Travers Tales
From those who don't celebrate to those who brave the harshest of elements for the Spa's biggest race day of the year, these are the tales of Travers' past.
In honor of today’s 153rd running of the Runhappy Travers Stakes, the church of Saratoga’s most sacred holy day, SLAH is turning back the clock to Midsummer Derbies of years’ past. Here are some of Saratogians’ fondest Travers memories:
“One year there was a huge surprise rainstorm,” one Saratogian said. “People just ran and left all kinds of things behind—a flamingo kiddie pool, two tables, three coolers, three chairs. I filled my wagon with all that would fit. I still have it all too.”
His neighbor weighs in: “He was like a little kid—so excited. He’d take a wagon down and just overload it and then displayed the pool in his driveway for the rest of the meet. For years afterward when it would pour I’d ask if the scavenger would be out.”
“I met Christine Moore when I worked in Kentucky,” says NEWS10 ABC meteorologist Jill Szwed. “She designed hats for my station’s Kentucky Derby coverage. We reconnected on Travers Day last year. The photo was taken following an interview. A day at the races is never complete without one of Christine’s hats.”
“My favorite Travers memory is watching it at Walt & Whitman, because we were the only ones there. Usually that place is a madhouse (also fun!) on a Saturday night, but that night we drank beer and ate pizza like we owned the place.”
“People used to tailgate in the Siro’s parking lot like a freaking Bills game pre-Horseshoe days.”
“In 1963, myself, my brother Warren, and my cousin Valerie found ourselves on the backstretch on Travers Day. While Valerie and I watched the horses warming up for the Travers, she saw Crewman warming up and said she wanted me to race over to the frontside and place a $2 bet on him. (There were no betting windows on the backstretch back then). I told her that the three best 3 year olds in the country were in the Travers and one of them was guaranteed to win. The horses were Chateaugay, winner of the Derby and the Belmont; Candy Spots, winner of the Preakness; and Never Bend, second in the Derby and third in the Preakness. So she didn’t make me bet for her. Bang! The gates open and, of course, here comes Crewman to win and pay $41.90. I think that is still the biggest upset in Travers history and it took a long time for my cousin Val to forgive me. There’s no such thing as a sure thing.”
—Jim Mehrtens, son of Triple Crown–winning jockey Warren Mehrtens
“I made a bet for a boxed $.10 superfecta. All in the bet cost $2.40. I miraculously hit the superfecta and thought I won big. The the results came in and I only won $2.57.”
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame Communications Director Brien Bouyea’s favorite memory: “Birdstone’s surreal 2004 Travers Stakes victory right before a torrential downpour rained down on everyone. It was pitch black, and Birdstone dashed through the darkness. His owner, Marylou Whitney, was very happy. Her husband, John Hendrickson, said the rain filled the trophy and they were all drinking out of it.”
Quote of the Week:
“Run it back.”
—A statement made when the previous day’s activities were just so fun that you have to do it all again
Here’s Johnny!
This week, jockey John Velazquez hit a milestone. While he was already the leading rider in all-time wins at Saratoga, he officially notched his 1,000th win at the Spa on Thursday. Missed our cover story on the Hall of Famer? Read it here.
Our Best Bet
While going into the Saratoga season we ran a roundup of five horses to keep an eye on ahead of the Travers, the SLAH team is ready to place our bet: Our pick is Epicenter, who didn’t come out on top in any of the Triple Crown races but made his mark in the Jim Dandy Stakes, held on the same day as our Racing & Rosé party.
This Week in Saratoga Living After Hours
On Monday, we challenged Saratogians to decipher a racing-related cryptoquote.
Then, on Tuesday, we highlighted five Saraotga and Albany restaurants that serve up bottomless mimosas on their brunch menu.