Riva Ridge - The Unsung Champion

 

Riva Ridge – The Unsung Champion

Joseph Di Rienzi

by Richard Stone Reeves
(bloodhorse.com)

Champions and classic winners are cherished in thoroughbred racing. Most owners and or breeders will tell you to accomplish either in a racehorse is the pinnacle of success. This is the story of a horse who was both a dual champion and a dual classic winner but due to some unusual circumstances and a distinct aversion to rain soaked racetracks did not receive his just deserve during his racing career.

Riva Ridge, a foal of 1969, was a thin bodied, light colored bay son of the 1958 Champion Two-Year-Old First Landing from the mare, Iberia. He was owned and bred by Meadow Stable of Doswell, VA. The family patriarch, Christopher Chenery, had been in failing health and the stable operation was run by his daughter, Mrs. Helene “Penny” Tweedy. The horse’s name was derived from a favorite ski trail in Vail, CO at a resort that was co-founded by Mrs. Tweedy’s husband, John, who in turned named it after a mountain in Italy that was the scene of a strategic Allied victory in World War II.

Prior to Riva Ridge’s first start as a 2 year-old in 1971, there was a disruption in the racing operation of Meadow Stable as the result of an unexpected tragedy in a rival outfit. The Phipps family stable trainer, Eddie Neloy, died suddenly of a heart attack. The question in the aftermath of Neloy’s passing was who would be the Phipps’ next trainer?  Roger Laurin, at the time training for Meadow Stable, was offered the position. Despite the caliber of horses Meadow Stable could produce, Laurin believed the Phipps’ stable was racing’s premier operation, and with a potential superstar in the making in two-year-old filly Numbered Account, he accepted. However, in leaving Meadow Stable, he made a recommendation for his replacement, namely, his father Lucien, which was agreed to by the stable. It is rare in recorded history, and certainly so in thoroughbred racing, when a son did more for the professional advancement of his father. Not only would veteran Lucien Laurin train Riva Ridge to championship and classic success, but Meadow Stable had a yearling that in a little over a year would electrify the racing world as no horse in modern times would. That horse was Secretariat.  

Riva Ridge did not make his debut until June, and it was an uneventful seventh place finish at Belmont Park. He broke his maiden at next start at the same racetrack beating by 5½ lengths a horse that would be a rival the next 3 years - Rokeby Stables’ Key to the Mint. Unplaced in the Great American Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack, Riva Ridge went on to win his first stakes race in the 6 furlong Flash Stakes at Saratoga Racetrack where he made the acquaintance with jockey Ron Turcotte.

Riva Ridge next raced in Belmont’s Futurity and emerged with a thoroughly professional 1½ length victory. By now, Riva Ridge was considered the leading male 2 year-old in the U. S.  He cemented that position with an impressive 7 length victory in the one mile Champagne Stakes at Belmont Park. Then traveling to Laurel, MD, Riva Ridge demolished the field in the 8½ furlong Pimlico-Laurel Futurity by 11 lengths in stakes record time.

While Riva Ridge was dominating his male peers, Numbered Account was doing the same in female counterpart races for juvenile fillies, and the consensus was she was better than him. In an uncharacteristic but sporting gesture, Roger Laurin and the Phipps stable decided to run Numbered Account in the 8½ furlong Garden State Stakes where she would face Riva Ridge. The latter’s trainer Lucien Laurin had great respect for the filly, but he was very confident his horse would prevail, using the racing adage, “a good colt will always beat a good filly”. Whether this was true in this instance or the fact that Numbered Account had just raced a week earlier (winning the Gardenia Stakes) was too much to ask, was not clearly established. In any case, she raced evenly along the inside and never mounted a challenge finishing fourth. Riva Ridge won by 2½ lengths over Freetex with Key to the Mint a neck back in third. Riva Ridge concluded the year with 7 wins in 9 starts, whereas, Numbered Account’s record was 8 wins in 10 starts. They both received championship honors in their respective divisions.

There were winds of change in the air at the start of 1972. Gulfstream Park had won a court battle over Hialeah Racetrack to have the “middle dates” in the Florida winter racing calendar. This meant the early 3 year-old races would be at Gulfstream Park including the Florida Derby. Hialeah re-shuffled its schedule such that the Flamingo Stakes actually preceded the Everglades Stakes, its traditional prep -. There was also an unofficial boycott by some leading New York stables of Gulfstream races. These outfits either waited till the Gulfstream meet was over or shipped to California to race. This delayed some of their horses’ 1972 debuts until Hialeah opened in March. Lucien Laurin identified a schedule for Riva Ridge that would only involve 3 preps leading to the Kentucky Derby, a minimization that at the time was unorthodox.

On March 22, Riva Ridge made his 3 year-old debut in the 7 furlong Hibiscus Stakes and came away with a handy 2¼ length victory. Riva Ridge’s next start was the 9 furlong Everglades Stakes where he faced Florida Derby winner Hold Your Peace. The race was run on a sloppy racetrack and a major upset resulted in Head of the River, rallying off the pace, while getting 10 lb. from Hold Your Peace, defeating the latter by ¾ of a length. Riva Ridge, not previously showing a dislike for the slop, finished fourth while trapped on the rail, beaten about 6 lengths. Most of the racing world was stunned by this loss, but Lucien Laurin took the defeat in stride and claimed his champion was still on target for the Derby as he shipped him to Kentucky. In the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland Racetrack, Riva Ridge put his Everglades race in the background with a totally professional 4 length victory.  

The Kentucky Derby had 16 entries including the previous year’s Two-Year-Old Champion in Riva Ridge, Hold Your Peace and Louisiana and Arkansas Derbies victor No Le Hace. Riva Ridge was back in form, but it was assumed he would be strongly tested early in the race by Hold Your Peace. There was also good support for No Le Hace, whose closing style seemed to fit the race shape. As it transpired, the Derby was pretty straight forward. Ron Turcotte guided Riva Ridge to the front and set a sensible pace with Hold Your Peace in nearest attendance. Down the backstretch, Hold Your Peace was sent up to challenge the front runner, and both he and Riva Ridge raced as a team around the final turn. Once they straightened into the stretch, Riva Ridge readily pulled away and opened a commanding lead. No Le Hace launching his rally from sixth place closed well to gain second 3¾ lengths behind Riva Ridge with Hold Your Peace finishing a tired third, another 3½ lengths back. On a fast track, the final time was good, and there seemed no excuses for anyone.

Riva Ridge winning the 1972 Kentucky Derby
(courier-journal,com)

Riva Ridge, thus, became the first 2 year-old champion to win the Kentucky Derby since Needles did it in 1955. For Meadow Stable, it was a victory long in coming. They had previously finished second with Hill Prince in 1950 due to bad racing luck, third with First Landing in 1959 who was not in top form due to illness, and then suffered the disappointment of the strong favorite Sir Gaylord scratching due to injury on the eve of the 1962 Derby. Penny Tweedy graciously and enthusiastically accepted the trophy for her family. For Lucien Laurin and Ron Turcotte, it was also their respective first taste of Derby glory.

As the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Racetrack loomed, it appeared Riva Ridge’s main rival would be Key to the Mint. The colt was not ready for the Derby due to an injury suffered in Florida that set back his preparation, but he had won both the Derby Trial and a race at Pimlico the week before the Preakness. The “Middle Jewel” attracted a field of only 7 starters with Riva Ridge the prohibitive favorite. Also in the race was Derby runner up No Le Hace.

On Preakness Day, the track was sloppy and longshot Bee Bee Bee, owned by young William Farish III and trained by veteran Del W. Carroll went to the front under jockey Eldon Nelson. Both Riva Ridge and Key to the Mint raced close together in mid-pack. They seem poised to mount a challenge, but as the field turned into the stretch, Bee Bee Bee bounded ahead and opened a lengthy lead. Both Key to the Mint and Riva Ridge seemed to be struggling with the slop and finished third and fourth, respectively, a neck apart, about 6 lengths behind the winner. Just as in the Derby, No Le Hace closed significant ground to finish second beaten just 1¼ lengths. The Preakness result derailed any hopes for a Triple Crown attempt in the Belmont Stakes. It also marked the second time that Riva Ridge was fourth in a race run on an off track.

On Belmont Stakes Day, the skies were clear, and the track was fast. Riva Ridge was made the solid favorite in the field of 10 with Key to the Mint (who had just won the Withers Stakes) and No Le Hace nearly co-second choices. (The connections of Bee Bee Bee chose not to contest this classic.) The race was a tour de force for Riva Ridge. He took over the lead by the clubhouse turn, set steady fractions and just galloped the field to submission. At the end, he was 7 lengths in front of Ruritania who had a ¾ length margin on Cloudy Dawn. Key to the Mint, who gave chase to Riva Ridge down the backstretch, tired from his efforts to finish fourth, beaten over 12 lengths. No Le Hace was a never a factor in finishing sixth. The time of the race marked one of the fastest at the current 1½ mile distance. In retrospect, it was one of the most impressive performances ever in the Belmont Stakes, but in a twist of history, Riva Ridge’s Belmont victory will be dwarfed in 1973 by his stablemate Secretariat’s epochal win. In the winner’s circle, the Meadow Stable owners and Ron Turcotte celebrated their first win in this classic. For Lucien Laurin, this was his second Belmont Stakes winning trainee, the first being Amberoid in 1966.

Less than a month after his Belmont Stakes triumph, Riva Ridge was sent west to contest the 1¼ mile Hollywood Derby and assigned 129 lb. In a race which his connections considered his “hardest”, Riva Ridge was pressed all the way, but he held on to win by a neck over Bicker, carrying 114 lb. At this point, the Meadow Stable star was considered the presumptive 3 year-old champion as well as a leading candidate for Horse of the Year honors.

Back on the East Coast, Riva Ridge traveled to the New Jersey Shore on August 5 to run in the Monmouth Invitational Handicap where he carried top weight of 126 lb. On a fast track, Riva Ridge, in contending position for much of the race showed no punch when the real racing began and retreated to fourth, beaten some 6 lengths behind Freetex (117 lbs.) whom he had defeated decisively 4 times previously. The result at the time seemed inexplicable, and his connections speculated that their horse had been given a tranquilizer, but in retrospect, it appears the trip to California, combining with Riva Ridge’s grueling effort in the Hollywood Derby took a toll on the slender colt.

After this defeat, Riva Ridge was given a month off before returning to the races in the Stymie Handicap at Belmont Park. There he faced the 1971 Kentucky Derby winner Canonero II who had been winless in 6 starts in 1972. In this rare meeting between two Derby winners, the 4 year-old Canonero carrying only 110 lbs. collared pacesetting Riva Ridge (123 lbs.) around the stretch turn and drew away to a 5 length win in world record time for the 9 furlong distance.

With Key to the Mint ascending since his loss in the Belmont Stakes with victories against older horses in the Brooklyn Handicap and Whitney Stakes and against his own age in the Travers Stakes, the 3 year-old championship was no longer a foregone conclusion for Riva Ridge. The two rivals met in the Woodward Stakes run in 1972 at 1½ miles. Alas, for Riva Ridge, the Belmont surface had been inundated with rain, and the son of First Landing, after contesting the pace, fell back to finish fourth (again) with Key to the Mint holding on for the victory. Racing against each other one more time in 1972, this time in the 2 mile Jockey Club Gold Cup, the sophomores faced a stern rival in the 4 year-old Autobiography who had been promoted to second after suffering interference in the Woodward. As luck (all bad) would have it for Riva Ridge’s connections, the Gold Cup was run during a drenching downpour. Autobiography dominated the raced winning by 15 lengths with Key to the Mint besting Riva Ridge for second (and subsequent 3 year-old honors).

There was still more pain for the Meadow Stable crew in that they accepted an invitation to run Riva Ridge in the Washington D. C. International, and on a soggy turf course (still more rain!), he finished a well beaten sixth. Despite Riva Ridge’s disastrous second half of year campaign which saw championships slip from his grasp, it was not all gloom and doom for his connections. A horse Meadow Stable owned and bred was not only the Two-Year-Old Champion of 1972, in that Eclipse Award voters saw in this colt so much, he was acclaimed Horse of the Year. Of course, I am talking about the incomparable Secretariat. 

By the time Riva Ridge made his 4 year-old debut on May 12, 1973, the racing fortunes of Meadow Stable had altered considerably. Christopher Chenery had died in early January. In order to continue the operation of the racing stable, Penny Tweedy and her siblings sold future breeding shares in their greatest asset - Secretariat for a total syndicate value of $6.08 million – a sum unprecedented at the time for a horse who had only raced as a juvenile. Under intense scrutiny from the shareholders (and the racing public) Secretariat had come through with a track record setting win in the Kentucky Derby.

With little fanfare, Riva Ridge won his initial start, a 6 furlong allowance race at Aqueduct. By the time he made his next start in the 1 mile Metropolitan Handicap, Secretariat had won the Preakness in remarkable fashion and all the racing world was now waiting breathlessly for the completion of the first Triple Crown sweep in 25 years. In the Met Mile, “Riva” faced his old rival Key to the Mint, weighted equally at 127 lb. As if the fates continued to conspire against him, it rained heavily at Belmont Park, and Riva Ridge floundered in the slop finishing seventh with Tentam under 116 lb. upsetting Key to the Mint.

A little over a week after Secretariat ran the most monumental race in American thoroughbred racing history in the Belmont Stakes, Riva Ridge, almost unnoticed, bounced back on a fast surface at Suffolk Downs in the Massachusetts Handicap with a track record equaling performance. This set up another meeting with Key to the Mint and Tentam in the 9½ furlong Brooklyn Handicap at Aqueduct. Assigned top weight of 128 lb., Key to the Mint was a slight favorite over the Meadow Stable representative who carried 127 lb. with Tentam at 119 lb. In an exciting renewal of the Brooklyn run on a fast racetrack on Independence Day, Tentam went to the lead setting a rapid pace closely pursued by Key to the Mint with Riva Ridge just off the pace in third. Ron Turcotte sent Riva Ridge to challenge the leaders in the stretch, and after Key to the Mint faltered, Riva Ridge edged clear of Tentam. Once in the lead, Riva Ridge needed all his courage to hold off the oncoming True Knight (117 lb.) by a head. Tentam finished third 2 lengths back with Key to the Mint fourth, beaten another 3½ lengths. In winning, Riva Ridge had set a new world record for the distance on dirt.

Finally deigning to forego racing on a wet surface, the connections of Riva Ridge withdrew him from the Suburban Handicap which was won by Key to the Mint. Racing twice at Saratoga Racetrack during the month of August, Riva was second in an allowance race on grass and won narrowly a similar type race on dirt.

In an effort to capitalize on the national attention given to Secretariat, the Marlboro Tobacco Company initiated a race that would bring together all the major horses racing in 1973 for a large purse that would serve as a “championship” race. Run at Belmont Park in September at 9 furlongs, the Marlboro Cup Handicap, as the race was called, was a precursor to the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Many times these “invented” races fail to attract a competitive fail, but the initial running of this race exceeded beyond any expectations. The field, by invitation only, contained (with weights): 3 year-olds Secretariat (124 lb.), who had not raced since a shocking loss in the Whitney Stakes, and Travers Stakes winner Annihilate ‘Em (116 lb.); older runners Riva Ridge (127 lb.), Key to the Mint (126 lb.), Cougar II (126 lb.), Kennedy Road (121 lb.), and Secretariat’s Whitney Stakes conqueror Onion (116 lb.). Ron Turcotte chose to ride Secretariat while Eddie Maple received the assignment aboard Riva Ridge.

Before the Marlboro, questions swirled around Secretariat after his loss in the Whitney. However, the betting public made the Secretariat – Riva Ridge entry the overwhelming favorite. (Is it any wonder, as combined they represented horses who had been awarded 3 championships and had won 5 classics?) As the race unfolded, Secretariat, had the benefit of perhaps, the most illustrious “rabbit” in racing history, namely Riva Ridge. His Meadow Stable entry mate challenged both Onion and Kennedy Road for the lead down the backstretch forcing a torrid pace as Secretariat was poised in fifth on the outside. Riva Ridge deposed of his rivals around the final turn as Secretariat ranged up on the outside. In the stretch, Secretariat pulled away from Riva Ridge. At the finish, Secretariat was 3½ lengths in front of Riva Ridge who had 2 lengths on Cougar who closed strongly from last place. Onion was fourth, Annihilate ‘Em, fifth, Kennedy Road, sixth and Key to the Mint finished last. The time of the 9 furlong race was a new American dirt record, and the result gave the public what they came to watch - a great horse triumphant.

After his strong second in the Marlboro Cup, Riva Ridge would face the starter 2 more times. (He was scratched out of the Woodward Stakes due to a sloppy track.) In the 9 furlong Stuyvesant Handicap at Aqueduct and carrying a career high 130 lb., Riva set a new track record winning by 3 lengths. In the Jockey Club Gold Cup, Prove Out, who had upset Secretariat in the Woodward, showed his victory was no fluke in dispatching Riva Ridge who faded to sixth and last in his final race. Additional honors were accorded Riva Ridge as he was voted an Eclipse for Champion Older Male Horse. His career record shows 17 wins, 3 seconds, and a third from 30 starts and earnings of over $1 million.

Riva Ridge had been syndicated (at $5.12 million) for stud duties in the summer and joined his stablemate Secretariat at Claiborne Farm, Paris, KY. As a stallion, Riva Ridge had some success with his best performers being major stakes winners Tap Shoes, Blitey, Alada and Expressive Dance. He died from an apparent heart attack in 1985.

Despite having his initial trainer abandon him and being overshadowed for a good part of his racing career by his illustrious stablemate, Riva Ridge won some hearts, especially Penny Tweedy, who had said repeatedly Riva was her favorite, giving him credit for helping save the racing stable from dissolution. The racing community finally recognized the colt’s achievements when in 1998 he was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame. No longer unsung, Riva Ridge is now celebrated among horse racing’s pantheon of stars.