A foggy morning greeted Ice Box's Thursday jog (Lauren Pomeroy/Horsephotos.com)

Hall of Fame trainer Nick Zito sent out his Belmont S. (G1)-bound duo of ICE BOX (Pulpit) and FLY DOWN (Mineshaft) for a short jog around the Belmont Park training track shortly after 7 a.m. (EDT) Thursday morning.

Afterward, Zito, who has two winners from 22 Belmont starters, talked about what it takes to win the 1 1/2-mile race.

"It starts from the two-year-olds," he said. "We try to build up a lot of miles as they go...the way we train horses, the way our system is, is to try and get the horses to go long. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't work, but you still have to have the pedigree. You still have to have the player, in other words."

In addition to his victories with Birdstone (2004) and Da' Tara (Tiznow) (2008), Zito also has six seconds and three thirds in the Belmont, a race that is close to his Brooklyn-born heart.

"New York, it has a lot of different aspects, it's a big, big place," he said. "New York is America, no matter how you look at it. It's big for us if we could do well again. I'd be gratified by it, very appreciative."

Fly Down smiles for the camera (Lauren Pomeroy/Horsephotos.com)

"Ice Box has a tremendous personality," said Zito. "He's a fiery little horse, but still cool under pressure. I've always believed in Ice Box from Day 1. And Fly Down, what can I say about him? He's an amazing horse. He broke his maiden at famous Churchill Downs and he's gone on to do good things. A quality horse."

Asked to pick between the two, Zito smiled.

"I hope it's a dead heat," he said.

Bob Baffert sent out his Belmont hopeful, GAME ON DUDE (Awesome Again), for a gallop on the Belmont main track shortly after the renovation break. The Hall of Fame trainer and the Lone Star Derby (G3) winner both arrived from California late Wednesday afternoon.

Game on Dude took a spin around Big Sandy (Lauren Pomeroy/Horsephotos.com)

"I actually brought my binoculars but I don't think I'm fit enough to hold them up for a mile and a half," he joked.

Click here for video of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert and Belmont Stakes hopeful Game On Dude.

With his owner, Donald Dizney, looking on, FIRST DUDE (Stephen Got Even) had a lengthy gallop around the Belmont Park oval, after which he schooled in the gate for Saturday's race.

With each passing day, trainer Dale Romans grows more assured he did the right thing by coming to New York from Kentucky well in advance of the race.

"I wanted to make sure he trained over this surface, which is deeper and sandier," Romans explained. "And it also gives him a chance to get used to the mile and a half oval."

First Dude will try to improve on his Preakness second (Lauren Pomeroy/Horsephotos.com)

By telephone, Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott reported that DROSSELMEYER (Distorted Humor) galloped and schooled in the gate at Belmont for Saturday's race.

MAKE MUSIC FOR ME (Bernstein) schooled at the starting gate and galloped 1 1/2 miles on the training track Thursday morning, according to trainer Alexis Barba.

"Everything is good," Barba said. "He's jumping around -- a little time bomb. But that's what I want to see."

SPANGLED STAR (Distorted Humor) breezed four furlongs in :51 at Aqueduct on Wednesday and followed that workout with a gallop at the Big A Thursday morning.

"(Trainer Rick) Dutrow is very pleased with the progression of the horse," owner Larry Roman said.

Drosselmeyer is seeking his first stakes score in the Belmont (Lauren Pomeroy/Horsephotos.com)

McLaughlin, who took over the training after Seewald died, was in the Terrace Dining Room when Hutt got up and spoke Wednesday at the Belmont Stakes post position draw breakfast and, voice breaking, expressed his hopes for Uptowncharlybrown to come through and win.

Back at his barn on the Belmont backstretch Thursday morning, McLaughlin talked about managing a runner in this kind of situation.

"Alan was a friend of mine, too," McLaughlin said. "Not as close as some of these people, like Bob Hutt, who was his best friend, but we were friends when I was training regularly down at Monmouth. (Uptowncharlybrown) was probably the best horse (Seewald) ever bought or raced.

Uptowncharlybrown has finished off-the-board only once in his career (Lauren Pomeroy/Horsephotos.com)

Belmont contender STATELY VICTOR (Ghostzapper) has two victories in his nine-race career, a 4 1/2-length score on the turf last summer at Saratoga and his shocking 4 1/4-length triumph at odds of 40-1 in the Blue Grass S. (G1) on Keeneland's artificial Polytrack.

"He's run well on dirt, so far, but you'd like to get that (dirt) win," trainer Michael Maker said Thursday morning.

Stately Victor has had his moments on dirt. He broke slowly in his debut, an off-the-turf seven-furlong race at Saratoga, and closed fast four wide to finish a good second to the talented Winslow Homer (Unbridled's Song), who took his next two starts including the Holy Bull S. (G3). Stately Victor then opened his 2010 campaign forwardly placed in a 1 1/8-mile dirt race at Gulfstream and tired behind eventual winner Drosselmeyer, who also is running in the Belmont.

After two nondescript turf races, Stately Victor crashed onto the Triple Crown scene with his win in the Blue Grass. In the Kentucky Derby (G1), he was 18 lengths back after a quarter-mile and pulled within three but was unable to overcome all the bumping and trouble of his trip and wound up eighth on the wire, 8 3/4 lengths behind winner Super Saver (Maria's Mon).

Stately Victor took some down time (Lauren Pomeroy/Horsephotos.com)

"He couldn't look any better right now," he added, "and he's handled his weight after the Derby. He's been impressive from Day 1 and still is impressive.

Maker knows exactly how he wants the 1 1/2-mile "Test of the Champion" to unfold.

"I see a fast pace; he's sitting in a perfect spot on the outside, six or seven lengths off the pace and widens in the stretch. I've had that dream a lot."

For trainer John Sadler and owner Ike Thrash, sending DAVE IN DIXIE (Dixie Union) into the Belmont is a venture into the great unknown. This past winter, the colt was ranked among the best in California, especially after a strong second in the Robert B. Lewis S. (G2). Dave in Dixie's most recent two starts, however, gave his connections nothing to judge him by, and he enters the third leg of the Triple Crown as perhaps the most inscrutable horse in the field with morning-line odds of 20-1.

Two races devoid of pace saw to that. First, Sidney's Candy (Candy Ride [Arg]) eased through a half-mile in :48 2/5 on his way to a front-running score in the San Felipe S. (G2). None of the closers had a chance. Then, American Lion (Tiznow) was allowed to crawl through an opening half-mile in :49 1/5 and had plenty left for the stretch in his gate-to-wire score in the Illinois Derby (G3). Again, Dave in Dixie and other closers were at the front runner's mercy.

A foggy morning enveloped Belmont workers on Thursday (Lauren Pomeroy/Horsephotos.com)

"We brought him home and freshened him up," said Sadler, who will arrive in New York on Friday. "He's been training well in Hollywood, so we want to take a shot at it."

Sadler gave the colt about a month off after the Illinois Derby and then resumed his works: four furlongs, five furlongs, six furlongs and then a mile on May 27. Dave in Dixie came back from the last workout "and he didn't even blow," Sadler said, so the decision was made to try the Belmont.

Still, Sadler does not know how good the horse is.

"It certainly is absolutely like that; you wish you knew," he said. "I always felt he could run two miles. I think I have a horse that's a natural at the distance, but there are a lot of things we don't know."

"We don't have enough to go on," Thrash agreed.