Cigar winning the 1994 NYRA Mile (Jason Moran)

Several weeks ago I ran into Ernie after work. One of the first things he said to me was “that poll was hard”, something I underestimated.

Given that we’re now entering the final year of this decade, I would imagine that it’s easier to remember horses rather than the year as a whole as pointed out by GbG pal and commenter Carol.

1994 won by nose over 1997 with 6 votes to 97’s 5. 1998 & 1995 were not far behind with 4 apiece. What made 1994 so great? There were a LOT of good horses and plenty of competition. It wasn’t just Holy Bull, there was Concern, Sky Beauty, Flanders, Serena’s Song, Timber Country, Tabasco Cat, Colonial Affair, Montreal Red, Thunder Gulch, Lakeway, Lure, Paradise Creek, Cherokee Run and Cigar bursting on to the scene.

I spent the last few days tracking down replays and trying to recreate 1994 (while living in fear that all of a sudden 1997 would get a few more votes and win sending me back to drawing board). I had originally intended to do a single post but given the surprising amount of replays and information scattered around the interweb, I decided to break it up by division (for the most part) and do it as a 5 part series to round out the year.

The order will be as follows: Juveniles, 3yos, Older Horses, Turf horses, Sprinter/Milers and Breeders’ Cup/Eclipse Awards.

Looking for a more current multi-part series? Check Val’s excellent look at the Fillies & Mares of 2008.

Or perhaps looking for a history of racing in Los Angeles? Check out the multi-part series at Mary Forney’s blog.