1851 Grand National 1851 Grand National The 1851 Grand National was, at the time, the 14th renewal of a handicap steeplechase horse race that took place at Aintree near Liverpool, England, on 26 February 1851. However, this was later retrospectively recorded as the 13th official running by the Steeplechase Calendar of 1864 when the race of 1838 was disregarded as official. The race was won by Abd-El-Kader, becoming the first dual winner and the first to do so in consecutive years (discounting The Duke, 1836/1837 whose wins are not included in official race records). Known affectionately as "Little Ab", the horse stood at
Steeplechase (horse racing) The first Velka Pardubice Steeplechase was held on 5 November 1874 and it has been hosted annually since. In the United States, there are two forms of steeplechasing (or jumps racing): hurdle and timber. Hurdle races occur almost always over the National fences, standardized plastic and steel fences that are 52 inches tall, with traditional natural fences of packed pine (Springdale Race Course in Camden, South Carolina) and live hedges (Montpelier, Virginia) in use on a few courses. National fences stand 52 inches tall at the highest point, but are mostly made of synthetic "brush" that can be brushed through