The History and Art of 25 Travers

About the Book

Told from the perspective of a man who for five decades has attended the races in Saratoga, The History and Art of 25 Travers is Vic Zast's personal account of the last twenty-two Travers Stakes and a look back at three of the greatest races in history.

This beautiful book contains the entire collection of Greg Montgomery's Travers Stakes posters - the longest continuing series of sporting art in the world. The artist's thoughts and sketches, along with new artwork commemorating three of Saratoga's most memorable Travers Stakes, are included in the grand presentation.

Individual chapters are devoted to such soul-stirring races as the 1988 Travers, in which Forty-Niner held off Seeking the Gold and Brian's Time; the 1995 running, in which future Horse of the Year Holy Bull led form bell to wire; the 1998 blanket finish of Coronado's Quest, Victory Gallop and Raffie's Majesty in the closest Travers ever; and the 2004 Travers that Birdstone, owned by Marylou Whitney, won in the dark before a sudden summer rainstorm.

Jim Dandy's 1930 Travers victory at odds of 100-1 over Triple Crown champion Gallant Fox, the record-breaking 1962 running in which Jaipur and Ridan raced head to head for the full length of the Travers, and the tenth and last meeting between the Triple Crown champion Affirmed and his longtime rival Alydar in the 1978 Travers are all vividly described and illustrated.

Meet the Authors

Vic Zast was uniquely qualified to write a book about “The History and Art of 25 Travers.” He witnessed 45 Travers Stakes in person. Readers of Zast’s columns on HorseRaceInsider.com and MSNBC.com knew him for insightful and thought-provoking commentary. But passionate Zast fans know that he was at the top of his game when describing his beloved Saratoga. Vic passed away in 2014 at the age of 69; he will be greatly missed.

Notwithstanding his affinity for the area, Zast wrote about horse racing in Hong Kong, Japan, Switzerland, Australia, Dubai, France, Canada and England. His “Destinations” columns in The Blood-Horse magazine were unique travel and sport features, offering travel tips and ratings.

Zast served in almost every horse racing capacity imaginable. He was a Board member of the National Turf Writers Association. He was an owner, a breeder, a pioneer in corporate sponsorship of races, and the president of a baker’s dozen of racetracks. He created the concept of bonus money for horses that are able to win a series of races.

In addition, Zast owned and operated a cosmetics manufacturing company named Private Perfumery. An experienced business executive, he was the CEO of four different companies during the past 25 years of his life. He lived in Wilmette, IL, and spent each August at his home in Saratoga Springs, a short three-minute walk to the racecourse.

Greg Montgomery received his formal art training at the University< of New Mexico in Albuquerque, NM, where he studied painting and lithography, and at the College of St. Rose in Albany, NY, where he studied serigraphy. Greg has taken two watercolor master classes in Europe with the Australian watercolorist David K. Taylor.

After completing his degree in New Mexico, Greg worked as art director and set designer for public television in New Mexico. As art director for General Electric’s Corporate Marketing Communications Operation in Albany, NY, Greg worked on major campaigns for the power systems and plastic business components, and on the world-renowned GE calendar. Greg moved to the world of publications as art director for Capital Region magazine. He recently retired from the Albany Times Union newspaper where he worked as a design editor. Greg currently works as an illustrator and designer accepting projects and commissioned portraits.

A native of Washington, DC, Greg travels extensively throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Europe and Asia, capturing images with pen, paint and camera. His clean colors, dynamic form, and unusual use of white space make his work unparalleled in the field of equestrian, sporting and poster art. Greg’s series of posters for the Travers Stakes race in Saratoga Springs, NY, is the longest-running series by a single artist for a single event in racing history.

The strength and beauty of Greg’s artwork has resulted in a number of commissioned works. Berkley Publishing, a subsidiary of Penguin, had Greg create 42 covers for the re-publishing of the famous murder-mystery series by Dick Francis. Greg also created the official poster for the opening of Walt Disney World’s Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa.

Greg collaborated with Vic Zast, writer for MSNBC, The Bloodhorse, and other thoroughbred publications, as the illustrator of “The History and Art of 25 Travers,” published in June 2008. In August 2008, Greg had a solo exhibition of his work at the Arts Center Gallery in Saratoga Springs, NY, the first time that all of his original silkscreens and giclées were shown. In 2015, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame held a 30-year retrospective of the posters and additional racing art.

Over the years, Greg’s bold and striking images of the racing scene have steadily increased in popularity. Today, his posters and prints hang in public and private collections worldwide and in the permanent collection of the Library of Congress. Greg is represented by Spa Fine Art on Broadway in Saratoga Springs, NY.