Gather round to hear the tale of "the undisputed greatest horse in the long history of the Virginia Gold Cup and International Cup" - Saluter. In the spring of 1994, owners Mr. and Mrs. Henry Stern and Jack Fisher entered the five-year-old gelding in the Virginia Gold Cup where he became the youngest Virginia Gold Cup winner since 1953. Saluter started off as a what you might call a Flat Track FAIL and a Jumper FAIL. He was also apparently a mean S.O.B. But Saluter wowed the crowds with amazing come-from-behind finishes, making him a fan favorite. Saluter won 6 consecutive Virginia Gold Cup races and 2 International Cup races. Saluter's course record for the Gold Cup stood for 11 years until 2006 when Kinross Farm's Miles Ahead's time of 8:19 came in just 8 seconds faster. Saluter's rider, Jack Fisher, in turn became the top winning rider at Virginia Gold Cup with nine wins.
“Around the barn, he has always been just a regular horse,” Fisher explains and then points out the “love-hate” relationship the two have always had. “It was like this on the course too,” says Fisher, “I’d ask him to move out and he would sort of snarl for a while, then when he was ready to move ahead, he’d go. And boy, did he move ahead!”
Saluter is now retired, golfing in Florida no doubt (or maybe dead? he would be 21 now so it's hard to say). But in 2008 he made a guest appearance at the races to check out the bronze statue of him erected beside the Great Meadow race course in 2007. Check out this post in the Virginia Thoroughbred Blog for a great article about Steeplechasing's Seabiscuit. Amaze your friends with your steeplechase history saavy!
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