Standing under an eave to stay semi-dry from a rain that had seemed to have taken up residence in Baltimore, a lesson was learned watching the 1983 Preakness.
Sunny's Halo, the first horse to win the Arkansas Derby and the Kentucky Derby, was the heavy favorite who tried to make a move at the head of the stretch but just slipped, literally, and slid to sixth.
The winner was a local horse, probably entered because the field wasn't full, bred in Maryland.
Deputed Testamony, it was learned after the race, had been equipped with mud caulks because trainer William Boniface was very familiar with how slippery a muddy track at Pimlico could be, especially after three days of rain.
Deputed Testamony broke from the No. 3 post, the same that favored Nyquist drew for tomorrow's 141st running of the Preakness.
Nyquist is coming off a fairly easy win in the Kentucky Derby. Under a hand ride he finished 1 1/4 lengths in front of a fast-closing Exaggerator, who is the second favorite tomorrow but has been beaten four times by the favorite.
The only other leftover from the 20-horse Kentucky Derby field is Lani, who couldn't have had more trouble in that race than if he tried to book a coach ticket home to Japan 15 minutes before takeoff.
Perhaps the biggest challenge facing the undefeated Nyquist will be the weather.
The forecast is for 80 percent chance of rain, and temperatures in the 50s, although the California-based Nyquist shouldn't be bothered by the temperature.
However, a sloppy track is as alien to him as not getting his picture made in the winner's circle.
He won on a good track once, the Florida Derby when he won a $1 million bonus. He shipped to the Sunshine State for the shot at the million bucks. His owner Paul Reddam is a shrewd businessman who paid $400,000 for the Uncle Mo colt.
Nyquist chose the Florida Derby over the Santa Anita Derby, which was won by more than 6 lengths by Exaggerator on a sloppy track.
Exaggerator has run twice on muddy tracks, winning once and finishing second last year at Keeneland in a Grade I stakes race. It was his first attempt at a race of a mile or more.
Does that mean the exacta will start with No. 5 Exaggerator instead of No. 3 Nyquist?
Not necessarily, but an off track, especially at Pimlico, can be a treacherous track.
For the record, Abiding Star, a likely long shot of at least 30-1, won on a sloppy track, but it was at Parx, a small park outside of Philadelphia. He is one of the three entries by Uncle Mo besides Nyquist and Uncle Lino, but he's only won in one other state. Maryland.
Uncle Lino, Cherry Wine and Fellowship also have some mudder in their breeding.
Uncle Lino and Laoban (a maiden) will most likely be the rabbits, going out to duel for the lead and that should set it up for Nyquist to settle in and run his own race. Exaggerator won't be in a hurry. He likes to march to the beat of his own drum until the stretch turn and then comes running hard and fast.
By mid-turn to home Nyquist should easily dispatch the early speed and have nothing between him and the finish line but one long, slippery slope that could make a huge difference in the outcome of this race.
Nyquist is a very good horse, but his biggest test tomorrow may not have four legs. It may be the weather.
The mixture of dirt at Pimlico, a track that doesn't attract top quality horses but one day a year, can get really slick. It has cost several horses a real chance to win, including Sunny's Halo.
Sports on 05/20/2016