Animal Kingdom won the 137th Kentucky Derby, and it was quite a shock to horse-racing fans. Any horse could’ve won, of course, but leading up to the big race, Animal Kingdom was never mentioned in conversations about which horses were likely to win the prestigious event. All the talk was of high performers Dialed In and Uncle Mo, the latter being scratched before the race due to unexpected illness.
So, being a rookie at horse-betting, I placed my money on Dialed In, since he was the one remaining favorite with the odds stacked comfortably in his favor. I wanted to win.
There were a few others that had decent odds and buzz. So, to beef up my chances to win, I hedged my bet with trifecta and “to win” wagers on the three I heard about the most: Mucho Macho Man, Nehro and Pants on Fire. Even TLC’s Chilli said on the red carpet that she expected Pants to come in, so I was among good company. But neither he nor the other three won, placed or showed. One of the long shots ended up in the Winner’s Circle with a stunning come-from-behind victory.
Many of us stood in the grandstand and watched our money get trampled under Animal Kingdom’s suddenly lightning-fast feet. We watched him as he shot past the quickest and sturdiest horses at the last minute to win the Kentucky Derby and a chance to sport the winner’s blanket of roses. What transpired in the “fastest and most exciting two minutes in sports” ended up being a good life lesson for me: The best bet and biggest payoff is sometimes the long shot.
Long shots in horse-racing are the horses that don’t stack up to the best in the field for various reasons. They may be the slowest and most inexperienced, or they may have had poor showings at races prior to the big event. Whatever the reasons, they aren’t favored to win, but still find themselves in the running, which has parallels to my life.
In life, I’ve found myself “in the running” as the long shot in situations from career to relationships and have given up on occasion due to what I felt were insurmountable odds. But did I miss a huge payoff by not sticking in there? Probably.
Just because Animal Kingdom wasn’t favored to win didn’t preclude him from remaining in the race. His owner put him in, knowing his strengths, and let him run. And he won — with a pay off that was more than the favorite could’ve delivered. I’m sure both horse and jockey had to dig deep and overcome weaknesses to pull off the win, but they pulled it off and on the grandest stage possible — the Kentucky Derby.
Thank God for revelations because that, to me, says, “Stay in the race. What may seem impossible and overwhelming just may end up being your greatest victory.”
So, if life — or God, if you’re a praying person — has led you down a path that seems bigger than you or more than you can handle in view of your weaknesses, stick in there because you may just come from behind and wind up in the winner’s circle as did Animal Kingdom. To borrow from scripture, the race, indeed, isn’t given to the swift but to the one that endures to the end. –gerald radford
