Secretariat Birthday celebration | Secretariat's Meadow

SECRETARIAT BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION AT THE MEADOW MARCH 29-30 KICKS OFF 40^TH ANNIVERSARY OF SECRETARIAT’S 1973 TRIPLE CROWN

Come Join Us Where the Legend Began!

Forty years ago in 1973, the big red horse pounded the turf in the Belmont Stakes like a “tremendous machine” and clinched the first Triple Crown in a quarter-century.

Forty years and his fame is undiminished, his fans’ adoration unabated and his record unequalled. Of the 11 champions who have won the Triple Crown since 1919, only the mighty Secretariat broke all three track records. His Derby was 1:59 2/5; his Preakness 1:53 (finally corrected this year) and his phenomenal Belmont was 2:24.

On March 29-30, fans from all over the country are converging on Big Red’s birthplace at The Meadow in Doswell, VA to celebrate his birthday and kick off the 40^th anniversary of his Triple Crown. It promises to be a historic gathering.

Penny Chenery, Kate Chenery Tweedy, Ron Turcotte and Charlie Davis are all scheduled to appear. They will be joined by some of the original grooms and riders who assisted with Secretariat when he was a colt at the Virginia farm. This will be the first time that all of them have been together at the farm. Also, for the first time ever, both of the very first training saddles worn by Secretariat and Riva Ridge will be on display by their owners.

Fans will have the unique opportunity on Friday March 29 to watch the Secretariat movie at The Meadow with the Secretariat team. There will be a panel discussion afterward as Penny, Kate, Ron and Charlie share their memories of Big Red.

The Saturday program will be chockfull of everything a fan could want:

autograph sessions with the Secretariat team;
extensive display of Secretariat merchandise and memorabilia;
local Secretariat descendants on hand;
tram tours of the historic farm, featuring Secretariat’s original foaling shed;
continuous showing of the Triple Crown races;
horse industry exhibits;
local vendors;
a “Kiddie Corral” for children;
and a special musical tribute to Secretariat.

The complete program schedule and ticket info is on our website at http://www.secretariatsmeadow.com/events/2013-events/. Come join us where the legend began!

The Secretariat Birthday Celebration at The Meadow is being co-hosted by Commonwealth Fairs and Events of Virginia and Secretariat.com of Louisville, Kentucky.

by Leeanne Meadows Ladin

co-author of

“Secretariat’s Meadow – The Land, The Family, The Legend” and “Riva Ridge – Penny’s First Champion”

Some of you may have heard the sad news that The Meadow, which was owned by the State Fair of Virginia, has been closed to the public. The Fair (a private, not for profit organization) was forced into Chapter 7 bankruptcy on March 8 when the bank did not accept its plan to reorganize.

This was heart-breaking news for Virginians who grew up going to the Fair and especially for those of us who had enjoyed a long association with its staff. That association had become even more enjoyable in recent years as we worked together on the annual Secretariat birthday party, which the Fair hosted at The Meadow, and the popular “Secretariat’s Meadow Tours” for public and private groups. We even announced our “Secretariat’s Meadow” book there in 2010. It was very sad to see our friends lose their jobs.

Our book team did not want these circumstances to force the cancellation of the annual Secretariat’s Birthday celebration, planned for Saturday March 31. So we took this on as a volunteer effort and are happy to say that Randolph-Macon College in nearby Ashland will host the event on March 31 in Andrews Hall from 1 – 5 pm. There are longstanding ties with the college as Christopher Chenery, who founded The Meadow in 1936 as a Thoroughbred farm, attended school there, along with two of his brothers. Last year, Randolph-Macon awarded Penny Chenery an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree.

Yes, the birthday program is scaled back but we still have fans coming from Texas, Minnesota, Michigan, North Carolina and Delaware! That speaks volumes about what this magnificent horse means to people across the country!

Here’s a brief outline of the program:

1:00 pm. – Welcome and Presentation on the history of The Meadow, Secretariat and Riva Ridge by Kate Chenery Tweedy and Leeanne Meadows Ladin, co-authors of “Secretariat’s Meadow, The Land, The Family, The Legend”
Meeting former Meadow grooms and jockeys and seeing Riva’s first training saddle
Discussion of possible historical designation options for important sites at The Meadow
Continuous showing of Secretariat’s and Riva’s most famous races
Book signings and sale of Secretariat items
Secretariat and Riva cake
3:00 p.m. – Repeat presentation by authors
5:00 p.m. – EVENT CONCLUDES

Tickets are $5 at the door and advance registration is required. Because seating is limited, we ask that you indicate whether you will attend the 1:00 pm or 3:00 pm presentation. Go to our website www.secretariatsmeadow.com for more info and to register.

As for The Meadow, we will keep our readers posted on future developments here, on our website and our Facebook page.

In any event, we sincerely hope that next year in 2013, we will be back at The Meadow to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Secretariat’s Triple Crown!

by Leeanne Meadows Ladin

co-author of “Secretariat’s Meadow”

Secretariat's Meadow

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