Sharon Latour
A Pastor’s Perspective
I read how Big Brown decided not to win the Triple Crown the other day in New York. The Times-Standard Sports section led with the upset and had even more to say in other articles about the race. It was really interesting reading. And so I’ve come to my own, utterly unscientific, conclusion.
What caught my eye was a note that Big Brown had developed a “quarter crack” in his front left hoof. It was only on the Friday before the Saturday race that they tended to it, “patching” it, in preparation for the third of the three big races. Big Brown was all set to be the first horse in 30 years to sweep the Triple Crown. Loads of excitement and posturing: Great horse-interest story stuff.
When Big Brown, as his jockey characterized it, “was empty” during the race, the sports writers said everyone was at a loss for explanations. Maybe by the time you read this, the animal psychologists will have been interviewed, but I’ll bet you already figured it out: Big Brown won the first race of the series, the Kentucky Derby, just ahead of a feisty filly who broke both her front ankles in running her heart out for a gallant
We all know what happened to her at the far side of the track. And I think Big Brown was paying close attention to his worthy opponent: They put her down. She gave her last full measure of devotion, broke her ankles, and was killed after coming in second.
And at first, the racing world came down hard on her jockey. Had he pushed her too hard? The jockey was chastised for driving her in the stretch, but later the accusations were unfounded. He was only driving her away from the rail.
A thoughtful commentary by Jim Litke of the AP related how grueling the Triple Crown is. Three killer races in five weeks, the final race being 1-1/2 miles long. It is crazy stuff.
I remember in 1984, marathoner Joan Benoit had arthroscopic knee surgery 17 days before the trials for the LA Olympic Games. One tough cookie, she won the first-ever Olympic women’s marathon event handily. Personally, I alternated between admiring her and thinking she was crazy. As you well know, we tend to judge the rightness of our human decisions by the final outcome.
But I think horse-sense might be different. Circumstances favored the opportunity for Big Brown to appeal to his jockey as they came into the last stretch, Big Brown having been in third position most of the race. But Big Brown appears to have both horse sense and a measure of self-esteem. He did the math. Run your heart out and come up lame: get shot at the far side of the track. All done.
So I’m going with Big Brown epitomizing something we can all buy into: a healthy dose of horse sense. If your paw has a crack in it, back off and live to run another day. Even if millions of people are counting on you and millions of dollars are riding on you, back off. (By the way, there’s a web site I just found: www.HorseSenseAtWork.com. Might be worth a look.)
I haven’t met a single person who, while at the top of their game, stopped because it wasn’t making sense anymore. And I haven’t met any military leaders, politicians or executives who stopped what they were doing because they felt their lives might crack under the expectations others had placed on them.
I’m terribly sorry we lost Eight Belles at the Kentucky Derby. But what happened to her might have saved Big Brown’s life. And because of her and how we got upset with her jockey, maybe Big Brown took a chance on his jockey’s sensibilities. And I imagine Big Brown saying, “You all are crazy. Don’t we all know I’m worth more to you alive at stud than dead on the track with my name on a trophy for your mantle?”
So here’s my question: Do you and I have as much self-esteem and horse sense as Big Brown? Maybe Eight Belles’ heroic but tragic end can save our lives too. What do you think?
Shalom!
(Note for Friday Night Youth high schoolers and volunteers: we’ll plan to watch a film (Pay It Forward or Remember the Titans) on Friday at 6 p.m. after dinner at 5:30 p.m. at the Community Presbyterian Church in Garberville.)
Sharon is pastor of the Garberville Community Presbyterian Church. Services are open to all on Sundays at 11 a. Comments or questions should be addressed to: Dr. Sharon Latour, c/o A Pastor’s Perspective, P.O. Box 65, Garberville, CA 95542. (707) 923-3295.
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