Eddie Arcaro was known as “The Master,” high praise indeed for anyone attempting to persuade a half-ton Thoroughbred to do his bidding at an instant’s notice. But Arcaro deserved that accolade because it can be argued that he, perhaps more than any other jockey, came closest to mastering his perilous craft.

Having proved in the Bay Shore Stakes three weeks earlier that he had progressed through the winter and come back bigger and stronger than ever, Secretariat returned to competition in the Grade 2 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct April 7 at a mile, an eighth of a mile longer