Semoran Beats the Rain and Clock in Workout

Beating the rain that started falling late in the morning and continued all afternoon, several Kentucky Derby horses worked out Sunday at Churchill Downs, and the best time of the day was 1:26 2/5 for Semoran, who went seven furlongs for trainer Bob Baffert.

“He was awesome,” Baffert said. “That’s the best he’s worked since before he won the Remington Park Derby.”

Another notable workout was Victory Speech’s five-furlong 1:00 2/5, which included a closing quarter-mile in a snappy 23 seconds. Other horses of trainer Wayne Lukas’ to work were Editor’s Note, :59 4/5, and Honour And Glory, 1:00 3/5, both for five furlongs. Halo Sunshine worked seven furlongs in a slow 1:31 3/5.

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With the field for Saturday holding at the capacity of 20 horses, the rain is supposed to continue today and Tuesday, which could play hob with training plans. Temperatures will be mild, with a clearing in the forecast for Wednesday. The three off-tracks for the Derby in the last 25 years have all come since 1989.

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Trainer Nick Zito, who will saddle Louis Quatorze and Diligence in the Derby, was in good form. “One of them is named after a king, and the other is owned by a king,” Zito said. “Louis Quatorze is named for a king, and Diligence is owned by King George--George Steinbrenner.”

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City By Night, winner of the Lexington Stakes, trains with cotton in his years and will have the ears stuffed with cotton until he gets in the gate Saturday. “I’ll probably need cotton in my ears for all the noise they’ll be making Saturday,” trainer Patrick Byrne said. “Cotton is used on more horses than you might think.”

Jack Van Berg, who trained Gate Dancer, was opposed to putting cotton in horses’ ears, but he ran the lugging-in colt with garish earmuffs to drown out crowd noises. Gate Dancer, the only horse to be disqualified for interference in a Derby, ran fourth and was disqualified to fifth, then he won the Preakness.

“Would you like cotton in your ears?” Van Berg once said. “Neither does a horse.”