I'LL HAVE ANOTHER MILKSHAKE

Publicly our buddy Doug (that's Mr. Douglas O'Neill to all of you) denies giving any of his horses a 'Milkshake', least of all his superstar colt.

I can tell you that privately he is very open and vocal about the drinkin' habits of all his horses, especially "I'll Have Another".

When I asked what he would do if he wins the Triple Crown, 'ole Doug hooked his arms around his co-conspirators and said, "well, triple shots of Royal Crown for all hands, right fellas?"  

With a wry smile he added, "It was no fluke that we won the Kentucky Derby from post 19, the first time that's ever been done, and with a rookie jockey no less."  He wrapped up our conversation with a peculiar and barely comprehensible reference to New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, saying,"I'll tell you what, if the NFL and the court of public opinion can let the Patriots and Billy Belicheat keep the Lombardi, I have no problem serving out my little suspension.  I've got my eye on the prize and no one is gonna be takin' it away". 

"MILKSHAKES ALL AROUND" AT THE PREAKNESS

I don't know Jack about horse racing, and even less about whether "I'll Have Another", the winner of the Kentucky Derby, will have any real shot at grabbing the second jewel of the Triple Crown Saturday at the 137th running of the Preakness at Pimlico today.  He'll obviously have another go at it, running from post 9 in a field of 11 horses.  It's really anybody's guess whether that's particularly good for him or not, but what we do know is that with Bodemeister in the mix, things might not bode too well for "I'll Have Another" pulling off another upset win.  But wait...

Another thing to throw into the mix is "milkshaking" and trainer Doug O'Neil's propensity for using this old school 'training technique' .  This less than legal practice in which a mixture of bicarbonate of soda, sugar and electrolytes are pumped into a horse’s nostrils to delay the sensation of fatigue, could give "I'll Have Another" a cheater's chance down the stretch.

The hell with Mint Juleps, if "I'll Have Another" wins, I'll burst into the nearest McDonalds and snort one of those milkshakes up my own nostril!  Right before the brain freeze, I'll buy a round of milkshakes for everybody, but pass on another one for me.