| Each year, thousands flock to Indiana for an event that | | | | and indeed there are many sites devoted exclusively |
| celebrates one of the state's most famous athletes | | | | to the lore and legend of Dan Patch. Just as one |
| ever. A century after his heyday in sport, he is | | | | example, a Dan Patch thermometer sold recently at |
| recognized in the top echelon of historic Hoosiers, both | | | | auction for $3,000. |
| in Indiana and across the country. | | | | Dan Patch heralded a new era in consumer marketing |
| Dan Patch is studied by 4th-graders alongside | | | | The reason for his enduring influence has as much to |
| President Benjamin Harrison and other figures that | | | | do with marketing as it does with his record-smashing |
| loom large in Indiana history. Railroad lines and | | | | success on the racetrack. The rags-to-riches horse |
| highways are named after him. His story transcends | | | | and his rags-to-riches owner, Marion Savage, both |
| sports and has achieved mythic status. | | | | overcame shaky starts in their careers to achieve |
| His own biography parallels crucial decades in Indiana's | | | | phenomenal success. |
| transition from farm life to a more industrial society. In | | | | To understand the Dan Patch phenomenon, you have |
| the early 20th Century, Dan Patch was perhaps the | | | | to appreciate the popularity of harness racing in |
| nation's best-known sports figure and was among the | | | | turn-of-the-century America, including Indiana. Dan |
| most widely recognized Hoosiers of all. Every Indiana | | | | Patch was born in 1896, when horses were still a |
| resident has a stake in his story. | | | | primary means of transportation; at the time of his |
| A superstar celebrity | | | | death in 1916, horseless carriages called automobiles |
| Decades before Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan and | | | | were fast making horses obsolete as a passenger |
| Tiger Woods, an Indiana-born horse named Dan Patch | | | | conveyance. |
| was one of America's first superstar celebrity athletes. | | | | During Dan Patch's lifetime, harness racing was |
| Thanks to a marketing-savvy owner, Dan Patch's | | | | immensely popular, especially in rural America. County |
| remarkable success as an advertising icon is | | | | fairs across America staged races, which were |
| responsible for many of the marketing and branding | | | | attended by tens of thousands. One appearance in |
| techniques still favored today. From chewing tobacco | | | | Muncie toward the end of Dan Patch's career drew a |
| to washing machines to autos, the Dan Patch name | | | | reported 20,000 spectators, at a time when Muncie's |
| was pure gold for companies trying to set themselves | | | | population was less than 23,000 total. |
| apart. His face was everywhere. Many of the | | | | It was into this pre-automotive America that Dan |
| advertising tactics we take for granted today can be | | | | Patch was born in Oxford - conceived for a $150 stud |
| traced back to Dan Patch. If today kids want to "be | | | | fee. The horse at birth did not look at all like a winner. |
| like Mike," a century ago Dan Patch was the symbol | | | | His ankles were very crooked; at first he needed help |
| of unbeatable excellence. American businesses and | | | | from a trainer just to stand, and he developed a wildly |
| consumers couldn't get enough. Indeed, in the opinion of | | | | flailing gait. Some neighbors even suggested "putting |
| Frederick Klein of Street & Smith's | | | | him down." |
| SportsBusiness Journal, "A case can be made that, | | | | But his original owners saw something in Dan Patch. |
| adjusted for inflation and population size, he was bigger | | | | They worked with him slowly, and he eventually |
| than anyone around now." | | | | started racing at the age of 4. He immediately |
| A legacy that endures | | | | outclassed the competition. He never lost a race. In |
| Dan Patch's influence on Indiana life -- indeed, on | | | | fact, other owners quit running their horses against him, |
| American life - is evident each spring. | | | | so his owners switched him to racing exhibitions |
| On a Saturday at Hoosier Park in Anderson, | | | | against the clock. |
| thousands will gather to enjoy the Dan Patch | | | | Marketing magic - decades ahead of its time |
| Invitational Pace, a race that pits some of the nation's | | | | The Dan Patch legend began to transcend sports |
| best harness racing horses in a race with a $200,000 | | | | when he was purchased by Marion Savage. Savage |
| purse. It is the biggest race of the season. Hundreds of | | | | owned a large livestock feed manufacturing company. |
| thousands of dollars will change hands as fans at the | | | | Savage had failed in farming and farm-related |
| track in Anderson and at off-track venues in | | | | companies until starting the International Stock Food |
| Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and Merrillville handicap the | | | | Company and building it into the largest company of its |
| field. His birthplace of Oxford, Indiana hosts an annual | | | | kind. Along the way he developed a reputation as a |
| Dan Patch Days festival that started in 1901. There is a | | | | marketing genius. Just like Dan Patch, he started poorly |
| virtual cottage industry in Dan Patch memorabilia. A | | | | but now found his stride. |
| search of his name on the Internet yields 3,200 pages, | | | | |
