November 20, 2024

Good Night Shirt, Tom Voss elected to Hall of Fame

Good Night Shirt was the champion steeplechaser in 2007-08 (Adam Coglianese Photography)

Two-time steeplechase champion Good Night Shirt and the late trainer Tom Voss have been elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame at the quadrennial meeting of the Museum’s Steeplechase Review Committee.

They will join the Hall of Fame, along with the other 2017 class of inductees to be announced later, during a ceremony on August 4 at the Fasig-Tipton sales pavilion in Saratoga Springs, New York, which begins at 10:30 a.m. (EDT).

Owned for much of his career by Harold “Sonny” Via Jr. and trained by Jack Fisher, Good Night Shirt was a 10-time stakes winner and was voted champion steeplechaser in 2007 following wins in the Iroquois (G1), Lonesome Glory (G1), and Colonial Cup (G1). He repeated as champion in 2008 after wins in the those same three stakes as well as the Grand National (G1) and Georgia Cup (G1).

Good Night Shirt was retired in 2009 with earnings of $1,041,083, only the third U.S.-based jumper to surpass the million-dollar mark in career earnings. Lonesome Glory and McDynamo preceded him.

Voss, who died in 2014 at age 63, led all National Steeplechase Association (NSA) trainers in wins five time and in earnings three times. From 1974 through 2013, Voss won 394 steeplechase races for earnings of $8,868,201, which ranks third on the all-time list.

Voss trained one Eclipse Award-winning steeplechaser, Slip Away, in 2010, and was also noted for training multiple Grade 1 winner John’s Call on the flat. Voss won a total of 706 races over the jumps and on the flat for earnings of more than $17 million.