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DEL.ICIO.USA tip of the derby to personal faves
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Furman Bisher
Well, perhaps it’s not the “Best of the Kentucky Derbies” I have seen, but let’s call them the “Most Memorable” of all those since my first in 1950.
They are chosen for reasons that don’t necessarily relate to the classics. See, I was a holdout when it came to Secretariat, for which I took a lot of guff. I picked Sham. He was the winner over the long haul, a star in the breeding shed where Secretariat wasn’t.
That said, here’s the list as we approach post time:
CANONERO II, 1971
In the press box, as the horses came down the stretch, the cry went up, “Who the hell is that?” Canonero II was a “field” horse, deemed not worthy of carrying an individual number and lumped into a wagering succotash. Poor fellow, he had been flown in from Venezuela, held in quarantine in Miami for a week, then worked unnoticed. Mainly because none of his connections spoke English, there were no interviews before and very few after he won. He was no fluke. He won the Preakness and set a race record.
By the time he got to Belmont, he was tired and finished fourth. But what a great blue-collar horse.
THUNDER GULCH, 1995
Forgive me if I go bragging a little here. He was one of two horses in D. Wayne Lukas’ stable, but Lukas walked about wearing a Timber Country cap. No doubt about his choice between the two. The Louisville paper polled 30 sportswriters and only one picked Thunder Gulch — (ahem). Mainly, it was his sire that moved me, for Gulch (below) had been a great runner. Not only that, but he paid about $60 for a $2 winning ticket, and money can turn your head.
DARK STAR, 1953
Now, the other side of the coin. My car had been rescued from a ditch on Friday with the help of a small man from the barn area. I thanked him, and he said, “Just be sure to bet my horse tomorrow.” His name was Hank Moreno. The horse’s name was Dark Star, one of the longest shots in the field. I choked. Moreno got his horse on the lead down the stretch and never gave it up. He paid a bundle, none to this unworthy wretch.
FORWARD PASS, 1968
Dancer’s Image won the actual race, but Forward Pass later was ruled the winner. Dancer’s Image is the only winner of a classic major whose number has ever been taken down, far as I know. He was traveling under the influence of some illegal juice, and none of owner Peter Fuller’s legal sparring could make a dent in the decision. Nevertheless, winning tickets on Dancer’s Image were honored before his sin had been made public, and somewhere I still have a $50 win ticket on Forward Pass. Churchill Downs owes me.
MIDDLEGROUND, 1950
A fellow should never pass over his first winner and first Kentucky Derby. Two weeks into a new job in Atlanta, dispatched to cover the great “Run for the Roses,” also the first thoroughbred race I’d ever covered. I remembered Middleground had won the Hopeful at Saratoga the year before, then, as now, one of the superior tests for 2-year-olds. Armed with all that knowledge, I picked him to win, bet $2 on him, and in that one instant became a horse authority. It was six years before I picked another winner. Needles, 1956.
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By dumbing down
May 5, 2007 6:12 AM | Link to this
1999…Charismatic, a claimer who had no business in the Derby, let alone a Grade I race. Oh yeah, did I forget…$64.60 to win! 1974’s Cannonade was fun for the 100th Derby, but the payoff was a bit short, and the crowd was a bit high.
By Gavin Davis
May 5, 2007 4:52 PM | Link to this
Don’t forget War Emblem. He was a great big strong horse who paid off well in the Derby and then destroyed the Preakness field. Too bad he ran out of gas in the Belmont.