Two weeks later, Secretariat broke last out of the starting gate in the Preakness. Jockey Ron Turcotte made a split-second decision in the first turn to swing Big Red to the outside in a rush to the front. They won by 2 1/2 lengths over Sham, who had also finished second in the Derby.
Secretariat’s popularity exploded in the three weeks leading up to the Belmont. He became a pop culture phenomenon, appearing on the covers of Time and Newsweek while helping distract a nation dragged down by Watergate and the Vietnam War. Secretariat went to the early lead along the rail and was soon challenged by Sham, ridden by Laffit Pincay Jr. The two horses were even through a half-mile at a blistering pace in what became a match race with the rest of the field about 10 lengths behind.
Secretariat’s legend has only endured. He had his own U.S. stamp and was the subject of a 2010 Disney movie. The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame is taking a traveling exhibit to the Triple Crown cities of Louisville, Kentucky, Baltimore and New York - as well as Secretariat’s birth state of Virginia. The exhibit features his Triple Crown trophies and the story of the people who guided him.