EQUINE HEROS
When we say "Equine Hero", what is the first thing that comes to your mind? We all grow up having some kind of knowledge of a famous horse. Whether it is through a movie, a great race or an exciting book, horses have the power to command our attention and tug at our hearts. We can't help but admire the strength and beauty of a horse or envy the special relationship a horse and rider share. A child will remember the wonderful story of Black Beauty, historians will know the name of General Lee's trusted mount and all generations will have the image of the rider-less horse, "Black Jack", accompanying the funeral of some of our great presidents. Here are some of the most famous equine hero's that hold a place in history and a place in our hearts.
Comanche - Comanche was a 15 hand bay gelding, thought to be part Mustang and part Morgan. He was bought by the U.S. Army in 1868 in St. Louis, and sent to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Instead of being kept with the regular cavalry, Captain Myles Keogh, a member of Custer's 7th Cavalry, bought him for $90 to use as his personal mount. In the fall of 1868 his unit fought the Comanche Tribe in Kansas. During the battle, the horse was wounded, but the Captain did not know that and continued to fight from his back until the battle was over. Afterward, he discovered an arrow broken off in the horse's hindquarters. The wound was treated and after the horse recovered, he earned the name of Comanche for his bravery in continuing to carry his master despite his own pain. At the Battle of Big Horn, the last big battle for the Native American, Comanche was ridden by Captain Keogh of Custer's 7th Cavalry. Comanche was said to be the only survivor of that battle.
Traveler - Purchased in 1861 for $200, Traveler was General Robert E. Lee's horse. The horse was steady no matter how fierce the noise of battle or the crush of fighting, sure footed, great stamina and easy gaits. In 1870 General Lee died and Travel was led behind the General's hearse. At Travelers death, he was buried outside the Lee Chapel.
Black Jack - Black Jack was born on January 19, 1947. His breeding was not known, but he was a beautiful black gelding. Black Jack was sent from Fort Reno, Oklahoma, to the Third Infantry (The Old Guard) at Fort Myer on November 22, 1953. He was named after General John J. "Black Jack" Pershing, Supreme Commander of the American Expeditionary Force in World War I. He served as a caparisoned (rider-less) horse, and took part in the ceremonial functions, including the funeral of Presidents Herbert Hoover, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and General Douglas MacArthur. His service also included thousands of other funeral processions at Arlington National Cemetery. He was always the rider-less horse with boots reversed in the stirrups, a symbol of a fallen hero. Black Jack was the last horse issued to the Army by the Quartermaster and he was last to carry the "U.S." brand all army horses had. He died at the age of 29 and his ashes were placed in an urn at his monument at Fort Myers, Virginia.
The Famous "Mister Ed" - Mister Ed was played by a palomino named Bamboo Harvester. He was liberty trained (no lead line) by Lester Milton, who learned a little from Will Rogers. The voice of Mister Ed was performed by actor Allan "Rocky" Lane. Actor Alan Young, who played Wilbur Post, revealed in a TV interview that peanut butter was given to Mister Ed to make him move his mouth at the correct time. Mister Ed loved the stuff so much that he couldn't stop licking his lips and therefore completed virtually all his scenes in one take. "A horse is a horse, of course of course, and no one can talk to a horse, of course, that is of course, unless the horse is the famous Mister Ed!"
Exterminator - The date was June 30, 1917. the place was Old Latonia Race Course in Covington, KY, just across the river from Cincinnati. A tiny, bony, gangly two-year-old gelding named Exterminator made his debut in a six-furlong maiden race. Sent off at a little more than 5-to-1, the son of McGee out of the mare Fair Empress carried 109 pounds to a three-length victory; the time was 1:14 4/5. It was a beginning of one of the most storied careers in Thoroughbred racing history. Exterminator would race for eight seasons and compete in 100 races. He would win 50 of them; 34 of them were stake races. He would have nine different trainers and would win for every one of them. He would travel extensively, racing in Canada and Mexico, as well as the United States. As the May 11, 1918 Derby approached, Exterminator replaced Sun Briar, the Derby hopeful owned by Willis Sharpe Kilmer. Exterminator had been purchased by Kilmer to help get Sun Briar in shape for the Derby. Sun Briar never did find his best form prior to the Kentucky Derby and was not entered in the Run for the roses. It was left to Exterminator to carry the colors of Willis Sharpe Kilmer. At odds of 29-to-1, Exterminator showed his love for heavy tracks on Derby Day by taking the lead in the stretch and winning the 45th running of the classic by one length under jockey Willie Knapp. The Kentucky Derby was Exterminator's first race as a sophomore and only the fifth of his career. He won what was rapidly becoming the country's biggest and most famous race off a 10-month absence from the track.
Red Rum - Red Rum is the only horse in the history to the Grand National Steeplechase to win the race three times, and to make that feet further astonishing, he ran in it two other times placing second. Red Rum was bred at Rossenarra Stud in Kells, County Kilkenny, Ireland by Martyn Molony and started off in life running in cheap races as a sprinter. After being passed from training yard to training yard, he found his footing when Liverpool car dealer Ginger McCain bought him for his client Noel Le Mare and famously trained the horse on the sands of Southport, Lancashire. McCain, who also won the Grand National in 2004 with Amberleigh House, took Red Rum for a therapeutic swim in the sea off Southport before every Grand National. Red Rum suffered most of his life from a debilitating, incurable bone disease in his foot but it could not defeat his courage. Fittingly, Red Rum is buried at the finishing line of the Aintree Racecourse which is still a destination for his fans today. "Rummy" became a national celebrity, annually leading the Grand National Parade.
Secretariat - Secretariat was the first horse to win the Triple Crown in 25 years. Secretariat retired to stud at Claiborne Farm, moving into his sire, Bold Ruler's stall. He sired 41 stakes winners, and became a noted broodmare sire, but never achieved the success at stud that he had on the track. Perhaps it is fitting that he remain the one and only Secretariat. Secretariat was voted No. 35 among top North American athletes of the 20th century by Sports Century, the only non-human among them.When Secretariat died, a necropsy of his body was performed. They were shocked to find that his heart was almost twice the average size, and a third larger than any equine heart they had ever seen. All the chambers and the valves were normal, it was just larger. I think it told us why he was able to do what he did. Secretariat had a heart worth its weight in gold.
Fury - From a farm in Mississippi, Fury began training for a film at 18 months of age. He is famous for the television series Fury along with Black Beauty, Gypsy Colt and the black stallion movie Giant. He was also the winner of many Patsy Awards, the animal actors' Oscar. In Toni Helfer's book The Gentle Jungle she tells of an old cowboy who wanted to breed his mare to their Appaloosa stallion. He offered a black stallion in trade. A day or two later the old cowboy shows up at their ranch and backs his trailer up, and out comes a beaten up, starved old stallion who immediately collapses. They take care of him, pull him through and keep him. Several months later when he was in better shape Toni got on him to see if he was broke to ride. Well he was, and then they discovered he was trained to do tricks. They had called this old black stallion King, and said they ran out of things to ask him to do before he ran out of tricks. (They didn't know his history.) An old Hollywood stuntman came out to their ranch one day to visit and was wandering around the horses and came running back in and asked where they'd gotten that black stallion. They told him and he said, "don't you kids recognize him, that's Fury." So, according to this account Fury did spend the last few years of his life happy, but went through some hard times to get there.
November 2007