The first horserace I ever attended was witnessing Secretariat winning the Triple Crown at Belmont. That was a lifechanger, although at the time, I had no idea that this would even be possible.
It was just after I had finished up my sophomore year at college. I had never had any real interest in the horses, never watched any races. I was vaguely aware of jockey Bill Shoemaker whose name seemed to be in the sports news a lot back then. Although I was a bit of a jock back then, horseracing just wasn’t on my radar.
I guess it was the press that did it. Specifically Newsday, Long Island’s premiere newspaper. There was a lot of media attention leading up to the Belmont Stakes, that this might finally be the year we would see a Triple Crown Champion and all the sportswriters were talking about and writing about Big Red. The headlines caught my eye and I never was one to miss a good party or major event.
So I called a few of my high school friends since we were all on summer break. If I remember, I actually planned and called on the day of the race, June 9, 1973. Two of my friends were available and interested. Otis and Bob had just completed their freshman years. We made our plans and scored a quick getaway.
We were on the way, just another road trip, another adventure that would culminate in hysteria, wide-eyed disbelief and a bond among friends that said, “We were there.”
Since it was our first horserace, we couldn’t appreciate the magnitude of the race. But there’s something about a 31 length winning margin that helps even the most innocent bystanders understand they have just watched perfection, something like seeing a Mickey Mantle line drive home run into the depths of old Yankee Stadium.
The race is history now, legend really. Even those who are not race fans know about the legend, the record time, the dominance of one single horse over his competition, an entire field, actually over his generation. Many also remember how Secretariat dominated the news cycle as he was one of the few to grace the covers of both Time and Newsweek in the same week after his victory.
But to three novices who just wanted to see what a Triple Crown might be about, we were blown away. Or at least, I was. The race touched me in some way and I became a long-time devotee of the sport. Big Red went on to greatness, although not a perfect career. He set the record for all three Triple Crown races: the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. But, in the same year, he also lost the Whitney, Wood Memorial and the Woodward Stakes.
I remember at the time reading of his owners retiring him early because his stud value was too high to risk continuing his racing career. So we mourned his exit but cheered his new career as stud. Alas, Big Red was master of the race course but he did not produce in the barn. He was syndicated for a record $6.08 million with a stud fee of $190,000, which back in 1974 again shattered all previous records. However, he failed to sire any memorable winners on the race track.
But attending that race hooked me and I began going to the track to enjoy the betting, the atmosphere and the spectacle of being surrounded by so many racing fans. My college roommates and I attended the 100th running of the Kentucky Derby and I later attended the 99th Preakness. After Secretariat, I never missed a Belmont Stakes until 1994. I always loved going to the track and getting the Daily Racing Form to test my skills at picking winners. Over the years, I did okay, probably broke even. I did win two triples so that was a thrill.
And then I received an interesting job offer and we moved away from Belmont and Aqueduct and settled in Pennsylvania. Sure, there are racetracks here too but something happened. Perhaps with two young children, our family needs did not include the track. But I did take my wife and kids to the Preakness about 25 years ago but it clearly wasn’t my childrens’ thing. So I slowly drifted away from the track.
However, I have never missed a Triple Crown race on TV. Every year, on the first Saturday in May, it all starts over again and my wife and I watch the three races. I haven’t placed a bet in years so it’s not about the money. It is about the sport, the thrill, the excitement of watching the best three-year old thoroughbreds racing down the stretch. It never gets old. And I don’t think about Big Red so much anymore. He was euthanized at age 19 because he was suffering from a hoof disease.
But in all the thousands of horse races I saw over the years, from Saratoga to Hialeah to Churchill Downs and beyond, never did I see such dominance in a sporting event. Secretariat just crushed his competition, at least during the five weeks of the Triple Crown in 1973. That memory stays with me, always. It was what perfection looks like.
Chris Ebel
12/13/21
Photo credit: @Ricciardi