There are a great number of horses that hold cherished names from the Star Wars saga. The more recent names are the heros and villains I will be touching on in this post. Let's see if you recognize any of these talented four footed friends.
Dark Vader
Han Solo
Jadei Knight
Lord Vader
Obi Wan
Obi Wan Kenobi
Star Wars Legacy
Though there have been several horses with the name Obi Wan Kenobi, there are two that stand out. First, there is an Obiwankenobi born April 9, 1975. This is interesting, because the first movie release for Star Wars was not until May 25, 1977. 1977 is the first year that Obiwankenobi began racing. His career spanned to 1982 with a total of 53 starts; including two non graded stakes. Obiwankenobi's record holds four first place finishes, eight second place finishes and thirteen third place finishes. The next horse I would like to examine is the horse born in 2003. He is by Skywalker out of Sugah. He won the Tri-State Handicap at Ellis Park. So he is a stakes winner as well.
Obi Wan, not to be confused with Obiwankenobi or Obi Wan Kenobi previously, is a Gelding by Not For Love out of Hand Me a Star. He is also a Stakes Winner. He placed 2nd in the Power by Far Handicap and finished first in the Presidential Affair Handicap at Presque Isle Downs.
Han Solo is by Skywalker out of Risen Starlet. I really do enjoy watching him race. He recently won an Allowance race at Delta Downs on Feb. 14th. Quoted as "Pressing the pace...dueled down the stretch" What a great description of dueling. He is 5 years old and had 14 starts. 2 First place, 1 second and 4 third place finishes. Not too bad. His most recent win paid 22.50. Now his owners attempted to bump him up by entering him among a tougher crowd. He didn't do too well his last race on February 24, 2008 at the Fair Grounds, but he just needs to push himself and he should compete.
Lord Vader is a 4 year old gelding by Devil His Due out of Brass Song. He has had 8 starts and has a Win, a Place and a Show under his belt. I remember watching him race at Hawthorne on December 29. It was a fun claiming race.
Dark Vader has started 5 times with one win under his belt. Dark Vader is by Point Given out of Saint Emilia (PER), and it is necessary for me to emphasize Point Given for my fellow horse enthusiast Jason Shandler.
Notable Mention:
Obi Wan Kenobi and Han Solo are both bred by Arthur B. Hancock. Both horses are also by the stallion Skywalker.
I know there are more Star Wars themed horses out there, so help me find them and let's post our findings here.
Segue:
You may think that following Star Wars horses is a foolish task, but the theory of betting on names I have suggested, does pay. Or it could be that Fred Craggs, mentioned in this article (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080226/od_nm/millionaire_dc_1), has seen past performances for these horses and knew who was doing well in 2008.
Either way, this story must be shared. It is Beautiful. After experiencing life for sixty years, what a way to celebrate!
I read this recent article, forwarded by a coworker, from Reuters. A man celebrating his sixtieth birthday became an instant millionare from $1 bets at a race track in England. The two horses the article mentions are "Isn't That Lucky (GB)" and "A Dream Come True (GB)". As a man celebrating his birthday, these horses would catch the eye for betting by name alone.
