Secretariat "The Greatest of all time"

 By Jose Reyes    5/2/2004 

              Secretariat is considered the greatest thoroughbred in horse racing history. "Big Red", as he was also known, was a strong horse with astonishing speed and with incredible stamina . He was the first Triple Crown winner after a 25 year drought,  when Citation won in 1948. Only 11 horses have Won the Triple Crown. This "Chestnut Colt" won all three races in 1973, smashing the records in 2 of the 3 races, in the Kentucky Derby he ran a 1:59 2/5, in the Belmont Stakes he ran an unbelievable 2:24 destroying the track record by 2 and 3/5 of a second. Experts say that he had the record broken in the Preakness  Stakes, the electric timer gave the wrong result and they had to settle for an average time recorded by a Daily Racing Form official and a Pimlico official, where the race takes place (Maryland). The Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes records still hold now, 31 years after! This magnificent warrior was relentless, just when you thought he was out of breath, he would just take off and always finished the race at top speed, running away from the rest of the field. 

              Scientist have studied his stride with computer imagery and have concluded that a thoroughbred horse could not possibly extend its body and stretch its muscles any more, that is the limit! To make him more extraordinary, when he died in October of 1989 an autopsy was performed on him and an incredible finding was made, his heart was more than twice the size of the average thoroughbred. Normally this would seriously hamper a horse with health problems but it didn't affect him. An oversize heart pumps more blood to the body and to the muscles, this could explain the  incredible stamina Secretariat had. Even though having this small advantage, he still needed the expertise training and appropriate  dietary plan to succeed and become a champion. More Pictures of Famous Horses                                               

                                                                  Racing History

           Race horses have a short racing career and Secretariat made sure he would be remembered forever by breaking and setting all sorts of records. The first year, thoroughbreds spend a lot of time nurturing and playing around, acquiring all the special talents they would need to be champions. The second year is where they start racing and start to get recognized. The third year is their last year and is when they are at their best. Compared to Humans, its like 19 to 21 years of age. After the 3rd year, they can continue racing but the significance of the races decrease, so most of these champions become real playboys as the demand for breeding increases and they become studs. 

At Age 2 (1972):           Won--Sanford Stakes                          Won--Hopeful Stakes                             Won--Belmont Futurity         Won--Laurel Futurity         Won--Garden State Stakes                           2nd--Champagne Stakes                          >Champion 2 Year Colt              >Horse of the Year

  At Age 3 (1973):                   

          Won--Kentucky Derby (New track record)
          Won--Preakness Stakes (Controversial Time)
          Won--Belmont Stakes (New World Record on Dirt)
          Won--Man o' War Stakes (New course record)
          Won--Canadian International Stakes 
          Won--Gotham Stakes (Equaled track record)
          Won--Bay Shore Stakes 
          Won--Arlington Invitational 
          Won--Marlboro Cup (New World Record)
          2nd--Woodward Stakes 
          2nd--Whitney Stakes 
          3rd--Wood Memorial Stakes 

         >Champion 3 Year Old Colt

         >Champion Grass Horse 

         >Horse of the Year

                                      Pedigree Information

Secretariat's Roots:

Pedigree generated by TesioPower 2.0 - Syntax Software

    Secretariat's Direct Offspring List  A to Z: (Click Here Please)

                                      Secretariat's Fame

                After winning the Triple Crown he received instant notoriety and was featured on the cover of Time magazine on the June 11, 1973 issue. He was also placed on a Commemorative US Postal stamp on October 15, 1999, honoring his Triple Crown achievement.  

              I think if he was racing now, he would be winning just the same. He would be running away from the field like he did in 1973. The sport of horse racing has not really change, as the weight of the jockeys are the same and the horses are build the same. The only thing that bothers me nowadays is the use of drugs to calm them down before the race, since horses can be very temperamental.  He is 35TH on "Best 50 Athletes of the Century" list.

 Secretariat's Triple Crown - Part 1

Secretariat's Triple Crown- Part2

See Secretariat's Belmont Race 1973 (Video): http://belmontstakes.nyra.com/belstakes2005/video.asp#

Interested in any Horse Race Videos or DVDs on Secretariat or other Great Horses or Big Races from past or present email Steve at: http://www.secondrunning.com/Secretariat%20Races.htm

Webmaster@Cubanology.com