DANCERS1FAN

Great list! Terrible shame about Zenyatta and Rachel-they were awesome! Glad to see my all time favorite Native Dancer still holding at number 2 on the list - nearly 60 years later. I know he would have won - he was amazing!

That is SOOOO INCREDIBLE that you got to meet Native Dancer!!!! He died when I was one so I did not get that chance but I discovered him in a book when I was 7 and fell in love!!!! I have researched him extensively and I think he was amazing!!! Too bad it was 60 years ago now that he raced and many people have not heard all the details about him to fall in love like I did and as did all those who watched him back then!!!

It was the 6.5 furlong world record 'on a straight course' that he equalled. Back then that was a separate record but I don't see that it is tracked any longer....

That is TRUE, he did!!!

Definitely NATIVE DANCER as #1 and The Bid #2!!!!!

I love both horses but Native Dancer is my all time favorite race horse! By the way - he equalled the WORLD record for 6 1/2 furlongs as a two year old in The Fururity!!! Times of races nealry 30 years apart really cannot accurately be compared. Not to mention that it was well known that The Dancer often ran only as fast as he had to in order to win - kind of like Zenyatta (who is his great great granddaughter). He won evey race he ran in except one and had more than enough excuses for that loss. Many people do not realize that when he ran in the Derby it was already his 3rd consecutive week of racing. Back then the Gotham was run 2 weeks before the Derby and the Wood was the week before! Can anyone imagine a horse today running three Saturday's in a row, let alone in three top stakes races!?! Also a little known fact is The Dancer tied up badly in the morning the week of the Derby and was still being treated for it the morning before. Now days if a horse ties up like that the week of a race, they do not run. It was also reported that he had a swollen ankle to due an incident on the train ride to Kentucky. So, it is very likely that he was far from his best that day and he still would have won with a better ride from his jockey. He was in a word - AMAZING!