The Red Mile?

[Not4Love]

Thinking about going opening night (tonight). Don't know much about the type of racing that they have going on. Wondering if anyone might be able to explain "the fair circuit", and maybe what tr/drivers i might look for. I"m guessing I will be the only one in attendance. :confused: Thanks.

[sonnyp]

Thinking about going opening night (tonight). Don't know much about the type of racing that they have going on. Wondering if anyone might be able to explain "the fair circuit", and maybe what tr/drivers i might look for. I"m guessing I will be the only one in attendance. :confused: Thanks.


well, here's the card :

http://racing.ustrotting.com/chart.aspx


i looked over the purses and the early part of the card has purses in the $9,000- 10,000 range and the conditions titles are kentucky fair finals. this would indicate these are the top competitors from designated races held at the fairs around kentucky.

the bottom of the card has $2,000 purses and nw1 or nw2 and such.

not really great racing.

the only names i can say i've heard of in the drivers are pete wrenn and noble, who i assume is related to sam "chip" noble a very good horseman.

good luck

[Not4Love]

Thanks sonny. Out of curiousty, I'll check it out.

[baconswitchfarm]

They have one "dope" stable that races at the fairs. Bet their 1-5 shots and pick something to go underneath.The overnight racing is horrid like most places that don't have slots.

[wilderness]

the bottom of the card has $2,000 purses and nw1 or nw2 and such.

not really great racing.

sonny,
Not sure if you visited the Red Mile decades ago?
Their early year meets always have low purses.

I recall seeing less-than-1k claimers in my only visit in '72.

The tradition of Lexington is always the fall meets.

[sonnyp]

sonny,
Not sure if you visited the Red Mile decades ago?
Their early year meets always have low purses.

I recall seeing less-than-1k claimers in my only visit in '72.

The tradition of Lexington is always the fall meets.

hi don,

when i was still active, i remember there were 2 distinct meets. one was a lower level overnight meet with the races you describe. the other was a "grand circuit" type meet with all the top horses and trainer/drivers in the country. in the afternoons they time trialed horses to put fast marks on their records. they also had the 2 big yearling sales at that time. one was fasig tipton out at keeneland and the other was right near the red mile, i believe it was tattersal's.

when i was in college, i went to a kentucky derby and the night before we went to louisville downs a half mile track down there. that was back in the 70's.

[wilderness]

sonny,
Wish I'd made it to Louisville Downs just once.

The Tattersalls Sale (http://www.tattersallsredmile.com/) is still held. This year Oct 3rd thru 7th via the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale (http://www.lexingtonselected.com/)

I passed through Lexington a few years ago, and was simply amazed at how far the city has expanded into the former country ;)
A similar expansion had taken place when I arrived on same trip to Knoxville.

[sonnyp]

sonny,
Wish I'd made it to Louisville Downs just once.

The Tattersalls Sale (http://www.tattersallsredmile.com/) is still held. This year Oct 3rd thru 7th via the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale (http://www.lexingtonselected.com/)

I passed through Lexington a few years ago, and was simply amazed at how far the city has expanded into the former country ;)
A similar expansion had taken place when I arrived on same trip to Knoxville.


we stayed in a little motel on versailles road, out near the airport and very near the famed calumet farm. "THE" place to stay back then was the campbell house. you'd expect to see colonel sanders (kfc) at the place. real southern hospitality.

[wilderness]

Was Mrs. Jenkins still renting rooms near Tattersalls at that time?

[wilderness]

very near the famed calumet farm.

the hallowed ground of "Greyhound" and William Monroe Wright (frequently published as W. M. Wright).

To bad they destroyed the integrity of the farm when the transition was made to the "lost breed" ;)

[sonnyp]

i'm not familiar with the name. i love you stories. who was she ?

[sonnyp]

the hallowed ground of "Greyhound" and William Monroe Wright (frequently published as W. M. Wright).

To bad they destroyed the integrity of the farm when the transition was made to the "lost breed" ;)


greyhound had a connection to calumet ?

[wilderness]

i'm not familiar with the name. i love you stories. who was she ?

I don't have any details on Mrs. Jenkins, just that she ran a boarding house and the food was good.

[wilderness]

greyhound had a connection to calumet ?

My bad.
See what happens when I get too cocky ;)

Greyhound's HOF Bio:

GREYHOUND t, T1:55¼ 1965 [1932-1965]

Greyhound was a foal of 1932 by Guy Abbey-Elizabeth. He was purchased from the Almahurst Farm for $900 at an Indianapolis sale as a yearling by Sep Palin for E. J. Baker. As a two-year-old he lost three races and as a three-year-old lost but two heats, but no races. For the remainder of his career he lost only one race, that as a four-year-old. His career from 1934-1940 is as follows: he won 71 heats out of 82, and established no less than 14 world records. They included the 1:55¼ in 1938 and the 2:01¾ he set in 1940 under saddle during his final official appearance, at Lexington, KY. Greyhound died in Maple Park, IL on February 4, 1965.

[sonnyp]

My bad.
See what happens when I get too cocky ;)

Greyhound's HOF Bio:

GREYHOUND t, T1:55¼ 1965 [1932-1965]

Greyhound was a foal of 1932 by Guy Abbey-Elizabeth. He was purchased from the Almahurst Farm for $900 at an Indianapolis sale as a yearling by Sep Palin for E. J. Baker. As a two-year-old he lost three races and as a three-year-old lost but two heats, but no races. For the remainder of his career he lost only one race, that as a four-year-old. His career from 1934-1940 is as follows: he won 71 heats out of 82, and established no less than 14 world records. They included the 1:55¼ in 1938 and the 2:01¾ he set in 1940 under saddle during his final official appearance, at Lexington, KY. Greyhound died in Maple Park, IL on February 4, 1965.


you're the best don. can u believe 1:55 back in 1938 with that harness and sulky and those tracks ? unbelievable !

[wilderness]

you're the best don. can u believe 1:55 back in 1938 with that harness and sulky and those tracks ? unbelievable !

26 and bit last quarter at North Randall ;)

Here's a lead-in for a 1929 article on Calumet Farm:

Calumet Farm's Greatness

NEVER in the history of harness horse breeding has a stock farm attained in the same space of time anything like the commanding position now unquestionably possessed by Calumet Farm, gained by right of legitimate conquest in a field where many enterprises of the sort have been attempted on an ambitious scale, but only a few have risen to the pinnacle of real. success.

The public is familiar with the phenomenal feats of speed siring accomplished by Belwin, the premier sire at Calumet Farm. A good deal has been written and appreciated about the magnificent estate in the heart of the Blue Grass section of Kentucky, and the record-breaking feats of the colt trotters which first saw the light there naturally have been dwelt upon at length in the public prints—but from the point of view of the present writer the chroniclers have overlooked the most important, as well as the most interesting feature of the entire propositionthe man who conceived the enterprise, planted its first seed, and lives to see it flowered into the most colorful thing of its kind in the world—but who, so far as he could command that part of the matter, has chosen to remain in the background in the matter of personal credit for the great work accomplished.

That man, W. M. Wright, became, one almost might say, over night, the leading breeder of trotters on a large scale. He was of ample fortune, with an exceedingly brilliant record of commercial achievements to his credit, and already resolved to confine his activities in business matters to general supervision of the tremendous project he had created and personally carried to success, beginning with his own discovery of the formula on which the best selling baking powder in the world is based. And Mr. Wright, once the breeding of harness horses was determined upon, applied to the venture the same dynamic energy, backed by ample capital and the business wisdom gained by half a century of experience

The purchase of land was simple. Then came the selection of a stallion worthy to head a stud which Mr. Wright had decided should be second to none in the world.
end of quote

in the late-1920's, Calumet stood Belwin, Peter the Brewer, Justice Brooke (see the 3rd dam connection to the 1981 Hambletonian winner) and Truax.

[sonnyp]

devil's red and blue, calumet. i had no idea they started with standardbreds.

thanks don