Man o' War...One the Best Race Horses Ever Part 7
Man o' War...One the Best Race Horses Ever Part 7
Following the Lawrence Realization, Man o? War pushed his win streak to 13 with impressive victories in the Jockey Club Gold Cup and Potomac Handicap. At this point there appeared to be no competition for Man o? War ? with one possible exception, Sir Barton, the sport?s first Triple Crown winner in 1919.
Riddle sent Man o? War to Kenilworth Park in Canada in October 1920 for a match race against Sir Barton. There was tremendous excitement for the showdown, but the result was familiar and predictable. Sir Barton broke well and owned an early lead, but Man o? War quickly reeled him in and cruised to a seven-length victory and smashed the track record for 1? miles by more than six seconds. Again, Kummer restrained his mount throughout the contest.
There was nothing left to prove. Man o? War was a perfect 11-for-11 as a 3-year-old and had won 14 in a row. He had carried as much as 138 pounds as a sophomore and as much as 130 pounds six times as a juvenile. What could be next? There was talk of sending Man o? War to England for the Ascot Gold Cup. Matt Winn telegraphed an offer from Churchill Downs for a match race with the great gelding Exterminator. The Chicago World?s Fair wanted Man o? War as a drawing card. There were even offers to make him a movie star.
Riddle?s decision was made easy by the famous handicapper for The Jockey Club, Walter S. Vosburgh, who assigned the weights horses carried in New York. Riddle asked Vosburgh what weight he would put on Man o? War if he were to race at age 4. Vosburgh told him it would be the highest weight ever carried, as much as 150 pounds.
Man o? War?s days of dazzling on the track were through. Rather than tempt fate and risk a breakdown under ridiculously heavy weights, Riddle opted to retire Big Red after his 3-year-old campaign. Despite all the records and astonishing performances, Man o? War was never fully extended and his ultimate potential was never known.
?We never lifted a jockey to his back that we didn?t tell to hold the horse down, so as not to win by too wide a margin,? Riddle said.
At the time of Man o? War?s retirement, Riddle was offered $1 million for him. He turned it down. It wasn?t until 35 years later that any thoroughbred was sold for that amount.
Although Man o? War never raced in Kentucky, he spent the majority of his life in the Bluegrass State. There are estimates that as many as three million visitors traveled to Riddle?s Faraway Farm between 1921 and 1947 to see the legendary horse in retirement and hear his groom, Will Harbut, tell glorious tales of his exploits on the track. Harbut became famous for the way he crafted the stories of Man o? War, and he always introduced his charge to visitors as ?the mostest horse that ever was.?
Harbut, however, bristled when people asked of Man o? War?s only defeat. When guests inquired about the infamous race with Upset, Harbut responded that since he didn?t see it himself, the story of the 1919 Sanford Memorial ?must have been a lie.?
Harbut?s descriptions of Man o? War thrilled visitors from all walks of life. He would begin by escorting guests around the barns, introducing them to Riddle?s other distinguished horses. He would show them the antique fire bell that was rung whenever a horse raised on the farm won a stakes race. But all these were mere preliminaries. Everyone knew what was coming.
Finally, Harbut would arrive at Man o? War?s stall and the visitors became entranced as the great horse was led out. One of those who listened in one day was Great Britain?s ambassador to the United States, Lord Halifax, who was captivated by Harbut?s storytelling.
?That was worth coming halfway round the world to hear,? Lord Halifax said admiringly.
Man o? War began experiencing heart trouble in 1943, forcing his retirement from breeding. He died of a heart attack Nov. 1, 1947 at Faraway, less than a month after Harbut?s death. It required 13 men to lift Man o? War?s 1,300-pound body from his stall. Three days later, more than 2,000 people attended Man o? War?s funeral, which was broadcast on NBC Radio and featured nine eulogies.
A scroll from the U.S. Army?s First Cavalry Division was placed with a black ribbon on Man o? War?s barn. The First Cavalry Division had dubbed Man o? War an honorary colonel. In Japan, an estimated 3,000 members of the country?s cavalry division paid their respects to Man o? War with military honors as well. American racetracks held a moment of silence at 3 p.m., coinciding with the funeral.
At 3:24 p.m., on Nov. 4, 1947, buglers from the Man o? War Post of the American Legion, dressed in the famous black and yellow Riddle silks, signaled farewell to Big Red with the somber playing of Taps.
The greatest was gone.
Man o? War was buried at Faraway Farm and a massive, larger-than-life bronze statue by Herbert Hazeltine was eventually mounted on a marble base with only the words ?MAN O? WAR? as the inscription. No other words were needed.
Three decades later, Man o? War?s remains were exhumed and moved along with the 3,000-pound statue to the Kentucky Horse Park. Thousands of visitors pay their respects at his resting place each year.
Man o? War enjoyed tremendous success as a stallion. Among his 386 registered foals, 64 became stakes winners, including his greatest son, 1937 Triple Crown winner War Admiral. He also sired Kentucky Derby winner Clyde Van Dusen, as well as Belmont Stakes winners American Flag and Crusader. Man o? War also produced Hall of Fame steeplechaser Battleship, the first American winner of the famed British Grand National. One of Man o? War?s grandsons was the beloved Seabiscuit.
In more recent times, thoroughbreds such as 1990 Kentucky Derby winner Unbridled and 2000 Preakness winner Red Bullet have Man o? War in their pedigree. Hall of Fame member and two-time Breeders? Cup Classic winner Tiznow is a direct male line descendent of Man o? War, while both Rachel Alexandra (2009 Horse of the Year) and Zenyatta (2010 Horse of the Year) have Man o? War in their bloodlines.
Man o? War bested Secretariat in a 1999 Associated Press poll for Horse of the Century and received the same honor from The Blood-Horse. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing?s Hall of Fame in 1957. Each summer, a replica of the Man o? War Cup (the Tiffany?s gold trophy Man o? War won by defeating Sir Barton) is presented to the winning connections of the Travers Stakes.
As the decades have passed and his remarkable accomplishments have seemingly become more mythic, Man o? War?s legend has only grown. Perhaps celebrated racing writer Joe Palmer summed up Man o? War better than anyone.
?He was as near to a living flame as horses ever get, and horses get closer to this than anything else. It was that even when he was standing motionless in his stall, with his ears pricked forward, and his eyes focused on something above the horizon which mere people never see, energy still poured from him,? Palmer said. ?He could get in no position which suggested actual repose, and his very stillness was that of a coiled spring, of the crouched tiger.?
(National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame)
