WASHINGTON - Smarty Jones was understandably the center of the racing world after the Kentucky Derby. The colt had captured America's most famous race, improved his career record to a perfect 7 for 7, earned a $5 million bonus, and transformed his little known owner, trainer, and jockey into darlings of the media.

Amidst all of the acclaim for the winner, little attention was paid to the horses behind him. Yet one of the losers ran an extraordinary race, delivering a performance that was in many respects as impressive as Smarty Jones's.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - "That's it," vowed Mike Smith. "No more seconds. I've got to win that thing."

Easier said than done, of course, winning the Kentucky Derby. There are infinitely more creative ways to lose the race than end up covered in roses. Give Smith a pass, though, for feeling a little bit overdue. Last Saturday's second-place finish aboard Lion Heart was Smith's 11th ride in America's most famous race, and he can do the math.

TUCSON, Ariz. - Many who love horse racing, like many who love opera, ballet, golf, or Jack Russell terriers, can't understand why everyone else doesn't share their passion.

Last week, in the midst of Kentucky Derby hoopla, two major American newspapers gave ammunition to those who aren't racing fans.

On successive days just before America's biggest race, the New York Times ran major front sports page stories on medication and whipping, and the Cleveland Plain Dealer chipped in with one on Salix (commonly known as Lasix).

WASHINGTON - Thoroughbred racing has a bright new star in Smarty Jones. He is the first undefeated horse to win the Kentucky Derby since Seattle Slew, and his perfect record suggests that he possesses limitless potential. He also has the rags-to-riches appeal of Funny Cide, with a Pennsylvania-based owner, trainer, and jockey for whom the Derby once seemed an impossible dream.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - John Servis couldn't wait to hit the road. He'd been away from home the better part of three months - pining for his family, his bed, his remote control - and now that he had done what he'd set out to do, it was Philadelphia or bust.

"I'm driving," he said as he tied up loose ends at Churchill Downs, "and it'll be great. Up into the mountains of West Virginia, with no cell phone signal for miles and miles. It's beautiful . . . and peaceful."

NEW YORK - Should the Kentucky Derby have an also-eligible list?

It sure seemed like a good idea after Friday morning's developments at Churchill Downs, when first Wimbledon and then St Averil were withdrawn from the race. That left a field of 18 rather than 20 and two empty stalls that could have been filled by Rock Hard Ten and Eddington, who were entered Wednesday but excluded because they ranked 21st and 22nd on graded-stakes earnings. Why couldn't they have been put on an also-eligible list and allowed to draw in Friday morning after the defections?

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - It begins not with a whimper, but with a banging crash of metal, slapping leathers, and screams from the throats of thousands who've been waiting - and drinking - since dawn.

After months of anticipation, the 130th Kentucky Derby will commence at 6:04 Saturday evening. More than a hundred thousand in the house will patch the race together from glimpses between temporary tents and infield clutter, and millions will be watching the unfiltered drama emerge on screen.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Julio Canani, wearing white pants and a sheepish grin, stopped between barns on the Churchill Downs backstretch Wednesday morning and said with a shrug, "I'm lost."

Not hardly. Canani likes to pretend he is the Peruvian Rodney Dangerfield, as in, "I don't get no respect," although it doesn't sound quite the same after his accent gets through with it. And he gets plenty of respect, as befits a trainer who has won such races as the Breeders' Cup Mile (twice), the Santa Anita Handicap, and scads of other fine stakes.

WASHINGTON - After Friends Lake won the Florida Derby on March 13, trainer John Kimmel faced a decision. How could he best prepare the colt to deliver a peak performance at Churchill Downs seven weeks later? The orthodox move would have been to run in one of the major prep races three weeks before the Kentucky Derby.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - It's five-thirty in the morning. Never a good sign. Sun-up is still an hour away. The best most people can hope for at five-thirty in the morning is a heartbeat. Never mind conscious thought or decisive action. Five-thirty in the morning is strictly for the pros.