His whole life is spectacular. He was the best trotter in his generation, even though his trainer was skeptical and at 2 felt the horse should be gelded and turned out. His stallion performance was equally fantastic and the events surrounding his death has become the stuff of legends.
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Known as the “The Queen of the Turf”, she was the first to break the magic 2:30 barrier. A victim of bad and harsh treatment on many occasions, Lady Suffolk never sulked or quit.
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An exceptional racehorse at 2, BF Coaltown was then set back by virus infection a month ahead of hte Hambletonian which he seemingly never really recovered from. The Ohio-born stallion went on to exceed all expectations at stud when he became one of the best stallions ever seen in his home state.
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Widely expected to be one of the first 2:00 trotters, Axworthy’s most spectacular daughter was nearly invincible at her best. The fastest mare in history at that point, she passed early and has largely slipped into oblivion. Hamburg Belle’s legacy deserves much better, however.
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By many considered to be the best trotter in history, he was so popular that his name was even put forward as Foreign Minister of Italy at some point. Though he may have been the greatest trotter of all time, even after his career had started several people doubted that Varenne would amount to much on the track. He would prove them woefully wrong, however, and took both his young Finnish trainer and young Italian driver on a spectacular journey.
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He had been a really good trotter in Europe and moved with his trainer to the US. At first some questioned if an 8-year-old European trotter they barely had heard of could compete with the best North Americans. But, as the trotting world quickly realized, the question was rather how the best North Americans could compete with the European speed demon. As it turned out, when Sebastian K was at his best, they simply didn’t stand a chance.
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She was voted the “Greatest of All Time” in an online poll in 2020, and for good reason: Moni Maker put in numerous memorable performances on two continents to forever cement her place as one of the best in trotting history. Her regular driver Wally Hennessy is certain: “She is the greatest trotter who ever lived.”
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Notoriously lame and struggling with unsoundness in his two seasons on the track, San Francisco was a tremendously talented trotter whose bravery and willingness to run through pain and lameness left a huge impression. In his debut, blood was dripping from his hooves with every step yet the Californian trotter finished faster than anybody else.
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Throughout history, several early favorites have missed out on the Hambletonian. In virtually all cases, though, it’s been a matter of illness or accident. That was not, however, the case with the super-talented Fireglow. Close to 100 years later the circumstances of his death are still shrouded in mystery. The question is, did somebody kill the “the greatest talent ever” just a few weeks prior to the Hambletonian?
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He is often thought of as a backwater stallion who fluked one great son despite being a lame horse not good enough to race. However, nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to Pilot Medium, who was one of the best American sires toward the end of the 19th century.
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