Just about the only thing Curlin did not do in his fabulous career was end “The Curse of Apollo.” A horse who did not race at 2 had not won the Kentucky Derby since the aforementioned Apollo all the way back in 1882, and Curlin gave it the old college try to end the jinx that Triple Crown winner Justify eventually halted in 2018. Curlin made his debut on Feb. 3, 2003 and then ran third three months later in the Kentucky Derby.
Tag: Legends
Built to Last: Why Secretariat’s Legacy and Appeal Strengthen With Time
Last year marked 50 years since Secretariat powered through the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes, in performances reminiscent of another Big Red,
Meriwether Lewis Clark Jr.: Father of the Kentucky Derby
“Until you go to the Kentucky Derby with your own eyes, behold the Derby, you ain’t never been nowhere and you ain’t never seen nothing.”—Irving S. Cobb It was a Monday, the start of a new week, but this would go down as anything but a typical Monday. The day began with clear skies, the sun soon joining the multitudes flocking to Louisville’s newest racetrack, their journey presaging a day a century and a half hence. May 17, 1875, was something altogether bigger than a Monday: it was Derby day.
Hall of Fame Trainer Bill Mott: Eclipsing His Own Expectations
Even as a teenager, when some youngsters are inclined to think the world is theirs for the taking, Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott did not dream big. “I was 18 years old and hauling horses around in a two-horse trailer to the bush tracks,” recalled the native of Mobridge, S.D. “I never imagined training for anybody else other than myself.”
