LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Named for an accounting device that allows a taxpayer to carry back earnings against losses sustained in previous years, the plain brown colt was a dime store horse in the hands of the quintessential mom and pop operation. In the history of the Kentucky Derby, never has there been quite as dramatic a rags to riches story as that of Carry Back.
In an era in which the big stables, owned by society's upper crust, dominated racing, it was rare for an outfit from the other side of the tracks to have much of an impact on racing's most significant events. The retired manager of a Cleveland company that manufactured parts for aircraft and cars, Price could never be confused with a blueblood from the blue grass.
Carry Back did not fit the genetic pattern of a Derby winner, which has been traditionally expressed as, "Breed the best to the best and hope for the best." With tongue in cheek, the late Jim Bolus noted that Jack Price followed this guideline to a degree by "breeding the best he had to the best he could afford."
The best he had, on paper, was not very good. Among Price's broodmare band of three was the unfashionably bred and unattractively named Joppy, acquired for $150 in cash and the cancellation of a $115 board bill. A non-winner on the track, Joppy's career earnings totaled $325. Shopping for what he could afford, Price found the stallion Saggy, standing at the Pons family's Country Life Farm in Bel Air, Md., and a deal was cut. Country Life offered a discount of Saggy's $750 fee and Price bred all three mares to its stallion for a total of $1,200.
Saggy had not been that bad a racehorse, his main claim to fame coming in the Chesapeake Trial Stakes in which he defeated the mighty Citation, handing him his only loss in 20 starts as a three-year-old.
Proving his worth
Carry Back gave no indication of quality when he finished 10th in his debut at Hialeah Park. But he won his next race and, two starts later, placed in the Florida Breeders' Stakes.
Shipped up the eastern seaboard, Carry Back was thrown in with the best of the early bloomers of his generation and acquitted himself surprisingly well, placing in five consecutive stakes.
As the distances of his races increased, Carry Back continued to improve, becoming a stakes winner in New York's Cowdin Stakes. He then boosted his owners' bankroll considerably by closing from way back to win a sloppy edition of the Garden State Stakes at a mile and a sixteenth.
The Garden State was the world's richest race at the time, paying the princely sum of $172,782 to the winner. Price confected one more big payday as Carry Back was up in time to win the Remsen Stakes before giving his colt a rest until the opening of the winter season in Florida. Carry Back finished the season with total earnings of $286,299 and being elected two-year-old champion.
Considerable doubt was raised concerning Carry Back's chances in the classics as his sophomore season began. The cry of the critics reached a crescendo when the colt finished fourth in the seven furlong Bahamas Stakes in his seasonal debut.
However, Carry Back won three in a row including the Everglades and Flamingo Stakes. In the latter event, he edged Crozier by a head after a bitter stretch duel. After a third-place finish in the Fountain of Youth, the colt again beat Crozier by a head in the Florida Derby.
Shipped to New York for his final Kentucky Derby prep, Carry Back ran into a speed merchant named Globemaster and was unable to overtake him, finishing second.
Dynamic Duo
The gracious Katherine and the brash Jack made quite a team, the lady being concerned about the feelings of the connections of those being whipped by Carry Back while the husband bombarded anyone who would listen with outrageous commentary. Without question, Jack Price arrived in Kentucky with a chip on his shoulder.
Asked how it felt to have the favorite in North America's greatest horse race, Price infuriated the Kentucky aristocracy with his response, "To me, it's nothing more than the seventh race on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs."
In the Run for the Roses, Carry Back lagged far behind and, as Crozier took the lead just inside the quarter pole, the colt still had a dozen lengths to make up. But make them up he did, overhauling Crozier and reaching the wire three-quarters of a length in front. Carry Back went on to win the Preakness, running down Globemaster in the stretch, but was seventh in the Belmont as he went for a Triple Crown.
Leaving a legacy
The remainder of Carry Back's career included victories in the Metropolitan Mile, the Whitney Stakes, the Monmouth Handicap and two editions of the Trenton Handicap. In addition to Crozier, he beat the best of several generations, including Kelso, Beau Purple and Mongo.
Hall of Famer John L. Rotz, who rode Carry Back 12 times in the latter part of his career, remembers him as a very versatile horse.
"He could run short or long, on dirt or grass, and could contest the pace or come from far out of it," Rotz recalled. "He was fun to ride, especially in a race in which there was a fast pace, when his closing kick was most effective."
Carry Back earned $1,241,165 on the track and lived to 25 under the continuing care of the Prices. With limited opportunity at stud, he sired a few good horses, but none of his quality. He was elected to racing's Hall of Fame in 1975.
In the aftermath of Carry Back's career, a strange thing happened. As Jack Price aged, he also mellowed and a great transformation took place regarding his feelings about the Kentucky Derby. The Derby became an annual event for the Prices.
Other participants embraced them, savoring the apparent fact that the Derby had worked its magic.
And, in his own way, Jack Price gave back to the Kentucky Derby more than he took from it. For he provided the legend of the people's choice, a red-blooded iron horse named Carry Back.
No comments:
Post a Comment