The Bottom Line
Every racing fan who has been to Saratoga or wishes they had, needs to read this book. Saratoga, America's oldest track, is historic by definition, but it is the special horses, people, and strange events that happened there that add color to that history. Award winning author Bill Heller shows us some of those characters and moments in this hard to put down book.
Pros
- A very fitting tribute to Saratoga Race Course, written by a native to the area
- Quite entertaining, often funny read, not a boring moment in the book
- Heller demonstrates that truly "if it had to happen, it happened at Saratoga"
Cons
- Some history buffs may lament the lack of pre-1960 history, given the age of the track
Description
- Highly recommended for all racing fans, especially history buffs.
- Unfortunately, events prior to 1960 were not included.
- Hard to put down once you start reading stories about the following and more:
- The late Fourstardave, the popular gelding who won a race at Saratoga eight years in a row.
- Angel Cordero, Jr, the jockey who won the riding title eleven years in a row.
- P.G. Johnson, the trainer who won a race at Saratoga for thirty-six years in a row (and counting).
- Steeplechase jockey Sean Clancy lost when his saddle slipped in the final strides of an easy win.
- A bumping incident ended up with the disqualification of a horse who was not even involved.
- A filly left behind when the starter opened the starting gate before she got a chance to load.
Guide Review - Review: "Saratoga Tales"
Saratoga native Bill Heller's seventeeth book, "Saratoga Tales: Great Horses, Fearless Jockeys, Shocking Upsets and Incredible Blunders at America's Legendary Race Track", demonstrates how unique a place The Spa can be. Heller does not simply rattle off Saratoga successes, but instead intersperses them with some of the "toughest beats" imaginable. For example, Secretariat was actually not the favorite the first time he raced there, and defeated the heavily-favored local hope, then came back the next year to lose. Some of these stories are funny to read about now, but were undoubtedly painful for the connections and bettors who came out on the short end. The Spa's signature race, the Travers, is presented with a human-interest angle one may not have considered originally.Forming the backdrop of many of these events is always the unpredictable, or predictably bad, weather that often plagues the meet. Heavy rainfall, thunder and lightning, and golfball sized hail make for dangerous conditions for all involved, and more work for the dedicated maintenance crew Heller makes a point to recognize.
These are the stories that make Saratoga unique, and Heller presents them in this compact yet thorough work that any racing fan will find hard to put down once he or she starts reading.
