RUFFIAN
Every now and again, about once a decade, the world is graced with an athlete that creates a legend. In the States, the early seventies saw the rise of two special horses - Secretariat, who we all know and love, was one, while the other was just as stunning, but hardly heard of outside the US. Time to put that right and talk about a filly called Ruffian.

The definition of Ruffian is 'a violent person, often linked to crime', which is most unfortunate. About the only thing violent about this Kentucky racehorse was her phenomenal speed!

Owned and bred by the Janney family, Ruffian was born in 1972. From ten starts, she had ten wins, all top class, and coming with an average winning margin of eight lengths per outing. She set new records in all the Stakes races she entered, earning herself the 'Queen Of The Fillies' moniker.

Then, in a match race, aping that of Seabiscuit and War Admiral, she took on Foolish Pleasure - the Kentucky Derby winner - in the early part of July 1975. She was leading by half a length when her ankle broke (an injury brought about by hitting the starting gate apparently), and she was passed for the first time in her career. Infuriated, she kept running, creating more damage. Vets tended to her straight away, but when she came around, she trashed around as if still in the race and broke more bones. She had to be put down.

Buried at Belmont Park, fittingly with her nose pointing towards the finish line, her's was the last match race ever held in the States, and Ruffian's death prompted new medical practices to allow horses to come around after surgery in more cultured surroundings.

I know of books on Ruffian, and there's also a TV film by all accounts, which I'd like to see. But what I'd really like to see is a Ruffian foal - shame that will never happen. Can you imagine the potential of a horse with Secretariat and Ruffian as its parents? The mind boggles...

By the way, we had over 150 visitors to the blog yesterday, which I think I can safely say is a new record. At one time last night, there were 51 people looking at it. At first, the blog was simply a way of recording the progress of my horses in a language I could understand, but it seems it's providing some enjoyment for a lot of others, which is truly heartening.