Skip Away has died

[Fager Fan]

The Blood-Horse is reporting that Skip Away has died of a heart attack.

[FenceBored]

“He was a tough horse,” said Trontz. “He never showed any signs but he had a heart condition for years. Some people didn’t expect him to live as long as he did. He was a durable and hard-knocking sire and racehorse.”
-- http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57023/skip-away-dies-of-heart-attack (http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57023/skip-away-dies-of-heart-attack)

[xfile]

http://www.fullcardreports.com/images208/149x125SkipAway.jpg
RIP 'SKIPPY'....

[PhantomOnTour]

He raced 38 times. You just don't see champions run that much anymore. Thanks to the Hines for campaigning him so boldly. His last year of racing saw him win something like 7 straight at 6 different tracks with 5 of them Gr1 races. Warrior. Never that quick or explosive, he just marched and marched, cranking out solid 1/4s until the competition peeled away. One of my favorites...Skip Away.

[citygoat]

Any horse that beat Cigar was a good horse.

Never liked the horse but always feared him.

[Dahoss9698]

He raced 38 times. You just don't see champions run that much anymore. Thanks to the Hines for campaigning him so boldly. His last year of racing saw him win something like 7 straight at 6 different tracks with 5 of them Gr1 races. Warrior. Never that quick or explosive, he just marched and marched, cranking out solid 1/4s until the competition peeled away. One of my favorites...Skip Away.

He really was a special horse. If he was running today I can only imagine the superlatives that would be thrown his way.

I echo the sentiments towards the Hines. He rarely missed a dance and they campaigned him like the champion he was.

Here are his lifetime pp's for anyone interested. He competed in all 3 of the triple crown races, then won the Ohio Derby 15 days later.

http://community.drf.com/files/skip-away.pdf

[joanied]

I was stunned when I read this news...and got kinda choked up...what a great horse he was...not too many horses had the courage of Skippy...he was a joy to watch...so powerful.
This is just so sad...I hope Sonny was waiting for him and that they had a wonderful reunion....together now for eternity.

Skip Away
R.I.P :(

[cj's dad]

Man, I loved that horse.

Do to some unfortunate circumstances in 1997, I had a lot of free time on my hands. Some friends talked me into going to the BC @ Hollywood Park.

I got to see Skippy up close and personal. He won. I then followed him to the
Donn H'cap in 98 which he won, the Pimlico Special in 98 which he won and finally the Jockey Club Gold Cup also '98 where he ran 3rd (I believe) in a race run on a wet track and won by Wagon limit at DD odds.

My son's girlfriend at the time took an awesome photo of Skip Away at the JCGC heading under the stands with the Ivy covered walls in the background - it's a great picture. I contacted Sonny Hine later that year and sent him 2 copies of the picture to his address in Hallendale Fla. He said it remains one of his favorites. He signed it for himself and Carolyn(maybe she signed it?) and returned one to me. The picture hangs on my wall to this day.

Good memories of a great horse and 2 very nice folks.

[jognlope]

He was a tough and making no apologies for it kind of horse. So beautiful, willing. RIP.

[Cardus]

He really was a special horse. If he was running today I can only imagine the superlatives that would be thrown his way.

I echo the sentiments towards the Hines. He rarely missed a dance and they campaigned him like the champion he was.

Here are his lifetime pp's for anyone interested. He competed in all 3 of the triple crown races, then won the Ohio Derby 15 days later.

http://community.drf.com/files/skip-away.pdf

Beat me to the punch on that one.

A buddy of mine had a really nice win bet on him at 8-1, if memory serves, in the Belmont Stakes.

I'm at Belmont Park when Skip Away beat Cigar in the Gold Cup. An acquaintance of mine -- who was not a racing fan -- was with a big group of us that day.

Skip Away wins, the place goes silent -- as silent as when Smarty lost, actually -- and he yells, "F--- You, Cigar!" Third class all the way!

He had some tough, tough competition, too. The battles with Formal Gold, Will's Way, Gentlemen, Cigar, of course...

This horse was a tank, and probably the last of the top horses campaigned "like they used to be." People who became fans of racing in the Aughts really missed out on this guy.

[PaceAdvantage]

He really was a special horse. If he was running today I can only imagine the superlatives that would be thrown his way.

I echo the sentiments towards the Hines. He rarely missed a dance and they campaigned him like the champion he was.

Here are his lifetime pp's for anyone interested. He competed in all 3 of the triple crown races, then won the Ohio Derby 15 days later.

http://community.drf.com/files/skip-away.pdfThanks for the PPs...he was special indeed. I think I appreciated him much more after he retired, because I was still suffering from Holy Bull hangover back then.

I put a little tribute up on the home page for him...I couldn't decide on whether to use the 1996 Jockey Club Gold Cup, where he beat Cigar, or the 1997 Breeders' Cup Classic. I ended up on the BC Classic video, but I think I'll switch to the JCGC video tomorrow...

www.paceadvantage.com

[Cardus]

Thanks for the PPs...he was special indeed. I think I appreciated him much more after he retired, because I was still suffering from Holy Bull hangover back then.

I put a little tribute up on the home page for him...I couldn't decide on whether to use the 1996 Jockey Club Gold Cup, where he beat Cigar, or the 1997 Breeders' Cup Classic. I ended up on the BC Classic video, but I think I'll switch to the JCGC video tomorrow...

www.paceadvantage.com (http://www.paceadvantage.com)

Both choices are great; switching it to the Gold Cup would be the perfect tribute.

[Cardus]

He really was a special horse. If he was running today I can only imagine the superlatives that would be thrown his way.

I echo the sentiments towards the Hines. He rarely missed a dance and they campaigned him like the champion he was.

Here are his lifetime pp's for anyone interested. He competed in all 3 of the triple crown races, then won the Ohio Derby 15 days later.

http://community.drf.com/files/skip-away.pdf

Thanks for posting the past performances.

You're a kind person.

[PaceAdvantage]

Man, look at some of those numbers he was putting up as an older horse...

The 90s were really a little golden era in this game...you had Holy Bull, then Cigar, then Skip Away, plus Silver Charm and all the other cast of characters mentioned already....

No triple crown winners, but really the last truly great period of time in this sport as far as the talent goes...

[Grits]

Carolyn Hine, this morning, lost her second greatest love. And that's never an easy thing.

Rest in peace, Skip Away, you gave us many fine moments to remember.

[Cardus]

Fifteen races at 1 3/16 or longer.

[Dahoss9698]

Thanks for the PPs...he was special indeed. I think I appreciated him much more after he retired, because I was still suffering from Holy Bull hangover back then.




You and I both.

[Dahoss9698]

You're a kind person.

:lol:

Very sharp post

[lamboguy]

i remember him very well, we had him as a baby, no one wanted him. he was a great champion my condolences go out to carolyn, she truly loved that guy

[johnhannibalsmith]

Looking at the Past Performances isn't just a reminder of how great he was, but how much better racing was.

Man, I miss seeing horses at that level with that kind of resume.

[castaway01]

He was a very good horse and always gave a solid effort...more of a "wear you down" type than brilliant speed. He will be missed.

[Cardus]

Looking at the Past Performances isn't just a reminder of how great he was, but how much better racing was.

Man, I miss seeing horses at that level with that kind of resume.

Well said.

And in mentioning the horses I did before, I forgot about Louis Quatorze!

I believe that he started his four-year-old season with a 14-length romp in the Ben Ali. He was injured either in that win or shortly thereafter.

If he hadn't been injured, that group would have had another terrific talent.

[tzipi]

I was a big Cigar fan but Skippy was a great horse. R.I.P. Skippy

[PhantomOnTour]

He ran 9 straight Beyers of 115 or better. 'Nuff said.

[RXB]

Not only a talented horse, but durable, too. Had three very good years, and the talent level ran deep in his division in each of those three seasons. We could use a lot more like Skip Away, instead of all of these early-maturing, brittle flashes. Wonderful animal.

[statik27]

The last great handicap horse we've seen.

[jognlope]

That's right ,the 90s were full of those big muscled racers, Skip, Lemon Drop Kid, Cigar and the rest.

[Bobzilla]

I'm saddened to learn about Skip Away's passing. What a big gray battleship he was. What a fighter. I watched a replay of the 1996 Belmont, a race in which he was passed late by Editor's Note. The fractions were fast in that race and Skip Away was in close attendancen to the 46 4/5 1:10 4/5, three wide on the turn with Louis Quatorze and another to his inside, and was still battling it out in the final stages. I hated to see him lose that race. As another poster noted he would go on to win in Ohio a few weeks later.

These days horses are rarely, if ever, campaigned the way Skip Away was between 95 and 98. Will American racing ever see a group of contemporaries battling it out on the track, from race to race over the course of a season, where the speed figures are in the 115 to 126 range again? I sure hope so. Formal Gold didn't have Skip Away's longevity but when he was in top form he was putting forth monstrous performances and was for a short while Skip Away's nemesis. I would have never have dreamed 15 years ago I'd be feeling so nostalgic about 90s racing so soon. Rest in peace brave warrior.

[Zippy Chippy]

Very sad.

Give away was 1 of my least favorite horses of all time. I don't know why was i found him very boring. Kinda like watching jim furyk play a round of golf. I respected the hell out of him. But would never go out of my way to watch him run. The more of a horse racing fan i became the more i realize how great of a horse he really was. The jcg was an amazing race

[Zippy Chippy]

Very sad.

Give away was 1 of my least favorite horses of all time. I don't know why was i found him very boring. Kinda like watching jim furyk play a round of golf. I respected the hell out of him. But would never go out of my way to watch him run. The more of a horse racing fan i became the more i realize how great of a horse he really was. The jcg was an amazing race

Obviously meant SKIP AWAY.

[ArlJim78]

lots of good memories of Skip Away, incredible that some of those big numbers he ran were acheived while he was getting trounced by Formal Gold. I mean how good was that one?

Sad that he is gone now, but it's also sad to look back in astonishment at the caliber of horses and quality of the handicaps we got to enjoy not so very long ago. It's slim pickings these days in terms of racings heavy hitters.

[only11]

“He was a tough horse,” said Trontz. “He never showed any signs but he had a heart condition for years. Some people didn’t expect him to live as long as he did. He was a durable and hard-knocking sire and racehorse.”
-- http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57023/skip-away-dies-of-heart-attack (http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/57023/skip-away-dies-of-heart-attack)

Fenced,who do you think was the best horse he sired?

[eastie]

saw him win the Masscap twice. had a great presence in the paddock. smart hoss, took everything in. him, Waquoit and the Bid. the 3 best looking greys I ever did see

[magwell]

If my memory is right, Sonny bought him at a obs 2 yr old sale and found a problem but took him anyway at a lower price like maybe in the 20 k range. In the dictionary under "racehorse" should be his picture what a nice honest horse he was......

[FenceBored]

Fenced,who do you think was the best horse he sired?

I haven't given it any thought, I pulled that quote for the part about him having a known heart problem for years.

Looking on PedigreeQuery (http://www.pedigreequery.com/index.php?query_type=progeny&search_bar=progeny&h=SKIP+AWAY&sort=Earnings&done=y&filter=All%20Horses&cf=)at his progeny sorted by earnings, and his page on Stallion Register (http://www.stallionregister.com/pdfs/skipaway.pdf), none of the names jump out. Aside from the Panamanian G1 winner, it looks like a couple of G3 winners were his best, Skipaslew and Sister Swank.

[Stevie Belmont]

Yes--very sad news indeed.

He was a great Champion.

[KirisClown]

KeJy7hOdx48

[foul]

My favorite race horse ------R.I.P. SKIP AWAY


foul

[Cardus]

KeJy7hOdx48

Thanks, Jeff.

[jognlope]

Mike Veitch of Saratogian on OTB this morning: In our 25 years of covering racing, we have looked for a Cigar and a Skip Away. He was a marvelously wonderful horse, high pounding step, hated Churchill Downs, didn't like Saratoga, but of all his wins, 11 were in grade 1 company.

[cj's dad]

Taken at the 1998 JCGC.

[joanied]

cj's dad...I know that photo must be a treasure...just like the horse...I doubt we'll ever see another like him...made out of iron with a heart the size of, well...Texas!!
My heart breaks for Mrs. Hine...I just can't imagine what she's going through with this. Jeeze:(

[Cardus]

Who was the favorite in Skip Away's 1997 Jockey Club Gold Cup win, in which he won by six lengths?

It wasn't Touch Gold off of his last-place finish in the Pegasus (which was on the same day as that great Woodward Stakes), was it? Or was it Gentlemen?

[cj's dad]

Who was the favorite in Skip Away's 1997 Jockey Club Gold Cup win, in which he won by six lengths?

It wasn't Touch Gold off of his last-place finish in the Pegasus (which was on the same day as that great Woodward Stakes), was it? Or was it Gentlemen?

Siphon at 4/5 - he broke down !!