I admit to not having done the research, but I remain confident in stating no other person has pulled off the exacta achieved Sept. 2, within a month's time, by Dr. Robert Copelan.
On Aug. 7 Dr. Copelan (known universally among his friends simply as "Doc"), was inducted into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame as a Pillar of the Turf, an honor long deserved. Twenty-six days later, on Sept. 2, Doc celebrates his 100th birthday. Hopefully, the Paris, Ky., fire department will be on alert if he intends to blow out all those candles during the celebration at Lil's, his longtime lunch hangout (and where he has a sandwich named for him).
"I'm not thinking much about turning 100," Doc said a few days before the big event. "I'd just as soon forget about it. But I guess to go this long without screwing up is at least something."
When reminded that he has "screwed up" a time or two along the way, Doc issued the hearty laugh that is music to the ears of his many friends and colleagues. The needles were never confined to his medical practice, and he gives as good as he gets.
Doc's achievements cannot be squeezed onto his Hall of Fame plaque. There was his attempt at breaking Hill Gail at Calumet Farm while Doc was an exercise rider there. Hill Gail came closer to breaking Doc.
A few years later, Doc was on the roof at Churchill Downs, courtesy of his father's press pass, watching Hill Gail win the Kentucky Derby. He would go on to treat 16 Derby winners. The last of that bunch, Grindstone, was trained by D. Wayne Lukas, whom Doc recommended to Overbrook Farm's W.T. Young, leading to a fruitful association. Lukas and Doc share the same birthday, and the late trainer would call Doc at 4 in the morning every year to celebrate.
Doc was one of 11 veterinarians who formed the American Association of Equine Practitioners, today the foremost organization in its field, boasting 10,000 members. He was a pioneer of joint surgeries that saved the careers and lives of so many horses. Dr. Larry Bramlage, like Doc, a graduate of the Ohio State University, followed the trail that Doc blazed and succeeded him as the go-to surgeon of his era.
Speaking for Doc at his Hall of Fame induction, Dr. Bramlage acknowledged him as a Pillar of the Turf, but also as a "pillar of integrity."
"I have loved the horse all of my 100 years," Doc said via video at his induction ceremony. "From the pony rides at Coney Island (in Cincinnati), to my time as a racetrack vet, to my career as an equine surgeon."
Doc performed life-saving surgeries on both Tri Jet and champion Susan's Girl for owner/breeder Fred Hooper. When Hooper subsequently bred the latter to the former, he got a smallish colt.
"He's a little runt who reminded me of you," Hooper told Doc, "so I named him Copelan." Copelan became one of the best racehorses of his generation.
That's pretty much the way it has gone in this Century of Copelan. Plenty of victories, plenty of history, and an awful lot of laughs.
Feisty to a fault, Doc is being difficult about allowing those around him to make a big deal about his centennial birthday. Of course, he's well justified, as few of us know what it's like to be 99. However, when it was pointed out to Doc that he was being a pain in the butt to everybody, Doc quickly replied, "It serves them right."
The important part to Doc is that he was there to help and save the thousands of horses he served. The important part to us is we have been fortunate enough to know and cherish him.
Happy Birthday, Doc!
