works out year after year. When did the 2nd or 3rd best trained horse win the Derby?

Will Golden Cents run away with the race?  What O'Neal has done with him, maybe it's in the barn notes I have yet to read.  The other quality horse here--Will Take Charge, possibly, and can he find a straight and unimpeded line to the wire for his massive efficient stride?  How cool would it be to see WTC and ORB in a neck to neck run to the wire--two big and beautifully striding horses. Seems to me those are the threats.  If the track turns up hard fairly easy to visualize a game conditioned front runner running away from deep closers.

Itsmyluckyday lacks sufficient tightness in his photos.  Plesa on his vids seems a nice fellow. There's plenty of those unable to train a dog to bark. ; Oxbow and Governor Charlie--doubting they're enough horse for this race.  Departing and Title Town have yet to look at. Last out winners always a threat?  My Lute looks to me like he'd have to have something scare him to death in the stretch to make it to the wire in front.  Will see.

As to bandaging and holding--txs. for comment last post.  We all have our methods.  By my experience we tend to learn as we go, and foolishness on the back stretch becomes wisdom when one day we see it working for one of our own horses.  I never used lasix till I had a horse bleed.  I never used a tongue tie until one day while on board I got a small roar--thought I'd try a tie, and voila recognized immediately how much better the horse was able to get his air.  I never see tongue ties on Lukas horses--go figure.

Bandaging, I'm other than a fan.  There are detailed arguments pro and con.  All I'm able to say is that through several race meets I never had an injured horse excepting one stupid act by a rider I should have avoided, and those injury free meets were without bandaging with the toughest on track works, although I have my own post work therapeutics.  Bandages create heat and pressure.  There are imo very uncomfortable for the horse in several respects.  One can create the same heat with saran wrap and furazone without the bandage.

Additionally--there's also the Q down to the atomic level--heat will certainly speed up action of the osteoblasts and clasts in restoring damaged bone cells etc..  However, if the microscopic bone damage is a little greater and there is more fluid build up between bone cells threatening to develop into a microscopic fracture line, do we really want to heat that area and create more leaking fluid or do we want to freeze that area to prevent fluid build up? I avoid bandages when I'm able because I believe they make horses uncomfortable.  I like happy horses.  As to the holding of the horses, there's zero excuse for the abysmal handling of these horses heads that is showing of late. 

Training:  #17 galloped up a short incline on his fourth trot heat this morn.  Illusion that we could use the new ground in lieu of race track quickly disappears.  This stretch of ground will allow beginner stuff only.   Good w/o this morning.  If rain holds off expecting full gallop tomorrow.  Full scale planning to get to OK now actively underway.