What we love most about sports

Valentine's Day has traditionally been a time to express deep and abiding feelings of love, and here at The TwinSpires Edge, there's nothing we love more than sports.

Pop a chocolate-covered strawberry in your mouth and read along as our writers reveal the moments that make their hearts beat a little faster.

Ashley Anderson: I love true underdog stories. Despite being a longtime fan of the Patriots — who only recently found themselves in the dark horse category — I secretly hold a soft spot in my heart for the underdogs of the world. There is nothing more satisfying and inspiring than watching a David slay Goliath when no one believes it possible. The Miracle on Ice, Jim Valvano’s Wolfpack, the 2001 Patriots (who upset “the Greatest Show on Turf”). The only exception here is the 2007 New York Giants. I did not enjoy that Super Bowl.

Jeremy Balan: What I love most about sports is the break of silence. The first, crisp drive off the tee, as the sun just peeks over the horizon. The crunch of skates on perfect ice hardened overnight. The first crack of the bat to start batting practice in an empty stadium. The thud of a basketball on hardwood that echoes through the high ceiling of a gym. The huff of the first horse out for training in the darkness of the early morning.

Andrew Brown: I love the Kentucky Derby pre-dawn work-outs. It’s the 3:00 a.m. alarm. The hive of activity before the rest of the country wakes. The smell of the stables. The sound of hooves, and the sense of hope, as our equine athletes are put through their pre-dawn paces. It’s the anticipation of the big day. The big race. The big win. It’s the trainers, the jockeys, the stable hands, the track staff. There’s nothing I love more than the excitement of morning works as we build towards an iconic horse racing carnival. Whether it’s the lead-up to the first Saturday in May, or the first Tuesday in November, the romance of our sport is universal, and it makes my heart flutter.

Robert Criscola: Most fans will point toward the exciting moments to explain why they love sports, like the game-winning buzzer-beater or the walk-off home run. But I live for the downright strange and unbelievable happenings that can occur on any given night. Take Wednesday night's Bruins/Rangers game for example. It seemed like just another installment in a rivalry stretching back to 1926. But with less than a minute to go in the third period, and the score tied 2-2, Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask skated to the bench, thinking his team was going to pull him for an extra skater. His teammates frantically gestured and shouted at him to get back in his crease. Rask later admitted he forgot the score. It's these moments that remind us that we're all human, and that you never know what you'll witness when you put on a game. 

Jeremy Jones: I love NFL RedZone Sundays and March Madness. I've always taken time off from work around these days, and even played hooky from school when I was younger. I'm basically out of commission every Sunday from September to February, and the first four days of March Madness, unless you want to join me on my couch in my living room.

Annie Moore: It’s 75 degrees and sunny with a slight breeze on a Saturday afternoon. You smell hotdogs and peanuts, and feel the cold drink in your hand. You’re surrounded by a symphony, led by an organ and underscored by the voices of thousands of likeminded enthusiasts seated around you. From the symphony emerges a single staccato note, the crack of a bat. A crescendo of the crowd roar directly follows, and that’s what I love about sports.

Ryan Murphy: I enjoy the spirit of competition and the thrill of victory, of course, but I LOVE the nicknames. From classic handles like the Sultan of Swat and the Splendid Splinter to modern monikers like King James and Megatron, these colorful names confer a kind of majesty upon athletes that transform them from regular jocks into superheroes. You can imagine my delight then when Major League Baseball introduced Players' Weekend and encouraged its stars to put their nicknames on the back of their jerseys. It was an idea that was long overdue, and one I hope every sports league will eventually adopt.

Thomas Tassone: I love being a fan of dark horses contenders that are "one year away" from ascending the mountaintop. I'm talking about teams that have completed the dreaded rebuilding phase, but don’t quite have championship expectations. Sure, winning a title is the ultimate goal, but the years of building towards that championship run is what fuels my passion. I love the colective excitement, even though you know deep down that your favorite squad has some holes to fill. The season ultimately ends in heartbreak, but you go into the offseason with the thought that the team is building something special. This is what drives me. Be wary though, it’s the false sense of hope that kills all sports fans! Prime examples are the 2020 Buffalo Bills, and the 2020 San Diego Padres.

Cam Tucker: What I love about sports is the emotional, uninhibited celebrations when a team emerges triumphant in a big game. As a Canadian, I think back to Sidney Crosby scoring the gold-medal winning goal in overtime at the 2010 Olympics, and the euphoric celebrations that set off on the ice, in the crowd, and in streets across Canada. Or David Ortiz being mobbed by his teammates at home plate after crushing a game-winning extra-inning home run to help the Boston Red Sox in their quest to defeat the Yankees in 2004 and rid the city of Boston from the Curse of the Bambino. It’s that pure joy from watching your favorite players or team put everything they have into one game and emerging victorious.