Orb Jogs at Belmont Park

Thank you for the video shooter. It was actually on the news!

Today - from the New York Times (Yes they cover racing during the TC - I guess because of the Belmont!

The Rail
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May 9, 2013, 3:33 pm Orb Stays Loose in Mud as Preakness Field Comes Together
By ALEX BROWN
The field for the 138th running of the Preakness Stakes is starting to take shape. Eight Kentucky Derby starters are being considered for the middle jewel of the Triple Crown, and they will be joined by three or four horses who did not race in the Derby. It remains possible one or two more horses may come under consideration.

The Derby winner Orb is back in training at Belmont Park. He has visited the racetrack twice since his impressive win Saturday. This morning he galloped an easy mile in sloppy conditions. His trainer, Shug McGaughey, reported about Orb and his exercise rider Jenn Patterson: “The track was still sloppy. Jenn said he was kind of bucking and playing and jumping the water puddles on the backstretch. I was pleased with what I saw. His energy level is right where you’d want it to be on Thursday after Saturday.”

McGaughey has three goals for Orb’s training over the next 10 days: allow Orb to recover from his effort Saturday, ready him for the Preakness test and get him acclimated to the new surroundings of Pimlico Race Course. To achieve this, he plans to work his colt Monday, and then ship him to Pimlico later that day.

Normandy Invasion, who finished fourth in the Derby remains 50-50 for the Preakness. He has now jogged for a couple of days at Belmont Park. A decision will be made after he does some galloping. Track conditions at Belmont have not been ideal. Vyjack, who finished 18th in the Derby, remains under consideration for the Preakness, but a decision will not be made until he gallops. The trainer Rudy Rodriguez has not been able to do much with the gelding since his Derby effort.

The fifth-place Derby finisher Mylute galloped a mile and a half Thursday morning at Churchill Downs. A decision on his participation is scheduled to be made Saturday. Also at Churchill Downs are the D. Wayne Lukas pair of Oxbow (6th in the Derby) and Will Take Charge (8th). They each galloped a mile and a half this morning. Lukas will also enter another horse, Titletown Five. He jogged a couple of miles Thursday morning.

Itsmyluckyday, who finished 15th in the Derby, is now at Monmouth Park. He only jogged this morning because of the track conditions.

The only Derby starter who is now at Pimlico is Goldencents. He jogged once around the track this morning under jockey Kevin Krigger. Goldencents comes from the same team that produced the Derby and the Preakness champion I’ll Have Another last year, and they are following the same routine with this horse, who disappointed in his Derby run.

The horses who did not compete in the Derby have the distinct advantage of not having to recover so quickly from a very grueling race. Joining Titletown Five in this group is Departing, who is the most intriguing. He recently won the Illinois Derby and is undergoing his preparations at Churchill Downs, where he galloped two miles this morning. Also at Churchill Downs is the Bob Baffert-trained Govenor Charlie, who was victorious in the Sunland Park Derby. Govenor Charlie jogged this morning at Churchill. Also under consideration for the Preakness is the Chicago-based Street Spice, who finished a troubled fifth in the Illinois Derby in his most recent start. A decision on his participation will be made after he breezes Saturday morning in Chicago.

The horses who did not compete in the Derby have the luxury of being able to focus on their preparations for the Preakness over a longer period of time than the Derby starters. This will include one more significant workout in the lead-up to the Preakness. The trainers of the horses that raced in the Derby will first focus on recovery, before sharpening. This approach usually works, as long as the horses did not have to dig too deep for their Derby effort. We will not know until next Saturday how much of an effort it was for the Derby starters.

.http://therail.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/09/orb-stays-loose-in-mud-as-preakness-field-comes-together/?ref=sports