Horses have always been a source of fascination for me. Not only horses in general but Thoroughbred horses in particular. These magnificent animals seem to be born and bred for the pure pleasure of watching them run. They are one of the few creatures in our society that seem to be treated better than other fellow human beings. They are bred and born with care. They are raised like royalty. They are also a multi-million dollar industry. And that's not counting the untold millions from betting on their races. Some of their names are legendary: Man O' War, Secretariat, Ruffian... Seabiscuit. In many instances of our history and society, these thoroughbred celebrities captured our imagination, our heart, and our soul as a human community. Perhaps that is why these horses have a special place in our culture.
There are two Thoroughbreds that have captured my mind lately. They may not be as legendary as the previously mentioned equine superstars. But for me they illustrate something about what it means to live beyond normal. I sense that to be truly alive we have to live a life that must have a flavor to it... a supernatural flavor... a quality that becomes obvious in our daily life that there is something about us that points beyond our individual self. This quality allows us to transcend our individuality and capture our collective heart and soul. Seattle Slew and Barbaro are two Throughbreds that have become my teachers about the possibility of transcending the earthly dimensions of human nature.
The ultimate purpose of almost all Thoroughbred horses is to win one, two, or all of three major races at only one point in their lives (when they're 3-years old). Everything before and after their lives is centered around these three contests when they were three-year olds. The three races of course are : The Kentucky Derby, The Preakness, and The Belmont Stakes... the historic and famous "Triple Crown". Any Thoroughbred who wins one or two of the Triple Crown immediately becomes a celebrity in every sense of the word. If a Thoroughbred wins all three - a "Triple Crown" winner... this horse becomes legend. There are only eighteen horses who came to the season of the "Triple Crown" undefeated. Seattle Slew and Barbaro were two of those Thoroughbreds who have never been beaten by late Spring to race in the first Triple Crown event- The Kentucky Derby. You can't really talk about Thoroughbreds without watching them race. So here is Seattle Slew the undefeated three-year old racing in his first Triple Crown challenge: the 1977 Kentucky Derby.
If you enjoyed that... you need to know that Seattle Slew went on to convincingly beat all the other Throughbreds that year in both the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes... becoming the only horse to date that has won the Triple Crown as an undefeated horse. You may never be a Seattle Slew. You may feel that you have not had an astounding achievement in your life that can make you feel like a champion. But here is the profound truth that this equine superstar has taught me. Seattle Slew lost the very next race after he became "Triple Crown" champion finishing almost dead last. He lost his stature as an undefeated horse. The next year 1978 Seattle Slew became part of history. In no other time have two Thoroughbreds won the Triple Crown in two consecutive years until 1977 and 1978. In 1978 another horse named Affirmed duplicated Seattle Slew and won the Triple Crown. The two horses dueled in a race called the Marlboro Cup. This is the only time two Triple Crown champions ran against each other in the same actual race that was not computer-generated. In the Marlboro race, Seattle Slew ran against a younger stallion who had already proved his equal... and beat him convincingly. For me Seattle Slew became transcendent after he fell from his exalted pedestal and became a champion again. What makes us champions is not the absence of defeat and failure. The true champion in life is the one who keeps rising from the ashes like a phoenix... that is what makes living supernatural.
And then there's Barbaro. Like Seattle Slew he came into the race as a Thoroughbred who had never been beaten. And since an exclusive few racehorses have ever entered the Triple Crown undefeated, the buzz was extra intense. So here is the three-year old Barbaro in the 2006 Kentucky Derby.
Barbaro's dominating performance in the Kentucky Derby had everyone excited about the emergence of another historic Triple Crown winner. There hadn't been one in 26 years since Seattle Slew (1977) and Affirmed (1978). Barbaro entered the second of the Triple Crown races- The Preakness with high expectations and excitement. But after bolting out of the starting gate tragedy struck. Barbaro shattered his right hind leg. The horse showed his true mettle by remaining calm and incredibly self-restrained on the racetrack while his fellow thoroughbreds finished the race (an impossible feat for a horse). His public display of strength and poise in the midst of excruciating pain and loss ignited the heart and imagination of the world. How do I survive a heartbreaking loss? How do I pick-up the pieces of failure or defeat and still maintain dignity? The normal procedures for a tragedy like this is to euthanize the horse right there on the racetrack. But Barbaro transcended horseracing that day and became a legend. There was no attempt to put him to rest as other Thoroughbred horses who had been injured on the track. He captured the supernatural flavor that makes us more than what or who we really are. He inspired millions of men, women, and children who rallied around him for eight months while he recovered from his devastating injury. But his injury spawned more lethal complications to his health that the decision was made to let him rest. In death Barbaro achieved what he could not achieve in life. His inner quality made him a Triple Crown winner of life... undefeated... unstoppable. That is supernatural living.
"... and we must be deternined to run the race ahead of us. We must keep our eyes on Jesus, who leads us and makes our faith complete..." (Hebrews 12:1c-2a)
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