American Pharoah Will Continue to Race, but Why?

Yesterday I wrote that American Pharoah would probably be retired and put out to stud now that he's won the Triple Crown, but I was wrong.  Apparently, he'll continue to race.

The owner of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah says plans are underway for his champion to race again this year.  (ESPN)

Ahmed Zayat, American Pharoah's owner, sold the breeding rights before the Belmont, but they don't kick in until Pharoah actually retires. 

 "They have zero say until he retires,'' Zayat said. "We owe it to the sport to do the right thing. Money plays an important factor in this game. I've already sold the breeding rights, but it is my genuine desire, as a fan, as someone who loves horses, to race him as long as I possibly can.''  (ESPN)

 

 But what if American Pharoah is injured in a race?

Should anything happen to the colt in future races, Zayat is covered by an insurance policy for which the rates are "incredibly high,'' Baffert said recently. (ESPN)

My first question was, "Why would they take this risk?"   So, I looked it up and, apparently, many other Triple Crown winners have continued to race.

 The first Triple Crown winner in 37 years, American Pharoah is in uncharted territory, with no contemporary peers. The last Triple Crown winner, Affirmed in 1978, raced 13 times after his Belmont Stakes, running a full season as a four-year-old; Seattle Slew, the 1977 Triple Crown winner, ran eight times after the Belmont, through November of 1978. Secretariat raced six times after winning the Belmont and was retired at the end of the year. (The Guardian)

 

But still, "Why?"

“Purses these days are hefty,” he (Charlie Boden, stallion manager of Darley America, the breeding operation of Dubai’s Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum) pointed out. “He’s got $10 million sitting there next March [in the Dubai World Cup]. That’s $6 million to him [if he wins]. The Breeders’ Cup Classic is $5 million. He stands to make another $10 million before the end of March next year.

 “If he’s going to the breeding shed, he could get 100 horses to breed to him at $100,000, but that’s a year down the road, assuming he’s fertile and if he wants to breed, and those are two big ifs. We know that we can run and beat just about every sumbitch that lines up next to him.” (The Guardian)

Oh, that's why.  Money.  Speaking of which, did you see the Burger King in American Pharoah's box during the Belmont?  So did we.  What the #@?  It turns out, Burger King paid $200,000 for that privilege.  The bright side?  The money is going to charity.  The down side?  It seemed creepy.

If all this is making you a little queasy, here's some good news to balance it.  American Pharoah's jockey, Victor Espinoza, who, by the way, was scared of horses at one point in his life, is donating his $80,000 winnings to City of Hope, a research and treatment center that aims to fight cancer and life-threatening illnesses.  Espinoza has always donated a percentage of his earnings to that same charity.  Kudos to Espinoza!

 

And, kudos to Bob Baffert (Pharoah's trainer) and Jill, his wife, for donating their winnings to the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund; the California Retirement Management Account, a nonprofit that helps retired California racehorses; and Old Friends Farm, a thoroughbred retirement facility.

 

Triple Crown history was made, but if you, like me, are unable to rest easy until the hero himself is safe and sound, it appears we'll have to wait a little longer.

Facts about Secretariat and Sham

Job 39: 19-25

Do you give the horse his strength

or clothe his neck with a flowing mane?

Do you make him leap like a locust,

striking terror with his proud snorting?

He paws fiercely, rejoicing in his strength,

and charges into the fray.

He laughs at fear, afraid of nothing;

he does not shy away from the sword.

The quiver rattles against his side,

along with the flashing spear and lance.

In frenzied excitement he eats up the ground;

he cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds.

At the blast of the trumpet he snorts, ‘Aha!’

He catches the scent of battle from afar,

the shout of commanders and the battle cry.

After seeing the movie Secretariat I wanted to separate fact from fiction and find out if all the hype around him was deserved. I set out out to compile "Facts for Secretariat and Sham".

For example, we know his breeding rights were sold, before he won the Triple Crown, for over 6 million dollars, but was that price worth it in the long-run?

If you look at his winning prodigy, the answer is YES!  Most of the top horses running today can trace their roots to Secretariat, including American Pharoah, the 2015 Triple Crown winner.  Secretariat's grandsons, Storm Cat and A.P. Indy, have produced most of the crop of 2015's equine athletes.

Secretariat Facts and Pedigree:

1. 1st two year old to become horse of the year.

2. At the time, he was the only Derby winner to finish in under 2 minutes. He still holds the first place record.

3. He may have had the record time for the Preakness, but a reported malfunctioning clock brought him in a second later.

4. Fastest time ever for the Belmont—and most lengths won by, 1.5 mile track and 2:24 time winning by 31 lengths.  (American Pharoah has the 2nd best time at 2:26.65 and winning by 5 1/2 lengths for the Triple Crown).

The chart above shows all the Triple Crown winners and how far they'd be behind Secretariat given their times at Belmont.

5. Career earnings-- $1,316,808 (racing winnings)

6. The second place winner at the Belmont was not Sham (movie version), but instead Twice a Prince. (see below)

7. He contracted laminitis at 19 years old and had to be put down. An autopsy revealed that his heart weighed 22 pounds, 2 1/2 times the average heart’s weight for a horse that size.

8. None of his direct off-spring lived up to his standard, but he sired over 600. Apparently, the mares did better, overall, than the stallions. His breeding rights were sold for 6.2 million, but I can’t get a figure on how much he actually earned throughout his lifetime in breeding fees. If some one has this, please let me know.


9. He's one of American Pharoah's g-g-grandfathers (2015 Triple Crown winner pictured below) .

10. Dash for Cash has connections with Secretariat-- Imperatrice is the fourth dam of Dash for Cash and the actual dam of Somethingroyal—who, as we know now, was the dam of Secretariat. They also were almost identical measurement wise. For interesting information on this, please see this link: http://www.circledhorses.com/dfc_and_secretariat.htm

picture of Dash for Cash:



Secretariat



11. Secretariat was not the last horse to win the Triple Crown, American Pharoah did in 2015, and Affirmed, in 1978. Before that, in 1977, Seattle Slew took home the Triple Crown. So, the ‘70’s saw three Triple Crown winners. Wow! In recent history, Smarty Jones almost did, and Barbaro was expected to, so was California Chrome.  All told, 13 horses came within the Belmont of winning the Triple Crown until American Pharoah broke the drought.

Facts about Sham:

1.) He ripped out two teeth leaving the gate at the Kentucky Derby, but still came in second to Secretariat. He either tied or beat the all-time record for running the Derby previous to Secretariat.

2.) Sham finished last at the Belmont.

3.) He had a hairline fracture that retired him after the Belmont

4.) He died at age 23 of a heart attack. His heart was twice the size of a normal Thoroughbred. (Below, Sham at age 23)

Sham with his trainer, Pancho Martin.

 Sham being led in.

 Sham on the track.

One thing I really thought the movie captured is the power of a horse. When I let my herd out into a new pasture this morning and felt the ground thundering under their hooves, as they went running and kicking away from me, I was reminded of that. It's amazing that we can ever "control" that power at all or even come close to the almost symbiotic relationship we have with them when we ride. Why does a creature so powerful choose to blend with us in this way?

I thought it also captured the heart of a horse and what they're willing to do for you. All through the movie I thought about my own horses and the relationships I have with each of them and what they've given for me at different times. I've been riding a lot this fall--3 times per week--long trail rides with Cowboy. Every time we pull out we're riding for at least 3-5 hard hours up mountains, over streams, along steep ledges, and over ground that is sometimes solid rock. Yet, every darn time I go to get him, he comes to me willingly and meets me half way to be haltered. Why? It's a gift, that's all I know.

Have you seen Secretariat? What were your thoughts?