ROSWELL, N.M. — On the outskirts of town, a couple of miles away from the UFO souvenir shops and the street lights decorated with alien eyes, the cowboy and the veterinarian got together a few weeks ago to discuss their options.
They had a plan for Mine That Bird, and that plan didn't involve the Kentucky Derby or the Preakness Stakes. But they got to talking about the Triple Crown series, the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to race at Churchill Downs, and their minds started racing. A little tequila might have been involved too, concedes Dr. Leonard Blach, co-owner of Mine That Bird.
No one anticipated the whirlwind that followed, least of all the quiet New Mexico cowboys caught in the middle. Despite 50-to-1 odds, Mine That Bird sprinted from last to first at the Kentucky Derby, winning the roses by the largest margin since 1946.
But when odds for Saturday's Preakness Stakes were announced Wednesday, Mine That Bird was only the third betting favorite, which doesn't bother anyone in Roswell. This is a place that believes a UFO crashed outside town; it's not a stretch of the imagination for them to envision Mine That Bird winning the second jewel of the Triple Crown on Saturday.
He's a Kentucky-bred horse -- a gelding -- but has distinct New Mexico connections, rare for a Triple Crown contender. Both owners call Roswell home, his trainer is a former rodeo rider who has been working around New Mexico tracks for two decades and his jockey Saturday is a New Mexico native who started riding horses here when he was 11 years old.
"I've just always been a desert rat," says Mark Allen, Mine That Bird's other owner. "The high desert has always been home. The people are friendly here, and I'm probably related to half the state."
If the railbirds thought the horse was a longshot -- Mine That Bird had never won a Grade I race and had finished second and fourth in his two previous races, at Sunland Park, N.M. -- they didn't study the program too closely. Trainer Chip Woolley has won exactly two races this year, the second being the historic run at the Derby. Blach has been around horses his entire life but never contemplated the Derby. And Allen could be answering to criminal charges in Alaska right now had his father not negotiated his immunity.
Bill Allen is the former CEO of VECO Corp. who pleaded guilty to bribing Alaska politicians. Though Mark Allen never faced charges, he was embroiled in the case -- his father testified that Allen paid off a state legislator -- but as part of a plea agreement, Bill Allen secured his son's protection.
