m Tarn was one of Sensational Silky Sullivan dis- Favored Gallant Man is nosed out in Top jockies like Hartack, In another Derby duel. Dark Star reaches
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Anything Can Happen at the Derby
emember when Gallahadion won the
i Kentucky Derby in 1940? He was
out-of-the-blue long shot. The fa-
orite, Bimelech, finished second. Or
ihen Dark Star upset the, favored
Native Dancer in the 1953 Derby?
You can see the same pattern in more
ecent years, too: Swaps winning over
Nashua in 1955; Iron Liege turning the
tick against his favored stablemate,
allant Man, in 1957; and last year,
im Tarn leaving the sentimental fa-
orite, Silky Sullivan, up the track in
2th place. And you'll probably see it
gain next Saturday in the 85th run-
king of the classic at Louisville.
In the last six Derbies only one fa-
orite has won. Why is it that the
pvonte so often fails to live up to
xpectations in this glamour race?
There are a number of reasons, al
most any of which can plague the pub-
c choice in this 14-mile blue-ribbon
vent for 3-year-olds at tradition-
beeped Churchill Downs.
Thoroughbred horses are unique ani-
als. They weigh about 1,000 pounds in
acing trim, have long light bones, long
at muscles, and are high-strung crea
tes. They have fighting hearts and a
pecial kind of integrity uncommon to
ther four-footed animals. All this con
futes to the adage that "anything can
appen at the Derby."
ihe people who buy the $2 pari-
iutuel tickets at the track Saturday
'ill create the favorite. He is the horse
n which the greatest amount of monev
f bet. Whether he deserves that role
r terms of ability is beside the point.
Because the Derbv is in a class bv
fSelf as a snorts ervwtnnlo attracting
rousands of people who rarely attend
nomer race during the year, there s
Pt to be less professional appraisal of
ise iiesh evident in Derby betting
1 in a routine race. The public s
upport of a particular horse often is a
'atter of pure romantic appeal.
merely has to go back to last
year's Derby for the perfect example.
Silky Sullivan, the come-from-far-be-hind
horse, had the kind of late-rush
tactics which captured the imagination
of racing fans. Pre-race stories of
Silky's fabled stretch runs whetted
public appeal so that bettors backed
the California lagging nag into a fa
vored role. Alas, as has happened in
many another Derby, Silky let his
backers down.
There's another reason why it's diffi
cult for the public to pick the horse that
correctly should be the favorite.
One jockey put it this way:
"The Kentucky Derby is run the first
week of May. Some of the horses in the
field may have been running during
the Winter season. Others have been
brought to condition expressly for the
Derby. The difficulty is in getting a
good 'line' on the field.
"You know how the Winter horses
have been performing, but you don't
know enough about the others because
there is no recent 'form' on them. After
the Derby, in the Preakness and Bel
mont stakes, there's a better line on the
horses, particularly because the same
horses that have competed in the Derby
usually go for the other two races.
Most horses have to have a few races
under their saddles before they reach
competitive peak. Sometimes the horse
expected to win the Derby hasnt
reached the required edge his trainer
expected; he shows better form in the
next few weeks. An example is 1940s
Bimelech, a favorite which lost the
Derby but won the Belmont and
Preakness, the other two jewels in
racing's Triple Crown.
the feeling among jockeys is that a
T great many "bad" horses win the
Derby. This doesn't mean that they re
not fine animals; any Derby winner
must be rated highly in the record
books, but not necessarily tops
One reason for this is that many
by Dave Warner and Bill Beeney
owners believe having a horse running
under his colors in the Kentucky Derby
is the ultimate in racing thrills. Every
year the Derby field includes horses
which have no business there, com
petitively speaking. And because you
never can tell what will happen in a
horse race, quite often one of these
lesser-regarded horses will upset the
field and win the "Run for the Roses."
In the anything-can-happen category
is the embarrassing case of Willie Shoe
maker, the luckless jock aboard Gallant
Man in the 1957 Derby. "The Shoe,"
rated one-two with Willie Hartack as
the best of the younger saddlesmiths,
misjudged the finish line. He stood up
in the saddle before the finish line had
been reached. By the time he realized
his mistake a second or two later, Gal
lant Man had eased his stride just
enough so that he couldn't recoup in
time to catch underrated Iron Liege.
"It's one of those things that can
happen to anybody," said Teddy At
kinson, who won more than $17 million
in purses before his recent retirement.
"No one feels worse about these in
cidents than the jockey himself. There's
no excuse for it, of course, but I was
guilty of a similar thing myself once.
"I was wearing a crash helmet that
didn't fit tightly enough. I was in the
stretch, leading, when all of a sudden
the visor of the helmet slipped down in
front of my eyes. With a reflex action, I
About the only "sure thing" at
Churchill Downs next Satur
day will be some two minutes
of top thoroughbred racing.
sort of pulled up momentarily to adjust
the helmet. That did it. I blew the lead,
and the race. There was no excuse for
me, either; it just happened."
Jockey Job Dean Jessop pulled a
boner similar to Shoemaker's in the
1946 Derby. He became confused over
the exact location of the finish line and
lost second place aboard Hampden by
a head to Spy Song.
Even the horses themselves seem to
realize Derby Day is different.
In the 1947 Derby, Jet Pilot plowed
through the drying mud to thrust his
unspattered chestnut countenance into
the camera's eye just ahead of favored
Phalanx. He was led into the horseshoe
of geraniums in front of the tote board
to receive his corsage of roses, and they
delivered the winning swag ($92,000)
to Mrs. Elizabeth Arden Graham, the'
beauty-salon lady.
Then the colt started back across the
track toward the paddock, frisking and
dancing in a tight little convoy of
policemen. Too tight a convoy, for as
they reached the outside rail, Jet Pilot
upped with his hind hoof and planted it
firmly in the rear of one officer's lap.
Jet Pilot seemed to enjoy the kick as
much as the victory; so did the spec
tators, both winners and losers.
And why not? How many horses get
a chance to score an upset for a Derby
victory and get to boot a cop in his
seat, all in the same afternoon?
Perhaps not the
best race track,
Churchill Downs
is surely most
famous, historic.
Family Weekly, April 26, 1959
17