Sun Briar (foaled 1915 in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

) was a

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 ...

retrospectively named the

American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt 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 F ...

of 1917 and the

American Champion Older Male Horse The title of American Champion Older Dirt Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a stallion or gelding, four years old and up, for performances on dirt and main track racing surfaces. In 1971, it became part o ...

of 1919 by writers from

The Blood-Horse ''BloodHorse'' is a multimedia news organization covering Thoroughbred racing and breeding that started with a newsletter first published in 1916 as a monthly bulletin put out by the Thoroughbred Horse Association.

magazine. He was a son of Sundridge, the 1911 Champion sire in Great Britain who also sired

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey ...

winner

Sunstar ''SunStar'' (also written as ''Sun Star''), stylized as SUNSTAR (formerly SUN•STAR), is an English-language newspaper in the Philippines. The newspaper is based in Cebu City. Regional * SunStar Cebu * SunStar Davao * SunStar Manila ''Sun ...

. Sun Briar was out of the

mare 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 ...

Sweet Briar, the daughter of

St. Frusquin St. Frusquin (1893–1914) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a racing career that lasted from May 1895 to July 1896, he ran eleven times and won nine races. He was the best British two-year-old of 1895 when his five wins incl ...

, a multiple winner of top-level races including the 1896

British Classic The British Classics are five long-standing Group 1 horse races run during the traditional flat racing season. They are restricted to three-year-old horses and traditionally represent the pinnacle of achievement for racehorses against their o ...

and the

2,000 Guineas Stakes The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year ...

. St. Frusquin was also a leading sire in Great Britain and Ireland in 1903 and the

Leading broodmare sire in Great Britain & Ireland The list below shows the leading sire of broodmares in Great Britain and Ireland for each year since 1899. This is determined by the amount of prize money won during the year in Great Britain and Ireland by racehorses that were foaled by a daught ...

in 1924.

Career

Two-year-old season

Sun Briar was sent from France to the 1916 Saratoga yearling auction by American bloodstock agent Delbert Reiff, where he was purchased for $6,000 by businessman

Willis Sharpe Kilmer Willis Sharpe Kilmer (October 18, 1869 – July 12, 1940) was a patent medicine manufacturer, newspaperman, horse breeder, and entrepreneur. Biography Willis Kilmer, son of Jonas M. Kilmer and Julia E. Sharpe, was a marketing pioneer, newspaperm ...

. Trained by future Hall of Fame inductee Henry McDaniel, in his Champion two-year-old season, the colt won five of his nine starts, including the 1917 Saratoga Special and

Hopeful Stakes The Hopeful Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. Open to two-year-old horses, the Hopeful is the first Grade I stakes for two-year-olds each season and historically ...

Three-year-old season

Not training well in the spring of 1918, Sun Briar did not run in the

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 ...

but by mid summer was in peak form. Under regular rider

Willie Knapp William J. Knapp (August 21, 1888 – October 26, 1972) was an American thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey. He was known for racing horses such as Exterminator and Sun Briar. He became the jockey for Exterminator in the 1918 Kentucky ...

, he set a North American record of 1:36 1/5 for one mile on dirt over an oval track while winning the

Delaware Handicap The Delaware Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in mid July at Delaware Park Racetrack in Wilmington, Delaware. The Grade 2 race is open to fillies and mares, age three and up, willing to race one and one-quarter miles o ...

. Less than two weeks later, Knapp and Sun Briar won the prestigious

Travers Stakes The Travers Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is nicknamed the "Mid-Summer Derby" and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds acco ...

in which he set a new

stakes record Stake may refer to: Entertainment * '' Stake: Fortune Fighters'', a 2003 video game * ''The Stake'', a 1915 silent short film * "The Stake", a 1977 song by The Steve Miller Band from ''Book of Dreams'' * ''Stakes'' (miniseries), a Cartoon Netwo ...

for a mile and a quarter on dirt. In a September 1918

race against the clock In many racing sports, an athlete (or occasionally a team of athletes) will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. The format of a time trial can vary, but usually follow a format where each athlete or team sets off at ...

at Saratoga, Sun Briar ran a mile in 1:34 flat.

Four-year-old season

Sun Briar came back to race in 1919 after a layoff in the spring, during which time he stood at

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay bar ...

and serviced eighteen mares before returning to race training. He won the 1919 Champlain Handicap, breaking a

Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, Saratoga Springs, New York (state), New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting v ...

track record that had stood for fifteen years. His time of 1:50 flat for a mile and a

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 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use i ...

stood for thirty-seven years until 1956, when

Dedicate Dedication is the act of consecrating an altar, temple, church, or other sacred building. Feast of Dedication The Feast of Dedication, today Hanukkah, once also called "Feast of the Maccabees," is a Jewish festival observed for eight days fr ...

beat it by 1/5 of a second.

Stud career

Retired after his 1919 racing campaign, Sun Briar served stud duty at Kilmer's Court Manor Stud in

New Market, Virginia New Market is a town in Shenandoah County, Virginia, United States. Founded as a small crossroads trading town in the Shenandoah Valley, it has a population of 2,146 as of the most recent 2010 U.S. census. The north–south U.S. 11 and the east– ...

. A successful sire, he produced U. S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee and three-time

Sun Beau and 1925 U. S. Champion 2-year-old colt

Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...

. Among Sun Briar's other successful runners, his son Firethorn won the 1935 and 1937

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 ...

and the 1936

Suburban Handicap The Suburban Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is now run at the mile distance on dirt for a $700,000 purse. Named after the City and Su ...

. Sun Egret was a winner of twenty-four races including the 1938 San Pasqual and

San Vicente Handicap The San Vicente Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race run annually at Santa Anita Park. A Grade II event, the race is open to three-year-old horses willing to race seven furlongs on the dirt and currently carries a purse of $200,000. Hi ...

s plus the 1939 and 1940 Harford Handicap. On his death, Sun Briar was buried at Kilmer's Sun Briar Court in Binghamton, New York.Throroughbred Hewritage – Grave Matters
/ref>

Pedigree

References

{{reflist
Sun Briar's pedigree and partial racing stats
1915 racehorse births Racehorses bred in France Racehorses trained in the United States Horse racing track record setters American Champion racehorses Thoroughbred family 8-c