Troy Taylor
Troy Taylor
September 11, 1931 - December 14, 2019
Pacific Northwest horse racing lost two of its legends, Roy and Troy Taylor
Roy and his twin brother Troy were born in Mount Vernon, Missouri on September 11, 1931. Sons of Herbert P. Taylor and Thyra E. Brewer Taylor. Although they were Missouri natives, the Taylors grew up in Payette, Idaho.
There were called to serve in the United States Army in May of 1951. They served honorably until February of 1953. Roy was in the 75mm Recoilless Rifle Platoon. Because Roy and his partner were so fast breaking down and reassembling their rifle, they were asked to perfrom the task for the Brass multiple times. For their service during the Korean War, Roy and Troy received the United Nations Service Medal and the Korean Service Medal.
After their service Roy, Troy and older brother J.D., began trainging thoroughbreds under the stable name Taylor Brothers and built a midcentury dynasty, piling up victories and training titles. Their colors were gold with Three Red Devils in the background. Troy and Roy often traded places as the trainer of record while J.D. became the lead outrider at Longacres in Renton, Washington for 40 years.
Dating back only to 1964, Equibase, racing official data source, credits Troy with 961 victories, certainly he had a couple of hundred more. Troy is a member of the British Columbia Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
In 2016, Troy retired from racing. His latter years were spent with his wife Judi on Whidbey Island in Washington.
They were proceeded in death by their parents, brothers, Herbert, Hubert, J.D., and sister, Mary J. Belvoir.
Roy and Troy will be laid to rest with their immediate family in Payette, Idaho. A small graveside service will be held for Roy and Troy Taylor, Brad Taylor and Ron Taylor on August 6, 2022 at the Riverside Cemetery.
The Spokesman-Review (Spokane, Spokane County, Washington)
December 20, 2019
Troy Taylor
September 11, 1931 - December 14, 2019
Pacific Northwest horse racing legend Troy Taylor dies at 88
Pacific Northwest horse racing lost one of its legends Saturday, when Troy Taylor died at his home near Langley, Washington, on Whidbey Island. He was 88. Taylor, his identical twin, Roy, and their older sibling, J.D., built a midcentury dynasty as the Taylor Brothers, piling up victories and training titles with a series of inexpensive horses. Three decades later, Troy Taylor emerged as a western Canada superstar, winning eight championships and more than 100 stakes races at Vancouver’s Hastings Park. He is a member of the British Columbia Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
The Spokesman-Review (Spokane, Spokane County, Washington)
Thursday, December 19, 2019
Pacific Northwest horse racing legend Troy Taylor dies at 88
By Jim Price
For The Spokesman-Review
Pacific Northwest horse racing lost one of its legends Saturday when Troy Taylor died at his home near Langley, Washington, on Whidbey Island. He was 88.
Taylor, his identical twin, Roy, and their older sibling, J.D., built a midcentury dynasty as the Taylor Brothers, piling up victories and training titles with a series of inexpensive horses. Three decades later, Troy Taylor emerged as a western Canada superstar, winning eight championships and more than 100 stakes races at Vancouver's Hastings Park. He is a member of the British Columbia Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
Although they were Missouri natives, the Taylors grew up in Payette, Idaho. Their horses helped them lead the trainer standings for three straight years at Spokane's Playfair Race Course.
Roy Taylor, in poor health following emergency surgery this fall, lives in Valleyford. J.D., the lead outrider at Longacres in Renton, Washington, for 40 years, died in 1999. Their late older brother, Hubert, was this state's best-known racetrack horseshoer.
Equibase, thoroughbred racing's official data source, publishes records dating only to 1964. Nonetheless, it credits Troy with 961 victories. Certainly, he had a couple of hundred more.
According to Troy's widow, Judi, the boys entered the sport in the 1950s, buying a couple of cheap horses after serving in the Korean War. Soon, their gold silks with three red devils on the back began showing up in winner's circles all over the region. Troy and Roy often traded places as the trainer of record while J.D. broke the colts and helped out around the barn.
They became Playfair regulars late in the decade, and Troy easily won the 1960 title with 19 winners. Roy saddled a record 26 winners the next year and won again with 23 in 1962. When Troy captured a Portland Meadows title, he beat out his good friend, Carl Baze, to win a new car.
In 1963, Troy led the trainers in Vancouver for the first time in 1963, defeating four other future hall of fame members. He didn't win another for 44 years, when he was in his 70s, but that was the first of six in a row. By then, he had a powerhouse stable owned by customs broker Glen Todd, and their victories included almost all of Hastings Park's major stakes races. Taylor was inducted into the province's racing hall of fame in 2010. He retired in 2016.
At Longacres, he made his mark with Sandy Fleet, which broke the world 6 1/2-furlong record in the 1966 Governor's Handicap, and the standout filly Turn to Fire. The latter helped Spokane native Jon White, a future nationally prominent racing journalist, cash his first $100 bet.
In addition to his twin, Troy Taylor is survived by his wife and a sister, Darlene Dolan of Valleyford. In the spring, his cremated remains will be interred with Taylor family members in Payette.
Read Troy Taylor Obituary from Vancouver Sun
Read Troy Taylor Obituary from Canadian Thoroughbred
Argus Observer (Ontario, Malheur County, Oregon)
August 05, 2022 and August 06, 2022
Formerly of Payette
A small graveside service will be held for Roy and Troy Taylor, Brad Taylor and Ron Taylor on August 06, 2022, 11am at the Riverside Cemetery Payette, Idaho.
Roy Taylor September 11, 1931 – February 23, 2002
Troy Taylor September 11, 1931 – December 14, 2019
Brad Taylor July 14, 1945 – December 18, 2021
Ronald James Taylor December 01, 1947 – October 03, 2019
