As another blissful Saratoga meet fades into the sunset, the image that stands out most now about the final few days of racing at the Spa involves the emotional farewell of legendary track announcer Tom Durkin.
Ever since he announced in May he would be retiring as the New York Racing Association's race caller at the end of the Saratoga season, there's been a deserved love fest for Durkin, which reached a crescendo in the meet's final weekend.
His last call, which came in the Spinaway Stakes on Sunday, will long be remembered for both Durkin's words in framing the race and the outpouring of affection by fans at a trackside tribute for him who showered him with applause and even chanted "Tommy Durkin" in a tone borrowed from Yankee fans' serenade of Derek Jeter.
That's the lasting image for now.
Some eight months from now we'll know if the 2-year-old stars on display this holiday weekend at the Spa can bookend Durkin as we find out if they are the real deal or just more in a long line of juvenile teases.
New York's first Grade 1 stakes for 2-year-olds highlighted the action on the track in the final two days of racing at Saratoga and provided a pair of winners who certainly seem extremely worthy of Breeders' Cup consideration.
The Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks? Let's not getting too far ahead of ourselves here.
Starting with the ladies, Condo Commando was dominant in the seven-furlong $350,000 Spinaway on Sunday, or, to borrow a line from Durkin's classic final call, she was simply "splashtastic."
"She wasn't 100 percent fit for her debut, but she was much better today," said Rodriguez, who trains the filly for Michael Dubb, who won the owners' title at the Spa, Mike Caruso's Bethlehem Stables and The Elkstone Group. "I just hope she comes back good. She's a nice filly."
Very nice indeed.
While the Saratoga goo no doubt played a role in the final margin, on a positive note she has the type of speed that should thrive on a hard, fast surface like Santa Anita, home of this year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. Whether the daughter of Tiz Wonderful can handle the two-turn distance of that championship race is a different matter in which only time will tell.
"She overpowered everybody," said winning jockey Joe Bravo. "Really, the race was won in the first eighth of a mile. She won first time out pretty impressively, but you didn't know how good she is. I think today she answered a lot of questions."
A day later, on a drying out surface labeled as good, the Hopeful was the scene for another virtuoso performance.
This time, it was Competitive Edge, purchased for $750,000 at a sale earlier this year, who romped to a 5 ¾-length victory in Monday's $350,000, seven-furlong stakes.
Competitive Edge is one of the numerous high-priced, regally bred 2-year-olds in the barn of six-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Todd Pletcher, but on getaway day at the Spa he positioned himself ahead of the others through a win over a proven commodity in Saratoga Special winner I Spent It.
Going off as the 3-5 favorite over I Spent It, the 8-5 second choice in a field of seven, spoke volumes for the respect generated by Competitive Edge in his debut, a 10 ¼-length maiden win at Saratoga on July 26.
Third in the early stages as he pressed Signature Cat and I Spent It on the front end, Competitive Edge surged to the lead at the quarter pole and pulled away to a decisive win over I Spent It, who uncharacteristically acted up in the paddock before the race.
Sharm was another nine lengths back in third as Competitive Edge covered the seven furlongs in 1:24.11, .57 seconds faster than Condo Commando's time a day earlier.
Like Condo Commando, Competitive Edge now has to prove that he's as capable around two turns as he's been at one.
"He has such a good disposition and you hope that will help him when we stretch him out," Pletcher said. "Since the Breeders' Cup is in California again, do we want to get some two-turn experience before we go? The Champagne [a one-turn race at Belmont, Oct. 4] will be our first option, but we'll talk with the connections and make sure we're all on the same page."
So as the 146th Saratoga season comes to an end, it's Condo Commando and Competitive Edge who head back to Belmont with the Grade 1 black type.
Yet the nature of 2-year-old racing in this era is not to build expectations too early. The last Hopeful winner to capture the Kentucky Derby was Affirmed in 1977, a drought longer than the one attached to the Triple Crown.
More will be known in the coming weeks, as evidenced by this past weekend as the Spa's talent-laden maiden showcased some talent that could one day wind up in Grade 1 stakes. There was El Kabeir, a Zayat Stables colt who broke his maiden by 10 ¾ lengths on Saturday, and Feathered, from Pletcher's barn, a filly who won by 9 ¾ lengths on Sunday.
Both horses were making their second career start, making a horse like Blofeld, a Pletcher colt who beat El Kabeir, one to watch as well.
Oh yeah, Pletcher also won a maiden race on Monday with Carpe Diem, a colt bought at a sale for $1.6 million by WinStar Farm and Stonestreet Stable earlier this year.
Put it all together and the winner's circle at the Breeders' Cup seems a difficult enough target, much less Churchill Downs on the first weekend in May.
"When you win a race like the Hopeful, it's natural to think about the Triple Crown," Pletcher said. "But it's way too early to focus on that."
So for now, until more precincts are heard from in the fall and early winter, the final weekend of the Saratoga will belong to the incomparable, invincible Durkin.
Not a bad turn of events at all.