This Week’s Inductee: STYMIE
The $1,500 King of the 1940s
If you ever need proof that greatness can be found in a claiming race, look no further than Stymie. And I’m not talking about one of the lead characters in the early 20th century kid comedy The Little Rascals. But maybe that’s how the horse got its name.
In 1943, a legendary trainer named Hirsch Jacobs saw something in a two-year-old chestnut colt that had only won one of his first three starts. Jacobs dropped a claim slip for just $1,500.
The Result? Stymie didn’t just move up; he became “The People’s Horse.” Known for his “come-from-the-clouds” running style, he would sit at the back of the pack and wait until the final turn to launch a massive, heart-pounding run. This was back when horse racing was a popular spectator sport, in a very different way than it is now.
Career Earnings: $918,485 (A world record at the time of his retirement in 1949). That’s more than $7,000 per start, a figure that today would make for a very profitable claimer in most barns.
The Iron Horse (not to be confused with NY Yankees great Lou Gehrig) In his first 5 years on the track, he averaged 23 starts a year. We don’t see that anymore. Reminds me of how MLB starting pitchers used to routinely go 9 innings!
Career Stats: 131 starts, 35 wins, 33 seconds, and 28 thirds.
The Legacy: He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1975.
Stymie proved that a “cheap” horse isn’t a bad horse—it’s just a horse waiting for the right trainer to find their key. Today, the Stymie Stakes is still run at Aqueduct to honor the claimer who conquered the world.
I might make the “Hall of Claim” a regular feature here at HorseClaiming.com. Let me know what you think. As I see it, has there ever been a better time to add a little variety to our lives?