The two weeks between the Derby and the Preakness could not have been scripted by a novelist or screenwriter. No one would have believed them. It was soapier than a horse's bath after a race. Yet, in spite of ESPN's refusal to cover the full day of Preakness racing and NBC only covering the big race, it was a pretty darned good day of racing. Fie on ESPN for denying racing fans appropriate coverage of one of the legs of the Triple Crown. I don't care what their excuse is -- it's unacceptable.

Fortunately, those of us on site had a good time, in spite of hot, humid weather and the constant threat of rain.

In my years of Triple Crown coverage, the Preakness has become my favorite of the three races. Pimlico is looked down on a bit -- probably for the hijinks in the infield, which was subdued this year, not due to the recession, but due to the fact that people can no longer haul liquor inside. Frankly, I prefer the demise of the kegger mentality. Preakness Day is filled with Triple Crown potential and hope that this year will be The Year. It's lower key than either the Derby or the Belmont, and, in my opinion, more fun. There's some concern that Pimlico and Maryland will lose the Preakness. I hope that's not the case. It would be a terrible loss to the entire country and the sport.

Now, on to the actual racing day.

1st Race: This was a look-not-bet race for me. I expected it to be soggy and miserable with a sloppy track, but in reality, the track was dry and fast. Although the air was heavy and humid, the surface was fine. My choices to watch in the first race were MALIBU JOE and SMOKING HEART, just to see how the surface played. SMOKING HEART was scratched, which left me with MALIBU JOE. He tried hard, but the winner, SCOTCHONTHEROCKS set a pace and never let up, so MJ faded. An okay start, but had me second-guessing myself for a few races.

Race 2: My choices here were SEA CHANTER and SKYLIGHTER across the board. ALL SMILES was my longshot show pick. SEA CHANTER was scratched -- because she ran at Belmont and came in third in her race there. I think she would have done better here. SKYLIGHTER won. She was steady and, once past the first turn, there was no question she would win. ALL SMILES did me proud by slotting in right where I wanted her, in third.

Race 3: On paper, I wanted HOT BULLET and MYTHICAL HERO for my 1-2 spots, with JAZZMAN'S DANCE as my longshot for show. Paddock-side, I decided to dump HB and MH, and just stick with JAZZMAN'S DANCE in the show slot. That's where he came in. It looked like he might do better for a while, but he went too wide in the far turn and didn't have enough steam. I'm glad I dumped my original choices. HOT BULLET came in fourth and MYTHICAL HERO was even more disappointing in sixth. OLD TIMER worked his way through the other horses very well, even going wide, for a nice win.

Race 4 -- William Donald Schaeffer Stakes: My original choices in this race were EA, CRMSON COMIC, and READY SET. I wanted to take a look at REAL MERCHANT, ridden by Johnny Velazquez, with the thought of dumping one of the above list. I wound up dumping both CRIMSON COMIC and READY SET because they didn't seem ready to win today. I decided to bet REAL MERCHANT across the board and EA to place. The race was won by a horse called NO ADVANTAGE who ran so wide it almost seemed like he was in the stands, but won anyway, which is saying something. EA and REAL MERCHANT were in a dead heat for second. READY SET was fourth and CRIMSON COMIC was fifth.

Race 5: I had decided this would be my race to sit out and have a cocktail, keeping an eye on HABITUAL, but not betting. That turned out to be a good choice. HABITUAL was a disappointing fifth. The race was nicely won by MOTOWN SHUFFLE, who listened to his jockey and did what he was told. And the cocktail was good.

Race 6 -- Desputed Testimony Starter Stakes: NORJAC and SUMCHA'HOT were the favorites here. I stuck to my original choices of BELLE'S BROKER and FURRIAT, which was a big mistake. SUMCHA'HOT won, in spite of some struggles, and NORJAC came in a nice third. BELLE'S BROKER never fired and FURRIAT was pulled up after a bump with COURT BAND. I was not able to find out the extent of FURRIAT'S injury, and hope it's not too bad.

Race 7 -- Gallorette Handicap: I always really enjoy this race, a mile and a sixteenth on the turf. My original choices were DYNAFORCE and ALL IS VANITY. I considered and tossed out the long shot ROYALTIES. I wound up just betting on ALL IS VANITY for a place spot, which is where she came in, when SOCIAL QUEEN simply ran her down after a patient ride by Rafael Bejarano.

Race 8 -- Hirsch Jacobs Stakes: On paper, I thought NUCLEAR WAYNE looked good, but wanted to check out both EVERYDAY HEROES and NOT FOR SILVER, with an eye to YANO for my longshot. NUCLEAR WAYNE looked lethargic to me, and YANO seemed distracted, so I tossed them. I stuck with EVERYDAY HEROES and NOT FOR SILVER as a boxed exacta. They came in as 1-2, in the above order, which surprised me, because neither one of them had a particularly good trip. EVERYDAY HEROES and his jockey argued so much about how they should run in the beginning, I was sure he'd wear himself out before the last stretch, especially the way he drifted, and NOT FOR SILVER seemed like a lost cause early on. I was shocked when he seemed to shake himself and re-focus in the stretch.

Race 9 -- The Woodlawn Stakes: Another turf race I really enjoy. One of my original choices, COLONEL RUTLEDGE, was scratched. That left me with AFFIRMATIF, trained by Todd Pletcher with JV up. I bet him across the board, and he won, stalking the pace and pulling away from the others in a lovely ride.

Race 10 -- Maryland Sprint Handicap: WEST COAST FLIER, the Gary Contessa-trained horse that I hoped would win, was scratched. I was surprised at CELTIC INNIS'S long odds. Ultimately, I decided not to bet on this race. It was won by RAVALO, trained by Donald Barr and ridden by JV, who stalked in spite of bobbling out of the gate and won a duel to take the top spot. I'm glad I didn't bet on this race -- I wouldn't have picked this horse.

Race 11 -- Dixie Stakes: A mile and a half on turf, and I find myself favoring turf races more and more. PROUDINKSY was scratched, which was a shame. I wanted to take another look at him after my disappointment with him on Derby day's undercard. That left me with WESLEY AND MUSKETIER from my original list. I kept WESLEY in the show spot, which is where he landed, and skipped MUSKETIER, which is good, because he finished a disappointing ninth after never firing. The race was won nicely by PARADING, under Kent Desormeaux, who remained steady and strong after stalking the pace.

Race 12 -- Preakness Stakes: The Big Race. First, RACHEL ALEXANDRA's owner swore she'd never run against the boys. Then he sold her. So much for loving the horse -- obviously the cash was more important to him. So RACHEL ALEXANDRA found a new home with Jess Jackson and trainer Steve Asmussen. Calvin Borel returned to her after riding Derby winner MINE THAT BIRD, and Mike Smith picked up the mount. There were all sorts of stories about attempts to nominate other horses to keep RACHEL ALEXANDRA out and the pressure that prevented the scenario from playing out. I heard everything second or third hand, so I won't get into too much of that fray. However, I do say this: If you really think you have a good horse, you don't have to play that kind of politics to keep another good horse out of the race. You let your horse stand or fall on its own merits. If these rumors are true -- and they haven't been denied by the owners, so they probably are -- the owners of both MINE THAT BIRD and PIONEER OF THE NILE did a disservice to those two horses, who can stand up and be counted among the best horses of this year.

They just aren't as good as RACHEL ALEXANDRA.

I stuck with my original choices: RACHEL ALEXANDRA, MINE THAT BIRD, and PIONEER OF THE NILE across the board and as a boxed trifecta. I felt PAPA CLEM was more a Preakness horse than a Derby horse, so I also put some show money on him. I put show money on FREISAN FIRE and GENERAL QUARTERS. I passed on FLYING PRIVATE, in spite of the Fusaichi Pegasus connection (as I said around Derby time, if is was a filly, I'd have bet, because Fusaichi Pegaus's daughters tend to run better than his sons). I like the look of TAKE THE POINTS, but didn't think it was his race.

Come race time, RACHEL ALEXANDRA looked phenomenal, and so did MINE THAT BIRD. PIONEER OF THE NILE, PAPA CLEM, and FRIESAN FIRE also looked good. BIG DRAMA bucked off JV in the starting gate, and Mike Smith kept MINE THAT BIRD calm as you please in the slot next to them.

I was worried that RACHEL ALEXANDRA was in the lead too early. But Borel knows this horse, and, in spite of her struggle near the end with the track, she prevailed. MINE THAT BIRD was amazing under Mike Smith. He was stuck behind traffic and didn't have a shot at the rail. Ever. Yet, when tiny holes opened here and there, he guided MINE THAT BIRD -- who didn't know him at all -- through the holes and they nearly caught RACHEL ALEXANDRA. She only won by a length, and MINE THAT BIRD might have run her down if this was the Belmont. Mike Smith must be commended for giving a new-to-him horse such an excellent ride, and MINE THAT BIRD should be commended for having the poise of a much older horse.

Of course, I'm still thrilled the filly won. I think she's amazing. However, she didn't like this track, and I think the race took a lot out of her. I would be surprised if she was entered in the Belmont. I would think they'd put her in the Travers. I think MINE THAT BIRD will win the Belmont, just like his daddy BIRDSTONE did several years ago, and I think Mike Smith should be up.

MUSKET MAN came in third, just like he did in the Derby. I really need to show this horse a little more respect. I was pleasantly surprised that FLYING PRIVATE came in fourth. I think he'll do well in Saratoga this summer. PAPA CLEM came in a disappointing sixth. PIONEER OF THE NILE and FRIESAN FIRE bumped at the clubhouse turn, and neither one recovered. FRIESAN FIRE came in tenth and PIONEER OF THE NILE came in eleventh. Both horses are better than that; they need some work on the mental side of their game at this point. I was right about TAKE THE POINTS, who came in last out of thirteen horses.

Jess Jackson, RACHEL ALEXANDRA'S new owner, has talked about breeding her with CURLIN. For size and stamina, I think that's great. However, I never found CURLIN to be particularly bright, although I never saw horse try as hard to please as that one. I hope any progeny have RACHEL's intelligence. It was also great to hear RACHEL'S original trainer, Hal Wiggins, repeatedly praised by RACHEL'S new team. This is a wonderful horse, in the league of the filly RAGS TO RICHES who won the Belmont a couple of years ago. May we see her win many more races and not lose her at the end of this season.

Race 13: Yes, there was another race after the Preakness. I stuck with one of my original choices, OUR SECOND SLEW, and dumped SPECIALALTERNATIVE. OUR SECOND SLEW had a nice win.

Another record-breaking Preakness is in the books. May Maryland keep the Preakness, and let's let everyone rest up for Belmont. Will it be a re-match between MINE THAT BIRD and RACHEL ALEXANDRA? Or will there be a new, fresh challenger?

We'll know in three weeks.

Devon Ellington publishes under a half a dozen names in fiction and non-fiction. This is her tenth year covering the Triple Crown. Her YA horse racing mystery DIXIE DUST RUMORS is about to release ( www.devonellingtonwork.com/jennystorm.html ), and she blogs on the writing life at Ink in My Coffee ( http://devonellington.wordpress.com ), which often includes racing picks as Racing Ink.