Tell me about your favorite real world horse.
A game like this is very specialized and long term, it takes great passion for the sport of horse racing to commit to playing a game online that may take years to be successful at playing. I’m sure there are a few exceptions but for the most part we are horse racing enthusiasts here.
I want to hear about your favorite race horse. The horse that makes you smile every time you think of them. What made him special to you?
It was Sept 24th 1994 when I first set eyes on this dark bay brick shit house of a horse at Turf Paradise in Phoenix, AZ. Turf Paradise is a track where the California throw away horses go to languish in endless claiming races, and certainly not the place you expect to fall in love with an unraced 2 year old. He wasn’t a long beautiful horse still waiting to grow into his body like most 2 year olds, this guy was a Mack truck. He looked like his skin was one size too small and his muscles had muscles. Frankly he was more linebacker than racehorse, and I loved it. He was firing bullet works and talk around the track was that he was a legit horse and would hopefully escape the desert and move on to better things.
The MSW race started and he sat just off the pace in classic stalking position sitting 3rd on the backstretch in this 5 1/2 race. Splits of 21.3 and 43.3 click off and he makes his move in the turn and takes the lead at the top of the lane. This is the key position of the race and why I was truly hooked. Another promising young colt named Socializedmedicine runs up along side and sticks a head in front. The first time starter wasn’t having any of this and dug in harder, turning away the would be challenger and drew off by a full length to win.
He followed up his MSW win on October 18th drawing off to win by 3 lengths going 6F in 1:09 2/5. A quite impressive time for a 2 year old to say the least. This led up to the big 2yo race of the season at Turf Paradise on October 30th. I say big race, knowing all things are relative, it was $25,000 listed stakes called the Arizona Thoroughbred Association Sales Stakes. Really a joke looking back on things now. The gelded son of Gone West did not disappoint as he drew off to win the ATBA stakes by a whopping 10 lengths, stopping the clock for the 6F race at 1:07 2/5 in what amounts to a world record for a 2 year old horse and is still the world record for a 2 year old going 6 furlongs or dirt.
It wasn’t long before the offers came rolling in to purchase the gelding, and the Arizona owners and trainers let him go. I unfortunately do not know how much he was sold for, but suffice to say it was well above the $6,000 he was sold for in the Keeneland September sale the year before.
The gelding got new owners, first class facilities and a new quirky but accomplished trainer in Michael Dickinson. He was quickly put on the Derby trail on the New York circuit for 1995. He would make his 3 year old debut on March 4th 1995 in the Grade 3 Best Turn, going 6F at Aqueduct Racecourse in New York. He was not the post time favorite because this in New York after all and some desert rat horse doesn’t just show up in New York and win against the bluebloods. Well he disappointed the New York racing fans by immediately grabbing the lead and drawing off to win by 3 lengths over the best young sprinters on the East Coast.
After a short 3 weeks rest the Grade 2 Gotham was next, stretching out to a mile, a win here would lead to the Wood Memorial and obviously the Kentucky Derby down the road. It wasn’t to be this time for the young gelding. He was crowded and surrounded early, constantly harassed and eventually ran out of gas finishing second to Talkinman. It was off the Derby trail and questions arose about his ability to run longer than 6 or 7 furlongs. It was decided to point him towards some of the lesser state derby races in the summer.
April 29th he was entered into a 1 mile turf allowance race at Garden State Racecourse, basically for lack of anywhere else to run him, but he needed a prep race to continue his campaign in the lesser derby races. He grabbed the lead on the turn and won by 1 1/2 lengths and shipped to Sportsman Park in Chicago to run the Illinois Derby. In the Illinois Derby he dueled with a horse named Westernecho throughout going 1 1/8M, he put away Westernecho midstretch only to be overtaken by a good young horse named Peaksandvalleys.
May 27th and it was back home to Garden State Park for the Grade 2 Jersey Derby going 1 1/8M or turf. He sat in perfect position a stalking 2nd throughout and grinded out a victory late by 1/2 length. A pattern was starting to show itself but the connections would be a little slow to recognize that despite his successes they might actually have a turf horse on their hands. Failing to recognize the pattern he was shipped to California for the Grade 2 Swaps to face the best 3 year old dirt horse on the planet in Thunder Gulch. The Grade 2 Swaps was 1 1/8 on dirt on July 23rd and the gritty gelding ran a perfect race. Dueling for control on the top of the lane with the talented Petionville he poked a nose in front and grinded down Petionville but the late charging Thunder Gulch wasn’t going to lose on his home turf and ran by the leaders late to win by 2 lengths.
The gelding would enjoy 3 months in the California sun resting up for the Grade 2 Del Mar Derby going 1 1/8 on turf. Again on turf he stalks early, grabs the lead and grinds away to win by a length and half over Tabor and Lake George, grabbing his second Grade 2 win on turf. He shipped back home to New Jersey for the Pegasus Handicap at Monmouth Park on dirt going 1 1/16 in the slop. Again he tired late in the stretch and finished second to Flyingchevron.
October 28th he was sent to Belmont Park for the biggest race of his career going 6F on dirt in the Breeders Cup Sprint. The surface and distance he set the world record 2yo speed at a year previous. Surely he would show his greatness to the world. Well, the 1995 Breeders Cup Sprint was an absolute disaster for the young gelding. He was hung 5 wide in the turn and basically eased up in what would amount to the only time in his career that he would finish off the board. Dead last in a field of 13 horses.
No rest was to come though, it was off to Hollywood Park to contest the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby going 1 1/8 on turf. The gelding was battling fatigue and now hoof issues and was able to gut out a 3rd place finish behind Labeeb and Helmsman. The tired and now injured gelding was finally allowed some rest back home in New Jersey after 10 starts as a 3 year old on both coasts and both surfaces against some of the best horses in the world. It was a much needed and well deserved rest.
It would be July 4th of his 4 year old season before he made his debut. Fully recovered from his long campaign and fully healed, it was time to get back to work. First stop would be Belmont Park and the Grade 3 Poker going 1 mile on the turf. He was fully healed but rusty and really needed a race to get back into prime shape. He stalker early, grabbed a short lead in the stretch but tired late to finish 3rd behind Smoothrunner and Mightyforum. The connections were pleased with the race though and sent him up to Saratoga to run in the fan favorite Grade 3 Fourstardave going 1 1/8 on turf. He ran a perfect stalking trip sitting 1 length off the pace seizing the lead mid stretch and drawing clear to win by 1 1/4 lengths. August 11th it would be the Pennsylvania Governors Cup at Penn National which was a listed stakes race that he won easily by 5 lengths, under his 12th different jockey.
He was given a short rest and October 5th he would find himself back at Belmont Park and this time with a new hall of fame jockey in Gary Stevens. He was to contest the Grade 3 Kelso going 1 mile on turf. In what amounted to a street fight the whole race, the horse battled for the lead and was within a length and a half of the lead the entire race. Splitting rivals late he missed by just a nose finishing second to Sameoldwish by a head.
October 26th it was off to Woodbine in Toronto, Ontario where the Breeder’s Cup would be contested for the first time outside of the United States. The gelding was going to face some of the best Turf milers in the world. Horses like Spinning World and Mark of Esteem from Europe, and Sameoldwish who he just lost to in the Kelso. The track was listed as good and quirky trainer Michael Dickinson borrowed a pair of stiletto high heeled shoes from his girlfriend (you can’t make this stuff up) and walked the track. A skeptical Gary Stevens looked on in disbelief and was instructed to follow a particular path along the rail early and then slightly wider in the stretch as the gelding preferred a little more solid footing when he raced. I will let the race speak for itself and the horses name to be revealed.
The gelding would end his career with a Grade 1 win in the Breeder’s Cup Mile and ride off into the sunset. Hoof problems became a problem again and the horse had ended his career with the biggest win of his life. Roll Credits.
If that was the end of the story it would be a great story. Cheap Keeneland purchase starts career at Turf Paradise and becomes Breeder’s Cup Champion that is fairy tale type story telling right there.
Nobody would see or hear from Da Hoss for 2 years. He was battling hoof problems and was really in essence retired from racing. Horses don’t take 2 years off and return to form. The trainer had other ideas though, and 23 1/2 months after winning the Breeder’s Cup Mile Michael Dickinson starts making some phone calls, he has this crazy idea to bring Da Hoss back to run the Breeder’s Cup Mile again but he needs an easy prep race to shake off the cobwebs. He gets a hold of the racing secretary at Colonial Downs in Virginia, a new track that had opened just one year earlier. The racing secretary was more than happy to build a race into the schedule for Da Hoss, it would be a draw to have a Breeder’s Cup champion race there. It was also good for the trainer since Colonial Downs was off the radar and a poor showing would probably go unnoticed by the racing press. He sat off the pace and awaited a spot and won by 3/4 length over some decent horses but nothing special.
So it’s November 7th, 1998 the Breeder’s Cup is at Churchill Downs in Kentucky. I am sitting in an off track betting facility in a biker bar in Rock Springs, AZ. I’m watching and betting on the Breeder’s Cup races and not doing too good. I’m flipping through the Daily Racing Form and see Da Hoss in the mile!! Wait, what? He hasn’t raced in 2 years, how can this be? I saw him break his maiden and set a world record for 2 year olds 4 years earlier at Turf Paradise. I absolutely LOVED him. This was clearly the break I needed and I was going to bet him for sure. I tell me buddy, hey get on this horse, I tell everyone that will listen to get on this horse. They all of course look at me like I have totally went insane. Favorite Trick is clearly the best horse in the race, cmon, you’re crazy. I go bet a trifecta 3 with 9/11 with ALL for $2.00 and I also bet $40 to win on Da Hoss and he is 12/1. Between the two tickets I would cash out over $2,000 and probably have never screamed louder for a horse when he dueled down the stretch, took the lead, lost the lead, and then grinded out “The Greatest Comeback Since Lazarus”
Da Hoss would retire for real this time. He now is at Kentucky Horse Park as part of the Hall of Champions. I was happy to be able to visit him last year in Lexington Kentucky.
I know that was long, but I am interested to hear your stories as well. Long or short.
What a race that was.
Cool story for a newcomer to the sport to develop some history. Curious as to why Durkin called Spinning World’s trainer (or maybe the horse itself?) a “pathetic Englishman” in his call of the ’96 Mile?
Maybe because the poor man had to deal with a devilish Spinning World. The grooms who was unfortunate enough to take care of Spinning World when he was still standing in Kentucky, all carried a club in one hand, with the lead to a muzzled Spinning World in the other hand.
The real answer was there was this guy named “Mutton Chops” an Englishman that would come on TV and talk smack about the superiority of European grass horses. The camera flashed to him right before the TV announcer said “Pathetic Englishman” because his European picks couldn’t win the mile. European horses have performed well on grass in the Breeder’s Cup races but this guy would act like ever Euro horse would win every race including dirt races, which as history has shown, just isn’t very likely. American dirt horses don’t travel to Europe and win the top turf races either. I guess you would have had to experience this cocky Mutton Chops character for several years like I did to understand. He started as comic relief but just became too much after a while.
Thanks very much for this!
Ahh, it sounds a lot like Mr John McCririck, who used to present for our Channel4 racing- they used to cover the BC, He was well known for being outspoken,sometimes rude and a bit of a cartoon character. Funnily enough,I met him once, well away from the cameras and he was actually quite pleasant and polite and signed a requested autograph for my father with pleasure. It still takes a special horse to come from Europe to the BC – and vice versa- and win or run well.
Great read DD. 2 horses I will never Forget, Kingston Town and Redoute’s Choice, both for different reasons. I don’t say this lightly, at his best Kingston Town would beat any horse on the planet. Had the most electrifying sprint finish you would ever see, over 6F or 2 miles. Won 3 Cox Plates and didn’t even handle the track. Should have won the Melbourne Cup. His 1st start, last place, gelded, the rest is history. Redoute’s was a beast, I remember him walking around the enclosure for his 1st run. Was checking each horse as they paraded by, looked up and my jaw hit the ground, what a monster. I scurried to catch up with his trainer, a guy I new casually, Rick Hore Lacy. I said how impressed I was, he said he is the best horse he has ever been associated with, and believe me he has been around all the big names. His physical appearance was eye opening compared to horses around him but his motor was that of champions, if anything his frame was more a hindrance than anything. Rick told me to bet up and back him every start, he is a champion. Being a bull, he also told me he would make a great stallion. He had a great career and retired to stud. I was offered a share in him at stud for $40,000 but I was just married with a child on the way. Well, he turned out a phenomenal sire and his fee rose to $250,000, another reason I will never forget him.
My favorite real life horse was Harlan’s Holiday. Even though he’d never be remembered for winning any big races like the Ky Derby or the BC Classic. The closest he came to such a thing, was a second in the Dubai World cup as a 4yr old. His final race came in the former Saratoga Breeders Cup, when he suffered a minor breakdown, due to a strifle locking up late in the race. He was retired and arrived to Airdrie Stud in Mid-September 2003, where he began his stud at a fee of $17,500. He didn’t take long to leave his mark as a top sire, although not an elite sire. His fee rose up to 30k, and dropped to 25k, before he was sold and moved to Winstar Farm late 2010 and stood until his death occuring in November 2013; while he was in South America, for their season. But his legacy lives on, though his Grade 1 winning sons Into Mischief and Majesticperfection; and his grandson Goldencents.
Charismatic would be mine. One of the first Derby’s I watched on tv with my grandfather was 1999 and he just stood out to me. He had similar markings to a Standardbred my grandfathers horse used to race against (and usually get beat by) week in and week out so I think that had something to do with it as well lol. Now that he is at old friends farm I may have to plan a trip to Kentucky some time, and stock up on sim shares this year for him lol.
During my time in racing I’ve seen so many special horses and been fortunate to be associated with a few!
In recent years I loved Sea The Stars, he was everything a Derby winner should be, maybe not as flashy or as spectacular as some, but he always got the job done – he had talent and a temperament to die for. Other personal favourites over the years have been Halling, Pentire, Singspiel and Bahamian Bounty- the last two I met personally well into their late stud careers and both were utter gentlemen and very pleasant to deal with. I was fortunate to see speedballs Dayjur and Lochsong in their careers, I met both Nashwan and Unfuwain at Shadwell Stud- the list could go on! However, I looked after a horse called Orcadian during his career, he won a G3 race for me, took me to both the Cheltenham Festival and helped me fulfil my dream of seeing the Grand National when he ran in the first race on the card one year. Without doubt he had his own ‘ideas’ about things somedays- sometimes he just wouldn’t go anywhere at home and once I had to back him onto the course at a big televised meeting because he wouldn’t walk forwards down the chute that led onto the track…..he got called some rude names (sometimes by me too!) but never once did he back away from a battle on the racecourse at the business end. He was my soulmate, my boy and I’d like to think he loved me as much as I did him. I knew how to get him to do stuff he wasn’t keen on and we just understood each other. He was never one for out and out affection, but quite often would hook his front leg round mine when I was standing next to him and he would put his head almost on my feet to allow me to scratch the roots of his mane, which he adored….. he was certainly a larger than life character which despite being exasperating sometimes, made him all the more special.
I’m sure we all have ‘favourites’ that we never actually saw in the flesh. For me that would be Horse Chestnut. I’ve also been a part owner of two horses and those fillies, both only 1 time winners, have a special place in my memories. In the spirit of the question though, my favourite must be Wolf Power. He was a really special miler here in South Africa before ending up at stud in the USA. On one of my 3 trips trips to that country, I went to visit him in Kentucky. He was already quite an old feller at that stage, looking much whiter than the roan grey he used to be on our tracks. He seemed to fit right in with the ground blanketed in snow. 🙂 For those that are unaware, he is the dam sire of another super turf miler, Wise Dan.
I got into racing in the late 60’s, getting fully into it by 1970. My all-time fave is Secretariat, but I’m sure you readers know plenty about Big Red, so I’ll pick another (or two) of my faves to blab about…
My first-ever favorite horse was a cheap plater named Spanish Mod who raced for a few years around the Northern California racing scene. He was really fast (for his level) and almost always led the way thru the 1st half-mile in the low-end six-furlong claimers he raced in. He’d give everything he had every time out as he’d try to hang on for the win… He usually had enough to hit the board and occasionally won. A crowd favorite, he was almost always the betting choice… Great fun to watch!
In those same years, Charlie Wittingham and a few other top SoCal trainers started a trend of finding South American horses and bringing them to the SoCal circuit with great success. The best of these was a 5yo horse named Cougar (became Cougar II in the States), who dominated a couple allowance field and then went ahead and started killing ’em in graded stakes… Almost always far back early in the races, regular jock Willie Shoemaker would bring him home with a huge rush as he won one graded stakes after another (16 according to pedigreequery.com) and broke a few track records, too. He even raced against Secretariat once, finishing 3rd to Big Red in the Marlboro Cup at age 7.
Years later, when I got a kitten, I named him Cougar III.
Fantastic stories and I love hearing about memories of horses from all over the world. I’ll be busy on Google and Youtube looking some of these guys up. Keep them coming.
I believe the reason I like horse racing now goes back to the 1981 Kentucky Derby winner Pleasant Colony. I rooted so hard for it to win the triple crown, but it wasn’t to be. But yes, that’s why I’m a horse racing fan because of Pleasant Colony.
I like horse racing but after I watched Real Quiet back in 1998, I fall in love with race horse, great race wow!
Easy goer my beloved
NorthEastBound-comes to mind…never forget breeders cup turf mile…game as they come…couldnt hold off War Chant but not many could…Made huge score on the tri that day! We had a hard knocking claimer back in the day name The Frugal Doc-won the Maryland Million Classic ….Saw him win an allowance at MP one day and i was a fan after that.
mine would be old fashioned just because he was the first stakes runner I seen up close ,if we were talking greyhound racn I have all kinds of story’s ,great read,really like the story’s .nice one dd
Old fashioned sired the horse I won my first bet ever on..my first time ever to watch horse racing. It was Belmont stakes day and a horse named Sweet Whiskey won my show bet.
Better Talk Now. He was a mix of all great things about a racehorse, A veteran turf racer who ran until the ripe old age of 10. He was a deep closer which I have a soft spot for and he was a beautiful dark color. Trained by a wonderful horsemen and man Graham Motion and ridden by one of the best guys and jockeys of this generation Ramon Dominguez. Competed in multiple BC Turfs winning one over Kittens Joy and placing in one or two more. I saw him in person at Monmouth,Pimlico and Belmont in both defeat and victory but was thrilled every time. Currently I love King Kreesa, Lubash, and Kharafa for many of the same reasons. Amazing rivalry year after year.
Some more of my all time favorites.
Zenyatta: Seeing her dance in the paddock and almost bring the building down when she won the BCC at my second ever BC was a racing memory I will never forget
Barbaro: Class and size, “sublime”. Unfortunately the only time I ever laid eyes on him was at the Preakness. Worst day of my life as a racing fan
Point Given: Physically imposing individual who I had the pleasure of seeing in the Haskell at Monmouth Park. Can’t think of many other horses to win 4 Gr.1 million dollar races in a row. Interesting part is he didn’t even have it all figured out yet and may have gotten better
Rachel Alexandra. Beautiful and dominant filly who had one of the best seasons in racing history. Had the pleasure of seeing her twice, the Haskell and the Ladies Secret Stakes. One day I braved out a rain storm and the other a heat index of 105. Both days I will never forget.
Presious Passion. Most interesting running style I have seen. Always a thrill to see him go out by 20 lengths and try to hold on. Saw him many times at Monmouth Park including 2 wins in the United Nations. Almost did it again at the BC at Santa Anita while I was there as well
Bernardini. One of the classiest horse I ever saw and by my favorite sire A.P Indy. Saw him twice, the Preakness and Jockey Club Gold Cup.
English Channel: Hometown connections campaigned this strapping son of Smart Strike that had the look. I actually saw him win his first stakes race on the Preakness undercard without realizing it until many years later. Also saw him at Monmouth and Belmont including a breakthrough win in a river at Monmouth taking the BC Turf over ARC winner Dylan Thomas.(Saw Dylan Thomas twice. Jockey Club Gold Cup, BC Turf. Trounced both times. Sorry for bringing you bad luck buddy)
Coronado’s Quest. Beautiful dark horse with a hot streak in him. A fiery stallion with talent to boot. He was the winner of the first Haskell I ever attended when I was 10.
Skip Away. One of my favorite racing memories and memories in life. My grandmother took me over to Monmouth Park just in time to see Skip Away beat Stormin Fever in an absolute battle down the stretch in the Iselin Handicap. For many years after this race I “didn’t like” Jose Santos for almost stealing the race from my first favorite horse
Silver Charm: Definition of honest. Always showed up in the big races and always showed up. First horse I really followed for their whole career. Couldn’t have been easier to root for. Owners were pure class.
skip away with i think 131…stormin fever actually got a nose in front and skippy came right back at em with the master jerry bailey.
I think the stars we see when we are first introduced to something tend to seem larger than life. In sports it was Ernie Banks and Bobby Hull. In horse racing it was Damascus, Buckpasser and the greatest horse to ever look through a bridle, Dr. Fager. The good doctor could carry a house on his back and still beat any horse who ever lived from 2 furlongs to 2 miles. I got to see him three times and each time I was ultra impressed. I could go on and on for days. But Steve Haskin does it so much more eloquently.
http://cs.bloodhorse.com/blogs/horse-racing-steve-haskin/archive/2013/12/04/dr-fager-where-are-you.aspx
I owned standardbred pacers for thirty years from 1977 to 2007. My two favorites were Next Bonus A and Pacific Flight N.
Next Bonus was one of the two most imposing looking horses I ever saw, the other being Jenna’s Beach Boy. Next Bonus raced in the higher classes in Chicago for a couple of years and earned over $300,000. He set the Maywood Park track record for aged pacers and was invited to Cleveland to compete in the Battle of Lake Erie.
Pacific Flight N was a world class mare. Prior to our acquisition, she won the G-1 New Zealand Oaks in her native country. For my parteners and me she raced 75 times and won 38. Career earnings of a shade over half a million. She is the only horse of anf age, sex or gait to hold track records at all four Chicago tracks (Maywood, Balmoral, Sportsman’s and Hawthorne).
After her racing career was finished we bred her for a few years and then sold her to Australian interests. One of her babies was named Sirius Flight. She was undefeated in five career starts, two at age three and three as a four year old, but was injured early and often. Sirius Flight was also sold to Aussies and she produced a nice filly named Chicago Blues. That filly produced colt named Chicago Bull. Chicago Bull is a big star down under having won several prestigious races in 2016. Here is a sample.
http://www.harness.org.au/video-replay.cfm?state=WA&raceCode=GPM25111603
This is one of the best threads ever, D D. I love reading all the stories.
So many to choose from, but for me it comes down to Makybe Diva.
3 Melbourne Cups in a row and a Cox Plate, plus many other races
I saw her first race (which she ran 4th in the bush IIRC) and picked her out as one to follow and follow her I did. I was on when she won the Queen Elizbeth (think it is called something else now) on the last day of the Flemington cup carnival and said to the lads that she will win the Cup next year.
I backed her at 15/1 for the first cup, backed her the day the markets opened (something I never do in this fickle industry) at 12/1 (she jumped favourite at 3/1) and as she plowed through the mud, I wondered aloud why I didn’t have the house on her – she was a moral.
For the third cup, she was always going o be very short, as everyone wanted a piece of her, her Cox Plate win the week prior looked like it might be her last, but Lee Freedman decided to back her up in the Cup. Again, I had her early in the markets at 10/1 and it was the most amazing thing to see her take out her 3rd consecutive cup. A champion becomes a legend as Greg Miles called her over the line
It’s hard enough to win 1 Melbourne Cup, let alone 3 in a row. We won’t ever see it happen again and I am just glad I was around to see it
I’m not a regular racegoer anymore, although I do make it a couple of meetings a year. However, I was a regular back in the days of Kingston Town, and it’s hard to disagree with Greg.
But to a degree I will. The best horse I ever saw doesn’t come up at the top of many lists, but his trainer, the great Colin Hayes, declared him the best horse he ever had. To say he (horse, not trainer) was ugly was an understatement, and when he won his first lowly race in Adelaide, he set a record as Australia’s longest priced winner. I saw Dulcify win the Australian Cup at Flemington. He was boxed in with about a furlong to run and had no hope, but when the opening came, he put the result beyond doubt in a couple of “Black Caviar’ strides
His 7 length win in the Cox plate was not matched until Winx last year (gee, it really was last year), and I believe history will respect his opponents more than it will those who finished behind Winx.
Then I was again at Flemington when he clipped the heels of Hyperno in a fatal error. I backed him that day, and no-one will ever convince me that that split second did not have a major impact on the definition of champion
Forego any distance any weight!!!
Yup, ’76 Marlboro Cup… 137 pounds… Unforgettable!
Gray Ransom is currently my favorite horse. He is a 3 year old gelding and will be racing at Gulfstream on Friday. He is part of Racing Factions, and if you are interested in horse ownership, I recommend Racing Factions. A 500 dollar investment will get you a share of a horse and all the benefits. I have watched him train in the mornings, and race at Churchill Downs. Hoping for a victory soon and a picture for my wall. If interested, check out RacingFactions.com. Group 3 is forming now and shares are still available
Great stories. Thank you for sharing. It’s weird what makes me like a horse. It’s almost always something intangible. “The Look of Eagles”. Who their daddy was. How they look. I liked War Emblem because he was black (dark brown whatever, he looked black), went to the lead and said try to beat me. More Than Ready because when I visited him when he was a 10K sire at Vinery they braided his hair and had him all dressed up to see me. Tiznow because of his epic BC Classics where he beat European invaders. Bluegrass Cat because he was a distance running son of Storm Cat. Rags to Riches because she was a daughter of AP Indy and had the epic battle with Curlin – plus Dan introduced me to Johnny V and I got to ask him about her. AP Indy was the most Alpha male horse I have ever seen. Storm Cat was the most graceful. I got to spend 30 minutes alone with Vindication, for some reason none of the farm personal were around. He was the incredibly playful and inquisitive. Pleasantly Perfect was another very playful horse. King Cugat tried to take a bite out of my cousin. Belong to Me had a huge powerful rear end, you could see why he had so much sprinting power. Afleet Alex was one of my all time favorites. He was one of the most athletic horses I have ever seen and should have been a Triple Crown winner if not for a bad KY Derby ride. His closing move was really something to behold.
I like some of those as well, Tiznow will always be a favorite of mine. Those were epic fields he faced in the Classics.
Seattle Slew was the horse that got me hooked on racing, much like War Emblem, Black and come catch me if you can. When he missed the break in the derby and bulldogged his way to the front, bouncing horses off him like he was a running back was pretty damn cool.
I was just remembering today the 90’s and my time following West Coast racing pretty closely. Swiss Yodeler winning everything at 2 years old and running Free House into the ground going 22,45, 109 over 8.5F. Then the next year, Silver Charm and Free House battling it out in California then off the the derby. Indian Charlie who was from a Turf Paradise mare named Soviet Sojourn, that hometown connection made me root for him. Not many were talking about “Fish” until the derby was over.
2009 and this huge grey horse named The Pampelmousse looked unbeatable in California only to be sidelined with an injury. I am still convinced he was a Derby quality horse.
Anyways, thanks for the response. I love reading the stories.
Being from Canada and right beside ole Mighty Woodbine racetrack I have a few that come to mind that most have never heard or seen of.
My obvious choice internationally will always be Big Red ( Secretariat )
However I have two I will never forget My first choice is a horse called Izvestia who was a triple crown winner here. As a three year old he was completely unstoppable and won by enormous amounts of lengths looking like a sure thing. Here is a report on what became of Izvestia from the New York Times.
Izvestia Destroyed After Mishap
Published: October 21, 1991
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TORONTO, Oct. 20— Izvestia, the Canadian Triple Crown winner and Canada’s horse of the year last year, was destroyed today after breaking his left hind leg in the Rothmans International at Woodbine.
Kinghaven Farms veterenarian Dr. Robert McMartin, who recommended destroying the horse, said Izvestia’s leg was broken in three places.
“That’s as bad a break as we’ve seen this year,” McMartin said.
Sky Classic, the Canadian-bred 3-5 favorite, set a track record in beating Panoramic in a stretch duel. Ridden by Pat Day, the winner took the lead from Forty Niner Days on the final turn and then fought off Panoramic, a French horse owned by the Aga Khan and ridden by Steve Cauthen, for his sixth straight victory. He covered the mile and a half turf course in 2:274//5 and paid $3.50 for $2 to win.
Izvestia, a 4-year-old whose career earnings were $4.1 million, was fifth in a pack at the half-mile mark of the race. He broke down at the three-quarter-mile mark in front of the grandstand.
Funny thing is about this is Sky Classic was the darling two year old around these parts but was hurt his whole three year old campaign. Izvestia emerged as the 3 year old champ going away having never raced Sky Classic. They finally got there chance in this 4 year old Rothman’s International Grade 1 race at Woodbine and as you can read Izvestia lost his life that day……right in front of me. Biggest downer in my racing fan career. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyFQnO0z2_A
As far as my very favorite it belongs to a filly called Bodust, also a Woodbine horse. This horse made the most remarkable come back I have ever seen by a horse in a race and this includes the great run by Arazi that put him on the map. Bodust in her very first race running 4 and half furlongs stumbles terrible out of the gate and drops almost 20 lengths out of it right off ( In a 4 and a half furlong race ) need I say that more. She absolutely romps in this race to win by many. I had money on her huge so this made me fall in love with her. She did go on to win many local stakes but never got the opportunity to run graded or even get a chance to breed. Never been able to find out why . Here is her breeding ….
http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/bodust