By MARK COOMES
The (Louisville, Ky.) Courier-Journal

Whether he's selling beer or racing horses, Bob Lewis is a shrewd operator who demands black ink on his bottom line.

THE KENTUCKY DERBY

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Yet three years ago, Lewis and his wife, Beverly, shelled out $40,000 to enter a horse in the Kentucky Derby even though the colt's dubious credentials seemingly guaranteed a short-term loss.

Commendable had finished no better than fourth in his five previous races, and it was no surprise when he ran 17th in the 2000 Derby.

The surprise was that the Lewises, after pocketing about $1.6 million in purses from their first three Derby starters, including two winners, Silver Charm in 1997 and Charismatic in '99 - decided to invest in such a long shot at all.

Then again, there is a difference between being prudent and being penurious - and an even bigger difference between the Kentucky Derby and any other horse race.

Whether the owner is an Arab sheik or a Southern California beer distributor, running a horse in the Kentucky Derby is a decision that transcends dollars and cents.

"There's no reward or satisfaction in the world that exceeds that of seeing your colors in the Kentucky Derby," Bob Lewis said. "Then, goodness, when you are so fortunate as to have one on the lead coming down that stretch, it's a feeling of such exhilaration that you could almost take off and fly yourself."

More than 36,000 thoroughbreds are foaled in the United States each year. Three years later, no more than 20 will stride into the starter's gate at Churchill Downs for the featured race on the first Saturday of May. The odds against even owning a Derby horse are 1,800-1.

Yet the high of watching one's horse parade to post to the strains of "My Old Kentucky Home," beneath a jockey wearing one's unique and officially registered jockey silks, seems to be universally priceless.

Mark Stanley is a successful Lexington, Ky., businessman. But unlike many Derby owners, he's not a man of unlimited means.

He forked over $30,600 just to nominate, enter and start Ecton Park in the 1999 Derby, plus $5,000 or so for Derby tickets, equine transportation and various fees paid to trainers, farriers and veterinarians.

Ecton Park ran a disappointing 12th, but the money invested was the furthest thing from his mind.

"If you're worried about the $40,000 or whatever it is to run, then you're missing the point of the Derby," Stanley said.

Only four horses in each Derby run swiftly enough to pay a direct dividend. The late Saudi prince Ahmed Salman earned $875,000 for War Emblem's win last year, plus a $1 million bonus for winning the Illinois Derby four weeks before.

Edmund Gann, owner of fourth-place finisher Medaglia d'Oro, got a $45,000 check that did little more than cover expenses.

Owners of the 13 horses who finished behind Medaglia d'Oro didn't make a dime. For each horse they entered, the $30,600 they put up to run got them one complimentary owner's box (comprising six seats near the finish line at $235 each), the right to buy more such boxes, a courtesy car, their horse's saddlecloth and a commemorative julep cup.

The general consensus: It's almost always worth every inflated penny.

"The Kentucky Derby is the dream of dreams," said Cot Campbell, managing partner of Dogwood Stable, which has run six horses in five Derbys since 1990. Summer Squall finished second in 1990 and Impeachment placed third in 2000, but its four other entrants ran seventh, 10th, 11th and 13th.

"Whatever it costs to get in the race is a small price to pay," Campbell said. "If you're buying racehorses, which to begin with can never be justified as an intelligent investment, you're not going to get to the Kentucky Derby then worry about the expenses. That would be crazy."