Rites of Summer

Let’s face it, spring gets all the publicity. The first crocus breaks through the icy sod, the forsythia bushes bloom, baseball spring training camps reopen, hope springs eternal, and the buzzards return to Hinckley, Ohio. The long, cold winter has been defeated at last. What was fervently hoped for has arrived. The rites of spring are universally celebrated. And I do not refer merely to the Stravinsky ballet or the post-hardcore ‘80’s band. Everyone loves spring. They even overlook all the allergies just for the privilege of whiffing the fragrance of lilac.

But what about summer? Is it just spring’s hangover? Is it only about heat and humidity? The dreaded Dog Days of August? Summer has rites too doesn’t it? Of course it does. And to be honest about it, they begin in the spring. How’s that, you ask? Well, here’s how it goes. Rites of spring are all about putting an end to winter. First the groundhog doesn’t see his shadow, then Saint Patrick’s Day rolls around and everybody puts on green and drinks a lot of beer. Next, we turn over the garden soil, welcome the first visit of the TruGreen guy, uncover the lawnmower in the garage, and head to Lowe’s to buy a ton of mulch. Those are rites of spring. But once you’ve cut the grass for the first time, observed the tulips pushing up through the ground, and watched the ornamental pear trees flowering you’re ready for the rites of summer. And summer’s rites begin in May no matter what the calendar says.

The first important rite of summer involves the annual gathering at Churchill Downs where 150,000 folks assemble in anticipation of “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports” – the inimitable “Run for the Roses.” Yes, it’s the Kentucky derby where equine legends are made, where horseracing nobility and those who admire them strut around in bizarre headwear sipping mint juleps. The event itself might consume no more than two minutes, but the buildup, the pre-race predictions, and the post-race analysis take days. The problem is things didn’t go as planned this year. The clear winner of the race didn’t really win. There was interference, obstruction (perhaps even collusion!), and finally disqualification. There were screams of “travesty!” This was unheard of, unprecedented! How could this happen? Even the president cried foul! (This probably means he lost a bundle on the race.) This really spoiled the first rite of summer.

Fear not. The second rite of summer was quickly upon us – The Preakness Stakes. Another proud, traditional horse race. The offending horse from the Derby wasn’t entered. There wouldn’t be a repeat of any embarrassing, underhanded activity. The horse that won the Derby by disqualification wasn’t entered either, so there would be no triple crown winner this year, but that’s another matter. There was every opportunity to set things right, to launch our way into summer correctly. Let us have a real May horse race that we can be proud of, one that paves the way for a glorious June and points the way toward a patriotic 4th of July. That’s what we all needed. But it’s not what we got.

This time, incredibly, the shenanigans began before the horses even broke out of the starting gate. Now I ask you, don’t you think that the least these horses and jockeys could do would be to line up at the start in an orderly fashion? How much training does it take to lead one’s horse into the chute and wait for the start? Sure the horse might be a little nervous. Aren’t we all, waiting for the big event? Jockey John Velazquez said his horse, Bodexpress, wasn’t behaving well. I guess not, because when the chute opened the beast jumped up in the air, tossing the jockey off his back as if he were a mere bit of ornamental detritus. Fortunately, Velazquez suffered no serious injuries. The race was underway less one horse. Or was it? Bodexpress apparently did not get the message that he was disqualified for not carrying a rider. The overly-exuberant horse took out after the field, ran the entire course, passing a couple of legitimate finishers. Then, not satisfied, proceeded to gallop for another complete lap around the course before calling it a day.

Now what are we to make of that? Folks, this is not the way things are supposed to happen. This does not bode well for the coming summer. I await with great trepidation the Belmont Stakes, the last triple crown event. Will one of the horses decide to run the course backwards? I hesitate to speculate on what sort of lunacy might transpire. But let us not anticipate the worst. Let us have faith that the rites of summer will right themselves, that beauty and splendor will prevail, that Memorial Day – the traditional start to summer – will usher in a period of sunshine in which we all can bask. Let the mishaps of the past few weeks be a mere distant memory. And let us all say “Amen.”

 

 

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