Afleet Alex, the Thoroughbred, avoided a catastrophic fall in the 2005 Preakness Stakes, second jewel of the American Thoroughbred Triple Crown, while the survival of life itself was spoken of often at that year's Triple Crown races.
Near Catastrophic Fall
At the bend of the final turn of the Preakness, Afleet Alex sustained a bump from Scrappy T on his right. The colts inadvertently clipped heels, and Afleet Alex went down low, very low, almost to his right knee when Scrappy T jiggerbugged. Afleet Alex somehow righted himself and flew past Scrappy T to win the race.
A great close-up picture of the incident appeared in Sports Illustrated, showing how terribly Afleet Alex flirted with total disaster. His nose was inches from the ground, his rider, Jeremy Rose, flung up across Alex's shoulder and hanging on for dear life to his mount's black mane.
Alex's Leomnade Stand
In 2005, the Triple Crown races began with little Alex Scott, at the age of four, appealing to race goers by setting up Alex's Lemonade Stand -- first at the Kentucky Derby -- and selling the summer drink to raise funds to turn over to pediatric cancer research. (Little Alex died at the age of eight from neuroblastoma.)
But her Alex's Lemonade Stand charity raised over $2 million, some of which included donations from the owners of Afleet Alex, 2005 Triple Crown contender.
The Thoroughbred's owners continued to be associated with the charity after Afleet Alex's triple try concluded.
Nursing Life and Survival
Afleet Alex's birth was a gift of life. He was a product of Northern Afleet and Maggy Hawk. He had to be nursed when his mother could not produce milk. Maggy Hawk's owner, John Silvertrand and Silvertrand's daughter Lauren kept Afleet Alex alive by bottle nursing him until a substitute nursing mare could be found to replace Maggy Hawk.
Silvertrand himself was diagnosed with cancer and given three months to live in the Fall of 2002.
Nose to The Grindstone
In his near fall in the Preakness, Afleet Alex became Afleet Afoot, miraculously finding his balance. With his body weight crushing downward, he managed to scramble back up before his right knee found dirt and his nose collided with catastrophe.
The SI picture is to be pondered. How did Afleet Alex recover his footing from the misstep, that off stride lunge that had disaster written all over it?
Those who interviewed Rose after the race were asking how he pulled Alfeet Alex out of that precarious stumble. Rose was all but dumbfounded by the inquiry. Without the slightest interest in taking credit for the recovery, Rose stated emphatically that Afleet Alex was an extremely agile athlete and prevented the fall on his own. After all, he indicated, how could a hundred pound human pull up a thousand pounds of falling, running horse?
To Boldly Go On
The 2005 Preakness may be recalled as Afleet Alex, the Thoroughbred, being destined to speak of things of life and death, as he defied tragedy in the face of great odds, and the Preakness may also be recalled as an event that represented never giving in to adversity. Just like Alex Scott did.
For that seemed to be the theme of the 2005 Triple Crown. Although Afleet Alex didn't win the first jewel of the Triple Crown -- he went third in the Kentucky Derby -- he raced to greater heights in the Preakness, and he wowed in the Belmont Stakes, capturing that marathon one and a half mile classic by seven lengths.
And all the while along the 2005 Triple Crown trail, the crowds flowed to Alex's Lemonade Stand, while the little girl spoke for a cure for others.
BarbaraAnne Helberg - Barbara Anne Helberg, Supporter of Better Lives for Animals and Clean, Spirited, Competitive Sports
