ARCADIA, Calif. - It's sad enough that next Saturday will bring a Breeders' Cup without Chris McCarron. But Eddie Delahoussaye, too?

McCarron and Delahoussaye were both front row center for the first Breeders' Cup at Hollywood Park in 1984. They both rode six of the seven races that day, and Delahoussaye rang the bell with Princess Rooney in the Distaff.

They are not alone. The list of top riders from that first Cup who have long-departed the scene includes Bill Shoemaker, Sandy Hawley, Yves Saint-Martin, Angel Cordero, Fernando Toro, Eddie Maple, and Jeff Fell.

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Are the 3-year-olds good enough to beat their elders in the $4 million Breeders' Cup Classic?

With such prospects as Medaglia d'Oro, War Emblem, Came Home, Harlan's Holiday, Perfect Drift, and possibly Rock of Gibraltar and Hawk Wing, the answer appears to be a decided yes.

To win in world-class competition in the fall of the year requires a 3-year-old with above-average quantities of speed and class. This year's leading 3-year-olds seem to fit the bill.

NEW YORK - Even with a few fairly short fields, there are well over 150 million possible permutations to the results of Saturday's eight Breeders' Cup races. Be grateful it's not an Ultra Pick Eight. No matter how the races turn out, though, there's a much smaller universe of possible answers to the question that hangs over the end of every Breeders' Cup Day: So who's going to be the Horse of the Year?

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Bonapaw is the first horse to have completed his formal training for the Breeders' Cup. He worked five furlongs here Monday in a lively 57.80 seconds and now will gallop up to his race in the Sprint, which is one of the most competitive events on the World Championship card of Oct. 26.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Mike Smith did not feel the least bit slighted when he was not invited to participate in a high-powered Breeders' Cup teleconference on Thursday morning. The guest list included Bob Baffert, Aidan O'Brien, Bobby Frankel, Laura de Seroux, and Simon Crisford, representing the absolute cream of the Breeders' Cup pre-entry list.

"Mike Smith?" Smith said. "What would they want with some jockey from California in that group?"

ARCADIA, Calif. - It's been a rough week for "The Sopranos," America's favorite television family.

On Monday, actors Lorraine Bracco and Dominic Chianese were denied the privilege of joining New York mayor Michael Bloomberg in the traditional Columbus Day parade. Apparently, the HBO series has become an affront to some influential members of the Italian-American community. Who knew?

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - The fresh horse.

There was a time when almost every horse, pointing for a major stakes, had a prep race. Ben and Jimmy Jones of Calumet Farm ran all eight of their Kentucky Derby winners in the Derby Trial, which in those days was scheduled four days before the Derby.

The Thoroughbred of today isn't as sturdy as his ancestors, and horsemen have learned to adapt to the circumstances. A considerable number of starters in the Breeders' Cup will start on Oct. 26 without a race of any kind for six and even eight weeks.

WASHINGTON - After entries for the Breeders' Cup are announced Wednesday, bettors across the country will begin studying the horses' records intensely. The races Oct. 26 at Arlington Park near Chicago feature a pick six with a guaranteed $3 million pool that could produce a monumental payoff. The Breeders' Cup always poses a supreme handicapping challenge, but this year horseplayers have a new and valuable tool to aid them in picking winners.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Tom Robbins had better buckle his seat belt. He is about to go from being the most popular guy in the game to the bad guy in the black hat, all in a matter of about 24 hours.

As vice-president of racing at Del Mar and a canny veteran of industry politics, Robbins should know better than to stick his hand into a bandsaw like the Breeders' Cup selection process. Tax collectors get more gratitude.

WASHINGTON - When the West Virginia Breeders' Classic was run Saturday night at Charles Town, the track's old hands were watching with amazement. And people connected with racing in Maryland looked on with envy.

The eight races for products of West Virginia's modest breeding industry offered purse money totaling $850,000 - a formidable sum for any track, let alone one that is supposedly minor league. "It's hard to believe," marveled Charles Town's general manager Dickie Moore. "I can remember in the 1990's when we were giving away $21,000 a day."