Secretariat’s owner, Penny Chenery, would be the first to admit that breeding horses is a genetic crapshoot. She said that Secretariat, “next to having my children, was the most remarkable event in my life. But he was not my creation or accomplishment. We just got lucky.” Secretariat’s full sister, in filly called The Bride, was a fine broodmare but did nothing on the track. When a great one like Secretariat comes along, we feel as if a blessing has been bestowed upon us. And it has. A great comet has streaked across a black sky and we happen to have been walking along a dark country road and seen the celestial rarity in all its brilliance. We will tell our grandchildren what a marvel it was, one that made us feel small and exalted at the same time. While that comet burned and cast its shimmering light, the world seemed a more beautiful place, and it felt good to be alive. ~Penny Chenery

 

August 10, 2025

In the vast history of horse racing, few names shine as brightly — or as enduringly — as Secretariat. The great red stallion who dominated the 1973 Triple Crown continues to capture imaginations more than five decades later. But for Penny Chenery, the woman behind the legend, the story was never about glory or personal achievement. It was about awe, humility, and the grace of being witness to a miracle.

“Next to having my children, Secretariat was the most remarkable event in my life,” she once said. “But he was not my creation or accomplishment. We just got lucky.”

That rare blend of reverence and realism defined Chenery’s lifelong relationship with the horse who changed everything. She didn’t take credit for Secretariat — how could she? As she saw it, he was a gift, a one-in-a-million comet that streaked across the sport and lit up the world.

The Woman Behind Big Red

Born Helen Bates “Penny” Chenery in 1922, she stepped into the male-dominated world of Thoroughbred racing almost by accident. When her father, Christopher Chenery, fell ill in the late 1960s, Penny — then a housewife with little experience in the business — took over operations at Meadow Stable in Virginia.

Few took her seriously at first. But with grit, intelligence, and quiet determination, she kept the family business afloat and made bold breeding decisions — including pairing the mare Somethingroyal with the stallion Bold Ruler, a move that would produce Secretariat.

Even then, she knew there were no guarantees.

“Breeding horses is a genetic crapshoot,” she said. “You can do all the homework in the world and still end up with a dud. When a great one comes along, it’s grace. It’s mystery. You don’t engineer it — you just try to keep up.”

A Sister in Shadow

Secretariat’s full sister, a filly named The Bride, exemplified that truth. Bred from the exact same sire and dam, The Bride was healthy, strong, and beautifully built. She became a respectable broodmare, but she never made an impact on the track.

It was a reminder, even for Chenery, that lightning rarely strikes twice.

“People think there must be a secret formula,” she once remarked. “But Secretariat was one of those rare stars born under some perfect alignment. His sister had the same genes, but the spark just wasn’t the same. That’s nature’s way.”

Secretariat: The Comet in the Dark

For those who saw him race — and even for those who have only watched the grainy footage decades later — Secretariat was more than fast. He was a phenomenon. From the moment he exploded down the Belmont stretch in 1973, winning by a still-record 31 lengths, the world stood still.

In her later years, Chenery captured the feeling of those moments with rare eloquence:

“When a great one like Secretariat comes along, we feel as if a blessing has been bestowed upon us. A great comet has streaked across a black sky, and we happened to be walking along a dark country road and seen the celestial rarity in all its brilliance.”

It wasn’t just about winning races. It was about the feeling he gave us — the power of witnessing something so grand and improbable that it reminded us of our place in the universe.

“While that comet burned and cast its shimmering light,” she said, “the world seemed a more beautiful place, and it felt good to be alive.”

Legacy Beyond Bloodlines

Secretariat passed away in 1989 at age 19. Penny Chenery passed in 2017 at the age of 95. But both live on — not just in bloodlines or bronze statues, but in the hearts of fans who still marvel at what they witnessed.

Though Secretariat sired many good racehorses, none matched his singular greatness. And perhaps that’s just as it should be. His magic wasn’t meant to be repeated, only remembered.

Today, as Netflix readies its much-anticipated documentary Big Red: The Heart of a Champion, Penny’s words still ring clear. In every slow-motion replay, every child wide-eyed at his Belmont run, in every fan who feels something stir when they hear his name — the comet is still burning.

Secretariat wasn’t built. He wasn’t planned. He was a blessing.

And Penny Chenery, with wisdom and humility, never claimed otherwise.

“We just got lucky,” she said.

But for the rest of us —

we got to witness the stars fall to Earth.

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