Buskin (1910 – July 5, 1917) 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 Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

is best known for winning the 1913

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () on ...

. Owned and trained by Mr. John Whalen, he was sired by

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

. Buskin was out of the mare Slippers, a daughter of Meddler.

Preakness Stakes

Buskin, described as "a good-looking little bay gelding" won the $2,500

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 ...

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

on Tuesday, May 20, 1913. He went off as the heavy favorite at 3–2 in the field of eight three-year-olds after five of the thirteen colts scratched. Buskin broke first but fell back to fourth under a heavy hold by jockey Jimmy Butwell as they hit Pimlico's famous "Clubhouse Turn." The pace was slow early with the first quarter in :24 flat and the half in :48-4/5. As the race progressed, Buskin was continually restrained as he dropped to fifth down the backstretch but tracked the pacemakers just three lengths behind. On the final turn, he rounded the field four wide and burst into the lead by three lengths before tiring badly in the final sixteenth. He held off the charge of runner-up and third choice Kleburne by a neck. Longshot Barnegat at 48-1 finished third. The final time for the one mile and one eighth Preakness was 1:53 2/5 over a fast track. The winner's share of 60% of the purse was $1,670. Buskin and

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the next year were the last geldings to win the Preakness Stakes until

Prairie Bayou Prairie Bayou (March 4, 1990 – June 5, 1993) was an American Thoroughbred Champion racehorse owned and bred by Loblolly Stable of Lake Hamilton, Arkansas. Named for a bayou between Little Rock and Hot Springs in Arkansas, he was sired by L ...

won the race in 1993.

Later racing career

Later that racing season, Buskin won the 1913

Canadian Derby The Canadian Derby is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the Century Mile Racetrack and Casino in Leduc County, Alberta. A Grade III event held in August, it is open to three-year-old horses and is raced on dirt over a distance of ...

and placed second in the National Stakes. In his four-year-old season, he won the 1914

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 furl ...

and Bowie Handicap. Also in 1914 or 1915, Buskin placed second in the

Brooklyn Handicap The Brooklyn Invitational Stakes (formerly known as the Brooklyn Handicap) is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in early June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, on Long Island. It currently is a Grade II event open to four-year-ol ...

, Bowie Handicap, Susquehanna Handicap and Toronto Cup while placing third in the Frontier Handicap and the Washington Handicap. Buskin was injured in the spring of 1916 and was euthanized on July 5, 1917, 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 ...

due to worsening of his condition.

Breeding

References

{{Preakness Stakes Winners 1910 racehorse births 1917 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Preakness Stakes winners Thoroughbred family 21-a Byerley Turk sire line