Word: kelso
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They said he was ready for the pastures. But Owner Allaire du Pont was not listening-not when they were talking about Kelso, her four-time Horse of the Year, winner of 33 races and $1,641,127. He was seven years old now, had won only two cheap allowance races all year, had finished fifth, 14 lengths behind that new champion Gun Bow the last time he ran in a stake. Mrs. du Pont simply ignored it all and sent her "Kelly" out to run again...
With a lucky yellow ribbon tied to the headband of his bridle and 128 lbs. (including Jockey Milo Valenzuela) on his back, Kelso lined up with Gun Bow and three other rivals for the 1⅛-mile Aqueduct Stakes, first of New York's late-season weight-for-age races. "He'll beat Gun Bow, you wait and see," insisted Mrs. du Pont. Few in the Labor Day crowd of 65,066 agreed with her. They sent Kelso off at 2-1, his longest odds in 19 months. The odds...
...nobody else runs with Gun Bow on the pace, you go after him." But by the time the field had rounded the clubhouse turn, Gun Bow had opened up a four-length lead. In the backstretch, the gap was five lengths. But now, for the first time all year, Kelso was running as though he enjoyed it-with the flat, powerful stride that he inherited from his famous great-grand-daddy, Man O' War. Valenzuela sensed it: "Suddenly, he was the old Kelso again. Suddenly, I knew we were home." So did the fans. "It started way back there...
...last week the freak was an odds-on favorite for yet another honor: the title of Horse of the Year, monopolized for four seasons by Mrs. Richard C. duPont's great gelding Kelso-whom Gun Bow will meet in the $100,000 added Aqueduct Stakes on Labor Day. (Last week Kelso demonstrated that he was ready for the encounter by tying the American record for 1⅛miles on the turf in a warm-up race at Saratoga.) Gun Bow had also changed owners again. Keeping a 40% interest for themselves, Albert and Mrs. Stanley sold the other...
Second choice of the bettors at 4-1 (odds on Kelso: 1-2), Mongo broke in front and was never headed. At the end Kelso was a half-length back, and eight foreign horses-from England, France, Venezuela, Ireland, Hungary and the Soviet Union-were practically out of sight. Kelso's Jockey Ismael Valenzuela claimed that Mongo had interfered with Kelso on the final turn, but the stewards dismissed the objection. The victory was worth $90,000-the biggest purse of Mongo's three-year career. Kelso got $25,000, and Jockey Valenzuela got a special award...