Plaschke Article on Barbaro

[Mallory Claire]

There was a neat article about Barbaro and the love for racehorses in general in the LA Times this morning. It was essentially talking about how and why people have shown such a downpour of affection and warm wishes for the Derby winner. Here is about the second half, which I thought was a good piece of writing, as should be expected from Plaschke (he's an awesome sports journalist, for those not from the area):

"'That's exactly why we love him,' said Dr. Ted Simpson, a longtime local equine veterinarian. 'He has become idealized because he cannot do the things that human beings do that we don't like.'

Imagine that.

A sprint champion who is not on steroids. A kid prodigy who has not committed an NCAA rules violation. A stud who is not involved in a gender scandal. A silk-wearing winner who eats grass instead of smoking it.

That is Barbaro, and more.

An athlete who wins the biggest race of the year and does not brag about it. An athlete who wins by a huge margin yet doesn't dance or point or even look back at the losers. An athlete who is given a champions' bed of roses, yet does not spike them, twirl them, or strut across the track with them.

Instead of ignoring Barbaro because he can't talk to us, we love him because he cannot talk to us. Instead of dismissing Barbaro because he competes without responding to anything but his heart, well, isn't that the way it should be?

The love for Barbaro, perhaps, isn't born of delight as much as desperation. We are so sick of contemporary sports heroes, we'll embrace those who cannot offend and will never insult.

'Racehorses go out, lay their bodies down, and never complain," Simpson said. 'We love our stoic heroes. That's a racehorse.'

Some might say that the owners love Barbaro too much, keeping him alive longer than is humanely fair because of the benefits of publicity and potential stud fees. Simpson, who has performed two operations similar to the one undergone by Barbaro, disagreed.

One of those surgeries was on a slow horse with virtually no value except the $100,000 life insurance policy it would have reaped its upon its death. One of those owners paid the claim amount to the other and ordered the surgery anyway.

'Today, that horse is standing on a farm in Ontario, eating oats and playing around and having a great time,' said Simpson. 'The owner loved that horse, and didn't want it to die, no matter what. That's how people are with their horses.'

That's how the nation is today, holding its breath for a champion who will have no last words, dreading the loss of an ideal that has spoken loudly."

[Dave Shields]

That is nice... going to have to have my parents save that for me and the Steward. B)

[Mallory Claire]

Yeah, he's actually plastered across the entire front page of the Sports section. Sad picture, same one from the Bloodhorse, but yeah.