Jon White: All Time Favorite Geldings
Mar 6, 2013 10:38:30 GMT -5
Post by Evelyn on Mar 6, 2013 10:38:30 GMT -5
My All-Time Favorite Geldings
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February 27, 2013 | By Jon White
Wise Dan, who was voted 2012 Horse of the Year, had his first recorded workout at Keeneland last Saturday, four furlongs on synthetic footing in :50. He is scheduled to make his 2013 debut in Keeneland’s Grade I Maker’s 46 Mile on turf April 12.
Trrained by Charlie Lopresti, Wise Dan was voted 2012 Eclipse Awards as champion older male and champion male turf horse in addition to his Horse of the Year trophy. He became the first horse to win more than two Eclipse Awards in one year since the great John Henry in 1981. John Henry that year won the same three Eclipse Awards as Wise Dan in 2012.
John Henry was a gelding. So is Wise Dan. And so is Game On Dude, who is entered in this Saturday’s Grade I, $750,000 Santa Anita Handicap. I have installed Game On Dude as a 6-5 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s Big ’Cap, with Ron the Greek at 5-2.
Game On Dude won the Santa Anita Handicap in 2010. Ron the Greek took that race last year. This will be the first time two former Big ’Cap winners clash in the prestigious 1 1/4-mile event. Game On Dude has been assigned top weight of 125 pounds, three more than Ron the Greek.
Wise Dan and Game On Dude both certainly have earned my respect while becoming two of my all-time favorite geldings, along with these others, listed in alphabetical order:
Best Pal. Runner-up in the 1991 Kentucky Derby, Best Pal won 18 of 47 career starts. He won the inaugural Pacific Classic as a 3-year-old against older horses at Del Mar in 1991. I called that official chart for the Daily Racing Form. I also called the charts of Best Pal’s wins in the 1992 Santa Anita Handicap and 1993 Hollywood Gold Cup. Best Pal became the first horse to win Southern California’s three biggest races for older horses. He was a true fan favorite at Southern California tracks in the 1990s.
Best Pal was named California-bred Horse of the Year in 1990, 1991 and 1992. He was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 2010. Even though he never was voted an Eclipse Award, Best Pal was deemed worthy to be included in the Daily Racing Form book “Champions,” which features the lifetime past performances of America’s greatest Thoroughbreds from 1894 through 2010.
Chinook Pass. As a 3-year-old in 1982, Chinook Pass sped five furlongs at Longacres in :55 1/5 with Jody Davidson in the saddle to set a world record. While that no longer is a world record, it remains an American record, meaning Chinook Pass still has run the fastest five furlongs on the dirt in the history of racing in the United States.
Laffit Pincay Jr. rode Chinook Pass eight times, winning seven. While Pincay has called Affirmed the greatest horse he ever rode, he has referred to Chinook Pass as the “fastest horse I ever rode,” meaning, of course, the best sprinter.
Pincay was aboard Chinook Pass when he zipped six furlongs in 1:07 3/5 as a 3-year-old to win the 1982 Palos Verdes Handicap by 3 1/2 lengths against older horses. In 1983, Chinook Pass won five of seven starts. At Del Mar, he romped to
an eight-length triumph in the Bing Crosby Handicap. In the final would be the final start of his career, Chinook Pass won the Longacres Mile by six lengths.
Chinook Pass was voted an Eclipse Award in 1983 as champion sprinter. He remains the only Washington-bred to ever be voted an Eclipse Award.
Forego. Unfortunately, I never had the pleasure of seeing Forego race in person. But I sure enjoyed watching him on television numerous times. Like many others, I will never forget his incredible win in the 1976 Marlboro Cup at Belmont Park. You can watch this race on YouTube.
Forego was burdened with 137 pounds that day. He had to spot 18 pounds to Honest Pleasure. The track was sloppy. At the top of the stretch, Honest Pleasure was in front and running strong. Forego appeared beaten. But Forego closed inexorably under Bill Shoemaker to win by head.
Writer William H. Rudy called Forego’s 1976 Marlboro Cup victory “awesome” in The Blood-Horse magazine’s recap.
“It was the essence of Thoroughbred racing -- a great horse, more heavily burdened than at any time in his career, straining to catch a younger horse who also was running the race of his life,” Rudy wrote.
Forego, who won 34 of 57 lifetime starts and earned $1,938,957, was voted Horse of the Year in 1974, 1975 and 1976. He was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 1979.
Herbert. I was working for the Racing Form at Louisiana Downs as a chart caller in 1976 when Herbert became that track’s first star. The first time Herbert raced at Louisiana Downs was when he won by eight lengths and broke the six-furlong track record on Aug. 22. He then won by 11 lengths on Aug. 28, six lengths on Sept. 18, four lengths on Sept. 18 and 4 1/2 lengths on Oct. 10. (Gee, it was terrific when horses raced so often like that.)
After Herbert’s Oct. 10 win at Louisiana Downs, he was sent to Churchill Downs. He ran sixth in an allowance race at Churchill on Nov. 4, then won a six-furlong allowance affair there by six lengths under apprentice Steve Cauthen.
In Herbert’s final 1976 start at Louisiana Downs, he carried 132 pounds and won the 1 1/8-mile Bicentennial Handicap by six lengths. Angelo Trosclair rode Herbert in each of his starts at Louisiana Downs that year.
In 1976, Herbert not only became Louisiana Downs’ first-ever Horse of the Meeting, he helped his trainer, Jack Van Berg, break a record. Van Berg won 496 races that year, a record that stood until Steve Asmussen won 555 in 2004.
Van Berg was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 1985.
John Henry. I covered John Henry quite closely for a number of years while a reporter/columnist for the Racing Form in Southern California.
I timed a great many of John Henry’s workouts while standing right alongside Hall of Fame trainer Ron McAnally. John Henry was voted Horse of the Year in 1981 and again at the age of 9 in 1984. Will we ever see another 9-year-old Horse of the Year? I doubt it.
John Henry won 39 of 83 career starts and earned $6,597,947. He was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 1990.
There is a wonderful John Henry statue at Santa Anita. I can’t help but smile each time I walk by it.
Kona Gold. He ran in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint five times, finishing third at Churchill Downs in 1998, second at Gulfstream Park in 1999, first at Churchill in 2000, seventh at Belmont Park in 2001 and fourth at Arlington Park in 2002. Trainer Bruce Headley did an absolutely wonderful job with Kona Gold.
My personal favorite Kona Gold moment was when I was at Del Mar and witnessed his triumph in the Grade II Bing Crosby Handicap in 2001. Even though he had not started since April, Kona Gold won by three-quarters of a length over the crack sprinter Caller One, with Swept Overboard third. It was Kona Gold’s sixth consecutive victory. When he returned to the winner’s circle, the crowd gave him a thunderous ovation that I will never forget.
Kona Gold was voted a 2000 Eclipse Award as champion sprinter.
Lak A Boss. In 1974, Lak a Boss won 10 races. I was at Longacres in 1967 the day his sire, Lak Nak, was paraded after it was announced he had been retired from racing. Lak Nak finished second in the 1963 California Derby at Golden Gate Fields and went on to become a multiple stakes winner at Longacres.
In Lak a Boss’ final start of 1974, a 5 1/2-furlong starter allowance sprint on Dec. 1, I made a large wager on him to win. That year, up to that point, he had won every race in which he had not dwelt at the start or competed in a stakes race. My only real concern was that he might break poorly in that Dec. 1 race. I stood next to the winner’s circle and decided to face the grandstand instead of the track and just listen to track announcer Gary Henson. If Henson said Lak a Boss broke well, I was confident nobody would beat him.
“And there they go!” Henson said. I then held my breath while awaiting his next words.
“Lak a Boss…” were his next words. And now I was anxiously waiting to hear what Henson said next to find out if Lak a Boss’ start had been good or poor.
“…Is going to the front,” Henson then said.
And with that, I walked directly to the cashier’s window. I put my tickets down on the counter, even though the horses had not yet reached the stretch.
The race isn’t over yet,” the clerk said.
“Oh yes it is,” I responded.
Lak a Boss did indeed win. He prevailed by one length. He paid $3.90 to win. And thanks largely to that winning wager, I purchased a used 1969 Pontiac Bonneville. That car became known to my family, friends and co-workers as Lak a Boss.
Lava Man. I never got a chance to see Native Diver, a gelding who became the first California-bred to earn $1 million. He was best known for winning three consecutive Hollywood Gold Cups from 1965-67.
I honestly doubted whether another horse would ever win three Hollywood Gold Cups in a row, but then along came Lava Man, who won three straight from 2005-07. Lava Man also become the first horse to sweep Southern California’s three major races for older horses -- the Santa Anita Handicap, Hollywood Gold Cup and Pacific Classic -- in the same calendar year, accomplishing the feat in 2006.
At Del Mar on Aug. 13, 2004, Lava Man was claimed for $50,000 by trainer Doug O’Neill on behalf of owners STD Racing Stable and Jason Wood for $50,000 at Del Mar in his 13th career start. After that, Lava Man earned $5,160,203 to become one of the greatest claims in the history of Thoroughbred racing.
Lava Man was named California-bred Horse of the Year in 2005 and 2006. He now is a pony at the O’Neill barn.
Political Pull. He is one of my all-time favorite geldings because he was the first racehorse I ever owned. I was one of eight members of an ownership partnership formed in 1977. Because all eight of us were involved in the media, our stable name was Media Madness.
We claimed Political Pull for $3,200 at Longacres on July 22, 1977. In his first race for us, he won by 1 3/4 lengths for $4,000 at Playfair on July 31. He paid $14.90 to win. In his next start, Political Pull won a $5,000 claiming race for us by four lengths as the 6-5 favorite. When he ran second for us in another $5,000 claiming race one week later, he was claimed away from us.
I will forever be grateful to Political Pull for doing so well for me and my partners after we formed Media Madness.
By the way, Bowl of Flowers, a full sister to Political Pull’s sire, Cup Race, was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 2004.
Turbulator. He is my all-time favorite racehorse. I saw him finish third when he made his career debut as a 4-year-old at a little track in Idaho in 1969. At Playfair later that year, he won seven in a row at distances ranging from six furlongs to two miles.
In 1970, Turbulator was, without question, the best horse in the Pacific Northwest. He broke the world record for 6 1/2 furlongs. He broke track records at one mile and 1 1/16 miles. In one race, he came from 20 lengths behind and won by two lengths under 134 pounds. In the gamest performance I have ever witnessed by a Thoroughbred, he carried a staggering 138 pounds and lost by only a neck after he bobbled badly on the far turn when he encountered a slick spot on a drying-out track.
In 1972, when he was past his prime, Turbulator won the 1 1/16-mile Washington Championship at Longacres. After being 8 1/2 lengths behind at the eighth pole, he zoomed home to win by a half-length. In the final furlong, he ran down a talented Grey Papa, who just eight days earlier had zipped six furlongs in 1:07 1/5 to break the world record.
Silky Sullivan is the most famous come-from-behind horse in history. He came from 41 lengths behind to win a 6 1/2-furlong race at Santa Anita in 1958. But when Turbulator won the 1972 Washington Championship, he did so despite being farther off the lead at the eighth pole than Silky Sullivan had been at that point in any of his victories.
Not only did Turbulator have talent, he had charisma.
“If there ever was a horse that brought sheer joy and hysteria to a track and thrived on that crowd response it was Turbulator,” it was written in The Washington Horse magazine in 1973.
Turbulator was honored as the 1970 Washington-bred Horse of the Year. One day 16 years after his best season in 1970, Turbulator still was such a big deal that there was a feature story on him that took up almost the entire front page of the Sunday sports section in a Seattle newspaper, with two huge color photos of him.
To this day, visitors to Emerald Downs can see a Turbulator statute -- actually a large head bust -- at the Washington Hall of Fame area in the grandstand.
secure1.xb-online.com/fe/main.aspx?xbOsid=9d213b1d345b863d263e055b8041be9f
Forego
John Henry
Kona Gold
Lava Man
Turbulator
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February 27, 2013 | By Jon White
Wise Dan, who was voted 2012 Horse of the Year, had his first recorded workout at Keeneland last Saturday, four furlongs on synthetic footing in :50. He is scheduled to make his 2013 debut in Keeneland’s Grade I Maker’s 46 Mile on turf April 12.
Trrained by Charlie Lopresti, Wise Dan was voted 2012 Eclipse Awards as champion older male and champion male turf horse in addition to his Horse of the Year trophy. He became the first horse to win more than two Eclipse Awards in one year since the great John Henry in 1981. John Henry that year won the same three Eclipse Awards as Wise Dan in 2012.
John Henry was a gelding. So is Wise Dan. And so is Game On Dude, who is entered in this Saturday’s Grade I, $750,000 Santa Anita Handicap. I have installed Game On Dude as a 6-5 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s Big ’Cap, with Ron the Greek at 5-2.
Game On Dude won the Santa Anita Handicap in 2010. Ron the Greek took that race last year. This will be the first time two former Big ’Cap winners clash in the prestigious 1 1/4-mile event. Game On Dude has been assigned top weight of 125 pounds, three more than Ron the Greek.
Wise Dan and Game On Dude both certainly have earned my respect while becoming two of my all-time favorite geldings, along with these others, listed in alphabetical order:
Best Pal. Runner-up in the 1991 Kentucky Derby, Best Pal won 18 of 47 career starts. He won the inaugural Pacific Classic as a 3-year-old against older horses at Del Mar in 1991. I called that official chart for the Daily Racing Form. I also called the charts of Best Pal’s wins in the 1992 Santa Anita Handicap and 1993 Hollywood Gold Cup. Best Pal became the first horse to win Southern California’s three biggest races for older horses. He was a true fan favorite at Southern California tracks in the 1990s.
Best Pal was named California-bred Horse of the Year in 1990, 1991 and 1992. He was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 2010. Even though he never was voted an Eclipse Award, Best Pal was deemed worthy to be included in the Daily Racing Form book “Champions,” which features the lifetime past performances of America’s greatest Thoroughbreds from 1894 through 2010.
Chinook Pass. As a 3-year-old in 1982, Chinook Pass sped five furlongs at Longacres in :55 1/5 with Jody Davidson in the saddle to set a world record. While that no longer is a world record, it remains an American record, meaning Chinook Pass still has run the fastest five furlongs on the dirt in the history of racing in the United States.
Laffit Pincay Jr. rode Chinook Pass eight times, winning seven. While Pincay has called Affirmed the greatest horse he ever rode, he has referred to Chinook Pass as the “fastest horse I ever rode,” meaning, of course, the best sprinter.
Pincay was aboard Chinook Pass when he zipped six furlongs in 1:07 3/5 as a 3-year-old to win the 1982 Palos Verdes Handicap by 3 1/2 lengths against older horses. In 1983, Chinook Pass won five of seven starts. At Del Mar, he romped to
an eight-length triumph in the Bing Crosby Handicap. In the final would be the final start of his career, Chinook Pass won the Longacres Mile by six lengths.
Chinook Pass was voted an Eclipse Award in 1983 as champion sprinter. He remains the only Washington-bred to ever be voted an Eclipse Award.
Forego. Unfortunately, I never had the pleasure of seeing Forego race in person. But I sure enjoyed watching him on television numerous times. Like many others, I will never forget his incredible win in the 1976 Marlboro Cup at Belmont Park. You can watch this race on YouTube.
Forego was burdened with 137 pounds that day. He had to spot 18 pounds to Honest Pleasure. The track was sloppy. At the top of the stretch, Honest Pleasure was in front and running strong. Forego appeared beaten. But Forego closed inexorably under Bill Shoemaker to win by head.
Writer William H. Rudy called Forego’s 1976 Marlboro Cup victory “awesome” in The Blood-Horse magazine’s recap.
“It was the essence of Thoroughbred racing -- a great horse, more heavily burdened than at any time in his career, straining to catch a younger horse who also was running the race of his life,” Rudy wrote.
Forego, who won 34 of 57 lifetime starts and earned $1,938,957, was voted Horse of the Year in 1974, 1975 and 1976. He was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 1979.
Herbert. I was working for the Racing Form at Louisiana Downs as a chart caller in 1976 when Herbert became that track’s first star. The first time Herbert raced at Louisiana Downs was when he won by eight lengths and broke the six-furlong track record on Aug. 22. He then won by 11 lengths on Aug. 28, six lengths on Sept. 18, four lengths on Sept. 18 and 4 1/2 lengths on Oct. 10. (Gee, it was terrific when horses raced so often like that.)
After Herbert’s Oct. 10 win at Louisiana Downs, he was sent to Churchill Downs. He ran sixth in an allowance race at Churchill on Nov. 4, then won a six-furlong allowance affair there by six lengths under apprentice Steve Cauthen.
In Herbert’s final 1976 start at Louisiana Downs, he carried 132 pounds and won the 1 1/8-mile Bicentennial Handicap by six lengths. Angelo Trosclair rode Herbert in each of his starts at Louisiana Downs that year.
In 1976, Herbert not only became Louisiana Downs’ first-ever Horse of the Meeting, he helped his trainer, Jack Van Berg, break a record. Van Berg won 496 races that year, a record that stood until Steve Asmussen won 555 in 2004.
Van Berg was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 1985.
John Henry. I covered John Henry quite closely for a number of years while a reporter/columnist for the Racing Form in Southern California.
I timed a great many of John Henry’s workouts while standing right alongside Hall of Fame trainer Ron McAnally. John Henry was voted Horse of the Year in 1981 and again at the age of 9 in 1984. Will we ever see another 9-year-old Horse of the Year? I doubt it.
John Henry won 39 of 83 career starts and earned $6,597,947. He was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 1990.
There is a wonderful John Henry statue at Santa Anita. I can’t help but smile each time I walk by it.
Kona Gold. He ran in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint five times, finishing third at Churchill Downs in 1998, second at Gulfstream Park in 1999, first at Churchill in 2000, seventh at Belmont Park in 2001 and fourth at Arlington Park in 2002. Trainer Bruce Headley did an absolutely wonderful job with Kona Gold.
My personal favorite Kona Gold moment was when I was at Del Mar and witnessed his triumph in the Grade II Bing Crosby Handicap in 2001. Even though he had not started since April, Kona Gold won by three-quarters of a length over the crack sprinter Caller One, with Swept Overboard third. It was Kona Gold’s sixth consecutive victory. When he returned to the winner’s circle, the crowd gave him a thunderous ovation that I will never forget.
Kona Gold was voted a 2000 Eclipse Award as champion sprinter.
Lak A Boss. In 1974, Lak a Boss won 10 races. I was at Longacres in 1967 the day his sire, Lak Nak, was paraded after it was announced he had been retired from racing. Lak Nak finished second in the 1963 California Derby at Golden Gate Fields and went on to become a multiple stakes winner at Longacres.
In Lak a Boss’ final start of 1974, a 5 1/2-furlong starter allowance sprint on Dec. 1, I made a large wager on him to win. That year, up to that point, he had won every race in which he had not dwelt at the start or competed in a stakes race. My only real concern was that he might break poorly in that Dec. 1 race. I stood next to the winner’s circle and decided to face the grandstand instead of the track and just listen to track announcer Gary Henson. If Henson said Lak a Boss broke well, I was confident nobody would beat him.
“And there they go!” Henson said. I then held my breath while awaiting his next words.
“Lak a Boss…” were his next words. And now I was anxiously waiting to hear what Henson said next to find out if Lak a Boss’ start had been good or poor.
“…Is going to the front,” Henson then said.
And with that, I walked directly to the cashier’s window. I put my tickets down on the counter, even though the horses had not yet reached the stretch.
The race isn’t over yet,” the clerk said.
“Oh yes it is,” I responded.
Lak a Boss did indeed win. He prevailed by one length. He paid $3.90 to win. And thanks largely to that winning wager, I purchased a used 1969 Pontiac Bonneville. That car became known to my family, friends and co-workers as Lak a Boss.
Lava Man. I never got a chance to see Native Diver, a gelding who became the first California-bred to earn $1 million. He was best known for winning three consecutive Hollywood Gold Cups from 1965-67.
I honestly doubted whether another horse would ever win three Hollywood Gold Cups in a row, but then along came Lava Man, who won three straight from 2005-07. Lava Man also become the first horse to sweep Southern California’s three major races for older horses -- the Santa Anita Handicap, Hollywood Gold Cup and Pacific Classic -- in the same calendar year, accomplishing the feat in 2006.
At Del Mar on Aug. 13, 2004, Lava Man was claimed for $50,000 by trainer Doug O’Neill on behalf of owners STD Racing Stable and Jason Wood for $50,000 at Del Mar in his 13th career start. After that, Lava Man earned $5,160,203 to become one of the greatest claims in the history of Thoroughbred racing.
Lava Man was named California-bred Horse of the Year in 2005 and 2006. He now is a pony at the O’Neill barn.
Political Pull. He is one of my all-time favorite geldings because he was the first racehorse I ever owned. I was one of eight members of an ownership partnership formed in 1977. Because all eight of us were involved in the media, our stable name was Media Madness.
We claimed Political Pull for $3,200 at Longacres on July 22, 1977. In his first race for us, he won by 1 3/4 lengths for $4,000 at Playfair on July 31. He paid $14.90 to win. In his next start, Political Pull won a $5,000 claiming race for us by four lengths as the 6-5 favorite. When he ran second for us in another $5,000 claiming race one week later, he was claimed away from us.
I will forever be grateful to Political Pull for doing so well for me and my partners after we formed Media Madness.
By the way, Bowl of Flowers, a full sister to Political Pull’s sire, Cup Race, was inducted into the national Hall of Fame in 2004.
Turbulator. He is my all-time favorite racehorse. I saw him finish third when he made his career debut as a 4-year-old at a little track in Idaho in 1969. At Playfair later that year, he won seven in a row at distances ranging from six furlongs to two miles.
In 1970, Turbulator was, without question, the best horse in the Pacific Northwest. He broke the world record for 6 1/2 furlongs. He broke track records at one mile and 1 1/16 miles. In one race, he came from 20 lengths behind and won by two lengths under 134 pounds. In the gamest performance I have ever witnessed by a Thoroughbred, he carried a staggering 138 pounds and lost by only a neck after he bobbled badly on the far turn when he encountered a slick spot on a drying-out track.
In 1972, when he was past his prime, Turbulator won the 1 1/16-mile Washington Championship at Longacres. After being 8 1/2 lengths behind at the eighth pole, he zoomed home to win by a half-length. In the final furlong, he ran down a talented Grey Papa, who just eight days earlier had zipped six furlongs in 1:07 1/5 to break the world record.
Silky Sullivan is the most famous come-from-behind horse in history. He came from 41 lengths behind to win a 6 1/2-furlong race at Santa Anita in 1958. But when Turbulator won the 1972 Washington Championship, he did so despite being farther off the lead at the eighth pole than Silky Sullivan had been at that point in any of his victories.
Not only did Turbulator have talent, he had charisma.
“If there ever was a horse that brought sheer joy and hysteria to a track and thrived on that crowd response it was Turbulator,” it was written in The Washington Horse magazine in 1973.
Turbulator was honored as the 1970 Washington-bred Horse of the Year. One day 16 years after his best season in 1970, Turbulator still was such a big deal that there was a feature story on him that took up almost the entire front page of the Sunday sports section in a Seattle newspaper, with two huge color photos of him.
To this day, visitors to Emerald Downs can see a Turbulator statute -- actually a large head bust -- at the Washington Hall of Fame area in the grandstand.
secure1.xb-online.com/fe/main.aspx?xbOsid=9d213b1d345b863d263e055b8041be9f
Forego
John Henry
Kona Gold
Lava Man
Turbulator
