San Juan Racing Association 1979 - 1980

Beautifully engraved Certificate from the famous San Juan Racing Association issued in 1979 - 1980. This historic document was printed by the Security Columbian Banknote Company and has an ornate block border around it with a vignette of an allegorical man with a racing horse in the background. This item has the printed signatures of the company's officers and is over 20 years old.



Puerto Rico's Racing Legacy

Puerto Rico's racing legacy goes back more than a century to a simpler time when wealthy plantation owners engaged in "friendly" wagers to see whose horse could run farther, and faster. The folk may not have owned the horses, but they rode and bet on them and which made the sport as much theirs as anybody else's. And so the legacy continued.

Organized racing began in the first years of the century when a variety of makeshift tracks sprung across the island. The San Juan-area "hipódromos" proved to have more lasting power and today the names of tracks such as "Las Monjas" and "Quintana" form the very fabric of the island's tradition of racing.

Indeed, these tracks spawned one of racing's most legendary figures, "El Angel de Las Monjas", as he was known to his first generation of followers. Angel Cordero Jr. was literally born and raised on the backstretch, tutored in the art of horsemanship by his father, Angel Cordero Vila, a renowned rider and trainer himself.

Among Puerto Rico's all-time greatest sports legends, Cordero and the late Roberto Clemente are regarded as in a class by themselves. Cordero "carrying Bold Forbes the last half-mile" in the 1976 Belmont Stakes and Clemente's heroics in the 1971 World Series were landmark events that surpassed the realm of sports and spilled over into the social consciousness of people.

Bold Forbes, is arguable the finest thoroughbred to have ever trod the surface at El Comandante though he only raced here five times. Little over a decade later Bold Forbes passed on the title of "Puerto Rican Wonder Horse" to a speedball named Mister Frisky. The Santa Anita Derby winner bore the cursed role of flop-favorite in Unbridled's Kentucky Derby romp, but the colt spurred an interest in racing unseen since the Cordero-Bold Forbes duo captured the limelight.

Mister Frisky's road to the Triple Crown began with a perfect 13-for-13 record at El Comandante, including four straight record-setting performances in his last four starts here. His seven furlong mark of 1:21.3 of the 3 Kings Day Stakes in 1990 stood until October 1 1995, when Bandit Bomber with Angel J. Cordero, Jr. in the mount (making a comeback after having retired), stopped the timer in 1:21.2 .

Stories tend to have a certain circularity and the path from Cordero to Bold Forbes to Mister Frisky returns again to the grand master, for Cordero shared his backstretch childhood with buddies like Juan Manuel "Guengo" Rodríguez. While Cordero went on to international fame, Rodríguez gained weight and opted to follow in his father's and uncle's footsteps, becoming one of Puerto Rico's foremost trainers. Rodríguez' uncle was nicknamed "Mano Santa" (Holy Hand) --a tribute to his penchant for turning cheap claimers into champions-- and "Guengo" showed he inherited the family touch when he guided, yes, Mister Frisky through the colt's unbeaten streak at El Comandante.

Rodríguez, who set the standing records for most winners saddled and most stakes won by a trainer the same year he unveiled Mister Frisky, is currently joined in the ranks of trainers by his father, Juan Rodríguez Díaz, and his son, Juan "Tolly" Rodríguez, Jr. We are still awaiting a one-two-three blanket family-finish.

In recent years, native-breeds, horse foaled in Puerto Rico, have dominated the affections of local racing fans. Vuelve Candy B., El Comandante's first millionaire horse,won the local Triple Crown in 1991 and remained a champion handicap until 1995. A scrawny-looking filly with the heart of champion, Imbuia Pajoqui, overcame her questionable conformation to emerge Horse of the Year in 1993. The filly beat all comers of all ages and genders, and even found the chink in Candy B's armor, on her way to more than $500,000 in purses.

Leading Jockeys:

1997 - Javier Santiago; 1996 - Javier Santiago; 1995 - Omar Rodríguez; 1994 - Wilfredo Rohena; 1993 - Alexis Feliciano; 1992 - Julio A. García; 1991 - Alexis Feliciano; 1990 - Edwin Castro



Leading Trainers:

1997-1996-1995-1994-1993-1992-1991: Candelario Bonilla; 1990: Pedro Díaz Marín.

TRACK RECORDS Native

Dist. Horse (Date) Time Dist. Horse (Date) Time 5 f. El Frances (Feb.'78) :57.4 7 f. Miss Bell (Feb. '83) 1:22.4 5 1/2 f. Capa Prieto (Nov.'81) 1:03.8 1 1/16 m. Ribots Verset (May.'78) 1:42.8 6 f. Another Norin H (Nov. '83) 1:09.6 1 1/8 m. Verset Dancer (Nov. '83) 1:50.2 6 1/2 f. Tahonera (Feb. '83) 1:16 1 3/16 m. Ribots Verset (May. '78) 1:58 - - - 1 5/8 m. Tio Heberto (Mar. '96) 2:51.8

Imported

Dist. Horse (Date) Time Dist. Horse (Date) Time 5 f. Lozier Kaplan (Apr.'78) :57.1 7 f. Bandit Bomber (Oct. '95) 1:21.2 5 1/2f Bandit Bomber (Sep.'94) 1:02.3 1 1/16 m. Shake Shake Shake (Jun.'78) 1:42.3 6 f. Bandit Bomber (Aug. '95) 1:09.1 1 1/8 m. Dr. Abraham (Jun '96) 1:48.4 6 1/2 f. Bo Judged (May. '89) 1:15.1 1 3/16 m. Alligator Man (Jul. '78) 1:56.3 - - - 1 5/8 m. My Last Dee Cee (Jan 94) 2:47.2



History Of Horse Racing In Puerto Rico

Horse racing was one of the many revolutionary concepts brought by the Spanish colonization to the island. "Las carreras de caballos" were popular among the settlers who held them as part of their "fiestas patronales", or town celebrations. Races were run along otherwise regular town streets, while balconies and windows served as the "Grandstand" for the heavily wagered events.

Generation after generation, the sport developed in this fashion until the 1920's when the first racetrack was built at Santurce's "Parada 20". The rustic but operational facility was followed by "Hipódromo Quintana" in Hato Rey; "Hipódromo Las Casas" in Villa Palmeras, "Las Monjas" in Hato Rey, one in the city of Ponce and another in San German. As many as three racetracks operated at one time in this 35 by 100 miles Caribbean island, proving the strong traditional roots of the sport.

Recognizing the popularity and income potential of racing, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico granted the San Juan Racing Association an exclusive license to operate a racetrack in 1954. Upon its inauguration in 1957, the original El Comandante in Carolina brought to the island the most modern racing technology of the times.

Throughout the years, the facility underwent significant improvements, such as a complete Clubhouse remodeling in 1969. Purses increased up to the point where only five years after its inauguration, ten of racing's top performers had received prizes exceeding $900,000, an unprecedented figure at that time, and a definite incentive for the increasing number of horse-owners.

In October of 1976, following a $40 million investment, El Nuevo Comandante was inaugurated in Canóvanas to replace the outdated existing facility. The new structure far exceeded the expectations of racing fans who enjoyed getting acquainted with 257 acres of beautiful landscaped property that included a one mile oval racing strip with a seven furlong chute, a 65-foot wide exercise track, a fully equipped barn area, a six-level grandstand with a total capacity in excess of 12,000, and a paved parking area for more than eight thousand vehicles.

Although some fifteen minutes further away from the city than the previous facility and without the benefit of public transportation on the route, the amenities of the new facilities and a good amount of door prizes and promotions motivated fan attendance. The new facilities brandished attractive food concession services, a glass enclosed restaurant, and a beautiful infield featuring three lakes, a fountain and a waterfall.

The beginning of the 90's, however, encountered a more demanding, convenience-oriented racing fan, who preferred to participate and enjoy the sport closer to home. El Comandante met this challange with a state-of-the-art computer system at every one of the off-track betting centers that comprises the "SEA Hípico" network, complemented by a five-star quality television broadcast.

As we greet the 21st century, the Puerto Rican racing industry will continue to adapt to advancements in technology and the demands of racing fans, as horse racing will undoubtedly continue to be an integral part of the Puerto Rican tradition.