When Shared Belief and California Chrome met in the San Antonio Stakes last month, the race seemed like a passing of the torch: Shared Belief won so easily that he became the front-runner for the Horse of the Year title that California Chrome won last year.

It was dark in the stables of Santa Anita Park last Saturday night, deadly quiet and deserted save for the odd stirring in a stall, when out of the darkness appeared a disembodied white dot floating at the far end of the tow ring hard by the Jerry Hollendorfer barn.

It was at precisely this time last year that I pronounced California Chrome the winner of the Kentucky Derby. You are all very welcome.

I had been running all about last winter watching basketball games before sitting down to watch the 2014 San Felipe Stakes. I was so dazzled by what I saw that I went back and watched every race of California Chrome’s career, searching for a reason to contain my enthusiasm. Seeing none, I made my pronouncement.

It’s time again to rant and rail at the people who run the Thoroughbred racing Hall of Fame, and wonder aloud why they can’t seem to get anything right in terms of the voting process, and how come there are so many clearly obvious candidates who never make it to the final ballot, and when they’ll finally get Billy Crystal to host the induction ceremonies.

Then Minnie Minoso died this week without being a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, and any gripes with the horse racing Hall seemed pale by comparison.

Here comes one of those days for which racing fans suffer through the dead of winter, dreary Thursdays, and rainy afternoons when nothing should be played outdoors.

At Tampa Bay Downs, Florida’s other white meat, a fresh batch of names will try to elbow into the Kentucky Derby conversation with a breakout performance in the $350,000 Tampa Bay Derby.

In New York, climate change permitting, the $400,000 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct pits local talent fueled on hay, oats, and antifreeze trying to be taken seriously as prospects for the classic races ahead.

If you’ve been hibernating the last four weeks – a perfectly reasonable response to the brutal winter weather in so much of the country – you may want to emerge from your den Saturday: There’s important racing at four tracks, including 11 graded stakes worth nearly $4 million. March is coming in like a lion in more ways than one.

You can’t beat Shared Belief in the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap on Saturday, so don’t even try. End of column.

Then again ...

Coming up for air while binge-watching Season 3 of “House of Cards.” You won’t believe what President Frank is caught doing in hour five and the use to which he puts the White House gymnasium. Then again, maybe you would.

Apparently, it is still snowing somewhere east of here. Rain is on the horizon for Santa Anita over the weekend, which is no excuse for management’s failure to card any kind of stakes race Sunday, unless there is something to be gained by following the lead of every other Thoroughbred track around the country. Welcome to the herd.

Clyde was slick. Clyde was smooth. Clyde was as cool as the other side of the pillow.

If Clyde had horse, he’d never let you know. Sometimes even the horse was surprised.

How did Clyde get Native Diver to ladle out that speed? He’d talk to him, he said, “like a Philadelphia lawyer,” and Native Diver would listen.

It was a simple portrait of Native Diver found in a book that lit the flame, a head shot of the dark brown gelding with the intense eyes, the greedy nostrils, and the mushroom-cloud blaze.