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Who is the greatest thoroughbred of all time?

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the greatest thoroughbred of all time...who?

8K views 40 replies 37 participants last post by  CJ82Sky 
#1 ·
just wondering what peoples opinions are on who would make the greatest thoroughbred of all time and why :)

for me it is a toss up between war admiral and phar lap. phar lap was a huge, gentle horse with a huge heart who would have gone on to win a lot more races. even when the AJC imposed ridiculous weights on him he still got his head over the line first every time. what a champ!!! :D
 
#2 ·
I honestly don't know. I have a model horse of Man o' War and i just find his build amazing. I know Secretariat won a race by a lot of lengths, don't remember how much though.

And i loved the Seabiscuit movie. I thought he really grew into the race Red thought he would be, and he overcame a break that vets thought would end his career. War Admiral was a highly impressive horse too, he just had this presence that really wowed me (both of those are just based off the book and movie, i never really was into horse racing)

I didn't vote because i didn't know which one to choose.
 
#4 ·
just for fun & further education, i thought i would add some links to some videos on some of the horses :)

pharlap - the first one is from the phar lap movie. although its not actually him they went to great lengths to portray pharlap and the experiences of the people who knew him as close as they could to exactly how it happened.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U44BWSnJ5zU

agua caliente handicap 1932 - this was right up there with one of the best races he ever ran. he won others by a bigger margin but he was under extreme stress when running the race. he had come into a climate that he just wasnt used to and was suffering terribly in the heat. the hard ground also played a part in the painful hoof injury he carried through that race. what you cant see on camera is near the end of the race the bandaging has come loose and he is bleeding quite badly. poor pharlap

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bROtR5ivyZw&feature=related

melbourne cup 1930

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkppKT4-yI8&feature=related

just some randoms

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8N-m6BMfmk&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nH8The5mycY&feature=related

man o' war - i wasnt able to find a whole lot on man o' war himself bt he will pop up here and there in some other videos im sure :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmGcgrxmy4Y&NR=1

war admiral - what i like about this horse is that even though some say that he wasnt as great as his father, man o' war, you barely ever see the whip touch his side :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htCUUTk6vT4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lc08axG0XPI&feature=related

secretariat -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsvXfnPeHw8&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNHJkz5K6uk&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huOmZH3G-Dc&feature=related

seabiscuit -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVT2MPNCqgM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTgCJDefFrE&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zR4mkrmuTzs&feature=related

ruffian - another horse often spared the whip :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ga50lpOMEus&feature=related

and the great match - this is beautiful and touching and if yo dont look at any of the other videos today you have to at least watch this one :) its a tribute type video montage of the race.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGFswkcfqaA&feature=related

carbine - i cant find anything on this horse :)

i hope you enjoy them :)
 
#10 ·
I just wondered if any of you ever have heard the name of "Kincsem" when talking about tb-s, and what do you know of her.

Because I think she was the greatest tb of the world. I don't know by which criterias do you mean the "greatest". Kincsem started on 54 galopp races in 5 countries and won all of them. She never has been second or third, always first. No horse ever have beaten her. So I think it's the greatest result tb ever did in her life.
 
#40 ·
yes i do know of her and she's UNREAL.

for secretariat, read SI's article Pure Heart by Willie Nack.

and for heart, i vote Dark Secret....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Secret_(horse)

he actually in his retirement race broke his leg several furlongs BEFORE the finish line. stumbled, lost the lead. got up and despite his jockey trying to pull him up, he regained the lead and won the race. on a shattered leg. 4 strides after the wire, he collapsed, never to rise again. THAT is heart.
 
#12 ·
I say Man o' war and then maybe seabiscuit, who i believe was actually related to man o' war... I used to be a big TB buff... of course, Ruffian has a pretty neat story, and then there was a mare, what was her name? something about coal....
 
#13 ·
IMO...Man o war, reason why is my mare is a man o war girl, her dam is full sisiter to seabiscuit, sire by hard tack who is by Man O War. He was the highest money winner of his time and I still say he is better than secretariat. But thats my opinion,....and im right lol!! Only joking, sooo many arguments go on about this subject. :D Man o War is best lol. Now if your talking world wide, cos thats just in the US, I say Redrum for a steeple chaser, Shergar or Desert Orchid.
 
#17 ·
I think Pharlap by far was the greatest. Anyone seen the old movie made about him and his story? I think just because of the economy at the time the story happened and what he went thru is truely amazing.
I don't think I have seen this movie once without ending up in tears.
 
#19 ·
Secretariat hands down! :D He won The Triple Crown and set new track records for The Kentucky Derby and The Preakness and a new world record for The Belmont. 2 of those records are still standing.

At 2 years old he was the first horse to be honored as Horse of the Year... and only one horse since then has been given the title as a 2 year old.

He won The Belmont by a stunning 31 lengths!!! Most races he ran he set new records...

He has always been my favorite and I wish I could have seen him! I get chills when I watch him race in The Belmont...
 
#21 ·
Was tempted to go Carbine, but went Phar Lap instead. Carbine might have been the greatest sire of all time...

No mention of Makybe Diva or Zenyetta?? Hard to choose only a few I guess!
 
#22 ·
An autopsy on Secratariat after his death showed his heart was 21lb, a normal horse heart is 7lb. His heart was so big he was the only horse that got faster and faster as the race went on. He is definetly the best! The movie doesnt show that well. :(
 
#34 ·
Seabiscuit.. He was the underdog who just kicked ***! I love underdog stories.. Secretariat was good too but he was bred to win unlike seabiscuit
Posted via Mobile Device
Actually, Seabiscuit WAS bred to win :wink: His sire, Hard Tack, had some of the best bloodlines that racing could offer for the time. Sure, his dam didn't have the best lines, but what his sire had on his side overcame that. Seabiscuit was so unique because it took a certain person to understand him correctly.
 
#25 ·
I really had a difficult time of it trying to pick the one I thought was the greatest. I was/am torn between Pharlap, Secretariat and Barbaro. I watched the youtube video of Pharlap and was reminded of how galant and awesome he was on the track, as were the others too. I did vote for Pharlap in the end, but my heart belongs to them all.
 
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