Customer Reviews

Secretariat's Meadow

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This wonderful book brings to life all the people who made The Meadow Stable such a prominent figure in Thoroughbred racing, from Christopher T. Cherney's dream to his grand-daughter's, Penny Cherney's dream horse, Secretariat.

This is no one note history of an East Coast Horse Country family, so much more than a simple regional history. It is a tribute to the land, the beginning of a breeding/racing empire and the extended family who made it all possible, a rare trifecta of fate. Such a book could only be accomplished by an author who has intimate knowledge of such details, Penny Cherney's daughter, Kate Cherney Tweedy, is one of the authors. She is joined by Leanne Meadows and noted Virginia photographer, Wayne Dementi. The story, photographs and acknowledgement of so many people who make up a successful racing operation endears these three to my heart.

A horse-crazed teenage girl, I was glued to Derby, Preakness and the Belmont Stakes every year, hoping to witness such a winner. I can remember in vivid detail Secretariat's ascent to Triple Crown glory and into my heart where he will live forever. Other college girls had their rooms plastered with posters of the Pop stars, mine were newspaper clippings and photos of the greatest thoroughbred of my generation. His effect has not lessened some 30 years later, tears still run down my face whenever I see a film clip of "Big Red" on the racetrack. I know I will never see anything like Secretariat again in my life.

This Autumn there is to be a film released about Secretariat starring Diane Lane as Penny Cherney, the "First Lady of Racing". Three horses are making up his role, I am surprised it did not entail more. This book comes at the crucial time to heighten interest in him again and then there are those of us who have already purchased a box of tissues and tickets for the local primere.

May I also recommend some of my Secretariat favorites:

Secretariat, Updated Edition

The Life & Times of Secretariat, an American Racing Legend

Secretariat: The Making of a Champion

Later this month another Secretariat book, this time for children, will be released: Big Red Horse, the Secretariat Story. You know there will be a place on my bookshelf for it no matter what the age of the target audience.

Enjoy the book!

UPDATE: 10/16/10 Just finished "The Big Red Horse" and thoroughly enjoyed it.

The Hearts of the Meadow

This book seems to pick up where Raymond Wolfe's 2001 edition of 'Secretariat' left off. In the footnote at the end of that work Raymond updated the readers on the condition of the Meadow in 1998, with Ross Sternhiemer's purchase of the estate. 'Secretariat's Meadow' begins there and takes us back into the history of the land and its people, the players and circumstances that generated the spirit of determination that would eventually give to America if not its greatest then certainly one of its most gifted Thoroughbred performers. A brief synopsis of this piece might look like this: with beginnings dating back to the early 1700s, the land rooted in plantations and slave ownership, we are led through ante and postbellum periods with regard to specific families, characters , social conditions, and geography. At the core is one clan, the Morris family, headed by a physician who acquired the acreage from wealthy landowners. The Meadow remained with the family for more than a century when in the clutches of the devastation and poverty the civil war left behind, the land was sold. The war filtered out the strong from the weak, and James Chennery and wife Ida, relations who resided at the Meadow for a time, were determined to survive the aftermath. Moving to Richmond and then to Ashland, their future lied with the education of their children. All their sons and daughters succeeded in their own respective professions, journalism, medicine, and engineering, the latter ascribed to the ambitious and creative Christopher who would eventually return the Meadow to the family. Developing a passion for horses and horse racing in particular, young Christopher set out to accomplish his most pressing need, to secure his finances. Years later, after co-founding a successful utilities operation in New York and establishing financial independence, he was then in position to pursue his passion, to purchase and return the Meadow to its family roots and install a Thoroughbred breedership upon it. The rest is history. The story of Secretariat is one of the determination bred long before into the land and blood of the Meadow, into the hearts of a people who were determined to survive the devastation of war, and into the souls of a handful of Virginians who longed to return the land to the best parts of its past. I sense this story will be told and re-told according to differing views by later generations, perhaps a work that chronicles all of American racing and its roots in aristocratic circles of which Virginia with its Bullfield and Meadow is at the epicenter. Whatever the piece, the Meadow with its people and horses offers fertile ground for choice. In his work 'The Horse God Built', Lawrence Scanlan tells of a young woman he met working at the Meadow who used to hear a galloping horse on its track at 3 am on certain days. Others heard it as well. The spooky sound left Whitney Jones believing it was the spirit of Secretariat breezing through his birth place, continuing to live the dreams of all his connections and predecessors. She recalled another incident when opening a gate, she had the experience of something powerful running through her. The Meadow's pride for its finest sons and daughters, both human and non-human, has been carved deep into the bone of its land and people.

This is a wonderfully written and researched account of a segment of American history. The only suggestion offered is for the inclusion of an appendix detailing the historical events of The Meadow in a chronological manner. This can provide a quick reference tool for readers.

I just received my copy of Secretariat's Meadow and couldn't stop reading until I had finished the book. The history behind The Meadow is fascinating and so well told. Of course Secretariat's personal story is mesmerizing but it is only part of the whole picture. A thank you to the authors for bringing this family story, the people and the wonderful horses who created The Meadow, to life. The photographs are wonderful-thank you again. I can't recommend this book highly enough.

An absolutely beautiful collector's book on a much beloved horse and the family who did absolutely all the right things, at absolutely the right time, to enable his historical performances on the track. The (should be) legendary Christopher Chenery was quite a man; his lifelong achievements are something to be proud of, he was extraordinary. There are some beautiful photographs of The Meadow, as well as its history, and there are many beautiful photographs of Secretariat. Two of the most poignant photographs, in my opinion, was one of Secretariat at six months of age. I'd never seen this picture and wish there was someplace I could purchase a copy of it, it brought me to tears. The other was a photograph of a very young woman who traveled from the Midwest to The Meadow to visit the horse she loved so much, Riva Ridge. In this photograph, the girl is stroking his face and talking to him and the horse is standing in a posture of gentle reciprocation, it is an exquisite portrait of a very special moment in time. I wonder who that young woman was: her back story would make a wonderful novel for young adults. Thank you, Ms. Chenery, for sharing your family history with us. I know the life experience of every person (some much more than others, obviously) carries memories that may not be so good, situations that pause us even now (no matter how many years distant from them we may be), and I'm certain yours is no exception. But...you were remarkably blessed to have been part of something so glorious and courageous, your grandfather's and mother's stoicism and ultimate victory. I'm sure you appreciate all of this, or you wouldn't have produced this beautiful book. Thank you for sharing it.

I am not one for doing a lot of reading, but a friend of mine insisted. Her sister co-authored the book and it was fantastic. It let me know some of the history about the area that Secretariat came from and how close I am to that area now. I live in chesterfield, Va, just south of Richmond and Doswell is about 30 miles to the north.

It was a great book and now I am waiting for the movie, which I also have seen, and it was FANTASTIC.

His story has been told and retold so many times that it doesn't seem that there could be anything more to say, but "Secretariat's Meadow" is something new: a journey back in time to a once-important stable that was the first home to not one, but several great champions of the 20th century, including the great Secretariat.

This is a story that the co-author, Kate Tweedy, is uniquely qualified to tell. The daughter of Penny Chenery, she spent time at the Meadow in her childhood and witnessed firsthand her mother's efforts to save it from insolvency and the campaigns of both Riva Ridge and Secretariat that claimed five out of six Triple Crown races over two consecutive years. This is the story of a farm that was a family home as well as a racing operation, and the people there who made it all possible.

Reading through the book is like finding previously undiscovered gems in an heirloom jewel box. Among them, some sweet and previously untold stories of Big Red's younger days, and photos of horses other than Secretariat and Riva Ridge running in the Meadow silks--for many, the first such photos ever seen. The many photos are fascinating and the text is well written. An absolutely beautiful book and a worthwhile addition to the library of any Secretariat or horseracing fan.

Based on review from low to high, I decided to go for "Secretariat" & "The Big Red Horse: .." Very happy indeed; these 2 books are about Secretariat from cover to cover. The title above should be "The Meadow Farm" 'cause Big Red was mentioned in the back of the back of the book. People will just endlessly take advantage of Big Red to make money.

"Secretariat's Meadow" is a story told as only a family member can tell it -- with personal recollections and family photos. It's a big coffee-table book that's the story of The Meadow -- the farm where Secretariat and Riva Ridge were born and raised -- more than it is the story of the two champions, though it also includes a good deal about them. "Meadow" is written by Kate Chenery Tweedy, daughter of Penny Chenery, who ran The Meadow during the championship years of the late 60s and early 70s and is portrayed by Diane Lane in the recent movie.

The book tells the story of a small piece of Virginia from its first owners in the 1600s to the present day, though the focus is on the years that Chris Chenery, Penny's father, and later Penny herself operated the facility. The movie is based on Bill Nack's book, "Secretariat: The Making of a Champion," which is focused on the horse who won the Belmont Stakes by an amazing 31 lengths in 1973 to achieve the Triple Crown.

After seeing the movie (which is not totally accurate, in the usual way of biopics), I decided I wanted to learn more about Secretariat and his world. I chose this book instead of Bill Nack's to start with because the idea of learning about the farm appealed to me. Readers who enjoy an entertaining, sometimes poignant, read with plenty of photos to go with it will like this book. After reading it, I felt like I knew a lot of the people involved.

I selected this book as a Christmas gift for my mother. When she opened the package, she was thrilled! She has since written how much she appreciates having it and looks forward to reading it, especially since she and my dad enjoyed the history of famous racehorses, visited Churchill Downs, etc. She commented on the attractiveness of the volume, both inside and out. I was very pleased with its looks, too, and felt confident in giving it to her. I appreciate Amazon's prompt attention and service very much.

This book is a "must have" for Secretariat fans and admirers.....the author,Kate Chenery, Penny Chenery's daughter, gives you a history of the farm and background of the family that shows you the hard work, effort and determination that went into the creation of the greatest champion of the turf in the last 60 years. Big Red was truly surrounded by loving and caring staff that helped him achieve his greatness.
It was interesting to read the history of the farm itself back to pre-civil war days....
The pictures and comments from the people who lived thru his history-making career were fabulous. Kate Chenery did a first rate job in bringing to life her family's history and the thrill of raising and owning the greatest champion of thorougbred racing in modern history.
I will always treasure my copy of her book and enjoy reading it again and again.

Ann WalterSecretariat's Meadow