Wheaton's Aly gets golden rail

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Like everybody else watching Aqueduct's races last week, Tim Hills noticed a pronounced inside speed bias. As the trainer of Wheaton's Aly, Hills hopes that trend continues at least one more day.

drew the rail and has the speed to use it to his advantage when he faces five rivals in a $54,000 classified allowance race at six furlongs.

"It seems like horses coming out of the inside posts are starting two lengths in front of horses in the outside posts,'' Hills said Monday from Florida, where he also maintains a string. "So I guess I like the one hole.''

Hills had Wheaton's Aly entered to run here on Dec. 8 against several of the horses who are in this spot. The day before the race, however, Wheaton's Aly got cast in his stall and wound up with several superficial cuts on his legs.

Prior that incident, Wheaton's Aly was on a nice roll with three wins, a second, and a third from his last six starts, including a nose victory over next-out winner First Blush in a $75,000 claimer at Belmont on Oct. 22.

Hills said he's not overly concerned about Wheaton's Aly having 82 days between starts, adding that the horse has "had a couple of real good works'' leading up to this. On Dec. 31, he breezed four furlongs in 48.65 seconds. On Sunday. Wheaton's Aly blew out three furlongs in 38.41 seconds over the Belmont training track.

The race that Wheaton's Aly missed was won by , a horse who hadn't started in 10 months. Way to the Top went gate to wire that day breaking from post 3, but has also been effective from off the pace. He figures to stalk under Mike Luzzi from post 6.

, coming off a three-month layoff, finished second by a head to Way to the Top and could be the right one if he moves forward off that. Apprentice Tim Thornton rides.

Last winter, Black Silk won a second-level allowance race after getting beat 6 3/4 lengths in the Grade 3 Gravesend Handicap. Wednesday, Black Silk drops into allowance company after getting beat 7 3/4 lengths in the Gravesend. Under the conditions of the race, Black Silk carries 122 pounds, spotting the field two to nine pounds.

True Direction was the beaten favorite in that Dec. 8 race, and would benefit from any moisture there may be on Wednesday.