Parting - Seabiscuit

Did I mention the garage?  It is a story in itself but for now just a piece of it.  It was time to move things from where they were.  We had considered the garage another mystery room.  And we were right, we have split it up, taken it from there to sort it out and see just what we find.  

Many of Lexie's and my mother's things were still in trunks, tubs or boxes, wrapped however they were left when SHE acquired them.  We had limited time to load them up for elsewhere, trying to leave behind things that were obviously not worth savalging, she had saved everything.  There was a good amount of items packed in old newspapers and I would always give a curious glance to the date of publication and publisher just for curiosity and toss it away or rewrap.  This one I looked at quickly and tossed aside.  One of my sons however took a closer look and surprised the rest of us.

Seabiscuit wins a race. The Florida Times Union, Jacksonville, Florida was dated August 13, 1938.  "Seabiscuit is Victorious in Photo Finish." The race was on August 12, Del Mar Racetrack, Del Mar, California.  It was a nose victory and the press seemed pleased with the win, referring to the horse almost affectionately as "the Biscuit" several times in the column.  Interestingly the challenging horse, Ligaroti, was owned by Bing Crosby.  Mr. Crosby had even hired a college-boy rooting section dressed in his colors to cheer his "standard-bearer," yet all the yells were of no avail.  The winning pot of gold was $25,000.

Researching a bit more I found that Seabiscuit ran 89 races, won 33 and was horse of the year in 1938.  Bing Crosby, with a few friends, built the racetrack in Del Mar in 1937 and this race was set to promote it.

Bubby, lives across the street from me. He was born in that house in 1932.  Having him as a neighbor is as good as having your own private neighborhood watch.  He takes Mike, his pomeranian, on endless walks and works in his flower beds alternating blooms with the seasons.   They sit on the front porch, sometimes just them, sometimes with extended family of three generations, or is it four who share the house?

He was a professional jockey back in the day.  He once told me if anyone had ever told him he would be planting flowers and walking a prissy little dog he would have knocked them out!  He has settled into a nice lifestyle of retirement surrounded by family and neighbors who consider him family.

I asked him about horse racing as the newspaper quickly made me think of him.  He told me his family sent him off to Chicago because he was getting into too much trouble!  He raced for about fifteen years, he was too tall and of course the weight was always a struggle.  But it was an era of memories.  His first race was in 1951 (the year SHE was born) at Washington Park in Chicago.   He won that first race, Joe Graves was the horse.  I didn't win the race he told me,  I just got on the horse and he took off!

I can only wonder if SHE saw the article, SHE was more careful than I was and I am sure went through it all before stuffing it away and knows what we will find. Horses were one of her first loves but our dad could only find donkeys or mules for us to ride.  SHE would be pleased I gave the old man the article as he told me he has scrapbooks with his own yellowed, fragile newspaper reports of his life. I will ask to see these.