Thursday, June 4, 1998 | 7:54 a.m.
ONE THING ABOUT horse racing that always has perturbed me is the incessant nitpicking from within the sport.
If a horse is on the verge of achieving greatness, there's always someone ready to be a killjoy, a mosquito on the mane if you will.
No matter what happens, there's a cynic armed with an argument. It's either "He couldn't have run with so-and-so" or "The track was biased for him" or "Look at who he's running against."
That kind of negative thinking only drags the sport down. And it's not like racing is doing blockbuster numbers -- either at the track or on television. How does that help the game?
So 48 hours before the Belmont Stakes, here's an enthusiastic vote for Real Quiet's quest to become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed did it 20 years ago.
Not only can the game use a positive shot in the arm, but it's a great story. A $17,000 purchase as a yearling with two crooked legs and a conformation worthy of a Hansom Cab horse in Central Park, Real Quiet has overcome a lot. He is the equine equivalent of Wilma Rudolph, the great track star who overcame physical problems as a child to be an Olympic champion.
Real Quiet also has overcome the embarrassment of an 0-for-6 start. He even failed to win at Santa Fe Downs in New Mexico, which isn't exactly on par with losing at Saratoga, mind you.
But he has developed into a pretty impressive 3-year-old. He is maturing at the right time and he is finding his way to the finish line in front of the others. He is doing his job, which is all anyone can ask.
Is it Real Quiet's fault that the more celebrated 3-year-olds -- Lil's Lad, Event of the Year, Halory Hunter and Indian Charlie -- have been sidelined? That's like blaming Mark McGwire for hitting 27 home runs in two months because the pitching in the National League isn't equal to that of Bob Gibson, Sandy Koufax and Tom Seaver.
You only can compete against those who show up. And so far, Real Quiet has competed and come out on top in the first two legs of the Triple Crown -- the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness.
His times aren't in Secretariat's class. He's not as quick as Citation. But as anyone who has been to the track will attest, the race doesn't always go to the swiftest. What you have to be is the best horse on that given day. In this year's Triple Crown, Real Quiet has been that horse.
Now if you still want to knock him, go ahead. But people who are looking for an excuse to put Real Quiet down are probably the same people who watch golf on the weekend hoping to catch one of the players breaking the rules -- then running to the phone to call the PGA Tour's headquarters to turn them in.
Racing has enough problems without the cynical bashing it takes from within. But the true fans, and there will be a lot of them Saturday at Belmont Park, probably 70,000 or so, will be pulling for the bay colt they call "The Fish."
Hopefully, they'll have a whale of a time and leave the track with a great fish story to tell in the years to come.
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