Irish Trojan in Tennessee

Two down, one to go

By Brendan Loy

As expected, Big Brown easily won the Preakness, and will have a shot at the Triple Crown in the Belmont three weeks from now. Here's today's race:

Big Brown will be the first horse to arrive at the Belmont with a chance for the Triple Crown since Smarty Jones in 2004 -- and if he achieves it, he'll be the first to do so in 30 years, since Affirmed in 1978. Eleven horses since then have won the Derby and the Preakness but lost in the Belmont, six of those between 1997 and 2004. (Silver Charm did it in '97, Real Quiet in '98, Charismatic in '99, War Emblem in '02, Funny Cide in '03 and Smarty Jones in '04.)

Me & Barack

By Brendan Loy

Okay, so it's a cardboard cutout. :) It's in front of the Sevier County Democratic Party headquarters in Sevierville, which Becky, Loyette and I are visiting for the Bloomin' Barbecue and Bluegrass
Festival.

CNN Breaking News

By CNN

Sen. Ted Kennedy is rushed to a hospital in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, a Democratic source tells CNN.

Preakness today; Big Brown is big favorite

By Brendan Loy

The 133rd Preakness is at 6:15 PM EST tonight. Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown is an overwhelming favorite against a decidedly weak field. ESPN's Bill Finley writes:

Against a group of competitors better suited to a race like the Ohio Derby than a Triple Crown event, [Big Brown] can regress by several lengths and still beat this field easily. He is the only Grade I winner in the field and only one of two horses (along with Gayego) to crack the 100 mark on the Beyer Speed Figures. The competition stinks.

The only way to handicap the race is to pick the winner of the other race, the 12-horse contest for second place. From a betting and handicapping standpoint, that's a pretty interesting, wide-open event. I've got it down to five horses: Macho Again, Tres Borrachos, Kentucky Bear, Riley Tucker and Giant Moon. I will use this quintet underneath Big Brown in every exotic wager imaginable.

Incidentally, Finley predicts Big Brown will lose the Belmont in three weeks. If so, he'd be the eleventh straight Derby-Preakness winner to lose the Belmont with a Triple Crown on the line.

Desperately Seeking Votes

By Lisa Velte

No, this isn't a Hillary Clinton post.  A local Seattle radio station is running a contest for the Dirtiest Grill, and the winner gets a new Weber grill.  My dad's nasty old grill is one of the finalists, so I'm asking everyone if they could take a second to go here and vote for Grill #3.  Thanks a bunch!

Update:  Thanks for your votes everyone, but my dad has lost the lead!  If you could go back and vote again, he'd really appreciate it.  You can vote multiple times by simply refreshing the page, so if you need a way to kill some time this weekend, just "power vote" (as he calls it).  Thanks!

UPDATE  5/19:  He won!  Thanks so much for your votes everyone!!