Seabiscuit Movie Aside, Secretariat Was Best Horse
I saw him conclude his career successfully, as only a 3-year-old, in 1973 at the Woodbine racetrack in Canada. He was the easy winner of the Canadian International at the suburban Toronto track while setting a track record. Seventeen days later he was sent to stud.
Creating new marks in important stakes races was Secretariat's style. Earlier that year, with Jockey Ron Turcotte, he swept the Triple Crown, winning the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes, all in record time.
Secretariat carried the colors of Penny Chenery, whose father, Christopher, was a prominent owner and breeder. In his brief racing career, the colt won 16 races in 21 outings. He was second three times and third once. His poorest effort was fourth place in his initial effort.
There's no telling how many races the colt might have won had he been allowed to race as a 4-year-old or even a 5-year-old. His career was shortened when Chenery decided to syndicate him. Her father's estate was being reviewed by the Internal Revenue Service and it was felt more money might be needed.
Negotiations for the syndication began after Secretariat was elected America's Horse of the Year by the sports pundits. It was a highly unusual choice because it was based on the colt's success as a 2-year-old. Older horses usually are picked for this honor. The sale, offered in 32 shares, produced a world record of $6.08 million.
Seabiscuit's brilliant career more than three decades earlier was in sharp contrast to Secretariat's. He was a huge disappointment in his early racing years. He could have been purchased for a mere $2,500 after losing 16 consecutive races.
He began clicking late in his fourth year. He went on to set 13 track records at eight tracks over six distances. Topping all his achievements was his win in the highly publicized match race against War Admiral in 1938 at the Pimlico oval in Baltimore.
Both Seabiscuit and Secretariat can be identified with the Phipps family of Palm Beach. The Biscuit was bred by Gladys Phipps, who sold him because of his early failures. Secretariat was sired by the highly regarded Bold Ruler, who starred in the late Ogden Phipps' colors.
As for Secretariat's farewell appearance, in Canada, I wasn't happy about being sent there to see him race. The trip was irksome.
My plane left LaGuardia airport in New York 90 minutes late. In Toronto, my taxi ran into bumper-to-bumper traffic caused by the thousands of fans heading for the track to see the storied Secretariat run.
But my luck changed. I was typing my story after the race when Chenery appeared in the press box to be interviewed. She spotted me, recalling that she had seen me in the Belmont Park press box in New York.
"How are you getting back to New York?" she asked.
I told her I was returning on Air Canada on a late evening flight.
"Why don't you join me?" she replied. "The track's officials have arranged for a private jet to get me back to LaGuardia. Would you care to join me?"
I cared. Thanks to this kind lady, I was back in New York within three hours after Secretariat had run the final time.
What a great way to end a day at the races.
Published by Mike Strauss
Michael Strauss worked as a sports writer for the New York Times for 53 years. Since 1982, he has been the Palm Beach Daily News sports editor. At 94, he is the oldest living and working sports writer in A... View profile
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2 Comments
Post a CommentWow. Most everybody only know how to talk but dont know what there talking about. I really need to burst everybodies bubble, but Seabiscuit hands down was the best race horse.
Secretariat did 21 total races. 16 wins, 3 second's and 1 third place. All done while he was only 3yrs old.
Seabiscuit did an astounding 89 total races. 33 wins, 15 seconds, and 1 third. Seabiscuit's early career was plagued with bad handling. Biased thought about his knobby knees. Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons initially trained Seabiscuit but thought he was too lazy, so devoted his time to training Omaha who won the 1935 triple crown. Because of this he was given a harsh/abusive life, and at the age of 2 Seabiscuit had already raced 35 times. 14 more races than Secretariat's entire 3 year career. He was sold for a mere 8,000 dollars to Charles Howard. Tom Smith Seabiscuit's new trainer stated how the horse was lethargic, and bitter. With Smiths unorthodox training methods, he gradually brought Seabiscuit back from the weezing, limping, wreck they made him. Following August 2, 1936 with Red Pollard aboard they won several of the 8 remaining races left in the east. In early November, his last two races of the year were at Bay Meadows racetrack in San Mateo, California. The first was the Bay Bridge Handicap, run over one mile. Despite starting badly and carrying the top weight of 116 lb, Seabiscuit won by five lengths.
At the World's Fair Handicap, Seabiscuit led throughout. In 1937, the Santa Anita Handicap, California's most prestigious race, was worth over $125,000. In his first warm-up race at Santa Anita Park, Seabiscuit won easily. In his second race, the San Antonio Handicap, he was bumped at the start and then pushed wide, Seabiscuit came in fifth, losing to Rosemont.
The two met again in the Santa Anita Handicap just a week later, where Rosemont won by a nose. The defeat was devastating. Pollard, who had not seen Rosemont over his shoulder until too late, was blind in one eye due to an accident during a training ride, a fact he had hidden throughout his career.
Howard decided to ship the horse East for its more prestigious racing circuit.
Seabiscuit's run of victories continued. Between June 26 and August 7, he ran five times, each time at a stakes race, and each time he won, despite steadily increasing handicap weights of up to 130 lb.
In 1937, Seabiscuit won eleven of his fifteen races and was the year's leading money winner in the United States. In 1938, as a five-year-old, Seabiscuit's success continued. In February, Pollard suffered a terrible fall while racing on Fair Knightess. With Pollard's chest crushed, and his ribs and arm broken, Howard had to find a new jockey. He settled on George Woolf, a successful rider and old friend of Pollard, to ride Seabiscuit. Woolf's first race was the Santa Anita Handicap, the "hundred grander" that Seabiscuit had narrowly lost the previous year. Seabiscuit was drawn on the outside, and from the start, was impeded by another horse angling out. The two were locked together for the first straight and, by the time Woolf had disentangled, they were six lengths from the pace. The pair battled hard, but were beaten in a photo finish by the fast finishing Santa Anita Derby winner, Stagehand who had been assigned 30 pounds (13.6) fewer than Seabiscuit. By June, Pollard had made a recovery and on June 23 agreed to work a young colt. Spooked by something on the track, the horse broke rapidly through the stables, shattering Pollards leg, and seemingly ending his career.
Howard arranged a match race for Seabiscuit against Ligaroti, a highly regarded horse owned by the Hollywood entertainer Bing Crosby. Through Binglin Stable in an event organized to promote Crosby's resort and Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. With Woolf aboard, Seabiscuit won that race, despite persistent fouling from Ligaroti's jockey. After three more outings, with only one win, he was scheduled to go head to head with War Admiral in the Pimlico Special in November in Baltimore, Maryland.
On November 1, 1938, Seabiscuit met War Admiral in what was dubbed the "Match of the Century." The event was run over 1 and 3/16 miles. Estimated 40,000 at the track were joined by some 40 million listening on the radio. War Admiral was the favorite (1–4 with most bookmakers).
Head-to-head races favor fast starters, and War Admiral's speed from the gate was the stuff of legend. Seabiscuit was a pace stalker, skilled at holding with the pack before destroying the field with late acceleration. From the scheduled walk-up start, few gave him a chance to lead War Admiral into the first turn. Smith knew these things, and had been secretly training Seabiscuit to run against this type, giving him a burst of speed from the start.
When the bell rang, Seabiscuit ran away from the Triple Crown champion. Despite being on the outside, Woolf led by over a length after just 20 seconds and soon crossed over to the rail position. Halfway down the backstretch, War Admiral started to cut into the lead, gradually pulling level with Seabiscuit, and then slightly ahead. Following advice from Pollard, Woolf had eased up on Seabiscuit, allowing his horse to see his rival, and then asked for more. Two hundred yards from the wire, Seabiscuit pulled away again and continued to extend his lead over the closing stretch, finally winning by four clear lengths despite War Admiral running his best time for that distance ever.
Seabiscuit was injured during a race. Woolf said that he felt the horse stumble, when the stallion hit the ground hard with one leg. Many predicted he would never race again. The diagnosis was a ruptured ligament in the front left leg.
Pollard, and Seabiscuit recovered together at Howard's ranch. Slowly, both horse and rider learned to walk again (Pollard joked that they had four good legs between them). Wearing a brace to stiffen his leg, he began to ride Seabiscuit again, first at a walk and later canter. Howard was delighted at their improvement, as he longed for Seabiscuit to race again, but was worried about Pollard, as his leg was still fragile.
By the time of his comeback race, Pollard had cajoled Howard into allowing him the ride. The pair finally lined up at the start of the La Jolla Handicap at Santa Anita, on February 9, 1940. It was an unremarkable performance for the stallion (Seabiscuit was third, bested by two lengths), but it was an amazing comeback for him and his jockey. By their third comeback race, Seabiscuit was back to his winning ways, running away from the field in the San Antonio Handicap to beat Kayak II, by two and a half lengths. Burdened by 124 pounds, Seabiscuit equalled the track record for a mile and 1/16.
One race was left in the season. A week after the San Antonio, Seabiscuit and Kayak II both took the gate for the Santa Anita Handicap and its $121,000 prize. 78,000 paying spectators crammed the racetrack, most backing the "people's champion" to complete his amazing return to racing. Pollard found his horse blocked almost from the start. Picking his way through the field, Seabiscuit briefly led. As they thundered down the back straight, Seabiscuit became trapped in third place, behind leader Whichcee and Wedding Call on the outside.
Trusting in his horse's acceleration, Pollard steered a dangerous line between the leaders and burst into the lead, taking the firm ground just off the rail. As Seabiscuit showed his old surge, Wedding Call and Whichcee faltered, and Pollard drove his horse on, taking the Hundred Grander by a length and a half.
Not Saying Secretariat wasnt a good horse, but how can you even begin to compare Secretariat's nutured, easy, life with no injuries or victory over any real champion level horse?
"YOU CANT".
Biscuit was twice the age, and who knows how how many races he could have won if somebody believed in him sooner to give him the chance.
In Secretariats life, there were no variables. He was young, healthy, healthy jocky, and givin everything needed to make him be all he could be. His ability would never be any more than it was.
Not too certain who would win. Naturally the nod immediately would go to Secretariat and understandably. Do not underestimate Seabiscuit. After getting to the right owner, trainer and jockey he was very hard to beat. He raced 90 times and had 35 wins. He lost the Santa Anita Derby twice by a nose. He always carried a much heavier weight than his opposition--sometimes as much as 30 pounds. He set many records on many tracks no matter what the circumstances. He had a great heart and will to win.
Considering the differences in tracks, feed, etc., IMHO I believe it would be a much closer race than most think.