Feature Race | Auction | Breeding | General | Hall of Fame | Harness | Interviews | Mixed Breed | New Players | Racing | Site Updates | Steeplechasing | Steward's Cup | Triple Crown
Hall of Fame - Foreigner
Original article written by Matty Dubs posted 14 years 3 weeks agoForeigner (Arazi x Miatuschka (General Holme)) is one ‘hot blooded’ legend of the SIM racing world. In 15 starts, she never finished worse than second place, while her “whacky” pedigree makes her incomparable in the shed. As the first star for Hall of Famer Jennifer Stewart, she was an absolute terror on the track. Whether it was the girls or the boys, nobody wanted to enter the starting gate with Foreigner. She was never rattled by the magnitude of a race. She would always keep her cool; some might say she was as ‘cold as ice’.
When Foreigner was running, the SIM was still very young. In fact, she was one of the very first homebred winners in history. Foreigner was able to break her maiden at five and a half furlongs. Though she would win seven other races in her career, nothing quite ‘feels like the first time’ you make it to the winner circle. This win was so exciting that Foreigner fell just short to a fellow legendary filly, Wait a Minute. After the loss, Foreigner would not lose to a filly for over a year.
Stewart brought her prized filly to the West Coast for the Oak Leaf Stakes. Though Wait a Minute was not in attendance, Foreigner was able to defeat another very nice filly in A.P. Alert. This race acted as a prep for the second ever Stewards Cup Juvenile Fillies. In order to come up with the victory, Foreigner would not only have to defeat A.P. Alert again, but also avenge her loss to Wait a Minute. Foreigner was a ‘long, long way from home’, having been bred in Argentina, but she owned Louisville Downs on this day. After the win, Stewart decided it was time for Foreigner to face a new challenge.
As a three year old, Foreigner was put on a prep schedule that would allow her to face the boys on the Triple Crown trail. The first prep came in the Youthful Stakes in Florida. It was here that Foreigner would first meet up with Hall of Famer, Tilt A Whirl. Tilt A Whirl was coming off a second place finish in the Stewards Cup Juvenile, so a win in this spot would confirm Foreigner’s status as a worthy adversary for the boys. Sure enough, Foreigner emerged victorious and became the talk of the town. Her legend was growing so quickly that only one horse dared to enter against her in the Southern California Oaks. Racing enthusiasts were talking about her at water coolers, vending machines, and jukeboxes alike. You could say she was a bit of a ‘jukebox hero’.
It was time for the Louisville Derby and Foreigner had more than a fighting chance at winning the race. Rival Wait a Minute joined Foreigner in this battle against the boys, but it was Foreigner that pushed Tilt A Whirl until the last instant. She did fall short, but it was a strong run nonetheless. After Foreigner beat Tilt A Whirl in one of the Derby preps, Stewart had no reason to believe that Foreigner was not up to the task of facing Tilt A Whirl again. Sure enough, they met up once again at the Baltimore Crown where Tilt A Whirl emerged victorious once again. With Tilt A Whirl only one leg away from winning the Triple Crown, Stewart knew she had to send Foreigner to Long Island for one last shot against Tilt A Whirl. The added length of the Long Island Classic proved to be enough for Foreigner, as she was able to defeat Tilt A Whirl by a length and spoil the Triple Crown bid.
After the Long Island Classic, Foreigner was not done beating up on the boys. She followed the win up with a victory over Marquee de Lys and Charismatic in the Swaps Stakes. Foreigner would only win one more race and that would come against the girls in Year 4. This final win came against A.P. Alert and Rain Dancer, so it is safe to say that Foreigner never lost her talent. These “women” she beat are both foundation mares in many pedigrees throughout the SIM.
Foreigner was never able to repeat her success in the Stewards Cup. She tried twice to win the Stewards Cup Distaff but was unable to overcome Wait a Minute and Excellent Meeting in her two attempts. Foreigner was able to win the Stewards Cup Juvenile Fillies, but ‘that was yesterday’ and did not take the sting out of the near misses.
The whacky pedigree of Foreigner has prevented her from being an overwhelming influence in the SIM. She was essentially bred to dominate on the AW synthetic tracks but they did not exist when Foreigner was still alive. She was a pioneer of breeding in the SIM world and needs to be remembered as such. She is truly deserving of this Hall of Fame vote. Some might say it was ‘urgent’ that she got elected in soon because the risk of her being forgotten was slowly growing. That would be unfortunate because you would have to be drunk with ‘double vision’ to not recognize Foreigner’s talent.
Foreigner: Most trainers will forever be ‘waiting for a girl like you’.