Every year, I do my best to collect links to those retailers that have items that appeal to those of the horsey sort. Whether you’re looking for something for your favorite racing fan or yourself, this list surely has something you can pass along for this holiday season. From calendars to candles, shirts to subscriptions, the 2022 edition surely has something for your gifting needs this year.
All Stars
These all stars are ones that I have ordered from and worked with before myself. My recommendations list always include these folks and their wonderful products.
I will forever shill for Amie Martinez and her skills as a creator and her enthusiasm as a fan of racing. A full half of my personal Christmas tree includes Amie’s creations and my office is awash in items she has customized for me. Get your orders in now so that you can get your items in plenty of time for your gift-giving occasions!
My closet boasts at least a dozen Old Smoke shirts, each a fun and unique design that recalls many a champion of past and present. Their JK collection was everywhere at Breeders’ Cup this year. My favorites include the Graveyard of Champions and Sir Barton shirts, of course, but anything from this site makes a great gift for the horsey person in your life.
Bob’s art is a gorgeous addition to any racing fan’s home. His shop includes both prints and calendars, giving you more than one way to see your favorite horse in your home every day. I can’t wait to add his portrait of American Pharoah to my home someday!
Grace’s work as a photographer depicts iconic Bluegrass scenes, one that make lovely additions to any home or office. We have a couple of Grace’s photos on your mantle year-round, with her photo of a horseman preparing a stallion for showing as one of those images that we had to have.
I have two of Greg’s Travers posters and have at least one more that I am planning to add to our collection of racing artwork. His 2017 poster of Arrogate was a must-have for my office and his 2021 poster of Tiz the Law is waiting in the wings for a spot in our home. The perfect gift for any racing fan who wants to blend their love of the sport with timeless art.
This is a last-minute addition to the Gift Guide! I just ordered this and I cannot wait to add this to my office. Enjoy Decker’s portraits of America’s thirteen Triple Crown winners. An adorable piece for any collector, especially those who love the thirteen elite names on that list!
Gallant Fox, Omaha, and I have reached another milestone on the journey to publication: pre-orders. This book chronicling both Gallant Fox’s and Omaha’s careers is already available for you to order now for its release in Spring 2023.
Where to Pre-Order
As with all books released by the University Press of Kentucky, you can find the book available via the Press’s website as well as your favorite bookseller, including both Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
As we get closer to the book’s release, I will share upcoming appearances if you’d like to meet me, talk all things Belair, and pick up a copy of the book. I would love to meet you and sign your copy of Foxes of Belair and/or my first book, Sir Barton and the Making of the Triple Crown.
Speaking of Sir Barton
Speaking of Sir Barton, the book is currently available in hardcover, ebook, and audiobook formats, and, in Spring 2023, we will add a softcover version! You can also preorder this edition of Sir Barton now.
I will have copies of the softcover edition of Sir Barton along with Foxes of Belair when I do events in 2023. If you’d like to grab a signed copy of the hardcover edition of Sir Barton now, please visit The Snail on the Wall to order.
Getting Excited
Even better, I’ve seen the cover for Foxes of Belair! We are working on finalizing the design, but I hope to bring the world premiere of this important milestone soon. I can’t wait!
In January 2020, I started writing Foxes of Belair full time. Now, over two years later, I am counting down to the book’s publication in 2023, but, first, I thought I would share a bit about both the book and myself.
‘Tis that time of the year again: time to celebrate another year gone by, another moment to pause and give thanks and share some good food and good fun with those who mean the most to us. Also on the agenda? The proverbial exchange of gifts to celebrate the bonds we have with those loved ones. If you’re a horsey person like me, you often hear that you *might* be hard to shop for. This holiday gift extravaganza is here to answer that very question.
It’s that time of the year again, folks: time to think about holiday gifts. Whether you light a menorah, put out a nativity scene, or simply enjoy celebrating with family, these final weeks of 2021 give us a chance to talk about fun items for any horse racing fan.
This particular list of gifty items is one that is close to my heart: books! The sport is awash in great books on the personalities, both human and equine, that make up its history and the holidays are a fantastic time to share those stories that are new to bookstores this year.
In Greek mythology, Troilus is one of the five sons of Priam, King of Troy; according to prophecy, Troilus’ fate is linked to that of Troy. Mindful of that connection, Achilles ambushes and kills Troilus, another of the many battles that marked the story of the Trojan War. Centuries later, the story of Troilus would become intertwined with his lover Cressida in Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida, set against the background of the mythological war between the Trojans and the Greeks. Another Troilus, this time of the equine sort, joined the battle for roses in 1959, his journey chronicled by legendary photographer Jim Raftery.
Immense gratitude to Barbara Livingston, legendary photographer for the Daily Racing Form and lover of the history of this sport we love. It was a great privilege to explore the story of one horse and one moment in time, captured by the click of a shutter and now a part of our collective memory. Thank you, Barbara!
Now, on to the story of Troilus!
Humble Beginnings
Like his mythological namesake, the equine Troilus was sired by an equine Priam, Priam II to be precise. Raced primarily in France, Priam II won the Grand Criterium and more to earn two-year-old champion colt of 1943 and then was a stakes winner at age three, four, and five. In 1949, Edward Moore and Henry Knight purchased the stallion and brought him to the United States to stand at Knight’s Almahurst Farm, where both the great Exterminator and Greyhound, the 20th century’s greatest trotter, were foaled. There, in 1955, Priam II covered Drift Song, an unraced daughter of Heliopolis, owned by Mrs. Edward Moore. That same year, Mrs. Moore sold three of her mares, including Drift Song, to livestock dealer Herschel Weil, who was expanding into the horse business. On April 4, 1956, Drift Song foaled a plain bay colt, Troilus.
Weil sold Drift Song’s colt at a Garden State Park yearling sale in 1957, the gavel falling at $9,000 to Bayard Sharp. Sharp, an heir to the du Pont family fortune, had established his own farm near Middleton, Delaware, and had served as Delaware Park’s first director when the track opened in 1937. By 1957, Sharp owned his share of stakes winners, on both the flat and over jumps, many with horses he bred himself, but a win in a classic race like the Kentucky Derby still eluded the breeder-owner. He had tried the Derby once already, with Hannibal finishing eight in the 1952 edition. Still in pursuit of roses, Sharp saw potential in the son of Priam II.
Troilus started seven times at age two, breaking his maiden in a six-furlong sprint at Atlantic City Race Course in September 1958. He would win two more times that year, at seven furlongs and then a mile and a sixteenth stakes race at Laurel. In that stakes race, the Spalding Lowe Jenkins Purse, Troilus was on the lead entering the stretch, but seemed to hang, allowing two others to catch him. But the son of Priam II fought back and managed to get a nose in front at the wire. Already a winner at two turns, Troilus seemed a promising prospect for Sharp’s stable in 1959.
Glorious Victories
Charles Peoples, a former steeplechase rider turned trainer for Sharp, took his horses south for the winter, setting up shop at Hialeah for the winter’s racing. In early 1959, Troilus, now three years old, made his first start of the new year in late January, his six furlongs over the Hialeah oval a total dud. He followed up that dud with three straight victories, first at seven furlongs and then wowed everyone in the Citrus Purse. At a mile and a sixteenth, the Citrus Purse was a preview of the Flamingo Stakes, one of the early preps for the Kentucky Derby. Troilus jumped out to an early lead, repelling the challenges of Greentree Stable’s Eurasia and Harbor View Farm’s Quiz Star to win by four and a half lengths. Even better, Troilus won in track record time, lowering the old record set by Iron Liege by two-fifths of a second. Fresh off his victory on Troilus, jockey Chris Rogers declared, “[Early Derby favorite] First Landing better have his running shoes on Saturday. I hit him a few times but all I was doing was knocking the flies off him.”
Less than a week later, Troilus met First Landing in the nine-furlong Flamingo Stakes. Previously run as the Florida Derby, the Flamingo had become one of those vital stops on the path to Louisville, an early preview of what to expect from that year’s crop of three-year-olds. Bred by Christopher Chenery and owned by his Meadow Stable, First Landing had won ten of his eleven starts at age two, making him one of the horses to watch going into the 1959 Kentucky Derby. Coming into the Flamingo, he had finished second in his first start and then won his second.
Troilus in his stall, an image shared by the great Barbara Livingston
At the start, Eurasia sped to the lead as trainer Charles Peoples had predicted. Chris Rogers wrapped up on Troilus, settling him in behind the gray winging away on the lead. Eddie Arcaro was content to let First Landing run in third, waiting for both Troilus and Eurasia to burn themselves out. When Eurasia was finally spent, Troilus took up the lead, and, if Arcaro expected the son of Priam II to tire before the nine furlongs was done, he was dead wrong. Troilus won the Flamingo by four lengths, with Open View in second and First Landing, who never truly challenged, in third.
The coverage of Troilus’ victory in the Flamingo gave readers and racing fans more insight into the personality of this new king of the three-year-olds. Despite a clear lead in the stretch, jockey Chris Rogers had to stay on top of Troilus, tapping him with the whip to keep his mind on his task. Distractions like the photographers near the rail had caused Troilus to duck or shy in previous starts; even with blinkers, Rogers had to keep the colt’s mind busy so that distractions were minimal. In addition to this tendency to shy, Troilus was “a big lug” as Sharp called him, requiring fourteen quarts of oats rather than the typical serving of twelve. It was his size and his confirmation that had caught Peoples’ eye at that New Jersey yearling auction two years before. “He was a fine-looking horse and a great individualist,” Sharp remarked about his Kentucky Derby hopeful.
Troilus and Charlie Peoples, thanks to the great Barbara Livingston
With the Flamingo under his belt, the Fountain of Youth was next for Troilus, his last race before the Florida Derby. In the Fountain of Youth, Troilus took over the lead after the first quarter of a mile and held on to that lead until the stretch, when Easy Spur blew past him to win by eight lengths. In the three weeks between the Flamingo and the Fountain of Youth, Troilus had gained a hundred pounds and likely needed the race to round him into racing shape for the grueling races ahead. Then, in the Florida Derby just ten days later, the son of Priam II finished last, the lingering effects of a bruised foreleg keeping him from running his best race.
Despite the adversity of two defeats, Troilus joined First Landing, Sword Dancer, Tomy Lee, and others in Louisville for the Kentucky Derby. Peoples put him in the one-mile Derby Trial just three days before the Derby, a tune-up for the big test that first Saturday in May. Again, though, Troilus showed early speed, but faded in the stretch, another poor showing after his sensational performance in the Flamingo. Would the son of Priam II make it to the starting gate on Saturday? If he did, would Troilus be ready for a run at Derby glory?
The Last Act
The 1959 Kentucky Derby featured a field of seventeen, including the imported colt Tomy Lee, Brookmeade’s Sword Dancer, and First Landing of Meadow Stable. Breaking from post thirteen was Troilus, who avoided the inward swerve of Open View to sprint to the lead coming out of the gate at Churchill Downs. Jockey Chris Rogers held the son of Priam II to a short half-length lead over Tomy Lee and maintained that lead for the first half-mile. Six furlongs in, Tomy Lee inched to a short lead over Troilus, poking a head in front as they prepared to enter the turn. One mile in, after setting the pace for the Derby, Troilus was last, unable to maintain that pace past the first six furlongs of the race.
While Troilus was toiling at the back of the pack, Tomy Lee and Sword Dancer were battling on the front, the imported colt nosing out the Brookmeade hopeful at the wire. Rogers and Troilus were last under the wire, but, two days after the Derby, an explanation for the colt’s performance emerged: Troilus had suffered a deep cut on his right hind foot while running the ten furlongs. Peoples sent him back to Sharp’s farm in Delaware to recover. The Derby would be Troilus’ last race.
Back in Delaware, Troilus was turned out to recover from his tough campaign in early 1959. By early May, this son of Priam II had already started eight times, so a little time off surely would help him prepare for the great racing still to come. On May 18th, though, Bayard Sharp reported that Troilus had been treated for a twisted intestine, and, then despite showing improvement on Sunday, May 17th, he started showing signs of colic and then died that evening. He was “the best horse I ever had,” Sharp related about his lost son of Priam II.
In his short life, Troilus had amassed six wins, two seconds, and two third in fifteen starts, earning $133,381. Sharp and Peoples would go on to have other good stakes winners, including Mississippi Mud and Dixieland Band, but Troilus would be the last horse he would send to Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby.
Troilus’ competition in the 1959 Kentucky Derby would go on to have impact beyond that first Saturday in May. First Landing would sire Riva Ridge, the 1972 Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner; Riva would become the savior of Meadow Stable, though his Triple Crown winning stablemate Secretariat would overshadow him in 1972 and 1973. Sword Dancer would win both the Belmont and the Travers Stakes among his legion of stakes victories in 1959 and then would go on to sire the great Damascus.
For the tragic Troilus, the photographs of Jim Raftery captured a moment of whimsy, a horse with a hat looking over his trainer’s shoulder like he too was going to read the Form. That click of the shutter is just a second, a beat, the barest fraction of a life, but it makes the finite life of a horse infinite, allowing him to capture the hearts of those who smile at his ears poking through a hat. This humorous moment inspires us to seek out the story, a chance to celebrate one horse’s part in the history of our great sport while also lamenting the scant time he was a part of the story.
We all started on this journey with horse racing as fans. A particular face or race caught our eye, and, regardless of our age, we were smitten. Maybe it was a Marguerite Henry book; maybe it was a horse that your mom or dad was fond of. However old you might have been or where you were in your life, a blaze, a pair of ears, or even a flash before your eyes ignited your imagination. You keep the image of that horse close to you, sometimes in your heart, and, sometimes, you even get lucky enough to find a brilliant artist to capture them for you. That’s where our Maker Monday begins: with an artist who captures them for you. Meet Robert Clark, artist.
Artist’s Inspiration
Gun Runner
Starting young, Robert had his first one-man show at the young age of nineteen, always with a focus toward building on his natural talent with coursework and more. At the heart of his artwork has always been painting, using Arabians as his first equestrian studies and then transitioning into Thoroughbreds. He studied the greats of Thoroughbred artistry, Franklin Voss and Richard Stone Reeves, as he perfected his own skills capturing the great racehorses of our time. His work has been rewarded with chances to paint at the Eclipse Awards, the Breeder’s Cup, Keeneland, and more. Currently, Robert paints out of his gallery in Georgetown, Kentucky, with his eye always looking toward what’s next both as an artist and as a fan of horse racing.
Works of Greatness
Monomoy Girl
To look at Robert’s resume is to see that he has captured many of the great racehorses of our era, from American Pharoah to Authentic, Beholder to Zenyatta. Many of these are available as prints you can purchase for your home; he also has them collected into his book, A Brush with Greatness, that he co-wrote with famed historian Edward Bowen.
In addition to capturing champions, Bob also works on commissions, a chance for owners of any horse to preserve the memories of their beloved equine friends.
Lasting Memories
Street Sense
One of the joys of Robert’s work is the glorious color and emotion he paints into each one, a chance to relive these moments in perpetuity. I have been lucky to have calendars with his artwork on my office wall the last couple of years and I enjoy revealing a new face with each turn of the month. The realism is exquisite, each painting evoking that familiar rush of joy upon seeing their lovely faces. I look forward to hanging one of his prints in my office one day, just as soon as I can actually pick one!
So, on this Maker Monday, visit Robert Clark’s site, find a piece that you must have for your home, and bring home the magic of this artist. With work reminiscent of both Richard Stone Reeves and Franklin Voss, I guarantee that print will become a treasured part of your collection. Find Robert on Facebook and Twitter and at his online gallery.
One of my motivations behind #FanFriday is highlighting fans who also happen to work in the industry. Many who work in racing get their start in families already involved in the sport, but some begin their time in horse racing on the track apron, watching and wagering like the thousands of fans that attend the races from California to New York each year. That route into the sport brings with it valuable perspectives for the future of horse racing. For Fan Friday, I wanted to showcase one of those voices, Barry Spears.
Growing up in the Northeast, Barry’s grandparents exposed him to racing early, taking him to Aqueduct or Belmont each time he came to visit. Later, his family planned trips to Saratoga for big event weekends like the Travers Stakes. This early exposure to horse racing led Barry to go into handicapping, playing tournaments and writing about wagering and other racing-related topics. He regularly appears with Charles Simon on the Going in Circles podcast and had made appearances on TVG and other podcasts during his career.
In addition to being a fan and now a professional in the sport, Barry is also an advocate for expanding the sport’s reach into the diverse groups of fans seen at the racetrack, bringing more and more minority voices into the public sphere as broadcasters and handicappers, and into the next generation, regularly enjoying bringing his daughter with him to the racetrack.
On this Fan Friday, meet the Sniper, Barry Spears!
Name: Barry Spears
Role in racing: I’m The Sniper (Jack of All Trades which includes writing, handicapping, betting, handicapping tournaments, serial podcaster, breeding, historian, AND minorities in racing advocate).
Favorite memory at a racetrack: The 2009 Woodward at Saratoga. Probably the greatest race I have seen in person. Rachel Alexandra was unforgettable that day. It was also my last visit to Saratoga unfortunately.
Turf or dirt: Turf. Nothing like seeing a horse with a spectacular turn of foot on the lawn. Two of my all-time favorites were King Cugat and Megahertz
Favorite piece of racing memorabilia: My wide print picture of Bobby’s Kitten winning the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. One of my best betting days ever at the races. The race capped off an amazing pick 4 I had won in grand fashion.
Person you’d like to meet: Joel Rosario …. and it’s not even close.
Horse you’d like to meet: Heart to Heart. Just a magnificent animal.
Favorite race: 2014 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. The 2002 Test Stakes is a REALLY close second (You vs, Carson Hollow)
Finish this sentence: I wish I could ….. be a jockey. As a kid I would ride my parent’s couch arms and use a whip they bought me at Saratoga. Unfortunately, I grew to be a 6’4” basketball player so I never has a chance. I would definitely be a speed rider. I like to go fast!
How would you get new fans into racing? I would reach out to young, new, and untraditional demographics and get them to a racetrack for a day. People will have no choice to fall in love with the game like I did.
Thank you so much, Barry, for being a part of Fan Friday here on Foxes! You can follow Barry on Twitter (@UrbnHandicapper) and hear him weekly alongside Charles Simon on the Going in Circles podcast.
William Woodward was one of those breeder-owners of similar ilk to his peers, the Whitney family and Calumet Farm: they bred to race, relying on generation after generation of horses carefully selected by each to produce the next champion. Woodward started with a handful of mares sired by Ajax that he purcahsed from French breeder Edmond Blanc during World War I, and, from those five mares, he produced multiple champions, including the horse at the center of today’s Throwback Thursday post, Granville.
All Good Things Start Here
Granville with Jimmy Stout
One of those Ajax mares was Mousse des Bois, who was imported to the United States after World War I with her yearling colt, Sarmatian, in tow. Sarmatian did not race here, but became one of Belair’s earliest stallions, siring the filly Gravita. Gravita herself was not a winner on the racetrack, but, as a broodmare, Woodward paired her with his Triple Crown winner, Gallant Fox, and, in early 1933, Gravita foaled a bay colt with a thin white blaze. Woodward named him Granville.
When Granville was foaled, Gallant Fox’s first crop of foals were yearlings so standouts like Omaha had yet to hit the track. At two, though, Granville proved to be cut from the same cloth as his sire and Omaha even more so: it took Granville four tries to break his maiden in an allowance race at Aqueduct, his only victory of his two-year-old season. Like his sire and Omaha, Granville needed time to find his gear. As a three-year-old, this son of the Fox and Gravita truly would shine.
Belair Bruiser
Granville started his three-year-old season with a win in an allowance race, a tune-up for the Wood Memorial four days later. He lost the Wood by a nose to Teufel, owned by Wheatley Stable. Then, in the Kentucky Derby, a chain reaction of bumping sent Granville to his knees and knocked Bold Venture off stride. Bold Venture’s young rider Ira Hanford managed to stay in the saddle; Jimmy Stout could not keep his seat on Granville, tumbling to the track unhurt and watching his mount run the mile and a quarter without him.
In the Preakness, Granville managed to keep his feet and his rider throughout the race at Pimlico, challenging Bold Venture in a stretch run that had both horses battling head to head down the stretch. Bold Venture eked out the victory by a nose, becoming the fifth horse to win both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness. With only the Belmont Stakes to go, Bold Venture was on the precipice of becoming the fourth horse to win the Triple Crown and the third to do it that decade. Unfortunately, the dual classic winner bowed a tendon while preparing for the Belmont, knocking him out of the race. Granville wore down the front-running Mr. Bones to take the Belmont Stakes by a neck.
From there, this homebred won the Arlington Classic, the third Belair horse to win that race that decade, and then went to Saratoga for the rich stakes there. He then did what both Gallant Fox and Omaha had been unable to do and won the Travers Stakes, bringing home the first Man o’ War Cup, a replica of the trophy award to Man o’ War upon his victory in the match race against Sir Barton in 1920. Then, he won the mile-and-three-quarters Saratoga Cup by eight lengths over 1935’s Horse of the Year, Discovery, and the mile-and-five-eighths Lawrence Realization by two lengths. His remarkable run of six victories after losing close finishes in the Wood Memorial, the Preakness Stakes, and the Suburban Handicap earned him both Champion Three-Year-Old Colt and Horse of the Year honors at the end of 1936.
Not-So-Grand Finale
A minor leg injury after the Lawrence Realization forced Granville to miss the Jockey Club Gold Cup, ending his three-year-old season a bit prematurely. Woodward had intended to bring Granville back to race at four, but Virginia breeder Kenneth Gilpin convinced the master of Belair to retire the son of Gallant Fox. Gilpin had stood Teddy, Granville’s great-grandsire, at his Kentmere Farm, but Teddy’s death in 1936 left Gilpin without a stallion. The Virginia breeder leased Granville from Woodward for two years; after that, Granville stood in Knetucky at John Hay Whitney’s Mare’s Nest Stud before his 1943 sale to Dr. J.M. Winchester. He stood out on Winchester’s ranch in New Mexico for several years, eventually becoming a part of the United States Army’s Remount Service, much like Sir Barton had in the early 1930s. Granville died in 1951.
With Gallant Fox’s bad-luck turn in the 1930 Travers and then Omaha’s injury in the Arlington Classic in 1935, the Travers Stakes eluded William Woodward until Granville’s turn in 1936. Much like his sire, Granville was not a star at two, but, at three, he shined brighter than the rest, earning Horse of the Year honors after a string of victories in some of the country’s leading stakes races. He joined his sire and Omaha on that long list of other Belair champions of that era, part of the red dots’ dominance of racing in the 1930s. His induction into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1997 solidified his place as one of the great champions of American racing as the sport expanded from coast to coast during the Great Depression.
If you’re a New York Yankees fan, you can find just about anything with their iconic logo on it: shirts, shoes, bobbleheads, Christmas ornaments, facemasks, etc. Same with your favorite college or NFL team: gear for any fan, from babies to pets, is available to show off one’s affection for their team. For horse racing fans, access to such items has not always been consistent.
This Maker Monday, meet Amie Martinez, an artisan that was determined to change that.
Opportunity Knocks
As a lifelong horse racing fan, Amie noticed that she wasn’t able to find gear for her favorite horses as easily as others could buy a shirt for their favorite team. After watching Songbird’s stellar 2016 season, Amie wanted a Songbird ornament for her Christmas tree, but, when she couldn’t find one, she decided to make one herself. She shared her creation on Facebook and suddenly she had more than a hundred requests for ornaments! With that, Amie’s Horse Racing Gifts was born.
Customized Excellence
At the heart of Amie’s business is customization. That Songbird ornament was just the tip of the iceberg: in addition to that champion filly, she has made nearly twenty different ornaments for me and hundreds of others for her customers. And that’s just ONE of the items she’s offered.
If you watch America’s Day at the Races on Fox Sports, you’ve seen Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens broadcasting from his home, and, on the sofa next to him, you’ve seen some of Amie’s work: custom pillow cases. She’s made similar pieces for others in the sport and she can do the SAME thing for you.
Basically, if you can imagine it, she can make it. In addition to these two items, I’ve seen her customize coffee cups, water bottles, wine glasses, signs, door hangers, decals, shirts, face masks, and much, much more. Amie also sells monthly surprise treat boxes that often come with a variety of goodies.
On this #MakerMonday, I’m excited to share the goodness that Amie creates with you guys since both her love for the sport and her desire to share it with others has done so much for fans like me. I have a number of Amie’s items around my home and I’m glad to share her work with you guys. If you’re inspired, reach out to her and see what magic she can create for you. I can’t wait to see what she does next!
