Posted on 06/08/2012 8:43:00 AM PDT by sportutegrl
CNN is reporting that I'll Have Another is scratched from racing in Belmont. No Triple Crown this year.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
I do find it odd that we had several Triple Crown winners in the 70s, starting with Secretariat, and then after 1978, nothing.
Over here, ‘triple crown’ means rugby.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triple_Crown_(rugby_union)
At the time of Secretariat's death, the veterinarian who performed the necropsy, Dr. Thomas Swerczek, head pathologist at the University of Kentucky, did not weigh Secretariat's heart, but stated, "We just stood there in stunned silence. We couldn’t believe it. The heart was perfect. There were no problems with it. It was just this huge engine."[18] Later, Swerczek also performed a necropsy on Sham, who died in 1993. Swerczek did weigh Sham's heart, and it was 18 pounds (8.2 kg). Based on Sham's measurement, and having necropsied both horses, he estimated Secretariat's heart probably weighed 22 pounds (10.0 kg),[20] or about two-and-three-quarters times as large as that of the average horse.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secretariat_(horse)
That engine drove Secretariat to a feat at the Belmont that is for the ages.
Certainly of the modern era. Given that Secretariat set a track record in that race (which I believe still stands) while not being pressured in the least, it makes you wonder what kind of time he might have posted if pushed.
This situation reminds me of the situation with Spectatular Bid in 1979 when it was debated whether to run him in the Belmont or not due to injury. Although injured, it was decided to run him. He lost to some horses that he had already clearly established he could beat easily when healthy.
Of all the horses in that time frame, I've always thought that Spectacular Bid was the horse that would have most challenged Secretariat. More so than Affirmed or Seattle Slew or Alydar.
OK, I admittedly don’t know much about horse racing, but what is the big deal with the Triple Crown? You are choosing 3 races arbitrarily, aren’t you? What happens if a horse wins 3 other races? I just don’t get it, sorry.
In one of those races he ran each quarter(?) faster than the one before. He was still gaining speed at the end, looks like.
Secretariat was the greatest race horse that ever lived. He won the Derby, Preakness and Belmont in record time and the Belmont by 31 lengths. No horse has even come close to that performance. Get the movie—great story that you can watch over and over.
That’s a longer spell than when Secretariat won in 1973. I believe the prior Triiple Crown to that one was in 1948, but the name of the winning horse escapes me.
Citation in 1948
One word: Dominance
Thank you.
Mark Belling (Milwaukee talk radio and sometimes sub for Rush) is part owner of Went the Day Well who ran 4th in the Derby. I’ll be interested in hearing his take today.
I just heard. I am disappointed although not as much as the racing fan in my school who is considering buying a racehorse with a few friends. She was really psyched. (And all her bets have to be changed now.)
Total buzz-kill for the race tomorrow.
I have seen the movie and I agree it's good.
I hedged on calling Secretariat the greatest race horse, not to diminish the unquestioned greatness of Secretariat but because the greatness of some other horses needs to be considered. Also, the idea of "greatest" needs to be defined more carefully.
Best three-year-old? Secretariat would probably get my vote. He didn't run as an adult so it isn't known if he would have continued his dominance over his peers. Secretariat beat Forego as a three-year-old but Forego (after being gelded) went on to become an all-time great adult racer. Could Secretariat have done the same? Perhaps but we'll never know for sure.
Fastest ever? In a race against every horse that ever lived, you wouldn't catch me betting against Secretariat. However, he could be beaten. He was not undefeated when he ran in the TC races and he lost two races after winning the TC.
Success at stud? Secretariat was a disappointment in this regard. On the other hand, the descendants of Man o'War dominated stake racing for decades.
Reputation and cultural impact? Secretariat hasn't reached the levels of Man o'War for sure and probably not Citation. It seems that most ratings with credibility (i.e. done by horse racing people) have Man o'War rated above Secretariat.
All things considered, Secretariat could well be the greatest race horse of all time. Without question, Secretariat is in the top three.
And without a whip. Secretariat was a freak of nature with a 22 pound heart and the legs and will to match. Amazing.
I never was much of a horse racing fan as a kid. This race brought tears to my eyes. I knew I was seeing something special, an event the like of which I would not see again.
Yeah, but that was a match race, where the horses can never let up.
Shenanigans (dam) and Reviewer were both put down after breaking their legs.http://www.horsefix.com/pages/Famous%20Horses/famous-ruffian.htm
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