All Photos ©2008 StationStops.com. Taken with Panasonic FZ18K Ultrazoom camera

The 2008 Belmont Stakes was all set up to continue the successful marketing coup for UPS, whose horse, “Big Brown“, had already won the fabled Kentucky Derby and Preakness. With his only truly considered competition - “Casino Drive” - being scratched from the race, everyone was fairly assured they would be witnessing the first Triple Crown win in 30 years.

And it would be a hard-won sight, as the temperatures hovered around 100 steamy degrees, and for at least a couple of hours, every toilet at Belknap Park was broken and - if you will excuse the visual - filled to the brim. If it weren’t for the promised payoff and knowledge they would get to leave around 7, it could have devolved into a Superdome-type situation.

Luckily, I didn’t have to suffer the injustices of the men’s room - thanks to the heat, I was able to consume 4 Coors Light tallboys without the need to use them once.

By the time the big race was to begin, all had begun to settle down a bit - the restrooms had been repaired, it had cooled off a smidge, and everyone was ready to witness history.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t to be the case.

As most casual horserace fans know, you really don’t know what the hell is going on in a race until the final stretch. The announcer is little more than mumbling background noise, and horses are too far to see, and a lot of position changes can happen as they approach the finish line.

The final stretch of this race was shocking - Da Tara (a 38-1 longshot), not Big Brown, was ahead by several lengths. What was more disturbing is that Big Brown was nowhere to be seen. Long after Da Tara had captured the Stakes at the finish line, Big Brown came trotting in with a jockey who was obviously exercising him carefully - dead last.

The reaction of the fans who had been sweltering all day in the searing heat was at first disbelief and then - seemingly started by a single person but immediately rising in massive chorus - boos. Lots of booing. It was horrible. Someone threw a beer bottle at Big Brown. It was very sad and disrespectful. Such is the delicate and fleeting love of a racehorse.

So what happened? No one really knows. Everyone who inspected Big Brown before the race - and he was thoroughly inspected - was certain there was nothing wrong with him. Some noticed some contact with another horse shortly after leaving the gate, but Big Brown ran just fine until the final turn. It was then, jockey Kent Desormeaux reports, that Big Brown just “ran out of gas”.

Long after the race, Desormeaux and owner Rick Dutrow still had no explanation.

I like going to the races and love the action, but today was a little tough. It was the first time I had ever been to the races and ever cared about a horse winning for any other reason then he was the first number on my trifecta pick. It was the first time a triple crown contender had ever placed last in the Belmont, and it was disappointing.