While Ocala and Lexington vie for a title, racetracks tinker with races that should be left alone

We could call this the dog days of summer, except it's spring. Things seem a bit slow right now, at a time when the pace should be picking up.

Mostly, we're referring to the pace in the weeks leading up to the Kentucky Derby (G1). This coming weekend is the Santa Anita Derby (G1), on April 6, which means only four weeks remain to the Derby at Churchill Downs on May 4. Events should be moving fast right now, with a lot of activity, hopefuls emerging, and Derby fever starting to rise.

Things are so slow that the biggest news this week is that Ocala is claiming to be the Horse Capital of the World, trying to prevent Lexington and Fayette County from claiming that title.

Well, it appears from a legal standpoint that Ocala can indeed claim the title since it has obtained a trademark on the slogan from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association obtained the trademark on behalf of Ocala and Marion County.

Trademarks can be obtained only by usage and application with the federal government, and Ocala has been using the phrase for about seven years. Lexington has used the phrase but only publicly since 1999.

It all sounds pretty silly, but bragging rights are bragging rights. And the law is the law. Yes, Florida does have more horses of all breeds than Kentucky but not as many as either Texas or California.

Representatives of Lexington need to beat a hasty path down to the trademark office to claim the title Thoroughbred Capital of the World, which is more appropriate anyway, before some other town takes that title.

And, while they are at it, Lexington officials may as well also apply for the titles Thoroughbred Capital of the Universe, Thoroughbred Capital of the Milky Way Galaxy, and Thoroughbred Capital of Everything Presently Known to Man, just to keep out any interlopers.

Speaking of oddities, we find several recent decisions of racetrack executives to be very curious.

For example, the Lone Star Derby (G3) fought an uphill battle since its inception to become a graded event and finally achieved that status this year for its fifth running. Last year, the race was held on April 7, four weeks before the Kentucky Derby. This year, the race was moved to May 11, the Saturday between the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes (G1). Because it cannot expect to get horses coming out of the Kentucky Derby or going to the Preakness one week later, the best it can be is a prep for the Belmont Stakes (G1).

In the meantime, the Illinois Derby (G2) is going in the other direction. It had been held for a number of years in the week between the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, producing recent winners Performing Magic (2001), Vision and Verse (1999), Yarrow Brae ('98), and Wild Rush ('97).

Last year, Sportsman's Park moved the Illinois Derby to four weeks prior to the Kentucky Derby, with the race won by Distilled. This year, it will again be held four weeks before the Kentucky Derby, and this time it is expected to attract Repent, one of the leading candidates to win the Kentucky Derby. Sportsman's strategy seems to have paid off, at least for this year.

At Louisiana Downs, executives decided to reduce the distance of the Super Derby (G2) this year to 1 1/8 miles, from the 1 1/4 miles that it had been since the race's inception in 1980. The Super Derby historically has been a wonderful prep for the 1 1/4-mile Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), largely due to its distance. There are not many opportunities to run 1 1/4 miles as a final tune-up for the Classic, and the Super Derby filled a nice niche for three-year-olds.

In the 18 years in which both the Super Derby and the Classic have been run, the Super Derby has produced, among its winners or horses finishing in the top three, eventual Classic winners Sunday Silence, Tiznow, Concern, and Unbridled, plus such Classic runners-up as Seeking the Gold, Alysheba, and Deputy Commander.

The Super Derby was doing just fine as a 1 1/4-mile race that tested its competitors at the classic American distance.