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Whirlaway (Blenheim II x Dustwhirl)

1938 Thoroughbred Stallion

Known as one of America’s quirkiest racehorses, Whirlaway was bred by Calumet Farms in Kentucky and later became the 1941 Triple Crown Winner. His sire was Blenheim, winner of the English Derby, and his dam was Dustwhirl (the horse on the right in the fourth photo), a high-strung and unraced mare that was said to have the same temperament as her son. Whirlaway’s trainer was the legendary Ben A. Jones, who became frustrated with the difficult colt to no end. Things he said about Whirlaway included “Knucklehead,” “You can teach him, but you can’t teach him much,” and "He’s the dumbest horse I ever trained." Nevertheless, Whirlaway still won his first race at Lincoln Fields in Illinois. Over the course of his next five races he came in first - fourth place. He then raced some more and won three stakes races, and was named Best Two-Year-Old Horse.

While Whirlaway was extremely fast which often saved him, his running style was not desirable. He would do very well on the stretch but run out from the rail around the turn. Jones experimented with a risky idea to try and solve this problem - a one-eye blinker to block Whirlaway’s right eye. It worked, and luckily Whirlaway and jockey Eddie Arcaro never crashed into the rail, but Whirlaway still often liked to slow down and start to zig-zag once he was in the lead. He also gave up easily if other horses were on his flank, so his tail was grown out to deter them. This earned him the nickname “Mr. Longtail.” He responded well to habits and routines, though, and through extreme consistency Jones made him into something big.

Whirlaway was the 3:1 favorite in the 1941 Kentucky Derby and won easily by eight lengths. He also set a track record that lasted 21 years. Secretariat broke it, but only by two-fifths of a second. He won the Preakness and the Belmont as well, becoming the fifth Triple Crown Champion. Whirlaway won the Travers Stakes that year, too, and is the only horse to win what some describe as the superfecta of American racing. He became the 1941 Horse of the Year, narrowly beating Alsab, a $700 thoroughbred who had a slow start but was later inducted into the Hall of Fame.

George Woof became Whirlaway’s main jockey for the 1942 racing season due to Arcaro being suspended for racing infractions. Whirlaway and rival Alsab raced in a $25,000 match race and Aslab won. Whirlaway later beat him in the Jockey Club Gold Cup, however, and became Horse of the Year for the second consecutive time. Whirlaway’s popularity helped fundraising for the war effort immensely. Most of his earnings went to the War Emergency Relief Fund, and he helped increase the sale of war bonds as well. All in all $5 million was raised because of him.

As a four-year-old Whirlaway ran in 22 races carrying a lot of weight and won 12 of them, and had eight seconds and two thirds. He sustained his first injury, however, a bowed tendon. Though he raced again, he struggled with this injury and lost the only two races of his fifth racing year. He then retired in June of 1943 to Calumet Farm. Over the course of his career he raced 60 times and finished in-the-money 48 times. His earnings were $561,161, a record at the time. He went to stud at age six and stood for $1,500 at his highest point, though this fee later went down.

He had 181 registered foals, though only 18 of them were stakes winners. He passed his odd temperament onto many of his foals and they were often difficult to train. His best offspring was the filly Scattered who was the runner-up three-year-old Filly of the Year. In 1950 Whirlaway was leased by Marcel Boussac of France, who later purchased him. He died in 1953 at the age of fifteen after breeding a mare. Initially buried in Normandy, his remains were sent back to Calumet Farm. He entered the Racing Hall of Fame in 1959 and is named number 12 on Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century list.

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Whirlaway

Older than any of the American Triple Crown races, the Travers Stakes was first run in 1864, and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds according to international classifications, behind only the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes. Many American Triple Crown winners have run the “Mid-Summer Derby”, but only one has won it, Whirlaway, in 1941.

(Based on an image from a very grainy film used in an ESPN documentary)

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“Whirlaway preparing for the 1941 Preakness at Pimlico. Exercise rider “Pinkie” Brown up with trainer Ben Jones ponying.”

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Whirlaway

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What size jets should you have in your whirlaway?

This quick guide will outline what jet sizes you should use for your flat surface cleaner (SFC) or whirlaway. The SFC is a brilliant tool for cleaning large areas of patio or driveway, with 2 fast spinning jets with skirting to control the dirt it allows for quick cleaning whilst also helps manage the mess. Although, depending on the surface you are cleaning you may choose to change your jet…