The term WHERE THE PREAKNESS STARTS can be solved by the four letter word GATE. The Preakness Stakes is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. The race is the second leg of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in the United States and is held two weeks after the Kentucky Derby and three weeks before the Belmont Stakes. The race is traditionally held on the third Saturday in May, and the starting GATE for the Preakness Stakes is located at the beginning of the racetrack.