Odd happenings at the Grand National

The Grand National is a horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it's a steeplechase event run over 30 jumps at a distance of 4-miles and 514 yards that up to 40 horses can compete in. This race is not taken lightly by our British friends and might be compared to our Kentucky Derby or even the Breeder's Cup Classic. People who don't make a wager all year come out for the Grand National to cheer their horse on and lay down a few bucks.

Let's think about this race for a moment in a practical sense. There are 40 horses going 4-plus miles over 30 jumps. One might assume a couple of rather eventful Grand National races have taken place over the years — and one would be right.

Plow horse wins the Grand National

Rubio was an American racehorse that will best be remembered for winning the 1908 Grand National. Bred in California in 1898, Rubio was shipped to England as a yearling and sold for a mere 15 guineas (about $20). As a 5-year-old, the horse had broken down from the rigors of racing and was taken out of training. He was put to work plowing fields and pulling a trolley bus in Towcester. The new jobs turned out to be great conditioning for the horse's ailments, and after two years of pulling and plowing, the colt returned to training.

Rubio showed up at the 1908 Grand National but was given little chance from the public and dismissed at odds of 66/1. But under some very confident handling from jockey Henry Bletsoe, Rubio won by 10 lengths over runner-up Mattie McGregor. The connections made $12,000 for their efforts and gained the confidence to show up for the following year's Grand National. But Rubio would fall at the water jump in the big race of 1909 and be re-injured, thus ending his racing — and plowing — career.

66 horses in one race

The 1929 Grand National had 66 starters, the most horses on record that have ever participated in one race. There were also 45 cameramen to cover the big day and, at the time, it was the most photographers ever assembled at a single event.

Out of the 66 runners, only nine horses officially finished the 4-mile race and all but one made it back to the barn safe and sound. A horse named Stort incurred a leg fracture in a fall and had to euthanized. The race was won by 100/1 shot Gregalach, ridden by Robert Everett in a time of 9 minutes and 47 seconds.

The race that never was

The result of the 1993 Grand National was declared void (no contest) after a series of very odd incidents. While under the starter's control, a jockey got tangled in the starting tape, which had failed to rise correctly. A false start was declared, but due to a severe lack of communication between course officials, 30 of the 39 jockeys didn't realize it and began racing in earnest.

Course officials tried to stop the race by waving red flags, and a few jockeys pulled up and stopped riding. But oddly enough, earlier in the day there had been protesters at the racetrack who were waving red flags. Some jockeys continued riding, thinking the red flags were being produced by the animal activist group. Out of the 39 horses that were ready to race, nine never even started, nine finished the race and the rest wandered around the racetrack in a state of confusion.

All this put racing officials in a very bad, surely no-win situation. They couldn't reschedule the race in the near future, as a quarter of the field had already run the grueling 4-mile race. They couldn't grant the victory to the winner, because all the horses didn't compete. Nine horses ran the taxing marathon for nothing and the winner, Esha Ness, ran the second fastest time ever recorded (but not officially) for the Grand National. Add in the fact that there were 350 million TV viewers, some of whom had a piece of the action of the $115 million wagered on the event. And, add in the fact that some of these horses and connections shipped in from all over the world and had trained the entire year just for this race. All these factors added up to an ugly dilemma. There was never an official result for the 1993 Grand National, and it will always be known as "the race that never was."

Good deeds in wake of bomb threats

The 1997 Grand National was postponed after two coded bomb threats were received from the Provisional Irish Republican Army. The racecourse was immediately secured by police, who then evacuated jockeys, race personnel and local residents and then set their sights on getting out 60,000 racing fans from the complex.

Buses and cars were locked down for the entire weekend, so not only did 20,000 people get stuck at the track, they were without transportation for a few days. But the good people of Liverpool would have none of it and opened their homes and hearts to tens of thousands of stranded people. They cooked meals, entertained and gave the temporary homeless racing fans beds for the night. The race was rescheduled and run on the following Monday and is now known as "the Monday National," but I'll always remember it more for the good deeds done by the nice folks of Liverpool.

The race was won by Lord Gyllene, which prevailed by 25 lengths, at odds of 14/1 and was ridden by Tony Dobbin.

The greatest rummy

One can hardly speak of the Grand National without mentioning Red Rum, whose name was synonymous with the big race and Aintree. Not only did he win the Grand National three times (1973, 1974 and 1977), he was also runner-up in 1975 and 1976, and he was 12 years old when he won his third Grand National by 25 lengths.

Red Rum was surely a horse for this course, so it was fitting that when he died in 1995 at the age of 30, he was buried at the course's winning post. Red Rum was a hero, and a statue at Aintree honors this popular champion.

2018 Grand National

This year's race was run on April 12 and was won by a 10/1 shot named Tiger Roll. He got clear nicely in the stretch but barely held on over fast-closing Pleasant Company. 2018 also marked the first time three female jockeys competed in the historic race.

Out of 38 runners, 12 officially finished the race, while the others fell, were pulled up or unseated their riders. 38 horses and riders made it home safe and sound.

The Grand National is a tremendous and one-of-a-kind racing event. If you've never seen 40 horses run over 4 miles and jump 30 obstacles, you should put it on your schedule for April. It is literally a race and a half!