Horses

Despite having crooked legs and uneven front hooves, the 1,200-pound horse walks and jumps just fine - at least as far as Patrick T. Reilly can tell by looking. But just to be sure, Reilly does something almost unheard of in equine care. He fits a thin plastic film onto the horse's left front hoof, attaches it to a small electronic recording device, and measures the forces on the animal's foot as it walks about the barn. Reilly is a farrier - a person who shoes horses and helps manage the health of their limbs and feet.

OKLAHOMA CITY - Federal agents raided a sprawling ranch in Oklahoma and a prominent quarter horse track in New Mexico on Tuesday, alleging the brother of a high-ranking official in a Mexican drug cartel used a horse-breeding operation to launder money. An indictment unsealed Tuesday accused Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, a key figure in the Zetas drug operation, of setting up a horse operation that a younger brother operated from a ranch near Lexington, Okla., south of Oklahoma City.

As Buck Brannaman says, he doesn't work with people with horse problems. He works with horses with people problems. The documentary "Buck," directed by Cindy Meehl, follows the horse trainer as he travels across the country and teaches people how to work with their equine mates in ways that are both effective and far-reaching. Several interviewees who attended Brannaman's clinics proselytize about his methods, claiming that they not only learn to train their horses correctly, but his teachings bleed over into their real lives as well, in how they go about their jobs and treat their kids and spouses.

The fact that the horses that came in first and second in the Kentucky Derby were the only ones not on medication should make owners and trainers stop and think. Edith C. McKay Bryn Mawr.

Horses and riders gathered at the two weekends of the Montgomery County Horse Show for English and Western competition and a country fair. Held at the St. Helena's Church fairgrounds in Center Square, the show, started 29 years ago, featured Western riders Sept. 13 and English Sept. 20. More than 5,000 people attended.

When Sherman and Carol Leis bought a pair of Egyptian Arabian horses six years ago, they not only had two beautiful animals to show, but they also had the beginnings of a business called Penn Valley Arabians. "When we met people who not only enjoyed horses but also made money from them, we got interested," said Sherman Leis, who is professor of surgery and chief of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the Osteopathic Medical Center. They now have 15 Egyptian Arabian horses, some of which they show and some of which they sell.

When Sherman and Carol Leis bought a pair of Egyptian Arabian horses six years ago, they not only had two beautiful animals to show, but they also had the beginnings of a business called Penn Valley Arabians. "When we met people who not only enjoyed horses but also made money from them, we got interested," said Sherman Leis, who is professor of surgery and chief of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the Osteopathic Medical Center. They now have 15 Egyptian Arabian horses, some of which they show and some of which they sell.

On the backstretch, where the language is plain and simple, there is a drug commonly known as "The Juice. " It is legally administered by veterinarians on race day to racehorses in every major racing state except New York, for the stated purpose of preventing or reducing bleeding from the lungs. It's been going on now for about 15 years. Last spring, the Jockey Club released a study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania concluding that the drug, Lasix, significantly enhanced the performance of some horses and suggested that it did little or nothing to stop bleeding.

Yesterday, Dean Richardson, Barbaro's surgeon, got right to the point: "Barbaro has had an incredibly good week. He's actually done far better than I would have ever hoped, so far. So far. So far. " Richardson, chief of surgery at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine at New Bolton, had thought about changing Barbaro's cast over the weekend. "Right now, this horse is walking so well on his limb," Richardson said. "He willingly rests his left hind; he walks around the stall.

BALTIMORE - Gary Stevens had been retired for 7 years. It seemed like D. Wayne Lukas had been retired for even longer. Stevens, the Hall of Fame jockey, had been on the NBC broadcast team for many of the major races. Lukas, the Hall of Fame trainer, was still in the big races, but always on the periphery, an afterthought, if he was considered at all. Stevens, 50, came back in January because he missed the feeling of sitting on a horse's back. Lukas, 77, never left because he always loved the feeling of being around race horses every day. The racing gods decided there would be no Triple Crown for the 35th consecutive year.

METRO METEOR lived a hard, fast life as an athlete, earning around $300,000 in his time, but when he was forced to hang up his horseshoes due to an injury, this racehorse embarked on a second career as an abstract artist. Since his paintings went up for sale in December, Metro has earned $32,000 - more than van Gogh made in his entire lifetime - and he still has both of his ears. Metro is altruistic, too. He and his owners, Ron and Wendy Krajewski of Gettysburg, Pa., are donating half of the proceeds from his work to a racehorse adoption program.

Looking at unraced horses, hundreds of them, plucking out a thoroughbred with a future, maybe even in the Kentucky Derby - it takes a certain confidence. Tom McGreevy had it even before he began picking horses out. On his first day on Penn State's campus as a transfer student in 1972, McGreevy knocked on the head football coach's door. He wanted a tryout as a placekicker. "I think we have enough kickers," Joe Paterno told him. McGreevy, who believed Penn State's kickers had been lousy, persisted, explaining he'd been practicing for a couple of years before transferring over from York College.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Todd Pletcher has won 2,500 races in the last 10 years. The horses he trains have accounted for nearly $200 million in purses during that time. He has accumulated somewhere around $20 million for himself. His horses are 1-for-31 in the Kentucky Derby. "I think a couple ways you can look at it," Pletcher said. "I think for one, people seem to think that I've been training for 50 years or something, when in reality I first got my license in '96 and I think we had our first Derby starters in 2000.

A NTHONY MACKIE , star of "Pain & Gain" with Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson , walked the makeshift red carpet at South Philly's UA Riverview on Tuesday night. But Mackie wasn't going to stay for long. After introducing the Michael Bay action-comedy, Mackie headed out to the Phillies game. Turns out, despite hailing from New Orleans, he's a big fan Phillies fan. Why? A horse, of course. When Mackie was a kid, he would watch syndicated episodes of the talking-horse sitcom "Mister Ed. " "There was a 'Mister Ed' commercial and he had this thing where he would go (imitating Mister Ed)

The Oaklawn Handicap Oaklawn Park, Race 8 - Post 5:14 $500,000 (Grade II), 4 y.o. & up, 1 1/8 miles 1. Cyber Secret. . . Robby Albarado. . . 5-1 2. Unstoppable U. . . Victor Lebron. . . 15-1 3. Sabercat. . . Ricardo Santana Jr.. . . 30-1 4. Atigun. . . Rafael Bejarano. . . 9-2 5. Alternation. . . Luis Quinonez. . . 9-2 6. Golden Ron. . . Ramon Vasquez. . . 20-1 7. Taptowne. . . Calvin Borel. . . 15-1 8. Win Willy. . . Clifton Berry. . . 15-1 9. Fort Larned.

Try to forget for a moment what a stud Diligence was. Yes, the legendary stallion sired more than 400 foals, but his amorous prowess is just part of why a group of Moorestown residents hopes to install a bronze statue in his honor. Diligence's truer claim to fame is as the founding father of the Percheron horse in America: a breed so hardworking and gentle that it became the nation's most popular draft horse. And it was to Moorestown that Percherons, including Diligence, were first imported to this country in the early 19th century.

ATLANTA - Every once in a while, the reality is better than the anticipation. Saturday night's Final Four at the Georgia Dome gave us a comeback from a team striving for greatness against an underdog team that played great, followed by a team that attacked a defense that seemed impregnable and held on as the clock approached midnight.   Game 1: Louisville 72, Wichita State 68 The Shockers would have beaten any team in America - except Louisville. They were so good for so long that a team without great will would have caved.