Monday, December 31, 2007 12:19 AM CST
Famed trainer of race horses takes final ride in 104-year-old horse-drawn hearse
By DAVE FOPAY, Staff Writer
dfopay@jg-tc.com
MARTINSVILLE — Tradition played its part as the community said goodbye Saturday to a native who set the standard in his field.
The horse-drawn hearse that helped lay Dale Baird to rest was a 104-year-old model Baird himself drove 10 years ago at the funeral of his father, J.I. Baird.
Baird, 72, was a Martinsville native and a resident of New Cumberland, W. Va., and set his mark as the all-time winningest trainer of thoroughbred race horses in North America, helping riders to 9,445 wins. He died in a car crash on Dec. 23 in Indiana while en route to Martinsville to spend the holidays with family.
His career accomplishments combined with the fact that he drove the hearse at his father’s funeral led the family to ask to use the hearse Saturday, said his brother, John Baird.
“We thought it would be appropriate,” he said. “He’s been with horses all his life. I think he would like that.”
Nearly the entire Baird family has been involved with horses and the horse racing industry, he added, including himself, his son Bart, Dale’s son Bart and another of their brothers, Dean.
“We were kind of raised in it,” he said, explaining how his brother got started in his successful career.
Lee Greenwell, owner of the Greenwell Funeral Homes in Martinsville, which handled Baird’s service, said it’s “hard to guess” how many times the hearse has been used. The funeral home often agrees to let it be used for the services of people who were involved in horses or farming, he said.
Greenwell said the hearse was first bought in 1903 and had several other owners before he bought it in 1950.
Other highlights of Baird’s career included his being the first trainer to win 300 races in a year, which he ultimately accomplished eight times.
In 2001, Baird was inducted into his industry’s national hall of fame; and he received a 2004 Special Eclipse Award from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. His achievements have also been listed in the “Guinness Book of World Records.”
Contact Dave Fopay at dfopay@jg-tc.com or 348-5733.
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