ing more than a half-paced dress rehearsal
around the square, a leg-stretch for horses
before they retreat to the shaded calm of
their individual stables sequestered deep
within the back streets of each district.
An invitation from Piet Ramzan, one of
the few non-Italian vets to be contract-
ed by a Palio contrada—in this case Dra-
go (dragon)—brings us face-to-face with
one of the runners, Rocco Nice. Later that
night, the 8-year-old Anglo-Arab will make
all throughout three frenetic laps of the
Piazza del Campo under jockey Andrea
Mari to give Drago its second Palio victory
in four years. For now though, the bay is
