AUBURN, Wash. - How do you feel about lone speed? What about horses who have been off for 15 months?

If your answers to those two questions were different, then you might have a hard time figuring out what to do with Maid in the Moon in Saturday's best race at Emerald Downs, a six-furlong sprint for $16,000 older fillies and mares that has drawn a field of six.

Maid in the Moon is the clear speed of the field, having won 10 of 21 starts, including five wins from six starts against better company in 2002.

All her wins have come in wire-to-wire fashion.

CALGARY, Alberta - An optional $35,000 claiming race on Saturday for older fillies and mares drew a full field of 10, and racing secretary Barry McGrath took the opportunity to slot the six-furlong sprint as the fifth-race superfecta.

The field for the $21,300 feature is just one notch below stakes quality here, and the race is the best betting event on the nine-race program.

Theyjustdontgetit and Mr. Melcap will square off at Portland Meadows for a $5,000 purse and a $1,000 bonus in Saturday's final leg of the Hambleton Lumber Company Marathon Series at 1 1/2 miles.

Theyjustdontgetit and Mr. Melcap won divisions of the initial nine-furlong leg of the three-race series on March 15, with Theyjustdontgetit winning his division by 4 1/2 lengths in 1:54.60 and the Mr. Melcap winning by four lengths in 1:54.80.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Richard Mandella said Thursday morning at Churchill Downs that he would have seriously considered Halfbridled for the Kentucky Derby if Halfbridled had "come back and been flawless like she was last year."

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Some of the horses are working-class veterans. Others are lightly raced and brimming with potential. Combined, the California-breds number more than 100 entrants Saturday at Hollywood Park, where the $1.3 million California Gold Rush offers a throwback to the good old days.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - The distance of Saturday's $150,000 Khaled Stakes at Hollywood Park poses a challenge for Lennyfromalibu.

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It is hard to fault Lennyfromalibu's record. Owned by breeder Madeline Auerbach and trained by Barry Abrams, Lennyfromalibu has risen to prominence since last fall.

"He's getting older and more mature, I guess," Abrams said. "He's in a groove right now."

The same cannot be said for Adminniestrator or Continental Red.

CHICAGO - It is 2,074.3 miles from Hollywood, Calif., to Cicero, Ill. Even so, Hawthorne Race Course has become the second home for the Wally Dollase stable.

Perhaps it is more like a lake house - though Lake Michigan lies eight miles east. Hawthorne's nearest bodies of water are the Canadian goose-laden infield lagoon and an industrial canal over by I-55.

Spirited Game is undefeated in three starts at sprint distances. In her only attempt around two turns, however, Spirited Game beat only one horse, finishing more than 10 lengths behind the winner, He Loves Me.

Logically, trainer Ron Cartwright ought to avoid route races and He Loves Me when choosing a spot for Spirited Game. But the lure of the $75,000 Caesar's Wish, a 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-old Maryland-bred fillies at Pimlico, has proven too strong for Cartwright to resist.

North Broad and Captain Phillip, who have split two close decisions since February, are rematched in the $50,000 Springtime Stakes, a seven-furlong race restricted to older horses whose last four starts have been primarily at Charles Town.

North Broad, a 4-year-old colt trained by Terry Socks, and the 5-year-old Captain Phillip, trained by Gary Capuano, have both been consistently earning Beyers in the low to mid-90's.

SAN MATEO, Calif. - For handicappers and horsemen, Saturday's Grade 2, $150,000 San Francisco Breeders' Cup Mile boils down to a simple question: Can anyone catch Captain Squire?

The tactics for the race are equally simple. Captain Squire will go for the lead. He will be the target for six rivals as he sets the pace in the one-mile turf race. If he's not challenged early, he may be able to romp as he did in his last race, an $80,000 claimer at one mile over the turf course at Santa Anita.