Horse Racing, The "big four" sports (Baseball, Football, Basketball and Hockey) and many other sports. Also writing, music and many other things.
I'd like to meet:
People of varying interests, especially those who show a real interest in Horse Racing among other things.
The first of many videos on this page is of Secretariat's 1973 Kentucky Derby, often overlooked because of his 31 length romp in the 1973 Belmont Stakes to become the first Triple Crown winner since Ciatation in 1948 that occured five weeks later at Belmont Park. The late Chic Anderson was the race caller, as he often was for CBS (which then televised all three Triple Crown races) at that time:
Next is Secretariat's Preakness Stakes, where he made a spectacular move on the first turn and backstretch. The late Chic Anderson provides the call, video is from CBS' telecast of the race.
Next is Secretariat's 31 length romp in the 1973 Belmont Stakes to become the first Triple Crown winner since Ciatation in 1948. The video includes extended coverage of CBS' telecast of that Belmont Stakes with Jack Whitakker and the late Frank Wright commentating and the late Chic Anderson calling the race:
Next is Secretariat being upset by Onion when Secretariat faced older horses for the first time in the Whitney Handicap at Saratoga. The race call is of then-New York Racing Association track announcer Dave Johnson, whom a year and a half earlier in 1972 had replaced the legendary Fred Caposella as the announcer at the New York tracks.
Next is Secretariat drawing off late from his stablemate, 1972 Derby and Belmont winner (and 1972 three year old champion) Riva Ridge. The race call again is of then-New York Racing Association track announcer Dave Johnson.
Next is Secretariat's first start on turf, the 1973 Man o'War Stakes, where he set a course record of 2:24 4/5 that would stand for 17 years. The race call is once again of then-New York Racing Association track announcer Dave Johnson.
This is another race forgotten by many as it occured after his winning the Triple Crown four months earlier.
Moving from Secretariat, the next video is of the second Triple Crown winner during the 1970's, Seattle Slew when he won the 1977 Kentucky Derby. The race call is from the late Chic Anderson from ABC's telecast of that Derby.
Next is Seattle Slew's Preakness, from ABC's telecast with the call from then-Pimlico track announcer Dick Wolley.
Seattle Slew would then go on to become the first horse to win the Triple Crown while still unbeaten. Here is that video with the late Chic Anderson the race caller.
Next is Affirmed's defeating Alydar in the 1978 Kentucky Derby, the seventh meeting between these rivals that met a total of 10 times. The video is from ABC's telecast with Dave Johnson calling the race.
Next is Affirmed's defeating Alydar again in the 1978 Belmont Stakes, where he would become to date the last winner of the Triple Crown. Here is that video with the late Chic Anderson the race caller.
Next is the first meeting ever of two Triple Crown winners, as Seattle Slew defeats Affirmed in the 1978 Woodward Stakes at Belmont Park. Here is that video with the late Chic Anderson the race caller.
The two Triple Crown winners would meet again in the Jockey Club Gold Cup a few weeks later, where in spite of breaking through the gate and dueling with Affirmed much of the early way, Seattle Slew would prove his greatness by barely missing against Exceller, who probably will forever be the only horse to defeat two Triple Crown winners in the same race. The video is from a combination from CBS and from WOR-TV (Channel 9 in New York as they were known at the time), with the late Chic Anderson once again calling the race.
Affirmed would then go on the next year to become the first horse ever to top $2 million in lifetime earnings. Here he is in the race that won him Horse of the Year for 1979, that year's Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park, where he faced that year's Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner, Spectacular Bid, and that year's Belmont winner, Coastal. The video is from CBS' telecast, with then-New York Racing Association track announcer Marshall Cassidy the race caller.
Next is another of the great horses of all time, Forego, in what may have been his greatest performance, the 1976 Marlboro Cup at Belmont Park, which he won under a 137 pound impost in a way you probably will never see again. Dave Johnson provides the call of this race.
Forego's win in this race would comelete his third straight Horse of the Year title (winning three in a row from 1974-'76.
Next are videos of another legendary horse, John Henry, who passed away on October 8, 2007 at the age of 32. John Henry was a horse you could have actually claimed at Belmont Park as a three-year old in 1978 for $25,000, but no one did, and he went on to earn almost $6.6 million in a career where the biggest purse he ever ran for was $1 million, before the Breeders' Cup began to take hold. First is the first of his two wins in the Arlington Million, in this case the inauguaral running in 1981 that also was the first-ever $1 million race in thoroughbred racing. The video is from NBC's telecast (believed to be NBC's first-ever horse racing telecast), with the call from legendary Chicago track announcer Phil Georgeff.
This is also notable because NBC actually called The Bart the winner of this race before correcting themselves later.
Next is John Henry winning the 1981 Jockey Club Gold Cup to complete the first of his two Horse of the Year campaigns, barely holding off the late charge of former claimer Peat Moss in the final strides. The video is from CBS's coverage of the telecast with commentary from Jack Whittaker, Charlsie Cantey, the late Frank Wright and the late "Jimmy The Greek" Snyder. The race call from then-New York Racing Association track announcer Marshall Cassidy.
John Henry would then become Horse of the Year for the second time in 1984 at age nine. Below are the last two starts of that campaign, first the 1984 Turf Classic at Belmont Park, then the richest race ever run in New York. John Henry would barely hold off Win, one of the most beloved New York Breds of all time (before Funny Cide came along to win the 2003 Kentucky Derby and Preakness) and defending Horse of the Year All Along. The video is from WOR-TV's old show produced by New York City Off-Track Betting, with Marshall Cassidy the race caller.
The second video is from John Henry's final start in the inaugural running of the Ballentine's Scotch Classic at The Meadowlands Racetrack. The call is from longtime Meadowlands throughbred race caller Dave Johnson.
The next video chronicles one of the sports great rivalries of the 1960's, Damascus and Dr. Fager through all four of their meetings that all occured at Aqueduct: The 1967 Gotham and Woodward (the latter, where both met Buckpasser is still considered to be the biggest non-Triple Crown race of the past 50 years by some), and twice more in the Suburban and Brooklyn Handicaps of 1968. Harvey Pack provides the commentary of these races.
While each would beat the other twice, Dr. Fager proved to be the superior horses at up to 1 1/4 Miles, as when Damascus defeated Dr. Fager, on both occasions he had the help of a stablemate (Hedevar, who actually was at one time the world record holder at 1 mile for a time) to soften Dr. Fager up for Damascus.
Next is Smarty Jones's attempt at the Triple Crown from 2004 that shows all three of his races. The video is from NBC's coverage of the Triple Crown races (via ESPN2's old "Racehorse Digest" program in the case of the Derby and the Preakness), with the call of all three Triple Crown races from Tom Durkin, who has called all of the Triple Crown races since 2001 and has been the track announcer at the New York Racing Association tracks since 1990.
Next is the 1987 Breeders' Cup Classic that was a showdown between that year's Derby and Preakness winner, Alysheba and the 1986 Derby winner, Ferdinand. The race was at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, CA, the video is from NBC's telecast of the Breeders' Cup with the call from Tom Durkin, who (excluding a few steeplechase races) called every Breeders' Cup race from 1984-2005.
While Ferdinand would take this BC Classic, Alysheba would win what become known as the "Midnight Classic" a year later when the Breeders' Cup was at Churchill Downs. Once again, the video is from NBC's coverage of the Breeders' Cup with Tom Durkin calling the race.
Alysheba would also pass John Henry to become the sport's all time leading money earner in winning the 1988 Classic.
Next is the 1995 Breeders' Cup Classic, in which Cigar completed a perfect 10-for-10 season. The coverage once again is from NBC, with Tom Durkin calling the race.
Next is Cigar going to Dubai to take the inaugural running of the Dubai World Cup in 1996, which was then and is now the richest race in the sport.
Cigar would hold off Soul of The Matter in taking this race.
Next is the 1996 Jockey Club Gold Cup where Cigar "passed the torch" to Skip Away. Harvey Pack provides commentary and Tom Durkin calls the race.
Although both were beaten in that year's Breeders' Cup Classic, Skip Away would the next two years go on to be the sports all time leading money earner.
Next is Skip Away's romp in the 1997 Breeders' Cup Classic that he won with authority. Video is again from NBC's coverage with Tom Durkin calling the race.
Next is the 2007 Belmont Stakes, where Rags to Riches became the first filly to win the Belmont Stakes in 102 years (the last before her was Tanya in 1905). The race call is from Tom Durkin.
Next is Majestic Prince in the 1969 Kentucky Derby. The video is from CBS' telecast with the late Chic Anderson the racecaller.
Majestic Prince would hold off Arts and Letters in that Derby, and would defeat him again in the Preakness, but Arts and Letters would then defeat older horses in the Metropolitan Handicap (also known as the "Met Mile") before turning the tables on Majestic Prince in The Belmont Stakes.
Next is one of Harness Racing's top trotters, Ideal du Gazeau, taking the the second and third of three straight Roosevelt Internationals from 1981-'83 when that event was one of the most important in all of harness racing (Roosevelt Raceway closed in 1988). This is the 1982 edition from the old WOR-TV racing show with the race call from Jack E. Lee.
Next is "Ideal's" third straight international in 1983
Next is the 1984 edition of the Roosevelt International, won by Lutin d'Isgny the first of back-to-back Internationals he would take in 1984-'85. He would take the '84 International in 2:30, at the time the fastest time ever for 1 1/4 Miles regardless of gait or track size. Jack E. Lee again provides the call.
Next is one of the great pacers of all time, Cam Fella, taking a leg of the 1983 US Pacing Championship at Roosevelt Raceway. Again, Jack E. Lee with the call.
The next video has two of the great pacing mares of all time, Tarport Hap and Handle With Care, battling the boys in the 1976 US Pacing Championship at Roosevelt Raceway. Tarport Hap would set a then-track record of 1:57 in taking this race, the call from Jack E. Lee.
Next is the 2004 Hambletonian at The Meadowlands, which Winsong's Legacy used to launch a successful bid to become the first winner of the Triple Crown of Trotting since Super Bowl in 1972. The race call is from Meadowlands track announcer Ken Warkentin.
The final video is of the 2006 Yonkers Trot at Yonkers Raceway in Yonkers, NY, where Glidemaster became the first winner of the Triple Crown of Trotting with the Yonkers Trot actually contested at Yonkers since Super Bowl won it in 1972. The call is from Yonkers track announcer John Curnan.
When Windsong's Legacy won the Yonkers Trot in 2004, that running was contested at Hawthorne Race Course in Chicago as Yonkers was scheduled to be closed for remodeling by that time.
Music:
Mainly from the 1960's, '70s and '80s, but if it's good, it really doesn't matter when it came out. One of my real loves musically is the Psychedelic sound of (mainly) the late 1960's and early '70s, which is part of what I personally consider the greatest period of music ever done, 1964-'71.Much of my love for the post-British '60s era comes from the great radio of the day from stations like MusicRadio77 WABC and WMCA out of New York, with the traditions of those stations continuing on what was legendary oldies station WCBS-FM (101.1) in New York before the station flipped to a JACK format on June 3, 2005.More current music in particular is a band called Sutcliffe that is led by one-time "Apprentice" candidate Danny Kastner, who's MySpace site is at: http://www.myspace.com/sutcliffe (and do check them out, Danny and his group do a great job).
Movies:
Depends, but usually if it's a good story, that in the end is what matters. One movie in particular that is great is "Medium Cool", which came out in 1969. What makes this film remarkable is while the story itself isn't, is when and where it was filmed: In the middle of the riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago (an edition of "Nightline" during the 1996 Democratic Convention in Chicago devoted an entire program to the film).
Television:
"Law and Order" (all three versions) and "24," but mainly sports otherwise.
