Ithaca College

Ithaca graduate Jackson Knowlton '69 is one of the principal owners of Funny Cide, winner of the 129th Kentucky Derby. Knowlton and five high school friends got together several years ago to form Sackatoga Stables; they own three racehorses including Funny Cide, whom they purchased for $75,000 last year.

The three-year-old New York-bred gelding, ridden by Jose Santos, won the Derby by 1-3/4 lengths over the heavily favored Empire Maker, paying $27.60 for a $2 win ticket. Funny Cide was the first New York-bred thoroughbred ever to win the Kentucky Derby.

Knowlton said in an interview after the race, "It's a thrill beyond belief. . . . We had two strikes against us -- [Funny Cide is] a gelding and New York-bred -- and we beat those odds today. We are the little guys in the game, and for me it's just so rewarding that everybody who dreams of owning a horse or owns a horse . . . can look at what we have accomplished. It's like the lottery. It is a dollar and a dream. . . . It's just indescribable."

Submitted by Maura Stephens