THE GREATEST RACEHORSE

It's 6:15, Patrick got up and went back to bed with Junior, it's foggy out and overcast. We had our first BIG thunderstorm /rainfall of the season yesterday, so maybe the drought of '05 is broken.

In the early seventies, I lived in Fitchberg, Leominster, and Gardner in Massachusettes with Harmon. In those days we were Racing afficianadoes and visited the harness tracks and dog tracks with some regularity. When, in 1973 , Secretariate was poised to win the Triple Crown, we decided to become witnesses. The wonder horse had set the record at the Kentucky Derby, a disputed record at the Preakness, and was to set the record at the Belmont stakes, and set the record for the North American Mile, all of which stand to this day, over thirty years later.

We looked on the map, saw "Belmont Park" on Long Island, and off we went. It turns out that wasn't the Track. OOPS! But we did make it, with only mere minutes to spare, arriving after the third race of the day. We were in the grandstands. At the post parade, no one had to point out the favorite. He stood out from the rest, big and red and magnificent.They're Off! At the far turn, I could no longer see the field. Everyone was standing, and The crowd caused Tunnel Vision for me. Here comes Secretariate! He crosses the finish line. But where are the other horses? They weren't there. Had some catastrophe befell ALL of them at the last turn? Where ARE they? Finally, here they came, THIRTY lengths behind the winner... This one was of the greatest moments in Sports History, and Harmon and I witnessed it. Two minutes of Glory we will never forget. And I've got the two dollar win ticket to prove it! Later, we traveled to Saratoga Springs to watch the great one in a shorter race. We were at the rail, so we got a good close up of this magnificent champion, Lafitte Pincay up. He was beat in his race by a nondescript speed horse whose name is indelibly etched on my brain: Onion. Many years later, when the great horse died, they did an autopsy and found his heart to be MUCH larger than average. Sort of like Lance Armstrong. So it goes! -30-