The Scarsdale Handicap was an American

Thoroughbred horse race Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

open to horses age three and older first run on October 16, 1918, over a mile and seventy yards on dirt at

Empire City Race Track Yonkers Raceway & Empire City Casino, founded in 1899 as the Empire City Race Track, is a one-half-mile standardbred harness racing dirt track and slots racino located at the intersection of Central Park Avenue and Yonkers Avenue in Yonkers, New ...

Yonkers, New York Yonkers () is the List of municipalities in New York, third-most populous city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and the most-populous City (New York), city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County. A centrally locate ...

Historical notes

In its second year, the Scarsdale Handicap was run as the Westchester Handicap before reverting to its original name in 1920. In 1942, Empire City Racetrack terminated

flat racing Horse racing is an equestrianism, 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 spor ...

and the facility reverted to hosting only

harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australia ...

events. After that, the Scarsdale Handicap was run at

Jamaica Race Course Jamaica Race Course, also called the Jamaica Racetrack, was an American thoroughbred horse racing facility operated by the Metropolitan Jockey Club in Jamaica, Queens, New York City. History The track opened on April 27, 1903, a day which featu ...

Jamaica, Queens Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It has a popular large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis, St Albans, and Cambria Heights to the ea ...

, New York.

Race moments

The 1918 inaugural running was won by War Cloud, a three-year-old colt who had finished fourth in that year's

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

, won the

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held annually on Armed Forces Day, the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland (except in 2026 when it will move to Laurel Park (race track), Laurel Park dur ...

and ran second in the

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over the worldwide classic distance of . Colt (horseracing), Colt ...

. Two months earlier future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee Roamer had broken Salvator's record for the mile that had stood for twenty-eight years. As such, bettors sent War Cloud off as the 7-5 second choice behind 4-5 favorite Roamer. The recently acquired

Seabiscuit Seabiscuit (May 23, 1933 – May 17, 1947) was a champion thoroughbred racehorse in the United States who became the top money-winning racehorse up to the 1940s. He beat the 1937 Triple Crown winner, War Admiral, by four lengths in a two-hors ...

got his first

stakes race The following is a glossary of North American horse racing. Additional glossaries at: *Glossary of Australian and New Zealand punting *Glossary of equestrian terms This is a basic glossary of equestrian terms that includes both technical term ...

win for new owner Charles Howard's on September 7, 1936, in the Governor's Handicap at the Detroit Fairgrounds Racetrack and then won the Hendrie Handicap at the same track on September 26. The colt continued to show his real talent under the care of trainer Tom Smith and jockey

Red Pollard John M. "Red" Pollard (October 27, 1909 – March 7, 1981) was a Canadian horse racing jockey. A founding member of the Jockeys' Guild in 1940, Pollard rode at racetracks in the United States and is best known for riding Seabiscuit. Family h ...

with his win in the Scarsdale Handicap on October 24, 1936. Purchased for $100 by owner/trainer Tommy Heard, in 1942 Boysy became the first horse to win the Scarsdale twice. He came back the next year to capture the race for the third straight time, going

wire-to-wire Wire-to-wire is a term used in competitive events and sports for a champion who maintained the lead during an entire competition. The term originated from horse racing where a wire would stretch across the start and finish line, so it describes a ...

in winning by three lengths. In the 1946 Scarsdale,

Albert Snider Albert Snider (October 22, 1921March 5, 1948) was a jockey in Thoroughbred racing who had success in his native Canada as well as the United States. Biography Snider was born in Calgary, Alberta, in 1921. He got his first win as a Thoroughbred ...

, one of the most promising young riders of the time, rode Polynesian to victory. Snider would go on to become a first-string jockey with

Calumet Farm Calumet Farm is a Thoroughbred breeding and training farm established in 1924 in Lexington, Kentucky, United States by William Monroe Wright, founding owner of the Calumet Baking Powder Company. Calumet is located in the heart of the Bluegrass ...

and in 1948 was the regular jockey for the great

Citation A citation is a reference to a source. More precisely, a citation is an abbreviated alphanumeric expression embedded in the body of an intellectual work that denotes an entry in the bibliographic references section of the work for the purpose o ...

. He was scheduled to ride Citation in the U.S. Triple Crown series but disappeared on March 5, 1948, while fishing off the coast of Florida with two friends. Despite a lengthy and intensive search, their bodies were never recovered. Snider's death opened the door for

Eddie Arcaro George Edward Arcaro (February 19, 1916 – November 14, 1997) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey who won more American classic races than any other jockey in history and is the only rider to have won the U.S. Triple ...

to ride Citation to win the Triple Crown. The Scarsdale Handicap's twenty-eighth and final running in 1947 was won by With Pleasure who defeated a stellar field that included two future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductees and the previous year's

American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse The American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when the ''Daily Racing Fo ...

. It was

Gallorette Gallorette (1942–1959) was a Maryland-bred chestnut thoroughbred filly who became a Hall of Fame race horse. Sired by Challenger II, out of Gallette, Gallorette's damsire was Sir Gallahad III. Breeding Trainer Preston M. Burch bought Gallett ...

who finished second, with Double Jay in third,

Donor A donor in general is a person, organization or government which donates something voluntarily. The term is usually used to represent a form of pure altruism, but is sometimes used when the payment for a service is recognized by all parties as re ...

fourth, and Stymie, the then richest racehorse in United States history who finished sixth.''Joplin Globe'' (Missouri) November 2, 1947 article titled "With Pleasure Wins Scarsdale Handicap"
Retrieved August 31, 2018

Race distances

*1 mile, 70 yards : 1918, 1925-1947 *1 mile : 1919-1924

Records

Speed record: *1 mile : 1:38 1/5 - Tryster (1922) (New track record) *1 mile, 70 yards : 1:41 3/5 - Seven Hearts (1944) at Jamaica *1 mile, 70 yards : 1:42 0/0 - Psychic Bid (1935) at Empire City Most wins: * 3 - Boysy (1941, 1942, 1943) Most wins by a

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 ...

: * 3 -

Jack Westrope Jack Gordon Westrope (January 18, 1918 – June 19, 1958) was an American Hall of Fame jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. Born in Baker, Montana, Westrope was the son of racehorse owner/trainer W. T. Westrope. Jack was only 12 years old when he ...

(1938, 1931, 1947) Most wins by a trainer: * 3 - Tommy Heard (1941, 1942, 1943) Most wins by an owner: * 3 - Tommy Heard (1941, 1942, 1943)

Winners

References

{{reflist Empire City Race Track Jamaica Race Course Discontinued horse races in New York (state) Open mile category horse races Sports competitions in New York City Horse races established in 1918 Recurring sporting events disestablished in 1947 1918 establishments in New York (state) 1947 disestablishments in New York (state)