A Rival: Whichone

Published on by Jennifer Kelly

So often in horse racing, as in human sports, we try to find rivals, two personalities who dominate on their own, but together create something magical. That thrill of confrontation between two athletes replete with talent and heart intrigues us and leaves us always clamoring for more. For Gallant Fox, that horse was Whichone, a Harry Payne Whitney home-bred who boasted an Epsom Derby and Lawrence Realization winner in his pedigree.

Whichone. (Keeneland Library Sutcliffe Collection)
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Whichone’s pedigree was deep in distance runners, with Spearmint, 1906 Epsom Derby winner, and Hamburg, 1898 Lawrence Realization champion, among his progenitors. Like his sire Chicle, Whichone won the Champagne Stakes in 1929, his third stakes victory. This was enough to win him the two-year-old championship for that year, making Whichone an early favorite for the 1930 Kentucky Derby. However, the colt was as injury-prone as his sire: he came out of the Champagne with an issue that kept him out of training until late May. Whichone would not challenge Gallant Fox, who dominated the Preakness Stakes and the Kentucky Derby, but instead would meet his rival in the Belmont Stakes.

In the run-up to their Belmont meeting, Whichone squeaked out a victory in the Withers Stakes, where jockey Sonny Workman had to work hard to get the colt out of traffic to find a clear path to victory. Even though he won by four lengths, skepticism in the colt’s preparedness followed him into the Belmont Stakes. Gallant Fox came in fresh off the three-week break after his victory in the Derby, ready to meet all challengers. Despite the Fox’s recent run of greatness, Whichone met him at the Belmont barrier as the favorite over the Belair colt.

With the benefit of hindsight, we know how the confrontation turned out: Gallant Fox triumphed over his Whitney challenger, beating him by four lengths. Gallant Fox was so eager to run that rainy day at Belmont that he bolted from the barrier and ran nearly a furlong before Sande was able to pull him up and get him back in line. The anticipated battle between the two looked like it might emerge at the top of the stretch, but Sande was handy with the bottomless Gallant Fox that day. The Fox rebuffed Whichone’s efforts, denying fans the duel they were hoping for and pulling away with ease.

Gallant Fox had not simply beaten Whichone. No, he had dominated him, the twelve furlongs of the Belmont Stakes more of a show than a test. Nevertheless, determined to try again, Whichone joined Gallant Fox at Saratoga for the Travers Stakes. The two would hook up early in the race, running toward the middle of a muddy track, avoiding the slushy inside at the rail. Dueling on the front, Sonny Workman and Earl Sande locked into the battle that fans had clamored for, Gallant Fox and Whichone fought each other for the front — and lost. Running to their inside, relishing the slush, Jim Dandy snuck through on the rail and passed the two champions. Whichone had already beaten Gallant Fox once in the 1929 Futurity; Gallant Fox had beaten the Whitney colt at Belmont. In the end, Whichone limped home, the speed duel forgotten, his racing career over. Sure, Gallant Fox might have beaten Whichone home that day, technically scoring his second victory over his supposed rival, but now that rivalry was over. Whichone was retired to stud at Whitney’s stud farm in Kentucky.

Did you enjoy this glimpse at one of the featured names from Foxes of Belair? I can’t wait to share more of the details of this rivalry and explore just how Gallant Fox gained his immortal fame in my upcoming book on the Belair Triple Crown winners.

A History of Belair: Selima

Published on by Jennifer Kelly4 Comments

When we think of breeding great thoroughbreds, often sires will come to mind. What stallion gave us this particular horse? History’s greatest horses give us a litany of names that we cite to this day, names like Eclipse and Lexington, Northern Dancer and Galileo. Those names are only half of the equation: one cannot have a foal without a sire and a dam, two halves brought together to make a whole. When you look at your favorite horse’s pedigree, you need to look at that bottom half too.

Continue reading “A History of Belair: Selima” →

Welcome to the Foxes of Belair!

Published on by Jennifer Kelly2 Comments

In 1930, Gallant Fox duplicated Sir Barton’s 1919 victories in the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes. In doing so, he became America’s second Triple Crown winner. In 1935, his son Omaha followed in his hoofprints, becoming our third Triple Crown winner and the only father-son duo to win one of American horse racing’s most treasured prizes. Behind them were the team of breeder/owner William Woodward and James “Sunny Jim” Fitzsimmons.

No one book has ever told the story of Gallant Fox and Omaha. No one book has ever discussed the influence of William Woodward on the sport of horse racing in America. Sure, you can read a number of books on the Triple Crown and each will have a chapter devoted to the Fox and to his best son, but they only give you a sliver of the story. That is about to change.

To follow up my first book, Sir Barton and the Making of the Triple Crown, I will be bringing you the full story of how William Woodward helped to change the landscape of American racing. The 1930s were a time of great change in America; the Great Depression spurred the expansion of horse racing across the country as governments sought outlets to generate money. In addition, technologies like radio and later television, the starting gate, and more mark this era as the beginning of modern horse racing as we know it. The goal of Foxes of Belair: Gallant Fox, Omaha, and the Quest for the Triple Crown is to capture the exploits of these two Hall of Fame horses, their breeder/owner, and the forces that brought the Triple Crown to the forefront of American horse racing.

This blog will accompany the research and writing of this amazing story. I hope you will join me on this journey into the 1930s, a fascinating time for the sport of kings.