Speedy Somolli
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| Speedy Somolli | |
|---|---|
| Breed | Standardbred |
| Sire | Speedy Crown |
| Grandsire | Speedy Scot |
| Dam | Somolli |
| Damsire | Star's Pride |
| Sex | Stallion |
| Foaled | 1975 |
| Died | 2007 |
| Country | United States |
| Colour | Bay |
| Owner | Ann Beissinger Barbara Mumma |
| Trainer | Howard Beissinger |
| Record | 1:55 |
| Earnings | $427,550 |
| Major wins | |
| Yonkers Trot (1978) Hambletonian Stakes (1978) | |
| Awards | |
| Two-Year-Old Trotter of the Year (1977) | |
| Honours | |
| United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame (2003)[1] | |
Speedy Somolli (April 17, 1975 – 2007) was an American standardbred racehorse who won the 1978 Hambletonian Stakes.
Speedy Somolli was foaled in 1975 at Robert and Barbara Mumma's family farm in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.[2]
Speedy Somolli was out of Somolli, a Star's Pride mare picked by Howard Beissinger for Barbara Mumma after she proved unsuitable for racing and was bred to Speedy Crown.[3]
As a yearling, he was brought to Lexington, Kentucky by Howard Beissinger to be broken to harness.[2]
Racing career
Two-year-old season
As a two-year-old, Speedy Somolli won 10 of his 16 starts, banking $65,146.[2]
He broke a 10-year-old Illinois State Fair record with a sub-2:00 mile in winning the $39,000 Greyhound Trot on August 17, 1977. He collected $13,700 after he covered the mile oval in 1:59.3 in the final heat, surpassing the 2:00.1 mark set by Nevele Pride in 1967. He became the first two-year-old trotter ever to break the two-minute barrier at the Illinois State Fairgrounds Racetrack.[4]
On September 2, 1977, the Beissinger-trained trotter participated in the Castleton Farm Stakes at the Du Quoin Fairgrounds. In the first heat, Speedy Somolli trotted 1:57⅖, breaking the 10-year-old world record held by Nevele Pride, which was then beaten in the following heat.[5]
He was selected as the Two-Year-Old Trotter of the Year in December 1977 by the United States Harness Writers Association.[6]
Three-year-old season
At three years old, Speedy Somolli won half of his 20 races and was voted overall Trotter of the Year.[7]
Before 20,000 fans, Speedy Somolli won the 24th Yonkers Trot in August 1978, collecting a share of $116,797. It marked the first of the three races that formed the Trotting Triple Crown for three-year-olds.[8]
On September 2, 1978, he competed in the 53rd annual Hambletonian Stakes at the DuQuoin State Fair, with Howard Beissinger driving.[9] Speedy Somolli captured the first heat in 1:55, a world record for the fastest mile by a trotter of any age.[10] After losing the second heat, Speedy Somolli captured the third in 1:57 to win the $120,640 first prize.[9] The combined time of the three heats set a world record for the one-mile distance.[11]
By winning the first two legs, the Hambletonian winner was eligible for the Kentucky Futurity in Lexington, the last leg of the Triple Crown of Trotting.[9] At The Red Mile, Speedy Somolli went off gait in both heats, resulting in defeat in the Kentucky Futurity.[6] Throughtout his career, he had a history of breaking stride in races.[8]
Stud record
At the end of the racing season in October 1977, the two-year-old world champion was sold to Lana Lobell Farms, one of the largest horse farms in the country.[3] Speedy Somolli was syndicated as a stallion for $2,000,000.[12] When he was retired to stud, he began with a $5,000 stud fee, which later climbed to $20,000.[7]
In 1984, the United States Trotting Association listed Speedy Somolli as the nation's second-leading sire by average offspring earnings ($33,459).[7]
After eleven years at Lana Lobell Farms, Speedy Somolli was sold to European interests in 1989.[1]