Thoughts on Seabiscuit: There's Something Worse than a Bad Leg

As Seabiscuit was returning to racing form, there was much concern and question as to whether Red Pollard would be ready to ride.  Both the horse and the jockey had suffered serious injuries, but Pollard's leg was beyond serious.  No doctor would even consider releasing him to ever ride another horse, much less race one.  Howard (the owner), Smith (the trainer), and even Pollard himself knew that any kind of fall or collision would cripple the jockey. Yet, Pollard would not take no for an answer. He wanted more than anything to race and win with Seabiscuit.

As Howard struggled with his decision, he spoke with Pollard's friend, journalist David Alexander.  During their conversation, Alexander asked Howard what his plans were for the race.

"'If Red breaks that leg again,' Howard said soberly, 'it will cripple him for life.'

Alexander told him that maybe it was better to break a man's leg than his heart" (366).

Pollard would ride and win the race.

This reminds me an old truth:
The spirit of a man can endure his sickness, But as for a broken spirit who can bear it?  (Proverbs 18:14)

Handle people's hearts and dreams carefully.

Thoughts on Seabiscuit: Elements of a Comeback

Seabiscuit is a fascinating story with many lessons; one of those lessons is presented in "Chapter 21: A Long, Hard Pull." Virtually everyone had given up on both the horse and the jockey after each sustained serious injury.  They were both deemed "washed up."  There were three elements, though, that contributed to their comeback.

First, they had time to heal.  Hillenbrand writes, "Slowly, painfully, horse and rider healed" (349). In this case, the comeback depended on physical healing.  In other cases, a person's comeback may also involve emotional and, perhaps, spiritual health.  While the healing process was frustrating for jockey, horse, trainer and owner, it could not be rushed.  Each had to face each new day with an expectant hope that healing would come.  In time, it would indeed arrive.

Next, the comeback needed a plan.  As both the rider and the horse improved, the rehabilitation strategy was increased.  Again, Hillenbrand writes, " Pollard had learned a thing or two about training from Smith, and he managed Seabiscuit's rehabilitation carefully.  By early summer, walking turned to a gentle canter, first a mile, then two, then three" (351).  There was a vision and a plan for bringing them back to health, back to competing.  It didn't happen overnight, but gradually the plan set the stage for a comeback.

Finally, the team had hope and a desire to win. Even though the general public expected that Seabiscuit would never race again, Team Howard held on to the hope that he would.  That hope was not some pipe dream, but was based on the past experiences of a proven winner.  The past, though, was not enough.  In order to complete the comeback, a desire to win was necessary.  Marcella Howard noticed this on her trips to the barn when "Seabiscuit was pacing around his stall... When he paused, he directed his gaze at the horizon, distracted.  [Charles] Howard saw that look and knew what it meant, 'You knew he wanted to race again,' he said, 'more than anything else in the world'" (352).  Both Seabiscuit and Pollard desperately want to race again.  That driving desire, along with time, and a plan, brought about one of the greatest comebacks in American history.

Thoughts on Seabiscuit: The Importance of Team

As I am reading Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand, there are many wonderful nuggets jumping off the pages.  I will do my best to share several of these with you in upcoming posts.  For now, I want to simply state the obvious point that the story makes: there is a strength and richness in a team that far exceeds the talents and gifts of the individual members.

Seabiscuit (the story) is really about four characters-- the owner, the trainer, the jockey and the horse. Hillenbrand does a wonderful work of introducing the audience to each one.  Not surprisingly, we find that each character, certainly with his own gifts and potential, was on a downhill slide-- not a complete failure, but far from where he dreamed he would be.

I love the way Hillenbrand ends chapter 6: "The scattered lives of Red Pollard, Tom Smith, and Charles Howard had come to an intersection. Their crowded hour had begun" (113). We see a wonderful picture of the convergence of gifts, talents, and shared ambition. We see the birth of a team-- the birth of a legend.