BIG HORSES with big stories - Horse Racing Forum - PaceAdvantage.Com

Dave Schwartz · 12-08-2020, 12:08 PM

Please post your stories about famous horses.

Not like, "Secretariat was great. The End."

More like, "I bet Winning Colors in an allowance race after she had won the Derby and..."

(I'll post that story if this thread gets a little traction.)

johnhenry81 · 12-08-2020, 01:12 PM

albeit a copy and paste from another thread.

John Henry is my favorite. His hard luck background can match many other champions that had movies made about them. Poor breeding, (his sire Ole bob bowers) stood in my home state of Mich.) poor conformation, back at one knee, and inward on the other not to mention destructive around the barn as a youth.
I was on the finish line in the inaguaral Arlington Million. I swear that The Bart (40/1)beat him a head but JH won the photo to the delight of the overflow crowd at AP that day.

Nitro · 12-08-2020, 05:34 PM

I’ve always enjoyed playing the vertical exotics especially in the big races like the KY Derby. As most handicappers I can appreciate that when playing stakes races in general that we can assume all the entries in those type of races will be actually trying to actually win.

As I well recall in that 2002 Derby, the horse I really liked was War Emblem primarily because of the way it won the Illinois Derby while producing an excellent Beyer’s figure. Also, because it had been sold afterward and was to be trained by none other than Bob Baffert. What more could you ask for especially @ 20/1?

So, I had War Emblem keyed on top of 6 other horses for 2nd and 3rd that included Proud Citizen and Perfect Drift. There were 30 permutations @ $2/ea that cost a total of $60. One of the best investments I ever made! That Triple paid over $18,000!

What really got me though was the return on the Super. That’s only because one of my other selected entries was of course Medaglia D'Oro. That $1 Super returned over $90,000.

No, I wasn’t kicking myself, but the thought of having had the Super too without actually playing it (like I played that Triple) made me feel a bit unsettled at the time. There’s something to be said about making that kind of score with only a $120 investment.

Achilles · 12-08-2020, 06:06 PM

In the '70's, my wife, son and I stopped at Monmouth on our way back from Philly to Rochester. 4 Y.O. filly in the second race named Aura of Glory, whose sire was shown as either My Dad George or Sette Bello. I'd never seen two possible sires listed before or since. Someone at the breeding farm must have screwed up.

I had a copy of some breeding data specific to Monmouth, published by Jim Selvidge. When I looked the sires up in Selvidge's book, both of them were listed as sires whose progeny could be bet any time they offered value. Today's race was a claimer at 8.5 furlongs on the dirt, and the horse was 12-1 on the board. In the horse's last race, she had closed for 4th in a 6f sprint.

I placed my bet and hurried to the walking ring to look for more positive signs in the horse's appearance and behavior, like being all dappled out, muscles pumped and a raring to go attitude...........................The horse was asleep standing up. She looked like the nag that Lee Marvin rode in the western comedy, Cat Ballou. It appeared as if she needed something to lean against to keep from falling down....................It got worse after Craig Perret climbed aboard and walked her onto the track. While the other horses were getting warmed up by their jockeys, she walked to the backstretch, then she walked back toward the starting gate. I think she was in PP#5 (somewhere in the middle of the gate, anyway).

When they began to load, Perret took a firm hold on the reins and tapped her once or twice on her flank. She then trotted briskly in a circle across the width of the track and then was loaded. When they sprang the latch, she popped out to a length or two lead, and led to the top of the stretch. As the pressers and closers started their moves, she maintained her lead and held them all safe. I've never witnessed anything quite like that again.

I have no idea what the filly's backstory might be, but her performance before and during that race has stayed with me.

iwearpurple · 12-09-2020, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnhenry81

albeit a copy and paste from another thread.

John Henry is my favorite. His hard luck background can match many other champions that had movies made about them. Poor breeding, (his sire Ole bob bowers) stood in my home state of Mich.) poor conformation, back at one knee, and inward on the other not to mention destructive around the barn as a youth.
I was on the finish line in the inaguaral Arlington Million. I swear that The Bart (40/1)beat him a head but JH won the photo to the delight of the overflow crowd at AP that day.

I was living in California when John Henry was racing there. He also was my favorite at the time.

The best part though is I always wanted to go to the Kentucky Horse Park where he lived in "retirement" to see him (We had never been there). We were on the East Coast, and driving back to Minnesota (where we now live), and the plan was to visit on the way back. Luckily we made it a couple of days before he passed away in October of 2007. He looked frail, but we got to watch as he got his daily bath, and he seemed to appreciate it when we were taking a few pictures of him.

jay68802 · 12-09-2020, 05:56 PM

The Nutz. Going into the Gus Fonner Handicap was 2 for 4 lifetime. Speed figures were improving, and the horse seemed to love the track. The trainer was not really known for taking a chance and hoping to win a race. With two shippers likely to be taking $$, in the race, I thought he was going to be overlooked, and the work just before the race was one of the easiest 5f works I had seen in a long time. I know he was 25/1 winning. My best memory of the horse though, was cheering for him in a $4000 claimer at Fonner, his last win of his life.

MooseDog · 12-09-2020, 07:27 PM

I got laid off from the only "real job" I've ever had, it was pretty devastating but at least I got a chance to interview for a position at the parent company which was located in Lexington KY. I scheduled two extra days to try and visit farms in the area.

Though the job didn't work out, through connections I got to visit Lanes End Farm one morning, it was was off season and there I was roaming the grounds alone with Alysheba, Rubiano, Sea Hero, AP Indy, Manila and Gulch, just to name a few.

But that wasn't all. I was going to try and visit Claiborne but decided instead to go to Churchill Downs after seeing that Serena's Song was running (her last race) the next day. What I didn't realize was that Cigar was going to be "retired" and paraded down the CD stretch one final time before going off to stud (where he would turn out to be a dud). There was hardly anyone there so I got to stand right up on the rail with a few others and Bailey stopped him right in front of us.

On the day of my departure I figured out that I could spend about 2 hours at the KY Horse Park and (probably) still make my flight. It was barely enough time but I got to see one more great one in person, the old man John Henry.

All in all it was a pretty good weekend.

Someday Silent · 12-11-2020, 12:17 AM

I got to see Royal Delta when she broke her maiden first time out. She was big and gorgeous. I briefly thought about betting on her, but I figured she would need a race because she was so tall. Then there was the adage of how Mott's first timers never win.

Oops.

I know I have pictures of Royal Delta somewhere on an old flash drive. I really need to dig that up.

plainolebill · 12-11-2020, 01:45 AM

There was a Washington Bred sprinter Chinook Pass that was something special back in the early 80's. They shipped him to Hollywood for a stakes race, he was 7/2 and a lock as far as I was concerned. I drove up from San Diego to see the race.

Shoemaker was riding, the gate popped and he just stood there. When he finally got going he was nearly the length of the backstretch behind. He caught up to the pack on the turn and ran a respectable 3rd. After that he was a star in Socal, set a lot of records and was voted champion sprinter at 4. I hope you check the wiki.

First time I ever bet $100 to win on a horse and he dwells.

I'll tell you for sure that he never saw 7/2 again.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinook_Pass_(horse)

Dave Schwartz · 12-11-2020, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plainolebill

There was a Washington Bred sprinter Chinook Pass that was something special back in the early 80's. They shipped him to Hollywood for a stakes race, he was 7/2 and a lock as far as I was concerned. I drove up from San Diego to see the race.

Shoemaker was riding, the gate popped and he just stood there. When he finally got going he was nearly the length of the backstretch behind. He caught up to the pack on the turn and ran a respectable 3rd. After that he was a star in Socal, set a lot of records and was voted champion sprinter at 4. I hope you check the wiki.

First time I ever bet $100 to win on a horse and he dwells.

I'll tell you for sure that he never saw 7/2 again.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinook_Pass_(horse)

Wasn't Chinook Pass the one that used to run sub-22 1st fractions?

plainolebill · 12-11-2020, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Schwartz

Wasn't Chinook Pass the one that used to run sub-22 1st fractions?

He could run 21 flat or a bit more all day long. He was always the speed of the speed.

Half Smoke · 12-21-2020, 01:18 PM

....................

Maryland based Captain Bodgit - a game horse if there ever was one

in a losing effort in the Preakness - beaten by a neck by Silver Charm in '97

came flying late as was his style

track announcer: HERE COMES THE CAPTAIN

also came flying late to upset 2/5 Pulpit in the Florida Derby

Marylanders loved him

Half Smoke · 12-22-2020, 09:15 AM

......................

about 21 years ago I took some friends who didn't know racing to Rosecroft Raceway, a small harness track in Oxon Hill, MD

since that time Rosecroft has deteriorated and now races on a very limited schedule

anyway, I think the 8th race - there was an overwhelming favorite

at that time Rosecroft's show pool had normally about $400 in it

a bridge jumper was there and the show pool boomed to over $100K

I had been to Rosecroft several times and never seen or heard of anything like that happening..............it was astonishing

the horse won and the jumper didn't go looking for a bridge as I struggled to try to explain the thing to my friends

*

ultracapper · 12-25-2020, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Schwartz

Wasn't Chinook Pass the one that used to run sub-22 1st fractions?

Fastest horse Longacres ever saw, that is for certain. Won the LGA Mile the year after his trip to Socal, came out of the race a little lame, and never raced again. Held the track record for 5 1/2 up until the day they closed down.

lamboguy · 12-26-2020, 10:01 AM

i bet out on GUNRUNNER the first time he ran when he didn't win.

my other story was i bet on VIRGINIA rapids his first time out as well, he didn't win but the other half of the entry won.. i had bet in Nevada non pari mutual and didn't get paid... naturally VIRGINIA RAPIDS won next time out.

i always hated entry's and the Mountain never has them.