CLARK SPENCER Herald Sports Writer

The track was in such poor condition Thursday and Friday that racing was canceled. There were races Saturday, but fans at Hialeah couldn't bet on some of them after the tote system crashed. Down in the posh Director's Room, Hialeah Mayor Raul Martinez and WQAM sports talk-show host Hank Goldberg got into an altercation in which Goldberg claimed he was struck by Martinez and Martinez said he did nothing more than call Goldberg a "slob.''

Meanwhile, for those fans who remained, the $200,000 Widener Handicap was won by Frisk Me Now.

"The problems we have faced are one on top of another,'' track General Manager Mike Mackey said. "I don't know what else to say but to apologize to the public for the things that have occurred. Obviously, they have been out of our control.''

Heavy rainfall washed out a section of the track, wiping out Thursday's and Friday's cards because jockeys refused to race over it. A technical glitch Saturday at an Orlando wagering "hub'' site operated by AutoTote caused a system shutdown, which prevented Hialeah fans from betting on several races. Wagering at Miami Jai-Alai and Dania Jai-Alai, which are served by the same hub, was also affected.

To think that the Hialeah meet has only just begun. Saturday was Day 5 of the 60-day meeting, and it could not have been any more unusual.

The problems began at 3:12 p.m, just before Hialeah's sixth race, when the tote system shut down. Bettors couldn't bet and booed lustily as the race went off.

Goldberg was one of the unhappy patrons. When he found he couldn't place a wager, he said -- loud enough for Martinez to hear -- that "they ought to put the place [Hialeah] mercifully to sleep.''

At that point, Goldberg said Martinez jumped up in anger.

"He said 'If you don't like it, why don't you get the bleep out,''' Goldberg said.

Goldberg said that Gene Stevens, publisher of racing publication Post Time USA, then tried to intercede by standing between the two men. Goldberg said Martinez then reached over and hit him.

"He didn't hit me hard,'' Goldberg said. "He grazed me. But he cursed me and definitely swung at me. He was ready to go, I think.''

Martinez said he never struck Goldberg.

"Hank Goldberg came in here bad-mouthing the place,'' Martinez said. "My comment to him was if he doesn't like the place, he doesn't have to come back. He wanted me to hit him, but I didn't. But I did call him a slob.''

Martinez then held up his arm to reporters.

"Smell my jacket,'' he said. "You can't smell Hank Goldberg .''

All of that took place before some of the tote problems were corrected and fans, those who remained from the crowd of 6,559, settled in to bet on the Widener.

Frisk Me Now, the 2-5 favorite, surged boldly under jockey Pat Day in the final strides to defeat Sir Bear by a neck. Black Forest was third. Frisk Me Now became only the second horse to win both the Flamingo and Widener at Hialeah, following in the footsteps of Oil Capitol of 1950s fame and Nashua, who recorded the unique double later the same decade.

"It's nice to be such a part of an old Hialeah tradition,'' winning trainer Bob Durso said. "I know things are tough here now, but I'm proud to be a part of it.''

But Saturday, overall, wasn't one of Hialeah's proudest days. Mackey said he expected the Orlando hub system to be fixed in time for today's card.

"It's embarrassing,'' Mackey said. "The public should not be happy with it. We're not happy with it.''