Lost in the Fog

will be brought back to Golden Gate Fields to live out his last days.

One wishes every racing story could have a happy ending, or, in Barbaro's case, a potentially happy ending, but unfortunately this is not always the case.

Cancer in horses is relatively rare. In Lost in the Fog's case, a huge tumor is lodged in his back against his body wall, and veterinarians cannot remove it.

This story could bring tears to the eyes:

"He is like a brother to me," trainer Greg Gilchrist said Friday after announcing that Lost in the Fog has terminal cancer and will be euthanized within a week or so. "If this was a human being, he's a guy you'd like to hang around with. He's very talented -- he's done so much for me and everybody around him. We traveled a lot of road together, and it's gonna be a very tough time for me, I can tell you that."

For Aleo, Lost in the Fog was a dream come true. Aleo is a tough WWII vet who fought under Gen. George Patton, then made his fortune in San Francisco real estate. But horse racing is his passion, and Lost in the Fog was an amazing gift that fell into his lap.

Fog came to the Bay Area with a built-in aura. He was named by his breeder when she couldn't find him in the pasture one morning, then saw him appear out of the fog.

When Fog started winning and people began phoning Aleo with crazy-money offers to buy the horse, he tried to tell them the horse was not for sale, ever, period. When the offers got crazier, Harry turned off his hearing aid.