During the 1930's, America was recovering from a period where nearly every citizen was completely down and out. The Great Depression had caused the nation to crumble and had left people hopeless and downtrodden. They were looking for a hero, someone to represent their struggle and provide them hope for their futures. Enter Seabiscuit and "nobody" jockey, Red Pollard. The duo was consistently the underdog but had a spark that caught the eye first of an owner and trainer and then of an entire nation. As they gradually climbed in rankings they continued to be the long shot, giving Americans something to compare their lives to. Seabiscuit, Red, their owner Charles Howard and their trainer Tom Smith became an American dream team. During a time when America needed a pick me up, Seabiscuit gave them something to look forward to and believe in.
[...] Red made it obvious that he rode for the people with only a quarter in their pocket and a dream of greatness in their head and Charles Howard let the nation know that the future was the finish line and Seabiscuit was just the horse to get them there. They became an overnight inspiration to the entire country. In March of 1937 Seabiscuit and his team embarked on a cross country race campaign, racing anyone who would get on the track with him. [...]
[...] At his first meeting with Seabiscuit he offered him a sugar cube as he told him that he wasn't afraid of the horse that still enjoyed playing bucking bronco. For the first time in his short life, Seabiscuit showed a sign of affection and nuzzled his shoulder. The connection had been made. Pollard was bigger than a normal jockey, standing at five feet seven inches. He was also blind in his right eye. He had been struck by a stray rock kicked up by another horse during a training ride on a crowded track; it hit his skull and damaged the vision center of his brain. [...]
[...] The pair finally lined up at the start of the La Jolla Handicap at Santa Anita, on February Compared to what had gone before, it was an unremarkable performance, Seabiscuit was third, beat by two lengths, but it was nonetheless an amazing comeback for both. By their next race, Seabiscuit was back to his winning ways, running away from the competition in the San Antonio Handicap to beat his previous training partner, Kayak II, by two and a half lengths. [...]
[...] The race began at 5:39 pm and one minute and 59 seconds later, Seabiscuit crossed the finish line ahead of the competition. He was a hit; he had come out of nowhere and showed in under minutes that he was going to turn the racing world upside down. Seabiscuit's nest race was to be the Santa Anita in California on February The favorite for the race was Rosemont; a Stallion who had beat the Triple Crown winner two years earlier. [...]
[...] He failed to win his first ten races and became the butt of many stable jokes. Peoples' attitudes towards him caused him to be moody and mean. As a two year old he raced 35 times, finishing first only five times. But during the next racing season his luck changed when he was sold to Automobile mogul Charles Howard. Charles Howard was the epitome of the American Dream. He started out as a bicycle salesman in San Francisco but was soon became convinced that the automobile market was his best bet. [...]
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