Secretariat

Hangin' With Haskin posts tagged "Secretariat"

A Big Day for Big Red

The scroll on ESPN's Sportscenter May 3 morning had its priorities straight. The No. 1 horse racing story read: "Secretariat wins Virtual Kentucky Derby." Oh, yes, that was followed by story No. 2, which read: "Charlatan, Nadal Win Split Arkansas Derby."... Read More

Clinging to Youth Through Secretariat

No one likes getting old, especially when you still think of yourself as a kid--in my case growing up in Brooklyn and having my world revolve around sports. That spark of youth still burns brightly no matter how old you get. And you even miss the naivety that comes with being young. We looked at everything, especially sports, with a good deal of innocence because we simply didn't know any better. That's why it was fun.... Read More

Big Red: The Early Years

Since this story was first published in 2002, I have spoken to several other employees of Meadow Stud who remember Secretariat and have wonderful recollections of him as a baby and a yearling, and some of his wild adventures. So, with the annual Secretariat Festival in Lexington, Ky. on October 12-14 just around the corner, I thought I would update the original article to include new stories of the mischievous Big Red and the docile Riva Ridge from those who knew them well.... Read More

Sizing Up Secretariat's Competition

@font-face { font-family: "Cambria Math"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }.MsoChpDefault { font-size: 10pt; }div.WordSection1 { } Saturday will mark the 45th anniversary to the day of Secretariat's defeat at the hands of Prove Out in the Woodward Stakes. I have written extensively about Prove Out and how that upset... Read More

Young Girl Finds a Hero in Her Own Backyard

Mariah Lester is an aspiring racing journalist about to enter college, where she hopes to lay the foundation for a career in writing about the recently discovered sport she loves and horses such as her local hero Stopshoppingdebbie, Queen of Emerald Downs, who opened the door to a wonderful new world. Because of her passion, astute writing style, and ability to tell her story in a captivating manner... Read More

One Final Party For Penny and a Fond Farewell

Well, Penny, after wishing you a Happy Birthday every couple of years, I must update my sentiments one final time. Although it isn't your birthday, it is the day you have entered the gates of racing's pantheon, and ethereally speaking, have been reunited with those the two noble steeds who would help define your life, as well as the man you so admired and cherished, who was responsible for bringing... Read More

Can Arrogate Make Us Forget Del Mar Debacle?

When the Secretariat rocket ship soared to a galaxy never before reached in his 31-length procession in the Belmont Stakes, it gave the colt an aura of invincibility and made it seem inconceivable that he would ever be defeated again. He had raised the bar higher than any horse in history or at least the same level as the previous Big Red, Man o’ War. But no matter how devastating he looked in the... Read More

Secretariat Photo Album

I have posted photos of Secretariat over the years, including a collection of shots seven years ago, but never all of them in one place. I figured it was time to put all these photos together in a single blog, just to have them archived and easily accessible.... Read More

Secretariat Still Omnipresent After 44 Years

It was 1973, and America was desperately looking for a sports hero. By June they had found one in the form of a flashy powerful chestnut horse named Secretariat, who was so popular he appeared on the covers of Time, Newsweek , and Sports Illustrated in the same week. And this was before his iconic procession into history in the Belmont Stakes, in which he became the first horse in 25 years to sweep... Read More

NYRA Stakes Change: From a King to a Chief

Of all the stakes on NYRA's calendar to change to the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial, none would have made the Hall of Fame trainer happier than the King's Bishop, named after a horse he trained and run at the track in which he scored his most memorable upset the same year he won a grade I stakes with King's Bishop.... Read More

Arrogate and How We Define Greatness

Arrogate is as great as each individual perceives him, and it has nothing to do with competition or longevity. Years from now, Arrogate's Hall of Fame plaque will be there among the others, and nowhere will it mention the quality of his competition.... Read More

Memories of Sham Rekindled With New Book

With Sham sort of back in the spotlight again, I went back to a 2009 column I wrote on the colt and felt enough years had passed to re-work and re-edit it by adding new material and tell his story once again even more comprehensively.... Read More

Revisiting Penny's Birthday Party One Year Later

This column seemed to be well-received by Secretariat fans last year, so I thought I would reprint it as an annual Birthday present to Penny and all Big Red 's fans who might have missed it last year. Mrs. Chenery celebrates her 93rd birthday on Tuesday, Jan. 27. So let's return to her party one year later.... Read More

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