2007 Horse Racing Hall of Fame Inductees

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Sun, 06/03/2007 - 01:54

The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame have elected a class of eight horses, jockeys, and trainers for 2007, making this class the largest since 1978. More than 100 candidates were considered by the 16 members that make up the Hall of Fame Nominating Committee and the 12 member Historic Review Committee.

The Hall of Famers include:

Horses
Silver Charm: Silver Charm is the Florida-bred son of Silver Buck and the mare Bonnie’s Poker. He was raced by Robert and Beverly Lewis, and is their second horse to be elected to the Hall of Fame—Serena’s Song was inducted in 2002. From 1996 through 1999, Silver Charm ran for trainer Bob Baffert, winning 12 of 24 starts and earning $6,944,369 in purse money. Eight years after his final race, he still ranks seventh on the career earnings list. In 1997, Silver Charm edged won the Kentucky Derby by a head and then prevailed again by a head in the Preakness that year. He had the lead in the stretch of the Belmont Stakes and seemed about to complete the sweep of the Triple Crown, but was passed in the final stretch and ended up finishing second by three-quarters of a length. At age four, Silver Charm won the Dubai World Cup by a nose, and also won the San Fernando, the Charles H. Strub, the Goodwood, the Clark and dead-heated for first with Wild Rush in the Kentucky Cup Classic. Silver Charm retired at 5 years old and now stands at stud in Japan. Upon hearing of the Hall of Fame election, Beverly Lewis said, “He’s the horse that people just love. I’m just so happy that he’s there where he belongs.”

Mom’s Command: The champion 3-year-old filly of 1985, Mom’s Command was bred and owned by Peter Fuller and primarily ridden by his daughter, Abby. Mom’s Command won seven of nine starts in 1985, including the New York filly Triple Crown of the one-mile Acorn, the 1 1/8-miles Mother Goose and the 1 1/2-miles Coaching Club American Oaks. After finishing second to Hall of Famer Lady’s Secret in the Test, she defeated Fran’s Valentine in the historic Alabama in what turned out to be her final start. Mom’s Command compiled a record of 11-2-1 in 16 starts, all in stakes, and earned $902,972. She was euthanized on Feb. 3 at the age of 25 at Fuller’s farm in New Hampshire. “Of course, I’m thrilled to have her elected to the Hall of Fame,” Peter Fuller said. “I think she does deserve it and I think the fact that my daughter rode her is one of those things that is just marvelous. It’s very helpful to racing, in particular.”

Swoon’s Son: In the 1950s, Swoon’s Son had a 4 season career. He was bred and owned by E. Gay Drake, a charter member of the Thoroughbred Club of America. Swoon’s Son won 30 of 51 starts. For most of his career, Swoon’s Son raced in the Midwest, primarily at tracks in Chicago and Kentucky. He was trained by Lex Wilson and ridden in all but one race by Dave Erb. Swoon’s Son won 22 stakes, including the Arlington Futurity and Bashford Manor at two; the American Derby, Arlington Classic and Clark Handicap at age three, and the Equipoise Mile Handicap at ages four and five. When he was retired to stud in 1958, he was the fourth-leading money-winner in the world. Drake’s grandson Jack Jones was a witness to Swoon’s Son’s success. “I was eight, nine, 10 years old at the time, but I’ve got fond memories of his racing career, as well as having been with Lex Wilson and Dave Erb,” Jones said. “I’m just overjoyed with his election. I’m just sorry that my grandfather wasn’t alive to see this happen [Drake died in 1974]. I know it was his pride and joy and crowning achievement in all the years that he bred and raced horses along with his full brother Dogoon. They were running simultaneously during that period.”

Jockeys
Jose Santos: Santos was born in Chile and arrived in the United States on January 3, 1984. He quickly established himself as a prominent rider of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Jockey Club Gold Cup winner Funny Cide. Now 46 years old, he was the nation’s leading rider in earnings from 1986 to 1989, and set a record for purse earnings of $14,856,214 in 1988. In addition to Funny Cide, he has ridden champions Manila, Meadow Star, Criminal Type, Chief Bearhart, Fleet Indian, Fly So Free, and Rubiano. Santos is recovering from injuries he sustained in a spill at Aqueduct in February and is considering a return to riding. Santos has won the Jockey Club Gold Cup three times, the United Nations Handicap four times; he has three wins in the Personal Ensign, the Spinaway, the Pegasus, the Carter Handicap and the Withers, and two wins in the Breeders’ Cup Turf, the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, the Arlington Million, Coaching Club American Oaks, Cigar Mile, Caesar’s International, Florida Derby, Flower Bowl, Futurity, Hawthorne Gold Cup, Haskell, Jerome, Man o’ War, Matron, Metropolitan, Turf Classic and Whitney. Santos has won a total of seven Breeders’ Cup races. In 2006, he won six stakes with Fleet Indian. Through December 31, 2006, Equibase statistics show Santos had 4,076 victories in North America with purse earnings of $186,936,820. “It’s a great honor just to be nominated and to be elected to the Hall of Fame is even bigger,” Santos said. “I know the history of the Hall of Fame in the United States, that it is all of the best. To be joining them, I don’t have words to express myself.”

John Sellers: Sellers was born in Los Angeles in 1938 and was raised in Oklahoma. He rode from 1955 through 1977. In the 1960s, Sellers finished in the top ten of money-earners five times in a span of six years. He won many of the major US stakes races, including the Belmont, Alabama, Travers, Blue Grass, Kentucky Oaks, Florida Derby, Garden State, United Nations Handicap, San Juan Capistrano, San Luis Obispo, San Felipe, Sunset, Hollywood Derby, Carter, Del Mar Invitational, and the Whitney. When he heard about his election to the Hall of Fame, he said, “I have tears in my eyes right now.” Sellers is a bloodstock agent and lives in Hallandale, Fla.

Trainers
John Veitch: During his career, Veitch trained four champions. His best-known horse is Hall of Fame member Alydar, who was part of the great rivalry with Affirmed in 1977 and 1978. John Veitch’s champions were Davona Dale, Our Mims, Before Dawn and Sunshine Forever. Davona Dale and Alydar are members of the Hall of Fame. After serving as an assistant for his father and Elliott Burch, Veitch opened a small public stable in 1974. He subsequently was offered the position as private trainer for Calumet Farm and guided that historic stable back to prominence. He moved on to become the private trainer for the Galbreath family’s Darby Dan Farm and enjoyed a long run of success. He joins his father Sylvester Veitch in the Hall of Fame, making the Veitches the eighth family with multiple members in the Hall of Fame. Sylvester Veitch trained from 1946 until 1984, and was inducted in 1977. “When my father was inducted and I saw how important it was to him, it made me realize what an achievement it was. My father said that the day they inducted him was the greatest day in his life. That certainly was the greatest day in my life, also, but the day I get inducted will be the second and I will remember it forever,” said John Veitch. “It’s the culmination of all the great horses that I’ve had the privilege to train and the great owners that I represented. It’s a great thing.” In North America from 1974 through his retirement, Veitch recorded 410 victories from 2,340 starters with purse earnings of $20,097,920. He won 76 graded stakes from 401 starts, 19 percent, and a total of 93 stakes from 500 starts. Veitch retired from training in 2003 and is now the Chief State Steward in Kentucky.

Henry Forrest: Forrest was born in Covington, Kentucky and saw every Kentucky Derby from 1921 until his death in 1975. He trained Derby and Preakness winners Kauai King in 1966 and Forward Pass in 1968. At the time of his death, he held the career record for victories at Keeneland (153) and Churchill Downs (271). His colt, Forward Pass, won the Derby by default when the frontrunner was disqualified for testing positive for a banned substance. Forward Pass won the Preakness by six lengths and was second in the Belmont and the Travers. It also won the Florida Derby, the American Derby, the Hibiscus, the Everglades and the Blue Grass. Forrest’s daughter, Jennie Watkins, said, “His life was dedicated to racing. He was in the horse business his entire career and achieved what is the ultimate goal: to train a Kentucky Derby winner, and not one but two. It was his life. I think this is such a tribute to him and his memory this many years later to have such a wonderful thing happen.”

Frank McCabe: Born in Patterson, N.J. in 1859, Frank McCabe was an assistant to trainer James Rowe before becoming a distinguished trainer in the latter part of the 19th century and early 20th century. He trained Hall of Famer Hanover, as well as three consecutive Belmont winners: Inspector B. 1886; Hanover, 1887; Sir Dixon, 1888. During that same period, McCabe trained Tremont, who was unbeaten in 13 starts as a 2-year-old in 1886. McCabe’s other Hall of Fame horses were Kingston, a 1955 inductee, who won 89 of 138 starts, including 30 stakes and retired as America’s leading money winner at $140,195; and Miss Woodford, elected to the Hall of Fame in 1967, who won the Ladies Stakes, Alabama, Monmouth Oaks and Pimlico Stakes. She was the first horse bred and raced in America to earn more than $100,000. McCabe died in 1924.

The Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held at 10:30am on Monday, August 6th at the Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavilion and is open to the public, free of charge.