Sham, Racehorse (And The Legendary Horse Secretariat)
Sham, the horse that challenged the legendary racehorse, Secretariat. Discover the rivalry between the two related horses, Secretariat and Sham.
Official, true website for the books titled: (2007) by author Mary Walsh. (250-page paperback about Sham and Secretariat rivalry)Sham, In the Shadow of a Superhorse (2007) by author Mary Walsh. (250-page paperback about Sham and Secretariat rivalry)
Sham's Dream (2011) written and illustrated by Mary Walsh. (24-page hardcover Children's book about Sham and Secretariat rivalry in the Kentucky Derby)
Sham is now available in electronic form at Amazon.
BOTH BOOKS ARE On Sale at Amazon and Blood Horse Magazine for Sham, In the Shadow of a Superhorse. And, Amazon and Blood Horse Magazine for Sham's Dream — honoring Sham's gallant effort in the 1973 Kentucky Derby and to celebrate this horse's greatest unofficial feat that still stands today: "Running the second fastest Kentucky Derby in history."
You've seen the movie Secretariat, now learn more about the brilliant horse that truly helped Secretariat become famous.
Upon first researching my book in 2001, I learned how difficult it was to find information about the horse, Sham. I found very little written about him, and what I did find was often inaccurate or incomplete. I was determined to tell his story.
Sham was a magnificent thoroughbred racehorse who ran in the 1973 Triple Crown races. He was bred by Claiborne Farm and trained by Frank Martin. Sham was owned by Sigmund Sommer, a New York real estate developer who had a passion for horse racing.
In the 1973 Kentucky Derby, Sham ran the second fastest Kentucky Derby in history — a record that still stands today. He ran the mile and a quarter in 1:59 2/5, just two-fifths of a second behind Secretariat's world record of 1:59 1/5. Sham's time would have won every other Kentucky Derby in history.
In the Preakness Stakes, Sham again finished second to Secretariat. The two horses ran so far ahead of the rest of the field that it was essentially a two-horse race. Sham's time in the Preakness was also a track record at the time.
In the Belmont Stakes, Secretariat won by an astounding 31 lengths, setting a world record that still stands. Sham finished last in that race, having given everything he had in the first two legs of the Triple Crown.
What makes Sham's story so remarkable is that in any other year, he would have been the Triple Crown winner. He was that good. His times in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness were extraordinary — he simply had the misfortune of running against the greatest racehorse of all time.
After the Triple Crown, Sham never raced again. He was retired to stud at Claiborne Farm, where Secretariat also stood. The two rivals spent their retirement years in the same bluegrass pastures of Kentucky.
I wrote this book because I believed Sham deserved to have his story told. He was not just a footnote in Secretariat's story — he was a great champion in his own right. I hope that readers will come away from this book with a new appreciation for one of the greatest underdogs of all time — Sham.
— Mary