Excerpt
from
Step
and Go Together - B.
K. Beckwith
“’Noor,
as he stands today,’ Lou Machado continued, ‘is
the best made thoroughbred I’ve ever seen. He has enough
of everything in the right places, and not too much of
anything.’ We looked at the big stallion as he swung in
his paddock, finally pulling up opposite us and nodding his
head toward us over the white wall. ‘It is a pleasure
for me to be able to sit here and watch him. I never tire of
it. He is the perfection of balance and
power.'”
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“We
have all heard the stories of great horses and that of their
jockeys, but every once in awhile something extraordinary
happens between a horse and jockey that puts them in a class
above all others. Such was the case between Noor and Johnny
Longden.” - Quote courtesy of Charlotte Farmer
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*Noor's
Story
The
following written materials were provided courtesy of
Charlotte Farmer who brought Noor's remains from Loma Rica
Ranch in Grass Valley, California to Old Friends Equine in
Georgetown, KY where he was laid to rest. Charlotte's
passionate devotion to Noor reminds us all that if we keep on
telling the stories of these great champions, they will never
die but will live on forever. Thank you, Charlotte!
-
Noor was named after one of
the most famous diamonds in history, the Kohinoor. Kohinoor
means, “mountain of light,” and thus, Noor means
“light.” The Kohinoor is set in the Maltese cross
at the front of the crown that was made for Queen Elizabeth,
the late Queen Mother.
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The
Kohinoor Diamond
Photo courtesy of Charlotte Farmer
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-
Charles “Seabiscuit”
Howard purchased Noor in 1949. He raced briefly in the fall of
that year, and then in 1950, slowly and steadily began to
catch on to the ways of American racing. This was never more
evident than when he raced against the mighty Citation in his
first of five races in the San Antonio Handicap. Both were
five-year olds and gave rise to one of the most famous
rivalries in racing history.
-
Noor closed out his career with the running of the $100,000
Hollywood Gold Cup. The sportscasters of the time would
declare, “He swept past the greatest field of
thoroughbreds ever assembled in one race in the world this
year . . . shattered the track record for the
mile-and-a-quarter . . .” By winning he became one of
only two horses to defeat two Triple Crown winners, 1946
Triple Crown winner Assault and 1948 Triple Crown winner
Citation. Chris T. Chenery’s Hill Prince, 1950 Horse of
the Year, had beaten Noor in the two-mile Jockey Club Gold Cup
at Belmont earlier in the season; Hill Prince also raced that
day. After this win, Noor was named 1950 U. S. Champion Male
Handicap Horse of the Year.
-
In December of 1951 Noor was
sent to Lexington, Kentucky to stand at stud at Charles A.
Kenney’s Springside Farm. His stud fee was $3,000.00,
and in 1954 it was raised to $3,500.00.
-
In 1954, Noor was returned to California residing again at Lin
Howard’s Stock Farm in Moorpark. Then, at the age of 19,
Noor was moved for the final time to Fred Knoop’s Loma
Rica Ranch in Grass Valley, California. Noor passed away on
November 16, 1974, at the age of 29, and was buried in the
infield of the ranch’s 1/2-mile training track. Dr. Jon
Peek, DVM retired, the only living person who was there the
day Noor died, identified the approximate location of his
grave. With the aid of ground-penetrating radar, Noor’s
grave was located on March 16, 2010.
-
In 1999, Blood-Horse Magazine released a list of the top 100
Thoroughbred champion racehorses of the 20th Century. Noor is
listed 69th, ahead of his rival Hill Prince. In 2002, Noor was
inducted into the Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame at
Saratoga Springs, New York
- A business
park and residential development was planned for the former
Loma Rica Ranch. In March 2010, Noor's grave was located and
an effort was mounted to ensure that his remains were not
disturbed. On August 26, 2011, Noor's remains were exhumed for
reburial in Kentucky.
-
Noor's remains were reinterred Wednesday, August 31, 2011 at
Old Friends Equine in Georgetown, KY. Charlotte Farmer, the
woman who led the effort to bring Noor's remains from
California to Kentucky, attended. There were readings, stories
shared, and one final Call to the Post to honor this great
champion.
Special
thanks also to Charlotte's Team – Erin Dwyer, Denise
Jaffke, Roxann Freitas, Kip Hannan, Ariadne Delon Scott,
Kittredge Collins, Eldon and Gary Parke, Karen Gogue
– who
helped bring Noor to Old Friends.
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Charlotte
Farmer's special words to Noor...
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Please
Visit the Noor Facebook page!
For
more information on Noor, please visit the Noor Facebook page
created by Devora Berliner, “*Noor:
In Memory of a Champion”
Devora
Berliner is the proud owner of a Thoroughbred named Capricious
One who has Noor in his bloodline, making her connection even
more personal. And her memories of Noor are vivid as she
writes, “I remember Noor very well, even though I was
just in grade school when I met him. My dad was a huge fan of
his and when he was moved to Loma Rica Ranch in Grass Valley
(about an hour from where we live) in April 1964, we were
there before the end of the month. I'll always remember the
look of awe on Daddy's face when farm manager Henry Freitas
opened the stall door and turned Noor to face us. He was HUGE
to a 4th grader and at first the only thing I saw were his
long, black legs. I'd been around horses before, but never a
former race horse so I knew how to greet a horse for the first
time held my hand out to him, palm up and waited for Noor's
reaction. This big, beautiful face reached out and when he was
just inches away, he sniffed me. I'll never forget his warm
breath on my hand and his very soft nose. I was in love! We
made annual visits to Loma Rica after that, and our first stop
was always to see Noor. He was calm and very gentle whenever
we saw him. He carried himself as if he knew he was special,
always looking so regal...”
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