Real Delight
Encyclopedia
Real Delight was an American
Thoroughbred
race horse bred by the famous Calumet Farm
of Lexington, Kentucky
.
A filly
sired by one of America
’s foundation stallion
s, the influential Bull Lea
(sire of seven Hall of Famers
, including his other great daughters: Two Lea
, Bewitch
, and Twilight Tear
), Real Delight’s dam was the stakes winning Blue Delight (10 wins out of 24 starts) out of Blue Larkspur
, a racehorse Blood-Horse magazine considered number 100 in its list of the Twentieth Century
’s greatest racehorses.
Real Delight was a huge rangy filly, standing 17 hands. Throughout her second year she was bothered by a bad knee and so went unraced as a two-year-old. A Calumet horse, she was trained by the Hall of Famer, Horace A. Jones
. Horace had become the head trainer by the birth of Real Delight while his father, Ben A. Jones
, became Calumet's general manager.
At three, Real Delight was a spectacular competitor. In her twelve starts that year, she lost only once. She began in combination races, meaning mixed fields of claimers and allowance runners, but quickly stepped up in class by her two easy wins. Her first stakes
victory came in the Ashland Stakes
followed by her only loss at three, and the only time she competed against males. Even so, at a sprint distance of six and one half furlong
s not suited to her long legs, she closed fast, losing by only a head. Often ridden by the Hall of Fame jockey
, Eddie Arcaro
, she then took eight stakes in a row, including the Kentucky Oaks
, Coaching Club American Oaks
, Black-Eyed Susan Stakes
(once known as the Pimlico Oaks), Ashland Stakes
, the Modesty Handicap
, and the Beldame Stakes
.
By winning the Kentucky Oaks, the Black-Eyed Susan, and CCA Oaks, she was the second filly to win this early version of the Triple Crown for fillies. The only filly before her was Wistful
. (Today's Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing
consists of the Acorn Stakes
, the Mother Goose Stakes
, and the CCA Oaks
.)
In 1952, she was voted not only the United States Champion Three-Year-Old Filly, but the United States Champion Older Female Horse.
At four she won the Arlington Matron Handicap
carrying top weight, just as she did in all her four year old races.
She retired that year, going back to Calumet where she foaled three stakes winners, eventually becoming the third dam of Alydar
.
Real Delight was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987.
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...
race horse bred by the famous Calumet Farm
Calumet Farm
Calumet Farm is a Thoroughbred breeding and training farm established in 1924 in Lexington, Kentucky, United States by William Monroe Wright, founding owner of the Calumet Baking Powder Company. Calumet is located in the heart of Lexington's blue grass country, the finest horse breeding region in...
of 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...
.
A filly
Filly
A filly is a young female horse too young to be called a mare. There are several specific definitions in use.*In most cases filly is a female horse under the age of four years old....
sired by one of America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
’s foundation stallion
Stallion
A Stallion is a male horse.Stallion may also refer to:* Stallion , an American pop rock group* Stallion , a figure in the Gobot toyline* Stallion , a character in the console role-playing game series...
s, the influential Bull Lea
Bull Lea
Bull Lea was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who is best known as the foundation sire responsible for making Calumet Farm one of the most successful racing stables in American history...
(sire of seven Hall of Famers
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...
, including his other great daughters: Two Lea
Two Lea
Two Lea was an American Thoroughbred Champion racehorse. Born at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, her sire was Bull Lea whose progeny were already successful. Her dam was Two Bob, winner of the 1936 Kentucky Oaks....
, Bewitch
Bewitch (horse)
Bewitch was a Thoroughbred race horse born in 1945 at Calumet Farm, Kentucky, United States in the same crop in which the stallion Bull Lea produced Citation and Coaltown. Each of these exceptional Bull Lea foals were, in time, inaugurated into the Thoroughbred Hall of Fame...
, and Twilight Tear
Twilight Tear
Twilight Tear was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred filly racehorse. At age two, she won four of her six starts, finishing second and third in her other two starts. Her performances earned her a share of 2-year-old filly honors....
), Real Delight’s dam was the stakes winning Blue Delight (10 wins out of 24 starts) out of Blue Larkspur
Blue Larkspur
Blue Larkspur was a bay Kentucky-bred thoroughbred race horse. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1957, awarded the 1929 Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year, and ranks Number 100 in Blood-Horse magazine's top 100 U.S. thoroughbred champions of the 20th Century...
, a racehorse Blood-Horse magazine considered number 100 in its list of the Twentieth Century
Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century
In 1999, a panel for The Blood-Horse magazine was made up of distinguished horse racing people: Howard Battle, Lenny Hale, Jay Hovdey, William Nack, Pete Pedersen, Jennie Rees and Tommy Trotter. These experts compiled a list of what they considered to be the top 100 United States thoroughbred...
’s greatest racehorses.
Real Delight was a huge rangy filly, standing 17 hands. Throughout her second year she was bothered by a bad knee and so went unraced as a two-year-old. A Calumet horse, she was trained by the Hall of Famer, Horace A. Jones
Horace A. Jones
Horace A. "Jimmy" Jones was an American thoroughbred horse trainer.The son of Hall of Fame horse trainer Ben A. Jones, Jimmy Jones was born in Parnell, Missouri...
. Horace had become the head trainer by the birth of Real Delight while his father, Ben A. Jones
Ben A. Jones
Benjamin Allyn Jones was a thoroughbred horse trainer.Born in Parnell, Missouri, Ben Jones went into the business of breeding and training of thoroughbreds during the first decade of the 20th century, racing his horses on small circuits in the American West and in Mexico...
, became Calumet's general manager.
At three, Real Delight was a spectacular competitor. In her twelve starts that year, she lost only once. She began in combination races, meaning mixed fields of claimers and allowance runners, but quickly stepped up in class by her two easy wins. Her first stakes
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...
victory came in the Ashland Stakes
Ashland Stakes
The Ashland Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early April at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It and the Ashland Oaks, the Kentucky Association racetrack's predecessor race, were named for Ashland, the homestead and breeding farm of statesman...
followed by her only loss at three, and the only time she competed against males. Even so, at a sprint distance of six and one half furlong
Furlong
A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and U.S. customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to 220 yards, 660 feet, 40 rods, or 10 chains. The exact value of the furlong varies slightly among English-speaking countries....
s not suited to her long legs, she closed fast, losing by only a head. Often ridden by the Hall of Fame jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
, Eddie Arcaro
Eddie Arcaro
George Edward Arcaro , known professionally as Eddie Arcaro, was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey who won more American classic races than any other jockey in history and is the only rider to have won the U.S. Triple Crown twice...
, she then took eight stakes in a row, including the Kentucky Oaks
Kentucky Oaks
The Kentucky Oaks is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies staged annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. The race currently covers 1⅛ miles at Churchill Downs; the horses carry 121 pounds . The Kentucky Oaks is held on the Friday before the Kentucky Derby each year...
, Coaching Club American Oaks
Coaching Club American Oaks
The Coaching Club American Oaks is a race for thoroughbred three-year old fillies and the second leg of the Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing. Originally run at Belmont Park, the Grade I $250,000 stakes race was moved to Saratoga Race Course in 2010....
, Black-Eyed Susan Stakes
Black-Eyed Susan Stakes
The Black-Eyed Susan Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. The race is open to three-year-old fillies willing to race one and one-eighth miles on the dirt and currently offers a purse of $250,000...
(once known as the Pimlico Oaks), Ashland Stakes
Ashland Stakes
The Ashland Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early April at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It and the Ashland Oaks, the Kentucky Association racetrack's predecessor race, were named for Ashland, the homestead and breeding farm of statesman...
, the Modesty Handicap
Modesty Handicap
The Modesty Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Arlington Park Racetrack in Arlington Heights, Illinois near Chicago....
, and the Beldame Stakes
Beldame Stakes
The Beldame Stakes is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares three-years-old and up. Inaugurated in 1939, it was run as a handicap prior to 1960...
.
By winning the Kentucky Oaks, the Black-Eyed Susan, and CCA Oaks, she was the second filly to win this early version of the Triple Crown for fillies. The only filly before her was Wistful
Wistful (horse)
Wistful was an American Thoroughbred filly racehorse. The daughter of Sun Again and granddaughter of Sun Teddy is best remembered for wins in the Kentucky Oaks, the Coaching Club American Oaks, the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico Race Course...
. (Today's Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing
Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing
The Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing, formerly known as the Filly Triple Crown, is a set of three horse races in the United States which is open to three year old fillies...
consists of the Acorn Stakes
Acorn Stakes
The Acorn Stakes is an American Grade I race at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies. It is raced on dirt over a distance of one mile with a current purse of $250,000. It is the first leg of the US Triple Tiara and is followed by the Coaching Club American Oaks...
, the Mother Goose Stakes
Mother Goose Stakes
The Mother Goose Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old fillies held at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Raced on dirt, the Grade I race offers a purse of $250,000. Inaugurated in 1957 at a mile and a sixteenth, it was lengthened to a mile and an eighth in 1959...
, and the CCA Oaks
Coaching Club American Oaks
The Coaching Club American Oaks is a race for thoroughbred three-year old fillies and the second leg of the Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing. Originally run at Belmont Park, the Grade I $250,000 stakes race was moved to Saratoga Race Course in 2010....
.)
In 1952, she was voted not only the United States Champion Three-Year-Old Filly, but the United States Champion Older Female Horse.
At four she won the Arlington Matron Handicap
Arlington Matron Handicap
The Arlington Matron Handicap is an American Grade III flat horse race for Thoroughbred fillies and mares, aged three years and upward. Raced over a distance of 9 furlongs on the dirt at Arlington Park, Arlington Heights, Illinois every spring, it offers a purse of $150,000.Inaugurated in 1930,...
carrying top weight, just as she did in all her four year old races.
She retired that year, going back to Calumet where she foaled three stakes winners, eventually becoming the third dam of Alydar
Alydar
Alydar was a chestnut colt and an American thoroughbred race horse who was most famous for finishing a close second to Affirmed in all three races of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, a feat not achieved before or repeated since.-Racing career:Trained by John M...
.
Real Delight was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987.