Native Diver (April 16, 1959 – September 13, 1967) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

. Native Diver's nicknames included "the Diver," "The California Comet" and "The Black Horse." He compiled 34 stakes wins throughout his career, but never won outside

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

or in any championships.

Background

Native Diver was bred and owned by Louis K. Shapiro and his wife, who had claimed his dam, Fleet Diver. She is the daughter of

Devil Diver Devil Diver (1939–1961) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He was twice voted American Champion Older Male Horse. Background Devil Diver was foaled at Mrs. Payne Whitney's Greentree Stable in Lexington, Kentucky. A bay colt by Sir ...

out of Our Fleet by Triple Crown winner

Count Fleet Count Fleet (March 24, 1940 – December 3, 1973) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the sixth winner of the American Triple Crown. He won the Belmont Stakes by a then record margin of twenty-five lengths. After an undefeated ...

. Despite the fact that her immediate lineage included members of

Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century ''The Blood-Horse'' (also referred to simply as ''Blood-Horse'' and displayed on its nameplate in upright all-capital letters without hyphenation as BLOODHORSE) is a news magazine that originated in 1916 as a monthly bulletin of the Thoroughbred ...

(Count Fleet at no. 5 and Devil Diver at no. 55), as well as the fact that Fleet Diver had just given

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

Johnny Longden John Eric "Johnny" Longden (February 14, 1907 – February 14, 2003) was an American Hall of Fame and National Champion jockey and a trainer of Thoroughbred racehorses who was born in Wakefield, Yorkshire, England. His father emigrated to ...

his 4,000th racing win, Our Fleet's claiming price was $3,500. The Shapiros bought the mare in January 1954. Five years later, she produced Native Diver. He was by Imbros, himself a good racehorse, having set a world record in the

Californian Stakes The Californian Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in late April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California (relocated from the now closed Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California). The Grade II event is open to ho ...

of 1954.

Racing career

At a young age, Native Diver injured his back and therefore often ran while holding his head high to ease the strain on his spine. He was gelded to calm him down, but it seemed to make little difference. At two, Native Diver won his first three starts by a combined margin of 23 lengths and was on his way to setting six career track records. He set three of those records while carrying 130 pounds. He was a versatile runner who could sprint at six

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 foot (unit), feet, 220 yards, 40 rod (unit), rods, 10 chain (unit), chains, or a ...

s or rate at nine, setting track records at both distances. He won stakes at six California racetracks, being the second horse ever to accomplish that feat. At

Hollywood Park Hollywood Park may refer to: Places United States * Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California * Hollywood Park, Chicago, a neighborhood in North Park, Chicago, Illinois *Hollywood Park, Inglewood, an entertainment complex and ma ...

Inglewood Inglewood may refer to: Places Australia *Inglewood, Queensland * Shire of Inglewood, Queensland, a former local government area *Inglewood, South Australia *Inglewood, Victoria *Inglewood, Western Australia Canada * Inglewood, Ontario *Inglewoo ...

, Native Diver won the

Hollywood Gold Cup The Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes is a Grade II American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles on the dirt held at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California in May. The race currently offers a purse of $200,000 ...

three times in a row, from 1965 to 1967, finishing faster each time. Jockey Jerry Lambert was on board for each Gold Cup win.

Death and legacy

Native Diver was still racing at eight years of age; his owners vowed to retire him when he started to slow down. Eight days after he won the

Del Mar Handicap The Del Mar Handicap is an American thoroughbred horse race run each year during the third week of August at the Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The Grade II race is open to horses, age three and up, willing to race one and three-eighths ...

in 1967, equaling the track record, he fell ill with

colic Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube (small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content ou ...

. He was taken to the equine hospital at

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

Davis Davis may refer to: Places Antarctica * Mount Davis (Antarctica) * Davis Island (Palmer Archipelago) * Davis Station, an Australian base and research outpost in the Vestfold Hills * Davis Valley, Queen Elizabeth Land Canada * Davis, Sa ...

and died there the next day. Native Diver won 34 stakes races, was the seventh racing millionaire, and was the first California-bred horse to earn a million dollars. He is buried in the Garden Paddock at

under a monument designed by

Millard Sheets Millard Owen Sheets (June 24, 1907 – March 31, 1989) was an American artist, teacher, and architectural designer. He was one of the earliest of the California Scene Painting artists and helped define the art movement. Many of his large-scale b ...

. Upon Hollywood Park's closing in December 2013, his remains and the monument were to be moved to the Del Mar infield near the top of the backstretch near several other horses and dogs. On March 8, the exhumation of the remains began led by

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

archaeologists Lynn Swartz Dodd and Tom Garrison."Linthicum, Kate (March 8, 2014),
A legendary racehorse will get a new resting place
" ''Los Angeles Times'', archived from the original March 8, 2014 at 8:31 pm pst The

Native Diver Stakes The Native Diver Stakes is a Grade III American thoroughbred horse race for three-years-old and older over a distance of one and one eighth miles on the dirt held annually in late November at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The event of ...

Del Mar Racetrack The Del Mar Fairgrounds is an event venue in Del Mar, California. It hosts the annual San Diego County Fair. The venue sits on a property along the Pacific Ocean coastline. It includes the Del Mar Racetrack, built in 1936 by the Del Mar Thoroug ...

was named in his honor.

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist

External links