As the April rain spattered against the barn roof, the mare was ready to foal. When nature calls, she can't be put on hold. There was nobody around that evening but Carole Hassell, so it was up to her to bring the baby into the world. She'd done it hundreds of times, and it was poetic justice that the woman who had arranged the mating also would supervise at the birth.

After an uneventful labor, Christmas in Aiken produced a lively colt that hit the ground at Double D Farm in Medina, Ohio, about an hour's drive south of Cleveland.

"He was a very frisky colt, very quick to get up," said Hassell, Double D's general manager and a grandmother of four. "He was doing laps around the stall within the first two hours, which is very unusual. When they're good, you can pretty much tell early what you have there."

Unlike his sire, who died two months earlier from a ruptured aorta, the Harlan colt would not have the prestigious label "made in Kentucky." Eight natives of Ohio have been United States presidents, but for thoroughbreds the Buckeye State is unquestionably the wrong side of the tracks. A horse's birthplace means a lot to breeders and to handicappers, even though where you start in life often has little bearing on where you finish, especially on the racetrack.

The colt that would be named Harlan's Holiday has proven that over and over. In 10 starts at six tracks he's never been out of the exacta and has earned more than $1.5 million. In his last two races he dominated the Florida Derby by 3 1/2 lengths and the Blue Grass Stakes by 4 1/2. If he had entered the world at one of Kentucky's famed thoroughbred nurseries, the sport would be hailing him as its new hero instead of grudgingly admitting he's the Kentucky Derby favorite. That status comes with an asterisk "because he hasn't beaten anybody," his speed figures aren't great, and he comes from, ugh, Ohio.

"It must be the O-word," Hassell said, laughing, in a telephone interview last week. "Maybe we should paint our grass blue. It's funny, because Ohio and Kentucky have a lot in common, and a lot of horse business goes on between the two states.

"He doesn't have the stature because of where he was born. He certainly has the pedigree. If you look at him, he has plenty left at the finish to go on. I think he has a very good chance for the Triple Crown."

Double D Farm owns about 60 mares and stands eight Kentucky-bred stallions, with the only vaguely familiar name being Al Sabin, who ran sixth, two spots ahead of Arazi, in the 1992 Kentucky Derby. The place isn't big (110 acres) and it's only 18 years old. "No tall trees here," said Hassell, whose son-in-law Jevon Crumley is the farm manager.

Carl Ackerman heads Double D Farm Corporation, which owns the farm. Ackerman, a veteran of 50 years in the horse business, characterized Double D as "just a small Ohio operation that multiplied. We have about 200 head. We sell our good foals and race the other ones."

Double D dealt primarily with quarter horses until 1994, when the corporation decided to get involved with thoroughbreds. "We came in green and didn't know about thoroughbreds," Hassell said. "We had no mentor. We just had to learn as we went along. People spend decades looking for a Derby horse. It happened quickly for us."

Hassell threw herself into the study of pedigree, a complex science where, as in handicapping, intuition and luck play big parts.

"I'm a believer in nicks," she said. "I look for a good blend of the stallion's pedigree and the female line. I picked Christmas in Aiken out of a catalogue. I liked her second dam [Princessnesian]. Mr. Ackerman approved of mating her with Harlan, so we went ahead with it."

Double D Farm had bought Christmas in Aiken, an Illinois-bred daughter of Triple Crown winner Affirmed, for $15,000 at a Keeneland sale in November 1997, when she was in foal to Kayrawan, a son of Mr. Prospector. After giving birth in the spring, she was sent to Stone Farm in Kentucky and bred for $3,500 to Harlan, a son of Storm Cat, the world's No. 1 stud. Eleven months later, in April 1999, a precocious bay colt appeared.

He didn't stick around Ohio for long. That August, the weanling colt and his half-brother by Harlan were sold for $13,500 each in a package deal to bloodstock agent Billy Murphy. The transplanted Irishman brought them to Kentucky, where he and his sister Claire Murphy own and run Rockwell Farm near Lexington. They had a half-interest in the colts, and four partners had the other 50 percent.

A mutual friend had hooked up Double D with Murphy, who was born and raised on the edge of the Curragh racecourse in County Kildare.

"They were both by Harlan and were real nice individuals," Murphy said. "Harlan had just died, and [his son] Menifee was just coming on. [The runner-up in the Derby and the Preakness had just won the Haskell.] When a sire dies, of course the foals become much more precious, and Arthur Hancock at Stone Farm had stopped selling his Harlan colts."

Having spent all but four months of his first two years in the Bluegrass Country, Harlan's Holiday is at least an honorary Kentuckian. The athletic colt thrived at Murphy's farm and picked up the game quickly. "As a young horse, he never ran away from a challenge," Murphy said. "He always stepped up to the plate and did his best.

"It doesn't matter where they're born. It's where they're raised. As long as there's good food and water and the best of care, that's what really matters."

Eleven months after arriving at Rockwell, Harlan's Holiday was offered at the 2000 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky July yearling sale. Jack Wolf, on the advice of trainer Ken McPeek, bought him for $97,000, about $1.4 million less than what Harlan's Holiday has earned for the Starlight Stable of Wolf and his wife, Laurie. Nice score, Jack.

"I guess you could liken Harlan's Holiday to a very energetic young boxer," McPeek said last month. "He's a really neat horse to be around, and he hates to lose . I think that's his biggest asset. He's a very well-made horse as well, but his desire level is enormous.

"I think he knows the game and what he's got to do. He's very focused on finishing and on winning. He's just a special horse."

If Harlan's Holiday wins America's Race, the glory and riches will belong to the Wolfs, McPeek and jockey Edgar Prado. For the people at Double D and Rockwell, the payoff will be just as rewarding. Long before Harlan's Holiday had a name, they were there for him.

"I picked out the horse," Murphy said. "It's unbelievable to have come from Ireland just nine years ago and have a horse in the Kentucky Derby. It's quite a thrill. We're all dreamers in this business. We all dream about just having a horse in the Derby, let alone the favorite."

For Hassell, who linked the future star's parents and brought him into the world, the feeling is sublime.

"I'm not one for fame and glory," she said, "but the sense of accomplishment is so satisfying. My own personal gratification means the most to me. I'm quite proud."