INGLEWOOD, Calif. - There is absolutely no reason to doubt the word of the people running the Bay Meadows Land Co. when they say that Hollywood Park, their newest jewel, could be good for at least another three years of operation, depending upon California's legislative and economic trends.

Just the same, any time an enterprise is owned by a land company - or, for that matter, a real estate investment trust, a development firm or a business with the word "properties" in its name - interested parties must be prepared at all times for dramatic change.

NEW YORK - Last Sunday's Summit of Speed at Calder more than lived up to its name, featuring dominating performances by . It also ended up being a fascinating laboratory for students of time and pace, yielding results that might be more ambiguous than they first appear.

TUCSON, Ariz. - I wasn't surprised - and no one else who follows Kentucky racing should have been, either - when Jim Gallagher, the executive director of the state's new, reform-minded Kentucky Horse Racing Authority, told a legislative subcommittee last week that serious drug offenses were overlooked by the former racing commission, which happily was abolished by Kentucky's governor, Ernie Fletcher.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Gus Headley stood with his mother, Aase, and his sister, Karen, in the breezeway outside the Hollywood Park jockeys' room last Saturday, watching the replay of the lopsided victory by the family's Surf Cat in the as if television never looked so good.

"Look at him," Gus said in whispered awe. "He even looks like Swaps."

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - For purposes of emotional stability, racetrackers everywhere are advised to reserve judgment regarding this week's announcement that Churchill Downs Inc. is selling Hollywood Park to the Bay Meadows Land Co., which is owned by the Stockbridge Real Estate Fund, an investment offshoot of Stockbridge Capital Partners, which was bankrolled in large part by the Pennsylvania Public School Employees Retirement System.

On the other hand, it's hard to suppress the panic.

NEW YORK - Horseplayers and the horse-racing industry cannot help casting a wistful eye toward Las Vegas this weekend, where a revolution in American gambling is in full bloom at the World Series of Poker.

The WSOP began June 2 with the first of 36 tournaments, but the one everyone cares about started this past Thursday, the $10,000 buy-in No Limit Texas Hold'em Championship Event, which runs through July 16. On that day, one survivor will be left standing to take home a first-place prize of over $10 million.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - With a pot of $750,000 on the line, there always will exist the temptation for a rider to cut things a little close, drift a lane here or there, and otherwise try to grab a slender edge that could make the difference between earning a healthy share of the purse, or merely a token mount fee.

Still, if they wouldn't mind, it would be great if the jockeys involved in the 66th running of the Hollywood Gold Cup on Saturday could negotiate the mile and a quarter without actionable incident, and all horses enjoy smooth sailing.

NEW YORK - Quickly now, without looking it up, what weights were carried by the first three finishers in the Suburban Handicap at Belmont last Saturday? If that history is too ancient, how about the assignments for this Saturday's Hollywood Gold Cup?

If you answered honestly that you don't know or care, there's another obvious question to face: Why does racing continue the charade of handicap racing in Grade 1 events that are supposed to determine the sport's very best horses?

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - As bad memories go, 14 years should be long enough to forget all but the most traumatic events. Mention the 1991 Hollywood Gold Cup to Cot Campbell, though, and the nightmare returns with painful clarity.

Campbell, who runs the Dogwood Stable syndicate of limited partnerships, describes the experience as "one of the most horrible weekends in my life," which is saying a lot, since this is a guy who once set fire to the top floor of a boarding house after falling asleep with a lit cigarette.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Norihiko Kishimoto began weeping for joy at about the furlong marker of last Sunday's $750,000 , and by all accounts he has yet to stop.

Good for him.