Summer at the Spa — a nearly 200-year-old ritual — got off to an early start in Saratoga Springs, New York, with the third leg of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes, taking place Saturday for the first time at Saratoga Race Course, a revered heritage site where the elite and otherwise they mingle, but the horses rule.
Broadway, the city’s main thoroughfare, was bustling. Lines for picnic tables on the track formed before dawn. A new color — Belmont Green — is paired with the track’s signature red and white trims. Owners, trainers, jockeys and the more chilled-out faithful hailed the break with tradition for the 156th running of the race.
