Kelso (April 4, 1957 – October 16, 1983) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is considered one of the greatest racehorses in history. He ranks fourth on the Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th Century. He defeated more champions and Hall of Fame horses than any other racehorse, and he often carried great handicaps. Some of the champions he defeated are Carry Back, Gun Bow, Bald Eagle, Tompion, Never Bend, Beau Purple, Quadrangle, Roman Brother, Crimson Satan, Jaipur, Ridan and Pia Star.
Background
Kelso's pedigree was undistinguished. Born at Claiborne Farm near Paris, Kentucky, he was sired by a well-known racehorse who was an unproven stallion, Your Host. Kelso's dam was the unheralded Maid of Flight (although her sire was Count Fleet and her grandsire was Man o' War). Kelso was her first foal; he was scrawny, runty and hard to handle. He was a maternal grandson of U.S. Triple Crown champion Count Fleet, who is ranked #5 by The Blood-Horse. Before he set foot on a track, owner Allaire du Pont had him gelded in the hopes of calming him down. According to many, it did not work; Kelso was never a well-mannered horse. He was named for Mrs. du Pont's friend Kelso Everett and, like Mr. Everett, who went by the nickname of "Kelly", so did the horse.
The Right Rev. Arthur Raymond McKinstry was known as Kelso's chaplain. Talking to reporters, McKinstry said, "On the occasion of President Johnson and Mrs. Johnson's 30th wedding anniversary, the White House reporters asked me if I had any other claim to fame. I thought a little while and then had to confess to them that, among my friends in Wilmington, I am casually spoken of as the private chaplain for the great racehorse, Kelso. Taken aback, one reporter turned and asked me, 'Do you mean to say that you direct heavenly words to God on behalf of a racehorse?' 'I don't have to,' I replied. 'Let's say I just sit there with my fingers crossed and hope a little.'"
Early races
Trained by Dr. John Lee and racing for Ms. du Pont's nom de course Bohemia Stable, Kelso, ridden by John Block, made his two-year-old debut on September 4, 1959, at Atlantic City Race Course (at that time one of the country's premier tracks). The race was an ordinary maiden event (which he won). He was lightly regarded in his second start ten days later, when he finished second. The gelding was the favorite in his third race, which was shortly after his second and in which he again placed second. He did not race again as a two-year-old.
Championship seasons
Kelso's three-year-old season began after the Triple Crown races of 1960 were run. Dr. John Lee had returned to his veterinary practice, and Kelso's new trainer was Carl Hanford (inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2006), who handled him for the remainder of his career. Bill Hartack was his jockey for a short time, followed by Eddie Arcaro, who rode Kelso from mid-1960 to November 1961, when he retired as a jockey. In 1962, Ismael Valenzuela became Kelso's principal rider for more than three years.
Kelso's first start as a three-year-old (and first win for Hanford) was at Monmouth Park. Hanford said, "He was an extremely determined horse. If he saw a horse in front, he wanted to get to him. You could take him back or send him to the front. He was an extremely sound horse who was light on his feet with incredible balance. Kelso could wheel on a dime, spinning round in a circle and never letting his feet touch each other." After the Monmouth race, he won eight of his next nine starts: a mile race at Aqueduct Racetrack in a record for a three-year-old at that distance, the Choice Stakes, the Jerome Handicap, the Discovery Handicap, the Lawrence Realization Stakes, the Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap and the 2 mile Jockey Club Gold Cup (the latter two against older horses). In the Lawrence Realization, he equaled Man O 'War's time of 2:40-4/5 for 1⅝ miles. In 1960, Kelso was voted Three-Year-Old Champion Male and received the American Horse of the Year award ahead of Bald Eagle.
At age four in 1961, Kelso won seven of nine starts. That year, he was voted Champion Older Horse and again Horse of the Year. In 1962, he won a third Horse of the Year title, taking 28 of the 32 votes in the Daily Racing Form poll. A year later, he was even more dominant, being a unanimous choice for his fourth DRF title, as well as taking the Horse of the Year awards of the Thoroughbred Racing Association and Turf and Sport Digest magazine. Kelso again swept the Horse of the Year awards by all three organisations in 1964.