Signature Race
Nov. 1, 1938 - War Admiral, the 1937 Triple Crown winner, was the 1-4 favorite over Seabiscuit in their mile and three-sixteenths match race for $15,000 at Pimlico in Baltimore. The following is famed sportswriter Grantland Rice's reporting:
"A little horse with the heart of a lion and flying feet of a gazelle proved his place as the gamest thoroughbred that ever raced over an American track.
"In one of the greatest match races ever run in the ancient history of the turf, the valiant Seabiscuit not only conquered the great War Admiral but, beyond this, he ran the beaten son of Man o' War into the dirt and dust of Pimlico.
"Head and head around the last turn, Seabiscuit, ably ridden by George Woolf, beat War Admiral by a full [four] lengths down the last furlong with a dazzling burst of speed that not only cracked the heart of the Admiral but, in addition, broke the track record, set by Pompoon. Seabiscuit took a fifth of a second from the track record, which he now holds at 1:56 3-5."
The five-year-old 'Biscuit, a grandson of Man o' War, paid $6.40 to his backers in the crowd of 40,000.
Odds 'n' Ends
Seabiscuit is a synonym for his sire's name, Hard Tack.
Swing On, Seabiscuit's mother, was a daughter of the great racehorse Whisk Broom II. Swing On was also from the same family as Equipose, a two-time Horse of the Year.
Seabiscuit had a brother named Grog.
Seabiscuit once covered a quarter mile in 22 2/5 seconds, one of the fastest times ever for a yearling.
Three days after his first race, Seabiscuit was placed on the market with an asking price of $2,500. No offers were made.
In his first season, Seabiscuit raced 35 times and covered more than 6,000 miles in travel.
In the spring of 1936, Seabiscuit averaged a race every five days.
Seabiscuit shared a stable with Granville, the 1936 Horse of the Year.
Seabiscuit's owner, Charles Howard, enlisted in the cavalry for the Spanish-American War. Once a bicycle repairman in New York, he became a hugely successful automobile distributor based in San Francisco.
Trainer Tom Smith caught his first glimpse of Seabiscuit in June 1936. Two months later, Howard purchased the horse and entrusted him to Smith.
Howard's $8,000 offer for Seabiscuit in August 1936 had a condition: The horse had to perform well in his upcoming race. Seabiscuit slogged through the mud for a victory to consummate the deal.
Seabiscuit's regular jockey, Red Pollard, tried to hide the fact that he was blind in one eye.
To earn money in his younger days, Pollard fought professionally.
Pollard nicknamed the horse "Pops."
Seabiscuit's best year was 1937, when he won 11 races and earned $168,580.
His widest margin of victory was seven lengths, as a four-year-old at San Juan Capistrano.
When Seabiscut attempted his comeback in 1940, he had already run 85 races.
He was shipped more than 50,000 railroad miles in his career.
The ranch at which Seabiscuit spent his retirement, Ridgewood, was spread over 17,000 acres in Northern California.
The horse was the subject of a children's book "Come on Seabiscuit."
A life-size bronze statue of Seabiscuit stands at Santa Anita.
Seabiscuit was inducted into the Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1958.
The 1949 movie "The Story of Seabiscuit" starred Shirley Temple.
In the 2003 movie, Tobey Maguire played Pollard, Chris Cooper portrayed Smith and Jeff Bridges was Howard.
Two film crews worked for seven weeks at Santa Anita during filming of the movie.
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