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John M. Gaver, Sr.
John Milton Gaver Sr. (October 29, 1900 – July 11, 1982) was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Born in Mount Airy, Maryland, John Gaver graduated from Princeton University then worked as a prep school language teacher before eventually embarking on a career in Thoroughbred racing. In 1929, James G. Rowe Jr., a friend and horse trainer, invited him to join the team managing the Brookdale Farm and racing stable owned by Harry Payne Whitney. After Harry Payne Whitney died in 1930, James Rowe Jr. took over the running of the Mrs. Payne Whitney family's Greentree Stable and asked John Gaver to come with him. In 1939, Gaver was appointed head trainer for Greentree Stable, a position he would hold for the next thirty-eight years. During his time with Greentree, John Gaver conditioned seventy-three stakes-winning horses, including winners of five American Classic Races. Four of his horses earned Champions honors with Capot and Tom Fool voted Horse of the Ye ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horse Trainer
A horse trainer is a person who tends to horses and teaches them different disciplines. Some of the responsibilities trainers have are caring for the animals' physical needs, as well as teaching them submissive behaviors and/or coaching them for events, which may include contests and other riding purposes. The level of education and the yearly salary they can earn for this profession may differ depending on where the person is employed. History Domestication of the horse, Horse domestication by the Botai culture in Kazakhstan dates to about 3500 BC. Written records of horse training as a pursuit has been documented as early as 1350 BC, by Kikkuli, the Hurrian "master horse trainer" of the Hittite Empire. Another source of early recorded history of horse training as a discipline comes from the Ancient Greece, Greek writer Xenophon, in his treatise On Horsemanship. Writing circa 350 BC, Xenophon addressed Horse training, starting young horses, selecting older animals, and proper Ho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whitney Handicap
The Whitney Stakes (run as the Whitney Handicap through 2013 and still sometimes referred to as such) is an American Grade 1 stakes race for Thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of miles. The current purse is $1,200,000. Held annually in late July/early August at the Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York, the race is named for the Whitney family, whose members were and remain prominent participants and supporters of the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing. History The Whitney Stakes is administered by the New York Racing Association: Named after the family that for generations has had so much to do with racing at Saratoga, the Whitney Handicap was first run in 1928. The Whitney family’s involvement with thoroughbreds began when William Collins Whitney, one of the founders of The Jockey Club, began campaigning racehorses in 1898, bearing the familiar Eton blue-and-brown silks. His legacy was carried on by his son, Harry Payne Whit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sysonby Handicap
The Sysonby Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race first run in 1946 at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Placed on hiatus after the 1959 edition, the race was revived in 1967 at Aqueduct Racetrack where it would run one last time. An event for horses of either sex age three and older, it was run on dirt over a distance of a mile through 1958 then the following year increased to a mile and a quarter. For the final running in 1967 it became a sprint race of seven furlongs. The race was named in honor of U. S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee Sysonby who was selected #30 - Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century. Historical race notes Lucky Draw won the 1946 inaugural running in a year in which he set six track records including equaling a World record. He won the Sysonby by 10 lengths and although it was run over a muddy racetrack, it was still in a fast time. Other notable Sysonby Handicap winners were four American Horse of the Year and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame indu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saratoga Cup
The Saratoga Cup was an American Thoroughbred horse race open to horses of either sex age three and older although geldings were not eligible from 1865 through 1918. Between 1865 and 1955 it was hosted by Saratoga Race Course, in Saratoga Springs, New York with the exception of 1943 through 1945 when wartime restrictions were in place and the race was held at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The race was not run from 1887 to 1890, from 1892 to 1900, in 1908, 1911, 1912, from 1956 to 1962, and from 1964 to 1993. The 75 editions of the race were contested at four different distances: * 1865–1886 : 2¼ miles * 1891 : 2 miles * 1901: 1 miles * 1902–1955 : 1¾ miles "The seventy-sixth running Saratoga Cup" In 1963, track owner/operator New York Racing Association held a one-time only commemorative event they called "The seventy-sixth running Saratoga Cup 'The Centennial Season Running.'" It was run at a distance of 1 5/8 miles and was won by Fitz Eugene Dixon, Jr.'s three-year-o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pimlico Special
The Pimlico Special is a Grade 3 American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles ( furlongs) held at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland in mid May. The race currently offers a purse of $300,000. History The Pimlico Special was first run in 1937 and was won by that year's U.S. Triple Crown winner War Admiral who went on to be voted the American Horse of the Year. In 1938, the Pimlico Special was host to one of American racing's most historic moments when Seabiscuit defeated War Admiral in a much anticipated match race. That race was covered by almost every major newspaper, magazine and radio station of the time. Discontinued after 1958, the race was revived as a handicap event in 1988 and made a graded stakes race one year later in 1989. The race was not eligible for grading in 2011 because it had not been run the previous two years. Eighteen Pimlico Special winners have gone on to win a Championship for Horse of the Year or a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chesapeake Stakes
The Chesapeake Stakes was an important American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses of either sex contested on dirt over a distance of a mile and one-sixteenth at Havre de Grace Racetrack in Havre de Grace, Maryland. Run from 1920 until the track closed after the 1950 edition, the race usually run in late April race was a last major prep before the Kentucky Derby. For owners who had not nominated their horse for the Derby it was a chance to test their horse's ability against some of the best three-year-olds in the country, a number of which they would undoubtedly encounter in the ensuing Preakness Stakes. Historical notes The first two editions of the Chesapeake Stakes were run at a mile and 70 yards. The April 24, 1920 inaugural brought together a field of six runners that included Harry Whitney's Wildair as well as the betting public's heavy favorite, an entry of Blazes and Paul Jones owned by Ral Parr. However, the race saw a stunning upset by a 42:1 longsho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pimlico Futurity
The Laurel Futurity is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in late September at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland. Run over a distance of miles on turf, at one time it was a Grade I stakes race on dirt, and one of the richest and most important races for two-year-old American thoroughbreds. When the race was moved from the dirt to the turf in 2005, it lost its graded status and was subsequently ineligible for grading in 2006. The race was finally cancelled in 2008 for economic reasons. It was announced by Laurel Park that the famed race would be restored in 2011 and run on October 8 at 6 furlongs. Originally known as the Pimlico Futurity (the race began at Pimlico Race Course in 1921, only moving to Laurel in 1969 where it was briefly known as the Pimlico-Laurel Futurity). Past winners include Triple Crown champions Count Fleet, Citation, Secretariat and Affirmed, who defeated his arch rival Alydar in this race. Records Speed record: * miles – 1:40.1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Champagne Stakes (United States)
The Champagne Stakes is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old horses. The race is run at a distance of one mile on the dirt at Belmont Park in October each year. Although the race is open to both colts and fillies, in practice it is New York's premier race for two-year-old colts and fillies enter the Frizette Stakes instead. The race is a Road to the Kentucky Derby Prep Season qualifying race. The winner receives 10 points toward qualifying for the Kentucky Derby. The race is also a part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge series. The winner automatically qualifies for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. The race was first run in 1867, and it is the oldest race of its kind in the United States. It was given the same name as the British Champagne Stakes which has been run annually since 1823 at the Doncaster Racecourse in South Yorkshire, England. There was no Champagne Stakes run from 1910 through 1913, due to a legislated ban by the State of New York on parimutuel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great American Stakes
The Great American Stakes is a discontinued American Thoroughbred horse race last run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Raced on dirt and open to two-year-old horses only, it was last run at a distance of five and a half furlongs. Historical notes The race was inaugurated as a five furlong event at the Gravesend Race Track at Gravesend on Coney Island, New York. Passage off the Hart–Agnew Law that banned parimutuel betting. Enacted by the Republican controlled New York Legislature under Governor Charles Evans Hughes, left owners of Gravesend Race Track and other racing facilities in New York State struggling to stay in business without income from betting. Further restrictive legislation was passed by the New York Legislature in 1910 which deepened the financial crisis for track operators and led to a complete shut down of racing across the state during 1911 and 1912. When a February 21, 1913 ruling by the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division saw horse racing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Suburban Handicap
The Suburban Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is now run at the mile distance on dirt for a $700,000 purse. Named after the City and Suburban Handicap in England, the Suburban had its 133rd running in 2019. Inaugurated at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track in 1884, it was run there through 1910. However, the 1908 passage of the Hart–Agnew anti-betting legislation by the New York Legislature under Republican Governor Charles Evans Hughes led to a state-wide shutdown of racing in 1911 and 1912. A February 21, 1913 ruling by the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division saw horse racing return in 1913. Nevertheless, it was too late for the Sheepshead Bay horse racing facility and it never reopened. The race was picked up by the operators of Belmont Park where it was run in 1913. Not run the following year it was hosted by the Empire City Race Track in 1915 before returning ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wood Memorial Stakes
The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. It is run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. The Wood Memorial has been run as a Grade II event since 2017. It was a Grade I race from 1974 (when grading was first introduced) to 1994 and again from 2002 to 2016. The Wood Memorial is one of the major prep races on the Road to the Kentucky Derby. Between 1930 and 2000, eleven winners of the Wood Memorial went on to win the Kentucky Derby (Gallant Fox, Twenty Grand, Johnstown, Count Fleet, Hoop Jr., Assault, Foolish Pleasure, Bold Forbes, Seattle Slew, Pleasant Colony and Fusaichi Pegasus). Four of them also won the Triple Crown. The most famous loser in the Wood Memorial was Secretariat, who finished third in 1973. The winner of the Wood Memorial has not won the Kentucky Derby since 2000, in part because several became injured in the weeks betwe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Legion Handicap
The American Legion Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York open to horses of either sex age three and older. It was contested over a distance of seven furlongs on dirt, except for 1948 and 1949 when it was set at one mile (8 furlongs). The race was run for thirty-two years from 1927 through 1948. Historical notes The inaugural running took place on August 6, 1927 and was won Cheops, a three-year-old brown colt owned by the very prominent Rancocas Stable. The race was created to honor American war veterans but during World War II also became a fund raising event to support the war effort. In 1943 government wartime restrictions meant the race had to be hosted that year by the Belmont Park racetrack in Elmont, New York. During the July 26, 1937 racing program that included the American Legion Handicap, tragedy struck the Saratoga facilities when, during a severe electrical storm, a bolt of lightning killed one horse an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |