D. Wayne Lukas goes over the positioning of his horses with Bob and Beverly Lewis.

With three entries in the 20-horse field, the odds were in his favor to at least have one solid selection in the draw. But, as the numbered pills were drawn in front of a nationally televised audience within the Kentucky Derby Museum, it slowly became clear that his colts would have to earn their money come Saturday afternoon.

Commendable, one of his two entries owned by the loveable Bob and Beverly Lewis, drew the 11th selection (13th post) , while Exchange Rate and High Yield settled for the 17th and 18th choices respectively -- the same numbers of the gates they'll start from in the Derby.

So Lukas is faced with the predicament of having two of his horses lining up in the auxiliary gate (posts 15 through 20). Such dilemmas are a thing of the past for Lukas, though. Why fret over a silly post position when your past successes in the Derby reveal that it might not matter where you lineup.

"Each time that we've won it, we've agonized a little bit over where we had gone and each time it has turned out to be very, very favorable for us," says Lukas, who has won four Derbies.

One only has to turn back the clock one year to recall what Lukas speaks of.

Charismatic.

You know where that colt came from -- besides out of nowhere -- to win all the roses? Post 16. With Globalize scratched on Thursday morning after injuring his leg in a morning jog, High Yield will now start from gate 16.

And, interestingly enough, the horse charging in his rearview mirror down the backstretch came from Post 18 (Menifee), who was brilliantly steered through the heavy traffic by the legendary Pat Day, the man who will ride High Yield.

History says that the auxiliary gate shouldn't be considered a place where only wannabes and never-wills graze before falling behind the pack at Churchill Downs. In fact, out of the last nine Kentucky Derbies, six horses have placed in the top 5 after starting out wide.

"It's not as bad as many think," says ESPN analyst Randy Moss on the positioning of High Yield, the winner of the Blue Grass Stakes on April 15.

"(1995 winner) Thunder Gulch came from the auxiliary gate (in the 16th position)," adds Michael Tabor, the Englishman who shares ownership with High Yield along with the Lewis family and Susan Magnier.

When you speak of current lucky streaks in horse racing, you must start and end with the Lewises. Bob and Beverly, joined at the hip with Lukas last year as proud owners of Charismatic, have celebrated in the winner's circle two of the last three years at both the Derby and the Preakness Stakes (Charismatic last year and Silver Charm in 1997).

Yet, with 9-5 opening line favorite Fusaichi Pegasus standing one slot away from Exchange Rate and two from High Yield, Lukas knows he must gameplan as much as ever over the next few days in order to be competitive from the outside.

"I want to go home and evaluate, see who's next to me, maybe their pattern of running, and then evaluate what we can do and what we can't," says Lukas. "I think that's the most important thing."

Kentucky's Rose
Harold Rose, the 88-year-old trainer of Hal's Hope has been the star attraction at Churchill Downs this week. Wherever he goes, fans, race officials and media members alike have flocked to give him their best for his colt that won the Florida Derby.

On Tuesday evening, Rose brought down the house when his name was announced at the annual trainer's Derby dinner at a downtown Louisville hotel.

On Wednesday, Hal proclaimed that the son of Jolie's Halo was already set to go.

"I don't have a whole lot else to do with him," said the smiling Rose. "I'm not even going to paddock him. He doesn't need it. He's a pro with that stuff."

After snaring the No. 5 post on Wednesday night, Rose was just as upbeat.

"I wanted to be closer to the rail. I didn't want to be 1, 2, or 3, though. In 1 ¼-mile tracks, the way it shapes, it makes it impossible to win from there. But from 5, my horse can fly straight down the chute.

"There's no reason he can't be very competitive."

They said it:
Mike Battaglia, the linemaker for the Kentucky Derby, on the four-horse entry's 5-1 opening line: "Had High Yield drawn a better post, and The Deputy had been, say, No. 20, I probably would have switched that entry to the second choice. That's four pretty solid horses in that entry (Trippi, Commendable, High Yield and Impeachment)."

Rose on Hal's Hope's chances at 20-1: "That could be a very good bet, if you ask me."

Neil Drysdale on Fusaichi Pegasus' morning workout: "Fusaichi Pegasus was a bit fresh this morning after two days off. He was on the bit and had a strong gallop with a good pull on the rider. He was bucking and playing this morning because he's feeling so well."