Piet (foaled 1945) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse best known for winning three consecutive runnings of the

Jamaica Handicap The Caesars Belmont Derby is an American Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred race horse run over a distance of miles on the turf at Belmont Park in July. The purse for the event is US$1,000,000. The event is the first of three of ...

Background

Bred by Charles B. Bohn and Peter A. Markey, Piet raced under their '' nom de course'', BoMar Stable. He was sired by multiple stakes winner Grand Slam, a son of 1927 American Horse of the Year

Chance Play Chance Play (foaled 1923) was an American Champion Thoroughbred racehorse and Champion sire. In a career which lasted from 1925 to 1928 he ran in thirty-nine races and won sixteen of them. Although he was successful in his early career over sprin ...

. His dam was Valdina Lark, a daughter of the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee who is considered one of the greatest broodmare sires of all time,

Blue Larkspur Blue Larkspur (1926–1947) was a bay Kentucky-bred thoroughbred race horse. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1957, and ranks Number 100 in The Blood-Horse's top 100 U.S. thoroughbred champions of the 20t ...

Racing career

At age two, Piet won two races in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, taking the 1947 Spalding Lowe Jenkins Stakes and the Richard Johnson Stakes at

Laurel Park Racecourse Laurel Park, formerly Laurel Race Course, is an American thoroughbred racing, thoroughbred racetrack located just outside Laurel, Maryland which opened in 1911. The track is miles in circumference. Its name was changed to "Laurel Race Course" fo ...

but got his most important victory of the year at Chicago's

Arlington Park Arlington International Racecourse (formerly Arlington Park, the name was Arlington Park Jockey Club from as soon as 1948 up to 1955) was a horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Horse racing in the Chicago reg ...

when he won the Arlington Futurity. In his three-year-old debut, Piet won the Ral Parr Stakes at

Pimlico Race Course Pimlico Race Course is a thoroughbred horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of Ol ...

. His other significant win of 1948 saw him defeat Coaltown in capturing the Skokie Handicap at

Washington Park Race Track Washington Park Race Track was a popular horse racing venue in the Chicago metropolitan area from 1884 until 1977. It had two locations during its existence. It was first situated in what is the current location of the Washington Park Subdiv ...

. In 1949, Piet won the first of his three straight editions of the

at Jamaica Racetrack. The following year, in addition to another Jamaica Handicap, Piet also won the

Whitney Whitney may refer to: Film and television * ''Whitney'' (2015 film), a Whitney Houston biopic starring Yaya DaCosta * ''Whitney'' (2018 film), a documentary about Whitney Houston * ''Whitney'' (TV series), an American sitcom that premiered i ...

Toboggan A toboggan is a simple sled traditionally used by children. It is also a traditional form of transport used by the Innu and Cree of northern Canada. In modern times, it is used on snow to carry one or more people (often children) down a hill ...

, and

Bay Shore Handicap The Bay Shore Handicap is a discontinued Thoroughbred horse race run from 1925 through 1955 at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York City. The race was open to horses age three and older and run on dirt. From 1956 to 1959 there was no Bay Shore ...

s. 1951 was six-year-old Piet's last year of racing. At the Jamaica Racetrack he won the Apache Handicap then six days later his third consecutive Jamaica Handicap. In other top-level 1951 races, Piet notably ran second to Casemate in the

Metropolitan Handicap The Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile", is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile (8 fu ...

and was third behind winner Arise in the

Carter Handicap The Carter Handicap is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for three-years-old and older run over a distance of seven furlongs run annually in early April at Aqueduct Racetrack. Race history First run in 1895, the race was named for B ...

Stud record

Retired to

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay ba ...

duty, Piet met with modest success. His last foal was born in 1967.

External links

Piet's pedigree and partial racing stats

References

{{reflist 1945 racehorse births Racehorses bred in the United States Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 15-d