1995 Kentucky Derby - Thunder Gulch

The high-class filly didn't make it, but the "blue-collar worker" of the barn did.
Thunder Gulch, sent to the East last winter by D. Wayne Lukas as one of his second-string race horses, the "forgotten man" of the stable, won the 121st Kentucky Derby by 21/4 lengths today over Tejano Run at odds of 24-1. And one head farther back in third place, after passing six horses in the homestretch, came the star colt of the Lukas cast of talent, the juvenile champion of last year, Timber Country.
But Serena's Song, the 36th filly to run in the Derby, failed to become the fourth to win it. After leading for one mile, she wearied of the battle and faded, finishing 16th in the field of 19 and casting doubt on the wisdom of the decision taken one week ago and announced by Lukas on national television: "She will run in the Derby and dare to be great."
www.nytimes.com...

[@TitanicHorseRacingLover]

One year ago today, we said goodbye. Miss you , Thunder Gulch.

[@mes71994]

The fountain of youth and florida derby winner goes off at 25 to 1. Youll never see that again

[@delstaigers-cornettrumpets7920]

that's because no horse had ever won from that post before. You NEEDED a buzzer to get him out of the gate and rushed into position by the first turn. Then you needed the buzzer one more time at the top of the stretch because he was WASTED by the exertion getting to the first turn. The owner, Michael tabor had a $50,000 win bet. You don't risk that kind of money without inside info.

[@trevmac8362]

Thunder Gulch (foaled May 23, 1992 in Kentucky - March 19, 2018) Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner 1995.. R.I.P beautiful

[@stevewhitaker6006]

The absolute best call ever and by far my favorite derby

[@TitanicHorseRacingLover]

RIP Thunder Gulch. He is the legit winner.

[@Caroni100]

And also.... * R. I. P. Robert B. "Bob" Lewis, (May 12, 1924 - February 17, 2006) and Beverly Lewis (1927 - 2017) Serena´s Song owners in 121st. Kentucky Derby. They won 123rd. and 125th. Kentucky Derby with Silver Charm and Charismatic. * R. I. P. Garret Keith Gomez (January 1, 1972 - December 14, 2016) Dazzling Falls ´jockey in 121st. Kentucky Derby. He won 3.769 races from 1988 to 2015. In August 2017, he was posthumously inducted into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame in 2017. * R. I. P. Randy Paul Romero (December 22, 1957 - August 29, 2019) Wild Syn´s jockey in 121st. Kentucky Derby. He won 4,285 races from 1975 to 1999 and was inducted inducted into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame in 2010. * R. I. P. Chris Antley (January 6, 1966 - December 2, 2000) In character´s jockey in 121st. Kentucky Derby. he won 3,480 races from 1982 to 2000 and was inducted inducted into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame in 2015. * R. I. P. James Kenneth "Jim" McManus (September 24, 1921 - June 7, 2008) better known professionally as Jim McKay, an American television sports journalist. We´ll always remember them! Greetings from Venezuela.

[@marklewen9384]

At 12:12 you early see gary Stevens passes the buzzer to pat day. Scumbags...

[@elchavosalsero]

BUZZZZZ!!

[@stevewhitaker6006]

My favorite derby .. great call by Dave Johnson

[@WindowsPlus]

The Fountain of Youth and Florida Derby winner goes aff at 25-1. WOW

[@michaelpflug394]

Corey would in fact not get a Derby one of these days. Still one heck of a rider.

[@brianking3541]

I was working at a KOA at Renfro Valley (Eastside of Kentucky) and watched every stakes race leading up to this Derby (very little else to do in the winter/early spring when very few customers were driving through)... I KNEW Thunder Gulch was the top of the three Lukas entries even though the other two had top billing (a 4th place finish in the race leading up to the Derby plummeted his odds... but boy did I know! 😜). The moment it was announced that he was in sixth going into Turn 1, I knew it was his race... he was in the perfect spot with a clear lane... his M/O being to hang 4-5 lengths behind the leaders, let the leaders tire out, and then blast past them going into the stretch. It all played out perfectly with incredible odds. One of my favorite all time horses

[@bluegrassbndit6498]

did anyone else notice that stevens seemed to hand something to day after the race?

[@Copizzle]

bluegrassbndit6498 yea he handed him a fucking handshake you moron.

[@rockers7889]

Buzzer

[@warriordugan7236]

@@Copizzle Idiots shouldn't call others morons when they themselves ARE the moron. Gary Stevens and Pat Day were both riding cheater Wayne Lukas's horses. Gary Stevens DID pass an electric buzzer/machine to Pat Day (2 cheaters) to get rid of it. It was meant to look like a handshake, but it was hiding the pass off of the buzzer. Watch closely in slo-mo at 12:09 for a few seconds.

[@delstaigers-cornettrumpets7920]

@@warriordugan7236 not only that, but the people who fixed the race got to Pat Day's brother a week before the race, beat him to a bloody pulp on the Churchill Downs backstretch and then went to Pat and said "Same thing happens to you if you don't cooperate". 2 weeks later when Day won the Preakness, he wishes his brother a speedy recovery in the post-race ceremony.

[@marklewen9384]

@@delstaigers-cornettrumpets7920 the reason for this can be traced back to peter Brant who owned GULCH Gulch was supposed to be the next MrProspector at stud, but he was quickly becoming a dud. Having a Derby winner was supposed to boost his career and lift his stud fee. Its ALWAYS about the $$$$....

[@TitanicHorseRacingLover]

I celebrate this race on the day of Thunder Gulch's birthday (May 23rd) and the day of his passing, March 19th, which is today. RIP Thunder Gulch.

[@elchavosalsero]

Whoa! Somebody mentioned this on DRF, its totally a buzzer hand-off, wtf?

[@kwgrid]

Yep. If you slide to abut 12:08 to start, you can see Pat reach over empty-handed and when they pulled away there's something black in Pat's hand.

[@stephaniegill-manville2821]

I looked it’s the crop

[@montanamountaingarden476]

@@kwgrid Um this isn't Pat Valenzuela, it's Gary Stevens

[@kwgrid]

@@montanamountaingarden476Um, I was thinking of Pat Day who was on Tejano Run.

[@kwgrid]

@@stephaniegill-manville2821 I said 'Pat', not Gary. I know a crop handle when I see one.

[@rickjones1281]

Dazzling Falls gone at 28..RIP

[@johnmccormick8357]

Thanks for uploading this Edited perfectly

[@jeffedwards2686]

What was that black object that Gary Stevens passed Pat Day after he crossed the wire and celebration? @12:08 mark

[@kwgrid]

March 19, 2018, Thunder Gulch passes away at age 23 from infirmities of old age. :( I picked him as the winner in this race.

[@a.tequestrian4417]

My horse is one of Thunder gulchs off springs

[@jessicapedley4082]

R.I.P Thunder Gulch :(

[@Caroni100]

"The difference between wining a Kentucky Derby and losing a Kentucky Derby, is a US$ 75.000 check for the jockey who won the race and a US$ 100 check for the jockey who arrived sixth or seventh" Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens in an interview (2000) Greetings from Venezuela.

[@Caroni100]

"¿El Derby de Kentucky? Aún no se ha creado un calificativo para describir su grandeza" José Gregorio Guillot, comentarista hípico y productor radial venezolano

[@ashoftheearth]

Stevens handed Day the "buzzer"after the race! So obvious....

[@MrFinsforlife]

Check out the Belmont Stakes. When Stevens and Thunder Gulch are headed back to the Winners Circle. Stevens gives a high five to this guy and it looks to me that gave him something. Gary is a worthless liar

[@tomkassan248]

Rickey Beam LOLOLOL......Gary was returning the favor for P Day for hiding his buzzer in the LiL E Tee Derby.Gary,Day and ESPECIALLY Lukas are scumbags of the highest order.....

[@duquettebeats6312]

Rickey Beam In 1999 jockey Billy Patin won the Arkansas Derby aboard Valhol but later was found guilty of using a small handheld electrical device. He was fined $2,500 and eventually suspended five years for possession of what is called a "buzzer." Valhol also was disqualified from the race, and his owner ordered to return the winning purse. A buzzer, illegal in horse racing, is a battery-powered vibrator used to shock a horse. It produces about 3,000 volts, the same voltage in stun shields sometimes used to control prison inmates. A buzzer, generally hidden in the palm of a jockey's hand, is used to give a horse a mild charge to run faster. Patin's buzzer was the size of a cigarette lighter.

[@duquettebeats6312]

ashoftheearth The horse named Quiet Acceleration may have had another reason to accelerated for a winning finish. Prosecutors alleged that a snapshot of the 'photo finish' shows the jockey has more than. 'Cheating' jockey is caught in finish line photo: Winning rider who 'used secret device to give horse painful electric shocks' exposed Roman Chapa, 43, of Big Spring, Texas, was photographed. A veteran jockey is facing felony charges after being accused of cheating during a race at Sam Houston Race Park on Jan. 17.

[@kwgrid]

There was definitely something black and slightly rectangular left in his hand. Could see it plain as day. If you slide to about 12:03 to start, you can see Pat reach out and he's empty-handed, but when he pulls back there's something black there.

[@davidhaworth7152]

Go to 17:06 watch the replay. Both Gary’s hands are open at points in time without handing anything from one to the other. If he had a buzzer he palms stuff better then a magician.

[@montanamountaingarden476]

@@stevensteviesteve It's called a high five you moron

[@delstaigers-cornettrumpets7920]

@@stevensteviesteve I am a horse player who had $200 to win on Tejano Run. Your comment is insulting to intelligent horse players - people like me who made a living betting horses for over 30 years. Stevens cheated; it is OBVIOUS. You probably aren't aware or maybe forgot that the picture of the buzzer being passed was blown up by the FBI the size of a garage door. The FBI said "THAT IS A 3 DIMENTIONAL OBJECT!!! WHAT IS IT DOING THERE? KY racing commission BEGGED and pleaded with FBI to ignore it because all KY has is the KY Derby and "We can't afford the bad publicity; you know with Pat Day being a so called Christian and whatnot". Get a fucking clue, Gomer.

[@delstaigers-cornettrumpets7920]

@@stevensteviesteve but you agree it was buzzer, right?

[@marklewen9384]

Pat day handed a buzzer to stevens when day won on lil e tee. Go watch it. Undeniable....

[@rockers7889]

They both got buzzed that day first the hossy then da jockey

[@josephhale9198]

Gary Stevens one of the best of all time

[@marklewen9384]

If there is a hell, I hope when Gary stevens gets there i hope there are 100 stallions with buzzers who will continually prod stevens with 200 volts till the end of time. Scumbag...

[@marilynshively670]

Thunder Gulch has passed: may be rest in peace!

[@dominicschiro9939]

I nailed this whole race. And if we would have had a superfecta at this point I would have had it.

[@PatWaitAllDay]

Pat wait all Day riding again on Timber Country. Wait all Day strikes again

[@cab269]

He was the best!!

[@paulpatane2439]

The key to this video is how Stevens takes a second look back or a still shot of Pat Days hand, after he hands it off. You can see Gary makes sure Pat gets it and doesn't drop it. Its a lock, he cheated. Face the facts people.

[@steveroman9553]

And what was the backup plan if Timber Country had finished near the back of the field? Was Stevens supposed to stop after the wire and wait for Day to eventually show up? Ridiculous.

[@delstaigers-cornettrumpets7920]

@@steveroman9553 your reply has nothing to do with what happened. You enable cheating by your willingness to defend Stevens.

[@marklewen9384]

@@steveroman9553 you are a fool. When Pat Day won they DERBY with Lil E Tee in 92 he handed a buzzer to gary stevens at THE SAME EXACT SPOT(go watch it). They do this because the in- house tv feed never continues as horses pass clubhouse turn(only abc showed it thankfully). If pat day didn't come by, stevens would Just have casually dropped it. Some tracks find 2 or 3 buzzers on track after every race...

[@delstaigers-cornettrumpets7920]

@@steveroman9553 total speculation on your part. The video doesn't lie.

[@kmunster04]

Gary Stevens just retired last week due to a cervical spine injury. With all the kudos and praise for a wonderful career from all the "talking heads" and his fellow horsepeople, i think his obvious battery use and handing it to Pat Day during the pull-up is a disgrace. Notice Pat Day's left hand is out (very white) and later there is a black object in it. Freeze it for verification. Also notice Stevens look back a second time to make sure Day received the buzzer. Both horses were trained by the "legendary" D. Wayne Lukas. Supposedly the Kentucky stewards investigated this matter and found no evidence of a battery. Do you think that this event happening in the Kentucky Derby and two Hall of fame jockeys participating in the chicanery had any thing to do with the whitewash? How would it appear if "America's race " was altered this way? Horse racing has enough of an image problem with the general public.

[@montanamountaingarden476]

Um, Hall of Fame jockeys, trainers and owners are just as regulated to follow the rules as the rest of them so I think you're just mad bc you probably bet the favourite and are mad that you got beat by a 25- 1 longshot

[@marklewen9384]

Pat day did SAME EXACT THING on lil e tee 4 years prior. Watch that video...

[@73KHS]

RIP Thunder Gulch 3-19-18

[@trevmac8362]

Thunder Gulch (foaled May 23, 1992 in Kentucky - March 19, 2018) Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner 1995.. R.I.P beautiful

[@Caroni100]

@@trevmac8362 Thunder Gulch (May 23, 1992 - March 19, 2018) * Sire: Gulch * Gransire: Mr. Prospector * Dam: Line of thuder * Grandsire: Storm Bird * Breeder: PeterM. Brant * Owner: Michael Tabor * Trainer: Darrel Wayne Lukas * 16 Starts * 9 Firsts * 2 Seconds * 2 Thirds * Earnings: $ 2,915,086 * 1995 U.S. Champion 3-Year-Old Colt * 2001 Leading sire in North America Rest In Peace, Champion! Greetings from Venezuela

[@beagleman123456789]

Mr. Michael Tabor

[@Caroni100]

Thunder Gulch (May 23, 1992 - March 19, 2018) * Sire: Gulch * Gransire: Mr. Prospector * Dam: Line of thuder * Grandsire: Storm Bird * Breeder: PeterM. Brant * Owner: Michael Tabor * Trainer: Darrel Wayne Lukas * Jockeys: Mike Smith (2 for 2) Gary Stevens (7 for 14) * 16 Starts * 9 Firsts * 2 Seconds * 2 Thirds * $ 2,915,086 earned (Current $ 5,072,171) * 1995 U.S. Champion 3-Year-Old Colt * 2001 Leading sire in North America * Rest In Peace, Champion! * Greetings from Venezuela Thunder Gulch (23 de Mayo, 1992 - 19 de Marzo, 2018) * Padre: Gulch * Abuelo Paterno: Mr. Prospector * Madre: Line of thuder * Abuelo Materno: Storm Bird * Criador: Peter M. Brant * Propietario: Michael Tabor * Entrenador: Darrel Wayne Lukas * Jinetes: Mike Smith (De 2-2) Gary Stevens (De 14-7) * 16 Salidas * 9 Primeros * 2 Segundos * 2 Terceros * $ 2,915,086 producidos ($ 5,072,171 actuales) * Campeón tresañero de Estados Unidos 1995 * Padrillo Líder en Norteamérica 2001 * ¡Descansa En Paz, Campeón! * Saludos desde Venezuela

[@MrCapefear666]

22.2 for the first quarter, surprised the song managed to take them into the stretch

[@Caroni100]

"The Kentucky Derby? There's no an adjective able to describe its greatness" Jose Gregorio Guillot, venezuelan turfman and radio producer

[@paulaspaltonpeterson3660]

Wow! It's plain as day something was handed to Pat Day by Stevens! Disgraceful! One need not wonder why there is so much negativity around this sport when crap like this happens.

[@JepMasta]

I miss Dave Johnson calling the Derby

[@jabbers081769]

who is the other female commendator besides leslie vesser?

[@jabbers081769]

@@lauraconti7434 ty

[@vincentflauto7650]

Timber Country would have won easy with a clean trip!!

[@Caroni100]

Darrel Wayne Lukas (September 2, 1935 - ) * 29,636 Starts (Until July 30, 2022) * 4,873 Wins (Until July 30, 2022) * 4,163 Seconds (Until July 30, 2022) * 3,712 Thirds (Until July 30, 2022) * $ 286,588,527 earned (Until July 30, 2022) * 1985, 1986, 1987 & 1994 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer * 1987, 1988, 1989 & 1990 United States Champion Trainer by wins * 1985 , 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 & 1992 United States Leading stakes-winning trainer * 1983 to 1992 & 1994 to 1997 United States Champion Trainer by earnings * 1998 John W. Galbreath Equine Award * Inducted to The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1999 * Inducted to The American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2007 * 2013 Eclipse Award of Merit * Trainer of 23 World Champion Quarter Horses including Dash for Cash * Well done, Champion! * Best regards from Venezuela Darrel Wayne Lukas (2 de Septiembre, 1935 - ) * 29.636 Salidas (Hasta la fecha actual / 30 de Julio 2022) * 4.873 Primeros (Hasta el 30 de Julio 2022) * 4.163 Segundos (Hasta el 30 de Julio 2022) * 3.712 Terceros (Hasta el 30 de Julio 2022) * $ 286.588.527 producidos (Hasta el 30 de Julio 2022) * Premio Eclispe al Mejor Entrenador 1985, 1986, 1987 & 1994 * Entrenador Campeón en Estados Unidos por carreras ganadas 1987, 1988, 1989 & 1990 * Entrenador más ganador de Clásicos en Estados Unidos 1985 , 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 & 1992 * Entrenador Campeón en Estados Unidos por dinero producido desde 1983 hasta 1992 & desde 1994 hasta 1997 * Premio Equino John W. Galbreath 1998 * Exaltado al Museo Nacional de las Carreras y Salón de la Fama en 1999 * Exaltado al Salón de la Fama del Caballo Americano Cuarto de Milla en 2007 * Premio Eclipse al Mérito 2013 * Entrenador de 23 Caballos Campeones Mundiales Cuarto de Milla incluyendo a Dash for Cash * ¡Bravo, Campeón! * Saludos desde Venezuela

[@shortnanxious6088]

Take

[@ken45y]

They are all crooks? With all the people involved in this sport and not taking the time to get to know them and how they operate you cannot judge.

[@ken45y]

stephen farrar And I know what I am talking about too.

[@ken45y]

As I said before you cannot judge all. That is what you are doing, Stephen. Just because Stevens said he did does that mean Sutherland, Elliott etc will? And with the whip some Jockeys won't use it.

[@danieldobrosky8378]

My girl suicide pace

[@21Sarabi]

Sorry but because of trainers like Zito and Lucas you can't then go and say the rest are like them. Even if one has been in the business for 33 years you'd think you'd see that as well. There are people who actually care. It's like saying all Christians are hypocrites when in fact that is not true.

[@delstaigers-cornettrumpets7920]

I lost a lot of respect for Pat Day who was once a friend of mine. He's no longer my friend, for this and for his support of keeping black people away from the ballot box.

[@10shutt1]

just a hand shake

[@ljunior75]

Buzzard hand shake