view raw text
W. S. KILMERS TURF CAREER I New York Sportsman Fortunate ! Owner of Several Great Horses His Stable Eecord. The sale of neigh Count, for 2,500, to John D. Hertz, of Chicago, was about the only real bit of bad luck suffered by Willis ; Sharpe Kilmer, Binghamton, N. Y., sportsman, during his career as an owner and breeder of race horses. Otherwise the road has been paved with easy stepping stones, I j such as Sun Briar, Exterminator, Sallys j Alley and Sun Beau. To own such a great race horse as Sun Briar is the dream of every owner. To own two such horses as Sun Briar and Exterminator is beyond the wildest imagination of the ! great majority. One would be enough. To have seen ones colors on the steady sue- : cession of splendid and famous animals which have carried the green, brown and orange must have satiated the most ravenous appe- i tite for turf celebrity, and then to breed for ; the apex of the structure, as it were, Heigh Count, international turf hero, and knock him down, probably has counterbalanced in Mr. Kilmers mind only, all of the good luck. It is doubtful if any American owner has : been attended by such great luck in his turf and breeding ventures as has Mr. Kilmer since the day, about eighteen years ago, when he founded his thoroughbred nursery near Binghamton, and announced that he intended to raise thereon the best thoroughbreds in the world. It was called a boast then, but at this time it seems to have been a mere statement of fact. Mr. Kilmer did not breed Sun Briar or Exterminator, but he did breed Reigh Count, and if Reigh Count was not the best thoroughbred in the world during his period as a racer he was not many rungs removed from the top of the ladder. Add to the being of Reigh Count the fact that Sun Briar Court, at Binghamton, and Court Manor Stud, in Virginia, arc still in existence, and Sun Briar, plus others, are still alive and virile. Sunreigh is dead. He was the sire of Reigh Count. His loss might be compared to the loss of Reigh Count to the Kilmer fortunes, but then such is the luck of Mr. Kilmer that it does not seem possible for him to fail to produce other great race horses. ! GAIXS PK03IIXENCE. Kilmers colors first became prominent with the appearance of Sun Briar, which he purchased at the Saratoga sales in 1916. Sun Briar was bred in France and imported to this country by Delbert Reiff. He was named Sunday before being sold, but Mr. Kilmer soon changed his name to the one which we know so well. He was bred in France, as has been said, but he was English on both sides of his pedigree. In 1917. through the efforts of Sun Briar, Mr. Kilmer won ?G 1,902, the greater part of it coming through Sun Briars victory in the Hopeful Stakes. Among other triumphs were the Great American Stakes, Albany Handicap and Grand Union Hotel Stakes. After his Hopeful victory Mr. Kilmer shipped him back to Binghamton, where the populace turned out in force to greet him and staged a parade in his honor. In 191S he was the favorite for the Ken-lucky Derby, was sent to Louisville to be prepared for the race, but failing to train as expected, Mr. Kilmer cast about for a substitute to carry his colors in the great race. He was offered a gelding by the name of Exterminator, owned by J. C. Milam, for 5,000 and undisclosed shares in what ever stake races he should win, the terms of the sale never being made public I Exterminator was one of the greatest of bargains in horseflesh at that price, despite the fact that he was a gelding. He was a worthy substitute, won the Kentucky Derby and almost made Kilmer forget the existence of Sun Briar, if such a thing was possible. Exterminator proved to be Kilmers greatest money winner for the year and for the three following and, before he was finally retired to a life of ease, left a record for cup winnings never equaled and never surpassed. RACES AGALNST TIME. In 191S, when three years old, Sun Briar, immediately after the close of the Saratoga meeting, ran one mile against time and galloped the route in 1:31, beating Roamers record of 1:315. Great as were Sun Briar and Exterminator In their younger days, it remained for Sallys Alley to lead the way to his greatest year as an owner in point of money winnings, 1922, when the stable earned 5186,278. Exterminator was still racing at the time : in fact, won his third consecutive Saratoga Cup, but Sallys Alley, by winning one section of the divided Pimlico Futurity of that year, plus other races, was the largest money winner in the string. Exterminator was the stable leader for four straight years. Sun Briar showing the way in 1917 and Exterminator in 1918, 19, 20 and 21. Then came Sallys Alley, to be followed by Sunayr in 1923, Sunny Man in 1921, Sun Tess in 1925, Sunsard in 1920, Sun Edwin in 1927 and Sun Beau in 192S and 1929. The brilliant performances of Sun Beau are too well known to need recalling. He was rated a champion last year and .will race again in 1930. Following is the complete record of the Kilmer stable since it first became proinent, showing the leading winner of each year, the stables total number of victories, seconds, thirds and amount of money won : Year. Leadins Winner. 1st. 1M. 3d. Amt. 3917 Sun liriar 10 7 r. ? G 1.002 1918 Exterminator 12 11 30 ."0,303 3919 Exterminator 17 11 32 SG.C01 1920 Exterminator 15 G 5 G2,:!CO 1921 Exterminator 11 10 10 GG.110 1922 Sallys Alley IK 13 It 180,278 1923 Sunayr 22 2G 25 52,r.21 3921 Sunny Man 2G 23 21 72.H00 1925 m Tess 5 4 9,873 392G Sunsard 38 29 21 42.7T.I 1927 Sim Edwin 2G 2G 39 H9.93G 1923 Sun lieau 24 13 10 100.4G! 1929 Sun Beau . 14 IS 18 97,105 Total 13 223 220 182 02,017
