"The first time I rode Northern Dancer I knew he was something special. . . . I think the way Muriel Lennox tells the story--going behind the scenes and focusing on the horses--will give everyone a clear picture, not only of how special Northern Dancer actually was, but of all the obstacles he had to overcome".--Ron Turcotte, jockey. "For me Northern Dancer was the epitome, the dream of those of us blessed with a love of horses".--Omar Sharif.
This was a very informative book about racing, horses and the people involved. Northern Dancer was a great horse with stamina and speed. He also had great heart. He produced many winners in his progeny. I enjoyed this book immensely!
I really enjoyed this book. I've always loved horses, though I wasn't a rider or even came close to many horses. I just liked reading books about them and experiencing them through the author's eyes and voice.
Northern Dancer is ultimately so remarkable because he was underrated from the outset by most racing pundits. His small size was considered a handicap for stamina in long races and his breeder and owner knew the likelihood of this happening.
Unfortunately, Northern Dancer often met with other impediments whenever he had a long race. In the Belmont after Kentucky Derby--in which he set a new record of 2.00 minutes--and Preakness wins, the jockey was instructed to hold him back a the beginning because of a tendon problem. The horse was then unable to release himself from the pack and came up short. However, he ran one more race, the Queen's Plate in Toronto, which he won.
Northern Dancer was then retired to stud. Of his more than 600 foals, eighty percent became racehorses, of which eighty percent were winners by the time the book was written.