The Chapmans, who own Smarty Jones, have had the ride of their lives. For Roy Chapman, it couldn't have come a moment too soon. Tethered to an oxygen tank, at 78 he has asthma, emphysema and chronic bronchitis. He went to Smarty's races in a wheelchair.

Trainer John Servis and jockey Stewart Elliott have become household names, and certainly reserved their respective places in racing history. Even Butterscotch, Servis's 23 year-old lead pony, has his place in American hearts.

Bobby Camac, murdered in 2001, has been vindicated posthumously ... the former trainer for the Chapmans encouraged breeding Smarty Jones's dam, I'll Get Along, to Elusive Quality. Without his input, Smarty Jones may never have been born.

That the Triple Crown was not achieved is disappointing, but not devastating. This has been a glorious time for the connections of Smarty Jones, and will not soon be forgotten.

I thought no story could be better than that of the "Sackatoga Six," longtime friends who pooled their funds to buy a horse named Funny Cide, who won last year's Kentucky Derby and Preakness. They traveled with their entourage to view the races in a chartered school bus. When Funny Cide lost the Belmont to Empire Maker, I nearly started to cry. It was such a great story, what a wonderful Triple Crown legend that would have been. It was crushed in seconds.

But this year, I realized last year's tragedy was really okay ... because with Smarty Jones, there was an even better story: a horse that ran at Philly Park, who nearly died after fracturing his skull in a starting gate accident. He had an unknown-to-the-masses trainer and jockey, and his owners had sold all their horses, save two. He was one. He became the one.

And yet, the Triple Crown was not his, either.

The stories of these Classic champions keep getting better. Frankly, wondering what the next story will be is somewhat exciting in its own right. And the thousands of stories from the backside of every racetrack across the nation are told every day. Everyone knows a special circumstance, a unique opportunity, a devastating setback, a triumph when all seems lost.

Whose stories will enter the starting gate at next year's Kentucky Derby is yet to be known. But rest assured, there will be a great story or two at the very least.

And as for Smarty Jones? His story isn't over. Perhaps it's just begun.