Eight to be inducted into Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing will induct its 2013 Hall of Fame class Friday
at 10:30 a.m. (EDT) at the Fasig-Tipton sales pavilion in Saratoga Springs, New
York. This year's class is comprised of jockey Calvin Borel; Thoroughbreds
Housebuster, Invasor, Lure, McDynamo and Tuscalee; and the inaugural Pillars of
the Turf, August Belmont II and Paul Mellon. The ceremony is open to the public
and is free of charge. The New York Racing Association's Tom Durkin will serve
as the master of ceremonies. The inductions may also be viewed online at
Borel, 46, has won 5,031 races and has purse earnings of $122,002,938 in a
career that began in 1983. He is the only jockey to win the Kentucky Derby three
times in a four-year span, accomplishing the feat with Street Sense (2007), Mine
That Bird (2009), and Super Saver (2010). His three victories in the Run for the
Roses are surpassed only by Hall of Famers Eddie Arcaro and Bill Hartack with
five each, and Hall of Famer Bill Shoemaker with four.
One of only two riders with more than 1,000 wins at Churchill Downs (Hall of
Famer Pat Day is the other), Borel won the Preakness, Woodward, Haskell
Invitational, Mother Goose, and Kentucky Oaks with 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel
Alexandra. Among Borel's other major victories are the Travers, Alabama,
Breeders' Cup Juvenile, Sword Dancer, Florida Derby, and Stephen Foster. He also
won the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award in 2010. Borel has won riding titles
at Churchill Downs, Oaklawn Park, Ellis Park, Kentucky Downs, and Delta Downs,
among others.
Housebuster won 15 times in 22 career starts and earned $1,229,696, and was
voted an Eclipse Award as champion sprinter in 1990 and 1991. Bred in Kentucky
by Blanche P. Levy and owned by her son, Robert P. Levy, Housebuster won the
Jerome Handicap, King's Bishop, Spectacular Bid, Swale, Hutcheson, Withers,
Sheridan, Lafayette, and Derby Trial in 1990 at age three en route to an
9-for-11 campaign. A winner of eight consecutive races at one point in his
career, Housebuster won the Carter Handicap, Forego Handicap, and Vosburgh at
four in 1991. Eleven of his 15 wins were in graded stakes races. He was trained
by Hall of Famer Jimmy Croll.
Invasor was bred in Argentina and won 11 of 12 career starts with earnings of
$7,804,070. He was named Horse of the Year and champion older male in 2006 when
he won the Pimlico Special, Suburban Handicap, Whitney Handicap, and Breeders'
Cup Classic. At age five in 2007, Invasor won the Donn Handicap and Dubai World
Cup. He was trained at ages four and five by Kiaran P. McLaughlin. Prior to
that, Invasor won the Uruguayan Triple Crown in 2005 for trainer Anibal San
Martin. Following the Uruguayan Triple Crown victories, Invasor was purchased by
Sheik Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum to run for Shadwell Stable. Nine of his wins
were in Grade/Group 1 events.
Lure won 14 of 25 career starts with earnings of $2,515,289. Bred and owned
by Claiborne Farm, Lure won the Breeders' Cup Mile in 1992 and 1993. He won nine
graded stakes, including three Grade 1 events. Trained by Hall of Famer Shug
McGaughey, Lure set track records at five furlongs and one mile. He also won the
Gotham, Kelso Handicap, Early Times Turf Classic, Dixie Handicap, United Nations
Handicap, Elkhorn, Bernard Baruch Handicap, and Daryl's Joy.
McDynamo won 17 of 34 career starts and retired as the all-time leading
earner among steeplechase horses with earnings of $1,310,104. He was named
champion steeplechaser in 2003, 2005, and 2006. Owned by Michael J. Moran and
trained by Sanna Hendriks, McDynamo won five consecutive runnings of the
Breeders' Cup Grand National (2003-07), the final one at age 10, to become the
oldest horse to win the race. McDynamo set course records in each of his first
two Grand National victories. He also won the Colonial Cup three times,
including a record performance in 2003. McDynamo's victory in the 2006 Grand
National allowed him to surpass Hall of Fame member Lonesome Glory's career
record for steeplechase earnings.
Tuscalee won 39 of 89 career starts with career earnings of $130,917 while
racing from 1963 through 1972. He remains the all-time leader in steeplechase
victories with 37. Tuscalee also set the single-year record for steeplechase
wins with 10 in 1966. Tuscalee's 1966 campaign of 10-2-0 from 13 starts garnered
him recognition as champion steeplechaser in the Thoroughbred Racing Association
(TRA) poll. Bred and owned by Alfred H. Smith Sr., and trained by Joe Aitcheson
Sr., Tuscalee won four editions of the National Hunt Cup, including his final
career victory at age 12 in 1972. Tuscalee also won the Georgetown Steeplechase
Handicap and the Indian River Steeplechase twice each. Other notable victories
included the Midsummer Hurdle, Clark Cup, and Manly Steeplechase Handicap.
Belmont was born in 1853 and spent the first four years of his life at The
Hague, where his father was serving as U.S. Minister to the Netherlands. He
later graduated from Harvard and went into the family banking business before
having a profound influence on racing. Upon his father's death in 1890, Belmont
became heavily involved with racing and took over August Belmont & Co., a New
York City bank. He also served as chairman of the board of the Louisville and
Nashville Railroad and director of the National Park Bank.
Belmont bought seven of his father's mares at a dispersal auction and
continued his father's practice of raising horses at Nursery Stud in Kentucky.
Belmont II bred more than 100 stakes winners, including seven champions: Man o'
War, Beldame, Rock View, Friar Rock, Hourless, Mad Hatter, and Chance Play.
Belmont sold his entire 1917 yearling crop, including Man o' War, because of his
involvement in World War I. At the age of 65, Belmont served his country in
Spain with the Quartermaster Corps, procuring supplies for the American forces.
Before and after his military service, Belmont was deeply entwined in the
workings of American racing. He was associated with William Collins Whitney in
the revitalization of Saratoga in the early 1900s, and also served as chairman
of both The Jockey Club and the New York Racing Commission. Belmont was among
the founding members of The Jockey Club, in 1894, and served as chairman from
1895 until his death in 1924. He was also a founding member of the National
Steeplechase Association in 1895 and organized the Westchester Racing
Association that same year.
In 1905, Belmont opened Belmont Park on Long Island, New York. That year, the
Belmont Stakes, inaugurated in 1867, and named in his father's honor, was
transferred from Morris Park to Belmont Park. Belmont won the prestigious race
in 1902 with Masterman, and in 1916 and 1917 with Friar Rock and Hourless,
respectively.
After his death in 1924, fellow members of The Jockey Club expressed their
admiration for Belmont II: "He loved the horse as an animal and saw in racing an
opportunity for raising the standard and improving the qualities of the
Thoroughbred, thus adding to the prosperity of the breeder and furnishing
broader avenues for clean and honest sport."
Mellon was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1907. After graduating from
Yale in 1929, he went to work for Mellon Bank, which was founded by his
grandfather, Thomas, and later passed to his father, Andrew, who served more
than a decade as the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. Mellon later joined the
U.S. Army, serving in the Office of Strategic Services in Europe, where he
earned four Bronze Stars.
Mellon began racing under the banner of Rokeby Stables in 1948. His horses
won more than 1,000 races and had total earnings in excess of $30 million.
Mellon won the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder in 1971 and 1986. Among his
many exceptional runners, Mellon campaigned Hall of Fame members Arts and
Letters and Fort Marcy. Other standouts included Kentucky Derby and Travers
winner Sea Hero, Belmont winner Quadrangle, and champions Key to the Mint and
Run the Gantlet.
Along with his success in America, Mellon had a prominent European division
of horses, including champions Mill Reef, Glint of Gold, and Gold and Ivory.
Virginia-bred Mill Reef won the Epsom Derby and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, among
other Group 1 events. Mellon is the only individual to win the Kentucky Derby,
Epsom Derby, and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
Mellon was a trustee of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame and
one of only six individuals to be named an Exemplar of Racing by the Museum. He
was inducted into the English Jockey Club Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Virginia
Sports Hall of Fame in 1999. Mellon also served as vice chairman of The Jockey
Club, director of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, and maintained
key leadership and support roles with the National Museum of Racing and Hall of
Fame and the National Steeplechase Association.
A noted philanthropist, Mellon donated many priceless works of his art
collection to various museums, one of which, the Yale Center for Sporting Art,
he also paid to have built. He donated and bequeathed millions of dollars to
support equine research and Thoroughbred aftercare programs. He also received
the Eclipse Award of Merit. Mellon died in 1999 at the age of 91.
Bet Horseracing Free Online at TwinSpires.com
Authors
Categories
FEATURED PRODUCTS
Daily Selections
Full racecard analysis/expert picks for major tracks from America's top handicappers.
Buy Nowe-ponies Picks
E-Ponies computer-based figures have been around since 1997. Using an algorithm written by the business owner and handicapper, Liam Durbin, and powered by BRIS data files, E-Ponies offers a unique, fact-based, dispassionate analysis of every horse in every race, assigning scores for speed, class, form, connections, and more. Forget which jockey owes you money! What does the data say!
Buy NowBruno With the Works
Bruno De Julio & team bring 30+ yrs experience observing racehorses to Brisnet with valuable insight into their morning routines & chances for success in the afternoons.
Buy NowValue Plays AI by Predicteform
Full race card program with easy-to-use win chances and contender classifications for every runner plus analysis of the Best Bet, Live Longshot, and Wagering Suggestions for every race.
Buy NowADVERTISEMENT




