YouTube Gold: Seabiscuit vs. War Admiral

Today, thoroughbred horse racing is still around but it’s nowhere near what it used to be in the US.

In the ‘30s, the main sports in American were arguably baseball, boxing and horse racing and it’s not like people had tons of time for leisure anyway, with the Great Depression still going on.

But Seabiscuit caught people’s imagination. If you’ve seen the movie, you know the basic story: he was seen as a flop, sold for a song, only to scrap his way to greatness after all.

War Admiral was portrayed as the privileged Eastern star, even though he had shown immense heart himself, winning the Triple Crown while running on a damaged hoof in the Belmont Stakes.

But the story line was the story line and Seabiscuit was cast as the underdog, with bookies and the press alike.

Until the race started.

Seabiscuit jumped out to an immediate lead that he never surrendered. This is a really great piece of video that’s now 83 years old, meaning there are still at least some people who listened to it on the radio and could tell you about it today. If you have an elderly friend or relative, why not ask if they remember it? You might get a great story and some insights too.