Response to "Pure Heart"

Pure Heart
Sporting Heritage/Sport and Media
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1005832/1/index.htm
2/3/11

This article was about the famous racehorse Secretariat. He won the Triple Crown in 1973. The article goes into detail about the last year of his racing career. Secretariat was a very well trained race horse that came from a very well established pedigree. His father had been a great racer during his time. Early on it was realized that Secretariat was going to be one of the best race horses of all time. It mentions early on in the article that during his necropsy they discover what had made him such a great race horse. He had a heart twice the size of a normal horse heart. Was more blood pumping through his body what allowed him to win as he did or did he just have his full heart to win those races. The writer explains how he had thought it would be a good idea to keep a journal of the races and days before the races he was to run in New York. By doing this he became close to the horse, leaving the lasting impression of the race horse in his mind like a child of his own. He loved this horse and enjoyed watching him perform his magic on the track. He came to  know the personality of this horse and  had many stories to tell about him. He devoted these months to capture this amazing horse in hopes that he would pull off the feat that he did when winning the Triple Crown. By spending time with the horse on a regular basis his faith in the horse grew. He saw him beat records and be playful. This young horse captured many fans in the races in New York. The race at the Wood Memorial questioned many of these fans, even the author. Secretariat did not perform well in this race of the few days before the race. Many people questioned him of his abilities to race in the major races. They did not know if he would follow in his father's footsteps and not perform at this level or if he would get it together and succeed. The rider had faith in him after learning the truth of why he had done so poorly in the Wood race. Secretariat had a sore in his mouth that was very discomforting to him. He did not want to race so he did just that; didn't perform. After the next race everyone gained their confidence back in him after he set a new track and Kentucky Derby record at 1:59. He went on to win the next two races, the Preakness and the Belmont, and set new records in both. Later the author finds out that his beloved racehorse is going to have to be put down because of an incurable infection that was causing him a lot of pain.
This article was very interesting to read. The only horse race I have seen was in the movie Seabiscuit. This horse sound like a hero to many people of the horse racing world. he was a great legend that many people will never forget. He did the unimaginable and won the Triple Crown. Not only did he win these races but he broke the records in them as well. I think it would have been exciting to watch these races take place and be caught up in the drama of what the races would hold. After reading this article i went on Youtube and watched videos of this amazing horse. It was interesting to see how far he actually was in front of his opponents in the final Belmont race. he completely blew his opponents out of the water. Here is a link to watch the video of this race: Secretariat Triple Crown Winner: Belmont Stakes