Kentucky Bear gets big jump at Pimlico

BALTIMORE – For the better part of a week, the only sounds around the stakes barn at Pimlico Race Course have been raindrops, a few birds chirping and the clomp-clomp-clomp of one horse strutting around the stable.

Until being joined by Hey Byrn on Tuesday morning, Kentucky Bear was the lone Preakness entrant in the barn. Stall 40, reserved for the Kentucky Derby champion, is as empty as an abandoned apartment.

On the other side of the barn, Kentucky Bear has had the run of the place. There once was a time when trainers thought it absolutely necessary to allow their horses to get acclimated to their surroundings before a big race, but the rows of empty stalls at Pimlico this week indicate that tactic is no longer required.

The handlers of Kentucky Bear, however, are definitely old school. They brought the horse to Pimlico on May 7 and have been holed up in Baltimore since.

“He’s been able to work well over the track and settled in really well, so I think it’s an advantage,” assistant trainer Cassie Garcia said. “I think it depends on the horse, their trainer and their schedule. Maybe the other horses are better at home, so they keep them there.”

Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown is slated to arrive late this afternoon. Icabad Crane and Behindatthebar aren’t expected to show up until the morning of the race.

Kentucky Bear did not qualify for the Derby, but Garcia hopes that works to his advantage.

“It was a little disappointing, but it might be a blessing in the end because he’ll have a little more time to get ready. He’s not going to be too tired,” she said. “We kind of knew because he was a little bit down on the list and it probably would have taken a couple of miracles to get in. But it didn’t really bother me that much. It might have been a little much for him the first time out.”

Garcia concedes that Big Brown will be the favorite, and rightfully so.

“He’s a superstar. That horse is very nice,” she said. “But you never know what can happen in a race, right?”