Once I got past the euphoria of seeing a race between two marquee horses play out exactly as we all had hoped when Shared Belief and California Chrome hooked up with 100 yards to go last Saturday, I began to wonder why these two really fast horses had not run a faster final time.

When they both ran away from Hoppertunity in the stretch and were striding out like horses who wanted to keep running, I was envisioning a 115 Beyer Speed Figure. Then, Andrew Beyer posted a 106 for Shared Belief and a 104 for California Chrome.

So, what happened? The pace – or lack of it.

We get letters. Most of them we read. Some we even answer.

Dear Mr. Hovdey,

Lately you’ve written about Art Sherman, who is 77, Ron McAnally and Allen Jerkens, both eighty-somethings, and John Nerud, who turns one hundred and freakin’ two on Monday. I’ve heard horse racing is a young person’s game, so I was wondering if there’s anyone you ever find worth talking to in their 60’s.

With guarded respect,

P. de Leon

Dear P.,

In the 1967 Woodward Stakes at Aqueduct, Frank Whiteley Jr. used Hedevar as a rabbit to force Dr. Fager to use up too much of his great speed and thus ensure a very fast pace so that his come-from-behind champ Damascus would have a much better chance to win, which, as everyone knows, is exactly how the race developed.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – As Gulfstream Park was experiencing the most successful year in its history, handling $1.2 billion in wagers during 2014, its parent company gave track president Tim Ritvo an additional task. It asked him to revive Thoroughbred racing in Maryland.

Ladies and gentlemen, start your metaphors.

Saturday’s early-season showdown between California Chrome and Shared Belief in the San Antonio Stakes at Santa Anita is ...

David vs. Goliath? Not hardly. Both are champions with huge bankrolls and reputations to die for.

The Rivarly, Part II? Sort of, but their one and only encounter came in the rough-and-tumble Breeders’ Cup Classic, which was not a true bill of their relative abilities.

The quality and star power of Saturday’s San Antonio Stakes at Santa Anita and Donn Handicap at Gulfstream are unusually strong for the first Saturday of February. It’s a welcome early start to what could be a memorable year for racing’s older dirt males.

We already know it’s a robust group. Last year’s 3-year-olds dominated a weak division of older males, running first through sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Classic and beating their elders in races such as the Awesome Again, Clark, Jockey Club Gold Cup, and Pacific Classic.

There is a school of thought – or at least a correspondence course – that holds that the reigning Horse of the Year should have no easy afternoons. That he or she should be tested to the max in each and every race, and that the title bestowed for the previous season should be validated at every possible turn.

Sounds good to me.

Although a good name will not make a horse run faster or farther, that does not stop Thoroughbred owners from burning the midnight oil in search of just the right combination of words and letters to lay upon freshly turned 2-year-olds. The deadline for early naming of registered foals of 2013 is Sunday.

Midnight Oil is already taken. So is Texas Red, the name attached to the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner, who comes out as a 3-year-old in the San Vicente Stakes at Santa Anita on Sunday. And Jitterbug, out of the mare Hay Let’s Dance, who won for a tag at Laurel on Thursday.

Only one of the 17 Eclipse Award categories turned out to have a close tally this year: champion 2-year-old male, where American Pharoah outpolled Texas Red by just 15 votes, 126-111. The narrow distance between them was endorsed on Thursday when The Jockey Club announced that the two colts would share the top weight of 126 pounds on the Experimental Free Handicap for 2-year-olds of 2014.

John Sadler, finding himself in his mid-50s, decided a while back to start taking care of himself like one of the racehorses in his large public stable, which meant a diligent exercise routine and healthy food.

“It was a quality-of-life choice,” Sadler said. “I love what I do, and I want to be able to enjoy it for a long time.”