Northern Trick (foaled 1981) was an American-bred, French-trained

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, 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 basic ...

and

broodmare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than f ...

. In a racing career which lasted from April to October 1984 she won four of her six races. She established herself as the best three-year-old filly in Europe by winning the

Prix de Diane The Prix de Diane, sometimes referred to as the French Oaks, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 2,100 met ...

and the

Prix Vermeille The Prix Vermeille is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), a ...

before finishing second in the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racec ...

. She was then retired to stud and had some success as a broodmare.

Background

Northern Trick was a tall, narrow and sparely-made chestnut mare, with a white blaze and a white

sock A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. In the late ...

on her right hind leg, bred by Warner L. Jones at Hermitage Farm, Kentucky. She was one of numerous top-class winners sired by

Northern Dancer Northern Dancer (May 27, 1961 – November 16, 1990) was a Thoroughbred who, in 1964, became the first Canadian-bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby. He then became one of the most successful sires of the 20th century. He is considered a Canadi ...

the Canadian-bred winner of the 1964

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-yea ...

. Northern Trick was half-sister to

On The Sly On, on, or ON may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * On (band), a solo project of Ken Andrews * ''On'' (EP), a 1993 EP by Aphex Twin * ''On'' (Echobelly album), 1995 * ''On'' (Gary Glitter album), 2001 * ''On'' (Imperial Teen album), 20 ...

, winner of 14 races including the

Jockey Club Gold Cup The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a thoroughbred flat race open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It has traditionally been the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the ...

. Through her dam Trick Chick, Northern Trick was a granddaughter of the notable broodmare Fast Line. During her racing career she was owned by

Stavros Niarchos Stavros Spyrou Niarchos ( el, Σταύρος Σπύρου Νιάρχος, ; 3 July 1909 – 15 April 1996) was a Greek billionaire shipping tycoon. Starting in 1952, he had the world's biggest supertankers built for his fleet. Propelled by both ...

, trained by

François Boutin François Boutin (21 January 1937 – 1 February 1995) was a French Thoroughbred horse trainer. The son of a farmer, he was born in the village of Beaunay in the northerly Seine Maritime département. He began riding horses at a young age and c ...

and regularly ridden by

Cash Asmussen Cash Asmussen (born March 15, 1962 in Agar, South Dakota) is an American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. Born Brian Keith Asmussen, in 1977 he legally changed his name to "Cash". From a Texas horse racing family, his parents, Keith and Marily ...

Racing career

Northern Trick did not race as a two-year-old and began her racing career in April 1984, when she won a

maiden race In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the s ...

over 2000

metres The metre ( British spelling) or meter ( American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pr ...

Longchamp Racecourse The Longchamp Racecourse (french: Hippodrome de Longchamp) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for its variety of interlaced ...

. In May over the same course and distance she finished second to Grise Mine in the

Prix Saint-Alary The Prix Saint-Alary is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1 miles), and it is scheduled to ...

, beaten half a

length Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Inte ...

by the winner. In June Northern Trick contested the

Chantilly Racecourse Chantilly Racecourse (In French: "Hippodrome de Chantilly") is a Thoroughbred turf racecourse for flat racing in Chantilly, Oise, France, about north of the centre of the city of Paris. Chantilly Racecourse is located in the country's main ...

, for which Grise Mine started the odds-on favourite. Northern Trick was held up in the early stages of the race and turned into the straight in tenth place. Switched to the outside by Asmussen she overtook Grise Mine and pulled clear to win impressively by five lengths. After a break of two months Northern Trick returned to record a comfortable victory over Ibadiyya and Treizieme in the

Prix de la Nonette The Prix de la Nonette is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled to ...

at Longchamp. In September she faced a strong field in the

at Longchamp and won by a length from The Oaks winner Circus Plume. In October she was matched against colts and older horses in the

. She finished second to the four-year-old colt

Sagace Sagace (1980–1989) was a French Thoroughbred champion racehorse. His sire Luthier had been the Leading sire in France in 1976. Trained by Patrick Biancone and ridden by Yves St. Martin for prominent owner/breeder Daniel Wildenstein, at age t ...

, six lengths clear of All Along. The unplaced horses included

Strawberry Road Strawberry Road (28 September 1979 – 1 June 1995) was a champion Australian Thoroughbred racehorse who went on to race in Germany, France, the United States, and Japan. Bred in New South Wales, he was by the 'superbly-bred' Whiskey Road ( ...

Time Charter Time Charter (6 April 1979 – 7 July 2005) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who won several major middle-distance races between 1982 and 1984. After winning twice as a two-year-old in 1981, she devel ...

, Sun Princess and

Sadler's Wells Sadler's Wells Theatre is a performing arts venue in Clerkenwell, London, England located on Rosebery Avenue next to New River Head. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site since 1683. It consists of two performance spaces: a 1,500-se ...

Assessment

The independent

Timeform Timeform is a sports data and content provider located in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1948, it provides systematic information on form to punters and others involved in the horse racing industry. The company was purchased by ...

organisation gave Northern Trick a rating of 131 in 1984, making her the highest-rated filly of the season. In the official International Classification, Northern Trick was the top-rated three-year-old filly in Europe eleven pounds behind the top-rated horse

El Gran Senor El Gran Senor (21 April 1981 – 18 October 2006) was a champion American-bred Thoroughbred race horse, foaled at Windfields Farm (Maryland). He was the best horse of his generation in Europe at both two and three years of age, ahead of an ...

Stud record

Through her daughter Lingerie, Northern Trick is the ancestor of

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hin ...

(

Tattersalls Gold Cup The Tattersalls Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 110 yards (2,11 ...

), Light Shift (

Epsom Oaks The Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards ...

) and

Main Sequence In astronomy, the main sequence is a continuous and distinctive band of stars that appears on plots of stellar color versus brightness. These color-magnitude plots are known as Hertzsprung–Russell diagrams after their co-developers, Ejnar Her ...

( Joe Hirsch Turf Classic). Another daughter, Nova Cyngi, produced the leading steeplechaser

Dodging Bullets Dodging Bullets (foaled 16 April 2008) is a British Thoroughbred racehorse, best known for his performances in National Hunt races. Bred by the leading jockey Frankie Dettori he had a flat racing career of limited importance, winning two minor ra ...

. Foals *1988 LINGERIE (GB) : Bay filly, foaled 28 March, by Shirley Heights (GB) – placed four times from 12 starts in France 1990–91, dam of winners including Limnos (JPN)(1994, by Hector Protector (USA) – G2 Prix Jean de Chaudenay; G3 Prix Foy), Shiva (JPN) (1995, by Hector Protector (USA) – G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup; G3 Brigadier Gerard S; G3 Earl of Sefton S) and Light Shift (USA) (2004, by Kingmambo (USA) – G1 Oaks S; LR Cheshire Oaks).

Pedigree

{{Pedigree , name = Northern Trick (USA), chestnut mare, 1981 , f =

(CAN)
1961 , m = Trick Chick (USA)
1966 , ff =

Nearctic The Nearctic realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting the Earth's land surface. The Nearctic realm covers most of North America, including Greenland, Central Florida, and the highlands of Mexico. The parts of North America ...

(CAN)
1954 , fm =

Natalma Natalma (March 26, 1957 – January 29, 1985) was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse best known as the dam (mother) of the most important sire, and sire of sires, of the late 20th Century, Northern Dancer. She also established a highly in ...

(USA)
1957 , mf = Prince John (USA)
1953 , mm = Fast Line (USA)
1958 , fff =

Nearco Nearco (January 24, 1935 – June 27, 1957) was an Italian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse described by '' Thoroughbred Heritage'' as "one of the greatest racehorses of the Twentieth Century" and "one of the most important sires of the century." He ...

, ffm =

Lady Angela Lady Angela (1944–1966) was a British-bred Thoroughbred who became the foundation mare of E.P. Taylor's Windfields Farm in Canada. She was the dam of Nearctic, the Canadian Horse of the Year in 1958 and seven-time leading sire in Canada. Among ...

, fmf =

Native Dancer Native Dancer (March 27, 1950 – November 16, 1967), nicknamed the ''Gray Ghost'', was one of the most celebrated and accomplished Thoroughbred racehorses in American history and was the first horse made famous through the medium of television. ...

, fmm =

Almahmoud Almahmoud (1947–1971) was an American Thoroughbred racemare that was best known as an influential broodmare who produced Natalma and Cosmah. She was sired by the 1936 Epsom Derby winner Mahmoud, who was imported to the United States in 1940 ...

, mff =

Princequillo Princequillo (1940–1964) was a Thoroughbred racehorse conceived in France and born in Ireland. He is known for his performances in long-distance races and his successes as a sire. Background His sire, Prince Rose, stood at the Haras de Cheff ...

, mfm = Not Afraid , mmf = Mr Busher , mmm = Throttle Wide , ffff =

Pharos The Lighthouse of Alexandria, sometimes called the Pharos of Alexandria (; Ancient Greek: ὁ Φάρος τῆς Ἀλεξανδρείας, contemporary Koine ), was a lighthouse built by the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, during the re ...

, fffm = Nogara , ffmf =

Hyperion Hyperion may refer to: Greek mythology * Hyperion (Titan), one of the twelve Titans * ''Hyperion'', a byname of the Sun, Helios * Hyperion of Troy or Yperion, son of King Priam Science * Hyperion (moon), a moon of the planet Saturn * ''Hyp ...

, ffmm = Sister Sarah , fmff = Polynesian , fmfm = Geisha , fmmf =

Mahmoud Mahmud is a Romanization of Arabic, transliteration of the male Arabic given name (), common in most parts of the Islamic world. It comes from the Arabic triconsonantal root Ḥ-M-D, meaning ''praise'', along with ''Muhammad (name), Muhammad''. ...

, fmmm = Arbitrator , mfff =

Prince Rose Prince Rose (1928–1944) was a British-bred, Belgian-trained Thoroughbred racehorse, often referred to as the best horse in Belgian racing. Background Bred in England by Lord Durham, Prince Rose was sired by Rose Prince out of the mare I ...

, mffm = Cosquilla , mfmf =

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 ...

, mfmm = Banish Fear , mmff =

War Admiral War Admiral (May 2, 1934 – October 30, 1959) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the fourth winner of the American Triple Crown. He was also the 1937 Horse of the Year and well known as the rival of Seabiscuit in the 'Matc ...

, mmfm = Baby League , mmmf = Flying Heels , mmmm = Let Her Fly (Family 4-m) }

References

1981 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in France Thoroughbred family 4-m