A Most Memorable Experience: the 2012 Hall of Fame Inductions
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I sat in the press box
trying to decide if I should attend the National
NYRA track announcer, Tom
Durkin, was the master of ceremonies and he began by explaining the
requirements for induction into the Hall of Fame. Durkin said, “That induction
is not based on a singular feat or for any great year…it is a paradigm of
excellence.” The National Racing
Museum states on their website that, “The mission of the Official National Thoroughbred
Racing Hall of Fame is to honor the achievements of those horses, jockeys, and
trainers whose records and reputations have withstood the difficult test of
time.”
The ceremony was a thrill
for a racing fan like me. I lost count of the number of times that I
was choked up during the speeches and introductions. At least nobody was looking at me as I got emotional, which
certainly wasn’t the case for the inductees who stood on the stage in front of
the standing room only crowd at the Fasig-Tipton sales pavilion.
Here is a list of the past
Hall of Fame members that attended the 2012 inductions, along with a brief fact or
my reaction after they were introduced. For more detailed information about any of the HOF’ers, click
on the Horse Racing Nation links or go to the Racing Museum website.
Jerry Bailey – The best jockey that I have seen ride.
Carl Nafzger – The great scene when Nafzger described to 92 year-old owner, Mrs.
Frances A. Genter, that Unbridled was about to win the Derby.
Kent Desormeaux – I hope he can overcome his current problems and get back to great
riding.
Randy Romero – Rode two of the greatest fillies in Go For Wand and Personal Ensign.
Shug McGaughey – Is there a better job than training for the Phipps Stable?
Nick Zito –
Big favorite in New York.
Eddie Maple – The great Woody Stephen’s regular rider and he rode Secretariat in
his last race.
Janet Elliot – The best female steeplechase trainer and she made us stop betting
on only Jonathan Sheppard.
Angel Cordero – “The King of Saratoga” won 11 Spa titles in a
row.
Edgar Prado – He was such a hero at the end of Barbaro’s career.
Bill Mott –
He turned Cigar into one of the greats.
Chris McCarron – He won five Breeders’ Cup Classics.
D. Wayne Lukas – He has trained an amazing 24 champions!
Ron Turcotte – A tireless ambassador for racing, more about him at the end of this
piece.
Allen Jerkens – 83 years-old and he is still winning grade one stakes in 2012.
Jose Santos – He is forever linked with Funny Cide.
The new Hall of Fame
members include two Historic Inductees. Planet was known as The Great Red Fox. He ran 31 times during the 1850’s winning
27 of them. Anthony Hamilton was one
of the greatest African-American jockeys. He raced in the 1890’s and won at a
34% clip on the New York circuit.
The four Contemporary
Inductees in 2012 are: Robert Wheeler, Ghostzapper, Roger Attfield, and John
Velazquez. Robert Wheeler, who died in 1992, was based in California, where he
won 1336 races. The former cowboy and ex-rodeo rider came to prominence after
being selected to be the trainer for CV Whitney. Silver Spoon and Track Robbery
were his most famous horses.
Ghostzapper is a home-bred of the Stronach family. Ghostzapper received a BSF of
128 in the Iselin Handicap at Monmouth Park, which is the highest non-sprint
speed figure ever recorded. Mrs. Stronach represented the family at the
ceremony and she spoke very emotionally about how much they miss trainer Bobby
Frankel.
Roger Attfield is by far the greatest trainer in Canada. The former steeplechase
rider in England has won 1,731 races. He took time at the beginning of his
speech to talk rather frankly about some of the issues in racing today. “I am kind of sad
about what is going in racing with all of the recent bad publicity. We need to
clean things up and get ride of the rubbish.”
When Velazquez first came
to the US he spoke almost no English and he lived with Angel Cordero’s family. Johnny
V. explained how he first learned to speak some English, “by watching the movie
The Little Mermaid over and over
again with Cordero’s two year-old daughter.”
The entire ceremony was
such a great reminder of why we all love
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