•May 17, 2017•

By Jerry L. Ginther
NP Columnist

Known as the Second Jewel in the Triple Crown of thoroughbred horse racing, the Preakness Stakes is held on the third Saturday of May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. The distance for this race is one and 3/16 miles and is the shortest of the three races in the Triple Crown with the longest being the Belmont Stakes at one and ½ miles. The Kentucky Derby, the first of the three races, is just 1/16 of a mile longer than the Preakness, at one and ¼ miles or 10 furlongs. There are eight furlongs in a mile, just in case you’re doing the math, so, a 16th is one half of a furlong.

With the Kentucky race in our rear view mirror we move on to this second race where the Derby winner, “Always Dreaming,” will try to make it two out of three in his endeavor to be a Triple Crown winner for trainer Todd Pletcher. The Preakness will decide if there will be a chance for another three-race winner. Of course, winning the second race keeps the adventure alive if you won the first. If the Derby winner also wins the Preakness, the suspense and excitement grow as we anticipate the Belmont Stakes, the final contest of the three races. That final race will be held on June 10 this year at Belmont, N.Y. It will be a disappointment to many if the chance ends with this second race, but with a purse of one million dollars, the winner will be just as happy to go home with the money even if his horse was never in contention for the Triple Crown.      Login or Subscribe to read the rest of this story.