Painted Desert (Arizona) plateau's south border the Mogollon Rim, the north border of the Arizona transition zone. Owing to the strong rain shadow of the Mogollon Rim, the Painted Desert has a cold desert climate (Köppen "BWk"), with hot, dry summers and cold, though virtually snow-free winters. The annual precipitation is the lowest in northern Arizona and in many places is lower even than Phoenix. Much of the region is accessible only by foot or unpaved road though major highways and paved roads cut across the area. The towns of Cameron and Tuba City, both on the Navajo Nation, are two major settlements.
U S Navy Flag of 6/1 in a field of four runners which included two stablemates in Gustav Klimt and Kenya. Ridden by Seamie Heffernan, U S Navy Flag raced in second place early in the race but dropped away to finish last of the four runners. The race was run on heavy going and O'Brien stated "We knew US Navy Flag would hate the ground, but we needed to get him out [he] might go to the English or French Guineas and he'll grow another leg between now and then." On 16 November 2017 at the Cartier Racing Awards, U S Navy Flag