CHICAGO - As quickly as these racehorses impress you, they depress you. And the ones that seem to show the most talent are the ones that seem most susceptible to injury.

Last spring, trainer Tony Granitz thought he might have something in Misty Gina, a filly he trains for Wheeler Farm. She was a bang-up second in her career debut at Sportsman's in April 2001, then won her maiden at Hawthorne by more than two lengths over Curious Conundrum, who went on to win a stakes last summer.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - When Ford Every Stream surfaced with an impressive victory in a prep for the Marine Stakes at Woodbine on May 3, many felt they had just been introduced to Sam-Son Farm's third straight Queen's Plate winner.

But some doubts have arisen in the interim as Ford Every Stream finished third as the odds-on choice in the May 18 Marine and his trainer, Mark Frostad, said the colt would bypass the 1 1/8-mile Plate Trial here June 1 and head straight to Sunday's $1 million Plate.

ELMONT, N.Y. - Street Cry, whose authoritative victory in Saturday's Stephen Foster Handicap put him at the forefront of the handicap division, will more than likely make his next start in the $500,000 Suburban Handicap at Belmont Park on July 6, his connections said Monday.

ELMONT, N.Y. - Trainer Bob Hess Jr. would like to think Spring Meadow, his 3-year-old sprinting filly, is good enough to compete in some of the division's major East Coast events this summer.

First, she must clear a relatively small hurdle Wednesday when she faces four older fillies and mares in a second-level allowance race at six furlongs that tops Belmont Park's nine-race card.

CHICAGO - Few are sharper at picking spots for a horse than trainer Tom Amoss. That's what it takes to win at a 30 percent clip, as Amoss has done so far this year. In Arlington's condition book, Amoss saw a race for Track Boss, a Fair Grounds claim who has gotten good enough for an allowance try. Amoss had found his spot.

So had the rest of the Midwest.

"The Chicago race was good for us," Amoss said. "But I sure didn't expect to see 14 horses in there."

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - With a front-runner in Rocky Bar and a stalker in Tavasco, trainer Kory Owens has the competition surrounded in Wednesday's $75,000 Robert Kerlan Memorial Stakes.

Run over 5 1/2 furlongs on turf, the Kerlan has drawn a solid field that has made the race worth the wait. Originally scheduled for last Friday, the race was postponed until Sunday because it failed to draw sufficient entries. It was postponed again to Wedneday after failing to fill Sunday.

The Kerlan is the seventh race on an eight-race program.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Questing Knight, coming off a sensational effort in his first attempt around two turns, heads a seven-horse allowance field of Ontario-sired runners in Wednesday's seventh race at Woodbine.

Questing Knight, an Ascot Knight gelding trained by Mike DePaulo, showed only brief speed in his only 2-year-old start. DePaulo said a troubled shin kept Questing Knight from competing extensively at 2.

"He'd trained quite well as a 2-year-old," DePaulo said. "We thought he was going to be a good 2-year-old, but he ended up bucking a shin, so we sent him home."

CALGARY, Alberta - Lord Shogun led throughout last Saturday's $100,000 Alberta Derby at Stampede Park, winning by 2 3/4 lengths over fellow shipper Regal Rebel, who closed from last in the field of 11.

Silent Shoes, a maiden sent off at 47-1, was third and Sweet Monarch, bidding to become the first filly to capture the Grade 3 race in 19 years, was fourth.

Favored Intact broke poorly, bore out on the first turn, and finished last.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Came Home is ready to send jockey Chris McCarron into retirement as a winner in Sunday's $100,000 Affirmed Handicap at Hollywood Park, the colt's connections said over the weekend.

Unraced since finishing sixth in the Kentucky Derby on May 4, has rebounded from that setback and trained well in recent weeks, according to his trainer, Paco Gonzalez. "He's come back in very good shape," Gonzalez said.

OCEANPORT, N.J. - Last year's Monmouth meeting, one of the best in recent years in terms of handle and attendance, raised the bar for years to come. So far the 2002 numbers have not reached those lofty heights.

Average daily onsite handle is down 8 percent from last year to $1,615,284. Average daily offsite betting on Monmouth is down 7 percent to $2,335,006, and average total handle is down 7 percent. Daily attendance is at 10,486, down 4 percent.