My Juliet

My Juliet (1972–2001) was an American Thoroughbred Champion racehorse who defeated both male and female competitors. Bred in Kentucky, she was out of the mare, My Bupers. Her sire was Gallant Romeo, the multiple stakes winning son of U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, Gallant Man. Gallant Romeo also sired Gallant Bob who earned 1975 Champion Sprint Horse honors.

Two-year-old season

My Juliet was initially trained by Steve A. Long, Leland G. Ripley then again by Steve A. Long until Eugene Euster took over during her three-year-old season. Both raced her from a base at Keystone Racetrack (now known as Philadelphia Park Racetrack). She began her career in racing as a two-year-old in 1974, making her debut at Fonner Park in Grand Island, Nebraska. She went on that year to earn her first important win in the Pocahontas Stakes.

Three-year-old season

On May 16, 1975 My Juliet's connections owner George Weasel, Jr. and trainer Steve Long decided to run her in the defacto second jewel of the filly triple crown, the Grade II $65,000 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico Race Course. That day in Baltimore, Maryland My Juliet beat a strong field of six stakes winners including favorite Gala Lil and Funalon. She completed the one and one sixteenth mile race on dirt in 1:44.00 under jockey Alan Hill. As a three-year-old in 1975, she also won the then Grade 1 Cotillion Handicap at and ended the year winning nine of fifteen starts and established herself as one of the top sprinters of either sex racing in the United States.^[1]

Four-year-old season

In early May 1976, four-year-old My Juliet suffered a fracture to her left foreleg while winning the Vagrancy Handicap for fillies and mares at New York's Belmont Park. Out of racing for more than five months, she came back to beat Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner Bold Forbes and other males in winning the Vosburgh Stakes, also at Belmont Park. ^[2] At a time when there was only one Eclipse Award for horses of either sex in the Sprint category, My Juliet was voted the American Champion Sprint Horse of 1976.

My Juliet returned to race at age five. She began her campaign on January 1 in California with a win against a field of females in the Las Flores Handicap at Santa Anita Park.^[3] She went on to win the 1977 Endine Stakes at Delaware Park, again against a field of females, plus defeated males in winning both the Neshaminy Handicap at Keystone Racetrack and in the Michigan Mile And One-Eighth Handicap at Detroit Race Course.

My Juliet retired a winner of twenty-four races, of which seventeen were stakes. As a broodmare in Kentucky, she notably produced two daughters by U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee Alydar who met with racing success:

• Tis Juliet (b. 1986) - won the Shuvee Handicap
• Stella Madrid (b. 1987) - won the Frizette, Spinaway, Matron and Acorn Stakes.

My Juliet died at age twenty-nine in November 2001. ^[4] She raced for most of her career from a base at Philadelphia Park Racetrack (formerly known as Keystone Racetrack). In 1979, the track created the My Juliet Stakes and built the My Juliet Café in the Picnic Grove in her honor.

Pedigree

References

• My Juliet's pedigree and partial racing stats