Download or read book Crazy Good written by Charles Leerhsen and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2008-05-20 with total page 379 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A hundred years ago, the most famous athlete in America was a horse. But Dan Patch was more than a sports star; he was a cultural icon in the days before the automobile. Born crippled and unable to stand, he was nearly euthanized. For a while, he pulled the grocer's wagon in his hometown of Oxford, Indiana. But when he was entered in a race at the county fair, he won -- and he kept on winning. Harness racing was the top sport in America at the time, and Dan, a pacer, set the world record for the mile. He eventually lowered the mark by four seconds, an unheard-of achievement that would not be surpassed for decades. America loved Dan Patch, who, though kind and gentle, seemed to understand that he was a superstar: he acknowledged applause from the grandstands with a nod or two of his majestic head and stopped as if to pose when he saw a camera. He became the first celebrity sports endorser; his name appeared on breakfast cereals, washing machines, cigars, razors, and sleds. At a time when the highest-paid baseball player, Ty Cobb, was making $12,000 a year, Dan Patch was earning over a million dollars. But even then horse racing attracted hustlers, cheats, and touts. Drivers and owners bet heavily on races, which were often fixed; horses were drugged with whiskey or cocaine, or switched off with "ringers." Although Dan never lost a race, some of his races were rigged so that large sums of money could change hands. Dan's original owner was intimidated into selling him, and America's favorite horse spent the second half of his career touring the country in a plush private railroad car and putting on speed shows for crowds that sometimes exceeded 100,000 people. But the automobile cooled America's romance with the horse, and by the time he died in 1916, Dan was all but forgotten. His last owner, a Minnesota entrepreneur gone bankrupt, buried him in an unmarked grave. His achievements have faded, but throughout the years, a faithful few kept alive the legend of Dan Patch, and in Crazy Good, Charles Leerhsen travels through their world to bring back to life this fascinating story of triumph and treachery in small-town America and big-city racetracks.
Download or read book Autobiography of Dan Patch written by Merton Echo Harrison and published by . This book was released on 1912 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Great Dan Patch and the Remarkable Mr Savage written by Tim Brady and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discusses the story of the great race horse Dan Patch and questions whether the owner M.W. Savage made the horse or the horse made the man. The DVD includes actual footage of the race horse and the owner, the music created in honor of the race horse and more.
Download or read book Best There Ever Was written by Sharon B. Smith and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2012-06-20 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: His winning percentage was well above Jordan’s shooting average or Woods’s domination of golf tournaments. And he sold products and drew spectators like no one had ever done. He was hands-down the most famous athlete in America’s most popular spectator sport, and exactly one hundred years ago you would have been hard pressed to find anybody in the country who didn’t know his name. He was Dan Patch, and he was a racehorse. At the turn of the last century, harness racing drew larger crowds and offered bigger paychecks than any other sport. Its stars were household names, and Dan Patch was both the most celebrated and the richest. As successful as he was on the track, Dan Patch was also America’s first “marketing machine”: the horse who could sell cigars, washing machines, stoves, automobiles, and animal feed, just by the presence of his name and photograph. The Best There Ever Was examines the evolution of sports marketing through the lives of Dan Patch and the three men who owned him: an Indiana breeder, Dan Messner; M. E. Sturgis, who sold the horse for $20,000 (a fortune in those days) and spent the rest of his life trying to buy him back; and Marion W. Savage of Minneapolis, whose entrepreneurial skills presaged today’s sports marketing geniuses. Any athlete who can draw a 90,000-person crowd, offer up world records, and then sell a coal stove with his name on it may well be the best by anybody’s standards. A fun and fascinating read for sports lovers.
Download or read book To Race a Dream written by Deborah Savage and published by Turtleback Books. This book was released on 1996 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When 15-year-old Theodora Harris moves to Savage, Minnesota, she has no idea that the fastest horse on earth, Dan Patch, lives next door. Suddenly, Theo can think of nothing but horses. The only trouble is, she's a girl--and in 1906 girls cannot even work in the stables, much less race. But Theo is determined to be a jocket, and through her friendship with the amazing Dan Patch, Theo dares to follow her dreams. Young Adult.
Download or read book The Dan Patch Story written by Fred A. Sassʹe and published by . This book was released on 1957 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Story of the famous trotting horse and his master, M.W. Savage, 1896-1916.
Download or read book Blood and Smoke written by Charles Leerhsen and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2012-05-22 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One hundred years ago, 40 cars lined up for the first Indianapolis 500. We are still waiting to find out who won. The Indy 500 was created to showcase the controversial new sport of automobile racing, which was sweeping the country. Daring young men were driving automobiles at the astonishing speed of 75 miles per hour, testing themselves and their vehicles. With no seat belts, hard helmets or roll bars, the dangers were enormous. When the Indianapolis Motor Speedway opened in 1909, seven people were killed, some of them spectators. Oil-slicked surfaces, clouds of smoke, exploding tires, and flying grit all made driving extremely hazardous, especially with the open-cockpit, windshield-less vehicles. Bookmakers offered bets not only on who might win but who might survive. But this book is about more than a race--it is the story of America at the dawn of the automobile age, a country in love with speed, danger, and spectacle.--From publisher description.
Download or read book Betting on Horse Racing For Dummies written by Richard Eng and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2010-03-11 with total page 8 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How to enjoy a day at the races-and bet to win! The last two years have seen a record number of Americans tune in for climatic Triple Crown races featuring Smarty Jones and Funny Cide; in 2004, television viewership jumped a whopping 61 percent over the record set in 2003, and the Belmont Stakes race itself drew a record crowd of more than 120,000! This easy-to-understand guide shows first-time visitors to the track how to enjoy the sport of horse racing-and make smart bets. It explains: what goes on at the track what to look for in horses and jockeys how to read a racing form and do simple handicapping how to manage betting funds and make wagers that stand a good chance of paying off. Complete with coverage of off-track and online betting, it's just what anyone needs to play the ponies-and win! Richard Eng (Las Vegas, NV) is a racing writer and handicapper for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, a columnist for the Daily Racing Form, and the host of a horseracing radio program in Las Vegas. He was formerly a part of the ABC Sports team that covered the Triple Crown.
Download or read book AUTOBIOG OF DAN PATCH written by Merton E. (Merton Echo) 1876 Harrison and published by . This book was released on 2016-08-24 with total page 204 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Complete Idiot s Guide to Betting on Horses written by Sharon B. Smith and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines the history of horse racing, the three racing breeds and their characteristics, the roles of the trainers, jockeys, drivers, and track officials, the different courses and racetracks, and betting, odds, and bookmaking
Download or read book Autobiography of Dan Patch written by and published by . This book was released on 2020-03-09 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A Short History of the American Trotting and Pacing Horse written by Henry Troth Coates and published by . This book was released on 1905 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Harness Racing written by Elizabeth Van Steenwyk and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page 54 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discusses the buying, breeding, and training of horses for harness racing, describes the event and its rules, and introduces several famous champions.
Download or read book Trotpicks written by Bob "Pandy" Pandolfo and published by . This book was released on 2011-01-01 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Love to Race written by Amber Sawyer and published by . This book was released on 2020-09-30 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the story of harness racehorse, Derek Bromac N. After racing in New Zealand as a 2-, 3-, and 4-year-old, Derek was shipped to California to begin his racing career in the United States. He immediately began dominating his competition at remarkable race times. This classy bay gelding found success wherever his travels took him and was often a barn favorite. His crazy antics of always sticking his tongue out while being harnessed, and on the racetrack, made him a horse that wouldn't easily be forgotten. From California to New Jersey, and every racetrack in between, he was driven by some of the most elite and talented in the harness racing business. He was always known as the horse that always "gave his all." Follow Derek's narration, written by his owner Amber Sawyer, and beautifully illustrated by Tami Joe DeLisle.
Download or read book The General Stud book written by and published by . This book was released on 1840 with total page 676 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Air Force Combat Units of World War II written by Maurer Maurer and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 1961 with total page 520 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
