Look no further than Pleasantly Perfect, Medaglia d'Oro and Cajun Beat's presence on the Dubai World Cup program to find a positive change on the racing landscape. Okay, look deeper and you'll find Azeri, Congaree, Funny Cide, Ten Most Wanted and Peace Rules also working hard in 2004.

What's the big deal?

These horses were stars in 2003 (some even 2002, for crying out loud).

After two decades of superstar racehorses being whisked off to the breeding shed, the 2004 season has provided a rare treat for fans - familiarity. On any given Saturday, you could show up at the track and say, "Hey, I know these guys."

Consider: the winners of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, Travers, Haskell, Super Derby and Jim Dandy are all in training as four-year-olds. Throw in the Arkansas Derby, Louisiana Derby, Blue Grass, Illinois Derby and Santa Anita Derby heroes. Essentially, every major three-year-old winner of 2003 except Empire Maker is donning the saddle in 2004. That's good news for the industry, considering the sophomores are the most visible of all equine stars.

Consider: Eight of the nine American-based horses to run in the 2003 Breeders' Cup Classic are currently in training this spring, headed by the aforementioned Pleasantly Perfect and including the likes of Perfect Drift, Dynever and Evening Attire. Only Volponi, who turned six at the beginning of the year, has departed the active racing ranks.

Consider: The 2002 Horse of the Year, Azeri, remains in training at age six. You can criticize owner Michael Paulson all you want, but Azeri's return to racing from injuries is nothing short of a blessing. America embraced Seabiscuit, didn't they? John Henry couldn't stay sound for the life of him, but he became an icon, didn't he? It's laughable for the media to embrace a come-backing racehorse on one hand, and then vilify another when D. Wayne Lukas is involved. Hats off to Lukas, even if you think his hat is black.

And while Azeri's injuries forced her to miss the 2003 Breeders' Cup Distaff, several of those star distaffers of '03 are back, including Bobby Frankel's stablemates Sightseek and Wild Spirit. Adoration upset the apple cart in the Distaff at 40-to-1 and she's active as well this spring.

Bless our lucky stars that injuries didn't take away these talented runners before their time was through. We avoided a situation like 2001, when Point Given won four straight $1 million races before injuries and a gaudy pedigree ushered him off to a second career on the stallion farm.

Sure, we lost Mineshaft to Lane's End Farm long before America really got to grasp his heroism. But in all honesty, the 2003 Horse of the Year never earned superstar status because he failed to develop stateside at age three and didn't hang around long enough after making his presence well known. He had a fabulous season that no one outside of the racing industry saw. Funny Cide is a much more important "keeper" in 2004 when you consider his broad-reaching appeal.

The focus during the first half of the year always falls with the three-year-olds. Rightfully so. The fresh faces provide a ray of hope each spring, providing the cast of characters for the sport's ultimate, three-act play - the Triple Crown. But once the Triple Crown fades in early June, there has been little in recent years to sustain the sport's short-term gain in momentum.

The presence of these veteran race stars won't carry over the Triple Crown's swell of interest. To think so is idealistic. Just like thinking a motion picture about a wonder horse of the 1930s would be a panacea for an industry. The public seldom works in such ways. The presence of these well-known horses, however, will benefit the NTRA's new-look summer racing series on ABC and ESPN. Perhaps it can even fill the void between the Triple Crown and Travers Stakes; time will tell.

Those who stand to benefit from the prolonged career of such well-known racehorses are racing fans. It's never popular marketing strategy to spend money on your existing supporters. Track management always seeks to bring in new blood and grow the fan base.

Consider the 2004 racing season a rare treat, racing fans. Outside of a lower takeout percentage and dropping the admission charge, there's little promotion a track can do to lure you out more often. But one thing that certainly will put a devout racing fan at the track on both Saturday AND Sunday is the presence of the game's greatest horses.

Here's a big thank you to the connections of the horses mentioned above. Another thank you goes to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rasheed al Maktoum. He and his family created the Dubai World Cup and its surrounding racing carnival. It's presence on the calendar each March annually tempts a few major American horsemen to keep their stars in training. Seven-figure carrots tend to do so. The gap between the Breeders' Cup and the World Cup are close enough that the winter is not barren.

Hopefully, more and more great horses will remain in training into their twilight. Here's to all those tough, rugged campaigners bringing the lunch pail to work and fans to the rail to watch them.