Dr. Fager

Hangin' With Haskin posts tagged "Dr. Fager"

The Wackiest Turf Trivia Quiz Ever

These are not your typical trivia questions, as they are meant to be informative and fun even more than testing your knowledge of racing, They are just put in question form. Some are fairly easy, but there are others that are more offbeat. So have fun with them. I will provide the answers to the questions no one gets in the comments section on Thursday. Remember, there is no fun Googling it. If you don't know the answer, guess or just wait until Thursday. It will be more fun that way.... Read More

Cigars, Beer, and Mustard

I have never taken a puff of a cigar, but the smell is intoxicating, bringing me back to my childhood and Ebbetts Fields and my Uncle Sam's cigars, and then later Yankee Stadium and then the old Madison Square Garden on 50th Street. Those were the special places of my youth where the smell of cigar smoke blended so perfectly with the smell of beer and mustard. Soon those three aromas would come together in the grandstand of Aqueduct Racetrack, which was only eight years old when I first inhabited it in 1967.... Read More

Maximum Security: What Might Have Been

Secretariat, Dr. Fager, Affirmed, Hoist the Flag, Cougar II, and now Maximum Security. This is quite an elite group, and to be included would link you with four Hall of Famers and five champions. But, alas, in this context it is a list trainers and owners would prefer not to be on. You see, all these horses were disqualified from first in major stakes; some warranted, some questionable, and some extremely... Read More

The Year It All Began

Fifty Years. Half a century. A lifetime ago. Seems like yesterday. There is something about anniversaries, excluding weddings and births, that make us remember events we normally don't give that much thought to. When you reach way back and pull out a 50th anniversary, it brings your life into perspective. There is no year in memory that evokes more nostalgia and brings back historical events than 1969... Read More

Dr. Fager 1968 Part 5: Farewell, Doc

Dr. Fager emerged from his street brawl in the United Nations Handicap in good shape, despite having to withstand the fight of his life against the tenacious Advocator, the 134 pounds on his back, and the 22-pound weight concession to his adversary. But, unlike his previous races, the Doc was not ready to come back in only 17 days to face his arch rival Damascus in the Woodward Stakes. John Nerud had... Read More

Dr. Fager and the Greatest Year Ever Part 1

No horse has ever excelled at as many facets of the sport in one year as did the legendary Dr. Fager, who combined world-record speed from seven furlongs to a mile and a quarter, despite carrying staggering weights all year; won world-class stakes on dirt and grass; and won major stakes on both coasts and in the Midwest.... Read More

2018 Brings a Volatile and Special 50th Anniversary

Boy, do we have some amazing 50th anniversaries in Thoroughbred racing to look forward to in 2018; anniversaries of some of the greatest horses in history, some of the most amazing performances, and certainly one of the most controversial stories of the century. Many of these will be addressed in columns throughout the year.... Read More

It Started With Damascus 50 Years Ago

It is 2017. That means it's been 50 years since Thoroughbred racing entered, encompassed, and changed my life, altering its course forever. It pulled me out of the frenzied, often cutthroat world of Wall Street and brought to my life a passion and a spirit I had never experienced before.... Read More

September 30, 1967

The date September 30 is so ingrained in my mind I sometimes have to pause for a second so I don't confuse it with the date of my wedding anniversary.... Read More

The Doc and the Rock

It was races like the New Hampshire Sweepstakes that came to mind as I looked out over the beautiful Rockingham Park infield for the first and only time. Soon that infield and the grandstand will be gone, taking with it some of the great moments in racing history and some of the sport's greatest innovations.... Read More

Scrapbooks From the Past

But even after all these years, I still treasure those early scrapbooks that helped to preserve my memories of a time when you could actually feel those stories in your hand and protect them from time and the elements as you would a fragile plant or that intricate model of Old Ironsides, with its hundreds of pieces, that it took you weeks to glue together.... Read More

"Horseplayers" and Pioneer Days

"Horseplayers," mainly Team Rotondo (Peter Rotondo Sr. and Jr. and Lew Davis), brings me back to a time long ago in my life; a time of smoke-filled busses and a cacophony of thick Brooklyn accents moaning about the double they almost hit and how "da faw hawse is a lock in da toid." OK, that was a bit exaggerated, but effective nonetheless.... Read More

Haskin's Derby Trail: A Legacy to John Nerud

What they have in common is they all carry the John Nerud influence in their pedigree, mainly through the descendents of Fappiano and Dr. Fager and continuing through Unbridled and Quiet American. It is the last two on which we will concentrate, as they both reflect the true genius of Nerud, who celebrated his 100th birthday this year. What is ironic is that Nerud never believed in the Derby and ran only one horse in the race -- Gallant Man in 1957.... Read More

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