Blessbull
{{Short description|American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse}}
{{Infobox racehorse
| horsename = Blessbull
| image =
| caption =
| sire = Bless Me
| grandsire = Sickle
| dam = Edabull
| damsire = Bull Dog
| sex = Gelding
| foaled = 1951
| country = United States
| color = Bay
| breeder = Paragon Stable
| owner = 1) Maurice Simms
2) Travis M. Kerr (11/1956)
| trainer = George R. Handy
Herbert E. Lewis (1955)
| record = 60: 18-11-4
| earnings = US$141,950
| race = Constitution Handicap (1954)
Hialeah Inaugural Handicap (1955)
Palm Beach Handicap (1955)
Fresh Meadows Handicap (1956)
Queens County Handicap (1956)
| awards =
| honors =
| updated= January 22, 2011
}}
Blessbull (1951 -) was a Thoroughbred race horse, the son of Bless Me by Edabull. He was owned by Maurice Sims of Brockton, Massachusetts and raced out of Bull Dog Stables. On September 6, 1956 Blessbull tied the course record for one mile in the feature race at Belmont Park. In 60 career starts Blessbull had 18 wins, places, and shows and total earnings of $141,950.[http://jockeyclubpedigree.com/blessbull Blessbull Career Stats] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713111654/http://jockeyclubpedigree.com/blessbull |date=2011-07-13 }}, Thoroughbred Database, retrieved on April 20, 2010.
1954 ''-'' 1956 stats and milestones
Blessbull set three new track records and in another race equaled three others.
- May 30, 1954: NTR, Suffolk Downs, 1:35 2/5, 1 mile on dirt, Constitution Handicap.{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/148353414/ |title=Racing - Boston |publisher=Reno Gazette-Journal, page 22 |date=1954-05-31 |access-date=2020-12-19}}
- January 17, 1955: NTR, Hialeah Park, 1:09 2/5, 6 furlongs on dirt, Inaugural Handicap.{{cite web |url=https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/ |title=Blessbull Takes Hialeah Inaugural in Track Record Time |publisher=New York Times, page 33 |date=1955-01-18 |access-date=2020-12-20 |archive-date=2020-05-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200506002706/https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/ |url-status=dead }}
- September 6, 1956: ETR, Belmont Park, 1:34 2/5, 1 mile on dirt, Fresh Meadows Classified Handicap.
- October 20, 1956: NTR, Jamaica, 1:42 flat, 1 1/16 miles on dirt, Queens County Handicap.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1956/10/21/archives/blessbull-clips-jamaica-record-51-shot-wins-queens-county-with.html |title=Thomas H. Burns |publisher=New York Times, Section Sports, page 205 |date=1956-10-26|access-date=2020-12-21}}
In winning the Fresh Meadows Classified Handicap, Blessbull covered the distance in 1:34 4/5.Blessbull Ties Belmont Mile Record in Feature, The New York Times, September 7, 1956, pg. 20. That winning time that Blessbull not only equaled the 14-year-old Belmont Park record for one mile (eight furlongs) set by the great Count Fleet, but also in that race Blessbull's fractional time of 1:09 4/5 for six furlongs and then his next clocking of 1:22 flat at the seven furlong point equaled the track record for both distances.{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/415964265/ |title=Blessbull Equals Three Track Records |publisher=New York Daily News |date=1956-09-07 |access-date=2020-12-21}}
Blessbull won the $21,700 Inaugural Handicap at Hialeah Park Race Track on January 17, 1955. Coming off a second-place run at Tropical Park in Miami, Florida, the thoroughbred was ridden by Jack Skelly. The victory was worth $16,125 and his payoff was $25.20 for $2.Blessbull Takes Hialeah Inaugural in Track Record Time, The New York Times, January 18, 1955, pg. 33.
Under the guidance of jockey Willie Lester, the thoroughbred achieved victory in the October 20, 1956 Jamaica, New York $29,350 Queens County Handicap. He took 1:42 to place first over the mile and 1/16 track, to establish a track record.[http://www.nyra.com/Aqueduct/stakes/QueensCounty.shtml New York Racing Association, Queens County Handicap Records] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409070219/http://www.nyra.com/Aqueduct/Stakes/QueensCounty.shtml# |date=2010-04-09 }}, www.NYRA.com, retrieved on April 20, 2010. In thirteen 1956 starts Blessbull won $28,425.Blessbull Clips Jamaica Record, The New York Times, October 21, 1956, pg. 205.
References
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20110713111654/http://jockeyclubpedigree.com/blessbull Blessbull Pedigree], Thoroughbred Database, retrieved on April 20, 2010.
Category:1951 racehorse births
Category:Racehorses bred in the United States
Category:Racehorses trained in the United States