With ninety-four days to go, the Kentucky Derby looms large over the racing calendar for this year’s crop of newly minted three year olds. The inevitable bevy of top 10 lists rate the best of what we’ve seen thus far, early looks at immature horses who still have growing to do between late January and the first Saturday in May. As we consider the chances of horses like Essential Quality and Life is Good, let us harken back to the ninety-one years ago and the run-up to the Kentucky Derby for an all-time great.
The story of 1929’s two-year-olds were Harry Payne Whitney’s pair, Boojum and Whichone. Boojum had beaten his stablemate in the Hopeful after showing off his speed in earlier sprints while Whichone had taken the Champagne Stakes, the Saratoga Special, and the Futurity at Belmont. In the Winter Book for the 1930 Derby, Whichone was at the top of the list at 4-1, with Boojum second choice at 10-1 along with another juvenile standout, Gallant Fox, also at 10-1. With 112 days to go, of these three, who would come out on top?
Unfortunately, lingering injuries from 1929 would keep both Boojum and Whichone from finding out how they would all measure up. Whichone did not make his first start until May 1930, while Boojum attempted a comeback in April but his injured tendon was not ready for racing. Without those two standouts, the Kentucky Derby picture was wide open, with not one horse standing out above the rest. Instead, the weeks between January 25th and May 17th saw the standings shift between names like Gallant Knight, Tanery, and Crack Brigade. After his performance in the Preakness, one week before the Derby, one horse rose to favoritism: Gallant Fox.
He had won only one prep race, the Wood Memorial, prior to the Preakness. The Fox had won two of his eight races as a two-year-old, demonstrating the inconsistency of a horse with bottomless talent and a mind of his own. With Earl Sande, though, he was a different horse. Instantly, the presence of one of the era’s greatest jockeys lent him credibility. Instantly, that troubled trip around the Pimlico oval demonstrated a depth that augured for something special.
When all was said and done, the other names that had been bandied about as favorites for the 1930 Kentucky Derby became afterthoughts, discarded for the Fox of Belair. His Run for the Roses was impressive enough that he had propelled himself to the top of his division, but still he had one more hurdle to clear before he became its clear leader: Whichone. The Whitney colt may not have made it to Louisville, but his status as juvenile champion and winter book favorite meant that the Fox had one more horse to beat before he could call the year his.