The Horse God Built: The Untold Story of Secretariat

As if the ghost of Barbaro wasn't strong enough, I'll have the ghost of Secretariat lingering in my mind on Saturday, when the 133rd Kentucky Derby is run at Churchill Downs.

Secretariat's ghost will be larger than life thanks to the recent publication of a new book on the great horse. The Horse God Built by Lawrence Scanlan is the latest to go on an almost-full bookshelf on the big red horse.

I recommend this book with some reservations. The book claims to be the story of the relationship between Secretariat and his longtime groom, Eddie Sweat. Scanlan makes a noble attempt to recreate Eddie, who is now dead, but because of the time that has passed, Eddie cannot be separated from the bigger story of African Americans in racing. The author makes a few nods to the fact that racism and class discrimination existed on the racetrack in the 1970s, but he doesn't go there with conviction. Racist statements by trainers just hang in the air. Scanlan seems distracted, evidenced by musings throughout the book about his own horse and imagining what things were like for Eddie Sweat.

Most African Americans are gone from the backstretches of American tracks. Most are also gone from the horse farms where the horses are bred and raised. If that is so, why is it so? And who is Eddie's counterpart today? To me, that's the bigger story of this book, and Scanlan doesn't go there.

You might want to buy this book for the final chapter, called "Eulogy for a Horse." It describes the death and funeral of Secretariat, and has anecdotes about his autopsy, his gravesite, etc. I thought I had read everything about Secretariat, but I did not know how he died or where. I assumed that he had been euthanized in his stall when he suffered a relapse of laminitis. If Scanlan's report is correct--which he attributes to the farm manager and owner Penny Chenery--then I had been missing a big part of the story. In this case, ignorance was bliss.

The final chapter also tells the story of how Man 'o War died and his body laid in state in an open casket...thanks to the fact that he was embalmed. A human apparently requires two pints of embalming fluid; Man 'o War required 23. His funeral and all the speeches were broadcast live, by radio, across the country.

When Will Harbut, Man 'o War's longtime groom, died, the Blood-Horse obituary listed his survivors as "a wife, six sons, three daughters--and Man 'o War." The horse died a month after his groom.

From Will Harbut to Eddie Sweat to whoever snaps the leadline onto the bridle of Saturday's winner...what did these grooms have in common? If Circular Quay or Scat Daddy wins the Derby on Saturday, it may well be Todd Pletcher's groom Isabel who is there with the leadline. The media will love her but more importantly, they will see her, because she is a woman in a man's world, unlike Will and Eddie, who were nameless and faceless in their roles with superstar horses.

I'd like to thank Lawrence Scanlan for trying to piece together Eddie Sweat's story. It's a tall order. Most of all, I'd like to thank Eddie Sweat for having nurtured Secretariat into the horse we all will remember.

The Horse God Built is sold in bookstores everywhere but please try to purchase it from an independently-owned bookstore. You can also order it from Robin Bledsoe's horse bookshop in Cambridge, Massachusetts: 617 576 3634 or robin.bledsoe@verizon.net

Photo: Secretariat in full stride, winning the Gotham Stakes for three-year-olds in New York. Bob Congianese photo from the cover of The Horse God Built.

FEI Investigates Possible Abuse to Horse Injured on Cross-Country at Rolex Three-Day Event

At the Rolex Three-Day Event in Kentucky on Saturday, Amy Tryon's horse Le Samurai was injured at the last fence of the cross-country course at the Kentucky Horse Park. The horse continued and crossed the finish line, where he was immediately examined by veterinarians and transported to the Hagyard Equine Medical Institute nearby.

While no real diagnosis has been disclosed, it sounds like the horse may have ruptured his suspensory ligament or somehow disrupted the suspensory apparatus. The injury is not life-threatening.

Yesterday the Federation Equestrian Internationale (FEI), which is the governing body of world horse sports, announced that they had launched an investigation into possible horse abuse in this incident.

Here's the official statement from the FEI:

The FEI was notified of an alleged case of abuse which occurred during the CCI 4* Lexington, Kentucky USA on Saturday 28 April involving competitor Amy Tyron (USA) and Le Samurai.

The preliminary investigation was conducted according to the regulations, whereby the Ground Jury met on Saturday 28 April following the cross country to investigate an incident of alleged abuse before fence 34. The Ground Jury collected written statements from the Fence Judges and Sector Steward and reviewed the video as well as interviewing the FEI Veterinary Delegate, Dr. Catherine Kohn. The rider, Amy Tyron, was interviewed on Sunday immediately after the Sunday morning horse inspection and gave her account of the incident. Following the interview, the Ground Jury referred the matter to the Appeal Committee. The Appeal Committee, in full possession of all the written statements and video recording, took the following decision:

According to article 164.4.5 of the FEI General Regulations: “In serious cases, immediate disqualification with one or more horses from a competition or from the whole event with a referral to the Secretary General (for referral to the Judicial Committee)."

Once the FEI has collected all reports and evidence, the case will be submitted to the Tribunal (the former Judicial Committee) and all the relevant evidence will be reviewed prior to any decision being made.

The FEI takes these matters very seriously and endeavours to ensure that the welfare of the horse is a priority.

(end of statement)

I will keep you posted on this one. Amy Tryon was Bronze Medalist for the USA at the 2006 World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany.

Scat Daddy: Bar Shoes Will Come Off Before Derby Day

This just in from the Daily Racing Form:

Scat Daddy, winner of the Florida Derby and Fountain of Youth Stakes in his last two starts, has been training with bar shoes on his front feet and had them on for his final workout Sunday at Keeneland. However, he will remove them for Saturday's Derby and race in conventional plates, trainer Todd Pletcher said.

Bar shoes are usually used to protect a tender part of a hoof. The shoes Scat Daddy was wearing "keep him from putting pressure on his inside quarters," Pletcher said.

"He won't run in them, but he has trained in them," Pletcher said. "It's not something new. He's had bar shoes, or similar shoes, since July. I'd say that in the last year, for 10 months he's trained in bar shoes. He might not need them any more, but I'm not going to take a chance now."

Note: Scat Daddy's regular farrier is Ray Amato, who is based with Pletcher's stable at Belmont Park in New York and Saratoga. While Scat Daddy and Pletcher's other five (or more) Derby starters are in Kentucky, they are in the hands of Kentucky track farrier Steve Norman. I visited Scat Daddy and Pletcher's other Keeneland-based horses for a few minutes last week with therapist Dianne Volz and her crew. He looks fantastic and has really matured since he left Saratoga last August. Then again, they all looked great, as you would expect from horses in the care of the nation's leading trainer. Thanks to Dianne for letting me tag along!

Take a Culture Break: Driftwood Horses to Admire

It's Sunday morning. Take a break. Sit back and admire some fine, fine artistic endeavors. Marvel at these driftwood and/or bronze horse constructions from sculptors Heather Jansch and Deborah Butterfield. But don't stop here, proceed to Heather's website and marvel even more. Her work is reminescent of another of my favorite sculptors, Deborah Butterfield, but Heather has incorporated much more depth of material and exaggerated gesture, creating horses that are less contemplative and eerily lifelike in their stop-action poses. In simplest terms, Heather fleshed out the legs. And got them right. But Deborah's work is sparer, more evocative of "every" horse than a three-dimensional portrait of a specific one.

Which sculptor's work do you prefer?

PS Heather makes the hooves out of copper immersion tanks.





Here's one of Deborah's sculptures:

Laura Florence Launches Holistic Hoof Care Practice In Pennsylvania

As noted previously on this blog, our friend Laura Florence has left her former post as resident farrier at the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center after seven years of meeting the challenges of referral hoof cases there. Although Laura remains loosely associated with the University in her role as a Special Research Fellow of the Dorothy Russell Havermeyer Foundation for the study of the hoof, she is now moving on to private practice.

In May, Laura will open the doors of her new business, "Holistic Hoof Care" at her new facility at 626 North Walnut Street in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. The facility includes two holding stalls and a paddock and is based on the premise that her clients will bring the horses to her for trimming and/or shoeing.

According to her new brochure, Laura will offer trimming, customized boot fitting, therapeutic shoeing (both conventional nail-on and Sigafoos Series I and II) and coordination of integrative therapies for her patients. She will also offer consultations.

It's interesting to note that her boot service specifically mentions that she will fit boots for riding, for use on horses transitioning to barefoot, or for therapeutic applications. She carefully delineates between these three reasons why horses need to be fitted with boots.

My gut feeling is that Laura is The One To Watch. With her diplomacy and friendly manner, I think that her business model of offering integrated holistic and traditional farrier services, particularly for horses with advanced pathology, will be a model for others to emulate. I think that Laura has one foot in each world (Laura is certified by the American Farrier's Association yet she hopes to be able to use trimming techniques alone, when possible, to rehabilitate hooves affected by pathology), and will hopefully be offering her clients' horses the best of both worlds.

With luck, she will offer some sort of internship or residency so others may learn from her.

Her web site is still under construction but I think it will be one to check soon and often.

Bluegrass Time: See You in Kentucky?

It's time for my annual trip to Kentucky, ostensibly for the Rolex (Kentucky) Three-Day Event at the Kentucky Horse Park, but my plans are to cram as much in as I can. ("Rolex" is America's premier four-star event.)

I'll be tracking down Scott Sellers, farrier from the group farrier practice known as "Forging Ahead" in Round Hill, Virginia. Scott will be tuning up some of the top horses for the USA at the event, and standing by in case he's needed.

Another big part of Rolex is an afternoon of demonstrations in the podiatry clinic at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital, just down the road from the Horse Park. The staff there probably has no idea how many people I've talked to who are planning to attend. They're even running buses between the Horse Park and Rood and Riddle!

Across town, I'll be checking in at Keeneland racecourse with my key contact, therapist Dianne Volz, who will be keeping a close eye on many of the Kentucky Derby contenders. This year is different in the run up to the Derby since so many trainers have chosen to stay in Lexington rather than stable at Churchill Downs in Louisville. The attraction? Training on Keeneland's Polytrack (artificial) surface, which many feel is kinder and gentler on a horse's legs.

Of course I'll also make a stop at Breeders Supply in Lexington, to see what's new at one of my favorite farrier supply stores. And stop in at a few of my favorite bookstores, and...the list goes on!

If you're in Kentucky too this week, look for me in any of these places and be sure to say hello. I would love to meet some of the people who read this blog (whoever you are). Send email to fran@hoofcare.com and let me know how to find you.