During two short seasons at the track, Ruffian was hailed as the greatest thoroughbred filly of all time. Unbeaten in her first ten starts, she shattered one record after another, dazzling crowds with both her beauty and her brilliant speed. Then tragedy struck on the afternoon of July 6, 1975. Ruffian broke down–on the lead–in the middle of a match race at Belmont Park. Later that night she had to be destroyed. Ruffian: Burning from the Start is the story of this exceptional filly, a horse so dominating, so powerful, that writer Walter Farley once suggested she was more like the fictional legend, the Black Stallion, than any colt he had ever seen. Beginning with her earliest days in Kentucky, the book follows Ruffian at every stage of her career and through the agony of her final hours– venturing behind the scenes of the racing world and exploring the politics and personalities that came together to shape this extraordinary filly’s fate. “Compelling, informative, and ultimately touching. This is a first-class book; Ruffian deserves no less.” – The Seattle Times “A COLORFUL STORY . . . Ruffian was nothing if not a heartbreaker. Her story, dramatically recounted by Jane Schwartz, epitomizes both the adrenaline-pumping glory and gut-wrenching ruthlessness inherent in the sport of horse racing.” – The Washington Post Book World “[AN] EXCEPTIONALLY FINE BOOK . . . The world of racing–the people, the smells, politics, emotion–is what the writer wants to show us. And show us she does, brilliantly.” – Cosmopolitan “Jane Schwartz has written, with considerable grace and evident love, a superb, painstakingly researched portrait of this most remarkable of thoroughbred fillies.” – Los Angeles Times Book Review hort seasons at the track, Ruffian was hailed as the greatest thoroughbred filly of all time. Unbeaten in her first ten starts, she shattered one record after another, dazzling crowds with both her beauty and her brilliant speed. Then tragedy struck on the afternoon of July 6, 1975. Ruffian broke down on the lead in the middle of a match race at Belmont Park. Later that night she had to be destroyed. Ruffian: Burning from the Start is the story of this exceptional filly, a horse so dominating, so powerful, that writer Walter Farley once suggested she was more like the fictional legend, the Black Stallion, than any colt he had ever seen. Beginning with her earliest days in Kentucky, the book follows Ruffian at every stage of her career and through the agony of her final hours venturing behind the scenes of the racing world and exploring the politics and personalities that came together to shape this extraordinary filly s fate. During two short seasons at the track, Ruffian was hailed as the greatest thoroughbred filly of all time. Unbeaten in her first ten starts, she shattered one record after another, dazzling crowds with both her beauty and her brilliant speed. Then tragedy struck on the afternoon of July 6, 1975. Ruffian broke down-on the lead-in the middle of a match race at Belmont Park. Later that night she had to be destroyed. "Ruffian: Burning from the Start is the story of this exceptional filly, a horse so dominating, so powerful, that writer Walter Farley once suggested she was more like the fictional legend, the Black Stallion, than any colt he had ever seen. Beginning with her earliest days in Kentucky, the book follows Ruffian at every stage of her career and through the agony of her final hours- venturing behind the scenes of the racing world and exploring the politics and personalities that came together to shape this extraordinary filly's fate. Jane Schwartz is the author of the novel  Caught and the sports biography Ruffian: Burning from the Start.  She has written for many publications, including The New York Times ,  Sports Illustrated , The   Blood-Horse , and  Daily Racing Form , where her column “Free Rein” appeared. She lives in Brooklyn, New York. Buck Jones yawned and looked at his watch. It was funny how time went late at night. He had started his shift at midnight, relieving Louis Otero, and all he had done since then was pace up and down the shedrow or lean against the wall and sip coffee from his thermos. Yet it was already half past three. He didn’t even have a radio. This was Frank Whiteley’s barn, and Whiteley didn’t allow radios. Buck could understand that. He’d been a horseman himself for almost twenty years. The boss wasn’t paying him to listen to music. Horse watching was a job. Especially in a case like this. The President, the Pope, and the Queen of England all rolled into one couldn’t have gotten more attention than this filly had been getting the last few weeks, ever since they had announced the Match. Buck looked over at her. She was awake now, alert in her stall, ears pricked forward. “You’ll get your breakfast soon enough.” Buck smiled and tugged at the belt of his uniform. He was a big man, and he’d put on a few more pounds since becoming a Pi