Man o’ War Working Out
This photograph, taken by Charles Christian Cook, features Man o' War working out. Louis Feustel, Man o’ War’s trainer, reported “blowing him out” for three-eighths of a mile or more the day before a race, and often opening him up for an eighth the morning before a race.
The accompanying descriptions of Man o’ War are drawn from Dorothy Ours’ 2006 biography Man o’ War: A Legend Like Lightning.
“The horse reminded his owner of lightning, but not ordinary streak lightning that flashes once and rolls away. This horse seemed to set off a chain of strikes that raced across the entire landscape and lit up the whole sky.”
“With knees bouncing chest high and neck thrust up like a submarine periscope, Red’s motion didn’t look fast. The best racehorses, grabbing every inch of ground, were supposed to stretch out long and low. But Man o’ War sprang up and onward like a boulder from a catapult. His high knee action, which looked like wasted energy, was a seamless phase of this powerful arc.”
- Dorothy Ours, 20061
1. Dorothy Ours (2006). Man o’ War: A Legend Like Lightning. New York: St. Martin’s Press, p. 1, 62