THE MANITOULIN EXPOSITOR Wednesday, February 5, 200£ 'Little Current' oldest winner of a Triple Crown race dies by Tom Sasvari MONROE, WASHINGTON — The oldest living winner of a Triple Crown race, named after the town of Little Current, passed away recently. Little Current, winner of the Preakness and Belmont Stakes, and champion three- year old colt of 1974, died Sunday, January 19th, at 5 a. m. He had become ill with colic the previous evening, and had to be euthanized when his condition failed to respond to intensive medical treatment, said Dr. Mark Hansen, who along with his wife Dr. Ann Hansen, both veterinarians, had taken care of the horse since 1995. He explained a postmortem examination on Little Current, who was 32, identified the cause of the colic as a strangulation of the small intestine, caused by a benign fatty tumor. Ann Hansen said that the cause of death is fairly common in a horse as old as Little Current, and noted that surgery wouldn't have been fair for Little Current to undergo. "He is missed already. We keep thinking he is there... he was so intelligent, had such personality, presence, he was constantly aware of everything that was taking place around him. We've never seen anything like him, he was exceptional. We have boarded other horses, but there was nothing like Little Current. He was quite the charmer as well. " "Even at the end he maintained his class and dignity. Normally, a horse with this disease will fling themselves on the ground when they are near the end, but not him, he accepted his disease and allowed us to continue with his treatment, and kept his wits about him. I'm sure he realized he couldn't win the battle against this disease, but he was quite determined to get through this. You could see how he won so many races. He might not have been physically as strong as others, but he was mentally superior than other horses, and I'm sure these qualities also led to his winning races, " said Dr. Ann Hansen. John W. Galbraith, owner and breeder of Little Current, gave him the name in reference to the former town of Little Current (now Northeastern Manitoulin and the Islands), where the family owned, and still does have a cottage in the area. Mr. Galbraith was the former owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates in Major League Baseball. A Darby Dan homebred trained by Lou Rondinello, Little Current won the second and third legs of the Triple Crown in 1974 and was voted as the year's champion three-year-old colt. A rangy chestnut, who had an explosive finishing kick, most experts felt he could have won the Kentucky Derby, and the Triple Crown, if not for facing traffic problems with the record field of 23 horses. He made his standard stretch run in the race, coming from about 22 lengths back to finish in fifth behind the winner, Cannonade. It is interesting to note that after this year a new rule was instituted limiting the Derby Field to 20. Again, in the Preakness Stakes, Little Current fell behind the field, but blew by 11 horses to claim the second jewel of the Triple Crown by a resounding sever lengths. He followed the same pattern to win the Belmont, both under jockey Miguel Rivera, three weeks later. A son of Sea-Bird, Little Current completed his championship season with runner- up finishes to Holding Pattern in the Travers Stakes and the Mon-mouth Invitational Handicap. No doubt, Little Current's biggest fan has been Kevin I Grace, a Baltimore I bred racing buff. He even works at a horse track, Maryland Racing Commission's licensing office. He has been lobbying for the horse to be inducted in the National Museum and Racing Hall of Fame. After visiting Little Current in 1992, he saw a tape of the 1974 Preakness, he recognized that he'd been close to true greatness. Mr. Grace had visited Little Current on a regular basis, and was actually supposed to visit him again, on January 20. "Since there is talk of cloning everything, I wish he could have been cloned so we would have another 32 years of enjoyment of this great champion, " said Mr. Grace. He is hopeful that Little Current will still be inducted into the hall of fame, however, he noted, "Awards don't determine what we are. People remember for instance a teacher in second grade because of the positive affects they have on our lives. These are the people that have the most impact, and are the most important. " Doug Arnold plans on burying the horse and erecting a monument at his Buck Pond Farm near Lexington, Kentucky.