Joe Clancy

Like most trainers, Donnie Von Hemel reacted pragmatically when he saw Caleb’s Posse for the first time.

Six times Javier Castellano rode Hilda’s Passion. Four wins, two seconds, impressive every time. Then came the Bed O’ Roses at Belmont Park July 3, where they struggled home sixth at 2-5.

Before Saturday’s Ballston Spa, jockey Eddie Castro thought about Daveron, her ability, her temperament. The key, he said, was patience. To get the most from the 6-year-old mare required light hands but a firm mind. She needed to be controlled, without her feeling it.

Because of the pending storm headed north, racing has been canceled at Saratoga Race Course Sunday and with that, there will be no Saratoga Special Sunday either. We’ll take a rain day, regroup and publish again on Wednesday with full coverage of Saturday’s racing including the Travers won by Stay Thirsty.

Thoughts and observations . . .

Ever run a horse? One you rubbed, groomed, walked, cared for like a family member? It’s work, real work, but the reward comes when your charge heads to the racetrack and performs the way she can.

Neil Howard sat in a clubhouse box, staring at his phone, a few minutes before Monday’s opener where Howard’s 3-year-old Wilkinson was due to make his turf debut. Howard was due to commentate the race to Wilkinson’s owner, Ed Gaylord. Make no mistake, Howard is no Tom Durkin, but he delivered good news to Gaylord as Wilkinson rallied from fourth in the four-horse race to win comfortably over Chad Brown’s pair Asphalt and War Hoot. Sent off the longest price in the field, Wilkinson won for the fourth time in his career and first time on the turf, finishing 1 1/16 miles over soft turf in 1:47.85.

The last race goes off, audible in the distance but only when the light turns green and the cars fade, heading to town or to the Northway, the harness track or the eastside of town.

Dan Conway hesitated a beat, then dove right into the subject of what he did for 10 years away from the racetrack.

I hear Tom Durkin’s tone before I catch his words. You can tell when something bad happens, like when Doing Great died on the turn. You can tell when something good happens, like when Alex Solis slid through on the fence aboard Emerald Beech. You can tell when something crazy happens, like when the steeplechase race starts with 3 minutes still on the minutes-to-post clock. You can tell the enormity – good or bad – before his words come out, just by the lilt, the pall or the inflection. He’s the best in my lifetime.