10 Facts About Seabiscuit
- Kaeli Bartholomew
- Jul 29, 2019
- 2 min read
Updated: Nov 24, 2023
Seabiscuit's story - one full of trials, tribulations, and success against all odds - has enchanted horse racing fans for nearly a century. Get to know this fan-favorite racehorse better with ten facts about Seabiscuit.
Seabiscuit was a very laid-back horse. It was often said that he looked sleepy as he made his way to the starting gates.
He was called "Pappy" by those who knew and loved him in the barn. The public fondly referred to him as "The Biscuit".
Seabiscuit is named after his sire Hard Tack. Both "sea biscuit" and "hardtack" refer to hard, dense crackers usually eaten by sailors and members of the military. These crackers were inexpensive and long-lasting.
He raced a whopping 35 times as a two-year-old in 1935. This was the most starts he had in a single year in his entire career.
Seabiscuit lost his first seventeen races, but finally "broke his maiden" in his eighteenth career start.
He was stablemates with Omaha, the Triple Crown winner of 1935, when he began his career with trainer "Sunny Jim" Fitzsimmons.
Seabiscuit and his regular jockey Red Pollard recovered from leg injuries together at Charles Howard's Ridgewood Ranch.
The famous match race between Seabiscuit and War Admiral was originally scheduled to be run on October 30, 1937, but Seabiscuit was scratched from the meeting due to heavy rains. The match race actually took place the following year on November 1, 1938.
Seabiscuit was used as a workhorse at Ridgewood Ranch during his retirement when easy tasks such as checking cattle needed completed.
He sired 108 foals before passing away of a heart attack at age 14.
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Outstanding job as always. #5 is the best fact. Took him forever to figure it out, but once he did, a great career played out of the track. Thank goodness there were people that saw his potential and didn't give up on him.