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East Side, West Side, Funny Cide ... Bronx, Battery, Times Square, Wall Street, Fifth Avenue ... all around a town like no other, New York this week becomes effusively charmed - as only it can - by the unique Triple Crown quest of a horse of a different kind, a New York-bred gelding, in Saturday's endurance extravaganza in the Belmont Stakes.
Beyond the obvious magnetism, the snowballing appeal of Funny Cide, after a strong Kentucky Derby run and a dominating Preakness, centers on a gregarious old-buddy ownership gang of New Yorkers from far-upstate Sackets Harbor, a community of 1,400 on the shore of Mexico Bay, a challenging seven-hour drive from Belmont Park.
If a book on gutsy 1930s thoroughbred Seabiscuit can become a bestseller and then a movie, surely New York with all its media bosses and Broadway producers can attain sufficient rapture over a Triple Crown conquest by Funny Cide to catapult the drama to stage and screen.
It's such a captivating departure from golden Derby/Preakness/Belmont stallions whose owners tend to be billionaire oil sheiks, mainstream industrialists or heirs of prodigious wealth.
Sackets Harbor, a venue for the War of 1812, has modern cannons firing as epicenter of the Funny Cide phenomena with 40-year buddies from high school cashing in economically and spiritually with a castrated colt whose talent and courage appear boundless.
"We fully know we've got 15 minutes of fame that has moved into a half an hour, and if we win the Belmont we damn near might get 45 minutes," J.P. Constance, an optician and former village mayor, told Bill Gildea of the Washington Post. Geldings don't win Triple Crowns, nor do New York-breds, but this one has a heart-pounding shot.
Breeding possibilities are a major factor when pricey yearlings are sold, but the 10 beaming blokes from Sackets Harbor can realize fortunes despite cheap investment Funny Cide's inability to become a sire.Becoming the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years would bring, along with handsome purses, a $5-million bonus. Most of the fellows invested just $5,000. If the chums are really lucky, the gelding could run for prize money until age 9 or 10.
Is this not a script of promise?
"LUCY, I'M (STEALING) HOME": Wayne Denton of Bradenton, noting that Rickey Henderson at age 44 is scrambling around the minor leagues in quest of another chance in the majors, wonders if he will make the Hall of Fame.
Abso-blurring-lutely!
Henderson will be a first-ballot Coop-erstown choice, unless the voting Baseball Writers of America go into one of their electoral funks. Because he's not much of a media communicator, Rickey's name isn't so engraved in the minds of writers and broadcasters, like say a Mickey Mantle or a Junior Griffey.
His credentials are unique. Henderson has 3,040 hits, 2,288 runs and an astounding 1,403 stolen bases. As a thief he is the game's best ever, with season highs of 130, 108 and 100. Henderson was successful on 80 percent of his attempts. Even at age 43 for the Red Sox he made it four times in every five.
Henderson hit for power with 295 homers and was patient enough to draw 2,179 walks. In three World Series the 10-time All-Star batted .339. In my view he is one of the top 50 players ever. In 17 seasons his on-base percentage was .400-plus.
This guy was some talent.
Henderson thinks he still is.
DRAG BUNTS: Sally Bernard of Tampa e-mails, "Boy, are you right about the smart-mouth ESPN guys. Both my husband, Charlie, and I agree that Kenny Mayne usually leaves us cold and Stuart Scott is an overbearing showboat. We tune for sports results, not to see rejects from the Comedy Channel. Our top pick on ESPN always has been Bob Ley." ... My favorite new name in golf is Mads Vibe-Hastrup from the European tour. ... Kay Judson of Clearwater Beach e-mails, "Kudos for giving Michael Chang his due. I was a big fan of Stefan Edberg and Pete Sampras, for their skill and class, but Michael intrigued me more than any tennis player. If I were 15 years younger I would move to Washington state and put a move on that sweetie." ... Derek Mercer of St. Petersburg called to say, "I was pulling for Annika Sorenstam to pull the greatest golf upset ever, which prods me to ask that, from your experiences, which upsets would personally rank as the top sports shockers of all time?" In order, Derek, I'd say (1) the U.S. upset of USSR hockey Goliaths in the 1980 Olympics, (2) N.C. State's total postseason run to the 1983 NCAA men's basketball championship, (3) Jets over Colts in Super Bowl III, (4) Mets over Orioles in 1969 and (5) Buster Douglas over Mike Tyson. ... Maybe the capital fortunes of Steve Spurrier are upswinging, with the Redskins coach spicing his charity golf tournament by making a fourth hole in one, according to the Washington Times.
Whatever happened to Will Clark?