The Lovable Loser !
Zippy's Last Hurrah!It's an overcast mid October afternoon as the fall Belmont meet is winding down. At around three PM, 12 horses are loading for the fifth race, a mile and one sixteenth affair for maiden special weights, on the turf. Jockey Mike Smith guides his horse into the eleven hole with one left to load. The gate opens Smith has his horse in hand and at the half rushes up to third a length of the lead, then for no reason his horse falls back through the pack, Zippy Chippy is done for the day. Not every race that he ran had carnival rides in the background.
Zippy Chippy started his career at Belmont Park, he had some decent pedigree in his line and there probably was some expectation he would become a decent racehorse. His first seven races were on the NYRA circuit, five at Belmont and two at Aqueduct, all Maiden Special Weight races. His jockeys included the aforementioned Mike Smith, Julio Pezua, Robbie Davis, Jose Santos, Jorge Chavez and Richard Migliore. Even when he shipped to Finger Lakes he had the services of Kevin Whitley and Leslie Hulet, two legends at the Farmington oval.
Zippy,s races at Northampton weren't his first in Massachusetts, in 1995 he made a handful of starts at Suffolk Downs, before heading back to Finger Lakes, where he would race for the next four years before being banished for life at that track, for several failures to leave the starting gate. It was at Finger Lakes, where he came under the care of lifetime friend and trainer Felix Monserrate.
Northampton Stewards StandShortly after a race on June 3, 1995, Monserrate traded an old horse van with Zippy's original breeder, for ownership of the horse. They would remain together for around 15 years, before Monserrate sold Zippy Chippy, assured that he would spend his days at a retirement home for thoroughbred race horses, and what a fifteen years it was.
Until he was banished from Finger Lakes, things were pretty dull, but Zippy came close to ruining his career on October 3, 1995 when he finished with a rush to finish second in a five and one half furlong race, had the race been six furlongs, Zippy Chippy would just have been another horse. After his last Finger Lakes race, it was almost a year before Zippy returned to Massachusetts, at the Three County Fair in Northampton, for his only start of 1999. A new millennium and a new Zippy Chippy were on the horizon.
It was opening day of the 2000 fair season at Northampton, and there was excitement that wasn't seen in years about the racing this year. Zippy Chippy was back in town. I was there that day to see probably Zippy's best race of his career. It was a five furlong sprint, when the gate opened Zippy went to the lead and was soon joined by the favorite Black Rifle, these two raced head to head around the tight turns, five lengths ahead of the rest of the field. When they hit the wire Zippy who had lead most of the way came up a head short, the streak continues, or does it? At the Northampton Fairgrounds, the judges stand was located in a tower in the infield, at the finish line, near the paddock. When jockey's wanted to claim foul they would climb half way up the stairs and plead their case. No sooner then he got off his horse a jockey with green silks was on the steps waving his arms. Juan Rohena was pleading his case the Zippy was interfered with. I was in the infield but on the backstretch side with no view of the stretch, so I never saw what happened. Obviously the outcome was no surprise. The next scare would come in 2003.
Zippy made one more start in 2000 at Northampton, a third place finish with no drama. In 2001 Zippy surfaced at Penn National in February, for a dismal performance, but he didn't get banished. In the fall he returned to Northampton for two poor outings closing out 2001. In 2002, Zippy returned to Penn National in January for two more dismal efforts, maybe he got banned this time. In the fall he returned to Northampton for three poor efforts, the count is now at 96. In 2003, Zippy shows up at Thistledown's in April, count now 97. Start 98 is back at the Three County Fair in September, a five furlong event. Zippy Chippy who hadn't shown any sign of life for over three years, jumps out to a six length lead, the lead evaporated to a length by the head of the stretch and Zippy finished second a length and a half back, the streak is 98, or is it? Again there's a jockey standing on the stewards stairs, it's not Howard Lanci who rode Zippy, but the rider of the third place horse Willie Belmonte claimed foul against the winner, which allowed would have wrecked Zippy's sting at 98, but once again Zippy dodges another bullet. In 2004 Zippy came back for loss number 99 and 100, Zippy showed no form and never returned to race, although he did return to the track.
After his retirement, Zippy Chippy did a short stint as an outrider pony at his home track, Finger Lakes in 2005. After that he spent his day's with the Monserrate family, who claimed he was family, until a deal was struck that sent him to Cabin Creek Farm in Greenfield, New York. Cabin Creek is affiliated with Old Friends a retirement farm for race horses in Kentucky. Zippy Chippy, gained national attention in 2000, when he made People Magazines, list of most interesting personalities. In 2001, Zippy was involved in what were billed as a couple of "publicity stunts", hey a guys gotta make a living.
On March 17, 2001, which just happened to be St. Patrick's Day, Zippy raced the appropriately named Paddy's Laddy, a harness horse in a match race at Freehold Raceway. After spotting the pacer an eight of a mile Zippy ran down the standardbred to prevail by a head and notch the first victory of his career. In August of 2001 Zippy headed another promotion, this time he raced humans. It happened in Rochester, at the Rochester Red Wings baseball stadium and involved player from the team. It seems there were three, roughly forty yard dashes, the first in true Zippy fashion, he dwelt at the start and was soundly beaten. The other two he reportedly won.
On January 1, 2015 Zippy celebrated his twenty fourth birthday, he seems happy being the star at Cabin Creek and I can only assume has lasted a lot longer than that old horse van he was traded for. I had a two dollar win ticket on Zippy Chippy, that hung around for years, that of course, I can't find but I do have my original, first addition Zippy Chippy T-Shirt from 2000.