Charles John “Chick” Lang Jr. naturally became involved in horse racing. His grandfather and father both played prominent roles in sports, inevitably investing young Lang’s lifelong investment in sports. But this chick has taken it to a new level. He played many roles during his time on the track. Include the man he is most famous as the man he bets like he is today.
This Maryland classic had its own history before its status as a middle jewel in the US triple crown. As “Mr. Preakness,” the grandson and the jockey’s son made constant advocacy on behalf of the truck he loved, building Pimlico Racecourse and Preakness stakes at both horse and fan destinations, bringing its status to a new level.
My family is calling
He passed away at a young age of 51, but John Peerepont Mayberry had a remarkable career as a trainer, winning the 1903 Kentucky Derby with Judge Himes. Mayberry’s name continues in Sports today as his grandson, Brian Mayberry, 1994 Kentucky Oaks winner Sadura and his great grandson April Mayberry trained Mayberry Farm.
In 1924, John Mayberry’s daughter Virginia won the King’s Plate at Fairbank in 1925, then won the King’s Plate for John D and Fannie Hertz in the 1928 Kentucky Derby.
Virginia and Chick have two children, June and Charles Jr., who took over their father under the nickname Chick. Chick Jr. grew up at the racetrack and traveled around various circuits and with his family as he moved into training in the 1930s, following his father during his saddle career. The young chick traced family traditions and started as a hot walker, and went on to groom, trainer and jockey agent for Hall of Fame Bill Hultak. As his wife, Nancy, said Baltimore Sun In 2010, “Chick did everything on the truck of his life, but he was on a horse.”
He then rose to the ranks at Pimlico’s hometown racetrack, which began in 1960, and first retained the position of race director and vice president. In 1969, brothers Ben and Herman Cohen, who owned Pimlico since 1952, said, “Hell, you might take her too. She’s always yours.” Chicklang Jr., the grandson of the Derby winner and son of another Derby winner, took over the racetrack hosting the Preakness Stakes, and then embarked on his life mission to take the track’s signature race to a new level.
True passion for preakness
Colonel Matt Wynn spent decades in the first half of 20 people.th The Kentucky Derby is growing into the bucket list event we know today. After the administration of Meriweather Lewis Clark Jr., the race struggled with quality and sent races into down periods when Wynn worked so hard to bring rose running from the under. Chicklang does the same for Preakness.
As Lang told Steve Haskin in 2003, “Preakness was almost dead when he went to work at Pimlico in 1960. Since the 1948 quote, there has been no Triple Crown winner. Like Wynn, this third-generation racetrack made this race his life’s job and sparked a renaissance.
Lang wasted no time making the words out. In 1961, Lang and three friends spent hours blowing away 2,000 yellow balloons decorated with the word “preakness.” From the hotel room on the upper floor of the Brown Hotel, the quartet dropped them into the Kentucky Derby Parade. He also created a sign at the advertising agency for the city’s buses, “Next Stop: Preakness at Pimlico.”
Another year he rented a hotel room on the other side of the blank wall on the parade route. He also brought a powerful projector, and when the parade’s Grand Marshall and the Queen of Derby were announced, he turned on the lights and predicted a Preakness ads where the assembled crowd could see it. Gasp from the assembled audience told Lang that he had accomplished his mission.
His family history may have been linked to the Kentucky Derby, but his passion has become Preakness. His favorite elevator pitch in the historic race was “Come and see the winner of the Kentucky Derby in his first public view.” The race may have only lasted two minutes, but Lang spent the other 525,598 minutes to make sure his race had fans shown. Still, Preakness attendance fell to 30,000 when Lang got the idea to open the track’s infield to fans. Cohens resisted at first. In particular, only 800 fans showed their first year. However, thanks to Lang’s promotion, the crowd grew to 50,000 people, eventually pushing Preakness’s annual attendance up to the 100,000 mark.
For all his advocacy on behalf of his home track and its triple crown classic, Lang gained the nickname “Mr. Preakness” and was proudly dressed. He also helped find Maryland Million in 1986, establishing another enduring tradition of his home track. At the helm of decades, Lang built a reputation for his work at Pimlico, becoming a racing consultant when he left the track in 1989 and a racing analyst who won the Eclipse Award for Wbal Radio. He has earned many honors in his lifetime, including a prominent Maryland Citizenship Certificate, a special award from the Maryland Jockey Club, the Humphrey S. Finney Award from the Maryland Racing Media Association, and the Venebort Association Man of the Year Award for Jockey Agent.
But really, Chick Lang was part of the racetrack because he was part of him. His wife Nancy said, “I’ve always said that the chick loves race more than he loves me. That was fine. I understood.” To understand why Preakness is an event, the same love and care that Matt Wynn soaked into its cousin, the Kentucky Derby, as much as we know Lang will see what has been poured into the race for decades. “Mr. Preakness” was an essential highlight of the Woodlawn vase, Black Eyed Susan blanket, and the lace calendar a century and a half after its first edition.
