Summer Tan (1952–1969) 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 c ...

racehorse

Background

Summer Tan was bred and raced by Dorothy Firestone Galbreath and race conditioned by U.S. Racing Hall of Fame trainer, Sherrill Ward.

Racing career

1954: two-year-old season

At age two, Summer Tan won major races in his age group such as the

United States Hotel Stakes The United States Hotel Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in the late summer or early autumn until 1955 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It was run on dirt over a distance of six furlongs. Raced in th ...

, the

Cowdin Stakes The Cowdin Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually from 1923 through 2005 at Aqueduct Racetrack and at Belmont Park which at one time was a Grade 1 event. Background The Cowdin was first run in 1923 as the Junior Champion St ...

in track record time, the

Youthful Stakes The Youthful Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old horses run between 1903 and 1982. It was raced on dirt at three different tracks in the New York City area beginning with the Jamaica and Aqueduct Racetracks, then in 197 ...

, the

Garden State Stakes The Garden State Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in mid November at the now defunct Garden State Park Racetrack in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. A futurity event for two-year-olds, it is sometimes referred to as the Garden S ...

and finished second in the

Hopeful Hopeful may refer to * Hopeful (Ami Suzuki song), "Hopeful" (Ami Suzuki song) * Hopeful (Bars and Melody song), "Hopeful" (Bars and Melody song) * Hopeful, Alabama * Hopeful, Georgia * Mount Hopeful, peak in the Shetland Islands See also

* Hop ...

and

Belmont Futurity Stakes The Futurity Stakes, commonly referred to as the Belmont Futurity, is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in mid-September or October at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, United States. Open to two-year-old horses, it is raced on turf ...

. While

Nashua Nashua may refer to: * Nashaway people, Native American tribe living in 17th-century New England Places In Australia: * Nashua, New South Wales In the United States: * Nashua, California * Nashua, Iowa * Nashua, Minnesota * Nashua, Kansas City ...

was voted the 1954

American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt The American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when the '' Daily Racing F ...

, Summer Tan was assigned top weight of 128 lbs on Frank E. Kilroe's Experimental Handicap. In early November 1954, shortly after his win in the Garden State Futurity, Summer Tan fell seriously ill and was diagnosed as suffering from an arterial

blood clot A thrombus (plural thrombi), colloquially called a blood clot, is the final product of the blood coagulation step in hemostasis. There are two components to a thrombus: aggregated platelets and red blood cells that form a plug, and a mesh of ...

1955: three-year-old season

In January, his handlers announced that Summer Tan had still not recovered enough to race and would not start in the

Flamingo Stakes The Flamingo Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses run over a distance of a mile and one-eighth. Run as the Florida Derby until 1937, the inaugural event took place at Tampa Downs on February 27, 1926. There was ...

, a scheduled early prep on the road to the

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

. After more than a five-month layoff, Summer Tan returned to racing on April 4, 1955 in the mile and a sixteenth Springboard Purse, an allowance race at

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. It was opened on May 4, 1905. It is operated by the non-profit New York Racin ...

in New York which he won by fourteen lengths in near track record time. His next and second start as a 3-year-old came on April 24 in the

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 ...

in which he was beaten by a neck by archrival, Nashua. In the Kentucky Derby, Summer Tan finished third behind Nashua and winner, Swaps.

Later career

At age four, Summer Tan won three important races including the prestigious

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. ...

. He also set a new track record for 1 5/8 miles on dirt at Jamaica Race Course in New York while winning the

Gallant Fox Handicap The Gallant Fox Handicap is a discontinued Thoroughbred horse race in New York City which was run annually from 1939 through 2009. Hosted by the now defunct Jamaica Race Course in Jamaica, Queens from inception through 1957, it was then moved to ...

. In his final year of racing in 1957, the then five-year-old won the

McLennan Handicap McLennan, MacLennan and Maclennan are surnames derived from the Scottish Gaelic . Notable people with the surname include: McLennan spelling * Andrew McLennan, New Zealand musician and songwriter better known as Andrew Snoid * Andrew Robert McLe ...

Hialeah Park Race Track The Hialeah Park Race Track (also known as the Hialeah Race Track or Hialeah Park) is a historic racetrack in Hialeah, Florida. Its site covers 40 square blocks of central-east side Hialeah from Palm Avenue east to East 4th Avenue, and from East ...

Hialeah, Florida Hialeah ( ; ) is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. With a population of 223,109 as of the 2020 census, Hialeah is the sixth-largest city in Florida. It is the second largest city by population in the Miami metropolitan area ...

Stud record

Summer Tan was 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 at the Galbreath family's

Darby Dan Farm Darby Dan Farm is a produce, livestock, and thoroughbred horse breeding and training farm founded in 1935 near the Darby Creek in Galloway, Ohio by businessman John W. Galbreath. Named for the creek and for Galbreath's son, Daniel M. Galbreath (1 ...

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

where he met with good success. His offspring includes Summer Scandal, the 1966

American Champion Older Female Horse The Eclipse Award for Champion Older Dirt Female Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a filly or mare, four years old and up, for performances on dirt and main track racing surfaces. In 1971, it became part of the ...

, plus multiple stakes race winners, Indian Sunlite and Sunrise County. Summer Tan was also the damsire of

Typecast In film, television, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character, one or more particular roles, or characters having the same traits or coming from the same social or ...

, the 1972 American Champion Older Female Horse, and 1985

Breeders' Cup Classic The Breeders' Cup Classic is a Grade I Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race for 3-year-olds and older run at a distance of on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships in late October o ...

winner,

Proud Truth Proud Truth (1982–2005) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He is most notable for his win in the 1985 Breeders' Cup Classic. Background Proud Truth was bred by Dorothy Galbreath, wife of prominent horseman John W. Galbreath, at their Da ...

. Summer Tan died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

at age seventeen on October 16, 1969 and was buried in the equine cemetery at Darby Dan Farm.Thoroughbred Heritage
/ref>

References

{{reflist
Summer Tan's pedigree and partial racing stats
1952 racehorse births 1969 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United States Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 2-n