This is how I know it’s finally spring. The Adirondack chairs are out along the Kennebec River in Hallowell, and they race the Kentucky Derby. The chairs, I use all spring and summer as a midway stop when walking the Rail Trail. The Derby, and thoroughbred racing in general, hold my attention for as long as there is a Triple Crown contender.

If Justify, which won the Kentucky Derby early Saturday evening, doesn’t win the Preakness in two weeks, then the final leg of the Triple Crown at the Belmont is nothing more than a curiosity. American Pharoah in 2015 was the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978. So far, it doesn’t appear that feat led for a racing resurgence.

There was a time when horse racing was one of the most popular sports in America. Now, unless there’s a chance at the Triple Crown, it’s a televised get rich quick scheme for gamblers. For around half of the Derby, those who placed a few bucks on Promises Fulfilled, a 49-1 long shot, felt the tinge of hope as the horse led the race. Promises Fulfilled faded and became suspicions confirmed, as Justify pulled away.

There were 20 horses entered in the Kentucky Derby. Best name goes to Bolt D’Oro, named in honor of Olympic sprinting hero Usain Bolt. The field did not include Gronkowski, the horse named after New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. An illness kept Gronkowski off the track. The tight end himself took Patriots fans on a bumpy ride for the better part of the offseason, until announcing recently that he will indeed play football this fall for the Patriots. It’s understandable to see how and why Gronkowski (the man, not the horse) questioned his football future. His career has been one of jaw-dropping brilliance, liberally sprinkled with injuries. The concussion-enducing hit he received in the AFC championship game against Jacksonville was frightening. If that hit alone made Gronkowski rethink his career, any normal person would agree that retirement was a viable and rational argument.

But Gronk (again, the man, not the horse) is playing in 2018. So raise a mint julep to that.

The Kentucky Derby is one of those events I’d like to cover at least once, along with The Masters and a Stanley Cup Finals Game 7. Despite horse racing’s waning popularity, the Kentucky Derby is still one of the great American sporting events. Even on a rainy Saturday like this year’s, the race draws more than 150,000 fans to Louisville.

This was the sixth consecutive year the betting favorite won the Kentucky Derby. Justify closed at 5-2. Not a big payday, but again, the safe bet won.

The Kentucky Derby winner may be the only athlete for whom it’s acceptable to lick somebody. It would be wise for somebody with some authority in the Boston Bruins organizations to sit down with Brad Marchand and tell him this. One loss separates the Bruins from a long summer off, and Marchand cannot afford to spend two minutes in the box for licking. He’s been put on notice by the NHL. If Marchand continues this behavior, the only recourse will be to enter him in next year’s Kentucky Derby, or maybe feed him a carrot.

To beat this metaphor completely into the muddy Churchill Downs ground, the Red Sox season is a bit like Promises Fulfilled. The Sox sprinted out of the gates. While the rest of the field hasn’t caught up, it has closed the distance. It was impossible for the Red Sox to keep that pace. As the days warm up, they need to be more like Justify, pulling away down the stretch, and…

You know what? I’ll just stop now and wait for the Preakness.

Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242

tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM

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