Count Fleet, Winner of the 1943 Triple Crown, Was Owned by John Hertz of Hertz Rental Car

Count Fleet is the name of a famous race horse that won the prized Triple Crown award in 1943. The act of accomplishing the extremely rare Triple Crown feat has only been done by a total of eleven race horses in the nearly 100 year history of the sport. Count Fleet was the sixth horse to ever accomplish the challenging task.

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Count Fleet was born on March 24, 1940 in Paris, Kentucky at a farm called Stoner Creek Stud Farm. Paris, Kentucky is located near the city of Lexington in the center of the state. The race horse that would go onto eventually win the 1943 Triple Crown came from a strong gene pool that included a father named Reigh Count who had won the famed Kentucky Derby in the late 1920s.

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Interestingly, the owner of the thoroughbred offspring of Reigh Count did not think the young colt had much potential and serious considered selling him to the highest bidder. As it turned out keeping the horse rather than selling it was one of the best thoroughbred decisions that owner John Hertz ever made. In the sport of competitive horse racing there is no more prestigious position to be in than the owner of a Triple Crown winning horse.

John Hertz, the owner of Count Fleet, is most famous for the rental car company that he founded. Hertz Rental Car was originally the brainchild of a Slovak American named John Hertz whose family moved from Slovakia to the United States in 1884 when he was five years old. John would go onto become a successful business man (he founded Yellow Cab in addition to Hertz Rental Car), thoroughbred owner, and philanthropist (specifically with military research). John was on the verge of selling what would turn out to be his most accomplished horse before Johnny Longden, his best jockey, wisely talked him out of it.

When Count Fleet won the 1943 Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing he persevered through the same circuit that that championship horses are expected to compete in during the twenty-first century. Capturing a Triple Crown involves winning the three most coveted races in elite thoroughbred racing in consecutive order over a five week span.

The three races that make up the Triple Crown are the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes. The Kentucky Derby is held in Louisville, Kentucky on the first Saturday in May. The Preakness Stakes is held two weeks after the Kentucky Derby on the third Saturday in May in Baltimore, Maryland. The Belmont Stakes are held five weeks after the Kentucky Derby and three weeks after the Preakness in Elmont, New York on Long Island.

Count Fleet retired as a four year old due to a leg injury and spent most of the rest of his life as a sire (sire means a horse that is put out to stud/breed). Count Fleet passed away on December 3, 1973 at the age of 33. Count Fleet spent his last moments of life at the place of his birth on Stoner Creek Stud farm in Paris, Kentucky.

Count Fleet, Winner of the 1943 Triple Crown, Was Owned by John Hertz of Hertz Rental Car

Sam, the author of this article, has his own theory about understanding race horse handicapping. If readers of this article are curious to hear Sam's unique way of explaining race horse handicapping they are strongly encouraged to visit the website that he has committed to this topic either through the link in this sentence or the previous one.

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