***Yankees-Marlins………….CURSES!***
St. Louis Rams (Cleveland, Los Angeles) Quiz: 1) When did
George Allen coach the team? [Memory check] 2) Rushing,
career? 3) Passing, career? 4) Field goals, career? [1982-90] 5)
Rushing, game? [247, 1971] 6) Passing, game? 7) Who were the
team’s two first-round draft picks in 1962? [Both well known.]
Answers below.
Cruising Upstate New York learning stuff
Folks, you’ll have to excuse me for the following chat. Earlier in
the week I was in Saratoga Springs and then I headed down to
Cooperstown where I hooked up with Johnny Mac for a little
Baseball Hall of Fame action. Of course we watched both
playoff games Tuesday and are about to do the same for
Wednesday, but beforehand I need to bang out a little column.
This morning I spent two hours in the library at the Hall of Fame,
going through the Sporting News for 1962, and somewhere down
the road I’ll report on my findings for that year. In the
meantime, I just want to thank the folks at the Hall for their
hospitality. Nicer people you won’t find anywhere.
But back to Saratoga and the National Horse Racing Hall of
Fame. Here Bill Shoemaker had just died and I expected flags at
half-staff and a non-stop funeral dirge, but nooooooooo. I guess
they weren’t really prepared.
The Shoe won 8,833 races, second all time to Laffit Pincay Jr.’s
9,530, and Willie (he hated that name) also won 11 triple crown
events, including 4 Kentucky Derbys but he never won all
three in the same year. It is amazing, though, to think he won his
first Derby at 23 and his last at age 54, still the oldest to do so.
One of the things that made a real impression on me in reading
“Seabiscuit” was a new appreciation for how difficult it is for
jockeys to maintain their weight. Shoemaker never had this
problem and was always right around 100 lbs., with 110 being
the norm for most.
Shoemaker was paralyzed in a 1991 auto accident but managed
to stay in the game until his death.
And now for some totally random thoughts on the Sport of
Kings.
–So I’m walking around the museum (a real cool one,
incidentally), and I see this guy, 40-ish and with his kids, leaning
on a glass case holding War Admiral’s 1937 Triple Crown
trophy. Folks, he’s freakin’ leaning on the thing! Geezuz,
people are idiots .but somehow I held my tongue (bit straight
through, actually).
–They have a terrific opening film here Aaron Copeland
music, great cinematography, the Star-Spangled Banner for
crying out loud, I was getting kind of choked up.
–The Racing Hall of Fame has plaques just like with the other
sporting museums and they list the stats for each horse. Any
casual fan would also probably recognize at least one-quarter of
the names.
Like Native Dancer, 1952-54 22 career starts, 21 wins but
lost the Derby by a head.
Man o’War, 1919-20 won 20 of 21, though his trainer didn’t
run him in the Derby.
Dance Smartly a Canadian entry that captured its country’s
Triple Crown in 1991, run on both dirt and grass. Now that’s a
true test, sports fans! [I used to be able to run on dirt and grass.
Now I confine my own training activities to asphalt.]
–Back in 1823, the first North vs. South race was held on Long
Island. For the North it was ‘American Eclipse,’ while
representing the South was ‘Sir Henry.’ American Eclipse won.
Evidently, these were terrific affairs about 23 were held in total
leading up to the Civil War and historians say that passions
were inflamed by them. 60,000 attended the first race, an
incredible crowd for those days, and just a few years later
100,000 watched.
–A Virginian, William R. Johnson, was the first great trainer.
Between 1806 and 1807, he entered 63 different horses in
various events and won 61!
–Saratoga was inaugurated in 1863, but did you know, New
Jersey fans, that Monmouth Park came into being in 1870?
–A real anti-gambling spirit had developed in the country by the
early 1900s and by 1908 the # of tracks in America had dwindled
from 318 to 25. The 1920s brought the sport back and by the
1950s the # was 116.
–This just in .Funny Cide is racing in the
Breeders’ Cup Classic on October 25. Go ahead, throw a party.
And now Affirmed ..
Here I walked into the Racing Hall of Fame and totally forgot it
was the 25th anniversary of Affirmed winning the Triple Crown,
the last horse to do so. Boy, they had a terrific exhibit on this
horse’s spectacular career and its ties to another great horse,
Alydar.
For those of you who forgot, these two three-year-olds fought it
out in 1978 like no other pair in history. As two-year-olds they
had battled it out as well, with Alydar winning twice and
Affirmed winning four times in their six meetings.
Then in ’78, Affirmed, ridden by 18-year-old sensation Stevie
Cauthen, bested Alydar by 1 lengths in the Kentucky Derby,
by just a neck in the Preakness, and, officially, by a head (it was
closer) in the Belmont.
The museum has videos of these races and the Belmont in
particular is perhaps the greatest race of all time, in my humble
opinion. With six furlongs to go, Affirmed and Alydar separated
themselves from the pack and battled to the end in spectacular
fashion, with Alydar taking the lead down the stretch, only to
have Affirmed come back to nip its rival at the finish. Boy, if
you ever get a chance, find a clip of this one. Nothing will turn
you more into a race fan like the 1978 Belmont Stakes.
What followed for Affirmed that year was a win in the Jim
Dandy and then a rematch with Alydar at the Travers. Cauthen
was hurt so the reins were handed over to Laffit Pincay Jr.
Affirmed led Alydar by a length and a half down the stretch
when Pincay inexplicably cut Alydar off. Affirmed cruised
across the line but immediately an “inquiry” was held and
Affirmed was correctly disqualified, Alydar being named the
winner.
A month later, in September 1978, it was only natural that
Affirmed be set up in a race against the 1977 Triple Crown
winner, Seattle Slew. A good 4-year-old is always better than a
3-year-old, however, and Slew won, but by only 2 lengths.
Finally, in 1979, now 4-year-old Affirmed bested Belmont
winner Coastal and the great Spectacular Bid in the Jockey Club
Gold Cup Affirmed’s final race, capping an awesome career
that saw it win 22 of 29 starts. [In fact Affirmed was out of the
money (not in the top three) only once.]
And as the Daily News wrote after the horse’s Belmont Stakes
ride that wrapped up the Triple Crown, no other horse in racing
history had been tested like Affirmed was ..and so I urge
you to quaff an ale, tonight, to celebrate the sport of racing, or at
least have a bowl of oats.
Stuff
–Lucy Liu was born in Queens and is a University of Michigan
grad. We like Lucy Liu here at Bar Chat.
–When the heck does “The Sopranos” come back on?
–Northern Illinois is actually #12 in the AP poll. Now how great
is that?
–Oklahoma’s Jason White has thrown 20 TD passes while
getting picked off just 3 times in his first 6 games. Hand him the
Heisman now.
–Sorry, auto racing fans. I was remiss in not mentioning the
other day that Michael Schumacher won his record 6th Formula
One Driving Championship, besting Juan Fangio’s 5. But
Fangio won 24 of his 51 starts, while Schumacher has won 70 of
194 not that this diminishes in the least the latter’s unbelievable
record. And Schumacher is still just 34!
–Boy, did you see that crash with Kenny Brack at last weekend’s
IRL race? Incredible he’s alive.
–Hey, how ‘bout Chelsea Clinton and Ian Klaus? According to
Rush and Molloy in the Daily News it could be splitsville for the
couple. Said one who witnessed their outing on Friday night,
“They seemed very distant. They barely spoke. He kept going
outside, I guess to smoke.” Ian’s a jerk. [Paid for by Defenders
of Chelsea, Inc. .not that the editor is a member of
said organization, mind you.]
And now .a little American History
You see, sports fans, as I’ve noted on more than one occasion I
am embarrassed by my own lack of knowledge regarding the
American Revolutionary War. So being in Saratoga on Monday
I decided to hit Saratoga National Historical Park, about 30
minutes from Saratoga Springs, for a little refresher, and of
course I have to drag you along for the ride.
Basically, the twin Battles of Saratoga, September 19 and
October 7, 1777, represented the true turning point in the war.
British General John Burgoyne took his army of 9,000 down
from Canada in what was viewed as an attempt to annihilate the
Patriots, who only one year earlier had declared their
independence but were faring badly in the war itself.
As Burgoyne was marching to meet the Americans (along with
4,000 Brits, he commanded 4,000 German mercenaries and
1,000 unruly Indians), it was hoped that Sir William Howe
would bring some of his forces in New York City up to Albany
to meet Beef Burgoyne. But Howe had other plans namely
Philadelphia.
Anyway, on July 6, Burgoyne captured Fort Ticonderoga on
Lake Champlain after a 4-day siege. But following this victory,
the general met with nothing but misery. The land was
inhospitable (I forgot how swampy it is in these parts) and on
August 16, John Stark and Seth Warner led the New England
militia against Burgoyne’s detachment at the Battle of
Bennington (VT), with the British suffering a staggering 900
casualties.
But Burgoyne said, “Hey, no problemo,” and he stupidly pushed
on to Albany. On September 13, his forces came upon the
Americans, led by General Horatio Gates. The good guys were
entrenched on the Bemis Heights and in redoubts along the
Hudson River. Col. Thaddeus Kosciuszko, a Polish military
engineer serving with the Americans (see, I told you the Poles
were great!) had chosen and fortified the site. Burgoyne was
screwed.
On September 19 Burgoyne decided to battle it out and he lost
500 dead, wounded or missing against Daniel Morgan’s
riflemen. This was the first Battle of Saratoga. They say that
wolves feasted on the dead at night .and probably tracked down
the ‘missing,’ if you catch my drift.
Burgoyne was really in a fix. He wasn’t going to get any
reinforcements from the south, and with diminishing supplies of
grog his troops grew weaker by the day. It was advance or
retreat. Burgoyne opted to advance. Uh oh.
October 7 proved to be a great moment for General Benedict
Arnold, who had been quarreling with General Gates for weeks
as to the appropriate military strategy. Arnold was a true hero
that day, wheeling his horse and dashing through crossfire,
rallying the troops. He was wounded in the leg but the
Americans prevailed. Only darkness saved the remnants of
Burgoyne’s army as he took refuge on the heights of Saratoga.
Finally, on October 17, 1777, Burgoyne surrendered his 6,000
men. It was one of the most decisive and important military
victories in American history. [Following the battles, France
then joined the side of America and was a big help at Yorktown
four years later.]
And bringing it all back to today, what’s really neat is that unlike
many of the Civil War battlefields that are being encroached on
by development, Saratoga has no such problem. You’re treading
the very ground of history. [Though next time I’ll plan on
spending more than an hour or two and I’ll bring my Swiss Army
knife in case of a bear attack while walking the trails.]
As for Benedict Arnold, it’s a shame he didn’t die that day
because he would have forever been known as one of the greats.
Instead, about two years later he became a traitor.
And that’s the way it was ..September 19 and October 7,
1777.
Top 3 songs for the week of 10/18/75: #1 “Bad Blood” (Neil
Sedaka) #2 “Calypso / I’m Sorry” (John Denver check your
fuel gauge!) #3 “Miracles” (Jefferson Starship)
St. Louis Rams Quiz Answers: 1) George Allen coached from
1966-70 49-19-4. 2) Rushing, career: Eric Dickerson 7,245
(1983-87). 3) Passing, career: Jim Everett 23,758 (1986-93).
4) Field goals, career: Mike Lansford, 158 (1982-90). 5)
Rushing, game: Willie Ellison, 247 yards (12/5/71). 6) Passing,
game: Everyone should know this one Norm Van Brocklin,
554 (NFL record), 9/28/51. 7) First-round picks in 1962: Roman
Gabriel, QB (NC State) and Merlin Olsen, DT (Utah State).
Next Bar Chat, Tuesday your editor discusses the fall foliage
.JUST KIDDING!
*A note of thanks for a super meal at Chianti’s in Saratoga
Springs. You guys do a superb job. [I had Octopus
Carpaccio out of this world.]
