Horse Sense: An Inside Look at the Sport of Kings

By Bert Randolph Sugar and Cornell Richardson

Book Overview

A behind-the-scenes look at the business and pleasure of horse racing Horse racing may be known as "the sport of kings," but it's big fun for everyone and even bigger business. A perfect mixture of beauty and excitement, action and refinement, it's a booming business that peaks annually when the Kentucky Derby turns Churchill Downs into the center of the gambling universe. In Horse Sense, legendary sportswriter and commentator Bert Sugar goes behind the scenes to interview owners, breeders, trainers, jockeys, and track operators to uncover the world of horse racing with the humor and wit only he can bring to the subject. Packed with insight and anecdotes, Horse Sense shows us why we love the sport enough to make it a $100 billion industry. Bert Randolph Sugar is one of the most recognizable personalities in sports, with his trademark fedora and cigar, he is a fixture at race tracks and boxing matches. A former advertising executive at McCann-Erickson and J. Walter Thompson, Sugar left the world of advertising after a brawl with a fellow ad exec landed him in the pages of the NY Times and Advertising Age. Sugar became a sportswriter, and a damn good one at that. Bert was the editor of Ring Magazine and founder of Boxing Illustrated. Bert has been the Kentucky Derby announcer for Fox TV and has attended the races in the triple crown the last 25 years. Bert is a graduate of Harvard and University of Michigan Law School. Bert lives in Chappaqua, NY. Cornell Richardson is the former chief lending officer at Chemical Bank where he was the primary lending officer to the entertainment and sports industries-including many of those in the horse racing industry. Currently, he is working with Bud Greenspan on a documentary for ESPN entitled, "The Ladies Wore Silks- The History of Women in Thoroughbred Racing." Cornell lives in New York City.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0471445576
• ISBN13: 9780471445579
• Release Date: March 2003
• Publisher: Wiley
• Length: 225 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.3" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Experience the beauty, intensity and hard work of horse racing

Horse Sense is a book written in order to either bring to life a flicker of love or reignite the passion for horse racing. Once you have read this book, your interest and fascination for this "Sport of Kings" will give you a desire to experience this for yourself, to be at a race, to watch the jockeys, the owners, the crowd. You will want to see and hear the sound of the horses as they sweep down the track. Bert Sugar's book may contain some factual errors, but he introduces the novice to the charm, glory , dangers and the history of this amazing sport. His ability to reveal life at the track from the point of view of owners, jockeys, trainers and even those who wager at the windows is intriguing. He gives a striking overview of the tracks, from the glorious tradition of Churchill Downs, to the grand and beautiful Arlington Park to the lesser ranked tracks. The future of horse racing which took a major hit in attendance due to legal casino's and off track betting is also a subject that is well covered. Bert Sugar shares the joy and intensity of watching the horses run and the appreciation for what goes into making winning horses, great jockeys, and successful trainers.

The World According to Bert

The murmur of the crowd, the electricity in the air - "they're off" and the smell or dirt and cigar all permeate this fine book by Bert Sugar- Runyonesque, wheeler dealer, yarn spinner and general sports know-it-all.You'll love the cast of characters; jock's, trainers, owners and the horses, colorful, and bizzare, a whole stew of odd ducks and delightful stories.

A must for all racing fans!

Bert Sugar goes behind the scenes, interviewing owners, breeders, trainers, jockeys and track operators with anecdotes, history and charm only he can do.Horse Sense follows the money behind the business of racing which was once dominated by eccentric families and strange characters.A real nice read for any horse enthusiast!