What’s A Horse Race Got To Do With America?, 3848

Good evening, I’m still reporting what makes America great?

So, I’ve been writing the most important story of the week as I worked hard cleaning up a brush pile outside today. What story? Justice Clarence Thomas’s defense of the rule of law and the most direct threat to it in American history by the left threatening the 6 conservative justices on the Supreme Court.

But after dinner, when I sat down to actually produce that story, I got sidetracked by a thumbnail on the internet that pointed to one of THE most positive stories in horseracing history – today at the Kentucky Derby.

There has never been a better example of a horse literally coming from nowhere to win today’s first leg of the Triple Crown as the amazing display by Rich Strike.

Now, I’ve never done a horse race story before, but there is just something so important about this – so American. This horse literally came of nowhere yesterday, to put together the greatest come from behind victory perhaps in racing history.

Let’s take a look.

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Rich Strike had 80-to-1 odds as he entered the last gate position, #21 but he wasn’t even in the race as of yesterday. The horse only got in the race due to a scratch by another horse.

Here he is in gate 21 – the last entry. He breaks last from the gate last. Notice Rich Strike has white socks on his back feet and his jockey wears a red hat and a red shirt with a broad white stripe.

Here he is as he crosses the finish line for the first time, a miserable 4th from last.

Watch this purple jock. Rich Strick will come in right behind him.

Here he pulls in behind the purple horse.

But when they come out of the final turn, he has blown by the purple horse on the inside. Now watch this – the winning move of the race by jockey Sonny Leon a Venezuelan who is about to win his first Kentucky Derby.

He gets around the black horse and Rich Strike has nothing but open track along the rail ahead of him. And the rest – as they say – is history.

What’s this got to do with America? Only in a merit-based, incentive-driven society can an 80-to-1 shot come from nowhere one day before to create a new horse-racing legend. Both the horse, and jockey trained hard, and then, an unexpected opportunity opened up and they were ready. God did the rest.

Now since I’m unlikely to do another horse racing story any time soon, I can’t let this moment go by with paying homage to the greatest horse racing victory previous to this. It was Secretariat’s incredible win in the 1973 Belmont stakes to clinch the Triple Crown. Here is the spellbinding last 90 seconds of that race.

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I can tell you, that there was not a dry eye in the TV audience at our home on this occasion. And I want to recommend the movie “Secretariat” as one of the greatest, most inspiring films of all time – a tribute to a disciplined and determined life in a nation that rewards the best and brightest in an incentive-driven society.

Although the United States is facing the most determined coup d’etát in its history, if we just keep doing it right – even in the face of the minions of Satan winning short-term, ill-gotten gains by doing it wrong - we will eventually prevail.

I’m still reporting from just outside the citadel of world freedom. Good day.