These horses — and one turtle — have the slowest win times in Kentucky Derby history

Many know of the untouchable Secretariat, the Thoroughbred nicknamed “Big Red” who won the Triple Crown in 1973 — at the time breaking a 25-year drought and becoming the ninth horse to win all three races.

That year, at the 99th running of Kentucky Derby, Secretariat thundered down the track, going 1.25 miles in a record time of 1:59 2/5. Fifty years on, no other horse has ever run the Derby, the Preakness Stakes or the Belmont Stakes faster.

But what about the slowest horse to win in Derby history? The horse who cantered to victory instead of rocketing to the win, as Secretariat did? As it turns out, there’s more than one as the race has changed length over the course of its nearly 150-year history.

Here’s a look back at some of the slowest horses to win the Kentucky Derby, including their race times.

What was the slowest horse to win the Kentucky Derby?

As reported by HorseRacingNation.com, if you look back at the finishing times for Kentucky Derby winners over the years, you’ll notice it appears the horses running the race have gotten faster.

May 17, 1875, marked the first running of the Kentucky Derby, where winner Aristides outran 14 other horses down a track 1.5 miles long.

But in 1896, the consensus at the time was 1.5 miles was too long for young Thoroughbreds to run so early in the spring. Consequently, the distance was shortened to 1.25 miles, according to a history of the race published on the Kentucky Derby’s website.

Before the change, the Tennessee-bred Kingman held the record for the slowest winning time ever recorded at a Derby. In 1891, Kingman won with a crawling 2:52 1⁄4, according to the Courier-Journal.

“It was simply a canter, not even a respectable gallop, each jockey apparently having orders to stay in the rear and let the others cut out the work,” wrote The Spirit of the Times of the first half-mile, as reported by the Courier-Journal.

Kingman raced under the name of Jacobin Stable in Georgetown, which was owned by Kinzea Stone and the great Dudley Allen.

Allen’s involvement was hidden to avoid controversy, given he was Black and the racism of the time. According to the Courier-Journal, Allen was the last of a line of six African Americans to train a Kentucky Derby champion.

What about the slowest horse to win the Derby after 1896?

According to this list compiled by HorseRacingNation.com, that honor goes to Stone Street, who won with a time of 2:15 1/5.

A long shot with odds at 24-1, Stone Street had not won any major stakes before his Kentucky Derby win 1908, nor did he win any major stakes after. Stone Street was a true one-hit wonder.

He outran seven other horses on a muddy track at Churchill Downs. A minimum $5 bet on Stone Street paid off – cashing $123.60 on a win. In today’s dollars, that’s roughly $4,000 when adjusted for inflation.

The tale of Broken Spring, the turtle who went the distance

According to the Kentucky Derby Museum, there is one other contender for the slowest Derby time — a terrapin contender to be exact.

The year was 1945 and Americans were told to buy war bonds and ration everything from gasoline to sugar and toothpaste. Earlier that year, the government placed a temporary ban on horse racing, and for the first time since its start in 1875 there would be no Kentucky Derby.

That changed May 8, 1945, when Nazi Germany surrendered and ended the war in Europe. The horse racing ban was lifted and organizers held the 71st Kentucky Derby on a rainy Saturday in June, according to the Kentucky Derby Museum.

Undaunted Louisvillians, determined to hold a derby on the traditional date and came up with an alternative event.

May 2, 1945, a headline in the local newspaper announced “167 Turtles Arrive for Races Saturday.” Three days later, more than 6,000 spectators crowded into the Jefferson County Armory, today the Louisville Gardens, for the turtle derby, according to the Kentucky Derby Museum.

Though Churchill Downs was not a sponsor of the event, there was the usual wagering associated with the Kentucky Derby. Spectators that night spent a total of nearly $11,500 on 50-cent parimutuel bets. After the wagers were paid out, $8,000 went to a local children’s health charity, the museum reports.

The intrepid Broken Spring paid $2.50 on his win, which he secured in a lightning-quick 2 minutes down a 20-foot straight and narrow track made of wood.

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