The Three Men Behind One Great Horse

Behind every great story, there is always a special partnership in relationships. The story of Seabiscuit, one of the world’s most famous racehorses, is no exception. Seabiscuit was a national hero in the midst of the Depression when people needed a boost in their spirits. In 1938, Seabiscuit got more press in the newspapers than President Roosevelt and Adolf Hitler. Not only did he set a record for earnings, but he defeated the great War Admiral—a Triple Crown winner, in a head to head contest. Most horse racing experts consider that race to be one of the greatest of all time.

What made this incorrigible horse so successful? It was the three man horse racing team of Charles Howard, Tom Smith and John Pollard, and their unique ability, despite their differences, to join forces. Ecclesiastes 4:12b says, “A cord of three strands is not easily broken.” This group of guys became a three stranded cord that made American history.

Charles Howard was a successful distributor of Buick, National, and Oldsmobile vehicles for all of the western U.S. The enterprise made him incredibly wealthy. Fifty-six year old Tom Smith was a man of the Old West. During his career, he held such jobs as horse trainer, lion tracker and ranch foreman. The two men could not have been more different.

Author and racing expert Laura Hillenbrand says of Howard and Smith:

The two men stood in different halves of the century. Smith was the last of the true frontiersmen; Howard was paving Smith’s West under the urgent wheels of his automobiles. Howard was driven by image; Smith remained the Lone Plainsman, forbidding and solitary. But Howard was blessed with an uncanny eye for horsemen. He took one look at Smith and instincts rang in his head. He drove Smith to his barn and introduced his horses to their new trainer.

John Pollard was the third part of this unlikely team. Not only was he a rider, but he had been a not so good prize fighter. He was a very tough man. As a jockey, he was oversize at 5 feet seven inches. By the time he was chosen to ride Seabiscuit, his racing career had seen better days. His best riding trait was the fact that he was willing to ride horses that other jockeys were afraid to try.

Jesus said in Matthew 18:19-20, “Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done by my Father in heaven. (20) For where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them.” The business magnate, the frontiersman, and the prize fighting jockey, three people who had nothing in common agreed on one thing—a seemingly worthless racehorse. They became a three stranded cord as they focused on the one thing they had in common and not on their differences.

I pray we would do the same as believers in Christ, and make history to the glory of God. The one thing we can agree upon is Jesus is Lord and Savior. Let’s focus on him and join together in our differences to accomplish his purpose.