Spectacular Days

re: Spectacular Days

Matthew W — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 04:12:22 GMT

Bud Delp walked the walk with 'Bid---and yes he was well (and loudly) dressed! Bud Delp was sincere and engaging--he wasn't one to gloss his horses--but when 'Bid came along--after Secretariat, 'Slew, Affirmed/Alydar---and this guy's saying he's "the greatest horse to look through a bridle"---and then it's startling good race after race...Flying Paster would've had some career but for 'Bid, he was always well clear---as was 'Bid!

re: Spectacular Days

R2 D2 — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 07:18:58 GMT

Bud Delp was a class act. Out of that entire Spectacular Bid crowd I respected the groom and Delp. I remember the owners being pompous and nasty.

If you ever got to know Delp, he was the funniest people you could meet. Not to mention he was the best dressed trainer on the racetrack in those days.

re: Spectacular Days

PP — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 04:53:12 GMT

Steve,

You redefine what is the single greatest thing about thoroughbred horse racing: the incredible impact this sport has on each person it captivates...many thanks for the memories...

re: Spectacular Days

Remember the Fog — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 01:55:16 GMT

It troubles me not a whit hear the arguements: Secretariat vs Spectacular Bid. My paddocks each contain one chestnut, one grey--and they be them, never be saddled again.

By the way, the Bid blossomed into

an older horse of uncommon beauty, and at 26, to see his still sleek form galloping, ivory mane and tail billowing in the wind, backlit by the setting sun...well, beauty is in the eye....

re: Spectacular Days

Cris — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 01:14:15 GMT

When I was a kid, my Dad drove me from DC to KY and we went to Calumet Farm. They sent us to the award room which is now in part at the Racing Hall of Farm and Ben Jones had a glass encased saddle made of pure gold given to him by the Aga Khan. Past the room was the stallion barn and when I walked inside was Tim Tam, Yorktown, and Citation. He was all the way down at the end on the left. Back then you could just walk up and give him a carrot if you wanted to. He was very noble looking. Yorktown was interested in what we were doing there, and Tim Tam looked rough. He had every vein showing through his skin. My Dad said that was from running outside himself. That he tried so hard. We then went to Stallion Station and the groom Beatle showed us around. He was Carry Back's groom and had the scars to prove it. The owner had given him a silver lighter with his name on it because Carry Back had bit him in the hip so hard he walked with a limp thereafter. They had electric wire running the entire paddock for the horse because he had climbed the fence and attacked Tomy Lee. Tomy Lee was so tame they put my three year old niece on his back and gave her a pony ride. I was green with envy.

I can no longer recall all the other horses there at that time.

I returned to Calument a couple of years later and was there for the birth of Forward Pass. He was a beautiful horse. Later I returned again when Alydar retired. My last visit was outside the fenceline of the stallion paddocks alone the road the day of Nelson Bunker Hunts

auction. Affirmed was a Calument then in the paddock next to Alydar.

Days later Alydar was gone and the rest is history.

My favorite trainer is Carl Hanford. He conditioned Kelso better and longer than any one trainer in racing history. The idea that Kelso raced with the weights he carried and stayed sound as long as he did had alot to do with the care he was given by his owner and his trainer.

If Wandering Boy had had a owner like Mrs. Dupont he never would have raced after they found the ulcer. All the stress he was going through. He was a great and game fella. Someone should remember him for a long time.

Once I remember her in a grey and yellow suit waiting for Shoemaker to land in a helicopter she hired for him to fly from NY to Bowie for the Campbell. He landed right in the infield and walked in the paddock and got on Kelso. I don't recall if it was the race with Gun Bow or the one with Mongo. I went to both but I was a kid. They were exciting races. The DRF had drawings of two big soup cans on the cover, chicken Gun Bow and the other had creamed Kelso. I still have his framed picture they sold at Laure after he finally won the International in record time! It cost $5.00 and it was my entire savings for the year.

Anyhow if anyone has any available stalls Finger Lakes rescue is in dire need of a few. They have 24 retired race horses to find homes for and no time to place them as they normally would. I would go get them for people but I don't have a trailer big enough for all the horses. If anyone is interested in helping contact Finger Lakes rescue there barn is on the race track property and they have a website.

re: Spectacular Days

mdfanofracing — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 21:43:44 GMT

One of my greatest racing memories is sitting on top of the fence surrounding the infield at Pimlico screaming GO BID ! GO BID ! as he flew down the strtch at Pimlico in the Preakness while security tried to remove me from the fence LOL ! What a day that was. He was indeed Spectacular.

re: Spectacular Days

Matthew W — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 08:45:55 GMT

Monica for years and years I thought about going out to visit 'Bid and never did---Your anecdotal story helps.....I always thought 'Bid MUST be intelligent, the way he ran, relaxed but always at the ready to unleash that burst of pure speed when straightened out---And there, as you gazed along the wall, looking at "The Great One" himself.....you simply took it all in, as I did the one and only time I saw him, before/during/and after his stirring Strub....So many awesome races that horse did run...General Assembly and Flying Paster were good horses---'Bid was better by so much, time after time, stamina with speed aplenty---In the face of Secretariat, Affirmed, Alydar, Seattle Slew---comes Spectacular Bid, who took it to another level, and cast his own shadow amongst those racing immortals---Truly, his OWN shadow: second to none!

re: Spectacular Days

Wanda — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 04:23:55 GMT

We have a limited addition print of the Bid, the Shoe up in the San Fernando Stakes. signed by the artist (S.Cruiana) and by Shoemaker. What's it worth? To us priceless.

The greatest horse to look thru a bridle with the greatest rider to ever ride. What a team!

re: Spectacular Days

barb — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 21:53:07 GMT

I was alive but not racehorse aware in the 70s and so missed all of that greatness. "My" first Derby was Gato Del Sol's. I look back in wonder (and sadnesss) for what I barely missed. I am very appreciative of these "looks back" and while I enjoy the current events too I would hate to think Steve will stop doing them, I think you should throw out at least one a month.

As for Wanderin' Boy, my heart goes out to Nick Zito and the barn staff that loved him. I really liked WB and Sun King and they both came to sad ends.

Monica, I had to laugh about your story with the Bid in the field...with a stallion it's sometimes hard to tell if he's lonely and wants some love OR if he's bored and wants someone to chase around his field, lol. Lucky you to have been so close (and to Secretariat too!).

And lastly I wanted to say goodbye to Wild Again. RIP.

re: Spectacular Days

Monica V — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 19:23:38 GMT

Aaah, Steve, you've done it again! What a great article and I totally agree with you, The Bid was the greatest and you're right, we will never see the likes of him again. He was just magnificent!

I visited Claiborne Farm when I was in KY for the Breeder's Cup at Churchill in 1988. The Bid was then in the paddock next to Secretariat. The groom told me they used to race each other in the mornings side by side. I visited again in 1989 and saw The Bid quite by accident. I was leaving Stone Farm and was on a small road that ran along the side of Claiborne. Standing in a small Paddock on this far side of the farm was the great one himself. I stopped the car and got out and stood next to the little stone wall the runs around Clairborne. I was taking pictures of him and stood there looking at me and was trying to talk to me, as though he wanted me to come closer and pet him. I was really tempted to climb over the little wall to go see him but thought better of it.

Now I so wish I had done it. How often are you in the presence of greatness?

re: Spectacular Days

The Deacon — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 08:10:23 GMT

Why can't you folks just enjoy the wonderful memories Steve provides for us. We always have to compare greatness. It's all subjective anyway. As I said earlier, each person is affected differently each each individual race horse. I have seen every great race horse run since 1956. In my opinion, Dr. fager was the best, up to perhaps 1 1/8 miles. Spectacular Bid and Secretariat were the best from that point on. Look at the weights each horse carried, the times of the race and the different track conditions. Spectacular Bid loved Santa Anita, look at his 1 1/4 mile world record of 1:57 4/5, still standing, and his brilliant 7 furlong time in the Malibu.

Back in the day at Santa Anita old horseman would tell me that Citation and Man O' War were the 2 best. but I do not think Citation ever won a race carrying 130 lbs. Nonetheless, he was still brilliant. Perhaps one of the top 2 or 3 performances I ever saw was in 1967 when Damascus destroyed the competition in the Travers Stakes. I think he won by 22 lengths or so. No one ever talks about that race. How about in 1956, Swaps setting a world record in the Californian Stakes at Hollywood Park under 130 lbs and running a 139 1/5 for the 1 1/16

miles. I was there, although only 7 years old, but I remember the race.

Let's just admire all of the great ones, and perhaps for just one race or for just one day, they were all unbeatable.

Merry Xmas and Happy New Years Steve................

re: Spectacular Days

Dawn — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:15:00 GMT

Oh man the Bid! I had a t-shirt that showed Bid and Franklin superimposed over the state of MD and read 'the Bid and the Kid: MD's Triple Crown threat!' )Wonder if my mother still has it?) I clearly remember the day he appeared at Bowie racecourse right after the fourth race: I can still see that big gray horse loping around the track! I still have the two free photos the track was handing out. I also remember forgoing the 9th grade class trip to Hershey Park because it was scheduled on Belmont Day. For the want of a decent ride and a safety pin-free stall...

And the Woodward Walkover? How strange to see a one-horse race, but that's how powerful the Bid was--no one wanted to take him on. An incredible race horse--I'm glad I'm old enough to remember him!

re: Spectacular Days

Matthew W — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 02:50:58 GMT

Between 6 1/2 fur and 1 1/4 mi Spectacular Bid is 26 for 26---he's within two lengths of Dr Fager at 1/4 pole and he waltzs right on by---no, only Secretariat gives Bid a race--none of the others, in my opinion, get the best of Bid---and in a best of seven, Secretariat doesn't win four.....

re: Spectacular Days

Matthew W — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 02:33:03 GMT

The 1980 Strub was the only time I ever saw "Bid in person. It was all I needed to say he was the best horse I ever saw, and that still goes today.....My brother Pete said I "had" to see "Bid and Paster", so I got off work early that day--we got to Santa Anita around the 5th race, in time to see Radar Ahead defeat Double Discount in a supporting feature....It was a windy/cool day, I remember walking up the path between the barns and the saddling paddock...and there I was, virtually alone, and here comes Bud Delp in loud sportcoat, alongside his Spectacular Bid---I was taken aback by the lack of "class tells" in 'Bid---at least the physical ones, he was leggy and ordinary looking, and when they came out of the paddock, that long green paddock which I loved, they walked through the people on the way to the walking ring, the beautiful Santa Anita walking ring with the statue of Seabiscuit, I remember STILL not being impressed with Bid, even when I saw Shoe, the classic, stoic, manly Bill Freakin Shoemaker---the same man who was being shuffled through the croud one day as they need to do on busy cards, but stopped and ran back to sign my little sisters program---As Shoe mounted up, it was Flying Paster who was getting all the "ooohs and ahhs"---He was a powerhouse of a blood-bay and looked the part....Relaunch was a brilliant and large dirty light grey.....Valdez was also a class horse, chestnut....Spectacular Bid was a steel grey, a regal walking/head held high (which I have learned is often a sign of class/intelligence)...I did not bet the race--my brother played the Bid Paster one way exacta and I think it paid $13 for $5 and my brother still brags about it being the easiest 8/5 proposition he ever took.....we watched it from The Clockers Corner, where we watched all of our races as it was free" there--and you could really get a feel for a race when you stare down the far turn---Horses that tire will start to lose their balance in their stride/horses that are full of run are leaning into the turn---As they come out of the gate in front of us, somebody yells "attaboy Eddie!" as Eddie D guns Relaunch---but Bid makes a mid-race move into a fast pace---I'm thinking Paster is going to blow by them all as Shoe took the 1:32 and change one-turn mile---but it was there on the far turn, I saw what I saw--Spectacular Bid...having run that mile, was in full and relaxed lean on that final bend, and as he ran past us--with Flying Paster in full out pursuit---Flying Paster from 1 mi to 1 1/8 mi is the best Cal Bred I've seen----Bid just was so good that day--I knew immediately I was watching greatness, as if in slow-motion---Steve, I'm prejudiced as I never saw Secretariat/Dr Fager race---but put the 20 best in the Churchill Gate---The horse that wins more races than ANY other--is Spectacular Bid! To top things off, my boss had given me $30 to bet on Shoe in the last race--he said if Shoe's riding a race AFTER The Strub--it must be "live"....Future Swaps winner First Albert won the nightcap, Wm Shoemaker up...and I handed my boss $600---then he handed me back $200---What a memorable day! I saw "The Greatest Horse To Ever Look Through A Bridle"...Bud Delp....Bill Shoemaker.....and got paid!!

re: Spectacular Days

marc W. — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:22:14 GMT

Lukas accomplishments are mind blowing but I haven’t got him on the top of my list of greatest trainers-but I can’t look at a paper and say he isn’t-or win an argument (pre -1950 contract trainers great as they were, had monopolies on good horses which inflated their records)

Shoemaker is top on my list of jockeys because he had a magical touch plus brains to see how a race was setting up, he certainly couldn’t out strength or finish Pincay. Anyone putting Pincay, Bailey, Acaro or many others would be hard to fault.

Horses, Jockey’s, Trainers, it is all subjective with no definite right answers.

I know, I think I am right as other do, arguing is senseless with one little caveat.

Myself, and a few others have one thing in their favor-if in a self-righteous mode-We saw the great ones run- and are not just reading stats. I know without a program or entries at one time in the past I could tell almost every jockey in race a race by the way he looked in a race in New York and Toronto racing. Today maybe Gomez, Chavez, The Mig, and a few others still are easy to spot because of the way they whip, bounce, or sit on a horse. I have seen some trainers go in every stall every day, claimer or stakes horse, and perform miracles improving horses without vets or drugs just by a sixth sense and experience. I have seen with my own eyes, which horses just refused to lose or just did things so effortlessly and were superior to the competition.

It’s a wonderful game even if it is dying-somebody is right every day and has boasting rights-all for $2.00.

re: Spectacular Days

Steve Haskin — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 02:08:01 GMT

Mike, I can assure you the names Curlin and Big Brown will not appear again.

re: Spectacular Days

MikeM — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 01:34:44 GMT

I'm just wondering how long it's going to take to turn this into a Big Brown vs. Curlin debate.

re: Spectacular Days

Ranagulzion — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 22:22:14 GMT

One lingering thought on this great article: The revisiting of the immortals of the sport has generated the kind of responses that show how hungry we all are to witness racing greatness. One thing we must be thankful for this year is that for the first half of the year most of us were salivating over the potential of Big Brown wondering (like Oprah Winfrey about Senator/ now Presedent-Elect Obama) if he was the one. What a pity he didn't make it to the Breeder's Cup and will also lose out in the HOTY vote. Now we wait for the next promising colt of 2009. Looking forward to your early Derby Dozen Steve. If Big Drama wins the Delta Jackpot this weekend he could be a special one inspite of stamina questions.

The fact that it took Spectacular Bid three seasons to achieve immortality while Secretariat achieved it in two seasons gives "Big Red" the edge over "The Bid" for the greatest horse to ever look through a bridle...in the last forty years...not to offend the backers of Dr. Fager, Native Dancer and Man O' War.

re: Spectacular Days

MikeM — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 20:04:42 GMT

I know this is off topic but how's this for a 3yo season.

19 wins in 20 starts

Earnings 709,470 (1948)

Raced Feb to Dec.

Beat older horses from Feb. to Dec.

Won at every distance (6f to 2 miles)

Won at 10 different tracks,seven states.

Tracks labled fst,slop,heavy,mud and gd.

Won his races by cumulative 66 lengths.

Won Triple Crown by a total of 17 lengths.

At yearend his lifetime record was 29 27-2-0

CITATION

re: Spectacular Days

Steve Haskin — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 19:50:37 GMT

Lovemylava, I'm a bit late acknowledging your comments, but thanks for sharing that story.

re: Spectacular Days

Howard — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 17:32:38 GMT

Tears and Chills, I started following racing in the spring of 1978, When Seattle Slew was 4, Affirmed was 3 and THE BID was 2. I thought that was what racing was about. Did not know how lucky I was to be around to see those 3 great Champions race. But you are right THE BID was and still is the greatest horse ever to look through a bridle. Thanks for reliving the memories. tears and chills again

re: Spectacular Days

Cleone — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 17:19:42 GMT

Steve, I am loving these trips down memory lane! As far as I'm concerned, you can just keep 'em coming.

re: Spectacular Days

marc W — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 17:01:04 GMT

I left one other thought off my post that another picked up on. Ronny Franklin was no Shoe, but in the year Bid was in Florida I saw him win a number of races on horses not so famous-he was a decent rider, quite fearless and a strong finisher. His Florida Derby which I saw (I was close to the group with Jean-Louis Levesque, and John Starr and they had the champion Canadian 2 yr old running that day against Bid)---it was one of the worst rides ever-and he/Bid won easily.

One of the great things about Jerry Bailey was not that he could win races with great rides-which he could sometimes-he just hardly ever got the best horse beat. I very much think J. Rose is a top flight and underrated rider but Afleet Alex should never have lost as a 2 yr old except by horrible decisions by the rider. Pat Day could/ should have maybe have 3 Ky Derby wins in my opinion before retiring and I am not counting Easy Goer as one because the better horse won that day. He was a great rider. Shoemaker is famous for the Gallant Man mistake but still could have won the bob -it was a nip and tuck race that could have still had the same result. BUT! His Preakness ride on Linkage was criminally bad, as the trainers decision not to run in the Derby-the horse never should have been beaten-he was much the best. Note- I consider Shoe the greatest ever. Naming Ronny Franklin as the fall guy if he lost the FL Derby which he didn't, is one thing-It was just fate that "The Bid" is not a Triple Crown winner-pin maybe? It just wasn't to be and he hardly lost by a nose, it wasn't close. Horses are not machines to be very unoriginal on a quote.

re: Spectacular Days

Gene Viti — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:37:44 GMT

I'll forgive you one lapse. You left out the fact we also lost Bold Forbes in 2000, Affirmed in 2001, Seattle Slew in 2002 and Bid in 2003.

Great writing as usual!

re: Spectacular Days

Steve Haskin — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:07:13 GMT

First off, thanks Harry and Tom for your comments and the best of luck to you.

Canuck, actually I wish I could say I was at the '73 Belmont, but I was working at the DRF that day. Sunday and Wednesday were my days off and I was often in the office for many big races back then. It was a lot fun watching the races on TV with all the editors and other fellow workers. Saturday was always a busy day needless to say. I was able to get to the track for plenty of big races, but for that Belmont I was needed in the office.

Deacon, I agree with you, but I just thought maybe it was too much and people were getting tired of them. I havent had any comments other than yours and maybe one other to stay with the historical/personal pieces, but we'll see. I'll play it by ear each week.