"He was simply running because that’s what he did, and that’s who he was."
Apple’s position atop the industry may prove fleeting. But right now, Apple is Secretariat at the Belmont. And the company, to a person, seems hell-bent on not letting any competitor catch up.
Gruber’s connection is excellent. Apple does indeed seem like they are going to stay far ahead of competitors for quite some time. But the Belmont race wasn’t about the other horses for Secretariat, and I don’t think the new iPad is about the other tablets for Apple.
Everyone else is 31 lengths back.
What is more interesting about the metaphor, is what the Belmont Stakes said about Secretariat, and what the current product line says about Apple. A quote from the comments about the Secretariat photo:
What is most impressive, and less well known, is the fact that in this 1.5 mile race he ran each consecutive quarter mile faster than the previous one. That’s six quarter mile segments and he got faster with each. For the last half mile he was alone, without competition, proving that he was simply running because that’s what he did, and that’s who he was. The culmination of superior breeding, he was one of the very few who actually was what he was supposed to be. Awesome.
Tim Cook and team aren’t sitting in a room trying to plan out how they will beat a competitor. They spend their time trying to plan how they will beat themselves each and every lap.
They are one of the few companies who are what they are supposed to be: a consumer product company making the best consumer products they can. They are 31 lengths ahead, and they are not looking back.
