Dan Patch: Catch Me If You Can
Hoosier born, Minnesota reared, he was the fastest harness racing horse of the early 20th century.
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Dan Patch was far and away the greatest pacer of his day, breaking 14 world speed records and setting the world record for the fastest mile (1 min. 55 secs.) in a heat in 1906 at the age of 11. That record held for 32 years.
image via wikipedia
A standardbred, Dan Patch was sired by Joe Patchen from dam Zelica and foaled in April, 1896 on a small farm near Oxford, Indiana. As a colt he showed little promise and as a six-year-old was sold to Marion Savage of Hamilton, Minnesota in 1902. He began his racing career then and never lost a race. He retired undefeated in 1909. At the height of his career he was earning his owner a million dollars a year. There were some events where no owners would race against Dan Patch and he would simply have to run against the clock to collect the purse.
Dan Patch became a sports celebrity making personal appearances around the country. President Dwight D. Eisenhower travelled with his parents to the Kansas State Fair to see the famous horse. President Harry S. Truman once admitted to reporters that he had sent Dan Patch a fan letter. The town of Hamilton, Minnesota changed its name to Savage in honor of Dan’s owner in 1904.
There are two types of harness racing: pacing and trotting. Nearly 90 percent of harness tracks in North America feature pacers. Trotting horses move their legs forward in diagonal pairs while the pacers move their legs laterally making them faster and less likely to break stride and begin to gallop. The pacer sulkey is situated much closer to the horse than the trotter.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joan_the w/is/325318171/
Dan Patch, like famous athletes of today, was called upon to endorse products such as cars, cigars, washers, toys and caustic balsam. His world record was finally broken by a horse named Adios Butler in 1960 which ran the mile in a race at l:54.3. Dan’s record was set in a heat. His best speed in a race was 1:58.
This marks the 100th anniversary of Dan Patch’s retirement and the Taj Mahal Stables he called home is long vacant. The outline of the practice track can still be seen from the air. Marion Savage and Dan Patch died within days of each other in 1916. The property is posted. There are no markers noting the significance of the place. There is a stone memorial in Oxford, Indiana but the animal is not buried there. It’s believed he’s interred in an unmarked grave on the Taj Mahal grounds. No one knows for sure.
Festivals called Dan Patch days are held annually in Savage, Minnesota (June) and Oxford, Indiana (September) in honor of the horse that never lost a race.
25 Comments
Nice one to share….great work
Interesting.
He sounds like a great horse. A good write, ken.
Christine
Nice article. I have never heard of Dan Patch but enjoyed the trip back into history. Thanks for sharing.
interesting article
The relationship between man and horse is a unique one. Nice bit of history on Dan Patch. And lol, President Truman sent a horse a fan letter…how funny!
I didn’t know a race horse can hold people in such fascination, even the presidents not excluded from its charm. A very different world altogether for me.
Nice one, Ken! Horses have a special place in many peoples hearts.
Great pictures, great work, keep it up!
i was only just born then so i wouldnt have heard of the horse, its sad that it was put in an unmarked grave, as like red rum he was buried in aintree under his statue.Good story which i enjoyed reading.
Ken
Excellent!
Excellent article as always Ken about a very great horse! I love harness racing as well as horse racing lol but you know that I think..
Great article Ken. I enjoyed reading it very much. I have always loved horses ever since I was a little girl. I have a friend who lives down the road from me. She has a horse farm and her horses are all harness racers. Dan Patch reminds me of a story that I read when I was young about a horse called Old Bones. It was supposed to be a true story. He won most of his races too and lived to be quite old for a horse. Thanks for sharing this story. It was a very good read.
Ken, I have known the story of Dan Patch and he was a wonder. I loved being reminded and reading the story again. I have never been to a horse race but I would love to.
Excellent info and writing.
Very interesting indeed! Like it!
Interesting story.
Wow, earned $1 million a year in the early 1900’s. Never lost a race, horse and owner dying within days of each other, that’s an amazing story. Well written as always, thanks.
I knew that name sounded familiar! It’s been a long time since I heard the story.
Very cool! The name sounds really familiar. I must have heard it when I lived in the hoosier state.
thanks for sharing this
My Mama liked horses. I recall her talking about this. TX
really nice piece of article , the remarkable history , thanks for share
Another entertaining, and fact filled piece.
Thank you for sharing it with us all.
Nadine
Ken great otpic, I know little about horses, But my mother and step father raised racing horses. I rmember one he had that was a harness racer (a trtter I believe) I had gotten to go to one of his races it was awesome, The last one he had was a colt named sand blaster, mom sold the last two they had just after my step dad died from cancer. This is a great artical keep up the great work as always.
Very interesting story