Dream Derby: The Myth and Legend of Black Gold

By Avalyn Hunter

Book Overview

On May 18, 1924, households across America opened their morning newspapers to learn that the Kentucky Derby winner was owned by a member of the Oklahoma Osage Nation named Rosa M. Hoots. The horse, draped in the iconic red roses signifying his victory in the fiftieth running of the Kentucky Derby, was Black Gold, whose dam had once competed in unsanctioned bush races. In a sport defined by its exclusivity, the pair's unlikely appearance in the winner's circle set off a firestorm of speculation. Black Gold's dam, Useeit, had been purchased by Al Hoots, for whom she won 32 of a staggering 122 races. What Useeit lacked in prestige, she made up for in gumption-a trait Hoots believed could propel her progeny to the hallowed ground of Churchill Downs. Hoots died unexpectedly in 1917 before Black Gold was born, but the legend that came to define the horse began with him. It was said that on his deathbed, Hoots had a prophetic dream in which a colt born to Useeit won the Kentucky Derby. He extracted a promise from his wife, Rosa, to breed the mare to the stallion Black Toney. The pairing came to fruition three years after Hoots's death, and it would forever change Thoroughbred racing. In Dream Derby: The Myth and Legend of Black Gold, Avalyn Hunter explores the champion Thoroughbred's life, career, and legacy. Against the backdrop of a make-or-break moment for American horse racing and politics and framed by the racial violence that rocked Tulsa, Oklahoma, in the 1920s, Black Gold's remarkable Golden Jubilee victory stands at the intersection of sport and history.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813199190
• ISBN13: 9780813199191
• Release Date: August 2023
• Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
• Length: 232 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.2" x 8.7"