[dl] Misc.
In My Guy
Barbaro, jockey Edgar Prado gives the inside
story of how the pursuit of Triple Crown glory with Kentucky Derby
winner Barbaro came to a sudden, tragic end. By
Kristin Baird Rattini
It's the first commandment among jockeys in horse
racing: Don't get too attached to any one horse. Veteran jockey
Edgar Prado knows that rule as well as anyone. He has ridden
hundreds of horses to almost 6,000 victories after all. But when he
first saw the bay colt Barbaro, Prado couldn't help himself -- the
Peruvian jockey was smitten with the beautiful, powerful
thoroughbred.
Prado's love affair became the nation's when the duo
left their competition in the dust at the 2006 Kentucky Derby. It
was the first time in his seven Derby rides that Prado had ever
finished higher than third. And suddenly, Barbaro seemed like the
best bet in a generation to win the Triple Crown. But at the
Preakness two weeks later, Barbaro shattered his right hind leg, an
injury that ended his racing career and, eventually, led to his
death.
The memory of that event is not something Prado
particularly likes talking about, which is understandable. So it
was with some trepidation that he enlisted former Baltimore
Sun sports columnist John Eisenberg to help him put his
days of riding Barbaro into words. The result -- My Guy
Barbaro: A Jockey's Journey through Love, Triumph, and
Heartbreak with America's Favorite Horse ($26,
HarperCollins) -- is a moving testament to the power a sport can
have on both its fans and its participants. Prado gives us just
some of the highlights.
LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT: I saw Barbaro
working out at Churchill Downs the Wednesday before the Derby. It
was incredible to see him. It was like a painting, a work of art.
He was loving every single minute of it. I called my family and
said, "Pack it up; you're coming to the Derby." I was confident he
would win the race.
A RIDE LIKE A LAMBORGHINI: He had so
much power. When he accelerated, it seemed he went from zero to 60
miles per hour in 3.5 seconds. He was a very muscular and strong
horse. He left all the competition behind effortlessly. I knew I
was riding a champion.
THE MOMENT OF TRAGEDY: It was 100
meters after coming out of the gate. He had always been a horse
that responded when asked. He always came running out of the gate.
But that day, he didn't come out fast. I felt his back leg was very
weak. I decided to pull him up right away, without hesitation. I
wasn't thinking about the Preakness or the Triple Crown or the
money. I was thinking about Barbaro. He was my partner, my
friend.
ON THE FAN REACTION: It was all over
the television. He was such a great horse, with a lot of talent and
power and the ability to become the greatest horse in America.
After being on such a high from winning the Kentucky Derby, and
then two weeks later struggling for his life … People just really
wanted him to make it.
MEMORIES ARE MADE OF THIS: I have
pictures of Barbaro in my mind and my heart. No one can take those
away. He stays with me every time I hear a couple of songs I used
to play at the time he won the Derby. There's one in particular I
like very much -- Gloria Estefan's ["Reach ,"] the song she made
for the Olympics. Because that is what Barbaro did; he went and he
tried his best.
THE DAY WORDS FAILED HIM: When I
heard the news [of Barbaro being euthanized], I was speechless,
especially since the last news I'd heard was that he was doing well
and was going to be relocated to Kentucky or Florida. [When] I
found out, I was in Peru. I couldn't talk. I was devastated. Then I
realized: He was an example for people too. Hope is the last thing
you want to lose. You have to try hard, do your best. Sometimes
things don't come easy. He fought every step of the way, every
single day.
THE HARDEST WORDS TO WRITE:
Honestly, I didn't want to talk about it. But a friend convinced me
to tell my story. Someone else was making a movie, but they didn't
know the whole story behind it -- about how it felt riding him,
being on top of such a great horse. I thought people should know
about Barbaro from the inside -- the way he fought, how smart he
was. He leaves behind a great legacy as a racehorse, a patient, and
a fighter.
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Losing Our
Winners
Here are two other sports tragedies worth
reading.
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Luckiest Man: The
Life and Death of Lou Gehrig
by Jonathan Eig ($26, Simon &
Schuster). Lou Gehrig's tale is the
blueprint from which all sports
biopics are made. Diagnosed with a
degenerative neuromuscular disease,
which would soon take his life and
later bear his name, the Yankees'
"Iron Horse" gracefully bowed out
of baseball at the height of his
record-setting career.
At the Altar of
Speed: The Fast Life and Tragic
Death of Dale Earnhardt by
Leigh Montville ($15, Broadway).
Dale Earnhardt's fearless racing
style earned him $41 million and
seven NASCAR Winston Cup titles.
But just seconds from the finish
line of the 2001 Daytona 500,
Earnhardt fatally careened into the
track wall. The rise of, and legacy
left by, the man known as the
Intimidator makes for a riveting
read. -- K.R.
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PLAY
ONTwo sports
movies turn two decades old this year.
It's hard to believe, but Bull Durham and
Eight Men Out, two movies that approached America's
pastime from very different perspectives, are almost old enough to
legally order a drink. The films, both of which are available this
month on DVD in special anniversary editions, were released in
1988. It seems that the year and the baseball theme, though, are
all they have in common. After all, Kevin Costner's Bull
Durham had a love story and a feel-good ending, but John
Cusack's Eight Men Out was a tragic tale of top athletes
getting caught up in corruption. (Sounds familiar, no?) But with so
much time having passed, we're finding it easy to get the two
movies confused. Are we alone? Mark your answers below and see how
well you do in figuring out which character nicknames and quotes
belong to Bull Durham and which belong to Eight Men
Out. -- John Ross
1. Quote: "The pitcher throws and
you look for that pill. Suddenly there's nothing else in the
ballpark but you and it. Sometimes, when you feel right, there's a
groove there, and the bat just eases into it and meets that ball.
When the bat meets that ball and you feel that ball just give, you
know it's going to go a long way."
2. Quote: "Look for the fastball up.
He's gotta come with the cheese. Relax. Relax. Quick bat. Pop the
clubhead. Open the hips. Relax. You're thinking too much."
3. Nickname:
Deke
4. Nickname: Bobby
5. Nickname:
Buck
6. Nickname: Swede
7. Quote:
"A good friend of mine used to say, 'This is
a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball,
you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose,
sometimes it rains.' "
8. Quote: "I always figured it was
talent made a man big -- you know, if I was the best at something.
I mean, we're the guys they come to see. Without us, there ain't a
ball game."
9. Nickname:
Chick
10. Nickname: Crash
11. Quote: “I did some fighting in my time. Once I was fighting a guy. … My eyes were all bloody, but I landed a lucky punch. The next thing I know, I’m steppin’ on something, and it’s the other guy’s teeth.”
12. Quote: “When you get in a fight with a drunk, you don’t hit him with your pitching hand.”
ANSWERS: Eight Men Out: 1, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11; Bull Durham: 2, 3, 4, 7, 10, 12