Detroit City of Champions
Detroit City of Champions
The Other Champions of 1935: Azucar and the first Santa Anita Handicap - Episode 106
Episode 106: The Other Champions of 1935: Azucar and the first Santa Anita Handicap
While the name Seabiscuit is synonymous with horse racing in the 1930’s, there was another who rose to the greatest height on the largest stage: Azucar.
What connects a Hollywood blockbuster, a forgotten champion racehorse, and Detroit's golden sporting era? The answer lies in one of the most spectacular sporting events of the Great Depression – the inaugural Santa Anita Handicap of 1935.
While most fans know Seabiscuit's story through film, few realize that the first-ever Santa Anita Handicap – offering an unprecedented $100,000 purse when houses cost just $4,000 – was won by a Detroit-owned horse named Azucar. This seven-year-old former steeplechaser defeated the most celebrated horses in America while Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, and Clark Gable watched from the stands.
The victory wasn't just another win; it was part of Detroit's extraordinary "City of Champions" era when the Lions captured the NFL championship, the Tigers won the World Series, and the Red Wings claimed the Stanley Cup – all in 1935. Joe Louis was simultaneously beginning his boxing dominance, creating a perfect storm of championship success that transformed Detroit's sporting identity.
What makes the Azucar story even more fascinating is its connection to Seabiscuit. The jockey who rode Azucar to victory, George "The Iceman" Woolf, later piloted Seabiscuit in the same prestigious race and appeared as a character in the Hollywood film. Yet the dramatic post-race scene – where Azucar violently rejected his winner's blanket and dragged Woolf nearly 100 yards while spectators screamed – never made it into newspaper accounts.
When Azucar returned to Detroit, an astonishing 8,000 fans filled the racetrack grandstands on a Sunday morning just to witness a workout. As track officials noted, "It proves that Detroiters are a great deal more interested in racing than they were at this time last year" – a testament to how championship fever had captivated the city during America's most challenging economic period.
Join us as we uncover this forgotten chapter in Detroit's remarkable sporting history and explore how this championship fits into the larger story of a city that defied the Depression through athletic excellence.
https://linktr.ee/DetroitCityofChampions
www.DJJamieDetroit.com
www.WearingFunny.com
Charles Avison: 0:00
revolution look kind of like that.
Jamie Flanagan: 0:01
There, too, I gotta work on it 1935 the lions win the nfl championship, the detroit tigers take the world series, the red wings bring home lord stanley's cup. Joe lewis begins his rise to world domination. This transforms the motor city into Detroit City of Champions. There's a crack of the bat, we are off and rolling. Another episode of Detroit City of Champions. The podcast I'm Jamie Flanagan, charles Avison, and we got that far down.
Charles Avison: 0:37
That's cool. Oh yeah, heck, yeah, dude 106 episodes in yes, we got that.
Jamie Flanagan: 0:42
I'm sorry I was basking in the theme song, basking in the theme in the theme song. Themes are the oh, a show with a theme song, a show with a theme song. And here I was.
Charles Avison: 0:50
I have my new baseball show. I've got two episodes in and I was getting ready for my.
Jamie Flanagan: 0:55
We're doing the third episode I will not allow them to have it and I just brought out.
Charles Avison: 0:58
I have a song. I was all excited because I got a theme song for my new show and I I played it for Jamie. Jamie's like Jamie thinks it's copyrighted so I probably shouldn't play it.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:07
Well, you know you didn't write it. I didn't write it and I have no idea where it came from, so it's copywritten.
Charles Avison: 1:13
Shazam didn't bring it up as a musical.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:14
That's not.
Charles Avison: 1:17
I yield to Jamie's counsel but that's what I'm saying. I'm basking in the theme song intro because I get into it when I got a theme song it leads me into the show.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:27
We'll get you a theme song. I know, I know.
Charles Avison: 1:31
I'm just listening to the viewers. I've heard they like to know about behind the show stuff and behind the show stuff. This was occupying our time.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:42
People should like subscribe. Leave a comment here at Detroit City of Champions. Wherever you've listened to the podcast or wherever you're watching the videos, they're there, and so just collect or follow or whatever it is. That helps a lot and we appreciate you doing that. And then Baseball Revolution.
Charles Avison: 1:54
Yeah, yeah, Baseball Revolution on.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:56
YouTube. It's a YouTube channel, baseball Revolution, and you can find it there and again, streaming live Podcast your Voice on Facebook. It streams on Podcast your Voice on Facebook. It streams on to Podcast your Voice on Facebook and on Baseball Revolution. There's a Baseball Revolution page on the FaceSpace as well. I was worried about you, though, chuck. Today I did another podcast. I'm launching another. Now I have four.
Charles Avison: 2:19
Yeah, jamie, and Baseball Revolution is part of it. No, that's five. That's five. Yeah, there you go. That's two today.
Jamie Flanagan: 2:24
You're going to do at least for that, so I've been doing music Radio City.
Charles Avison: 2:28
Cobra Is it.
Jamie Flanagan: 2:33
Radio City Cobra right.
Charles Avison: 2:34
Radio Cobra Detroit.
Jamie Flanagan: 2:35
Radio Cobra Detroit. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, no, I had it. Radio Cobra Detroit.
Charles Avison: 2:40
As you said, that I'm like wait, wait, wait.
Jamie Flanagan: 2:42
No, what I mean it? Just like what is it is that it yeah, no so I had been on 96.3 wdvd here in detroit for like the last 17 years doing weekends, pop music, lots of kelly clarkson and maroon 5. Uh, shoot me now, shoot me, now, shoot me now.
Charles Avison: 2:58
Now you get to play what, whatever you want, cool stuff so I partnered up with the guys who launched 89X.
Jamie Flanagan: 3:05
If anybody in the Metro Detroit area knows about 89X or if you're anywhere else in the United States and you have a station, that was the Edge, anytime after like 92, anytime like 91, 92 and after the Edge that was consultants. The guys who started 89X were consulting people and they launched these Edge stations and they're all over the country and there's the alternative format. So it was 89X launched early like 89, 90, and playing retro alternative. You know the Cure, depeche Mode, erasure and then playing like all the. You know the current alternative as stuff came out. You know Sisters of Mercy and the cult and social distortion and you know then all the Seattle Pearl Jam, nirvana and all that as those bands broke and then all through the 90s and it finally went to funk. But the guy who launched 89X has started this radio, cobra Detroit, and it's cool. It's all the cool retro alternative, the 90s stuff. That was really cool but we've added soul and funk. Played Stone Temple Pilots on there.
Jamie Flanagan: 4:18
And new stuff.
Charles Avison: 4:19
Is that on there? Oh yeah, stone Temple Pilots. That was my favorite band in high school. Definitely back in man, that was my favorite band. And then I heard somebody playing at a party store the other day in Detroit and I was like man the kid playing. It was like in his late 20s maybe, and I was like man, that was my favorite band. He's like yeah, it's like some classic.
Jamie Flanagan: 4:35
I'm like so, but one of the things we're going to do on Radio Cobra Detroit is for unsigned, underappreciated independent bands from Detroit and other places, and one of our first guests was this cat named Jimmy Doom who was in the movie Kill the Irishman. He was in a movie with David Carradine. He's an actor and he was in this late 80s, early 90s Detroit band, almighty Lumberjacks of Death Dang. Jimmy Doom Sounds intimidating. Jimmy Doom, but he's a writer, he sounds intimidating Jimmy Doom, but he's a writer, he's a prolific writer, he's an author.
Charles Avison: 5:09
Yeah, we're going to see if he wants to carry his book in our store.
Jamie Flanagan: 5:12
No, no, no, but this ties into you. So this is his latest book. It's like that Fountain Ain't Gonna Grant your Wish and they're short stories. They're short fiction called human beings human comma beings 365 and they're 100 word stories. So he has 365, 100 word stories uh it's cool, they're actually they're pretty cool.
Jamie Flanagan: 5:30
So anyway. But so jimmy and I were talking and on this and it's for the homeboy show because we talked about his music and we played some almighty lumberjacks of death and then we talked about his writing and his movies and stuff, but he's like he's getting his butt kicked. People are they're bootlegging his book. What? And I'm like I was, I was worried about you in the city of champions and I but the this book is a little too intricate, because books like this that are just texts right, this is like just short stories, it's just fixtures of text. They're booting them and it's like from kindle. They'll like take the kindle shots and they're and they're selling them.
Jamie Flanagan: 6:04
He's like it says like hurting and he's on, uh, substack and he does a lot of publishing on substack and a lot of the authors on substack and they talk, but he was stephen king is like, oh my god, yeah, my books, this book got bootlegged and this book got bootleg. But stephen king has a whole, you know, corporate machine, yeah, of kingdom behind him to go after these people. But independent guys like Jimmy Doom and these other independent little authors, they're getting their butts kicked. Now I don't think people, because I don't know if you got it.
Charles Avison: 6:37
There's not a Kindle version of Detroit City of Champions and it's not all text that can just be ripped you know, somebody have to go through and scan every page and through an ai, just the two, the final two books alone, like I numbered them up to. I numbered the first two books I I wrote as one book, so the right, right. So this is the third book I have here, you know, which is the the second of the two players books and these two books alone, like the final page of this of of book three. Again, page number one is book two and then the final page of this is page number 836 so you're scanning?
Charles Avison: 7:16
yeah, your machine, the lamp's gonna burn out by the time it gets to that but I was just really surprised that people are bootlegging books.
Jamie Flanagan: 7:23
He's like, oh no, oh no, he goes. It's really prolific, it's like really bad and it's all, and it's like with all the AI and it's like all this intelligence and computers helping us, it's helping people scam somebody over in Kuala Lumpur, click, click, click, click, click and are stealing from other people.
clips: 7:51
And they're protected because they're in another country, and it's all done online and it's all this virtual money and it's weird.
Jamie Flanagan: 7:54
It's crazy, but I was thinking about you and it's like as an as an independent publisher, as an independent author and publisher. You know, I was worried, I'm worried about you too, and I'm not worried.
Charles Avison: 8:01
Well, that book is a little harder to do. But the the thing about, I think, for my mindset is would I try to go after him? I'm sure I would. You know what I mean. I'd probably be kind of annoyed by it, yeah. But there's the other side of it too, which is like I don't know. It might be kind of like, if I'm helping to drum up Kindle, if there's like somebody else out there that's like that's interested in getting the book, so much that they're going to rip it off the internet and read it. You know, I mean, it's kind of like I'm almost flattered that somebody wants to read it. It's 800 pages. You know two books together are 1,000 pages, yeah. So it's like I mean, it's somebody that's going to, you know, rip the book off the internet.
Jamie Flanagan: 8:43
You know who eugene carroll is yeah all right. So she wrote a note on here on jimmy's book is jimmy doom is a genius, repeat, genius, okay that's on his, on his line of notes I mean, she's like, she's like a fan of his and she's on substack or she's a she's a fan of his on substack.
Jamie Flanagan: 9:01
And he was like because he didn't know, and she like made a comment and he was like oh, somebody said oh, this was excellent, like in all caps. He's like oh, that's cool. He's like Holy crap. That was E Jean Carroll just commented on my thing. He was like super jazzed about. But I was amazed by that part of his story that people put like that, that's crappy. And what he said he said buy it either from me he goes contact me through substack, jimmy doom through substack or buy it on amazon. So he was he's advocating for people to buy it because he gets his cut when it comes to amazon.
Charles Avison: 9:33
Did you know when he self-published that, or if, or if he or did he put that out as like did some other publisher?
Jamie Flanagan: 9:39
he's working with a publisher? Yeah, yeah so, uh, he's got a couple, he's got an investor that was backing him on this, that got it published and printed. Yeah, but yeah, he didn't self-publish, but yeah, I just found that fascinating, that people.
clips: 9:52
I mean there's people trying to scam him Because he used to be in a band.
Jamie Flanagan: 9:54
He was in a band, so he was in a 90s punk band, right yeah, he was like you know. It was all about people bootlegging records and copying tapes and recording shows and bootlegging stuff. And now he's doing books and with all the new AI and the Internet, and now books are being bootlegged, it's like you move from one bootlegged industry to another where you're not getting paid for your hard work, Blood, sweat and tears.
Jamie Flanagan: 10:25
Yeah, I just thought it was interesting. And then, because this, the Detroit City of Champions story, that's your blood, sweat and tears.
Charles Avison: 10:31
Well, the other thing about these books, too, is that I think that people you know these are the most. I mean I can stake a claim that these are the most visual sports books ever made. I mean, there's so much the photos in here, virtually every photo is original.
Jamie Flanagan: 10:44
Oh, we're going to see some cool stuff today.
Charles Avison: 10:46
Virtually every photo is original. There are photos that came out of microfilm and all this, and so I like to think that these are the kind of books that you know. Obviously, there's a ridiculous amount of information in them, but I think these are the kind of books that anybody that would want to read this would want a physical copy, like I mean, you'd want the paint, I mean it's the images and the the feel of it.
Charles Avison: 11:09
It's like I don't think I'm if. If somebody did bootleg it or whatever and sell it online, you know it's. I don't, I don't know.
clips: 11:16
I'm just not worried but you're out there my sales.
Charles Avison: 11:19
I make a hundred dollars a trillion a hundred per every trilogy I sell. You know that's my main seller yeah, well, you're getting a. You're getting a you know a huge set of trilogy of books, and so it's kind of like these are the kind of books you kind of want to own. I mean, they're physical books, so you know, I mean I'm just not worried about it. Maybe I would if I actually saw it on there getting sold like bootleg.
Jamie Flanagan: 11:41
But I'm not, but it's a different animal. Like you said, the books that are like just straight up textup text that's easier to bootleg than what you have, that presentation.
Charles Avison: 11:53
Yeah, you could almost put that in a PDF.
Jamie Flanagan: 11:57
Yeah, and that's what they do. They rip it into a PDF and they're selling it. Did he already?
Charles Avison: 12:00
have a pre-existing online. Did he already have it? You said it was on Kindle already.
Jamie Flanagan: 12:05
No, it was the first book. He had his first book, the human beings, 365 stories, or whatever yeah 365 he had that online. A pdf got leaked because that pdf got bootlegged because that's what I'm saying.
Charles Avison: 12:19
If it's online, these internet types, they just will copy and paste, yeah, and put it all.
Jamie Flanagan: 12:23
You know, my god yeah, and then, but then they both came out on amazon and on kindle, and then that's another way yeah, mine.
Charles Avison: 12:29
beggars are doing it off of the Kindles. I never put mine. There's no digital version. It's hard, it would be impossible. You'd have to literally scan every page.
Jamie Flanagan: 12:36
And it wouldn't translate to a Kindle. This stuff wouldn't translate to a Kindle? Yeah, I don't think so, but anyway, I was just fascinated by that. The bootlegging.
Charles Avison: 12:45
It. It's like the music I wanted to use for my show Right.
Jamie Flanagan: 12:48
I was about to bootleg that. So don't steal people's crap, man. It's not cool.
Charles Avison: 12:51
I wasn't trying to steal it If I knew the artist.
Jamie Flanagan: 12:53
I would try to contact them.
clips: 12:55
I give a 20. I'm going to slip them a fin.
Charles Avison: 12:56
I love their song and I want to use it as my show header, but I don't even know the artist. Though, Having a ton of fun, we're going to be talking about horses today.
Jamie Flanagan: 13:04
Yeah, this is a great show and we're like so I'm excited about this one. But going back, let's rewind a little bit. I came across something and I posted it on our Facebook. So again, yeah, this is a little bit of separate news. Thanks for following along with us. And then, if you follow us on Facebook, the videos are on there. The videos are on YouTube and then the audio is. Wherever you get your audio podcasts you can find us, so subscribe and collect there.
Jamie Flanagan: 13:44
But when I see stuff about champions and things on Facebook, I'll pull it up. And there was a posting because when we were doing the stuff about the Miss America 9, there was a really cool news story that we watched and we showed. We talked about the Miss America 9. And so I followed this boat group because it was posted in there, and that boat group posted pictures of somebody got the Miss America 8. And refurbished it. But it's a beast, she is a beast. Is there video with itished? And? But it's a, it's a beast, she is a beast. Is her video with it? Uh, no, but there's a couple crazy stills. So if you go to our facebook detroit city of champions facebook or if you're watching this video, yeah. So there she is. There's the picture of the miss america eight and the pipes are all standing up that thing and it's all chrome.
Jamie Flanagan: 14:27
Look at, look at, look at that, look at that where's?
Charles Avison: 14:29
Where's she at?
Jamie Flanagan: 14:29
I don't know I didn't read the whole story.
Charles Avison: 14:31
Come on, read the article.
Jamie Flanagan: 14:33
But wait, look at that, look at that.
Charles Avison: 14:34
Dang.
Jamie Flanagan: 14:34
Look at that, it's like crazy chrome.
Charles Avison: 14:39
Is that green energy?
Jamie Flanagan: 14:40
No, that is not that is they don't have an electric cylinder in there, it's just the heads and the pipes, All the pipes are shooting straight up and they're all chrome.
Charles Avison: 14:53
In case you can't see this, you're listening to audio this thing's got pipes man, it's just chrome, it's just all exhaust pipes blasting straight up into the sky.
Jamie Flanagan: 15:02
It's gorgeous, is that not gorgeous? It's amazing. Heck yeah, I can't even imagine sitting behind that as that beast is running man, whoever did that is, uh is like my favorite person right now alive, right, they're like the coolest person, just a beast man. So it's uh, and then?
Charles Avison: 15:18
imagine asking somebody hey, you want to go take a ride in the boat, you know, and you're like, oh yeah, you think you're going out like on some kind of a fishing boat or like some kind of a little you're like you know, you pull up in that thing and you're just belching out smoke.
Jamie Flanagan: 15:31
Yeah, so there it is. It's the Miss America 8. It's got U16 on it. Let me look. Let me see. Let me jump back to the story because I was just doing this quickly, because I thought you had seen it.
Charles Avison: 15:43
No, I don't do too much Facebook stuff.
Jamie Flanagan: 15:45
I don't do too much, I'm not even really on. Gail Woods who? Facebook stuff I don't do too much. I'm not even really on Gail Woods. Who's Gail Woods? Yeah, she's a friend of ours. Gail Woods posted these oh no, gail.
Charles Avison: 15:53
I'm thinking of another girl I don't know, gail, then, or maybe no. I do know Gail. Is it Gail Woods? Yeah, she's my mom's friend, gail Woods.
Jamie Flanagan: 15:59
And this was at Let me make sure this was at the 2023 ACBS ES International Show Bay Harbor here in Michigan with the Water Wonderland chapter of the. So the Antique and Classic Boat Society was the site that posted this at their thing. So just cool as all.
Charles Avison: 16:21
Let me see. Her name is Gail Wood or Woods Gail. If it's Gail Wood, maybe there's a chance.
Jamie Flanagan: 16:29
Woods with an S. Okay, gail Woods with an S. So yeah, so it's just. But yeah, it was just really amazing. So I was just so taken by all the chrome in the pictures, just really. Don Kittle posted the photos.
Charles Avison: 16:47
Well, there's no, I'm yeah, that's an amazing photo In the.
Jamie Flanagan: 16:50
ACBS yeah, so that's. And it's amazing Because we didn't know. We knew the 9 and the 10.
Charles Avison: 16:58
Well, we know where the 10 is, we know where the 9 is up and running. Now it's just amazing that the 8 is up and running.
Jamie Flanagan: 17:03
We thought because we, because most of the times when these were like they blew up or crashed or they stripped them and, I'm sure, because these engines aren't- no, those are different engines.
Charles Avison: 17:16
There's no way those are the original. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, Because the original ones. They eventually used them in the 10.
Jamie Flanagan: 17:22
So the Miss America 10 has original-ish. They have the Packard motors in them and that sits up at the Packard Museum when it's not out on tour being displayed. So yeah, the 10. The 9 has Chevy motors in it. Oh okay, that's the news story that we saw, that we talked about and shared. That the family said oh my God, thank you for sharing this story.
Charles Avison: 17:45
Didn't they say we could come down there and drive it? Yeah, we can come drive it whenever we want, whenever we want. I want to go there right now. What are we doing on this show, man? I?
Jamie Flanagan: 17:51
know, I know I want to go to that boat, but we didn't know that the 8 was still out and about and functioning.
Charles Avison: 17:57
Yeah, we might have to do a series next year on the road where we're going to travel to the different Miss Americas.
Jamie Flanagan: 18:03
I was just so I posted it. I was like, oh, and I was surprised you didn't say anything. No, if I would have, if I would have said something.
Charles Avison: 18:11
You're not a Facebook guy. You're not a big social media guy.
Jamie Flanagan: 18:13
You live in the real world, me, I'm floating around the ether.
Charles Avison: 18:16
Well, in the past I have been a little bit, but the problem is that I sort of find myself once.
Charles Avison: 18:25
I start clicking on there and then I message them and it starts these conversations and it ends up being like I'm holding three or four conversations at the same time and I feel bad if I don't message somebody back and it's like I don't know. I'm so busy all day, I'm nonstop all day and I've got my hands in so many different projects constantly. It's just nonstop, and so that's one of the things I just don-stop. You know, and so it's, and so I.
Jamie Flanagan: 18:50
That's one of the things I just don't so you missed it on the socials and yeah, that's why. That's why I brought it up, because you got on twitter. I mean, I'm on twitter, but I don't really do.
Charles Avison: 18:57
It's an amazing.
Jamie Flanagan: 18:57
That's worth the, that's worth the trip to either check this video out if you're listening to the audio version, you can check the video out and we we showed it, or just go to our Facebook page, detroit City of Champions and you can see the post go down. I posted it back. I don't know when you listen, wherever, whenever, however, so it was back on September 18th of 2023 is when I posted that. Yeah, it was like last week.
Charles Avison: 19:21
Well, yeah, but somebody might listen to this. Oh, that's right. This might be like a year or two from now or so, whenever.
Jamie Flanagan: 19:25
Yeah, that's true, so you do got to put days in your tracks. So when they get this off of the space relay on the Mars lander.
Charles Avison: 19:33
A hundred years later, or something.
Jamie Flanagan: 19:35
They'll know to go back to September 18 of 2023 to see this image.
Charles Avison: 19:40
Well, the prize for the greatest human being who ever lived is going to go to whoever gets that. Miss America 10 going on the river.
Jamie Flanagan: 19:48
Whoever gets, if anybody, that actually no, miss America 10. It doesn't run yeah it does, no, it does not, no, it does not run. That's just a show, that's just a-.
Charles Avison: 19:56
Yeah, it's the original, but there's no way there's a video where they talk about how difficult it is to get that 10 going. Oh is it really it took Garwood's entire crew and this is back when you had the creme de la creme who built that thing? That doesn't run they had to go through so much just to get it to run one time.
Jamie Flanagan: 20:14
The boat we were sitting in front of.
Charles Avison: 20:16
Just to get it to run.
Jamie Flanagan: 20:18
One race that doesn't run right now.
Charles Avison: 20:19
No, heck, no, that thing is a monster. That eight is amazing, it's a great boat is amazing, it's a great boat. But the 10, that thing's like three times the size of that. It's a monstrous boat In order to especially, it'd be one thing to get it. I don't know about that we're going to have to call our packer. It'd be one thing to get it to, just to get the engines going, that's one thing. But to get it to plane.
Jamie Flanagan: 20:41
Those are almost 100 year old engines?
Charles Avison: 20:43
Yes, but here's the thing. It's one thing if you just got the boat running on the river, okay, that you could probably do, but to get that boat back up on its plane.
Jamie Flanagan: 20:52
Oh yeah, To get it back up onto its plane. No, up to speed, you wouldn't want to do that.
Charles Avison: 20:55
Yeah, no, but I'm just saying to get it back up on its plane. This original thing, that's virtually impossible. That's what I'm talking about. It's a piece of If somebody ever got the Miss America 10 to plane again. Get it back up on the river and plane like get up to speed on that thing.
Jamie Flanagan: 21:10
I want to put a mustache on the Mona Lisa.
Charles Avison: 21:12
You don't want to do that. No, why wouldn't you want to get it to this? No, it's a totally different thing.
Jamie Flanagan: 21:16
The mustache on the Mona.
Charles Avison: 21:18
Lisa would be to destroy it. You would destroy this boat if you tried to make it run. No, but if you did get it to plane and get it back up on the river for one pass down the river, up on its plane, you'd be the greatest person who ever lived.
Jamie Flanagan: 21:31
And then, it would fall to ash at the end of it.
Charles Avison: 21:33
It's made of mahogany.
Jamie Flanagan: 21:35
It's not going to fall apart it would like totally, and then you just drew a mustache on the Mona.
Charles Avison: 21:40
Lisa. No, if you blew it up, yeah, you'd be the worst human being, right? Yeah, I get it, so you?
Jamie Flanagan: 21:44
don't want to take that chance.
Charles Avison: 21:45
I know, but, man, to see the Miss America 10 go down the river. So you're saying there's a chance, no, to get the Miss America 10 to play in the eight. So again you jump in the eight. You jump in the eight with a shiny, shiny, chrome. Oh, I'm not taking anything away from the eight, I'm saying, and they are at the top of the list for coolest people who ever lived.
Jamie Flanagan: 22:04
There's no doubt about that. That is just crazy time.
Charles Avison: 22:05
I'm throwing it out there about the 10. The 10, if that thing ever got up on its plane again. Whoever did that is like super humans. They're like the greatest people of all time. So that was really my point. I wanted to get the 10 to plane again. All right.
Jamie Flanagan: 22:25
It's a dream of mine. The 8 and the 9 are going Different engines, but Well, I'm not again.
Charles Avison: 22:29
it's not a zero-sum game. I'm not saying like because the 10's not going. Trust me, that's a dream bowl At Miss America 8, that's amazing. That's a great thing.
Jamie Flanagan: 22:40
That is just on my bucket list here.
Charles Avison: 22:42
Well, maybe we should take this show on to a tour next year and go do some Miss America 8 and 9 driving.
Jamie Flanagan: 22:47
Because we had so much fun down in Portsmouth.
Charles Avison: 22:49
Oh yeah.
Jamie Flanagan: 22:50
With the Portsmouth Spartans who became the wonderful, wonderful Lions. Yeah.
Charles Avison: 22:56
Yeah, the Lions, yeah, and they're all blowing me up about the Lions for this year. They're all Lions fans, man.
Jamie Flanagan: 23:02
All right so, but today this is the longest opening ever.
Charles Avison: 23:10
Well, we just go with it. Man, we're not here to some schedule. I mean, it's not like we don't have an hour solid of content.
Jamie Flanagan: 23:17
We could stop now, and this would be the episode.
Charles Avison: 23:20
No, we can keep going. I think we should keep going. Has it been an hour All?
Jamie Flanagan: 23:24
right has it been? Feels like it Half hour.
Charles Avison: 23:27
We start at 9.15,. I think Keep All right, has it been Feels like it Half hour. We start at 9.15,. I think Keep going.
Jamie Flanagan: 23:30
I'm just messing with you.
Charles Avison: 23:32
All right, they tuned in to listen to some City of Champions. I know, I know.
Jamie Flanagan: 23:37
But yeah, I mentioned, we're going to talk about ponies today. Yeah, horses and the first Santa Nisa classic.
Charles Avison: 23:43
Santa Anita, yeah, santa.
Jamie Flanagan: 23:44
Anita, santa Anita.
Charles Avison: 23:46
Yeah, santa Anita, santa Anita, yeah. Well, the concept Handicap, so this, so the concept, it's the effing.
Jamie Flanagan: 23:53
Catalina wine mixer man that's what this is.
Charles Avison: 23:56
We're talking about it, so here's the thing. So the Santa Anita handicap. To give a little context about this, most people, or many people, have seen the movie Seabiscuit. And the movie Seabiscuit the movie sea biscuits yeah, that's. That's a great horse impression, did you get? That from mr ed did you so anyways, like if a horse could talk, that's what you, that's what it would sound like, and you nailed it okay, so anyways, so 19. So the the context for this is many people have seen the movie Seabiscuit right.
Charles Avison: 24:30
In the movie. It's kind of like the Cinderella man, where it was a big Hollywood blockbuster movie of a fantastic 1930s story and it focused around a horse. Obviously, seabiscuit right focused around a horse obviously, seabiscuit right. And so the race that Seabiscuit was like one of the main sort of stories in the movie was Seabiscuit trying to win the Santa Anita Handicap. Yeah, and what they don't really tell you in the movie or maybe they did I didn't catch on to that part but it's been a few years since I've actually seen the movie but they talk about the Santa Anita Handicap.
Charles Avison: 25:09
It's like the big deal in the movie, right see, this kid did all these things. But the santa anita handicap was like the coupe de grâce for this horse and so and so, but what they don't really mention. Again, I don't really remember the detail, but but what the santa anita handicap was was the first hundred thousand dollar horse race. Hundred thousand dollars. In the middle of the Depression, this is an insane sum of money for a victory in a horse race.
Charles Avison: 25:35
And what they certainly don't tell you is that the very first Santa Anita handicap was 1935. Okay. And furthermore, what they don't tell you is that the first Santa Anita handicap, the first $100,000 horse race ever, was won by a.
Jamie Flanagan: 25:54
Horse from Detroit.
Charles Avison: 25:54
Yes, you read my mind. It was won by a Detroit-owned horse.
Jamie Flanagan: 25:59
A Detroit-owned horse, yes, I found an article that sets the stage for the, Because they talk about the Kentucky Derby Today.
Charles Avison: 26:09
The Kentucky Derby, you know, today the Kentucky Derby yeah, that's like the prestige, it's the end-all, be-all big hats stupid clothes, crazy cocktails.
Jamie Flanagan: 26:17
This in 1935, this was the event.
Charles Avison: 26:21
This was the creme de la creme, this was the event.
Jamie Flanagan: 26:24
Let me read this. Claire Novak wrote this in 2010, but she wrote this. Let me read this. Claire Novak wrote this in 2010, but she wrote this. Steeplechaser was upsetter in 1935. Bing Crosby chased a woman's hat when it blew off in the wind. Fred Astaire bent on a horse named 20 Grand. Mrs Clark Gable wore a suit made of leather. It was February 23, 1935, and a veritable who's who of culture filled the stands of the newly opened Santa Anita racetrack, where 20 horses went to the post for the inaugural running of the Santa Anita handicap. No one expected a seven-year-old steeplechaser to win. Seven-year-old steeplechaser to win, but Sukkar, an Irish bred gelding with Spanish name for sugar, did win. Detroiter-owned Frederick Alger Jr, 27, had purchased Sukkar a Sukkar for $8,000 before the chestnut gelding earned $109,500 while trouncing some of the best horses in the country at Santa Anita, including the six-time champion, whatever and 20 grand, and they brought them out of retirement.
Jamie Flanagan: 27:42
So, yeah, so there are a couple of horses they brought out of retirement, yeah. It's a great article, so I love that beginning.
clips: 27:48
So it was a who's who. Yeah, it's Clark Gable and Fred Astaire's a great, great article.
Jamie Flanagan: 27:49
So, it's.
Charles Avison: 27:50
I love that. Beginning it was like so it was a who's who. Yeah, it's a who, it's Clark Gable, fred Astaire. That was a great article. I'm glad you found that, cause I don't. That's yeah, they, they, they really talk about the prestige of that race that was up ESPN, yeah. Yeah, that's a great. That's a great. Yeah, I love the champions. I mean, yes, it's a horse, but the owner of the horse is a Detroiter.
clips: 28:11
Fred Elger Jr.
Charles Avison: 28:11
Charles.
Jamie Flanagan: 28:12
L Appleton.
Charles Avison: 28:13
He's this guy, elger. His dad was the governor of Michigan. This is a Detroiter man through and through. He was a politician, oh there you go.
Charles Avison: 28:28
Yeah, and so was Fred, the owner of the horse. So these guys, this is a Detroiter and so they couldn't bring a zoo car into the City of Champions dinner, of course, because it's a horse. But again you have the context of Seabiscuit, where they made a movie about this horse and it did a ton of things. There's no doubt Seabiscuit, where they made a movie about this horse and it did a ton of things, there's no doubt Seabiscuit was a major story in the 1930s. But here you have the first Santa Anita handicap won by a zoo car. That's a story in itself. It's not like the second one and it's kind of a whole home event. No, this is the first $100,000 horse race. $100,000 horse race.
Charles Avison: 29:09
And what's interesting is that the same guy who was the jockey of a zoo, car his name was George the Iceman Wolf, and George the Iceman Wolf is the same jockey who rode Seabiscuit to victory in the. Santa Anita Handicap as well, and he was in the movie Shut the fuck up, he was in the movie Seabiscuit. He's the guy, if anybody has seen it, in the movie the main rider of Seabiscuit Red, who I think it's.
Charles Avison: 29:32
Tobey Maguire, who plays Red's name the jockey of Seabiscuit and something happens to him. He hurts his back or something. So the guy who fills in for him to win the Santa Anita is Wolf, it's this other jockey, that's great.
Charles Avison: 29:48
And so is Wolf. It's another jockey, that's great. And so George Wolf. So we have a screenshot of George Wolf and he's posing next to Seabiscuit I will somewhere, yeah. And so that's the same jockey from the movie Seabiscuit that is riding a zoo car to the first Santa Anita handicap victory. You know, first ever. Do I have it? Yeah, you should have it. It's two images on the screen. Well, if not?
clips: 30:12
it's not a big loss. I got it.
Jamie Flanagan: 30:14
No, it's right there.
Charles Avison: 30:14
It's the one right after the magic eye shot, that one right there, yeah.
Jamie Flanagan: 30:18
No, that's just the car on its own.
Charles Avison: 30:20
Oh, okay, well, that's fine, you can put him up there. That's the horse rightockey from the movie. So that's another sort of parallel with the movie. So again, just to kind of put this in another little bit to add to the previously established context, here, is that Seabiscuit?
Charles Avison: 30:41
they made a $100 million Hollywood movie off of and granted, the story was a little, you know it talks about it going against man of war and some of these other elements of it, but if you dug a little bit into azuka, I'm sure you'd find some other, some drama with that story too.
Charles Avison: 30:56
You know, this is, if you say it's seven years old, and and now we're going to read a quote here an article that talks about the you know this, this horse's victory, and this you know. And so what I'm saying, though, is is that that, you know, seabiscuit movie to a certain extent fits in a little box in the city champion story, just like the Cinderella man story with James Braddock. Like the James Braddock story didn't even register on the like just to put that into context is is that Joe Lewis, in 1935, won the Associated Press Award for the most Athlete of 1935 with 182 votes, and James Braddock the subject of the movie Cinderella man, which that entire movie takes place in 1935. And James Braddock only got three votes for the award that Joe Louis won with 182 votes.
clips: 31:45
So what.
Charles Avison: 31:46
I'm saying is that story? It's amazing. So that story again fits in a little box just within the Joe Louis story and that's a $100 million movie. That Seabiscuit, is this $100 million Amazing? So that story again fits in a little box just within the Joe Lewis story. Yeah, and that's a $100 million movie. That Seabiscuit, is this $100 million movie. Granted, it's got some. You know, he went against Manowar and there's some bigger events that went into it too. So I wouldn't say it fits in the box of a zoo car, necessarily, right, but a zoo car fits in the box of that If it's a $100 million movie, there's a $50 million.
Jamie Flanagan: 32:10
This is at least a $25, $50 million, yeah, and so what I'm saying?
Charles Avison: 32:13
is that Azucar is one part of all these people in episode 106.
Jamie Flanagan: 32:18
Nickelodeon can make some money off of this. Yeah well, it's hard.
Charles Avison: 32:22
That story fits in the larger context of the City of Champions story, where we're on episode 106, talking about all this.
Jamie Flanagan: 32:30
Yeah.
Charles Avison: 32:31
And Azucar again is a footnote in this story.
Jamie Flanagan: 32:35
Yeah, so that's what I'm saying.
Charles Avison: 32:40
So if this is like, a $10 million movie by itself. What is it combined with all the other stuff?
Jamie Flanagan: 32:42
we're sitting here talking about. No kidding. I got that picture of George up finally. Oh, you finally did. These are great shots. I thought these were cool George and Seabiscuit and George and Asa Khan.
Charles Avison: 32:50
He's a Hall of Fame jockey, yeah, and he's on Seabiscuit in both of these shots here. This is him on Seabiscuit, all right, but anyways, yeah, I just wanted to put that up there just to show that there's a couple shots of them, yeah.
clips: 33:02
Just to see what we're talking about.
Charles Avison: 33:05
There's a couple more shots. I'm going to read this off is where this sort of picks up yeah and so so what's the. Yeah, so this is an article that came out so shortly after the. Well, let's say, I have, I have it dated here. So I have it dated. What is it here? So when? When did you say that? When did you have the date on there, right where they said the?
Jamie Flanagan: 33:27
date february 28th. I thought I was.
Charles Avison: 33:29
Yeah, I just read yeah, so my, I might even have, I might have, I'll be. I'll be the first to admit I think I have a typo On my article, because, because I say I have this Bob Murphy article From two, it says February 24th 1935.
Jamie Flanagan: 33:42
Hang on, so so. I, I may have missed the date. It was February 23rd 1935. That's when the race was Okay. So it's right. Okay good, okay good.
Charles Avison: 33:54
I thought you said the 28th and I'm like did I misdate or?
Jamie Flanagan: 33:56
did she or something? Yeah, february 23rd, I could have misspoke.
Charles Avison: 33:58
Okay, well, so anyway, because that's what this article says right here February 23rd. This is February 24th, so this is the day after, right, right, bob Murphy. And so here's this quote. So a zoo car is basically coming back to Detroit. That's a pretty phony, so yeah, so here's the article here. Detroit racing fans will have an opportunity to see a zoo car in action during the coming racing season here this summer. The Times has learned Fred M Elgar Jr of Detroit plans to bring the horse here sometime within the next two months. Okay, I'm wrong. I thought that he had already brought it back. So this is announcing that it's coming back. Fred Elgar Jr of Detroit plans to bring the horse here sometime within the next two months.
Charles Avison: 34:38
Azucar, a reformed steeplechaser, was purchased from Joseph E Widener by Elgar. Elgar visioned the possibilities of the horse as a racer the first time he saw him. His faith and judgment have been justified. Faith and judgment have been justified. Azucar has paid for himself many times over To win the great race Azucar had to, meaning the 1935 Santa Anita Handicap. Azucar had to outrun such stars as Equipoise 20, grand Mate, ladies' Men, head Play and Time Supply. It was a truly great victory. Azucar set a track record at Santa Anita on New Year's Day for the mile and one quarter. Previously he had won important races at Saratoga and a $7,000 event in Maryland. The announcement that Azucar will appear at the local track this summer is sure to cause excitement, extremely popular on the coast. This surprising seven-year-old would have all the more reason to justify backing in this section. Mr Elgar, the owner, was on hand yesterday to witness the thrilling finish that saw his horse win the most publicized race in years. Considering the class of the field, azucar's claim to at least temporary greatness on the track is indisputable.
Charles Avison: 35:39
Young Elgar has been a lover of horses all his life. His father, the late Fred M Elgar Sr, was also fond of the ponies. Fred Jr learned to ride at an early age. After his father had given him a riding pony, he became an expert rider while yet in his early teens. Later he rode a steeplechase. Following his hunch, he purchased the handsome animal. His judgment was vindicated Saturday at Santa Anita in the most highly publicized race ever held in this country. The Detroit sportsman also owns a string of polo ponies and ranks with the best players in the local area. So the header for this next section is a zoo car draws many to track 8 000 persons attracted by the first public appearance in detroit of azucar, winner of the. So this must be advancing the. You know what it is. I think the editor. This is what, this is what she did. That was the break in that article, right there the editor of this.
Charles Avison: 36:28
I haven't read this article since. That's why? Because I have another citation here and this is so this fast forward three months and this is the horse actually arriving Not the editor, but the graphic designer for the book. I didn't catch this when she put it out Basically what it is. If you are reading my book here, what happens is that the intro article, which is dated it's dated at the top, and then it fades into the intro article, which is dated it's dated at the top and then it fades into the next article there's no break, Right, right right, but the date's at the very end, so it's like if you're looking at this section of my book.
Charles Avison: 37:02
There's a date at the top and a date at the very end, but there's no break in the middle. So it's like it's a seamless article. So anybody that sees the book, that's what ended up happening.
Charles Avison: 37:10
It took me a second to understand because he just said yesterday he won this race, and then in two months he's coming back, and then he's like 8,000 persons attracted by the first public appearance in Detroit of a Zuccar Winner of the $100,000 Santa Anita handicap filled the grandstand and lined up three deep along the rail at the Detroit racetrack early Sunday morning. So this seems to be a contradiction if there wasn't a break by three months, because the first article says in two months the horse is coming back, and then the very next sentence he's saying yesterday the horse was mobbed by adoring fans. So that's so, anyways, that's what it is. So I will. So picking up the next article, cause I do want to read it.
Charles Avison: 37:51
This one actually comes from a rare article from the Detroit News, May 20th 1935. So this is a few months later. This article was this blurb of this article was George Crable and it's K-R-E-H-B-I-E-L Crable, that's how I pronounce it. So May 20th 1935. So fast forward three months. So again the header of this article, which is a sentence break basically from the previous azucar draws many to track.
Charles Avison: 38:18
So picking right up 8 000 persons attracted by the first public appearance in detroit of azucar winner of the hundred thousand dollar santa nita handicap filled the grandstand and lined up three deep along the rail at the detroit racetrack early sunday morning. It was open house at the track, which begins its spring meeting of 39 days Thursday. The crowd was far beyond all expectations of the track officials, who thought a few hundred persons might turn out to see the racehorses in their workouts. But the crowd, which started to arrive shortly before 7 o'clock and continued to file into the stands until 10 o'clock, filled more than half of the seats and gave the track the appearance of opening day.
Charles Avison: 38:54
Charles charles e bear, general manager of the detroit racing association, was delighted with the size of the crowd and the interest shown. It proves that detroiters are a great deal more interested in racing than they were at this time last year. He said and, and and are anxious to see the horses run again. I feel that we will have a banner season. When azucar cantered slowly into the track shortly before 10 o'clock, the crowd rose to its feet in eagerness to get a peek at the horse which conquered Equipoi's 20 grand ladies, men and others in the Santa Anita. And when he slowly passed the stand in his warmup preliminary to a workout, a wave of applause swept through the well-filled stands. Les Wilson, Azucar's young trainer, also was given applause as he accompanied Azucar on a lead pony. So this is another conquering hero.
Charles Avison: 39:41
There's thousands of fans here looking at this. And he even said which is another premise of what I've been saying with this it's another supporting evidence of what I've been saying with this. He says it with his own words. It proves that detroiters are a great deal more interested in racing than they were at this time last year. Sport this season in every single element baseball, football, hockey, tennis, golf racing horse racing and every other sport in between has accelerated the interest of sporting enthusiasm in Detroit from where it was prior to this year.
Charles Avison: 40:18
It gave birth to the concept of Detroit as one of the great sports towns in the country. When every single event that you have going on is well attended, crowds are showing up, it doesn't matter where you're putting on, you've got champions everywhere you look. It's adding to the overall, to the new identity of Detroit as one of the great sports towns in the country. Oh yeah, backed up again with the same supporting evidence. No matter how small the sport is, fans are turning up to see these championships and the sport is growing.
Jamie Flanagan: 40:48
But this was a big race. This was a big deal. So I have another article here. I want to read the lead for it in a second, but this is in the middle of the article to show how big this race was and it talks about this is the examiner. I don't know the examiner.
Charles Avison: 41:01
You want to throw up that picture of the race finishing Because this is an epic photo and you can read your article with this epic picture up on the screen.
Jamie Flanagan: 41:08
The big one or the-.
Charles Avison: 41:09
This is fine. Yeah, that's a sweet-. Yeah, that's badass.
Jamie Flanagan: 41:11
So that's a car coming this is a.
Charles Avison: 41:14
Roto-Gravure picture of the race. A zoo car's in second place and it looks like he's about to come up on the lead, but it's got the mountain drop back. This is an epic photo. It's one of my favorite photos in the whole book. When I acquired this, this was an absolute must I. I remember this was like I had to have this photo for my book. I mean, the mountains are in the background. Look at that picture. That's like the greatest race photo ever taken man.
Charles Avison: 41:38
So, yeah, so while Jamie's reading this, if you can see it, this is an epic photo. If you can't see it, then you can buy the book.
Jamie Flanagan: 41:44
So billed as the richest race in history. The handicap boasted a $100,000 purse a staggering sum in Depression-era America. A $100,000 purse a staggering sum in Depression-era America. By comparison, the average cost of a new house in 1935 was slightly over $4,000. So, understandably, the Santa Anita handicap immediately captured the imaginations of countless Americans and also drew the most challenging fields in history. But here's the lead. So that was later in the story. So $400,000.
clips: 42:19
I mean $4,000, the price of a new home Average house. Average house $4,000.
Jamie Flanagan: 42:23
Wow $100,000 purse. So this is huge. People are like oh my God, can you imagine? All right, so here's the lead from this article out of the Examiner.
Jamie Flanagan: 42:32
On February 23rd 1935, a resounding bugle call signaled the start of the inaugural Santa Anita handicap. The atmosphere was surreal. In the midst of the Great Depression. Two-month-old Santa Anita racetrack had dangled the richest purse in turf history for its signature handicap. So that was their point. It's a new thing. It's like hey, let's get people in here. So the richest purse in turf history for its signature handicap. Unsurprisingly, it attracted a star-studded list of entrants. Eco Poise, a six-time champion and future Hall of Famer, was set to make her final start in her career in this event, additionally in his event. Additionally, the race would feature Head Play, the winner of the Preakness Stakes, who was involved in the infamous fighting finish of the 1933 Kentucky Derby. The handicap enticed handlers of 20 Grand, the 1931 Horse of the Year who hadn't raced since 1932, to bring their champion out of retirement. Distracted by the presence of these greats, only a handful of spectators noticed the one of the event's most unassuming runners, the seven-year-old ex-steeplechaser named Asukar.
Charles Avison: 43:53
Yeah.
Jamie Flanagan: 43:54
So it was just a fun little lead there.
Charles Avison: 43:56
It's awesome, man, yeah.
Jamie Flanagan: 43:56
Talking about pulling out the stops, and just this article goes into just the side of the examiner. We'll link these articles.
Charles Avison: 44:04
I mean I love this. I never really even I love the horse and I just kind of threw, I put these articles in, but I love actually focusing on it for a minute because this was a huge deal yeah. This is a major deal, man. This is just one of many. How can there?
Jamie Flanagan: 44:23
be any doubt. Do you want to see the race? Do you want to see the race? I would love to see the race. Do you want to hear the race? I would love to. This could get us spanked on Facebook or YouTube. I want to see the race.
Charles Avison: 44:29
Get us spanked on Facebook or YouTube. I want to see the race. I've never seen the race, so we're going to do this. I've never seen the race and Jamie found the race for me.
Jamie Flanagan: 44:34
All right, so I got the race. I can't wait to see this. This is like an interesting video. There's some interesting stuff.
Charles Avison: 44:39
This is the actual Jamie's actually got the race. I've never seen the race. I've got the photo of the race running in Detroit. Yeah, you show that real quick. Yeah, all right, as I pull this up, there's the magic eye. There's a magic eye. It's Detroit Times magic eye showing a zoo car when it came back to Detroit just galloping around and they did a magic eye shot of it. Like I said, I collect magic eyes, so if there was a magic eye from this season, it is in the books and if you love the magic eyes, I have basically every single one. I don't think there was any when I went to publish that I did not have. So this was certainly one of them.
Charles Avison: 45:16
Which is actually a Zuccar working out, and the way that they hype the photo, they're like. In case it's too small to read, it says Come on, a Zuccar Magic Eye shows famed horse working out. And then the subheader for that thing says no other paper has a camera like the Magic Eye, developed exclusively by the Detroit Times. And then another third little blurb on the photo it says Azucar here to train for Derby displays form that won $110,000. So they're like we have a Magic Eye, our camera is awesome. They hype it. They're like. No other paper has a camera like the magic eye, developed exclusively by the detroit time all right.
Jamie Flanagan: 46:02
So let's see if we get spanked for this or not, but this is like, it's like a minute five and it's uh, it's gonna be the video. Am I sharing my screen? Oh, I got to get rid of this here.
Charles Avison: 46:16
Are we going to be able to hear us talk?
Jamie Flanagan: 46:18
Yeah, we're still talking.
Charles Avison: 46:19
I want to call the race as much as possible. I'm going to be hyped for this race folks I have never seen it. There's some fun.
Jamie Flanagan: 46:26
There's some fun at the end of this too, Really. Yeah, I thought it was very, very interesting the way this wraps up this whole little news report here that we're going to share. It's the whole race in a nutshell, from 1935 as we get it loaded.
Charles Avison: 46:42
I love it, though, man. We see new stuff all the time, Like I'm learning just as much as anybody else.
Jamie Flanagan: 46:47
I've never seen this Mm-hmm, it's getting there.
Charles Avison: 46:59
Machines are evil. All yeah, I know it's good. Well, they will get even more evil.
Jamie Flanagan: 47:01
That's why it's good to get off the grid a little bit with the whole. I just yeah, unplugging is not a bad idea. I got too much crap open. Come on, best rehearsal ever this is.
Charles Avison: 47:16
We're rehearsing for the actual zoo car show right now. This is just a warm up show. Stick by us folks, because the real show is after this. This is just a warm up show.
Jamie Flanagan: 47:28
I can keep on talking, we're going to be talking after this for that baseball show. Oh you do. We got more to do, don't we?
Charles Avison: 47:34
I'm going to try to keep it short. Try to keep it short. That's the whole thing. Put out some vignettes. All right, I got notes for this one too. I don't know if I'm going to be doing notes on every show.
Jamie Flanagan: 47:55
I don't, yeah, but it's going to. I kind of felt like I needed to write something out for this film. Should I stop streaming or should I play this again? Hang?
clips: 48:02
on.
Jamie Flanagan: 48:03
I'm going to refresh this and see what we come up with as I refresh I feel like I'm rooting for the upload just as much as I'm going to be rooting for Zuccar winning the race.
Charles Avison: 48:11
I'm like come on spinny wheel.
Jamie Flanagan: 48:13
We'll get to it, and then we get a bloody commercial.
Charles Avison: 48:16
You got to pay for the YouTube commercial, free man.
Jamie Flanagan: 48:19
I know, damn it, bite the bullet.
Charles Avison: 48:22
All for.
Jamie Flanagan: 48:22
Christmas sakes, oh God, all right.
Charles Avison: 48:26
Jamie just blew it. That was our whole show.
Jamie Flanagan: 48:28
That was it man, this was the big finish. That was the big finish. Jamie blew it. No, hang on, I got this. I got this. We're going to mute this girl out here.
Charles Avison: 48:38
Like I was rooting for that spinny wheel, just as I'm rooting for the horse to finish the race and win. I'm like come on, spinny Wheel, you can do it. Load the video, you can do it. You can load it up, come on.
Jamie Flanagan: 48:49
You can do it All right, hold on, hold on.
Charles Avison: 48:57
James, I feel totally confident with you loading it up. I'm super.
Jamie Flanagan: 49:01
I want you to see the end of this. I want to see it.
Charles Avison: 49:06
I'm excited. It's all. Unless I'm not sure if I've expressed it just from the feeling on the radio or whatever. I don't know if I've expressed it enough, but I am very excited to see this.
Jamie Flanagan: 49:18
This is very Jurassic Park. It's all oohs and ahs, but then there's running and there's screaming and there's dying.
Charles Avison: 49:24
Dying, holy crap.
Jamie Flanagan: 49:26
This is dramatic. All right, I don't want to watch.
Charles Avison: 49:28
Well, I will tell a quick story while we're loading it up. When I lived in Scotland, horse racing is massive out there. It was the first place I ever saw legal gambling.
Jamie Flanagan: 49:37
Oh, okay.
Charles Avison: 49:39
And they have this horse or this race. If anybody hasn't heard of it or hasn't seen it, this is the massive race out there. Yeah, like we have the Kentucky Derby. This is like maybe they have something else, but this is a big deal. Okay, it's called the Grand National. Okay, the Grand National I'd never even heard of it before.
Charles Avison: 49:55
I lived in Scotland, but when I was there it was like the dominant thing I've, like pretty much the only race I've ever really. Well, I mean, I maybe I've caught a couple glimpses of a kentucky derby here and there, but the grand national for like three days, that's all I was doing was like reading about horse racing and which horses you wanted to pick. But this is the thing, this is what separates this race from any race that you will ever see. Is that? Is that what they do? They have like 40 horses. Oh my god, okay, this and this, this race. It's a combination of like a marathon and also like a war of attrition. Okay, like it is the craziest race you will ever see. Just look up any race. I saw a couple of them, but I can't imagine that any would be even would be less thrilling than the one I saw.
Charles Avison: 50:39
And what makes it so crazy is what makes it so crazy is so you have like 40 horses, right, and these are not the creme de la creme horses. That's because this race is so brutal. What they do is they have all these horses there's like 40 of them in a big group behind a rope, right, they just have a rope and they just drop this rope and these 40 horses just all pile out of the gate, right, they don't have individual gates, it's just a big old pile, and when these horses start to run, it's a steeplechase. So there's jumps. Yeah, there's 40 horses and they're all jumping right and the track is like Somebody's going to die.
Charles Avison: 51:17
Somebody's going to die. I think horses die on every race, oh yeah, and that's not my.
clips: 51:22
Thing.
Charles Avison: 51:26
No, die on every race, and that's not my thing. I'm not laughing about that, it's so exciting. But what I am saying is is that, like there's probably, it's probably like a I don't know two or three mile track, yeah, they run, they do a couple laps in this, on this massive track, and then, though, in that there's jumps, there's, there's like probably I don't even know 30 jumps, 30, I mean. These horses are jumping repeatedly right in this giant scrum. So what happens is that they all get to the first jump. They all jump. It looks like a wave pouring over this first jump and, of course, one horse in the pile doesn't make it because it's in a scrum of other horses, and so it hits the dirt, its face hits the dirt, the jockey gets tossed and, of course, the horses behind it, they roll over. So the first or second jump, you see horses and jockeys just rolling man, and so what's crazy is, as the race goes on, it's just like there's what's so kind of eerie about it is the horses that bite it in the first jumps.
Charles Avison: 52:30
they think they're still in the race, so they're running and there's no jockey on them.
Jamie Flanagan: 52:35
So there's all these loose horses. They're just following along.
Charles Avison: 52:37
Yeah, they're trying to win this race and they're interfering with the horses and them that are trying to win. It's crazy, man. It's like this. It's just this crazy.
Jamie Flanagan: 52:48
Steeplechase yeah, it's crazy.
Charles Avison: 52:52
I'm watching this going. Oh my God.
Jamie Flanagan: 52:54
And that's the background that AC Car comes from.
Charles Avison: 52:57
Yeah, you're right. He says this former steeplechaser, that race man, I'm telling you, go watch one of these, the Grand Nationals, and the horse that wins it. By the time they finish, out of like 40 horses, man, there's like I don't know 10 left and there's all these riderless horses and they try to divert them off the track as the race goes on. But, man, all right, we'll try this one more time. And coincidentally, here's the thing. One last little thing before you hit play on that, yeah, yeah, is I my horse that I picked? I think I picked like four or five horses, you know, because you gotta can't just pick one, go, I think, such and such going. No, you've got to go for like law of averages, you know, and so they're. And so you got to pick like four or five horses, right, and you put your bets down. They have a newspaper that has your gambling slip on and everything, and they talk about the different horses to win.
Charles Avison: 53:45
Anyways, I at the time was really into, like Reebok Classics shoes, right I was always trying to get a different color Reebok Classics and there was this slick pair of like crimson Crimson is my favorite color Crimson Reebok Classics in Scotland. I'm like I'm never going to see a pair of these again. They were like one of a kind and so, anyways, I was. So I my money that I put down that day was literally, if I won, was going to go to buy these shoes Right. So during the race. This is a true, factual story.
clips: 54:18
During the race as my horse is still in that murderous campaign.
Charles Avison: 54:23
I'm sitting there. Actually I was saying that the actual words come on. Baby Chucky needs a new pair of shoes.
clips: 54:29
I was actually saying that.
Charles Avison: 54:31
And one of my horses finished in the top three, which gave me enough money to win and buy those Reebok Classics.
Jamie Flanagan: 54:38
You got them Classics, Heck and.
Charles Avison: 54:40
I still have them to this day. I noticed them the other day in my closet. I'm like those are too pretty to even wear man, I still got them. But, I actually said those words. Chucky needs a new pair of shoes.
Jamie Flanagan: 54:49
Chucky needs a new pair of shoes. I might have this. I might have this running of the Santa Anissa Classic. Hey, there you go.
clips: 54:57
At the races Santa Anissa, california. They're off. And you see, ted Clark, das, why is?
Charles Avison: 55:14
it a British dude.
clips: 55:17
Because British dudes always sound awesome on film. Gives the lens authority.
Charles Avison: 55:20
Look at that, that guy is old man. That's number eight, number eight.
Jamie Flanagan: 55:25
Azucar is number eight, number eight.
Charles Avison: 55:26
Azucar is number eight. Come on, Azucar, Come on, baby Wait wait Watch, oh jeez, damn, damn, damn. Holy cow man.
Jamie Flanagan: 55:53
Azucar was not having it. He was getting the winner's blanket put over him. They didn't mention that part in the article. And he freaked and he dragged the jockey.
Charles Avison: 56:03
George.
clips: 56:04
Wolfe.
Charles Avison: 56:04
That was a guy Dragged George for like 100 yards.
Jamie Flanagan: 56:07
Hey, Iceman, hey it looks like the horse just iced. You Was that crazy. Yeah, did you hear the woman scream? They leave the woman's screech in there. I wonder if that was like a sound effect they laid in.
Charles Avison: 56:19
That guy was getting dragged. He's lucky to get trampled, man.
Jamie Flanagan: 56:22
And the horse was kicking and yeah, Jeez. That was nutty, I was like. That's why I was like.
Charles Avison: 56:30
That's not in the articles. They didn't say in the article here the attachment. Oh, by the way, azucar also didn't like the blanket.
Jamie Flanagan: 56:36
Kicked everybody and dragged George for 100 yards down the field Nearly killed him.
Charles Avison: 56:41
Kicked a couple people, dragged his rider down the way a little bit. George Wolfe, legendary jockey, piloted a zoo car.
Jamie Flanagan: 56:50
Oh, and he also was dragged.
Charles Avison: 56:52
Dragged after he tried to put a blanket on it's like his hands are tied in the reins.
Jamie Flanagan: 56:58
Yeah, man, it's like they don't mention that in the articles, do they?
Charles Avison: 57:01
That's one of those things you actually have to see for yourself.
Jamie Flanagan: 57:03
That ended.
Charles Avison: 57:05
It was fun while it lasted. It's all fun and games.
Jamie Flanagan: 57:08
I don't think that means what you think it means.
Charles Avison: 57:10
It's all fun and games until they try to put a blanket on a zoo car. That's about to be a new meme for the show. I think so. Yeah, it's all fun and games until you try to put a blanket on a zoo car. That's it.
Jamie Flanagan: 57:28
It's like oh, don't stuff. Whatever you do, don't put a blanket on a zoo car. Was that what they were trying to put on them?
Charles Avison: 57:30
or a thing of roses.
Jamie Flanagan: 57:31
Yeah, a blanket of roses, a blanket of roses a blanket of roses, yeah, yeah, or something that's like our new winter blanket kind of like how we say we're not going to go back and talk with the sid howe thing.
Charles Avison: 57:40
yeah, we're never going to sit there and address whether sid howe is related to gordy, and we're never going to sit there and address whether Sid Howell is related to Gordy and we're never going to talk about whether Scotty Bowman is not the same Scotty as the coach right. This is a third component of that which is because we're speaking our own language on this show, which is doing something like that or whatever, is like putting a blanket on a zoo car, that's it. We have, like our own inside humor on this show.
Jamie Flanagan: 58:04
If you get that, you are Do not put a blanket on a zoo car.
Charles Avison: 58:07
It's all fun and games until you put a blanket on a zoo car, that's it Good track. Jeez man I can't wait to go to-. No wonder he was on Seabiscuit and not trying to get on a zoo car for all the races, man. I can't wait to go to Ports.
Jamie Flanagan: 58:26
Yeah, just you and I will be sitting at the pub laughing our butts off. That's what I'm saying. Everybody else and there'll be like one other dude who listened to all the podcast episodes laughing- with us. Yeah, it's all fun and games until you try to put a blanket on a suit car and we're buying drinks for that guy. Yeah, oh, 100%, 100% If he's laughing along with us, yes, buying drinks for that guy and, by the way, that is frigging a hilarious joke.
Charles Avison: 58:43
You're like it's all fun and games until you try to put a blanket on a zoo car. That's it, or something like you have the same thing though You're like doing. That's like putting a blanket on a zoo car, that's it.
clips: 58:53
You know what?
Charles Avison: 58:53
I mean, that joke lends itself to many occasions.
Jamie Flanagan: 58:57
It really does. All right, anything else we need about the race here no, the race here no. That was fun.
Charles Avison: 59:03
That was the exclamation point the race I didn't even really get a chance to call the race.
clips: 59:08
I think it was over quick, but the post race was something else, man.
Jamie Flanagan: 59:14
You can see the look on his face too.
Charles Avison: 59:17
Well, that jockey, yeah, you think that guy. He thought he was about to get mauled to death.
clips: 59:22
The guy was getting dragged.
Charles Avison: 59:23
He got dragged. What did he get? Dragged? 30, 40 yards, man At least. Jeez, all women are screaming. Nobody was messing with that horse either. The thing was kicking people in the ass. He's like come get some. Don't put that thing on me. Whatever, they're like a zoo car, it was a champion's flower, or whatever he goes. Did I stutter?
Jamie Flanagan: 59:44
Alright, here, watch it again. Watch it again. I got it up, oh my god this is.
clips: 59:48
And then this happened. The winner became frightened when a blanket was put on his back and he pulled his jockey for some yards on the ground. A nasty situation might have been worse, Jeez.
Jamie Flanagan: 59:57
That's a good 100 yards.
clips: 59:59
Oh it's 100 yards. Easy. Look at him, they're trying to corral him and he's like I am not going to get a blanket put on me.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:00:10
I am not going to get a blanket put on me. And then this happens. And then the woman. You hear the woman shrieking, the woman in piercing shriek Judas, but it was a blanket.
Charles Avison: 1:00:20
And he said, and then they try to put a blanket on a zoo car. The horse is not having it.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:00:26
Whatever you do, don't? He's been like. I've been in steeplechases race I don't need a blankie, this is a walk in the park after the steeplechases.
Charles Avison: 1:00:37
He's like I thought you all got the memo. I don't like blankets put on me. Okay, don't. I already I've done. This is not the first time. I've done this, all right, don't put a blanket on me. And then George Wolfe, he's getting off the horse and he sees that blanket coming. He's like don't do it and he doesn't even have a chance to get the words out.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:01:00
We'll put a link in that video for the video in the, because the kids get blanked out or we have to edit it out for copyright. We'll put a link in it. Oh wow, link in it. That's coming from. Where was that?
Charles Avison: 1:01:13
I love how we built the race. I do like George Wolfe is the Seabiscuit driver, the rider. Then Seabiscuit won this race and it was the greatest race attended.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:01:21
British Pate is the the zoo car race attendant.
Charles Avison: 1:01:24
and then like the pate is uh the car, that man. He does not screw around man. If they did a movie on a zoo car, I wonder if they'd even put that in, like you'd have to that's like great, with the women screaming and oh my god man, that's like drama, how do you not? And he do. He looked like. He looked like a mannequin getting dragged. That guy was completely, total ragdoll. There was no trying to cut himself loose or trying to get on his feet to slow it down no, he was pure ragdoll.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:01:54
And he's like well, apparently this is the way I get to die. That's what he's thinking to himself.
Charles Avison: 1:02:01
So this is how I go out. I've already made my peace with.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:02:04
God today's the day.
Charles Avison: 1:02:04
This is how I go out.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:02:05
I've already made my peace with God. I've already made my peace with God. Today's the day. This is how I go.
Charles Avison: 1:02:09
I'm going out a champion, I just won this $100,000 horse race. And now it's over for me. He was completely resigned to his fate.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:02:19
Oh, he got massively lucky, he got stomped easily.
Charles Avison: 1:02:22
Well, that's what I'm saying Massively lucky, dumped easily. Well, that's what I'm saying. That's what they don't mention in these articles is, you know, not only did Fred Elgar Jr get the $100,000, but his jockey's life didn't end. That should have been a part of the and, by the way, his jockey didn't die either.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:02:41
That was good. Buried in the lead there. Don't bury the lead man. That guy was lead man.
Charles Avison: 1:02:46
That guy was screwed man.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:02:49
Lots of digressions. Today we're going to do it again. Lots more of the story of the City of Champions to share. We met Jimmy Doom, his great-great-grandfather.
Charles Avison: 1:03:00
We've got to talk to him.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:03:01
Great-great-grandfather was an editor there at the Detroit Times. I love that.
Charles Avison: 1:03:06
The Detroit Times and I love that.
clips: 1:03:08
Detroit.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:03:08
Times is my favorite paper. It's so good and I told him I'm like dude, we are like heavy on the Times in the City of Champions story it's my favorite artist for my favorite paper. So we'll have Jimmy Doom on City of Champions, yeah, and we'll have you on the City of Champions as you join us and listen each and every time. Thank you, like, subscribe, leave a comment, do all those podcast-y things in all the podcast-y places. And Baseball Revolution find that on YouTube and Facebook.
Charles Avison: 1:03:33
Yeah, we might be broadcasting it live after this or posting it tonight at some point. I don't know if we're going to go straight live into the show but, Jimmy a lot of times records and then puts it out.
Jamie Flanagan: 1:03:41
So follow that Baseball Revolution on its way to you very, very shortly. And again, please join us again. Lots more to come. It's Detroit, City of Champions. The podcast.
