[Glimmerglass]

Bill Christine - Daily Racing Form - 11/29/12: "Racing silks reflect the game's many personal styles"

Additionally ...

Bill Christine's top 10 most iconic silks
His #1: The Phipps Family Stable's all black jacket, with a cherry red cap, the colors were registered in 1932.

What I've been incorrect about is the Calumet silks with ownership being exclusively TNT Stud:

When Henryk de Kwiatkowski bought bankrupt Calumet in 1992, the colors had already been sold, for $12,000, to a Brazilian businessman. He used them only in Brazil, for one of the Wright heirs had the colors registered in New York. De Kwiatkowski, who died in 2003, raced in red polka dots; his daughter Arianne uses stars instead of polka dots.

Bill Christine's top 10 most eclectic silks

Out of interest, and I looked into this before without an answer, did the Morris family silks continue on after the death of Edna Morris in 1997 (at 88 yrs old)? Theirs were the oldest continually used silks in US history - all red and going back to 1895. She did race in them after the death of John in 1985. There was no cited successor in the obit in the NYT's

I don't see any record of racing with her son, Alfred Hennen "Chappy" Morris or his wife Melissa aka Honeybee who is more focused on design

[Glimmerglass]

Just curious, but what silks active today would you folks quickly recognize? That is beyond say the Phipps noted in the article, etc.

I watch enough racing that I honestly can only pick out a modest number of silks and equate that to the owners. Either because they've had big name runners or they run so many horses in general.

Examples (for me):

Augustin Stables
Jerry & Ann Moss
Bluegrass Hall, LLC (Brad Kelley)
Ramsey Stables [who took everything but the kitchen sink at the Claiming Crown - wow]
Lael Stables
Repole Stables
George & Lori Hall
West Point Thoroughbreds
Team Valor
Magnier/Tabor/Smith

Others for me kinda/sorta
Zayat Stables
J. Paul Reddam
Jess Em Ess Stables

There are others but off my head I can't think of them. Despite being the 10,000-lb gorilla stable based upon their fleet-like number of runners I couldn't pick out Midwest Thoroughbred silks to save my life.

The other day I think it was HRTV remarked "there goes the familiar silks of Maggie Moss" - nope, I can't say they are to me. Everything is regional I suppose so it depends on what tracks you watch or horse you follow but I got "nada" on telling you what they look like.

With Eugene Melnyk's very successful stable its the same thing. Make it worse I've seen the silks run in Barbados (where he lives) and didn't connect the two when I saw the horse go on the track

I've seen far too many replays of races by the late Spectacular Bid and honestly I couldn't recall what the silks are that Ron or Bill wore for the Meyerhoff.

What makes for a memorable - not because its odd - set of silks? Is it a letter (e.g. R for Ramsey) or a color mix or appealing pattern that anyone finds memorable?

[axl]

I remember silks of horses I really loved, like Summer Squall, for instance, so I'll always recognize Dogwood silks.

[WhiteCamry]

For some vintage racing silks check out what Flickr has. Here's just one page.

[Glimmerglass]

I remember silks of horses I really loved, like Summer Squall, for instance, so I'll always recognize Dogwood silks.

Doh! Another example of silks that are rather recognizable. Dogwood Stables (silks)

WhiteCamry - I've seen those cigarette ad, classic trading cards with the silks (and horses) and they're great.

Another flickr user has silks: user Farturnfotos silks set (151 of them)

A neat resource.

[WhiteCamry]

To further stretch the topic ...

This may be just a bit too much.

[Glimmerglass]

Speaking of silks, these are certainly unique. It wouldn't work at a NYRA track which isn't a bad thing IMHO.

Twitter: Santa Anita 1/1/13- Sugar Spice with Victor Espinoza up in the winner's circle

Another of Victor and the silks

Racing silks of Sauci Belvoir and Vicky Dimitri.

[CVPeg]

You're right. Just as well...

[WhiteCamry]

Speaking of silks, these are certainly unique. It wouldn't work at a NYRA track which isn't a bad thing IMHO.

Twitter: Santa Anita 1/1/13- Sugar Spice with Victor Espinoza up in the winner's circle

Another of Victor and the silks

Racing silks of Sauci Belvoir and Vicky Dimitri.

Distinctive, though.

[pnalley]

one of the tracks I used to go to in Florida had silks displayed, it was so rich in history I alwayed loved going there. I can't remember if it was Hialeah, Gulfstream or Tropical. It was a LONG time ago

[Lord Helpus]

Just to clarify. Silks used for racing in NY must be registered and cannot contain more than 2 colors. Many people (me included) have 3 colors in their silks -- so those silks cannot be used when racing in NY.

This is why you might/will see slightly different silks when horses are running at Saratoga, Belmont or Aqueduct.

However, come to think of it, silks such as Overbrook (white background with a bullseye on the back) have 3 colors if you count the white. Maybe white doesn't count as a color?

[WhiteCamry]

one of the tracks I used to go to in Florida had silks displayed, it was so rich in history I alwayed loved going there. I can't remember if it was Hialeah, Gulfstream or Tropical. It was a LONG time ago

Laurel Park has such a display of long-ago famous silks - I think only the Aga Kahn's is still seen today. In Laurel's case, the silks on display were for entries (note: not always winners ) in the Washington, DC, International, a 12f turf G1 which was run in October until rise of the BC Turf Classic. There was one from Winston Churchill (!); his were pink with brown sleeves with pink-and-brown-quarters cap. There was also one from the Soviet national stud (!!); that one was, I think, a dull blue-gray with a dull yellow cap.

The saddest thing about the display is, they're on an obscure wall behind a bank of all-but-unused betting machines. I found them strictly per chance as I wandered around between races when I first went there some years ago.

[Glimmerglass]

Laurel Park has such a display of long-ago famous silks - I think only the Aga Kahn's is still seen today.

Photo: Barbara Livingston - Feb 2011 as part of her "visiting Laurel Park" entry

[WhiteCamry]

Photo: Barbara Livingston - Feb 2011 as part of her "visiting Laurel Park" entry

Yup, that's it.

Come to think of it, that looks like the Soviet silks in the foreground; I'd thought they had a yellow cap. It's been a while since I've been there.