NATIVE DANCER

Native Dancer, or "Gray Ghost" as he would known as was one of the great horses of the 1950's, and perhaps of all time. He only lost one race through out his career, a race that just happened to be the most important one, the Kentucky Derby. Perhaps that is what Native Dancer is known for, that one loss.       Whatever race it was that he lost, Native Dancer still won every other race, and achieved greatness. Bred and and owned my multi-millionaire Alfred G. Vanderbilt, Native Dancer started his training in California but was taken to New York to start racing. He won his maiden at Jamaica Racetrack on April 19,1952, only to follow up four days later with a six length victory in the Youthful Stakes. Rested up until August, he was sent to Saratoga where he would win four stakes races within one month.

His races at Saratoga would start off with the Flash Stakes which he won easily, giving eight pounds to runner up Tiger Skin. Next it would be even weights in the Saratoga Special and Native Dancer drew off to win by more than three lengths. He would take the Grand Union Hotel Stakes by the same amount, giving weight to his  four rivals. He would finish up his Saratoga sweep in the Hopeful Stakes (a race that Vanderbilt won the year before with Cousin).       The Gray Ghost was then taken to Belmont Park, where he won a allowance race and then equalled the world record for six and a half furlongs in the Futurity Stakes. It was in this race where he would meet up with a certain bay colt who was more than seven lengths behind Native Dancer. Dark Star wasn't a horse that many people pointed out, especially with Native Dancer around. But it would be this horse that would upset Native Dancer's Derby attempt.       Taken back to jamaica, Native Dancer finished his year off with the East View Stakes, his first test at over a mile. With a season filled with so many accomplishments, Native Dancer was named Best two-year-old and for the first time in American history, this two-year-old was named Horse of the Year (along with co-winner and champion three-year-old, One Count). This would only happen two more times in history, by the great Secretariat and champion Favorite Trick (Skip Away should have really been Horse of the Year, rather than Favorite Trick).       Native never came back to the racing scene till April of the next year. He had developed bucked shins after the East View, and was given amble time to heal. It was in Aqueduct's Gotham Stakes that Native Dancer started his three-year-old year, and it would also make him the first televised superhorse; the Gotham was seen all over the country. Native Dancer took the Gotham without too much effort, and did the same in the Wood Memorial one week later. Back in Kentucky, just three days after Native Dancer's Memorial victory, the bay colt Dark Star would take the Derby Trial at Churchill Downs. The two colts would meet once again On the first Satur-day in May.

The 1953 Preakness Stakes.

Dancer and Vanderbilt after the Belmont Stakes.

Native Dancer did not have a great trip in the Derby. He was bumped and then caught between horses, and when he finally went wide around the final turn and started driving for the wire, he was a head short of winning. The leader coming into the stretch was Dark Star (25-1), and all Native Dancer needed was just a few more strides to catch Dark Star, but the line came to quickly. It was much of a

shock to the racing world, as was Man O'War's loss to Upset. Who was Dark Star? Too bad the little colt would only be remeber as the one who beat Native Dancer.

Native Dancer 2

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