Who is Calvin Borel?

Writer's Note: This was orginally written in 2007 the night following that year's Kentucky Derby. I am not much of a horse racing fan but I can remember how my parents loved to watch the Derby. Thinking about the upcoming Final Four in Detroit next weekend and how magical that sports event can be I thought I would repost this blog. Calvin Borel is just one of those characters that makes watching such event mean far more than the event itself.

Every since I was very young I have been a sports fan. It was a family tradition: My father is a baseball fanatic following the St. Louis Cardinals pretty much forever and a Carolinas Tarheel Basketball nut for as long as I have been alive. My mother, God rest her soul, loved high school football, college basketball, boxing, and all the Olympics events both Winter and Summer Games. Even though I was drawn to bicycles and skateboards instead of a football, baseball, or basketball, I did develop an interest in watching those games. After I spent some time in England as an exchange student when I was seventeen, I learned about soccer and rugby, getting to play rugby while in college and a few years following.

In my lifetime, I have had the great fortune of witnessing, on T.V. of course, some spectacular moments in sports:

1973 Secretariat winning the Triple Crown by setting two track records and a world record and completely decimated the field.

1980 USA defeating USSR in the Semi-finals of the Olympics in ice hockey and then going on to win the Gold.

1982 Michael Jordan hitting the winning shot and James Worthy stealing a pass to win the NCAA national basketball championship.

1983 Jim Valvano running around the court looking for someone to hug after his Cinderella North Carolina State won the NCAA national basketball championship.

1999-2005 Lance Armstrong and the US Postal/Discovery Team’s domination of the Tour de France (Alpe D’Huez especially).

Many more….these are just the ones that I can remember off the top of my head at 1:36 am. In each event, it wasn’t necessarily the actual athletic feat that I remember the most. No, it was the shear joy that the athletes, and yes, even the horse, seemed to show when they finally accomplished their goal. It wasn’t about money. It wasn’t about fame. It was not about the accolades that were about to be bestowed. …the bragging rights, no….the ego boost, no. That joy that shown forth was simply the bi-product of achieving what each had longed for probably their whole lives: to be the very best!!!!!!!!!

Well, you’re probably asking yourself right now, “What the heck does this have to do with Calvin Borel?”…and…”Who in the world is Calvin Borel anyway?”

Until this afternoon I did not know who he was either. I had been working out in the basement and doing a few chores while listening to sports talk radio (my now not so secret guilty-pleasure on those rare weekends I am not skating, working, or doing family stuff and church). They were talking about the Kentucky Derby and I was not paying very much attention. I can remember something about how no one had been able to really pick a clear cut favorite and how this year’s race could be interesting so I decided to cut it on the TV and check it out. They couldn’t have been more right. But more about that later.

Calvin Borel:
• Started competing in his sport at age 8 and turned professional at 16.
• Been in his sport for almost 30 years.
• Was quoted as saying "All I ever wanted to be was (in his sport). A lot of kids make plans to be firemen, cowboys or astronauts, but I knew by eight that I wanted to (do what he does)."
• Is one of only 6 riders in modern racing history to win 6 races on the same day on the same card.
• Born in Louisiana and to this day has retained his authentic Cajun accent.
• In his career has recorded over 4000 victories!!! 4000!!!
• Is famous in his sport for his work ethic, often doing chores that are “beneath” his status/position.
• His nickname is “Bo-rail” because of his penchant to stay close to the rail all the way to victory.

Ok, enough right? “Who is Calvin Borel?” you scream. Well, he is the jockey who won what could be one of the most amazing races in the history of the Kentucky Derby riding Street Sense, a 9 to 1 odds horse not picked to win. What makes it so amazing is that at one point in the race Street Sense was 19 lengths behind and in next to last place with the field stretching before him. Calvin’s nick name was true, and Bo-rail road that horse along the inside and with a half mile to go put the hammer down, the sea of other horses parting like the Red Sea, and Street Sense with Calvin on his back streaked to a win!
It was an awesome display of power and speed.

But this is NOT what inspired me to write this blog. It was another spectacular Kentucky Derby but most of them are exciting. No, what made this special was Calvin himself. Once he had passed Hard Spun, Calvin could not help but take a quick look back over his shoulder, to take it all in as he drove Street Sense to a gap of 2 ½ lengths (a big gap!).
This was my first hint this was even more special to him than just a win. Once he crossed the line Bo-rail began slowing the horse down by practically hugging it, patting it, talking to it. He alternately was pointing to the sky and saying something and then back to the horse. Once the escort caught up with him and began to lead Street Sense back around the track Calvin was standing completely erect in the saddle and was yelling to and giving high fives to all of his competitors. Each, though disappointed in their misfortunate, seemed genuinely happy for him, patting him on the back, smiling at him, and cheering him as he went by. By the time a reporter got to him on horseback for the first interview his face was covered with tears. As he sobbed with joy it made his Cajun accent even harder to understand. As they moved forward he continued to point at the sky and then back to the horse. I was taken by the overwhelming joy on this man’s face. I realized that this was one of those moments in sports that transcend almost all others: Here was a man, late in his career, who had seen success after success, but in four previous attempts had not even been close to winning the coveted “Run for the Roses”.
And now, here he is the winner on a spectacular horse and in spectacular fashion.
In the interview he thanked everyone: God, his brother (the trainer), the owners, the horse, his fiancé, everyone! I was mesmerized by the whole scene and just when I thought it could not be even better Calvin showed his overwhelming love and commitment to the horse that he had just road to victory. In the middle of the great celebration, Bo-rail takes a sponge from a bowl of water brought out by the handlers and proceeds to give Street Sense his post race bath. Right there in front of the Queen of England, the entire Derby crown, his fellow competitors, and the world, Calvin’s act of devotion to his charge spoke volumes about who he is as a competitor and a man.
To me, the picture of him bathing his horse with such joy will stick in my sports memory locker right along side the vision of Lance’s raised arms at Alpe D’Huez, Jordan’s hand in the air as he released the winning shot, or Jim Craig skating around the ice with the American flag draped around his shoulders.

Calvin Borel, I salute you and thank you for today’s memory.