Kennedy Road (horse)
Encyclopedia
Kennedy Road was a Canadian
Thoroughbred
Champion
racehorse
who dominated Canadian racing for three years before going to success in California
.
and raced under his wife Helen's name.
, then was voted that year's Canadian 3-Year-old Champion. At age four, his performances earned him Canadian Champion Older Male Horse.
trainer Charlie Whittingham
. In 1973, he won a number of races including the Grade I
Hollywood Gold Cup
and San Diego Handicap
. In what appeared to be a dead heat
, Kennedy Road finished second in the Santa Anita Handicap
by a fraction of a nose
to stablemate Cougar II
. Brought back to Canada under junior trainer Clarke D. Whitaker, Kennedy Road set a track record in a six-furlong race at Woodbine Racetrack
(1:08 3/5) that stood for more than two and a half decades. His 1973 performances earned him Canadian Horse of the Year
honors.
Kennedy Road died in 1995. In 2000, he was inducted posthumously into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
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...
Champion
Sovereign Award
The Sovereign Award is given annually since 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada to the outstanding horses and people in Canadian Thoroughbred racing.The most prestigious award for horses is Sovereign Horse of the Year....
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...
who dominated Canadian racing for three years before going to success in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Background
He was bred by Canadian mining magnate Arthur W. Stollery at his Angus Glen Farm in Markham, OntarioMarkham, Ontario
Markham is a town in the Regional Municipality of York, located within the Greater Toronto Area of Southern Ontario, Canada. The population was 261,573 at the 2006 Canadian census...
and raced under his wife Helen's name.
1970-1972 Canadian career
A raucous horse with a mind of his own, after his two-year-old racing season in which he was voted the Canadian 2-Year-old Champion, Kennedy Road underwent an operation to remove a bone fragment from a hind ankle. His injury did not affect his racing ability, and in 1971 he won Canada's most prestigious race, the Queen's PlateQueen's Plate
The Queen's Plate is Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race. It is run at a distance of 1¼ miles for 3-year-old thoroughbred horses foaled in Canada. The race takes place each summer in June or July at Woodbine Racetrack, Etobicoke , Ontario...
, then was voted that year's Canadian 3-Year-old Champion. At age four, his performances earned him Canadian Champion Older Male Horse.
1973 American career
At age five, Kennedy Road's owners sent him to California under the care of future U.S. Hall of FameNational 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...
trainer Charlie Whittingham
Charlie Whittingham
Charles Edward Whittingham was an American thoroughbred race horse trainer who is one of the most acclaimed trainers in U.S. racing history....
. In 1973, he won a number of races including the Grade I
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...
Hollywood Gold Cup
Hollywood Gold Cup
The Hollywood Gold Cup is an American Grade I stakes race for thoroughbred horses inaugurated in 1938 at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. It was run as a handicap race until 1997 when it was switched to weight-for-age conditions...
and San Diego Handicap
San Diego Handicap
The San Diego Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in late july/early August at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. This Grade II race is open to horses, age three and up, willing to race one and one-sixteenth miles on Polytrack synthetic dirt...
. In what appeared to be a dead heat
Dead Heat
Dead Heat is a 1988 movie about an LAPD police officer, Roger Mortis , killed while attempting to arrest zombies who have been reanimated by the head of Dante Laboratories in order to carry out violent armed robberies.-Plot:...
, Kennedy Road finished second in the Santa Anita Handicap
Santa Anita Handicap
The Santa Anita Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade I race for horses four years old and up , and is considered the most important race for older horses in North America during the winter racing season...
by a fraction of a nose
Nose
Anatomically, a nose is a protuberance in vertebrates that houses the nostrils, or nares, which admit and expel air for respiration in conjunction with the mouth. Behind the nose are the olfactory mucosa and the sinuses. Behind the nasal cavity, air next passes through the pharynx, shared with the...
to stablemate Cougar II
Cougar II
Cougar II was a Chilean Thoroughbred racehorse who also competed in theUnited States where he was inducted in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. He was sired by Tale of Two Cities, a son of Tehran, winner of the 1944 St...
. Brought back to Canada under junior trainer Clarke D. Whitaker, Kennedy Road set a track record in a six-furlong race at Woodbine Racetrack
Woodbine Racetrack
Woodbine Racetrack is a Canadian racetrack for Thoroughbred horse races located at 555 Rexdale Blvd. in the city of Toronto, Ontario. It is the only horseracing track in North America which stages, or is capable of staging, thoroughbred and standardbred horseracing programs on the same day...
(1:08 3/5) that stood for more than two and a half decades. His 1973 performances earned him Canadian Horse of the Year
Sovereign Award for Horse of the Year
The Canadian Horse of the Year is a thoroughbred horse racing honor given annually since 1951 by the Jockey Club of Canada. It is the most prestigious honor in Canadian thoroughbred horse racing....
honors.
Kennedy Road died in 1995. In 2000, he was inducted posthumously into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame
Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame
The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame was established in 1976 at the Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario to honor those who have made a significant contribution to the sport of harness and thoroughbred horse racing in Canada....
.