Discovery (horse)
Encyclopedia
Discovery was an American
Thoroughbred
racehorse
about whom the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
said: "...considered one of the greatest horses of the 20th century."
A bright chestnut
grandson of Fair Play
, Discovery was foaled at Mereworth Farm in Lexington, Kentucky
. He was owned by Adolphe Pons of Country Life Farm in Bel Air, Maryland, who raced him at age two with limited success, winning only 2 of 13 starts and being beaten in several races by future Hall of Famer Cavalcade
. Purchased for $25,000 by Alfred G. Vanderbilt II's
Sagamore Farm
, Discovery raced one more time in 1933, finishing second.
At age three, Discovery's racing season was marked by his continuing rivalry with Cavalcade. He finished 2nd to Cavalcade in the 1934 Kentucky Derby
and 3rd to Cavalcade's 2nd in the Preakness Stakes
. Both horses skipped the Belmont Stakes
. Discovery went on to win the first of three consecutive Brooklyn
and Whitney Handicap
s (both under higher and higher weights), and set a world record time in the Rhode Island Handicap.
In 1935, Discovery was the dominant horse in the United States, and one of the most notable things about him was his ability to carry great weight. Running under an average of 131 pounds, the four-year-old won 11 of 19 races and was unofficially named U.S. Champion Handicap
and Horse of the Year
honors. In the Merchants' and Citizens' Handicap, he carried 139 pounds. For these feats, he was called the great weight carrier, or the "Iron Horse."
The fact that Discovery was voted Horse of the Year in 1935 is an especially remarkable achievement because that was the same year in which Omaha
won the Triple Crown
. This was the only time that a Triple Crown horse failed to win Horse of the Year honors.
Racing at age 5, Discovery won his third Brooklyn and Whitney Handicaps en route to being voted his second straight U.S. Champion Handicap title.
Retired to stud
at Vanderbilt's Sagamore Farm
in rural Baltimore County, Maryland
at the end of the 1936 racing season, over the course of a 21 year stallion career, Discovery sired just 25 graded stakes race
winners. But it was through his daughters that Discovery left his legacy: they produced Hall of Fame Champions Native Dancer
, Bold Ruler
, and Bed o'Roses
, as well as the multiple stakes winners Intentionally and Preakness Stakes
winner Hasty Road
. Native Dancer produced Raise a Native
, who sired the stallion Mr. Prospector
.
Discovery was inducted into the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame
in 1969.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
racehorse
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
about whom the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
said: "...considered one of the greatest horses of the 20th century."
A bright chestnut
Chestnut (coat)
Chestnut is a hair coat color of horses consisting of a reddish-to-brown coat with a mane and tail the same or lighter in color than the coat. Genetically and visually, chestnut is characterized by the absolute absence of true black hairs...
grandson of Fair Play
Fair Play (horse)
Fair Play was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who was successful on the track, but even more so as a sire.His grandsire was Spendthrift, whose grandsire was the English Triple Crown champion West Australian....
, Discovery was foaled at Mereworth Farm in Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
. He was owned by Adolphe Pons of Country Life Farm in Bel Air, Maryland, who raced him at age two with limited success, winning only 2 of 13 starts and being beaten in several races by future Hall of Famer Cavalcade
Cavalcade (horse)
Cavalcade was an American Hall of Fame Champion Thoroughbred racehorse.In the early 1930s, Bob Smith, a trainer with a history of spotting talent, had been hired by heiress Isabel Dodge Sloane to stock her newly formed Brookmeade Stable. A descendant of the 1893 English Triple Crown champion...
. Purchased for $25,000 by Alfred G. Vanderbilt II's
Alfred G. Vanderbilt II
Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt II was a member of the prominent Vanderbilt family, a son of the first Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt who died a hero in the sinking of the RMS Lusitania. His mother, Margaret Emerson, was one of America's wealthiest women and most sought-after hostesses, operating at least...
Sagamore Farm
Sagamore Farm
Sagamore Farm is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding farm on Belmont Avenue in Reisterstown, Baltimore County, Maryland. Established in 1925, it was owned by Margaret Emerson Vanderbilt who gave it to her son Alfred G. Vanderbilt II for his twenty-first birthday...
, Discovery raced one more time in 1933, finishing second.
At age three, Discovery's racing season was marked by his continuing rivalry with Cavalcade. He finished 2nd to Cavalcade in the 1934 Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
and 3rd to Cavalcade's 2nd in the Preakness Stakes
Preakness Stakes
The Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds ; fillies 121 lb...
. Both horses skipped the Belmont Stakes
Belmont Stakes
The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...
. Discovery went on to win the first of three consecutive Brooklyn
Brooklyn Handicap
The Brooklyn Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in early June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, on Long Island. It currently is a Grade II event open to three-year-olds and up willing to race one and one-half miles on dirt....
and Whitney Handicap
Whitney Handicap
The Whitney Handicap is an American Grade 1 handicap race for Thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of 1⅛ miles. In 2007, the Breeders' Cup Ltd...
s (both under higher and higher weights), and set a world record time in the Rhode Island Handicap.
In 1935, Discovery was the dominant horse in the United States, and one of the most notable things about him was his ability to carry great weight. Running under an average of 131 pounds, the four-year-old won 11 of 19 races and was unofficially named U.S. Champion Handicap
Eclipse Award for Outstanding Older Male Horse
The title of American Champion Older Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a stallion or gelding, four years old and up. Prior to 1971, this award was referred to as "Champion Handicap Male Horse", and was open to any horse, three years old and up...
and Horse of the Year
Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year
The American Award for Horse of the Year is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. It has been awarded since 1887 to the horse, irrespective of age, whose performance during the racing year is deemed the most outstanding....
honors. In the Merchants' and Citizens' Handicap, he carried 139 pounds. For these feats, he was called the great weight carrier, or the "Iron Horse."
The fact that Discovery was voted Horse of the Year in 1935 is an especially remarkable achievement because that was the same year in which Omaha
Omaha (horse)
Omaha was a United States thoroughbred horse racing champion.Foaled at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky, he was the son of 1930 U.S. Triple Crown winner Gallant Fox and the mare Flambino. Omaha was the third horse to win the Triple Crown having won as a three-year-old in 1935.Omaha was an...
won the Triple Crown
Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplishment of a Thoroughbred racehorse...
. This was the only time that a Triple Crown horse failed to win Horse of the Year honors.
Racing at age 5, Discovery won his third Brooklyn and Whitney Handicaps en route to being voted his second straight U.S. Champion Handicap title.
Retired to stud
Horse breeding
Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in domesticated horses...
at Vanderbilt's Sagamore Farm
Sagamore Farm
Sagamore Farm is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding farm on Belmont Avenue in Reisterstown, Baltimore County, Maryland. Established in 1925, it was owned by Margaret Emerson Vanderbilt who gave it to her son Alfred G. Vanderbilt II for his twenty-first birthday...
in rural Baltimore County, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
at the end of the 1936 racing season, over the course of a 21 year stallion career, Discovery sired just 25 graded stakes race
Graded stakes race
A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...
winners. But it was through his daughters that Discovery left his legacy: they produced Hall of Fame Champions Native Dancer
Native Dancer
Native Dancer , nicknamed the Grey Ghost, was one of the most celebrated and accomplished Thoroughbred racehorses in history, the first horse made famous through the medium of television. He was one of the best horses produced in USA after the war...
, Bold Ruler
Bold Ruler
Bold Ruler was an American Thoroughbred Hall of Fame racehorse.Bred by the Wheatley Stable of Gladys Mills Phipps, Bold Ruler was foaled on April 6, 1954 at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky to Nasrullah and Miss Disco by Discovery...
, and Bed o'Roses
Bed o'Roses
Bed o' Roses was an American thoroughbred racehorse.Bed o' Roses was a bay filly by Rosemont out of the mare Good Thing, by Discovery, owned and bred by Alfred G. Vanderbilt II's Sagamore Farm. Trained by Bill Winfrey and ridden by Eric Guerin, she won the 1949 Grade 1 Matron Stakes for...
, as well as the multiple stakes winners Intentionally and Preakness Stakes
Preakness Stakes
The Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds ; fillies 121 lb...
winner Hasty Road
Hasty Road
Hasty Road was an American thoroughbred racehorse best remembered for winning the 1954 Preakness Stakes and coming in a close second to Determine in the 1954 Kentucky Derby. Hasty Road was a very large bay thoroughbred with a distinctive white blaze...
. Native Dancer produced Raise a Native
Raise a Native
Raise a Native was an undefeated Thoroughbred racehorse that was named 1963 champion two-year-old colt in the Turf and Sport Digest poll. He sired 74 stakes winners, including Majestic Prince and Alydar...
, who sired the stallion Mr. Prospector
Mr. Prospector
Mr. Prospector was a thoroughbred racehorse foaled in Kentucky, whose descendants have been dominant in the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. He won half of his 14 career races.-Background:...
.
Discovery was inducted into the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
in 1969.