Rides worth the trip

ELMONT, N.Y. -- One of the byproducts of the withdrawal from the Belmont by Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense and the entrance of Rags to Riches was a game of musical chairs for the jockeys.

It started when Garrett Gomez, who had been the regular rider on Rags to Riches, went to Hard Spun after trainer Larry Jones decided to make a jockey switch and dump Mario Pino.

John Velazquez, who had been scheduled to ride on Slew's Tizzy, bumped up to Rags to Riches, which left trainer Greg Fox looking for someone to ride Slew's Tizzy. He came up with Rafael Bejarano.

"Rafael Bejarano has been one of the riders that has consistently expressed interest in riding this horse," said Fox, trying to put a happy spin on the switch.

Fox said business is business and he understands why Velazquez and his agent, Angel Cordero Jr., made the deal with trainer Todd Pletcher.

"That's racing," said Fox. "It doesn't affect my enthusiasm or confidence in the horse. At the end of the day, it all comes down to having him ready to run the race of his life."

Gomez wanted to ride Rags to Riches but committed to Hard Spun when he thought Pletcher would hold the talented filly out of the Belmont.

"[Hard Spun] ran a good race, and I am very proud of the filly. I've been very proud of her all year," said Gomez. "She's improving leaps and bounds to get up in a race like this. She's a magnificent filly and I am happy to be part of some of her wins."

It probably will be a while before Gomez gets to ride her again. "It will be very difficult for me to take Johnny off her now," said Pletcher.

Imawildandcrazyguy jockey Mark Guidry had travel problems caused by airline computers. Guidry had to scramble to find transportation and did not arrive at Belmont until 2 p.m. His ride around Belmont Park wasn't much better, as Imawildandcrazyguy ran last for the majority of the trip but finished sixth.

The Belmont may not have had the pizzazz of its Triple Crown counterparts, the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, but leave it to New York to put on a show. It was like a mini-Breeders' Cup as the 13-race card included eight stakes races. The highlights of the undercard were the Grade I Acorn for 3-year old fillies (won by Velazquez, aboard Cotton Blossom) and the Grade I Manhattan for veteran turf horses (won by Better Talk Now).

Mark Blaudschun can be reached at blaudschun@globe.com.