Who Saw The Belmont?

[DuckyBoys]

It's been happening for 30 years now...maybe we'll never have another triple crown winner - maybe we've bred the distance out of them.

 

[Guitartists]

Yeah... my DH was really excited to see it done as the last time it was done was the year of his birth..... a real bummer

 

[Buster]

Forgive my ignorance, but how many triple crown winners have their been and who was the last one?

 

[halo]

He may well have had respiratory bleeding; it happens all the time, especially in that heat. I believe he was the only horse in the field that ran in all 3 races, and he also lost a bit of training with his hoof issues. Im sure his hoof wasnt the problem; I know his blacksmith, and he fixes these things all the time. Id be more concerned about not being able to be trained the way he probably should have been, the fact that he was running 3 hard races in the span of 5 weeks, and the very real fact that he was running 1 1/2 miles and he may just not have the air to do that. Not many horses can; his sire was a sprinter and mostly produces sprinters. Thats why the Triple Crown is so difficult. We may well see one again, I was sure hoping he would be the one.

 

[halo]

I may be wrong, but I think theres been 8 Triple Crown winners; the last was either Seattle Slew or Affirmed, I can never remember which was last, back in the 1970's.

 

[bluie]

Affirmed was last, in 1978. Some of the sportscasters were wondering if, by breeding for speed, they have bred the ability out of horses to win all three races. My husband wanted to go (we are just a very few miles from Elmont), but its hot. I am glad we didn't.

 

[suenrob]

oops, never mind

 

[JaciesCoop]

I think they are definitely bred for speed and not endurance anymore. Gee, makes you wonder how the got both out of them years ago. Of course then track time wasn't so important as just coming in first!

 

[GwenFarms]

The hoof crack wasn't a serious problem. It wasn't the crack that caused this, it was only publisized to jazz up things. They thought the horse was a shoe in and odds were going crazy. The betting world needed a "problem".


There have been 11 winners since 1919 with Affirmed being the last in 1978. In 1998 Real Quiet came the closest without winning in history. War Emblem, Funny Cide and Smarty Jones in 02, 03 and 04 all came close

 

[Buster]

Quote:
Thanks for that. I remember now watching the one in 98 with Real Quiet. I just couldn't remember the name of the horse. Close race and if I remember right the horse gassed at the very end.