It’s a dangerous place, inside the head of a talented Thoroughbred filly. There are twists and turns, flashing lights, hobgoblins popping out from dark corners screaming, “Run! Run! No, the other way!”

For those who view the current state of Thoroughbred racing as a glass half empty and draining fast, there is Sunday’s 69th running of the Del Mar Derby offering at least a tiny sliver of hope.

It’s back to school time.

Yes, as a father of three who saw the kids increasingly get on each other’s nerves (and mom’s and dad’s as well) at the end of summer break, it was great to ship the two older ones off to school each morning this week. But I’m just as excited about hitting the books myself with the start of the college football season this weekend.

It’s always the 50th anniversary of something, and 2013 has offered especially ripe pickings. There’s just been the marking of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Dream” speech of Aug. 28, 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. In a couple of months, the heartache will commence over the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination on Nov. 22, 1963. I’m inclined to leaven the mood with tales of the 1963 World Series, in which the Dodgers swept the Yankees in four wonderful games, but that never seems to cheer up my friends from New York.

It was a heck of a horse race, truly one for the books.

With a sixteenth of a mile to run in last Sunday’s 1 1/4-mile Pacific Classic, the Canadian ace Delegation was still hanging tough after being on the engine from the start. Richard’s Kid, a two-time winner of the Classic, had been flung six wide on the turn and was making good headway in the middle of the track. Nearer the rail, the Brazilian colt Holding Glory was getting a dream trip, while the stablemates Kettle Corn and You Know I Know were both on the march.

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Give the Pacific Classic credit. In a racing world increasingly dominated by Triple Crown preps, casino track jackpots, and the two top-heavy days of the Breeders’ Cup, Del Mar’s marquee event still clings to a semblance of relevancy.

Richard’s Kid is more of a brand name than a race horse. Years from now, there will be Richard’s Kid tribute bands, Richard’s Kid renunions, Richard’s Kid package tours of all the places Richard’s Kid has played.

If you had won the weekly drawing for a free $15,000 bet on the Saturday feature at Saratoga, you would probably want to put it on one of the three favorites for the race: Verrazano (2-1), coming off a sensational blowout victory in the Haskell; Palace Malice (5-2), who has won the Belmont Stakes and the Jim Dandy in his last two starts; or Orb (7-2), the Kentucky Derby winner. They are all good horses, and any one of them would move straight to the head of the 3-year-old class with a Travers triumph.

What’s about nine and a half feet tall, 190 pounds dripping wet, and strong enough to tame the inner, prehistoric beast of the most obnoxious Thoroughbred racehorse?

That would be Dana Barnes and Tammy Fox, one standing on the other’s shoulders, offering undeniable proof that quality comes in small packages, and that you can be a 48-year-old mother of two, as both are, and command respect as two of the best at what they do.

The crime and punishment portion of the Del Mar summer meet will be in the spotlight Sunday when two horses from the barn of suspended trainer Carla Gaines go postward in the featured stakes events of the afternoon.