Coming out of the prep season and into the Kentucky Derby this spring, it was easy to think that we were going to be propelled through the Triple Crown season in a kind of jet car roller coaster that would pop us out the other side in mid June with a flurry of memories: Hard won battles down the stretch, regional rivalries,150,000 fans at the Belmont Stakes, and high stakes gambles on a profoundly talented generation of 3-year-old colts. After the Kentucky Derby, we added to the mix the anointment of a new superhorse. Those were heady days.

It is almost impossible to imagine a bigger turn around.

Our superhorse, Barbaro, is in a cast, recuperating from his shattered hind leg. Our California rocket, Brother Derek, is going back to the left coast to regroup after running an unassuming fourth in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico. Lawyer Ron, touted only a number of weeks ago as this year’s Smarty Jones, went under the surgeon’s knife after a 12th place finish in the Derby, missed the Preakness, and hasn’t been heard from since. Sweetnorthernsaint sustained a minor injury in the Preakness and is doubtful for the June 10 Belmont. On Wednesday, Darley Stables announced that Preakness victor Bernardini – a horse that ran a terrific race in Baltimore, earning a Beyer Fig of 113 and pulling away to a commanding 5 1/4 length victory – will be held out of the Belmont Stakes after running three races in quick succession.

Somehow, with a long list of injuries, defeats, and crunch time flops, the most competitive season in recent memory has turned into a rag-tag collection of also-rans and longshots – or so it would seem.

It’s not unprecedented – the winners of the Derby and Preakness in 2000 did not make it to the post parade for the Belmont Stakes – nor need it be such a letdown.

I’ll probably never be allowed on a New York track again for saying this, but for one thing, the Belmont Stakes is a lot more fun when there isn’t an unmanageable crowd taking up every available inch of space on the grounds.

Furthermore, the field is much more open. The absence of clear, head-andshoulder favorites will make for attractive odds on lots of horses, differing opinions, and a true, competitive race that should shape up into one of the best events of year.

Bluegrass Cat, Steppenwolfer, and Jazil, who completed the superfecta behind Barbaro in the Derby, will all be back on the track for the Belmont after skipping the Preakness. A lot can be expected from those three, as the distance will suit them all. Nick Zito’s Hemingway’s Key, third in the Preakness, is also slated to run. Peter Pan winner Sunriver (trained by Todd Pletcher) and Wood memorial winner Bob and John (trained by Bob Baffert) are expected. Deputy Glitters, trained by Bernardini trainer Tom Albertrani, should also go to the gate. In the end, the defection of Bernardini will only further tempt whoever might be on the fence about running a mile and a half around the big sandy.

The truth is, it’s an arbitrary tradition that has linked these three races together as the Triple Crown. Although the English version of the Triple Crown has been an institution since a horse named Western Australia took the Two Thousand Guineas Stakes, the Epsom, and the St. Leger Stakes in 1853, it was not until sportswriter Charles Hatton scribbled the words when Gallant Fox won all three races in 1930 that the Triple Crown became a tangible entity in America.

Kelso never won the Triple Crown, and he was horse of the year five times from 1960 through 1964. Many incredible horses, in fact, never won the Triple Crown: Buckpasser, Native Dancer, Forego, and Conquistador Cielo, just to name a few.

Each of these five horses – and you’d be hard pressed to come up with a list of five better horses – did win the Met Mile, which runs on Memorial Day at Belmont Park. Officially called the Metropolitan Handicap, the race was first run in l89l at Morris Park. And while Kelso is noticeably absent from racing these days, the Met Mile is shaping up to be a splendid race.

The brilliant Silver Train is looking to get back on track in his 2006 campaign after two modest outings. The horse worked out on Wednesday and earned the fastest time in the morning for the third straight going. Trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. told the Racing Form, “He loves Belmont, he’ll be okay.” An understatement: Silver Train has positively destroyed at Belmont, earning very high Beyers and winning very important races.

Other probables for the Met Mile include Pletcher-trained Bandini, winner of both his starts this season; Mass Media, winner of last year’s Grade 1 Forego Handicap; Sir Greeley, winner of the Westchester Handicap; Sun King, early (and brief) favorite for last year’s Kentucky Derby and a multiple graded stakes winner; and Wilko, the 2004 BC Juvenile winner who finished third in the Dubai World Cup last time out.

It’s an incredibly strong field of horses, many of which, come to think of it, were once long odds also-rans in races like the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes.

Still, one can’t think about Belmont without wondering what might have been this season. According to Chief of Surgery Dean W. Richardson, Barbaro’s condition is excellent. He is stable and happy in intensive care. No doubt his connections wish he were running with the horses going to the Belmont Stakes, and that he was going to be around next year for the Met Mile. But others are there, and great racing continues.

Mr. Watman is the author of “Race Day: A Spot on the Rail With Max Watman” (Ivan R. Dee).