Barbaro: a racehorse and his online fans.


My NPR "Day to Day" colleague Luke Burbank did an amazing piece this week about the huge, passionate, came-from-nowhere online community of Barbaro fandom. You gotta see the fanmade videos, chock full of race footage and love, and set to the music from the likes of Enya, Michael Bolton, or Andrea Boccelli. "Believe in Barbaro," reads the metadata. From Luke's introduction:

The racehorse Barbaro is recovering this week from his latest setback, a diseased hoof. As he convalesces, an online community of thousands is following his progress breathlessly. Last spring, Barbaro was a contender for the Triple Crown. He had won the Kentucky Derby and was a favorite to win the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore.

Then fate struck. Not far out of the gate at the start of the Preakness, Barbaro shattered his right hind leg. It was a heartbreaking development, accented by images of his visibly distraught jockey, Edgar Prado. Barbaro's career was effectively over.

But his life as a cause celebre was just beginning. YouTube is full of Barbaro tribute videos and photo montages such as this one, all set to tearjerking music. At another site, 14,000 candles have been "lit" in his honor. On various message boards, people post fervent messages expressing hope and admiration for the struggling racehorse. One couple even invited Barbaro to their wedding.

Link to audio, text, and photos for "Loving Barbaro: A Racehorse and His Fans." Here's a bunch more Barbaro fan videos.

Reader comment: Dave Warner says,

Barbaro was recently voted "Sports Human of the Year" at Gawker sports blog Deadspin.com, in no small part because of the fervent fan base he's developed — a fan base that has declared Deadspin to be "garbage." In particular, Dee Mirich of Merrillville, IN, has become a cult figure at Deadspin for her "Affirmed" messages. Check the link for all of Deadspin's posts about Barbaro and his fans.