This morning the Saratoga 150 celebration, in honor of the 150th anniversary of the Saratoga Race Course, officially began, and Saratoga.com was lucky enough to be there.
Saratoga 150 Committee Honorary Chairs, Marylou Whitney and John Hendrickson, were joined by Committee Chairman Charles Wait and several NYRA executives at a press release to announce the first 30 inductees for the brand new “Hoofprints Walk of Fame,” which will be featured outside the clubhouse entrance at the Saratoga Race Course.
The new walk of fame will honor the most prolific and notable horses to have raced at one of the nation’s most historic tracks, modeled after the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The horses were selected by the Saratoga 150 committee; it was a painstaking process to choose the first 30 race horses for this great honor, but the biggest factor of the selection process was the horse’s specific success at the Saratoga Race Course.
Each thoroughbred will be honored on a granite plaque alongside the names of its sire, dam, owner, trainer, and jockey. The plaques will also feature the horse’s year of birth and signature wins at Saratoga Race Course.
Class of 2013 Race Horses into the Hoofprints Walk of Fame:
1. Top Flight
2. Kentucky
3. Heavenly Prize
4. Chief’s Crown
5. Secretariat
6. Regret
7. Exterminator
8. Sky Beauty
9. Discovery
10. War Admiral
11. Affirmed
12. Kelso
13. Tom Fool
14. Ruthless
15. Native Dancer
16. Emperor of Norfolk
17. Alydar
18. Lady’s Secret
19. Duke of Magenta
20. Eight Thirty
21. Whirlaway
22. Easy Goer
23. Equipoise
24. Go For Wand
25. Roamer
26. Beldame
27. Granville
28. Man O’ War
29. Henry of Navarre
30. Harry Bassett
A number one could simply not be named! The rank of the race horses inducted was chosen at random during the press conference.
The Saratoga 150 celebration is off to a strong start, but with more than 180 events on the calendar over the next 5 months the best is yet to come.
No Rachel Alexandra? And talking about specific success at Saratoga–Four Star Dave. There are others I could mention, too, that may not have won regularly, but certainly did when they came to Saratoga!
HOOFPRINTS WALK OF FAME…just another great reason to LOVE Saratoga.
I can’t believe they snubbed The SULTAN of SARATOGA – Four Star Dave.