Secretariat

Rating:
Summary: This Book is Truly One of a Kind-Like Secretariat Himself!
Review: How does one even begin to describe the greatest horse of all time? I suppose it probably helped to have spent a lot of time with the horse, which Ron Turcotte certainly did. And no doubt, it helped that said horse broke all records in the Derby, Preakness and the Belmont, and did it with such style! How well I remember the Derby! Our senior prom was the night before and everyone in our group wanted to make sure we were back from the beach in plenty of time to watch Secretariat as he made history with his 1:59 and 2/5's to win. Then on to the Preakness, with his famous lunge going into the turn past two horses, and then 'clean-up time' as he moved past all of them, on the turn. One of the more interesting quotes-and this book has many of them- is George Cusimano, riding Ecole Etage describing what it was like when Secretariat flew by his horse: '" When he came by, it felt like a freight train passing-blew the number right off my sleeve."' And what is there to say about the Belmont? Quite simply, a quiet reverence to the unreality of what this horse was doing. 31 lengths-one sixteenth of a mile ahead of the other horses. Sensational! This book is also chock full of photos, from the one on page 27 when he was a ' " big, well made foal," to the photos of his dam, Somethingroyal and his sire, Bold Ruler, to the touchingly, poignant photo of Penny Chenery saying goodbye to Secretariat, with Lucien Laurin and sculpter Jim Reno looking on.
I felt when he died, that our nation's national pet had died. He represented everything that was wonderful and great about our country because he made us feel good about ourselves. Thank Heaven we still have him on film. He'll be with us forever and always, forever in our hearts. Miss you, Big Red.

Rating:
Summary: Makes Me Cry to Read It
Review: I absolutely loved this book!! I adore Secretariat and wept like a baby when he died. This book is really the next best thing to watching the videos of him run. Even just reading about the Belmont Stakes sends a thrill down my spine. This book captures the spirit of "Big Red" - from when he was foal on the farm to his retirement from racing. The pictures are wonderful. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in this great champion.

Rating:
Summary: IN ONE WORD: OUTSTANDING!!
Review: I am a huge fan (like most people who know anything about horse racing) of the great Secretariat. As most people know, he was the most OUTSTANDING horse that ever graced the earth, and this book is a great tribute to him. I found it in an old book store and had to buy it. Then Woolfe came out with a 25th anniversary edition which is much better because it talks not only about his race career, but his life as a stallion and as a retired legend. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for something about Secretariat. It not only contains a wonderful life story of him, but it also contains many pictures to go along with the history. You will see pictures of him as a yearling at Meadow Stables in Virginia, him winning the races that made him famous, hanging out with Eddie Sweat, and even him retiring at Claiborne Farms. This book has it all and I still get teary-eyed when I read the end.

Rating:
Summary: excellent racehorse bio
Review: I got this book primarily because I was told it had all Sec's charts in it. It does, and it has his career log (races, works, etc), terrific beautiful photos, and a good solid narrative. I was pleased with the data presented, and the writing style was nice without the over-fawning poetic prose too typical of the few racehorse bios there have ever been. I'd still like to see data more concisely and thoroughly presented (e.g., thorough categorization of records and the differentials), but this is no worse than any other racehorse work; I've not seen or heard of 1 yet that does.

Clearly Mr. Woolfe loves Sec, but has the good sense not to present a bunch of flowery poetry as the argument for being #1 horse. He's even wise to leave open the #1 horse argument when it's brought up in the course of the story (not that I'd really blame a Sec fan in his own book for saying Sec is greatest, but this way he's avoided alienating those of us with different opinions). Yet, Woolfe's "emotional" enough to have brought a tear to this "non-Secretariat" fan's eye at his retirement. I think Woolfe did it mainly through his generally even-handed coverage of Sec's career all along, covering him both in fact and engaging "human/horse interest" narrative, so that by the end all of us are sad at his departure from the track because we all sort of felt like Sec was our pet. Even those of us "veterans" numbed and hardened by the "Who's the Greatest Horse" Wars. ;-)

I was also touched by the coverage of Riva Ridge. It was nice to see him get so much attention. He may not have been Secretariat, but he was an excellent horse (with striking coloration - like a golden-red dun almost!) and it was nice he could "tag along" even in this book.

It didn't convert me to Sec-is-#1 Camp, but it's an excellent book on its own. I think Woolfe could have made us cry over any horse the way he set this up.

Rating:
Summary: excellent racehorse bio
Review: I got this book primarily because I was told it had all Sec's charts in it. It does, and it has his career log (races, works, etc), terrific beautiful photos, and a good solid narrative. I was pleased with the data presented, and the writing style was nice without the over-fawning poetic prose too typical of the few racehorse bios there have ever been. I'd still like to see data more concisely and thoroughly presented (e.g., thorough categorization of records and the differentials), but this is no worse than any other racehorse work; I've not seen or heard of 1 yet that does.

Clearly Mr. Woolfe loves Sec, but has the good sense not to present a bunch of flowery poetry as the argument for being #1 horse. He's even wise to leave open the #1 horse argument when it's brought up in the course of the story (not that I'd really blame a Sec fan in his own book for saying Sec is greatest, but this way he's avoided alienating those of us with different opinions). Yet, Woolfe's "emotional" enough to have brought a tear to this "non-Secretariat" fan's eye at his retirement. I think Woolfe did it mainly through his generally even-handed coverage of Sec's career all along, covering him both in fact and engaging "human/horse interest" narrative, so that by the end all of us are sad at his departure from the track because we all sort of felt like Sec was our pet. Even those of us "veterans" numbed and hardened by the "Who's the Greatest Horse" Wars. ;-)

I was also touched by the coverage of Riva Ridge. It was nice to see him get so much attention. He may not have been Secretariat, but he was an excellent horse (with striking coloration - like a golden-red dun almost!) and it was nice he could "tag along" even in this book.

It didn't convert me to Sec-is-#1 Camp, but it's an excellent book on its own. I think Woolfe could have made us cry over any horse the way he set this up.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Book on Secretariat Ever!
Review: I own a granddaughter of Secretariat and since I wasn't alive when the big red horse was racing, I wanted to read about my horse's famous grandfather. This book told the details of all his races, especially his Triple Crown races. It was also very detailed about other times in his life, like his training, when he was young, and when he retired to stud. There was a whole chapter devoted to the offspring he sired during his time at stud. It was a great book that told all about one of the greatest racehorses that ever lived. There are also many pictures, color and black and white. They show the master at work on the track and they show what a beautiful horse he was. A great book for any Secretariat fans and for horse lovers.

Rating:
Summary: A Great Tribute to a Great Horse
Review: I remember checking this book out of the library several times in the late 70's as I was a big fan of Secretariat, the greatest race horse in history. It gives a great summary of his life from birth, including the story of how his ownership was determined by the LOSS of a coin flip. It gives a great summary of all his races, especially the 1973 Triple Crown, where Secretariat battled his West Coast nemesis Sham and wiped him out with his 31-length victory in the Belmont Stakes. But what I like about the 1998 version of the book is that Mr. Woolfe updated it to discuss Secretariat's life after racing, including a review of his successful proginy. The pictures are great. If you combine this book with William Nack's book on Secretariat, you will have a very good understanding of the horse of a lifetime. A must for horse racing enthusiasts!

Rating:
Summary: He will always be #1 to me
Review: I was wounded on 12/24/72 on the Bassac River,Vietnam.I came home and was at the Philadelphia Naval Hospital in April of 73
when I first heard of Secretariat.My Mom was a an avid horse racing fan,so I watched his Derby and Preakness on T.V..I felt that I had to see this horse in person so when I went to New York to see my parents I went to the Belmont on the day he ran.
I was feeling really bad about myself from the war,but when I saw him in the circle before he went out to the track,I felt cleansed.I don't want to sound all flowery and all,but I'm sorry if no one understands.They weren't there with me.He looked me right in the eye and I felt good for the first time in a long time.I didn't feel that I would ever feel good again,but a horse changed all that in me with just one look.Imagine that.For making me feel better,I owe him that,and will alwys love him for it.I bet $100.00 dollars on him that day.I still have the ticket.

Rating:
Summary: THE Best Secretariat Book!
Review: I've always been a Secretariat fan, since I was a 12 year old horse crazy girl and saw him run for the first time. I own two Secretariat books and while they are both good, this one is by far more detailed and interesting. Not to mention the GREAT photos. Very well done.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful book.
Review: I, too fell in love with Secretariat and the sport of horse racing as a young, horse crazy girl. I am proud to own this one and William Nack's "The making of a Champion". The photos are beautiful, also. It gives you an up close look at the process of developing a world class athlete. This book is a great tribute. Secretariat will live on in our memories forever. I miss him.