Churchill Newcomb of John Churchill and William Henry Churchill who donated the land for Churchill Downs, the home of the Kentucky Derby. Engaging in the family pastime, Newcomb attended horse shows. In 1928, he attended a breakfast of notables at the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden that featured Governor Al Smith as the guest of honor. Newcomb also owned a chestnut mare named Friskie that he raced in horse racing events in Kentucky and Virginia. In 1928, Friskie won the hunter trophy at the Orange Horse Show in Orange, Virginia. Friskie also captured the first leg on a challenge cup
Is It True (horse) the Grade I Champagne Stakes, and second in a maiden race. However, in their most important meeting of 1988, run on a muddy track at Churchill Downs, Is It True defeated Easy Goer in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile by a little over a length, though Easy Goer won the Eclipse Award for American Champion Two Year Old Male. For owner Eugene Klein, it was his third straight win in the Juvenile. In an August 8, 2007 article, ESPN's Jeremy Plonk wrote that "Easy Goer's loss, on a muddy track at Churchill Downs, in the 1988 Juvenile to Is It True