beastofburden

Roamer was a bay gelding foaled in 1911, bred by the Clay Brothers in Kentucky. He was named Roamer due to the circumstaces of his birth. It was an accidental breeding - somehow, the farm's 'teaser' stallion (a stallion of low value used to test if mares are in heat, who is rarely used for actual breeding), aptly named Knight Errant, got in with a blind mare named Rose Tree II. After being claimed at age two by owner Andrew Miller, Roamer began to blossom. He raced from 1913 to 1919, winning 39 of 98 races. His best year was 1914, when he won 12 of 16 starts and was the year's leading money earner. He set five track records and won many notable races, including the Travers Stakes, Carter Handicap, and three Saratoga Cups. Some press accounts called him "The Wonder Horse of the Decade". Roamer died in 1920. While being rested on a farm in New Jersey, he slipped in an icy pasture, broke his leg, and had to be destroyed. He was inducted to the Racing Hall of Fame in 1981. This photo pre-dates Roamer's fame - in fact, it shows the day his fortunes changed. The jockey here is Thomas McTaggart. The only time he ever rode Roamer was in a claiming race at Belmont Park on July 15, 1913. They won, "much the best", by four lengths, and Miller claimed him for $2,000. He would go on to earn $98,828.

Thanks for making my day ! Have a great weekend my dear friend!

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roamer

Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Economic Botany, and we'd love to have this added to the group!

Mules Are Awesome!

Hi, this photo has been mentioned in a discussion thread in the Flickr Commons group, and we'd love to have this added to the group pool!

Lovely.