Triple Crown Winners, Mad Men, and Rogues
Eleven horses have won the Triple Crown, and seven of those won in a two decade period that began in 1930 and ended in 1948. It would be another 25 years before Secretariat added his name to the list, with Seattle Slew and Affirmed following in quick succession. It’s been 37 years since the last was crowned, and speculation abounds — as it does every spring that a horse goes to the Belmont Stakes a potential winner — about why the gap has grown so long. Maybe the question is, how did we get three in the 1970s?
Thoroughbred owner and famed ad man Bill Backer is enjoying a turn in the spotlight following the series finale of “Mad Men,” which closed on the iconic 1971 “Hilltop” Coca-Cola commercial. It’s credited to him as the originator, for coming up with the concept, “I’d like to buy the world a Coke and keep it company.” Jingles and horses — fun story, right? It is, and both America’s Best Racing and Thoroughbred Daily News have jumped on the pop culture and racing connection. Both also treat the ad as the epiphanic accomplishment of one white man — and, yes, that descriptor is relevant:
Backer wrote, “I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke†on a napkin and the rest is history.
… the next day Backer … wrote “I’d like to buy the world a Coke and keep it company.” The rest of the lyrics and music followed …
But there’s more to the story, and it’s a great read. “We have a long tradition in the United States of erasing the creative work of black Americans,” writes Tim Carmody of noted McCann-Erickson music director Billy Davis, co-writer of the Coke song. We should do better in horse racing, when given the chance.
Rogues or underdogs? Triple Crown connections tend to fall into one or the other in the media. Last year’s storyline was the latter. This year’s may be the former: “Owner of American Pharoah Is Fighting Lawsuit Amid Triple Crown Bid,” is the New York Times headline, “American Pharoah owner didn’t pay $1.6M in sports bets, felon says,” at NJ.com. The best detail in either report is that Ahmed Zayat allegedly offered $1 million to his felon-friend if he would tell the sportsbook to which he owed money that he died in a car accident.
American Pharoah is back on track. He jogged this morning at Churchill Downs after four days of walking, and may start galloping again on Friday.
Withholding rules on winning wagers are outdated and need to be changed, and the industry has a shot at making that happen this year, but more horseplayers have to get involved. While approximately 3,000 4,000 have submitted comments through the NTRA website regarding the proposed rules revision, “Treasury officials have recently told the organization that more comments are needed if the changes are to be seriously considered,” reports Matt Hegarty. I am of two minds re: this angle on seeking engagement — the first is that horseplayers should show their support for the changes, the second is that this sounds like a set-up for putting the blame on players should the campaign fail. “Look,” racing executives will shrug, “gamblers don’t care about taxes,” making it that much harder for future reforms to pass.
5/27/15 Update: With industry cooperation over the past week, more than 9,500 comments have been submitted to the Treasury department.
