The book tells the story of Seabiscuit, possibly the most famous American racehorse of all time, with special emphasis on the human beings who discovered him, trained him, and risked both their lives and their money on him.
Seabiscuit captured the nation's imagination at the height of the Great Depression. A classic underdog, the little horse with a big heart came back from what could have been a career ending injury to win the Santa Anita Handicap race in 1940. In an age when horses were becoming obsolete for travel and farming due to the popularity of automobiles, Seabiscuit and other equine athletes helped ensure that horse racing remained relevant as a sport.
The book begins by discussing Seabiscuit's owner, Ron Howard, a self-made multimillionaire …show more content…
His unorthodox training techniques helped cure Seabiscuit of several of his bad habits, including stubbornness and laziness.
Seabiscuit's primary rider, John "Red" Pollard, was born in Edmonton, Alberta. A lover of classic literature and a man of many talents, Pollard lost most of the sight in one eye possibly as a result of an injury during his short boxing career. Plagued by injuries to his shoulder and his leg, Pollard's also struggled with alcohol.
Seabiscuit himself was born in late May 1933, so he was half a year younger than most of the racehorses in his age group. Racing against horses in low-stakes claiming races, he occasionally showed the speed associated with his sire, Hard Tack, but the constant racing and hard that kept him in shape also burned him out …show more content…
In February 1937 Seabiscuit lost the Santa Anita Handicap race by a nose, due most likely to jockey error because Pollard did not see another horse approaching on his blind side. After the Santa Anita loss, Seabiscuit won seven consecutive stakes races including the Butler Handicap and the Massachusetts Handicap despite carrying more weight than any other horse on the track due to the impost weight handicap intended to even out the racing field. However, Howard would not allow Seabiscuit to risk injury by carrying too much weight. Likewise, Seabiscuit had difficulty running in mud or wet
Seabiscuit captured the nation's imagination at the height of the Great Depression. A classic underdog, the little horse with a big heart came back from what could have been a career ending injury to win the Santa Anita Handicap race in 1940. In an age when horses were becoming obsolete for travel and farming due to the popularity of automobiles, Seabiscuit and other equine athletes helped ensure that horse racing remained relevant as a sport.
The book begins by discussing Seabiscuit's owner, Ron Howard, a self-made multimillionaire …show more content…
His unorthodox training techniques helped cure Seabiscuit of several of his bad habits, including stubbornness and laziness.
Seabiscuit's primary rider, John "Red" Pollard, was born in Edmonton, Alberta. A lover of classic literature and a man of many talents, Pollard lost most of the sight in one eye possibly as a result of an injury during his short boxing career. Plagued by injuries to his shoulder and his leg, Pollard's also struggled with alcohol.
Seabiscuit himself was born in late May 1933, so he was half a year younger than most of the racehorses in his age group. Racing against horses in low-stakes claiming races, he occasionally showed the speed associated with his sire, Hard Tack, but the constant racing and hard that kept him in shape also burned him out …show more content…
In February 1937 Seabiscuit lost the Santa Anita Handicap race by a nose, due most likely to jockey error because Pollard did not see another horse approaching on his blind side. After the Santa Anita loss, Seabiscuit won seven consecutive stakes races including the Butler Handicap and the Massachusetts Handicap despite carrying more weight than any other horse on the track due to the impost weight handicap intended to even out the racing field. However, Howard would not allow Seabiscuit to risk injury by carrying too much weight. Likewise, Seabiscuit had difficulty running in mud or wet