Bold Lad was an American Champion Thoroughbred

Thoroughbred

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...

 racehorse

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

. He was bred and raced by Gladys Phipps

Gladys Mills Phipps

Gladys Livingston Mills Phipps was an United States socialite, sportsperson, and a thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder who began the Phipps family dynasty in American horse racing...

 and her brother Ogden L. Mills

Ogden L. Mills

Ogden Livingston Mills was an American businessman and politician.-Biography:The son of Ogden Mills and Ruth T. Livingston, he had twin sisters Beatrice Mills and Gladys Livingston Mills. Odgen L. Mills was the grandson of Darius O...

 under their Wheatley Stable

Wheatley Stable

Wheatley Stable was the nom de course for the thoroughbred horse racing partnership formed by Gladys Mills Phipps and her brother, Ogden L. Mills. The horses were raised at Claiborne Farm near Paris, Kentucky.-History:...

 banner. His sire was eight time Leading sire in North America

Leading sire in North America

The list below shows the leading sire of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America for each year since 1830. This is determined by the amount of prizemoney won by the sire's progeny during the year...

, Bold Ruler

Bold Ruler

Bold Ruler was an American Thoroughbred Hall of Fame racehorse.Bred by the Wheatley Stable of Gladys Mills Phipps, Bold Ruler was foaled on April 6, 1954 at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky to Nasrullah and Miss Disco by Discovery...

 and his dam was the racing mare Misty Morn

Misty Morn

Misty Morn was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred and owned by Gladys Mills Phipps' Wheatley Stable, at age three Misty Morn broke the Jamaica Racetrack track record en route to winning the 1955 Gallant Fox Handicap. The filly ended up the year as the U.S...

,

Trained by Bill Winfrey

William C. Winfrey

William C. "Bill" Winfrey was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Bill Winfrey was born Colin Dickard but after the passing of his father was adopted by Hall of Fame trainer, G. Carey Winfrey...

, at age two Bold Lad won every important race for his age group. He set a new Saratoga

Saratoga Race Course

Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. It opened on August 3, 1863, and is the oldest organized sporting venue of any kind in the United States. It is typically open for racing from late July through early September.-History:John...

 track record of 1:15 3/5 in winning the for 6½ furlong

Furlong

A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and U.S. customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to 220 yards, 660 feet, 40 rods, or 10 chains. The exact value of the furlong varies slightly among English-speaking countries....

  Hopeful Stakes http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/578039862.html?dids=578039862:578039862&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Aug+30%2C+1964&author=&pub=Chicago+Tribune&desc=BOLD+LAD+SETS+TRACK+MARK+IN+S111%2C125+RACE&pqatl=google and equalled the Aqueduct

Aqueduct Racetrack

Aqueduct Racetrack is a thoroughbred horse-racing facility and racino in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. Its racing meets usually are from late October/early November through April.-History:...

 track record time of 1:16 in his win in the 6½ furlong Futurity Stakes. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20817FC39591A728DDDAE0A94D1405B848AF1D3 Bold Lad's performances made him a unanimous selection as the 1964 American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/472287682.html?dids=472287682:472287682&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Nov+24%2C+1964&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=Bold+Lad+Unanimous+Top+2-Year-Old+Pick&pqatl=google

Bold Lad II

Beatrice Mills Forbes, Lady Granard

Beatrice Mills Forbes, 8th Countess of Granard

Beatrice Mills, OBE was an American-born heiress. The daughter of the very wealthy Ogden Mills, she was a twin to Gladys, and brother to Ogden. In 1909, she married Bernard Forbes, 8th Earl of Granard with whom she had four children...

, a sister to Gladys Mills Phipps and Ogden L. Mills, bred the British mare Barn Pride to Bold Ruler, producing a colt in 1964 she also named Bold Lad. Bold Lad II

Bold Lad II

Bold Lad II was a Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred by American-born Beatrice Mills Forbes, 8th Countess of Granard, sister of Gladys Mills Phipps and Ogden L. Mills who owned his sire, Bold Ruler...

 raced in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, where he too won Champion Two-Year-Old Colt honors.

Three-year-old season

At the end of 1964, Thomas Trotter, handicapper for The Jockey Club

The Jockey Club

The Jockey Club, formed on February 9, 1894, is the keeper of The American Stud Book. It came into existence after James R. Keene spearheaded a drive in support of racehorse trainers who had complained about the Board of Control that governed racing in New York State.-History:On its formation, The...

, assigned Bold Lad high weight for 1965 of 130 pounds in the Experimental Free Handicap. The exceptional weight was higher than even the legendary Secretariat

Secretariat (horse)

Secretariat was an American Thoroughbred racehorse, that in 1973 became the first U.S. Triple Crown champion in 25 years, setting new race records in two of the three events in the Series—the Kentucky Derby , and the Belmont Stakes —records that still stand today.Secretariat was sired by Bold...

, who was allotted 129 pounds in 1972. http://www.nytimes.com/1987/02/04/sports/capote-is-rated-best-of-the-3-year-olds.html Bold Lad remained the winterbook favorite for the first leg of the 1965 U.S. Triple Crown

United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing

In the United States, the "Triple Crown" is usually the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, a series of three Thoroughbred horse races for three-year-old horses run in May and early June of each year consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.While Daily Racing Form...

 series, the Kentucky Derby

Kentucky Derby

The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...

. However, in early February he suffered a popped splint

Splints

Splints is an ailment of the horse or pony, characterized by a hard, bony swelling, usually on the inside of a front leg, lying between the splint and cannon bone or on the splint bone itself. It may be "hot," meaning that it occurred recently and is still painful; or "cold," meaning that the...

 in his right foreleg while at Hialeah Park Race Track

Hialeah Park Race Track

The Hialeah Park Race Track is a historic site in Hialeah, Florida. Its site covers 40 square blocks of central-east side Hialeah from Palm Avenue east to East 4th Avenue, and from East 22nd Street on the south to East 32nd Street on the north. On March 5, 1979, it was added to the U.S...

. He did not return to racing until April 5, when he scored an impressive win over older horses in a six-furlong sprint at Aqueduct Racetrack. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SnAQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=LosDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4852,330247&dq=bold-lad He then ran third in the 1⅛ mile Wood Memorial Stakes

Wood Memorial Stakes

The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually at Aqueduct Racetrack in Jamaica, New York. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 9 furlongs on dirt....

 but won the Derby Trial Stakes. Sent off in the 1¼ mile Kentucky Derby as the betting

Parimutuel betting

Parimutuel betting is a betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and the "house-take" or "vig" is removed, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among all winning bets...

 favorite, Bold Lad was in contention at the top of the stretch but then tired badly and finished tenth in the field of eleven horses behind winner Lucky Debonair

Lucky Debonair

Lucky Debonair was an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 1965 Kentucky Derby. He was bred by owners Dan and Ada Rice of Wheaton, Illinois at their Danada Farm satellite operation on Old Frankfort Pike near Lexington, Kentucky, a property that once was part of the legendary...

. Bold Lad was diagnosed as suffering from a slight case of anemia

Anemia

Anemia is a decrease in number of red blood cells or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. However, it can include decreased oxygen-binding ability of each hemoglobin molecule due to deformity or lack in numerical development as in some other types of hemoglobin...

 http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10D14FF3D5F147A93C7A8178ED85F418685F9 and did not run in the Preakness Stakes

Preakness Stakes

The Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds ; fillies 121 lb...

 or Belmont Stakes

Belmont Stakes

The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...

. Injured again on June 20, 1965, while working out at Aqueduct Racetrack, Bold Lad underwent surgery and did not race again that year.

Bold Lad was brought back slowly in his four-year-old season by trainer Eddie Neloy

Edward A. Neloy

Edward Albert "Eddie" Neloy was an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. At age fourteen, he began working at a racetrack then joined the United States Army during World War II...

, who took over the Wheatley Stable when Bill Winfrey retired. Bold Lad returned to racing on April 30, 1966, with a win at Garden State Park

Garden State Park

Garden State Park was a harness and thoroughbred race track in Cherry Hill, Camden County, New Jersey. It is now the site of a high-end, mixed-use "town center" development of stores, restaurants, apartments, townhouses, and condominiums...

. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DSATAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lwUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6239,1126791&dq=bold-lad On May 6, at Aqueduct Racetrack, he won the Alerted Purse and then on May 18 won the Roseben Handicap

Roseben Handicap

The Roseben Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1940 through 1995. Hosted by Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, it was open to horses age three and older. A Grade III event at the time of its cancellation, it was contested on dirt over a distance of six...

 by a solid three lengths. Still at Aqueduct, on May 30, 1966, Bold Lad won the prestigious Metropolitan Handicap

Metropolitan Handicap

The Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile," is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the last week of May at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile .The Met Mile was first...

 by two-and-a-half lengths while running the mile in 1:34 1/5 under 132 pounds. Unbeaten after four starts, Bold Lad was entered in the Suburban Handicap

Suburban Handicap

The Suburban Handicap is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is run at the classic one-and-one-quarter mile distance on dirt for a $400,000 purse....

. He was assigned 135 pounds, the highest weight for that race since Grey Lag

Grey Lag

Grey Lag was a thoroughbred race horse born in Kentucky and bred by John E. Madden. At his Hamburg Place near Lexington, Kentucky, Maddon had a good stallion called Star Shoot which he bred to all his mares. Out of a failed racemare called Miss Minnie who had produced no previous winners, he got...

 in 1923. On an extremely hot day, he finished sixth to winner Buffle, who carried 110 pounds. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=QkkNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cGwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5611,727961&dq=suburban+handicap Jockey Braulio Baeza

Braulio Baeza

Braulio Baeza is an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey. He began racing in 1955 and in 1960, at the urging of agent Camilo Marin, moved to compete in the United States where at the Keeneland Race Course he won the very first he competed in.Braulio Baeza's success in America was...

 said that the Bold Lad seemed to favor his left ankle after the finish of the race. Precautionary x-rays were taken and on August 2, 1966, it was announced that Bold Lad was to be retired to stud

Stud (animal)

A stud animal is a registered animal retained for breeding. The terms for the male of a given animal species usually imply that the animal is entire—that is, not castrated—and therefore capable of siring offspring...

. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30815F73459117B93C0A91783D85F428685F9

Despite his shortened 1966 campaign, at the end of the year Bold Lad was runnerup to Bold Bidder

Bold Bidder

Bold Bidder was an American Thoroughbred racehorse.-Background:Bred by the Wheatley Stable partnership of Gladys Mills Phipps and her brother, Ogden L. Mills, Bold Bidder was sired by their very great stallion Bold Ruler, an eight-time Leading sire in North America and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame...

 in the voting by the Thoroughbred Racing Association for 1966 American Champion Older Male Horse honors.

While Bold Lad sired a number of good offspring as a stallion in Kentucky, France, and Japan, none were able to match his success on the track.

Successor

Successor (horse)

Successor was an American Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. He was bred and raced by Gladys Phipps and her brother Ogden L. Mills under their Wheatley Stable banner...

, a full brother to Bold Lad bred by Wheatley Stable and foaled in 1964, also won American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt honors.