Penny Chenery, Thoroughbred racing’s ‘First Lady,’ dies at 95

The racing world is mourning the loss of Helen “Penny” Chenery, who became an icon along with her Triple Crown-winning legend Secretariat. The “First Lady of Thoroughbred Racing” passed away at the age of 95, due to complications from a stroke, on Saturday in her Colorado home.

Her four children – Sarah Manning, Chris Tweedy, Kate Tweedy and John Tweedy – announced the sad news through Chenery’s business partner and friend of long standing, Leonard Lusky. Penny is also survived by seven grandchildren – Elena Grath, Alice McGrath, Chris Manning, Amanda Tweedy, Paige Tweedy, and Marcus Tweedy.

“We are deeply proud of our mother, her accomplishments, and her courage,” Kate Tweedy said. “As we mourn her loss, the example of her strength, her intelligence, and her enduring spirit continue to inspire us.”

After the family has a private period of morning, a public memorial service will be planned in the near future.

“We have always been overwhelmed and amazed by the love and support Mom received from her many fans,” John Tweedy said. “We look forward to a time soon when we can celebrate her life in a way that honors that legacy.”

Born on January 27, 1922, in New Rochelle, N.Y., Penny was the daughter of Christopher and Helen Chenery. Her father, a leading executive in the utilities industry, became involved in Thoroughbred racing and breeding. He bought a Virginia property that had been in his family in the antebellum era – Meadow Farm, which would one day become famous as the birthplace of Secretariat.

After graduating from Smith College, Penny did her part during World War II by working at a naval architecture firm that designed landing craft used in the Normandy invasion. She also served as a nurses’ aide in a hospital, and in 1946, she went to Europe for a stint with the American Red Cross, assisting in the demobilization of our soldiers in France and Germany.

Penny later continued her education at Columbia Business School. One of just 20 women in her class, she was due to graduate in six months when she became engaged to John Bayard “Jack” Tweedy, a Columbia Law graduate. Acceding to her father’s wishes, Penny left school to turn her attention to preparing for her wedding.

Establishing a home in Denver in 1950, raising her family, and becoming actively involved in a wide array of civic activities, Penny had the opportunity to put her business acumen to use in 1967. After the passing of her mother, and with her father’s health in decline, she stepped in to manage his racing stable. Mr. Chenery’s business secretary, Elizabeth Ham, and Penny’s older siblings Margaret Carmichael and Dr. Hollis Chenery assisted in the effort, but its future seemed questionable given the balance sheet.

Dispersing the operation was discussed, but Penny persuaded them to keep it going, according to Marvin Drager’s The Most Glorious Crown:

“We probably have the legal right to do that, but we know Dad wouldn’t want us to give up the horses. So I don’t think we have the moral right to do it. The land has supported the horses, and the horses have supported the land.”

Then as vindication, a couple of Meadow homebreds turned everything around. First came Riva Ridge, the champion two-year-old colt of 1971 who went on to win the 1972 Kentucky Derby and Belmont. Although he couldn’t end the Triple Crown drought that endured since Citation in 1948, “Riva” did accomplish the goal that Mr. Chenery had long desired – a Derby trophy.

The torch was passed that same year to Secretariat, the flashy chestnut who was voted Horse of the Year at the tender age of two. That was but a warm-up act to his historic 1973 campaign, when he not only became the first Triple Crown champion in 25 years, but he did so by setting records in all three jewels – 1:59 2/5 for the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, 1:53 in the 1 3/16-mile Preakness (formally recognized only in 2012 after forensic review of the original incorrect clocking), and an other-worldly 2:24 established in his 31-length conquest of the 1 1/2-mile Belmont.

Penny responded to the glare of the media spotlight with grace, understanding the importance of communicating on behalf of her superstar: “The horse can’t talk – but I can.”

As a measure of Secretariat’s significance in popular culture, Disney Studios released the 2010 film Secretariat, with Diane Lane starring as Penny.

Secretariat, who died in 1989, lives on in the bloodlines of contemporary champions, chiefly as the broodmare sire of Hall of Famer A.P. Indy, Gone West, and Storm Cat.

So will Penny’s legacy endure. After Secretariat retired, she continued to play a leading role in the racing world, and accordingly received an Eclipse Award of Merit for her endeavors. One of the first women to gain admittance to The Jockey Club, she also became the first female president of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA), president of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, and co-founded the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation (TRF). She also strove to promote research into the dread disease of laminitis, the cause of Secretariat’s death, and for a ban on performance-enhancing drugs in racing.

In her great champion’s name, Penny instituted the Secretariat Vox Populi Award, giving fans a voice in honoring the year’s most popular racehorse, and the Secretariat Foundation for various racing-related charities.

Fans wishing to honor her memory are asked, in lieu of flowers, to support the Secretariat Foundation’s special Penny Chenery Memorial equine charitable fundraisers. Detailed information is available at Secretariat.com.

Here is a video tribute shared by Secretariat.com on social media:

The Tweedy family announced today that Helen “Penny” Chenery, owner of 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat, died yesterday. She was 95. pic.twitter.com/JNp91XS3RI

— Secretariat (@SECRETARIATofcl) September 17, 2017

See more on the passing of a racing icon, including statements from industry leaders and the outpouring of reactions on social media.