Bull Smells The Flowers

Bull Inthe Heather and Ramos found the path they needed at the turn for home. The rail was the place to be, and Ramos let Bull settle into 10th, saving ground on the fence in the run around the first bend. Bull continued to advance, and as he came to the quarter pole, the two horses racing in front of him, Great Navigator and Storm Tower, magically parted, giving Ramos the path he had been waiting for. "It opened just at the right time," Ramos said. "When he saw the hole, Bull went for it—boom!"

It took Bull 1:51[1/5] to tour the grounds, sundial time for nine furlongs on the sloppy track, but he emerged from the race with a ticket to the Kentucky Derby on May 1. Tesher has no idea where Bull will have his final Derby prep. But he senses that the roan is rising and ready for the road to Louisville. He knows, too, that he could not have asked for a better year to have a colt who likes to run. No dominant 3-year-old has surfaced at any of the venues in the U.S. "You don't have any stick-outs," says Tesher. "And this is one horse who's really on the improve. He is getting better all the time."

Klein has owned and raced horses for five years but has never had one like Bull before. Two hours after the race, grooms and stable workers at Barn 19 were wearing yellow T-shirts with green lettering that announced: BULL INTHE DERBY. Klein was offering the crew orchids from the wreath he received in the winner's circle. He had just won one derby in Florida and was now daring to contemplate another in Kentucky. "What a thrill!" he said. "What a dream...."