Nimbus (GB)

Nimbus
Sire	Nearco
Grandsire	Pharos
Dam	Kong
Damsire	Baytown
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	1946
Country	Great Britain
Colour	Bay
Breeder	William Hill
Owner	Marion Glenister
Trainer	George Colling
Record	9: 6-2-1
Earnings	£33,076
Major wins
July Stakes (1948) 2000 Guineas (1949) Epsom Derby (1949)
Honours
Deltic locomotive 55020 was named Nimbus^[1]
Last updated on 11 January 2010

Nimbus (1946–1972) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. In a racing career which lasted from the spring of 1948 until August 1949, he ran nine times and won six races. Nimbus ran successfully as a two-year-old in 1948, winning the July Stakes, but reached his peak the following year. He won close finishes in both the 2000 Guineas and the Epsom Derby but was unable to attempt the Triple Crown after his career was ended by injury. He had modest success as a breeding stallion.

Background

Nimbus was a bay horse with a white star and snip and white socks on his hind feet.^[2] He was bred by William Hill who would go on to win the St. Leger Stakes in 1959 with Cantelo. He was sired by Nearco, one of the most important sires of the 20th century. His dam, Kong, was sprinter whose victories included the Wokingham Stakes at Royal Ascot. In addition to Nimbus, Kong also produced Nimbus's three-quarter brother Grey Sovereign (sired by Nearco's son Nasrullah) who won the Richmond Stakes and became a successful breeding stallion.^[3] As a yearling, Nimbus was sent to the sales where he was bought for 5000 guineas by the trainer George Colling, acting on behalf of Henry Glenister. The colt was trained by Colling at his Hurworth House stable in Newmarket, Suffolk and raced in the colours of Glenister's wife, Marion.^[4]

Racing career

1948: two-year-old season

As a two-year-old in 1948, Nimbus ran five times and won twice. At Royal Ascot he finished second to Royal Forest in the Coventry Stakes and then won the July Stakes at Newmarket. In the Champagne Stakes at Doncaster in September he finished second by six lengths to Abernant.^[5] In the Free Handicap, a rating of the season's best two-year-olds he was given a weight of 123 pounds, ten pounds behind Abernant.

1949: three-year-old season

Nimbus made good physical progress over the winter and began his three-year-old season by winning the Classic Trial Stakes at Thirsk. He was then sent to Newmarket for the 2000 Guineas, in which he was ridden by the veteran Charlie Elliott, and started at odds of 10/1, with Abernant starting odds-on favourite.^[6] Aberant built up a clear lead, but Nimbus made rapid progress in the closing stages and caught the favourite on the line to win by a short-head in the closest finish in the race's history.^[7]

At Epsom Downs Racecourse a month later, Nimbus started at odds of 7/1 for the Derby in field of thirty-two runners, with Royal Forest, ridden by Gordon Richards being made 9/2 favourite. Heavy rain made the ground very soft, but did not deter a crowd of 500,000^[8] which included Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Elizabeth and Winston Churchill.^[9] With Colling suffering from poor health, Nimbus was saddled by Jack Jarvis. Despite doubts about the colt's stamina, Elliott sent Nimbus to the front almost from the start. Throughout the last half mile he was strongly challenged and briefly headed by Swallow Tail as the two colts went clear of the field. In the closing stages he was also challenged by the fast-finishing French-trained colt Amour Drake, who moved up along the rails as Nimbus and Swallow Tail drifted towards the centre of the course. In a three-way photo-finish, Nimbus prevailed by a head from Amour Drake with Swallow Tail a head away in third.^[10] In August, Nimbus walked over in a race at Haydock Park Racecourse. Soon afterwards he sustained an injury which ended his racing career.

Stud career

Retired to stud duty for the 1950 season, the offspring of Nimbus met with limited racing success. The best of his offspring were Nucleus, who finished second in the 1955 St Leger Stakes and the Coronation Cup winner Nagami. He was also the damsire of Greek Money who won the 1962 Preakness Stakes. In 1963, Nimbus was sold and exported to Japan in 1963, where he died in 1972.

Assessment and honours

Nimbus was given a rating of 130 by Timeform in 1949. In their book A Century of Champions, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Nimbus an "average" winner of the 2000 Guineas but an "inferior" Derby winner.^[11]

Following the LNER tradition of naming locomotives after winning racehorses,^[12] British Railways "Deltic" Diesel locomotive no. D9020 (later no. 55 020) was named Nimbus after this horse on 12 February 1962,^[1] and remained in service until 5 January 1980.^[13]

Pedigree

Pedigree of Nimbus (GB), bay stallion, 1946^[14]
Sire Nearco	Pharos	Phalaris	Polymelus
		Phalaris	Bromus
		Scapa Flow	Chaucer
		Scapa Flow	Anchora
	Nogara	Havresac	Rabelais
		Havresac	Hors Concours
		Catnip	Spearmint
		Catnip	Sibola
Dam Kong	Baytown	Achtoi	Santoi
		Achtoi	Achray
		Princess Herodias	Poor Boy
		Princess Herodias	Queen Herodias
	Clang	Hainault	Swynford
		Hainault	Bromus
		Vibration	Black Jester
		Vibration	Radiancy (Family 6-f^[15])

References

1 2 "Names". The Deltic Preservation Society Online. Chesterfield: The Deltic Preservation Society Limited. 20 January 2008. Retrieved 12 January 2010. named ... after the horse which won the 1949 Derby and 2000 Guineas races
↑ Hugh McMahon. "Nimbus image". Sporthorse-data.com. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
↑ "Nimbus Horse Pedigree". Pedigreequery.com. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
↑ Mortimer, Roger; Onslow, Richard; Willett, Peter (1978). Biographical Encyclopedia of British Flat Racing. Macdonald and Jane’s. ISBN 0-354-08536-0.
↑ "Champagne Stakes". Sydney Morning Herald. 9 Sep 1948. Retrieved 2012-06-04.
↑ "FAVORITE FOR U.K. CLASSIC". Barrier Miner. 22 Apr 1949. Retrieved 2012-06-04.
↑ "Nimbus wins 2000 Guineas". 28 April 1949 Indian Express. Retrieved 2012-06-02.
↑ "Nimbus captures Epsom Derby in photo-finish". Evening Independent. 4 June 1949. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
↑ "THE DERBY - British Pathé". Britishpathe.com. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
↑ "Nimbus wins English Derby". Pittsburgh Press. 4 June 1949. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
↑ Randall, J., and Morris, T., A Century of Champions, Portway Press, Halifax, 1999, p. 80 ISBN 1-901570-15-0.
↑ Nock, O.S. (1985). British Locomotives of the 20th Century: Volume 3 1960-the present day. London: Guild Publishing/Book Club Associates. pp. 70–71. CN9613.
↑ "D9020/9020/55020". The Chronicles of Napier. P.A. Bettany. Retrieved 12 January 2010. in honour of racehorse owned by Mrs. H. A. Glenister, won The Derby and 2,000 Guineas
↑ Hugh McMahon. "Nimbus Pedigree". Sporthorse-data.com. Retrieved 2012-06-15.
↑ "Testatrix - Family 6-f". Bloodlines.net. Retrieved 2012-06-15.

External links

1949 Derby newsreel from British Pathé

2000 Guineas winners

1809 Wizard 1810 Hephestion 1811 Trophonius 1812 Cwrw 1813 Smolensko 1814 Olive 1815 Tigris 1816 Nectar 1817 Manfred 1818 Interpreter 1819 Antar 1820 Pindarrie 1821 Reginald 1822 Pastille ♥ 1823 Nicolo 1824 Schahriar 1825 Enamel 1826 Dervise 1827 Turcoman 1828 Cadland 1829 Patron 1830 Augustus 1831 Riddlesworth 1832 Archibald 1833 Clearwell 1834 Glencoe 1835 Ibrahim 1836 Bay Middleton 1837 Achmet 1838 Grey Momus 1839 The Corsair 1840 Crucifix ♥ 1841 Ralph 1842 Meteor 1843 Cotherstone 1844 The Ugly Buck 1845 Idas 1846 Sir Tatton Sykes 1847 Conyngham 1848 Flatcatcher 1849 Nunnykirk 1850 Pitsford 1851 Hernandez 1852 Stockwell 1853 West Australian ₩ 1854 The Hermit 1855 Lord of the Isles 1856 Fazzoletto 1857 Vedette 1858 Fitz-Roland 1859 The Promised Land 1860 The Wizard 1861 Diophantus 1862 The Marquis 1863 Macaroni 1864 General Peel 1865 Gladiateur ₩ 1866 Lord Lyon ₩ 1867 Vauban 1868 Formosa ♥ Moslem 1869 Pretender 1870 Macgregor 1871 Bothwell 1872 Prince Charlie 1873 Gang Forward 1874 Atlantic 1875 Camballo 1876 Petrarch 1877 Chamant 1878 Pilgrimage ♥ 1879 Charibert 1880 Petronel 1881 Peregrine 1882 Shotover ♥ 1883 Galliard 1884 Scot Free 1885 Paradox 1886 Ormonde ₩ 1887 Enterprise 1888 Ayrshire 1889 Enthusiast 1890 Surefoot 1891 Common ₩ 1892 Bona Vista 1893 Isinglass ₩ 1894 Ladas 1895 Kirkconnel 1896 St. Frusquin 1897 Galtee More ₩ 1898 Disraeli 1899 Flying Fox ₩ 1900 Diamond Jubilee ₩ 1901 Handicapper 1902 Sceptre 1903 Rock Sand ₩ 1904 St. Amant 1905 Vedas 1906 Gorgos 1907 Slieve Gallion 1908 Norman 1909 Minoru 1910 Neil Gow 1911 Sunstar 1912 Sweeper 1913 Louvois 1914 Kennymore 1915 Pommern ₩ 1916 Clarissimus 1917 Gay Crusader ₩ 1918 Gainsborough ₩ 1919 The Panther 1920 Tetratema 1921 Craig an Eran 1922 St Louis 1923 Ellangowan 1924 Diophon 1925 Manna 1926 Colorado 1927 Adam's Apple 1928 Flamingo 1929 Mr Jinks 1930 Diolite 1931 Cameronian 1932 Orwell 1933 Rodosto 1934 Colombo 1935 Bahram ₩ 1936 Pay Up 1937 Le Ksar 1938 Pasch 1939 Blue Peter 1940 Djebel 1941 Lambert Simnel 1942 Big Game 1943 Kingsway 1944 Garden Path ♥ 1945 Court Martial 1946 Happy Knight 1947 Tudor Minstrel 1948 My Babu 1949 Nimbus 1950 Palestine 1951 Ki Ming 1952 Thunderhead 1953 Nearula 1954 Darius 1955 Our Babu 1956 Gilles de Retz 1957 Crepello 1958 Pall Mall 1959 Taboun 1960 Martial 1961 Rockavon 1962 Privy Councillor 1963 Only for Life 1964 Baldric 1965 Niksar 1966 Kashmir 1967 Royal Palace 1968 Sir Ivor 1969 Right Tack 1970 Nijinsky ₩ 1971 Brigadier Gerard 1972 High Top 1973 Mon Fils 1974 Nonoalco 1975 Bolkonski 1976 Wollow 1977 Nebbiolo 1978 Roland Gardens 1979 Tap On Wood 1980 Known Fact 1981 To-Agori-Mou 1982 Zino 1983 Lomond 1984 El Gran Senor 1985 Shadeed 1986 Dancing Brave 1987 Don't Forget Me 1988 Doyoun 1989 Nashwan 1990 Tirol 1991 Mystiko 1992 Rodrigo de Triano 1993 Zafonic 1994 Mister Baileys 1995 Pennekamp 1996 Mark of Esteem 1997 Entrepreneur 1998 King of Kings 1999 Island Sands 2000 King's Best 2001 Golan 2002 Rock of Gibraltar 2003 Refuse to Bend 2004 Haafhd 2005 Footstepsinthesand 2006 George Washington 2007 Cockney Rebel 2008 Henrythenavigator 2009 Sea the Stars 2010 Makfi 2011 Frankel 2012 Camelot 2013 Dawn Approach 2014 Night of Thunder 2015 Gleneagles

Legend - ₩ = Triple Crown Winners, ♥ = Filly

Epsom Derby winners

1780 Diomed 1781 Young Eclipse 1782 Assassin 1783 Saltram 1784 Serjeant 1785 Aimwell 1786 Noble 1787 Sir Peter Teazle 1788 Sir Thomas 1789 Skyscraper 1790 Rhadamanthus 1791 Eager 1792 John Bull 1793 Waxy 1794 Daedalus 1795 Spread Eagle 1796 Didelot 1797 colt by Fidget 1798 Sir Harry 1799 Archduke 1800 Champion 1801 Eleanor ♥ 1802 Tyrant 1803 Ditto 1804 Hannibal 1805 Cardinal Beaufort 1806 Paris 1807 Election 1808 Pan 1809 Pope 1810 Whalebone 1811 Phantom 1812 Octavius 1813 Smolensko 1814 Blucher 1815 Whisker 1816 Prince Leopold 1817 Azor 1818 Sam 1819 Tiresias 1820 Sailor 1821 Gustavus 1822 Moses 1823 Emilius 1824 Cedric 1825 Middleton 1826 Lap-dog 1827 Mameluke 1828 Cadland 1829 Frederick 1830 Priam 1831 Spaniel 1832 St. Giles 1833 Dangerous 1834 Plenipotentiary 1835 Mundig 1836 Bay Middleton 1837 Phosphorus 1838 Amato 1839 Bloomsbury 1840 Little Wonder 1841 Coronation 1842 Attila 1843 Cotherstone 1844 Orlando 1845 The Merry Monarch 1846 Pyrrhus The First 1847 Cossack 1848 Surplice 1849 The Flying Dutchman 1850 Voltigeur 1851 Teddington 1852 Daniel O'Rourke 1853 West Australian ₩ 1854 Andover 1855 Wild Dayrell 1856 Ellington 1857 Blink Bonny ♥ 1858 Beadsman 1859 Musjid 1860 Thormanby 1861 Kettledrum 1862 Caractacus 1863 Macaroni 1864 Blair Athol 1865 Gladiateur ₩ 1866 Lord Lyon ₩ 1867 Hermit 1868 Blue Gown 1869 Pretender 1870 Kingcraft 1871 Favonius 1872 Cremorne 1873 Doncaster 1874 George Frederick 1875 Galopin 1876 Kisber 1877 Silvio 1878 Sefton 1879 Sir Bevys 1880 Bend Or 1881 Iroquois 1882 Shotover ♥ 1883 St. Blaise 1884 St. Gatien Harvester 1885 Melton 1886 Ormonde ₩ 1887 Merry Hampton 1888 Ayrshire 1889 Donovan 1890 Sainfoin 1891 Common ₩ 1892 Sir Hugo 1893 Isinglass ₩ 1894 Ladas 1895 Sir Visto 1896 Persimmon 1897 Galtee More ₩ 1898 Jeddah 1899 Flying Fox ₩ 1900 Diamond Jubilee ₩ 1901 Volodyovski 1902 Ard Patrick 1903 Rock Sand ₩ 1904 St. Amant 1905 Cicero 1906 Spearmint 1907 Orby 1908 Signorinetta ♥ 1909 Minoru 1910 Lemberg 1911 Sunstar 1912 Tagalie ♥ 1913 Aboyeur 1914 Durbar 1915 Pommern ₩ 1916 Fifinella ♥ 1917 Gay Crusader ₩ 1918 Gainsborough ₩ 1919 Grand Parade 1920 Spion Kop 1921 Humorist 1922 Captain Cuttle 1923 Papyrus 1924 Sansovino 1925 Manna 1926 Coronach 1927 Call Boy 1928 Felstead 1929 Trigo 1930 Blenheim 1931 Cameronian 1932 April the Fifth 1933 Hyperion 1934 Windsor Lad 1935 Bahram ₩ 1936 Mahmoud 1937 Mid-day Sun 1938 Bois Roussel 1939 Blue Peter 1940 Pont l'Eveque 1941 Owen Tudor 1942 Watling Street 1943 Straight Deal 1944 Ocean Swell 1945 Dante 1946 Airborne 1947 Pearl Diver 1948 My Love 1949 Nimbus 1950 Galcador 1951 Arctic Prince 1952 Tulyar 1953 Pinza 1954 Never Say Die 1955 Phil Drake 1956 Lavandin 1957 Crepello 1958 Hard Ridden 1959 Parthia 1960 St. Paddy 1961 Psidium 1962 Larkspur 1963 Relko 1964 Santa Claus 1965 Sea Bird 1966 Charlottown 1967 Royal Palace 1968 Sir Ivor 1969 Blakeney 1970 Nijinsky ₩ 1971 Mill Reef 1972 Roberto 1973 Morston 1974 Snow Knight 1975 Grundy 1976 Empery 1977 The Minstrel 1978 Shirley Heights 1979 Troy 1980 Henbit 1981 Shergar 1982 Golden Fleece 1983 Teenoso 1984 Secreto 1985 Slip Anchor 1986 Shahrastani 1987 Reference Point 1988 Kahyasi 1989 Nashwan 1990 Quest for Fame 1991 Generous 1992 Dr Devious 1993 Commander in Chief 1994 Erhaab 1995 Lammtarra 1996 Shaamit 1997 Benny the Dip 1998 High-Rise 1999 Oath 2000 Sinndar 2001 Galileo 2002 High Chaparral 2003 Kris Kin 2004 North Light 2005 Motivator 2006 Sir Percy 2007 Authorized 2008 New Approach 2009 Sea the Stars 2010 Workforce 2011 Pour Moi 2012 Camelot 2013 Ruler of the World 2014 Australia 2015 Golden Horn

Legend - ₩ = Triple Crown Winners, ♥ = Filly

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