Trainer Bob Baffert walks around the barns on Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs.

No one knows this and, more importantly, appreciates this than Bob Baffert.

It's easy to see, too. Though it's impossible to miss the Silver Fox, he glides through fans and media with the ease of a Los Angeles publicist. Except it's not for show, or for the contacts. Whether he's posing for pictures with way-too-excited men half his age, or practicing his best "Wasssuuupp" with the Budweiser ad fellas, Baffert lives life.

Though intense behind close doors when business is business, the 47-year-old trainer has appreciated every single minute of fame he's received from the success of Silver Charm (1997) and Real Quiet (1998) in their close-but-no-cigar Triple Crown threats.

"This is the fun part," says Baffert, wearing a green polo oxford, jeans, boots and, of course, those ubiquitous shades. "All the heavy work is over now, so all you can do is enjoy it. You can't hide from anyone, so I'd rather live life, go to the parties, and have fun."

Easy for someone to say who has two Kentucky Derby winners and a second place (Cavonnier in 1996) to boast of, right?

"Yeah, it was different before," says Baffert, who will saddle 8-1 Captain Steve on Saturday. "I was very overwhelmed a few years ago. When you've been here and you know what to do, it's different. The hardest part is dealing with the media, especially as a trainer, because it's just tough."

	“	This is the fun part. All the heavy work is over now, so all you can do is enjoy it. You can't hide from anyone, so I'd rather live life, go to the parties, and have fun. ”
		— Bob Baffert

He says that, but he's a journalists dream. Just turn on the mini-recorder and utter a few Ahmad Rashad-like leading statements and the rest will follow.

"It's no show he puts on," says Kevin McKathan, who assists Baffert in training his horses. "It's a neverending great time with him. Few love and enjoy their job like he does. He enjoys the whole spectacle of the Triple Crown events, so that's why he's so accessible and comfortable this time of year."

The "real" Captain Steve (aka Steve Thompson or, as Baffert calls him "Lord of the Barn") has seen all sides of him, and contends that he can get tough when he needs to. In other words, he's not always quick with a joke or to light up your smoke.

"He can be very intense, much like a great football or basketball coach," says Thompson, who is guarding Barn 33 all week. "He's the greatest guy in the world, but he didn't get where he is being a wuss. He plays to his own tune."

Thompson laughs at the nervousness that overcomes Baffert's body 10 minutes to post on race day.

"[Captain Steve owner] Mike Pegram once told me that Bob is always the most nervous because he's the only one that doesn't drink," says a barreled-over Thompson.

Baffert's colleagues have often whispered about his training ways, but it's hard to peg down the right and wrong way to do things in this sport.

"We all have our own style and I stick to my style," says Baffert, the winner of three consecutive Eclipse Awards as the nation's top trainer. "I've had a lot of luck with it. We all do our own thing. The main thing is having the horse. Training is the easiest part, finding them is the hardest part.

"There's no manual how to train these horses. It's just trial and error. Things that could have gotten us here can also hinder us. We really don't know ourselves. If they could talk to us then they could tell us, 'Bob, I think you're being a little hard on us, back off.' We can only go by body language."

McKathan believes that Baffert has an almost Dr. Doolittle-like way about him in that he can read and communicate so well with his money-makers.

"He's an unbelievable caretaker. He pays lots of attention to the soundness and happiness of the horses on an every-minute basis."

Such attention to detail may be paying off -- Captain Steve has seemingly come on at just the right time.

"The way he's trained here and excelled and seeing how he's at ease, I really don't think I can get a horse much more ready than he is," says Bafftert, after commenting that he still considers his chestnut colt a "longshot." "The three horses that I've brought here that were training this well were Real Quiet ('98), Excellent Meeting ('99) and this horse."

The former quarter-horse trainer believes this field is the toughest he's ever been a part of, so a victory is something he really doesn't expect. Having the top pick in the post-position draw helped, where he selected the eighth position (although Globalize's scratch moved Captain Steve to No. 7). But it's more about good karma at this point, according to Baffert.

"The first horse to win in the 19th century was Lieutenant Gibson, and Mike [Pegram] grew up in Gibson County, and lieutenant is one step from captain.

"The other day Captain Steve comes up to me and says, 'Did you that Captain Steve's dosage is 3.57?' I said, 'yeah, why's that?' He says, 'It was a .357 magnum he [Pegram] was trying to check through the X-Ray machines.'

"That's what the Derby is all about. You become very superstitious. A black cat ran in front of my car last year. They should get rid of every black cat in the barn area."

In Bob's words, his "mojo is still going."

And if such cosmic forces come into play at 5:27 ET on Saturday, be prepared for a tribute in his speech.

"If we were to get lucky and win this thing, it'd be for [jockey] Robby Albarado and [the human] Captain Steve. When I won it with Silver Charm, that was for me," says Baffert, adding that Silver Charm will always be his favorite horse for the ages. "With Real Quiet, it was for Mike."