In Memory of Ruffian

[WarHorse]

The Acorn Stakes.



She was a goddess.

[madelyn]

I would also venture to say that the lack of technology in 1975 for dealing with fractured sesamoids was also involved... having her down while they "fashioned" a cast, etc., and then they were probably waiting for the sucker to harden when she woke up.

[fernhollow]

I can see some of what Ruffian was...her love for running...in one of my yearling fillies. She will never race...was bred for Eventing...but running is what she loves. From the time that she was born, she would run just for the pure fun of it...racing around the outside of the barn. And now as a yearling, she ALWAYS HAS to be out in front when the horses are galloping in the pasture. She is clearly going to be an alpha mare...and to my inexperienced eye...she looks FAST and athletic.

Nothing on the scale of Ruffian, but she has what typifies the heart of the TB...and it is beautiful to watch. I feel privileged.

[Pan Zareta]

I would also venture to say that the lack of technology in 1975 for dealing with fractured sesamoids was also involved... having her down while they "fashioned" a cast, etc., and then they were probably waiting for the sucker to harden when she woke up.

Madelyn, if I recall correctly the cast that was used was already made. It had been (successfully) used on another horse that wore the same shoe size. No one really thought she'd tolerate it - she'd tolerated one on the fall '74 hairline fracture for all of about 5 min. As Harthill so delicately put it, "it was a destruction case from the beginning".

[Pan Zareta]

No...according to what I read, she'd been in surgery for several hours to repair really irreparably shattered sesmoids that she continued running on (because Vasquez couldn't get her pulled up... she wanted to be in front so badly). She was sweating and breathing heavily, even under anethsesia. When several doctors were done making a special cast and shoe for what was left of her foot, she started to come out of the anesthesia and began thrashing about. The term "tossing them off like so many rag dolls" was used in the article I read. (at least 3 Vets and 2 or 3 others; her trainer Frank Whiteley was one of them there to try to hold her down and keep her from hurting herself again.) But in doing so, she destroyed the cast and it was agreed that another 2-3 hours of surgery/anesthesia to replace the cast and again put the foot back in place, would kill her anyway.

I must have read the same article, b/c I remember the term 'rag dolls' being used. She was still 'running' on the right lead when she started to come around. And since she hadn't had time to cool down after she ran it took 90min - 2hrs just to get her somewhat adequately hydrated and stabilized under anesthesia.

They say, in the end, what made her so great...her will, her heart, her strength, was what killed her.

Especially the fact that her will & heart were driving a body standing on Reviewer's soft bone. Reviewer broke down 3x in the same right rear cannon. Had surgery & came back twice - was mercifully retired the third time. He had phenomenal speed & a great heart of his own, but that horse could throw very bad bone.

That's the romantic way of looking at it. IMO, what killed her was egos and greed and her connections not possessing her will, heart and strength to just walk away from the hype to promote a match race. It would have been one thing to run her in a race against the colts. It is entirely another thing to have a two horse match race against another speed horse who was the best colt around at that time. It was just pure male ego that killed Ruffian.

I'd have to lay some blame on the turfwriters and 'fundamental feminists' as well. The former were responsible for the editorials in BH & elsewhere ridiculing and lampooning the idea of a Ruffian-less match race betw the 3 winners of the TC races that year (which was the genesis of the match race betw Ruffi & Foolish Pleasure). The often illogical & unnecessarily adversarial rantings of the 'fundamental feminists' helped perpetuate a mini gender war featuring male v. female 'battles' of athletic competition - one of the of more egregious of which was that idiotic Roman orgy of a tennis 'match' betw Bobby Riggs & Billie Jean King.

As for the desrepancy in height of 16.2 v 17h, I'd say that when she was up on her toes, making herself "large", as all champions do, she was every bit of 17h and then some!

DEFINITELY!!

[Pan Zareta]

Hi Pan,

No, Pearl has golden emerald eyes - both about the same intensity and colour. I should introduce her better because she fits this thread.

She's an American Bobtail, mother of two small litters (before I got her). Her tail goes up an inch and then makes a right turn for about 3/4" (a flaw that 'ruins' her as a breeding cat).

With apologies in advance for my ignorance is American Bobtail a breed, or a domestic cat - Bobcat cross, (or both)? Whichever, Pearl is quite an attractive & eye-catching feline.

PZ

[BJ]

I'd have to lay some blame on the turfwriters and 'fundamental feminists' as well. The former were responsible for the editorials in BH & elsewhere ridiculing and lampooning the idea of a Ruffian-less match race betw the 3 winners of the TC races that year (which was the genesis of the match race betw Ruffi & Foolish Pleasure). The often illogical & unnecessarily adversarial rantings of the 'fundamental feminists' helped perpetuate a mini gender war featuring male v. female 'battles' of athletic competition - one of the of more egregious of which was that idiotic Roman orgy of a tennis 'match' betw Bobby Riggs & Billie Jean King.

Talk about your typical mob mentality for the MEDIA to stir up. But no matter how you look at it, it was UP TO her connections to protect her and to rise above the mob mentality. They failed her and the future of her offspring.

Maybe they'll all meet again...in a better place and take the opportunity to do it better. Maybe someday, when the world is ready...she'll reappear and give us all a second chance.

[rascal]

Thanks. I understand a little better what happened to her now. IMHO, she would not have run in that match race had I been the lucky owner of her. I agree that a race against colts would've been different, but her determined quest for the lead could still have caused a breakdown regardless of what race it was. Such a shame. Losers all the way around, but I especially feel for Ruffian, who had no say in what happened to her. Gosh, she was a beautiful filly! RIP sweet Ruffian! Still sad.

[fernhollow]

Had she never run against colts before?

Could someone please explain why this match race was so much harder on her than just running an ordinary race against colts? I have a video in which a famous vet says that it was the leaning on the other horse during the race that caused it. He only briefly mentioned this and did not explain. Why was she leaning?

Isn't there a chance that the leg was ready to go in whatever her next race was?

Thank you.

[xfactor fan]

Good question fernhollow, and one that I've wondered about too.

One theory is that this race was the first time Ruffian had to fully extend herself, and her bones were not up to the strain.

Great heart, fragile bones, a disaster waiting to happen.

[Pan Zareta]

Had she never run against colts before?

No. The plan (bef the match race was set up) had been to rest her after the filly TC & maybe test her against the colts at Saratoga.

Could someone please explain why this match race was so much harder on her than just running an ordinary race against colts? I have a video in which a famous vet says that it was the leaning on the other horse during the race that caused it. He only briefly mentioned this and did not explain. Why was she leaning?

Isn't there a chance that the leg was ready to go in whatever her next race was?

Ruffian & Foolish Pleasure may have brushed at some point, but it was no more than that. She did bang the gate hard w/ her left shoulder on the break. But imho that didn't have anything to do w/ her breakdown. I'm convinced that she had the same problem (soft bone) as her sire & a breakdown was inevitable. Some may view that the match race was harder on Ruffian b/c Foolish Pleasure's trainer Leroy Jolley believed the only way to beat her was to tire her out w/ blistering early speed and the colt, who was used to coming from off the pace, had been strenously re-schooled accordingly. Though I don't really think Foolish Pleasure presented a significantly greater challenge to Ruffian than she'd ever seen, the colt did a credible job of staying with her for those few furlongs before catastrophe. But she was bigger, stronger, faster, and had greater stamina. If she hadn't broken down I think she'd have won by a definitive margin - and if they'd been going 12f I don't think he'd have been anywhere near her at the finish.

[Pan Zareta]

One theory is that this race was the first time Ruffian had to fully extend herself, and her bones were not up to the strain.

Moody Jolley (father of Leroy Jolley who trained Foolish Pleasure) was one who instigated and perpetuated that notion. Off camera, but in the presence of reporters he said after the race: "First time they throw some speed at her and the bitch comes unbuckled." Not only was he crass and common as dirt, he was wrong. Speed wasn't what killed Ruffi.

[jumper77]

I know this is quite an old post, too, but I had to chime in... Makes me bawl like a baby everytime I even think about her. Hate to be graphic, but according to the book, her foot was hanging on by the skin only. She also smashed her other leg with the cast while coming out of anesthesia, so putting her down was unavoidable. Sorry, that makes my stomach turn, but even as incredible and special as she was, makes you wonder why they didn't put her down right away. That being said, I'm glad I never had to deal with that sort of thing, I have such trouble letting go...
What really made me mad is that the jock for Foolish Pleasure kept going. Had he pulled up too, maybe she wouldn't have pulverized her leg so much; don't remember exactly how far she ran, but it took a very long time to get her stopped. It's not like he would have lost. Was it that important? I fortunately am too young to have seen the race, but I am forever traumatized from seeing what happened to Go for Wand-- that horrible shot of her running panicked down the track before they realized what they were broadcasting on live tv and had to switch away. It was several years before I could watch a race again.
I'm glad there are other people who are as moved as I am by that big black horse. There will never be another. Maybe it's better that way.

[Derring]

I too saw Go for Wand's last race live on TV. As if that wasn't bad enough, the magazines were very graphic in their pictures.

[Retrospectiv]

The Acorn Stakes.



She was a goddess.

Pretty sure that's actually Ruffian's very first start. She was #9 in her 1st, and that photo appeared in an article a number of years back in Sports Illustrated about her 1st time to the post.