Half Century after the Birth of a Legend

The global pandemic that has us all isolated, stuck indoors, social distanced, and quarantined makes for harrowing and surreal times.  My guess is that most of us vacillate between trepidation and a desire to not think about what's happening.  One person's efforts at humor to lighten moods might be offensive to another person.  Each of us copes in our own way.  What I hope emerges from this year is the need to listen to scientists and other experts.  Gut feelings are not reliable means of discerning truth.  Data and evidence with sound reasoning are much more important than gut feelings.  Science is the best tool we have for understanding our world.  And science doesn't give a damn what you or I believe.  Keeping schools open long enough to reach spring break and lying to the public in hopes that financial markets will do a tad better were colossal mistakes.  Will we learn from this year?  I honestly don't know.

Setting aside current events for a moment, I wish to remind you of a birth that took place 50 years ago today.  I had it on my calendar to write about the birth of Secretariat, and then I saw that Wikipedia has Secretariat as its featured article today!  I was born in 1970, about half a year after Secretariat.  I'll write a few words of my own on the topic.

I wasn't a huge horse racing fan when I was growing up in West Virginia.  But I definitely knew the name Secretariat.  The name evoked images of perfection, even though Secretariat didn't win all of his races.  Like so many sports fans who only pay attention to horse racing in the spring, my familiarity with the major races was and is confined to the Triple Crown races.  I usually watched the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes.  But I confess that if the same horse didn't win both of those races, I rarely tuned in to watch the Belmont Stakes.  There was one indelible fact that I knew about horse racing in my youth.  The race record at each of the Triple Crown locations was set by Secretariat -- and those records stand today.

If you want to relive some great sports history, try the spring of 1973.  Secretariat became the most famous horse in my lifetime during that spring.  For all the troubles in the country in 1973, from Vietnam to Watergate, an equine hero emerged.  Click here to watch Secretariat set the record in the Kentucky Derby -- crossing the line in just under two minutes.  Then click here to watch Secretariat set the record in the Preakness Stakes.  And finally, click here for the race that will bring tears of amazement to your eyes -- Secretariat's famous 31-link victory in the Belmont Stakes.  The average speeds in those three races were 37.69 mph (60.65 kph), 37.83 mph (60.88), and 37.50 mph (60.35 kph).  Now those are some fast speeds!

Stay at home if possible -- and relive the great sports moments given to us by an extraordinary horse born 50 years ago today.

Interview with Brian Keating

I was recently interviewed by Brian Keating.  We had a great chat!  We discussed my new book, and I did my best to sell the wonderful attributes of my school, the University of Lynchburg.  Click here or below to hear the half-hour-long interview.

If you're listening to the scientists -- as you should! -- and keeping yourself away from people, enjoy the above half hour.  And you might even hear about a book worth getting that can help pass a few more hours at home!