Yesterday's Heroes

The Tetrarch (1911-1935), also known as the "Spotted Wonder" because of the unusual white blotches on his dapple grey coat, is one of my absolute favorite horses. He was brilliant, he was unique, and he was very influential. The Tetrarch only raced at two, winning all seven of his starts in blazingly fast time. At the time, he was considered to be the fastest horse ever in Britain. He was never tested beyond six furlongs due to a career ending injury. At stud, he was very successful despite limited fertility, producing such great horses as Mumtaz Mahal, Stefan the Great, and Tetretema. Today, the Tetrarch's blood is prolific and can be found in the pedigree of many great horses, especially the grey ones. Without him, there would no Count Fleet, Secretariat, Spectacular Bid, Seattle Slew, Affirmed, Alydar, Kelso, Northern Dancer, Northern Dancer, and so on.

 

Mumtaz Mahal (1921-1944), like her sire The Tetrarch, was an incredibly fast horse, so fast indeed, that the racing public dubbed her "The Flying Filly." At sprinting distances, no horses could best her, even though she gave considerable weight away. She was undefeated in all her starts at two except for the last one which proved to be too far for her to carry her speed. At three, she performed much the same---no horse could beat her in a sprint. As a broodmare, Mumtaz left a lasting impression on the breed, particularly in America. As mentioned above in The Tetrarch's bio, her blood is everywhere, and without her, American racing history would be much different.

 

Nijinsky (1967-1992) was probably the best of the many good sons of Northern Dancer. He won 11 of 13 starts, finishing secind in the other two, including a sweep of the English Triple Crown (2000 Guineas, Epsom Derby, and Sy. Leger) in 1970, a feat not accomplished since 1935 and not duplicated since. Nijinsky's only losses came in his last two career starts when he had been ill and was not yet at his best. At stud, he showed some of the brilliance of his own sire, getting winners such as Lammtaara, Shahrastani, and King's Lake. He has also proved to be an excellent broodmare sire.

More bios to come.