Oct

26

Another Funny Thing about Secretariat, from Victor Niederhoffer

October 26, 2010 |

2 Comments so far

1. Jeff Watson on October 26, 2010 9:33 am

   While horse racing has run into a major headwind, dog racing has floundered and is sinking quickly. The animal rights activists have persuaded the state governments to outlaw dog racing in 36 states. There’s only a few tracks left, with a majority in Florida. None of the tracks in Florida are doing well. The handles at my local track are 35% less than they were in 1995, with expenses and taxes going up every year, and declining attendance. The local track tries inducements like $0.50 beer and hot dogs. Because of the law of unintended consequences, the local homeless have discovered the cheap eats and the place has become a de facto soup kitchen. Our dog track has become a dangerous place to hang out, and muggings in the parking lot at night are very common. Pan handling at the track has been elevated to a high art, and petty grifts are an everyday occurrence. On a personal note, I would be afraid to cash a big ticket and walk out at night, because the crowd is so sketchy. In fact, the crowd at the dog track resembles those desperate souls one finds at the bus station (Greyhound), or the local shelter. But, then again, our local track only has an average attendance of a few hundred which puts a bullseye on your back for those with evil intentions. One tries to find solace at the upstairs club, but since the track offers ways to get free admission, it’s no better than standing at the rail.

   The jury is out as far as the simulcasting during season, but simulcasting does offer the degenerate year round access to the tote boards and action(even after live racing is done). Simulcasting is a very expensive proposition, and the extremely high vig makes it as likely to see a yeti as to win at the track. Recent studies have shown that the simulcasting handle has gone down significantly in the past decade. The lotto has really hurt the dog track businss, as now one doesn’t need to go to the dog track to get long odds with high vig….just go to any gas station, 7/11, or Publix to get your fix. Online poker and other internet gambling have also taken a toll on the dogs. Most tracks are fighting back by offering poker rooms and other casino games and/or machines. The aforementioned games seem to all have very high vig, and the vig at the poker room is larcenous. In poker tournaments, the vig sometimes runs in the range of 10-22%….for a poker game. In the small cash hold’em games, the vig runs around 10-12%, making it impossible to beat in the long run if you are not a gambler. A grinder would find it impossible to make it at the poker rooom upstairs from the track.

   omehow, I suspect that dog racing will survive in one form or another, just as jai alai is hanging on by a thread. There might be enough die hard fans to keep it alive and I’d be willing to offer 6:5 that dog racing will survive for another generation….after that, who knows.

   http://tinyurl.com/2dzgjq7

2. steve on October 27, 2010 11:24 am

   This was originally written on April 1 2006 by myself.

   It is often said one thing that separates a champion
   from all the challengers is their heart.

   Now there is the physical heart and there is the
   intangible heart. the heart within the heart.The
   spiritual heart. The heart that cannot be defined by
   physical measure. The true spiritual heart cant be
   quantified by mechanical means, it cant be captured
   nor conquered. There once was a champion who had the
   rare blessing of both.

   Secretariat was in all likelihood the greatest
   racehorce of all time. He was sired by the marvelous
   champion Bold Ruler and foaled March 30th 1970 In a
   sport that measures margins of victory as “by a nose”
   or “by a neck” and a “photo finish” Big Red as he was
   called was so majestic and powerful he won he just
   didn’t win. He vanquished. He crushed. He completely
   destroyed the field at the 1973 Belmont Stakes winning
   by 31 lengths and establishing a world record at the
   mile and a half distance that stands to this day.
   Although I watched the race on television and it
   happened 33 years ago, I will NEVER forget the image
   of Secretariat charging toward the finish line on the
   backstretch with no horse in sight. And even though
   the race was never in doubt, there was absolutely no
   quit in him at all. It was as if he were telling the
   racing world that I am going to give you a show that
   you will never see again. You bought a ticket to
   watch me run and I will not disappoint you. And the
   ground shook and crowd thundered. They should have
   created a word to describe the event that day.
   Secretarian. Even though I grew up in a blue collar
   town in the rust best of the United States, From that
   moment on, I became a life long fan of the Sport of
   Kings. He gave me a story to tell to my children and
   my children’s children that I had the honor to watch
   the mightiest of the mighty. The greatest of all the
   greats.

   He also set speed records at the Kentucky Derby and
   the Preakness. The only horse in history to accomplish
   that herculean feat. He thus became the the first
   triple crown winner since Citation in 1948. All in
   all, there have been only 11 horses to have been
   christened triple crown winners. This requires an
   entrant to win 3 races in 5 weeks against the most
   elite field in its sport and across 3 varying
   distances on three different tracks. A bronze statue
   of the great horse stands in the paddock area of
   Belmont Park in Elmont NY forever immortalizing this
   most unique of equines.

   After his unfortunate death in 1989 due to laminitis
   an incurable hoof disease, he was euthanized on
   October 4th. He was buried whole at Claiborne Farms in
   Paris Kentucky. This is such a unique honor befitting
   the great champion. By tradition, thoroughbreds are
   buried by parts, their head to symbolize intelligence,
   their heart to signify strength and their legs to
   describe power.

   An autopsy was performed at the University of
   Kentucky; by Dr. Thomas Swerczek, the veterinarian who
   performed the autopsy. To his utter amazement, he
   found that Secretariat’s heart was the largest he had
   ever seen in a horse—approximately three times the
   size of a normal horse’s heart. Unlike most enlarged
   hearts, Secretariat’s showed absolutely no signs of
   disease. The heart weighed 21 pounds (9.6 kg); the
   normal is 7 pounds (3.2 kg). He had a powerplant that
   was nuclear when all the others were running on
   diesel.

   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secretariat_(racehorse)

   In 1999 a commemorative stamp was issued by the United
   States Postal Service to honor the spectacular
   champion. A fitting honor to one whose likes we may
   not see for a hundred years or more.

   As we approach the Kentucky Derby and the Run for the
   Roses I wanted to take the time to honor this most
   amazing turf warrior with a humble tribute befitting
   him . I can only say that if you ever saw him run My
   Lord you would never forget it.

   Steve Leslie
   Incurable