The lovely ladies of horse racing in 2009, Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta, have sprung to mind some of the fine fillies that have preceded them. For this particular piece, I am going to get in the "way-back machine" and take a quick look at the last filly (before Rachel this May) to win the Preakness Stakes.
Nellie Morse re-entered the national racing consciousness this year after Rachel Alexandra duplicated her Preakness win 83 years later. Nellie Morse won the Preakness in 1926, become the fourth filly at that time to have scored a win in the Preakness. She had previously won the Pimlico Oaks (I believe that was a pre-cursor to the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes that Pimlico currently runs). Amazingly enough, she had failed to win the Kentucky Oaks before her Preakness score, ending up second following a disqualification. Among Nellie Morse's notable offspring was 1937 Champion Two-Year-Old Filly, Nellie Flag.
Nellie Morse continues to be honored today with the running of the Nellie Morse Stakes at Laurel.
Tune in tomorrow for more from They Are Off. For right now, I am Gone... GOODBYE!
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