ARCHIVED STALLION NEWS 2007
LEMON DROP’s ‘KID’ DEFENDS PAC CLASSIC TITLE
Aug. 30, 2010: Richard’s Kid, by LEMON DROP KID, staked his claim as the best handicap horse on the West Coast with a powerful repeat victory in the $1 million G1 Pacific Classic at Del Mar Aug. 28. Mike Smith opted to play the waiting game aboard last year’s Pacific Classic hero, racing along second last off splits of :24.82, :49.25, and 1:13.78. Despite the tepid pace, Richard’s Kid ranged up with a five-wide move into the stretch and charged home a 3/4-length winner. The five-year-old, bred by Fitzhugh LLC, owned by Zabeel Racing International Corp, and trained by Bob Baffert, also captured this year’s G2 San Antonio H. and has now bankrolled $1,566,370.
LEMON DROP KID is currently ranked seventh in the nation on the Leading Synthetic Sires list and is a Top 20 sire by Average Earnings Index. On Bill Oppenheim’s recently released mid-year APEX rankings, which help identify the best sires, and the best sires by consistency, LEMON DROP KID ranked seventh overall by ABC Runner Index and 11th among North American sires by A Runner Index.
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MINESHAFT COLTS SHINE ON TRAVERS DAY
Aug. 30, 2010: Since reverting to sprints, MINESHAFT's son Discreetly Mine has been sensational, and the three-year-old colt put up another devastating performance to collect his first Grade 1 triumph in the King’s Bishop S. on the Travers Stakes undercard at Saratoga Aug. 28. Coming off eye-catching wins in the G3 Jersey Shore S. at Monmouth and G2 Amsterdam S. at the Spa, Discreetly Mine sprinted to the front and led through :21 4/5 and :44 flat splits. Lesser horses would have withered from the hot pace, but Discreetly Mine strode on powerfully and won by 1 1/4 lengths.
Discreetly Mine’s season-high 111 Beyer Speed Figure, earned in the Amsterdam, is still the best in the nation for a three-year-old and two points faster than Eskendereya's Wood Memorial! Discreetly Mine is an E. Paul Robsham Stables homebred and is trained by Todd Pletcher. Earlier in the year, he won the G2 Risen Star S. at Fair Grounds.
One race after the King’s Bishop, MINESHAFT’s three-year-old son Fly Down lived up to his name in the big one, the G1 Travers S. The Nick Zito-trained colt came charging down the center of Saratoga’s main track and fell short by the narrowest of margins to be second in the Midsummer Derby by a nose. Fly Down, winner of the G2 Dwyer S. and runner-up in the G1 Belmont S., was bred by Broadway Thoroughbreds Inc and Will Farish and was a Lane’s End sales grad.
MINESHAFT is the sire of a number of top performers at Saratoga this year. His three-year-old daughter Bonnie Blue Flag, owned by Peachtree Stable and trained by Bob Baffert, finished second in the G1 Test S., while his sophomore son Miner's Reserve ran big to finish second in the G2 Jim Dandy S. The latter is owned by Robert LaPenta and trained by Nick Zito.
Meanwhile, MINESHAFT's four-year-old daughter Kiss Mine has been setting the turf on fire of late. A homebred of Carl Pollard's Hermitage Farm won a Churchill allowance in June, came back to earn her first black-type win in the July 24, $75,000 Ellis Park Turf S., then won the $110,000 West Virginia Senate President's S. at Mountaineer Aug. 7.
The leading fourth-crop sire in the nation, can boast seven 2010 stakes winners. He is also the sire of 2010 stars like A. U. Miner, Cool Coal Man, Redding Colliery, etc. MINESHAFT is ranked 11th on the General Sires List, with progeny earnings of over $4.3 million. He leads all fourth-crop sires by earnings, stakes winners, graded stake winners, etc.
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'RIDE' TO THE TOP CONTINUES
Aug. 30, 2010: CANDY RIDE (ARG), the co-leading sire of Grade 1 winners this year, registered yet another top-level winner when El Brujo won the Aug. 28 G1 Pat O’Brien at Del Mar. Bred by Windways Farm Limited, owned by Arnold Zetcher, and trained by Bob Baffert, El Brujo sped to the fore in the Pat O’Brien and never looked back, rolling home to a convincing score. The final time for the seven-furlong race was 1:21 3/5.
El Brujo is no less than the fourth Grade 1 winner from CANDY RIDE’s first crop, joining Misremembered, Capt. Candyman Can, and Evita Argentina. CANDY RIDE is also the sire of this year’s star juvenile Sidney’s Candy, the winner of the G1 Santa Anita Derby who recently smashed Del Mar’s 1 1/16-mile turf course record in the G2 La Jolla S. Owned and bred by the Craig family, Sidney's Candy dueled through fast fractions before opening up to a 5 1/2-length score in 1:39.52.
CANDY RIDE can also boast the exploits of Twirling Candy, who like Sidney's Candy is a Craig family homebred and trained by John Sadler. Twirling Candy ran his record to three-for-three in the $112,500 Oceanside S. on Del Mar’s opening day card.
CANDY RIDE is continuing his run as one of the most accomplished young stallions in the country. The brilliant racehorse is the leading sire in the nation by earnings on all-weather surfaces and is ranked ninth on The Blood-Horse’s Average Earnings Index list, where it is shown he improves his mares by a staggering margin, from a 1.06 Comparable Index to a 2.33 Average Earnings Index!
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HUGE WEEKEND FOR LANE’S END SIRES!
Aug. 30, 2010: There is no bigger stage in racing than Saratoga and Del Mar, and actors by Lane’s End stallions played starring roles over the weekend.
On Travers Stakes day in New York, MINESHAFT’s son Discreetly Mine earned a well-deserved first Grade 1 success in the prestigious King’s Bishop S. over seven furlongs. The E. Paul Robsham Stables homebred blazed :21.90 and :44.11 splits and was all heart steaming home to win by 1 1/4 lengths.
MINESHAFT nearly registered a historic double when, one race later in the day’s featured event, his Grade 2-winning and Classic-placed son Fly Down came within a sliver of taking the $1 million G1 Travers S. Fly Down was bred by Broadway Thoroughbreds Inc and Will Farish and was a Lane’s End sales grad. STEPHEN GOT EVEN’s son First Dude, meanwhile, secured his fifth Grade 1 placing while finishing third.
Out west, LEMON DROP KID’s five-year-old son Richard’s Kid successfully defended his title in the G1 Pacific Classic. Bred by Fitzhugh LLC and owned by Zabeel Racing International Corp, the Bob Baffert-trained horse was at the back of the pack early, but unleashed a furious six-wide rally in the stretch and was up for his second tally in the $1 million event.
Playing opening act on the card was CANDY RIDE (ARG)’s progressive four-year-old son El Brujo. The gelding, also trained by Baffert, broke like a shot and made every pole a winning one in the G1 Pat O’Brien S. It was his first Grade 1 win and his fifth black-type win in total. El Brujo was bred by Windways Farm Limited.
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CITY ZIP: THE NUMBERS DON’T LIE
Aug. 25, 2010: The numbers do the talking for CITY ZIP, who has firmly established himself as one of the most versatile sires in the country. Consider:
3 - CITY ZIP’s rank on the Leading Turf Sires list. With 46 percent of his earnings coming on the sod, he has proven a top sire of grass runners.
1 - CITY ZIP’s rank as leading sire of Turf stakes winners.
2 - His rank by # of Graded Winners in 2010. Only Dynaformer can boast more. In fact, CITY ZIP has more graded winners than Medaglia d’Oro, Unbridled’s Song, Giant’s Causeway, Distorted Humor, Tiznow, etc., and twice as many as Empire Maker, Awesome Again, Elusive Quality, etc.
8 - CITY ZIP’s rank on the General Sire List among active stallions. His $4,294,270 in progeny earnings is better than Medaglia d’Oro, Street Cry (Ire), etc.
10 - Stakes winners in 2010. No other horse standing for less than $25,000 has as many, and CITY ZIP has more SW than Street Cry (Ire), Pulpit, Maria’s Mon, Malibu Moon, etc.
35.5% - The margin by which CITY ZIP improves his mares. His comparable index is 1.38, while his average earnings index is 1.87.
CITY ZIP’s runners include Get Serious, the John Forbes-trained six-year-old who recently defended his title in the G3 Oceanport S. at Monmouth Park. Get Serious has now won 12 starts, 11 at Monmouth, and banked $880,691.
CITY ZIP’s daughter Unzip Me is another who does nothing but win. The chestnut’s victory in the Aug. 2 G3 Royal North S. at Woodbine was her sixth victory in her last seven starts. She won six straight in California from last December to May, including a tally in the G3 Las Cienagas H., and has now earned $424,513.
On July 30, CITY ZIP's five-year-old daughter Canadian Ballet earned the six black-type victory of her career. The Obviously NY Stable colorbearer, bred by Gus Schoenborn, Jr. and trained by Linda Rice, took Penn National's $100,000 Jenny Wade H. as the crowd's choice. She has now been first or second in 12 of 20 starts and earned over $575,000.
In the three-year-old division, Workin for Hops continues to be rock solid. The colt aired by a smart 2 1/2-length margin in the G2 American Derby at Arlington Park July 17, then returned to be third in the G1 Secretariat S. Aug. 21.
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PUTTING THE A.P. IN APEX
The Thoroughbred Daily News’ Bill Oppenheim just released his mid-year APEX* ratings, and it was Lane’s End’s A.P. INDY who took the top spot on all four of the individual rankings, while CANDY RIDE (ARG), CITY ZIP, LANGFUHR, LEMON DROP KID, MINESHAFT, and SMART STRIKE: all figured prominently.
Oppenheim ranked the stallions by four metrics: A Runner and ABC Runner Index, and number of A Runners and ABC Runners. He said, “Lane’s End’s venerable A.P. INDY is the number one sire on all four lists. This is huge because so often the leaders in quantity as opposed to frequency (as measured by the indices) are completely different sets of horses, but not in this case. On his way to his seventh number one year-end ranking in the most important category--this is like Best Picture--his A Runner Index (4.88) is streets ahead of younger sires Speightstown (4.08) and Dalakhani (3.92)...”
Here is how Lane’s End stallions stacked up, in alpha order:
CANDY RIDE (ARG): #3 by A Runner Index (3.70) among Kentucky stallions;
CITY ZIP: #11 by ABC Runner Index by active Kentucky stallions; #14 by A Runner Index (2.78) by active Kentucky stallions;
LANGFUHR: #4 by ABC Runners (216) among North American stallions; #7 by A Runners (64) among North American stallions;
LEMON DROP KID: #5 by ABC Runner Index (2.40) by active Kentucky stallions; #8 by A Runner Index (3.14) among active North American stallions;
MINESHAFT: #3 by ABC Runner Index (2.51); #6 by A Runner Index (3.24) among Kentucky stallions;
SMART STRIKE: #3 by A runners (85) among active stallions; #5 by ABC Runners (211) among North American stallions; #7 by A Runner Index (3.16) among active Kentucky stallions.
*APEX EXPLANATION: For those unfamiliar with APEX ratings, Oppenheim describes them as such: “[We] measure the frequency with which a sire’s runners achieve three percentile-defined earnings thresholds, which collectively add up to the top eight percent of earners from runners. The three categories are: top two percent of earners (designated A Runners); the next two percent (B Runners); and the next four percent (C Runners). The three groups are also then combined to create ABC Runners--he top eight percent of earners. At least in North America and France, any horse that becomes an ABC Runner in a racing season or calendar year can be said to be ‘paying its way.’ Hence the appeal of discovering which sires are actually good at doing this, and which aren’t.”
To read the complete article, click here.
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ARAGORN, A TOP 10 SIRE
Aug. 15, 2010: It was a successful day for up-and-coming freshman sire ARAGORN (IRE). The brilliant son of Giant's Causeway saw his son Fort Hastings (Ire) run his record to a perfect three-for-three in a 52,000-euro conditions event at Cologne in Germany. Fort Hastings was bred by Manfred Hofer, is owned by M. Hofer and Stall Steigenberger.
Also this afternoon, ARAGORN's juvenile daughter Black Raja finished third in the Listed Criterium Labronico in Italy after coming off a maiden victory. Black Raja was bred in Kentucky by Stonerside Stable and is a Keeneland September grad. She is trained by Riccardo Menichetti for owner Razza dell'Olmo.
ARAGORN is a top 10 freshman sire in Kentucky, and only figures to improve as the distances get longer!
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A.P. INDY's SUCCESS IS 'TELLING'
Aug. 14, 2010: A.P. INDY's son Telling successfully defended his title in today's G1 Sword Dancer Invitational at Saratoga. Owned by Alex and JoAnn Lieblong, bred by Darley and trained by Steve Hobby, Telling surged through an opening in the stretch and was pulling away late. The win pushed his career earnings past the $830,000 mark. Telling was adding to the laurels of his sire, who has earned the status of a living legend. A.P. INDY's numbers are near awe-inspiring.
11 champions
25 Grade 1 winners
80 graded stakes winners
132 stakes winners
203 stakes horses
$109,499,214 in progeny earnings
$539,788 career yearling average
A few recent articles have underscored A.P. INDY's importance to the breed. In May, The Blood-Horse examined stallions by percentage of stakes winners to foals, which is perhaps the best measure of a stallion's success. From his 2000 to 2006 crops, A.P. INDY tied with Danzig to lead all sires in the nation with a phenomenal 14-percent strike rate, with eight percent of those stakes winners winning graded stakes. And just last week, the TDN's Bill Oppenheim in a mid-year report on his APEX ratings: "The amazing All-American sire A.P. Indy…is on course to be the Leading Sire, measured by what is our signature index figure, the 'A Runner Index,' for the seventh time."
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"A FRESH LOOK: % BT WINNERS"
Aug. 13, 2010: In a recent article, The Blood-Horse detailed the increasing importance of using a stallion's percentage of stakes winners to gauge his success. In this day and age of big stallion books and slots-infused purses, the article reasoned, this measure offers a more accurate picture of a stallion's worth.
One chart ranked the leading 2009 sires by percentage of black-type winners to starters. Lane's End sires were dominant. Leading the way were A.P. INDY and LEMON DROP KID at 10 percent. MINESHAFT sat alongside horses like Giant's Causeway at seven percent, with BELONG TO ME and DIXIE UNION joining the likes of Distorted Humor, Dynaformer and Elusive Quality at six percent.
ROCK HARD TEN, meanwhile, shared the top ranking on the 2009 freshman sire list with an eye-catching 11 percent stakes winners to starters.
In another chart, that ranked stallions from their 2000-2006 crops, Lane's End sires figured prominently. On top was A.P. INDY who tied the late, great Danzig with a fantastic 14 percent stakes winners to foals. More impressively, a full eight percent of those are graded stakes winners.
Those in the know are aware that LEMON DROP KID has emerged as one of the top sires in the nation. He is ranked third on the list (behind A.P. INDY and Distorted Humor) among active sires with an 11-percent strike rate (4.1-percent graded). SMART STRIKE is just behind that with 10 percent stakes winners (5.2 percent graded).
KINGMAMBO has long been acknowledged one of the premier stallions in the world, and his eight percent stakes winners include 5.3 percent at the graded level. Eight percent is also the strike rate of DIXIE UNION, who sadly was euthanized this summer, and the up-and-coming CITY ZIP , who is enjoying a breakout year.
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LANE’S END STARS SHINE AT THE SPA
Aug. 4, 2010: Yearlings by Lane’s End sires and members of our consignment were hot commodities at the Fasig-Tipton Selected Sale in Saratoga, which concluded its two-day stand last night.
The top-priced horse of the boutique auction was an A.P. INDYcolt out of sprint champion Maryfield (Elusive Quality) who was knocked down to Besilu Stables for $1.2 million. Todd Pletcher signed the ticket on behalf of Ben Leon’s organization. Earlier, Bobby Flay went to $625,000 to land a daughter of A.P. INDY --Malka.
One of the stars of the show was our own SMART STRIKE, whose Lookin At Lucky offered a sterling advertisement for his sire by winning the G1 Haskell Invitational a day before the sale began. Leading the charge at Saratoga was a SMART STRIKE--Sluice colt who was purchased by John Ferguson for $750,000. Lane’s End sold a pair of SMART STRIKEs for top dollar. A filly out of Code Book went to Ferguson for $400,000, while another filly out of Grade I winner Leave Me Alone made $400,000 on Donato Lanni’s bid. Lanni purchased Lookin At Lucky as a juvenile. Another filly by SMART STRIKE, out of Hummingbird Red, was secured by Glen Hill farm for $400,000.
Yearlings by ROCK HARD TEN were also popular. Three sold from three offered for an average of $328,333. They included a Lane’s End-consigned son of Belong to Sea (BELONG TO ME) who went to Live Oak Plantation for $450,000. Sheikh Hamdan’s Shadwell Farm paid $325,000 for colt by ROCK HARD TEN out of Appealing Storm, while My Meadowview paid $210,000 for a colt out of Fiddlin Devon.
Other yearlings to sell well at Saratoga by Lane’s End sires included:
• CANDY RIDE (ARG)--Turkish Gypsy colt for $270,000 (purchased by Patrice Miller, EQB);
• DIXIE UNION--Lerici colt for $400,000 (purchased by Let’s Go Stable);
• LEMON DROP KID--Worthy Cat colt for $250,000 (purchased by Ben Glass);
• GULCH--Weekend Storm full-brother to MG1SW Court Vision from our consignment for $330,000 (purchased by IEAH Stables).
In all, four of the top 15 horses at Saratoga hailed from the Lane’s End draft. Others included a Street Cry (Ire) colt out of My Boston Gal who went to John Ferguson for $650,000. Lane’s End also sold a Medaglia d’Oro--Melisma filly to Spendthrift Farm for $450,000 and an Empire Maker--Half A.P. filly to MSTS for $435,000.
Congratulations to all the breeders and owners who supported us at Saratoga and best of racing luck to all the buyers!
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ROCKIN’ THE SALES RING AND THE TRACK
Aug. 4, 2010: As the leading second-crop sire by graded stakes winners, ROCK HARD TEN figured to be popular at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Selected Yearling Sale. Indeed, from his three yearlings on offer, all three sold for an average of $328,333. They were:
• Colt out of Belong to Sea (BELONG TO ME), consigned by Lane’s End, who went to Live Oak Plantation for $450,000;
• Colt out of Appealing Storm who went to Shadwell Farm for $325,000;
• Colt out of Fiddlin Devon who went to My Meadowview for $210,000.
ROCK HARD TEN is currently the leading sire of his crop with a $210,000 median from five horses through the ring this year!
From his first crop to race, ROCK HARD TEN has been represented by four group/graded winners, including Doubles Partner, winner of the G2 American Turf S., and Krypton, winner of the G3 Hill Prince S.; as well as the juvenile group/graded Long Lashes and The Mailet. ROCK HARD TEN is also the sire of the juvenile stakes winner Bear’s Hard Ten!
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BEST 3YO SPRINTER? IT'S MINESHAFT'S DISCREETLY MINE
Aug. 7, 2010: Since reverting to sprints, MINESHAFT's son Discreetly Mine has been sensational, and the three-year-old colt put up another sizzling performance in the G2 Amsterdam S. at Saratoga Aug. 2. Coming off an eye-catching win in the G3 Jersey Shore S. at Monmouth, Discreetly Mine kept close tabs on the pacesetter through scorching fractions. He hit the front after six furlongs in 1:07.76, and rolled home 8 3/4 lengths clear. The final time for the 6 1/2-furlong race was 1:14.27. That earned him a gaudy 111 Beyer Speed Figure, the best in the nation for a three-year-old and two points faster than Eskendereya's Wood Memorial! Discreetly Mine is an E. Paul Robsham Stables homebred and is trained by Todd Pletcher. Earlier in the year, he won the G2 Risen Star S. at Fair Grounds. He could go next in the G1 King's Bishop S.
That hasn't been MINESHAFT's only prominent sprinter at the Spa, however. His three-year-old daughter Bonnie Blue Flag continues to be a rock-solid performer among the lady speedsters. In this afternoon's prestigious G1 Test S. at seven furlongs, Bonnie Blue Flag tracked along the rail while racing under cover. Still pinned to the pine as they hit the quarter pole, she found a seam between rivals and "came home willingly," according the official chart, to finish second to Champagne d'Oro. A compelling 6 1/2-length winner of the seven-furlong Cinemine S. at Lone Star May 31, Bonnie Blue Flag was coming off a third-place effort to Franny Freud and Champagne d'Oro in the G1 Prioress S. at Belmont July 4, and it seems only a matter of time before the Peachtree Venture runner breaks through at the highest level. She is trained by Bob Baffert.
Also at Saratoga, MINESHAFT's sophomore son Miner's Reserve ran big to finish second in the G2 Jim Dandy S. He is owned by Robert LaPenta and trained by Nick Zito.
Meanwhile, MINESHAFT's four-year-old daughter Kiss Mine has been setting the turf on fire of late. A homebred of Carl Pollard's Hermitage Farm, the dark bay won a Churchill allowance in June. She came back to earn her first black-type win in the July 24, $75,000 Ellis Park Turf S., where she powered home to a five-length success while stopping the timer for the 1 1/16 miles in a sensational 1:39.55. That led her to being the 4-5 choice in today's $110,000 West Virginia Senate President's S. at Mountaineer, and she didn't disappoint, attending razor-sharp fractions before edging away to win by 1 1/4 lengths. Kiss Mine is trained by David Vance.
The leading fourth-crop sire, MINESHAFT recently got seventh 2010 stakes winner. On July 20, Lane’s End sales graduate A. U. Miner rallied to get his neck down in the $250,000 Greenwood Cup S. at Philly Park. A half-sibling to the top-class MG1SW Star Parade (Arg), A.U. Miner was bred by Ten Broeck Farm Inc., is owned by Don L. Benge and is trained by Clark Hanna.
The sire of 2010 stars like Fly Down, Cool Coal Man, and Redding Colliery, MINESHAFT is ranked 13th on the General Sires List among active sires, with progeny earnings of over $3.7 million. He leads all fourth-crop sires by earnings, stakes winners, graded stake winners, etc.
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SMART STRIKE's LUCKY ALONE AT THE TOP
Aug. 1, 2010: Judged by Eclipse voters to be last year's top juvenile colt in the land, Lookin At Lucky left little doubt today that he's the best sophomore, too, after a powerhouse performance in the G1 Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park. In what was being called the best Haskell renewal ever--one that featured the Derby winner Super Saver, up-and-comer Trappe Shot, etc.--Lookin At Lucky ranged up with a sweeping move on the far turn and sailed home four lengths clear. "No question, as he was at the end of last year, Lookin At Lucky is still the best of his generation," asserted Daily Racing Form's Jay Privman. STEPHEN GOT EVEN's First Dude finished a game third after setting the pace.
The Haskell was Lookin At Lucky's fifth Grade 1 victory. Last term, he won the G1 Del Mar Futurity, G1 Norfolk S. and G1 CashCall Futurity, and gave SMART STRIKE a second G1 Preakness S. winner in an exciting edition of the race in May. SMART STRIKE's son CURLIN won the Classic in 2007.
North America's leading sire in 2007 and 2008, SMART STRIKE is again poised for another sire championship. He is also the sire of the 2010 Grade II winners Strike a Deal, Papa Clem, Striking Dancer, etc.
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TWO NEW STAKES WINNERS FOR MINESHAFT
July 27, 2010: Leading fourth-crop sire MINESHAFT, a top 15 sire on the General Sire List, got his sixth and seventh 2010 stakes winners in the span of week. On July 20, Lane’s End sales graduate A. U. Miner rallied to get his neck down in the $250,000 Greenwood Cup S. at Philly Park. A half-sibling to the top-class MG1SW Star Parade (Arg), A.U. Miner was bred by Ten Broeck Farm Inc., is owned by Don L. Benge and is trained by Clark Hanna.
Then this afternoon, MINESHAFT's four-year-old daughter Kiss Mine sizzled in the $75,000 Ellis Park Turf S. to earn her first black-type win. A homebred of Carl Pollard's Hermitage Farm, the dark bay dueled through a half in :46.21, rebuffed the bid of GSW C.S. Silk after a three-quarters in 1:09.69, and powered home to a five-length success. The final time for the 1 1/16 miles was a sensational 1:39.55. Kiss Mine is trained by David Vance.
The sire of 2010 stars like Discreetly Mine, Fly Down, Cool Coal Man, Redding Colliery and Bonnie Blue Flag, MINESHAFT is ranked 13th on the General Sires List among active sires, with progeny earnings of over $3.3 million. He leads all fourth-crop sires by earnings, stakes winners, graded stake winners, etc.
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HOT WEEKEND, HOT RUNNERS
July 26, 2010: Soaring temperatures up and down the East Coast didn’t stop Lane’s End-sired offspring over the weekend.
MINESHAFT tallied yet another stakes winner, his seventh on the year, when his four-year-old daughter Kiss Mine won the $75,000 Ellis Park Turf Breeders’ Cup S. on Saturday. She dominated by five lengths and stopped the clock in a sensational 1:39.55 for the 1 1/16 miles.
Freshman sire TOO MUCH BLING saw another of his youngsters earn black type. The filly Show Me the Bling, an impressive first-out winner at Monmouth on debut, finished a good third in Friday’s G3 Schuylerville S. at Saratoga.
SMART STRIKE’s Never Retreat took down the $100,000 Lady Canterbury S. on Saturday, on the same card that his Smarten Destiny and Strike Impact finished two-three in the Claiming Crown Jewel S.
Our late SAINT LIAM registered another stakes winner. With his oldest runners now just three, the 2005 Horse of the Year, sire of last year’s juvenile star Buddy’s Saint, was represented by Beyondallboundarys, winner of Friday’s Dearly Precious S. at Monmouth Park.
In Germany, KINGMAMBO’s Alexandros (GB) finished third in the G1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis Bayerisches Zuchtrennen in Munich, while closer to home, CITY ZIP’s City to City ran Evening Jewel to ¾ lengths in the G2 San Clemente at Del Mar.
Congratulations to the connections of all these runners!
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CITY ZIP #1 LEADING SIRE OF GRADED WINNERS
July 26, 2010: CITY ZIP has more graded stakes winners than any other sire except Dynaformer and Street Cry in 2010. He has more graded winners than Medaglia d’Oro, Unbridled’s Song, Malibu Moon, Giant’s Causeway, Distorted Humor etc. He is ranked eighth on the General Sire List and second on the Leading Turf Sires list!
CITY ZIP tallied his sixth graded stakes winner when Workin for Hops aired by a smart 2 1/2-length margin in the G2 American Derby at Arlington Park July 17. Winner of the $100,000 Arlington Classic in May, Workin for Hops was sent off the 3-2 pick exiting a runner-up effort to Paddy O’Prado in the G2 Colonial Turf Cup. CITY ZIP’s Gleam of Hope was third in the American Derby, with BELONG TO ME’s Mister Marti Gras filling the place spot. Workin for Hops was bred by Amy Bondon and Tom McNally and is trained by Michael Stidham for Estrorace LLC.
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NEW STAKES WINNER FOR MINESHAFT
July 20, 2010: Leading fourth-crop sire MINESHAFT, a top 15 sire on the General Sire List, got his sixth stakes winner on the year when Lane’s End sales graduate A. U. Miner rallied to get his neck down in the $250,000 Greenwood Cup S. at Philly Park. A half-sibling to the top-class MG1SW Star Parade (Arg), A.U. Miner was bred by Ten Broeck Farm Inc., is owned by Don L. Benge and is trained by Clark Hanna.
The sire of 2010 stars like Discreetly Mine, Fly Down, Cool Coal Man, Redding Colliery and Bonnie Blue Flag, MINESHAFT is ranked 12th in the nation among active sires, with progeny earnings of over $3.2 million. He leads all fourth-crop sires by earnings, stakes winners, graded stakes, repeat winners, etc.
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LANGFUHR: SOLID AS THEY COME
July 20, 2010: In hard economic times, proven commodities gain favor, and few stallions in the game are as solid and as proven as LANGFUHR. One of only three sires to make the Top 15 on the General Sires List over the past seven years--the others being A.P. INDY and SMART STRIKE--LANGFUHR is again having another fine year. On the closing day of the Hollywood spring/summer meet, his son Marlang led every step to take the G3 Sunset S. in impressive fashion. Marlang won the third leg of Canada’s Triple Crown, the Breeders’ S., in 2008, and also won the G3 Saranac S. at Saratoga. Owned and bred by Gustav Schickedanz and trained by Neil Drysdale, he has now earned $558,212.
On June 26, LANGFUHR’s three-year-old son The Rectifier captured the Listed Midsummer S. at Windsor in England. The Rectifier is trained by Stef Higgins for owner Mrs. Anne Cowley. He was bred by Ceka Ireland Ltd. LANGFUHR’s other black-type runners in 2010 include Arganil, winner of the Listed Hever Sprint S., as well as Akilina, Casanova Move, Cassique Lady (Ire), Cherryblossommiss, Euroears, I. M. Boomer, Kitty’s Turn, London Lane, Torpedo Run and Zarroc.
LANGFUHR’s progeny are known for their versatility, and that’s borne out by LANGFUHR’s position a Top 20 sire in the nation by turf earnings, a top 30 sire on the all-weather and a top 30 general sire among North American sires.
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BIG WEEKEND FOR LANE’S END SIRES
July 19, 2010: From Germany to Chicago to California, offspring by Lane’s End sires enjoyed a big weekend. Leading the way was KINGMAMBO’s son Campanologist, who secured his first Group 1 tally in the Deutschland Preis-Grosser Hansa at Hamburg in Germany on Saturday. KINGMAMBO was also the damsire of runner-up Wiener Walzer (Ger).
At Arlington Park, Lane’s End sires registered a 1-2-3 finish in the G2 American Derby for three-year-olds. CITY ZIP’s Workin for Hops, capturing his first graded score, and Gleam of Hope bookended BELONG TO ME’s Mister Marti Gras. On the same card, A.P. INDY’s Grade 1-winning son Just as Well finished second in the G3 Arlington H.
Out in California, LANGFUHR’s Classic-winning son Marlang made all in an impressive wire-to-wire victory in the G3 Sunset H. at Hollywood Park.
Meanwhile, MINESHAFT’s son A. U. Miner claimed the first stakes win of his career in the $240,000 Greenwood Cup S. at Philly Park on Saturday.
Other highlights of the weekend included:
• Grade 1 winner Sidney’s Candy, the three-year-old standout from leading young sire CANDY RIDE (ARG), was beaten just a head in the G2 Swaps S. at Hollywood;
• Krypton, by ROCK HARD TEN, finished third in the $600,000 G2 Virginia Derby;
• Yield Bogey, by LANGFUHR, ran second in the G3 Jaipur S. at Belmont;
• and Ainamaa, by LEMON DROP KID, was third in the G3 Robert G. Dick Memorial H.
And we may have gotten a glimpse of the next generation of Lane’s End stars Sunday at Hollywood Park. Kaleem Shah’s Smash, by SMART STRIKE out of the DIXIELAND BAND mare Dixie Holiday, was tabbed a TDN Rising Star after bursting away to take his debut. The two-year-old colt, a $400,000 OBS March juvenile, stopped the clock in :57 4/5 for the five furlongs. He was bred by Peter Blum and is trained by Bob Baffert.
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AFTER MARKET COLT BRINGS $100,000!
July 16, 2010: The first yearlings from the impeccably bred AFTER MARKET (Storm Cat--Tranquility Lake, by Rahy) went through the ring at the Fasig-Tipton July Selected Yearling Sale, and the reviews were overwhelmingly positive. John McCormack Bloodstock saw fit to go to $100,000 for a colt by AFTER MARKET out of Promising Affair (Colonial Affair). The colt, whose second dam is two-time Canadian champion Avowal (L’Enjoleur), is a half to SW Stormy Business. He was bred by Bena Halecky and Phil Needham.
AFTER MARKET’s only other yearling on offer at July was a filly out of the young stakes-producing Kentucky Whisper (Southern Halo). Offered by Paramount Sales, agent for Sierra Farm, the filly was bought back for $149,000. “She’s a big scopey filly from a current family, and she’s got a nice, big walk on her,” Paramount’s Pat Costello told the TDN. “She’s a lovely walker and has a very nice presence. She’s a good representation of the sire.”
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TWO NEW STAKES WINNERS FOR PLEASANTLY PERFECT!
July 16, 2010: Only Medaglia d’Oro and Speightstown have more stakes winners than PLEASANTLY PERFECT among third-crop sires this year. With his runners excelling as the distances get longer, PLEASANTLY PERFECT has been represented by two new stakes winners over the past three weeks. Our own Woodford Racing and Westrock Stable’s three-year-old colt So Elite captured his second straight start by daylight in the $105,000 Charlie Barley S. at Woodbine going one mile on the turf July 3. He was bred by Diamond A Racing Corp. Out on the West Coast, Gerald Ford’s Diamond A Racing registered another success with a PLEASANTLY PERFECT filly, but this time as owner. Miss Pleasant, a four-year-old Lane’s End sales graduate, won the 1 1/16-mile $53,000 Alameda County Fillies and Mares H. at Pleasanton June 26. Miss Pleasant was bred by Swifty Farms Inc. Meanwhile, PLEASANTLY PERFECT'S four-year-old daughter Shared Account continues to impress on the sod. The Lane’s End sales grad added another graded win to her resume in the G3 All Along S. at Colonial Downs June 19. PLEASANTLY PERFECT can boast six black-type winners in 2010!
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THIRD WINNER FOR ARAGORN!
July 7, 2010: Nearly half of ARAGORN (IRE)’s starters have found the winner’s circle so far. The freshman sire, a son of Giant’s Causeway, was represented by his latest winner when Fort Hastings (Ire) made a winning debut at Compiegne in France. The colt, a purchase by Manfred Hofer at the BBA September Sale, beat home 11 others in the 1400-meter maiden June 29.
ARAGORN’s first winner also came in France. Araneide, a colt out of Carini (GB), won by 1 1/2 lengths on June 20. A Keeneland sales graduate, he is the first foal out of the stakes-placed mare. Congratulations to owner Malcom Parrish, trainer Guy Henrot, and breeder Business & Promotion Trading S.A.
ARAGORN quickly added a second winner when Protect the Ring dusted his rivals by 5 3/4 lengths in a maiden special weight at Colonial Downs June 22. Making his second start, Protect the Ring was bred by Lane’s End and Watts Humphrey and was sold at the Keeneland September Sale. He is owned and trained by Doug O’Neill. ARAGORN is also the sire of Nessia (Ire), who finished second in a maiden in France.
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NEW STAKES HORSE, JUVENILE WINNER FOR ‘THE ROCK’
July 5, 2010: After a June that saw him register yet another graded stakes winner, ROCK HARD TEN continued his red-hot run into July. This afternoon, the three-year-old colt Devon Rock earned the first black type of his young career with a third-place effort in the $100,000 Choice S. over Monmouth Park’s lawn. An open-lengths winner in a one-mile maiden special weight at Belmont June 5 in his grass bow, Devon Rock was making just his third start. The handsome dark bay was a $160,000 Keeneland September graduate from Lane’s End and went on to be a $440,000 Keeneland April graduate. Devon Rock is owned by Centennial Farms, trained by Dennis Manning and was bred by Farnsworth Stables LLC.
Also this afternoon, ROCK HARD TEN’s two-year-old filly Alienation became his newest maiden special weight winner when she gamely got her nose down to take a five-furlong dash at Hollywood Park. The dark bay filly was the 9-5 favorite in her career debut. She is trained by Bob Baffert for owner Natalie Baffert, and was bred by White Fox Farm.
Congrats to the connections of both of these exciting runners!
ROCK HARD TEN, whose son Krypton won the G3 Hill Prince S. at Belmont in June, is the leading sophomore sire with four graded winners to his credit, and is the co-second-leading sophomore sire with five black-type winners.
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JULY 4 FIREWORKS FOR MINESHAFT
July 4, 2010: MINESHAFT solidified his status as the leading fourth-crop sire in the nation with an outstanding Independence Day. At Monmouth Park, his regally bred son Discreetly Mine stamped himself as one of the top sprinter/milers in his division with a good-looking score in the G3 Jersey Shore S. Hammered down to 7-5 favoritism coming off a gutsy runner-up effort in the seven-furlong G2 Woody Stephens S., Discreetly Mine was taken back this time around before closing with a rush to win by 1 1/4 lengths. Discreetly Mine, runner-up in last year’s G1 Champagne S. and winner of the G2 Risen Star S. earlier this year, is a Robsham Stables homebred and is trained by Todd Pletcher. He is a half-brother to MG1SW Discreetly Mine.
Meanwhile, across the Hudson, the three-year-old filly Bonnie Blue Flag was a good third in the six-furlong G1 Prioress S. at Belmont Park. Trained by Bob Baffert for Peachtree Stable, Bonnie Blue Flag had romped by 6 1/2 lengths in the $100,000 Cinemine S. at Lone Star in her previous start. A $300,000 Lane’s End graduate from the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale, Bonnie Blue Flag was bred by Lane’s End and George Bolton.
MINESHAFT is currently ranked 12th on the General Sires List.
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BELONG TO ME’S GRAND CASH GETS UP IN CALDER STAKES
June 13, 2010: BELONG TO ME’s four-year-old son Grand Cash collected the third black-type victory of his career when he got his nose down in today’s one-mile Blazing Sword S. over Calder’s turf. Bred by River Run Farm and owned by Douglas Gibson, the chestnut caboosed the field in seventh off modest fractions, tipped wide for the stretch run and, according to the official chart, "closed with a rush to be just up at the wire." Grand Cash earned a good 94 BRIS figure for his exertions. It was the sixth career win for Grand Cash, who has now banked over $175,000.
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CITY ZIP: TWO GRADED WINNERS ON SAME DAY!
June 12, 2010: CITY ZIP posted a pair of Grade III winners today as he continues to enjoy a break-out season. Now eighth on the General Sire List, CITY ZIP
got things started at Churchill Downs, when his three-year-old son Gleam of Hope took his first graded event in the G3 Jefferson Cup S. A close-up fourth to Odysseus, STEPHEN GOT EVEN’s Schoolyard Dreams and Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver in the G3 Tampa Bay Derby in March, Gleam of hope finished a good third to CITY ZIP’s Workin For Hops in the Arlington Classic in his most recent May 22. Last of nine in the Jefferson Cup as the leaders cut out slow fractions, Gleam of Hope rallied stoutly and was along in time.
An hour later, CITY ZIP was represented by Get Serious in the G3 Monmouth S. at Monmouth Park. Stretching out to nine furlongs facing the likes of Presious Passion, Get Serious pulled his way up to challenge that foe, was already getting away up the backstretch and never left the outcome in doubt on his way to a second win at the graded level. A model of consistency at the shore, Get Serious has now won nine of his last 14 starts, including last term’s G3 Red Bank S.
CITY ZIP can boast the 2010 graded winners Unzip Me, an ultra-game four-year-old filly who has taken each of her last five races, including the G3 Las Cienegas at Santa Anita; the three-year-old City to City, who won the G2 Providencia S.; and Acting Zippy, a gate-to-wire hero of the G3 John B. Connally Turf H.
CITY ZIP’s five 2010 graded winners leaves him tied in third with Medaglia d’Oro by that measure, and behind only Dynaformer (7) and Street Cry (Ire) (6). CITY ZIP has more graded winners than Distorted Humor, Unbridled’s Song, etc. Ranked in eighth on the General Sire List with eight overall stakes winners, he sits behind only Dynaformer as North America’s Leading Turf Sire.
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MINESHAFT: CLASSIC QUALITY
June 14, 2010: MINESHAFT is in the midst of career year, and the young stallion nearly enjoyed his first Classic winner when Fly Down came flying to finish second in the G1 Belmont S. Sent off the second betting choice by the public off his impressive victory over Drosselmeyer in the G2 Dwyer S. at Belmont, Fly Down sat well off a slow early pace, but was going best of all at the end of the mile-and-a-half Classic. He was beaten just 3/4 lengths by his rival Drosselmeyer. Fly Down was a member of Lane’s End’s 2008 September Yearling Sale consignment.
Earlier on the card at Belmont, another sophomore son of MINESHAFT put forth a fine effort. Discreetly Mine, winner of the G2 Risen Star S. in February, pressed a hot pace in the G2 Woody Stephen S. and ran on gamely to finish second to D’ Funnybone.
MINESHAFT’s big Belmont Stakes day came on the heels of another big weekend for the Horse of the Year. On May 31, MINESHAFT’s son Redding Colliery notched the first graded win of his career with a 6 3/4-length romp in the G3 Lone Star Park H. Redding Colliery, who set a new track record while winning the John B. Campbell H. at Laurel in February, was coming off a third-place effort in the $1 million Charles Town Classic S.
On the Lone Star Park H. undercard, MINESHAFT’S three-year-old daughter Bonnie Blue Flag dominated 10 other foes by 6 1/2 lengths in the Cinemine S. Produced by the DIXIELAND BAND mare Tap Your Feet, the half-sister to Diamondrella (GB) was another who hailed from a Lane’s End sales draft, selling for $300,000 at Fasig-Tipton Saratoga.
MINESHAFT’s hot summer continued last weekend when his accomplished son Cool Coal Man pushed his career earnings past the $775,000 mark with a victory in Monmouth’s $100,000 Skip Away S. June 12. Cool Coal Man, hero of the G2 Fountain of Youth S. as a sophomore, has now won a stakes in each of his last three seasons for owner Robert LaPenta and trainer Nick Zito.
MINESHAFT is the leading fourth-crop sire in the country and is ranked 11th in the nation on Thoroughbred Times’s General Sires List. His three 2010 graded stakes winners are more than Elusive Quality, Speightstown, Awesome Again, Tiznow, etc.
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LANE’S END: SALES GRADS SUCCEED
The road to success runs through a Lane’s End sale consignment. That’s been the case year in and year out for the past 25 years, and 2010 has been another fruitful season for horses who sold under our banner. Leading the way is the top-ranked handicap horse in the country, Quality Road. Offered by Lane’s End at the 2007 Keeneland September Sale by his breeder Ned Evans, Quality Road set new track records last year while winning the G1 Florida Derby at Gulfstream and G2 Amsterdam S. at Saratoga, and continued his record-setting ways when lowering his own track record in Gulfstream’s G1 Donn H. earlier this year. Given a breather off that, Quality Road returned in the G1 Met Mile at Belmont May 31 and unleashed a tour de force, taking the race in wire-to-wire fashion in 1:33 flat. Quality Road has now won seven of 10 and banked over $1.6 million.
On the sophomore scene, Lane’s End grads include a number of horses who have made noise on the Triple Crown trail. The progressive Fly Down (MINESHAFT), an $80,000 yearling from the 2008 September Sale, ran away from Drosselmeyer in the G2 Dwyer S. at Belmont, then was getting to that foe when second in the G1 Belmont S.
Awesome Act, a $240,000 September yearling, was one of the crowd’s favorites for the G1 Kentucky Derby after an impressive win in the G3 Gotham S. and third to Eskendereya in the G1 Wood Memorial S. He suffered a minor injury in the race and is slated to return later in the year.
Endorsement, meanwhile, a $450,000 September yearling, was himself highly regarded for the Derby after a powerful three-length tally over Conveyance in the G3 Sunland Derby. The WinStar Farm colorbearer has already earned $430,000 during his young career.
Other 2010 stakes horses hailing from Lane’s End Sales include Court Vision (GULCH), who collected his third Grade 1 win in as many years in the Gulfstream Park Turf H. The five-year-old is approaching the $2-million mark in earnings. Strike a Deal (SMART STRIKE) pushed his earnings past $1 million with a victory in the G2 Dixie S. at Pimlico, while Baletti (GULCH) captured his first graded race in the G3 Fort Marcy S. at Aqueduct in April. Lane’s End also sold the 2010 stakes winners Bonnie Blue Flag (MINESHAFT), King of Dixie (KINGMAMBO), Peppi Knows (STEPHEN GOT EVEN), La Verita, Marie de Medici, etc.
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STEPHEN GOT EVEN: DUDES AND DREAMS
June 5, 2010: It’s been another successful spring Classic season for STEPHEN GOT EVEN. His strapping son First Dude entered the G1 Preakness S. as an unexposed sort, and three weeks later exited the G1 Belmont S. as the only three-year-old to hit the board in more than one of the Triple Crown races. Third in the G1 Blue Grass S. at Keeneland in April, Donald Dizney’s homebred set a fast pace in the Preakness--getting to the first quarter in :22 and change--and dug in gamely to finish second to SMART STRIKE’s Lookin at Lucky. Once again on the front in this afternoon’s G1 Belmont S., First Dude shrugged off his early challengers and ran on well to be third by just 1 1/2 lengths to Drosselmeyer and MINESHAFT’s Fly Down.
STEPHEN GOT EVEN is also the sire of the well-regarded three-year-old colt Schoolyard Dreams, who was just nosed out by Odysseus in the $300,000 G3 Tampa Bay Derby. Back in third that day was subsequent G1 Kentucky Derby hero Super Saver. Schoolyard Dreams was also second in the G3 Sam F. Davis S. Other 2010 black-type runners by STEPHEN GOT EVEN include Mr. Tommy, Peppi Knows, Even Road, Hannah's Dowery, C S I Iowa, Cosmo Phantom, etc.
STEPHEN GOT EVEN, a top 25 Kentucky sire in 2010, is a proven commodity who can boast the likes of Champion Juvenile Colt Stevie Wonderboy, Grade 1 winner I Want Revenge, etc.
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TWO NEW GRADED WINNERS FOR ROCK HARD TEN!
June 5, 2010: Sophomore sire ROCK HARD TEN has added two new graded winners to his resume over the past month. Yesterday afternoon, the highly promising Krypton dug in to take the G3 Hill Prince S. at Belmont Park. An eye-catching allowance winner over Keeneland’s main track in early April, Krypton becomes the fourth graded stakes winner for ROCK HARD TEN’s first crop!
Like Krypton, the smartly bred WinStar Farm colorbearer Doubles Partner looks like a colt with a big future. On Kentucky Oaks Day at Churchill, Doubles Partner stamped himself as perhaps the most exciting three-year-old grass horse in the country with an impressive win in the G2 American Turf S. The dark bay, who was produced by a full-sister to Serena’s Song, rallied from some 16 lengths back in the 1 1/16-mile event to win going away. Doubles Partner was a $450,000 FTSAUG yearling.
Krypton and Doubles Partner join ROCK HARD TEN’s juvenile graded stakes winners Long Lashes and The Mailet, as well as the $150,000 Display S. winner Bear’s Hard Ten.
ROCK HARD TEN is also the sire of two new maiden special weight winners at Belmont. The three-year-old colt Devon Rock won a one-mile, $61,000 event this afternoon, while the sophomore filly Shirley She Can won a $51,000 test yesterday.
ROCK HARD TEN is the leading second-crop sire of graded stakes winners and is a top 10 second-crop sire, and is the number-one sophomore sire in the country by grass earnings!
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BELONG TO ME - A ‘WISE’ CHOICE
May 31, 2010: As the sire of 68 stakes winners, 27 graded winners, 10 grade 1 winners, and the earners of $61 million, BELONG TO ME is a proven international sire who offers outstanding value to breeders. He’s currently in the midst of another fine season. This afternoon, BELONG TO ME’S son Wise River pushed his career earnings to just shy of the $500,000 mark with a victory in the $150,000 Dallas Turf Cup S. at Lone Star Park. The Grade III winner has now finished first or second in 17 or 36 starts.
BELONG TO ME’s champion Forever Together has been one of the best turf distaffers over the past three years, and the handsome gray is still going strong at six. On May 29, the 2008 G1 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf heroine ran Tuscan Evening (Ire) to a half-length in the G1 Gamely S. at Hollywood Park.
BELONG TO ME also continues to established himself as a premier broodmare sire. His daughter Private Feeling, who sold for $2 million at last year’s Fasig-Tipton November Sale, is the dam of Champion Juvenile Colt and recent G1 Preakness S. hero Lookin at Lucky. BELONG TO ME is also the damsire of the likes of Papa Clem (SMART STRIKE), Radiohead (GB), West Ocean, Circular Quay, etc.
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SAINT LIAM RUNNERS CONTINUE TO SHINE
June 5, 1010: Runners by SAINT LIAM are continuing to proudly represent the mantle of their late sire. A top 10 stallion among Kentucky sophomore sires, SAINT LIAM is already the sire of six stakes horses from his first crop, including three stakes winners. This afternoon, the 2005 Horse of the Year’s daughter Havre de Grace was just denied by the 3-5 No Such Word in the $78,000 Go For Wand S. at Delaware Park. Havre de Grace was a $380,000 yearling.
A week ago, Liam’s Dream, another three-year-old filly by SAINT LIAM, accounted for her second black-type victory with a facile win in the $75,000 Wonders Delight S. at Penn National. The Pennsylvania-bred miss was shipping in after a breakout victory in the G3 Cicada S. at Aqueduct in March and has now won four of five starts.
On May 23, SAINT LIAM’s daughter Moment of Majesty finished a good third to Canadian champion Biofuel in the $150,000 La Lorgnette S. at Woodbine.
Last year, SAINT LIAM’s Buddy's Saint proved to be one of the most capable runners of his generation with tallies in the G2 Nashua S. and G2 Remsen S. SAINT LIAM is also the sire of two-time stakes winner Coccolo, and of the black-type runners Imaginary Saint and Sheltowee.
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CITY ZIP IN MIDST OF ‘CLASSIC’ SEASON
May 22, 2010: Today’s result in the $100,000 Arlington Classic S. at Arlington Park underscored what sort of season it’s been for the red-hot CITY ZIP. The Grade 1 winner and half-brother to Ghostzapper was responsible for the winner of the 1 1/16th-mile turf event, the sophomore Workin for Hops, as well as the third-place finisher, Gleam of Hope. It was the second stakes win for Workin for Hops and his fourth victory in six career starts.
That followed on the heel’s of Unzip Me’s victory in the $75,000 Great Lady M. S. at Hollywood Park yesterday. By CITY ZIP, Unzip Me was hammered down to 4-5 favoritism to take her fifth straight race and came through with another wire-to-wire tour de force. Unzip won the G3 Las Cienegas H. at Santa Anita in her previous start.
CITY ZIP, a top five juvenile sire in 2009, has been one of the country’s most versatile sire this term. He currently sits in third on the Leading Turf Sires list, behind only Dynaformer and SMART STRIKE, while he ranks an impressive 13th on the Leading Sires List (10th by North American earnings). CITY ZIP is the co-third-leading sire in the nation with nine total stakes wins to his credit, sitting alongside Dynaformer ($150,000) and Speightstown ($35,000), and his five black-type winners on the year include three at the graded level. In addition to Unzip Me, the three-year-old City to City won the G2 Providencia S.; and Acting Zippy was a gate-to-wire hero of the G3 John B. Connally Turf H.
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PERFECT PIMLICO PEDIGREES
May 15, 2010: Trainer Bob Baffert’s Lookin at Lucky exacted a measure of revenge and SMART STRIKE notched his second G1 Preakness S. winner when the Champion Juvenile Colt powered home to an impressive victory in the second leg of the Triple Crown today. Coming off a disappointing sixth-place effort as the favorite in the G1 Kentucky Derby, when he was slammed hard in the early going, Lookin at Lucky stalked in mid-pack, made an eye-catching move on the turn and gamely ran down STEPHEN GOT EVEN’s First Dude for the win. First Dude, third in the G1 Blue Grass S. in his last start, goes next in the G1 Belmont S.
Lookin at Lucky is now a winner of seven of his 10 starts, with all but one of those victories coming in graded events and four coming against Grade 1 company. He has now earned over $2.1 million. SMART STRIKE accounted for his first Preakness three years ago, when CURLIN narrowly beat the Derby hero Street Sense. SMART STRIKE, a two-time leading sire, currently sits in third on the General Sire List.
Lane’s End sires produced the Preakness 1-2, and can also boast of being the dam sires of that exacta. BELONG TO ME’s Private Feeling is the dam of Lookin at Lucky; SMART STRIKE’s Run Sarah Run is the dam of First Dude.
SMART STRIKE’s hot run continued on the Preakness undercard. In the G2 Dixie S., the Lane’s End-bred and -sold Strike a Deal, a son of the DIXIELAND BAND mare Shag, became racing’s latest millionaire when he won the nine-furlong race in front-running fashion. He defeated A.P. INDY’s Grade 1 winner Just as Well in the process. Strike a Deal has been first or second in 12 of 20 and banked $1,052,341.
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NEW GRADE 2 WINNER FOR MINESHAFT
May 8, 2010: Horse of the Year MINESHAFT led all third-crop sires last year with nine black-type winners, and he has continued to turn out top-quality animals in 2010. This afternoon, his three-year-old son Fly Down established himself as an up-and-comer in the division with an eye-catching six-length tally in the G2 Dwyer S. at Belmont Park. In the process, he defeated the highly regarded favorite Drosselmeyer and became the latest MINESHAFT to star for Nick Zito, who also conditioned Robert LaPenta’s Grade 2 winner Cool Coal Man and GSW Coal Play. Fly Down was co-bred by Lane’s End with Broadway Thoroughbreds Inc., and was a member of Lane’s End’s 2008 Keeneland September consignment. MINESHAFT, currently a top 20 sire on the General Sires List, is also the sire of the top sophomore Discreetly Mine, winner of the G2 Risen Star S. and runner-up in last year’s G1 Champagne S.
MINESHAFT is now the leading fourth-crop sire in 2010.
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ANOTHER STAKES WINNER FOR PLEASANTLY PERFECT
May 8, 2010: Six days after Cozi Rosie took down her first graded event in the G3 Senorita S. at Hollywood Park, third-crop sire PLEASANTLY PERFECT registered another new black-type winner. His four-year-old daughter Mindy Sue hooked up with PLEASANT TAP’s Taptam from the start and battled with that foe nearly every step to win today’s Winter Melody S. at Delaware Park. Mindy Sue, first or second in seven of nine and never off the board, was coming off a sharp allowance score at Oaklawn Park. Eighth on the third-crop sire list despite having 18 fewer runners than the next lowest total, PLEASANTLY PERFECT is also the sire of the exciting three-year-old Setsuko, the G1 Santa Anita Derby runner-up who could go next in the G1 Belmont S.
He is siring 17% stakes horses from starters from two crops to race.
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STAKES WINNER #132 FOR A.P. INDY
May 8, 2010: A.P. INDY has another Queen’s Plate S. candidate on his hands after his regally bred son Hotep took today’s $107,859 Wando S. at Woodbine. Hotep was hard held while saving ground off the pace. He made a bold move midway on the backstretch to reach contention, bid in earnest once again in upper stretch and, despite a stiff headwind, drove clear impressively to prevail by 3 1/4 lengths over SMART STRIKE’s Alcomatch. Hotep is looking to follow in the hoofsteps of his year-older full-brother Eye of the Leopard, winner of last year’s Queen’s Plate. Both are Sam-Son Farm homebreds and produced by Canadian Three-Year-Old Filly champ Eye of the Sphynx, by SMART STRIKE.
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CANDY RIDE: FOUR GRADE 1 WINNERS AND COUNTING
May 5, 2010: Current third-year stallions--those who had their first runners in 2008--are turning out to be a vintage crop. They include the likes of Tapit, Birdstone, and Speightstown. Of this elite group, however, only two sires have been represented by three Grade 1 winners from that first crop and four Grade 1 winners in total. They are Medaglia d’Oro and CANDY RIDE (ARG).
Last year, CANDY RIDE was represented by a pair of seven-furlong specialists in Capt. Candyman Can and Evita Argentina. The former won what is probably the most coveted sprint event on the calender for three-year-olds, the G1 King’s Bishop S. at Saratoga, while the latter captured Santa Anita’s G1 La Brea S.
In 2010, CANDY RIDE’s offspring have shown they are just as effective going two turns, as well. The four-year-old Misremembered was all heart winning the 10-furlong, G1 Santa Anita H. in March, while the exciting Triple Crown prospect Sidney’s Candy dominated the nine-furlong, G1 Santa Anita Derby in April.
In total, CANDY RIDE has 18 stakes horses from 142 starters, including 10 stakes winners and six graded stakes winners. He boasts more Grade 1 winners than Speightstown (2) (2010 fee $35,000), and Tapit (3, $50,000), and more graded winners than Birdstone (4, $30,000), etc. That makes CANDY RIDE, who sits in seventh on the General Sire List, look like a confirmed bargain at his 2010 fee of $25,000.
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COZI ROSIE: PLEASANTLY PERFECT'S NEWEST GSW
May 10, 2010: The three-year-old filly Cozi Rosie is PLEASANTLY PERFECT's newest graded stakes winner. She captured Hollywood Park's G3 Senorita S. in her second start on the grass. Owned and bred by Jerry and Ann Moss and trained by John Sadler, Cozi Rosie sat second last through the opening half mile. The chestnut made a menacing three-wide move on the turn and, once given her cue in mid-stretch, burst away with a quick turn of foot and was under wraps late to secure the one-length win.
A top eight third-crop sire, PLEASANTLY PERFECT is also the sire of the highly regarded Kentucky Derby prospect Setsuko, who finished runner-up to CANDY RIDE (ARG)'s Sidney's Candy in the G1 Santa Anita Derby; as well as last year's GSW & MG1SP Shared Account. On May 8th PLEASANTLY PERFECT sired his newest stakes winner, Mindy Sue who captured the Winter Melody Stakes.
He is siring 17% stakes horses from starters from two crops to race.
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THIRD GRADED WINNER FROM THE ROCK'S FIRST CROP
Apr. 30, 2010: Sophomore stallion ROCK HARD TEN, sire of last year's juvenile group/graded winners Long Lashes and The Mailet, was represented by his newest young star today at Churchill Downs. WinStar Farm's Doubles Partner became the third graded winner from ROCK HARD TEN's first crop when he rallied from some 16 lengths back to win the G2 American Turf S. on the Kentucky Oaks undercard. The victory improved his record to a perfect three-for-three on the grass. Doubles Partner, from the immediate family of Serena's Song, was a $450,000 FTSAUG yearling.
A few days earlier, ROCK HARD TEN's Bear's Hard Ten finished a rallying third, just behind runner-up D's Wando, in the six-furlong, $150,000 Woodstock S. at Woodbine Apr. 25. It was the colt's first start since winning last November's $150,000 Display S.
ROCK HARD TEN is the leading second-crop sire of graded winners this year.
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LANE'S END-SIRED MARES PRODUCE 3 OF LAST 4 DERBY WINNERS!
May 1, 2010: When Super Saver streaked under the line first in this afternoon's G1 Kentucky Derby, he became the third Derby winner in the last four years to be produced by a Lane's End-sired mare. They include:
• ‘07 winner Street Sense, a son of the DIXIELAND BAND mare Bedazzled;
• ‘09 winner Mine That Bird, a son of the SMART STRIKE mare Mining My Own; and
• ‘10 winner Super Saver, a son of the A.P. INDY mare Supercharger.
Super Saver becomes the second Grade 1 winner bred on the Maria's Mon/A.P. Indy cross, following in the hoofsteps of champion Wait a While.
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STEPHEN GOT EVEN: THREE ON THE SCENE
April 11, 2010: It’s relatively early days yet in the season, but STEPHEN GOT EVEN has a trio of three-year-old males to keep an eye on. Included is First Dude, who finished third in this afternoon's G1 Toyota Blue Grass S. at Keeneland. A solid fifth in the G1 Florida Derby in his previous start, the Donald Dizney homebred was produced by the SMART STRIKE mare Run Sarah Run.
STEPHEN GOT EVEN is also the sire of Schoolyard Dreams, a strong second in his stakes debut in Tampa Bay’s G3 Sam F. Davis S. Feb. 13 and, a month later, a hard-fought nose back of winner Odysseus in the G3 Tampa Bay Derby.
In February, STEPHEN GOT EVEN's sophomore son Peppi Knows took down his second black-type event in Aqueduct’s $100,000 Whirlaway S. Peppi Knows, third to Grade 1 winner Noble’s Promise in the Listed Fitz Dixon Jr. Memorial Juvenile S. and second to Buddy’s Saint in the G2 Remsen S. last year, also won the Finger Lakes Juvenile S.
In 2010, STEPHEN GOT EVEN is also the sire of Mr. Tommy, a Group 1 winner in Panama, and Sunshine Millions Distaff S. third Even Road.
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DIXIE UNION’s HOT DIXIE CHICK SHARP IN RETURN
Apr. 11, 2010: DIXIE UNION’s daughter Hot Dixie Chick was regarded as one of the top two-year-old fillies in the nation last year after a thee-for-four season that included wins in the G1 Spinaway S. and G3 Schuylerville S., both at Saratoga. Her connections, Grace Stables LLC and trainer Steve Asmussen, opted to bypass the Breeders’ Cup, but the $435,000 juvenile purchase showed she’s got plenty to look forward to in 2010 with a dazzling return at Oaklawn Park. Sent off the 1-5 chalk in the six-furlong Prima Donna S. Mar. 20, Hot Dixie Chick attended a fast half in :44 4/5, then rolled home four lengths clear without being asked by jockey Robby Albarado Jr. “She's so fast, she does that within herself,” Albarado told the Daily Racing Form afterwards. “I know it's hard for me to tell you that, in :44 in the mud, but she does it so easy. They come few and far between, those class ones like her.” Added Asmussen, “She’s an incredible talent."
DIXIE UNION continued his hot streak into April, with maiden special weight winners at Santa Anita, Woodbine and Keeneland, and with his newest black-type winner Dream Nettie, a three-year-old gelding who won the $100,000, nine--furlong La Puente S. on the grass at Santa Anita Apr. 11.
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QUICK START FOR CITY ZIP
Apr. 11, 2010: CITY ZIP, a top five juvenile sire in 2009, has gotten off to a red-hot start to 2010. This afternoon, he recorded his latest graded stakes winner when the four-year-old filly Unzip Me flew home to capture the $100,000, G3 Las Cienegas H. at Santa Anita. The chestnut filly was on the front through sensible splits and kicked away powerfully in the stretch, ultimately winning by a geared-down 1 1/4 lengths under Joe Talamo. It was the fourth straight victory for Unzip Me and her sixth overall in 11 starts. Coming off a gutsy victory in the Irish O'Brien S., she has now banked nearly $280,000.
Eight days earlier, another daughter of CITY ZIP was winning a graded event over Santa Anita's lawn. On Apr. 3, the three-year-old City to City took down the G2 Providencia S. going nine panels on the sod.
Earlier in the year, CITY ZIP's five-year-old son Acting Zippy wired the field in the $200,000, G3 John B. Connally Turf H. at Sam Houston. CITY ZIP’s other graded stakes performers this year include Romantic Hideaway, a three-year-old filly who was a good second to SAINT LIAM’s Liam’s Dream in the G3 Cicada S. at Aqueduct.
A top 20 sire in 2010, CITY ZIP is the co-third-leading sire in the nation with five stakes winners to his credit, sitting alongside Street Cry (Ire) ($150,000 fee), Unbridled’s Song ($115,000), and Speightstown ($35,000), is the co-third-leading sire by stakes wins (7), and is the co-runner-up sire in the nation by graded winners (3). Meanwhile, is proving his versatility as a stallion, as he is the second-leading turf sire in the nation, behind only Dynaformer!
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LANE’S END TRIFECTA IN G1 SANTA ANITA DERBY!
Apr. 3, 2010: The Sid and Jenny Craig Trust’s Sidney’s Candy, by CANDY RIDE (ARG), stamped himself as one of the favorites for the G1 Kentucky Derby after a dazzling display in the G1 Santa Anita Derby, in which he led home a 1-2-3 finish for Lane’s End sires. Coming off victories in the GII San Vicente S. and GII San Felipe S., Sidney’s Candy was put on the front by jockey Joe Talamo in the nine-furlong Santa Anita Derby and never looked back, sailing home clear by 4 1/2 lengths. With the victory, he became CANDY RIDE’s fourth Grade I winner, along with Capt. Candyman Can, Evita Argentina and Misremembered!
The up-and-coming Setsuko, from the second crop of PLEASANTLY PERFECT, got up for second, with last year’s Champion Juvenile Lookin at Lucky, by SMART STRIKE, finishing a game third after a very rough trip. All three horses could line up on the first Saturday in May. Congratulations to the connections!
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PLEASANT TAP’S TIDAL DANCE ADDS ANOTHER STAKES WIN
Mar. 27, 2010: PLEASANT TAP’s progressive daughter Tidal Dance added her second straight black-type victory at Aqueduct this afternoon. The five-year-old, hammered down to 1-2 favoritism coming off a 2 1/2-length victory in the $65,000 Affectionately S. Jan. 17, offered up a repeat performance in the $100,000 Ladies S. going 1 1/16 miles on the main track. According to the official chart, “Tidal Dance was taken in hand in the early stages, stalked the leaders under a hold while three wide on the backstretch, moved up with ease to take the lead at the quarter pole, shook loose in midstretch and drew clear under intermittent left hand encouragement.” The final winning margin was 2 1/4 lengths. Tidal Dance was bred by Dr. Sidney Sacks in Florida, and is conditioned by Mike Hushion for owner Marc C. Ferrell.
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ANOTHER WEEKEND, ANOTHER SW FOR CITY ZIP
Mar. 27, 2010: Seven days after Unzip Me won the $100,000 Irish O'Brien S. at Santa Anita, our premier young sire CITY ZIP registered another stakes winner, this time over the Fair Grounds sod. CITY ZIP’s three-year-old gelding Workin for Hops lived up to his 2-5 favoritism in this afternoon’s $60,000 Grindstone S., stalking in third from a wide perch, then powering away in the stretch to a five-length success. A seven-length debut winner at Arlington last September, Workin for Hops romped by 4 1/2 lengths in a Fair Grounds allowance Dec. 28 and was making his stakes unveiling in the Grindstone. He was awarded a good 96 BRIS figure for the effort.
A top 20 sire in 2010, CITY ZIP is the nation’s co-second-leading sire in the nation with five stakes winners to his credit, sitting alongside Street Cry (Ire) ($150,000 fee), Unbridled’s Song ($115,000), and Elusive Quality ($75,000). Meanwhile, CITY ZIP is proving his versatility as a stallion, as he is the third-leading turf sire in the nation, behind only Dynaformer and SMART STRIKE!
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LANE’S END SOLD ENDORSEMENT ON DERBY TRAIL
Mar. 28, 2010: Winstar Farm’s three-year-old colt Endorsement, who was sold by Lane’s End, roared onto the Triple Crown scene today with an upset win over the previously unbeaten Conveyance in the $800,000 Sunland Derby. Bred by Kilroy Thoroughbred Partnership, Endorsement was hammered down for $450,000 at the 2008 Keeneland September Sale. The handsome chestnut was produced by MGSP Charmed Gift, a daughter of A.P. INDY, and thus represents the same cross that produced G1SW Any Given Saturday. Congratulations to the connections of Endorsement!
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ANOTHER GRADED WINNER FOR SAINT LIAM
Mar. 20, 2010: As sad as SAINT LIAM’s untimely death was, members of his first crop are doing their best to live up to his heart and ability and carry his name forward. On Saturday, SAINT LIAM’s daughter Liam’s Dream became his third stakes winner and second graded stakes winner when staving off CITY ZIP’s Romantic Getaway in the G3 Cicada S. at Aqueduct. It was the third win in four starts for Liam’s Dream, who, fittingly, is owned by the same couple who campaigned SAINT LIAM to Horse of the Year honors, Mr. & Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.
SAINT LIAM is also the sire of another very talented New York graded winner, Buddy’s Saint. The Kingfield Stables colorbearer won last year’s G2 Nashua S. and G2 Remsen S.
SAINT LIAM is also the sire of MSW Coccolo (Mex), and of the stakes horses Imaginary Saint, Moment of Majesty and Sheltowee.
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LANGFUHR’S ARGANIL NOTCHES ANOTHER STAKES
Mar. 20, 2010: Veteran sire LANGFUHR gets ‘em tough and gets ‘em consistent, and that was on display yet again this afternoon when son Arganil won his ninth of 19 starts in the Listed Hever Sprint S. at Lingfield. The five-year-old, already a listed stakes winner in Ireland, was never far back and dug in to post the short-head success over Glamourous Spirit (Ire).
LANGFUHR has been a top 15 sire in each of the last seven seasons, and has sired the likes of champions Lawyer Ron, Wando, Mobil, Kimchi, and Mighty Chic (Aus), as well as Grade 1 winners like Jambalaya, Imperial Gesture, Interpatation, and Lang Field.
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LANE’S END GRAD AWESOME ACT WINS GOTHAM
Mar. 6, 2010: The blue-blooded Awesome Act became the latest Triple Crown hopeful to hail from a Lane’s End sales consignment after his breakthrough win in this afternoon’s G3 Gotham S. at Aqueduct. Bred by long-time Lane’s End client Flaxman Holdings in Kentucky and offered through our 2008 Keeneland September draft, Awesome Act was hammered down to Jane Allison for $240,000. The chestnut began his career in Europe, winning a Goodwood maiden in early October before shipping to be a close-up fourth in the G2 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf.
After wintering in Europe he returned to the States once again and was made the favorite in his seasonal debut in the Gotham. He didn’t disappoint, wheeling wide into the lane and coming home to prevail by 1 1/4 lengths. Congratulations to his connections, owners Susan Roy and Vinery Stables, trainer Jeremy Noseda, and especially to the Niarchos Family’s Flaxman Holdings. Awesome Act’s second dam is the blue hen Coup de Folie, who produced the likes of Machiavellian, Coup de Genie and Exit to Nowhere.
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SMART STRIKE’S ‘LUCKY’ RETURNS A WINNER
Mar. 17, 2010: Off since his victory in the G1 CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park in December, SMART STRIKE’s Champion Juvenile Colt Lookin at Lucky put on a display of grit and determination when overcoming trouble to win the G2 Rebel S. at Oaklawn Park Mar. 13. Going for his sixth win in seven lifetime starts, the Bob Baffert-trained colt was forced to take up abruptly while making a move on the backstretch. But he re-rallied widest of all and got up in the final jump to defeat his rival Noble’s Promise, himself a Grade 1 winner. Lookin at Lucky’s lone defeat came in a narrow runner-up finish in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.
A few days later, Baffert added another SMART STRIKE colt to his stable. At the OBS March sale in Ocala, Baffert client Kaleem Shah went to a session-topping $400,000 for a well-made bay by SMART STRIKE who, like SMART STRIKE, was produced by a DIXIELAND BAND mare. “We bought Lookin at Lucky at April [for $475,000], and this horse reminded me a lot of Lucky,” Donato Lanni , who signed the ticket, told the Thoroughbred Daily News. “He has a lot of class and a great disposition. He handled himself well, and he’s a really laid-back horse. He obviously worked very well, and Smart Strike/Dixieland Band? That’s worked before. He’s a well-bred horse and has a stallion’s pedigree. Hopefully we get lucky.”
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DERBY ASPIRATIONS FOR CANDY RIDE
Mar. 13, 2010: A week after Misremembered became the third Grade I winner from CANDY RIDE (ARG)’s first crop, a member of his second crop established himself as a legitimate Kentucky Derby contender. The Sid & Jenny Craig Trust’s Sidney’s Candy, coming off a dazzling win in the seven-furlong G2 San Vicente S., stretched out to capture the 1 1/16-mile G2 San Felipe S. in wire-to-wire fashion. The homebred goes next in the G1 Santa Anita Derby.
Current third-year stallions--those who had their first runners in 2008--are turning out to be a vintage crop of young sires. They include the likes of Medaglia d’Oro, Tapit, Birdstone, and Speightstown. Of this elite group, however, only one sire,CANDY RIDE , has been represented by three Grade 1 winners from that first crop and he is now the leading third-crop sire. That feat was achieved when his son Misremembered on the G1 Santa Anita H. on Mar. 6 in what could only be described as a gutsy effort. Misremembered joins G1 King’s Bishop S. hero Capt. Candyman Can and G1 La Brea S. heroine Evita Argentina as CANDY RIDE’s other winners at the highest level.
In total, CANDY RIDE has 10 stakes winners from 134 starters, included six graded stakes winners. He boasts as many graded winners as Medaglia d’Oro (2010 fee $100,000) and Speightstown ($35,000), and more graded stakes winners than Tapit (5, $50,000), Birdstone (4, $30,000), etc. That makes CANDY RIDE, who sits in fourth on the General Sire List, look like a confirmed bargain at his 2010 fee of $25,000.
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THREE G1 WINNERS FROM CANDY RIDE’S FIRST CROP!
Mar. 6, 2010: Current third-year stallions--those who had their first runners in 2008--are turning out to be a vintage crop of young sires. They include the likes of Medaglia d’Oro, Tapit, Birdstone, and Speightstown. Of this elite group, however, only one sire has been represented by three Grade 1 winners from that first crop. That sire, of course, is CANDY RIDE (ARG), whose son Misremembered was all heart winning this afternoon’s G1 Santa Anita H. Misremembered joins G1 King’s Bishop S. hero Capt. Candyman Can and G1 La Brea S. heroine Evita Argentina as CANDY RIDE’s other winners at the highest level.
CANDY RIDE is also the sire of the exciting three-year-old colt Sidney’s Candy, who put himself on the Triple Crown trail with a dominating 4 1/4-length tally in the G2 San Vicente S. Feb. 15.
In total, CANDY RIDE has 10 stakes winners from 133 starters, included six graded stakes winners. He boasts as many graded winners as Medaglia d’Oro (2010 fee $100,000) and Speightstown ($35,000), and more graded stakes winners than Tapit (5, $50,000), Birdstone (4, $30,000), etc. That makes CANDY RIDE, who sits in fourth on the General Sire List, look like a confirmed bargain at his 2010 fee of $25,000.
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50th STAKES WINNER FOR LEMON DROP KID!
Mar. 6, 2010: LEMON DROP KID reached a career milestone this afternoon when his three-year-old daughter Khancord Kid captured the nine-furlong G3 Herecomesthebride S. at Gulfstream Park. Always in the mix while hugging the rail, the Chester and Mary Broman homebred kicked away in the lane and flew home to win by a half-length. Her final eighth of a mile was run in a fast :11.82.
With 50 stakes winners from 334 starters, LEMON DROP KID hits at a very impressive 15 percent by that measure. Khancord Kid was also becoming his 16th graded stakes winner, a 4.8-percent strike rate to starters and among the industry’s best.
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BIG CALDER SALE FOR LANE’S END SALES, SIRES
Mar. 3, 2010: The Fasig-Tipton Calder Selected Sale of Two-Year-Olds was held yesterday in Miami, and horses with connections to Lane’s End played a large part in the day’s action. Topping the sale was a Distorted Humor colt out of the Grade I-winning A.P. INDY mare Tomisue’s Delight who made $2.3 million on the strength of Stonestreet Stable’s bid. The big, handsome chestnut was sold by Lane’s End to On the Sly for $200,000 at last year’s Keeneland September Sale. From the immediate family of Lane’s End’s Horse of the Year MINESHAFT, the colt is a half-brother to the Grade I winner Mr. Sidney, who himself was sold by Lane’s End for $3.9 million as a yearling.
The second-highest price of the sale was realized by a SMART STRIKE--Southern Swing colt who elicited an $825,000 offer from Coolmore’s Demi O’Byrne.
Other juveniles by Lane’s End sires included:
• DIXIE UNION--Icy Demeanor filly who sold to Paul Cole for $400,000;
• CANDY RIDE (ARG)--Casablanca colt who sold to Buzz Chace, agent, for $275,000;
• CANDY RIDE (ARG)--Sun Luck colt who sold to Ajay Anne, agent, for $265,000, etc.
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NEW STAKES WINNER FOR DIXIE UNION
Feb. 23, 2010: The three-year-old ridgling Dixie Commander became DIXIE UNION’s newest stakes winner in the 1 1/16-mile Turf Paradise Derby Feb. 20. Owned and trained by Steven Miyadi, Dixie Commander kept a close eye on the invading odds-on favorite Indian Firewater, rallied four wide and was going away late to post the 3 1/4-length win.
There’s talk of another Derby for DIXIE UNION’s son Dave in Dixie. That colt was an eye-catching winner on debut at Del Mar last August and was beaten only 2 1/2 lengths by eventual champion Lookin at Lucky (SMART STRIKE) when stretched out in the G1 Norfolk S. in his next start. Off since, he returned in the Feb. 13, G2 Robert B. Lewis S. at Santa Anita and ran a bang-up race, closing from last to place second. The Blood-Horse’s Steve Haskin was impressed enough to put Dave in Dixie on his Derby Dozen list, where Dave in Dixie is ranked eighth.
Said Haskin, “Been waiting for this colt to debut, and he turned in a big effort finishing a fast-closing second in Lewis. Had to come from last in a strung-out field, swung five-wide, and really kicked into gear the final sixteenth; perfect first start back.”
DIXIE UNION is the sire of 33 black-type winners, a 8.8% strike rate from starters.
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MINESHAFT: RISING STAR ON THE DERBY TRAIL
Feb. 22, 2010: E. Paul Robsham Stable homebred Discreetly Mine stamped himself as a legitimate Kentucky Derby prospect with a strong front-running effort in Saturday’s G2 Risen Star S. at Fair Grounds. By MINESHAFT, who himself excelled over the New Orleans oval, Discreetly Mine had romped over eventual graded winner Super Saver in a Saratoga maiden last August, then went on to complete the exacta in the G2 Futurity S. and G1 Champagne S., both at Belmont. The Risen Star was his first start around two turns, however, and the bay relished the added ground, jumping out to lead and cruising home a comfortable winner. Discreetly Mine has now finished first or second in five of seven and earned $359,350. Lane’s End congratulates the Robsham family, as well as trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey Javier Castellano.
On Sunday, another MINESHAFT sophomore colt impressed. Fly Down, trained by Nick Zito, improved his record to two wins in three starts with a hard-fought head victory in a first-level allowance at Gulfstream Park. The winning time for the six-furlong race was 1:09 4/5.
MINESHAFT is currently ranked seventh on the General Sire List, and is also the sire of 2010 stakes winner Redding Colliery.
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SMART STRIKE: NEW YEAR, FAMILIAR RESULTS
Feb. 18, 2010: It’s just a month and a half into the new year, and SMART STRIKE can already boast a pair of Grade 2 winners.
His newest star and latest black-type winner is the four-year-old filly Striking Dancer. Bred by Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings and trained by Ken McPeek for Stevestan Stables, the filly stalked early before storming down the center of Santa Anita’s Pro-Ride to win the G2 La Canada S. Striking Dancer is SMART STRIKE’s 38th graded stakes winner and his 71st black-type winner overall!
SMART STRIKE’s other Grade 2 winner this season is the top-shelf Papa Clem. The hero of last year’s G2 Arkansas Derby, who ended his three-year-old campaign with a very good third in the G1 Malibu S., captured the Jan. 16 G2 San Fernando S. at Santa Anita. The handsome son of BELONG TO ME’s Grade 1 winner Miss Houdini hooked up with Smart Bid, another son of SMART STRIKE, from the start, and those two battled nearly the entire 1 1/16 miles before Papa Clem asserted by a half-length.
SMART STRIKE is also the sire of 2010 stakes performers Storm Play (third in Aqueduct’s Evening Attire S.); and Never Retreat (first, DQ’d to second, in Fair Grounds’ Jan. 2 Furl Sail H.).
To top it off, SMART STRIKE was recently represented by his tenth individual champion when Lookin at Lucky, the early favorite for the Kentucky Derby, was named Champion Two-Year-Old Colt at the Eclipse Awards.
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CANDY RIDE: SHOWING THE LOVE
Feb. 15, 2010: Valentine’s Day weekend was a good one for one of the sport’s fastest-rising stallion stars, CANDY RIDE (ARG).
Leading the way was his flashy three-year-old son Sidney's Candy, who became the second CANDY RIDE offspring in as many years to win the G2 San Vicente S. at Santa Anita. The Sid and Jenny Craig homebred, trained by John Sadler, sped out to lead and turned it into a procession in the lane, lengthening away to an easy 4 1/4-length win. “Sidney’s Candy and Joe Talamo annihilating them,” is how Trevor Denman called the race in deep stretch. The final time for the seven furlongs was a blistering 1:20 4/5. Sadler hasn’t yet picked a spot for Sidney’s Candy’s return, but said, “He’s going to get a chance to go a distance. I think he’ll go a mile, a mile and an eighth, no problem.”
Last year, the San Vicente was won by CANDY RIDE’s daughter Evita Argentina, another Sadler trainee who later in the year took the G1 La Brea S.
Also over the weekend, CANDY RIDE’s always game Misremembered, a two-time Grade 2 winner in 2009, ran second in the G2 Strub S.
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TAP, TAP...TWO 2010 SWs for PLEASANT TAP
Feb. 15, 2010: Veteran sire PLEASANT TAP continues to be a reliable source of black-type runners, and already has a pair of 2010 stakes winners.
They include Tidal Dance, who on Jan. 17 aired by 2 1/2 lengths in Aqueduct’s $65,000 Affectionately S. It was the first stakes victory for the mare, who was bred by Dr. Sidney Sacks and is trained by Mike Hushion for Marc C. Ferrell.
PLEASANT TAP’s other stakes winner on the year is the mare Taptam. The five-year-old, a stakes winner in each of the last two seasons, won Oaklawn Park’s $75,000 Pippin S. Jan. 23. Bret Calhoun trains Taptam, who has now earned over $250,000, for Wayne Sanders and Larry Hirsch. Sanders bred the mare in Texas.
PLEASANT TAP is also the sire of Pleasantly Blessed, runner-up in the Jersey Lilly S. this term.
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LANE'S END: NORTH AMERICA'S PREMIER STUD FARM
Feb. 13, 2010: With the progeny of Lane's End stallions earning nearly $73 million in 2009, it is safe to call Lane's End one of the premier stud farms in the world. In a recently completed Thoroughbred Times survey that ranked stallion operations in eight separate categories, Lane's End wound up first or second in six of the categories. Lane's End was ranked second by Sire Progeny Earnings despite having substantially fewer starters than the first-ranked farm. Lane's End was second in both the Progeny Winners/Progeny Wins category, with 1,218 horses by Lane's End sires accounting for 1,974 wins. More importantly, Lane's End led all North American stud farms by stakes winners, accounting for some 125 black-type winners in 2009. By comparison, the runner-up on the list had 94 stakes winners despite having 712 more starters, while the third-ranked farm had 62 stakes winners. By percentage of stakes winners, Lane's End finished second with a strong 5.01 percent of our runners winning black-type events; we were one of only two farms in North America to eclipse the five-percent mark, and the lone farm with more than 600 starters.
Lane's End was again on top in arguably the most important list : Graded Stakes Winners. In 2010, a whopping 48 horses by Lane's End sires won graded stakes. The runner-up accounted for 43, with the third-placed farm checking in at 22 graded winners.
In all, four Lane's End sires--SMART STRIKE, A.P. INDY, LANGFUHR and LEMON DROP KID--ended the year on the Top 20 General Sire List, a feat no other farm could boast of in 2009. We thank all of our breeders and patrons for this extraordinary feat!
February 14, 2009: In a story titled “On Top Again: Lane’s End and its star-studded stallions lead for the tenth time,” The Thoroughbred Times has once again completed their annual analysis of the industry’s leading stud farms. Lane’s End ranked number one for the tenth year (seven of those were consecutive). We ranked first in five of the eight categories: by progeny earnings ($15 million ahead of next farm), by graded stakes winners, by stakes winners, by number of winners and wins. Also mentioned was the fact that SMART STRIKE was the first stallion to lead the sire list in back-to-back years since Storm Cat and that SMART STRIKE’s son CURLIN, our newest stallion addition, won Horse of the Year for the second consecutive year.
February 16, 2008: The Thoroughbred Times magazine recently completed its annual ranking of stud farms in North America for 2007 and once again Lane’s End led the way.
According to their study, Lane’s End led all North American stud farms by stallion progeny earnings ($84,677,291), wins by stallion progeny (2,090) wins, stakes winners(129), and graded stakes winners (49).
In 2006, Lane’s End was the leading stud farm by total progeny earnings, with progeny earnings grossing more than $72 million, some two and a half-million more than the runner-up and over twice that of the third place farm. Lane’s End was also the leader by number of progeny stakes winners. In all, 114 Lane’s End-sired runners earned black-type victories. Put into perspective, it was 16 stakes winners more than the runner-up, and was more than double that of the farm listed third.
These achievements follow a stretch where Lane’s End was named by the Thoroughbred Times as North America’s top stud farm seven years in a row.
A sincere thank you to all the breeders and horsemen who have contributed to the success of Lane’s End!
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‘QUALITY’ = LANE’S END GRADS
Feb. 8, 2010: It was a big weekend for Lane’s End Sales grads. Leading the proceedings and stamping himself as one of the most exciting horses to watch in 2010 was Quality Road. Offered as a yearling by Lane’s End in 2007, the Edward Evans homebred won last year’s G1 Florida Derby and was exciting an easy win in the G3 Hal’s Hope S., but his breakout performance came in Saturday’s G1 Donn H. at Gulfstream. The imposing bay was always a threat and, after taking command, sailed home a 12 3/4-length winner–the largest winning margin in the history of the race. The final time of 1:47.49 lowered the nine-furlong track record at Gulfstream, established last year by Quality Road himself in the Florida Derby. He earned a huge 121 Beyer Speed Figure, prompting Andy Beyer to note that it was “the best performance in a race at one mile or longer since Commentator won the Whitney H. at Saratoga in 2005. Quality Road's performance changes the outlook for the entire racing season.”
Quality Road wasn’t the only Lane’s End Sales grad to achieve Grade 1 success on the weekend. The Lane’s End-bred and -sold Court Vision, by GULCH, earned a Grade 1 victory for the third consecutive season with a tally in the G1 Gulfstream Park Turf H.
On the Triple Crown scene, STEPHEN GOT EVEN’s son Peppi Knows, sold by Lane’s End for $23,000 as a KEENOV weanling in 2007, notched his second black-type success in the $95,000 Whirlaway S. at Aqueduct.
Return to Stallion News 2010
LEMON DROP KID: FULL AND FANTASTIC!
Feb. 8, 2010: LEMON DROP KID, one of the most consistent and accomplished sires in recent years, looks like he’ll be well-represented in the world’s richest race, the $10 million G1 Dubai World Cup, to be held at the new Meydan Racecourse in Dubai Mar. 27. Yesterday, the five-year-old Richard’s Kid, hero of last year’s G1 Pacific Classic, unleashed a dazzling late run to get up and win the G2 San Antonio H. in a multi-horse photo. Richard’s Kid will now train up to the World Cup, according to trainer Bob Baffert, and will be one of the favorites for the 10-furlong race.
Despite his myriad accomplishments as a sire, LEMON DROP KID’s fee was dropped to $35,000 for the 2010 season. The response from breeders has been fantastic, and Lane’s End is proud to announce that the son of KINGMAMBO is now booked full.
Return to Stallion News 2010
CHAMPIONSHIP FORM FROM LANE’S END
Jan. 19, 2010: Yesterday was a big day for Lane’s End, as the Eclipse Awards were handed out in Beverly Hills.
Our two-time leading sire SMART STRIKE, already the sire of two-time Horse of the Year CURLIN and Champion Turf Horse ENGLISH CHANNEL, added yet another Eclipse champion to his resume. SMART STRIKE is the sire of ten champions.
This time, it was the brilliant two-year-old colt Lookin at Lucky who shone on Eclipse night. In a season that included three Grade 1 victories and a narrow runner-up finish in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, Lookin at Lucky was a landslide winner as the best two-year-old colt in 2009. Congratulations to breeder Gulf Coast Farms and all the racing connections of Lookin at Lucky!
Return to Stallion News 2010
SOVEREIGN AWARD NOMINEES
Lane’s End stallions dominated the Sovereign Award nominees. They included:
A.P. INDY: Marchfield, Turf Horse; Eye of the Leopard, Three-Year-Old Male; Serenading, Older Female
CANDY RIDE (ARG): El Brujo, Male Sprinter & Three-Year-Old Colt
KINGMAMBO: Much Obliged, Turf Female
SMART STRIKE: Smart Surprise, Female Sprinter & Older Female
Woodford Racing’s Tasty Temptation also earned a nod in the Three-Year-Old Filly category. The filly was a very good fourth to A.P. INDY’s Eye of the Leopard in the Queen’s Plate, and came back to win the Wonder Where S. in her seasonal finale. Woodford Racing is managed by Lane’s End’s Bill Farish.
We also congratulate Mark Casse, who conditions our Canadian-based horses, on another nomination as Canada’s top trainer. He is the winner of the last three Sovereign Awards for champion Trainer.
Return to Stallion News 2010
SMART STRIKE: NEW YEAR, FAMILIAR RESULTS
Jan. 19, 2010: Less than three weeks into the new year, and SMART STRIKE is already represented by four stakes horses, including a Grade 2 winner in the top-shelf Papa Clem.
The winner of last year’s G2 Arkansas Derby, who ended his three-year-old campaign with a very good third in the G1 Malibu S., Papa Clem was the 3-2 choice in the Jan. 16, G2 San Fernando S. at Santa Anita. The handsome son of BELONG TO ME’s Grade 1 winner Miss Houdini hooked up with Smart Bid, another son of SMART STRIKE, from the start, and those two battled nearly the entire 1 1/16 miles before Papa Clem asserted by a half-length.
On the same afternoon, SMART STRIKE’s Storm Play ran third in the Evening Attire S. at Aqueduct, while the mare Never Retreat crossed the line first in Fair Grounds’ Jan. 2 Furl Sail H. before being DQ’d to second.
To top it off, SMART STRIKE was recently represented by his tenth individual champion when Lookin at Lucky, the early favorite for the Kentucky Derby, was named Champion Two-Year-Old Colt at the Eclipse Awards.
Return to Stallion News 2010
2009 WRAP-UP--A.P. INDY: ANOTHER BANNER YEAR
Jan. 1, 2010: Even by A.P. INDY's own high standards, 2009 was particularly noteworthy for the stallion Bill Oppenheim recently called "North America's best sire."
A.P. INDY concluded 2009 as:
• Co-leading sire by Grade 1 winners (4);
• Second-leading sire by graded winners (10);
• Co-second-leading sire by stakes winners (18);
• Second-leading sire by stakes wins (28).
A.P. INDY also added his 10th and 11th champion, respectively, to the fold in 2009. His daughter Serenading, heroine of the G2 Falls City H., was crowned Champion Older Female in Canada, while Eye of the Leopard, winner of the Queen’s Plate S., was honored as the country’s top Three-Year-Old Male. And Marchfield, Champion Older Horse in Canada in 2008, again earned that recognition with a season that included a tally in the G2 Sky Classic S.
Runners by A.P. INDY to star in 2009 include:
• Godolphin's Music Note, who won the G1 Ballerina S. and G1 Beldame S., finished third in the G1 Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic and was retired with five Grade 1 victories on her resume;
• Godolphin’s Flashing, who took the G1 Test S. in August, then beat older females in the G1 Gazelle S. at Aqueduct in November;
• Just as Well, winner of the G1 Northern Dancer S. at Woodbine Sept. 20;
• Telling, winner of Saratoga's G1 Sword Dancer Invitational S.;
• Girolamo, the three-year-old who dominated the G2 Jerome H. Oct. 11;
• Kentucky Derby favorite Friesan Fire, one of the premier three-year-olds in the country last spring and winner in succession of the G3 Lecomte S., G3 Risen Star S., and G2 Louisiana Derby;
• Eldaafer, winner of the G2 Brooklyn in June;
• El Crespo, winner of the G3 Palm Beach S. in March.
These runners only serve to underscore what's most impressive about A.P. INDY's stakes horses: their quality. Of his 201 black-type runners, 129 are stakes winners. Of those, an incredible 78 are graded stakes winners and 26 are Grade 1 winners. A.P. INDY's get includes eleven champions, led by Horse of the Year MINESHAFT, the leading third-crop sire in the nation by stakes winners. A.P. INDY concluded 2009 fifth on the General Sire List, and after his 2010 fee was announced, Bill Oppenheim added that he considered A.P. INDY to be priced at the right level:
“A.P. INDY...has twice been Champion Sire in North America, and five times the leading sire by A Runner Index, using the APEX system. Number five on the General Sire List this year, and the sire of [26] Grade I winners in 14 crops of racing age, he’ll be 21 next year. Lane’s End dropped his fee 40 percent, from $250,000 to $150,000. As long as you’re breeding for North American racing, he’s been the number one sire for over a decade.”
The next round of A.P. INDY's stars also made their presence in 2009. The two-year-old filly Protesting was a game second in the G2 Demoiselle S. at Aqueduct, while the juvenile colt Worldly was third in the G2 Kentucky Jockey Club S. The pair had the distinction of being A.P. INDY’s 199th and 200th career stakes horses!
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--AFTER MARKET: HIGH EXPECTATIONS
Jan. 1, 2010: With three of his sons among the top 15 on the Leading Sires List in 2009, including Giant’s Causeway, there is no doubting the influence Storm Cat has left on the breed. And few of his sons can match the pedigree or performance of AFTER MARKET, who saw his first weanlings sell in 2009.
AFTER MARKET’s first weanlings didn’t fall far from the paternal tree. Representatives included a colt who sold to Blackwater Farm for $115,000. The colt, bred by the Wygods and consigned by Lane’s End, was produced by a full-sister to Grade 1 winner Silent Sights (Benchmark).
Mares who sold in foal to AFTER MARKET included SW & GISP Yolanda B. Too (Two Punch), who was knocked down to Dixiana Farms for $100,000.
Watch for AFTER MARKET’s first yearlings in 2010! To read more about AFTER MARKET, continue reading:
Lane’s End is home to some of the best stallions in the business, like A.P. INDY, KINGMAMBO, and SMART STRIKE, who are carrying on in the tradition of their own greats sires Seattle Slew and Mr. Prospector. Beginning this spring, a son of another preeminent sire, the great Storm Cat, will be joining the ranks at Lane’s End, and if his pedigree and race record are anything to go by, the accomplished, handsome dual Grade 1 winner AFTER MARKET will have every chance to be a star at stud, aswell.
AFTER MARKET carries with him impeccable credentials for stallion duty.
At two and three, the strapping dark bay captured his first four career starts with consummate ease. The skein was capped with a pair of wins in the G3 Lexington S. and the G2 National Museum Racing Hall of Fame S. at Saratoga for trainer Bill Mott.
Things would only get better as a four-year-old of 2007. Moved to John Shirreffs’s barn on the West Coast, AFTER MARKET annexed the G3 Inglewood H. by two lengths, winning the 1 1/16-mile race in a
blistering 1:39 3/5. He faced a stiff challenge in the G1 Charles Whittingham Memorial H. when asked to tackle 10 furlongs and the reigning champ Lava Man, but AFTER MARKET came through with flying colors, gamely defeating Lava Man by 1 ½ lengths in
1:58 3/5. It was much of the same in the nine-furlong G1 Eddie Read H., when AFTER MARKET
won his third straight, and his seventh race in 11 starts, in 1:47 1/5. In late August AFTER MARKET
continued his march to the Breeders' Cup with his fourth consecutive graded stakes win in the Del Mar H. as the heavy favorite.
AFTER MARKET, clearly, would deserve a spot in the stallion barn even if
his pedigree was ordinary. But, of course, it isn’t.
With six of the top 36 stallions in the country by Storm Cat, there can be little argument over the grandson of Northern Dancer’s
influence as a sire of sires. Perhaps Storm Cat’s best representative at stud is Giant’s Causeway, the “Iron Horse” who made a name for himself
on the turf before going on to become the sire of horses like My Typhoon and Lane’s End’s own dual Grade 1 winner
ARAGORN.
Importantly for breeders looking to target the next big stallion, there are several similarities between
AFTER MARKET and Giant’s Causeway. Both were produced by top-class, hard-knocking
daughters of Rahy, and AFTER MARKET, like his paternal brother, could stretch his miler
’s speed to the Classic distance of 1 1/4 miles with no trouble.
AFTER MARKET is a son of Tranquility Lake, the brilliant racemare who
banked over $1.6 million for Marty and Pam Wygod, AFTER MARKET's breeders. Tranquility
Lake was a versatile filly whose seven graded victories included a pair of Grade 1 triumphs, the Yellow Ribbon S. and Gamely BC H. on turf, as well as a win in the G2
Clement L. Hirsch H. on dirt.
Tranquility Lake has thus far lived up to her race record in the breeding shed.
AFTER MARKET, her first foal, has earned the title as the best turf horse on the West Coast with a sterling 2007 season, while her second foal, a
full-brother to AFTER MARKET named Jalil, made headlines before ever stepping onto the
track. So impressed was Sheikh Mohammed with Jalil’s conformation and pedigree that he purchased the colt for $9.7 million at the 2005 Keeneland September sale,
the highest price paid for a horse at auction that season.
AFTER MARKET’s second dam is the MGSP Danzig mare Winter’s
Love, meaning that Tranquility Lake is a half-sister to the very good young stallion Benchmark, the sire of, among others, Brother Derek. Winter’s Love,
meanwhile, is a half-sister to G1 Belmont S. winner Caveat.
This combination of speed and stamina in AFTER MARKET’s pedigree,
and the combination of turf and dirt influences, makes AFTER MARKET a dynamic prospect,
whether you’re breeding for dirt, turf or synthetic surfaces.
Some horses, when retired to stud, need clever marketing to garner attention or a bit of hyperbole to shine a light on their accomplishments. With
his sterling race record, good looks, and impeccable pedigree, AFTER MARKET needs
neither.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--ARAGORN: UNLIMITED POTENTIAL
Jan. 1, 2010: A multiple Grade 1 winner of over $1.5 million. A course-record holder who excelled at a mile. A grandson of Storm Cat, by his best sire son. An exciting young stallion whose first-crop weanlings made up to $329,000 and whose first yearlings were outstanding. And all for $7,500?
ARAGORN (IRE) is indeed one of the best values around, and in a time where breeders are searching for the next big thing without the big price tag, the striking son of Giant’s Causeway fits all the criteria of a successful stallion in the making.
It also is important to note that Giant’s Causeway has gotten off to a prominent start as a sire of sires. His son Shamardal led the freshman sire lists in England and Ireland by earnings, while Footstepsinthesand (GB) registered 25 first-crop winners.
At the 2009 yearling sales, youngsters by ARAGORN were purchased by Cash Counter Stable ($200,000), Let’s Go Stable ($160,000), Cormac McCormack ($100,000), etc. Keep an eye out for ARAGORN’s first runners at the track this year!
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--BELONG TO ME: 10 G1SW AND COUNTING
Jan. 1, 2010: BELONG TO ME has been a consistent source of top-class stakes winners since his early days, and the son of Danzig showed in 2009 why he continues to be one of the best values in the business.
His runners were led by the superlative grass filly Forever Together. The Champion Grass Mare of 2008, heroine of the G1 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf, had another fine season in 2009. Never off the board in six starts, the George Strawbridge colorbearer successfully defended her title in the G1 Diana S. at Saratoga, won the G2 Jenny Wiley S. at Keeneland and was a close-up third in the latest renewal of the Filly & Mare Turf. Forever Together heads to the breeding shed as an earner of over $2.8 million, with seven graded wins to her credit.
Forever Together’s chances at stud look superb, as BELONG TO ME is garnering a reputation as an up-and-coming broodmare sire. He ranked 31st on the Leading Broodmare Sires list in 2009, with only one sire above him--KINGMAMBO--who is younger in age. The SMART STRIKE/BELONG TO ME cross looks especially fruitful. Both pro tem champion Lookin at Lucky and Grade 2 winner Papa Clem were by SMART STRIKE out of BELONG TO ME mares. Lookin at Lucky’s dam Private Feeling, who also produced dual Grade 2 winner Kensei, elicited a bid of $2 million from Live Oak at the Fasig-Tipton November Sale.
In Australia, BELONG TO ME’s All Silent (Aus) annexed the A$500,000, six-furlong G1 Patinack Farm Classic in November. The gelding was coming off a tally in the G2 Gilgai S. and won the G1 Emirates S. in 2008.
BELONG TO ME ended 2009 with ten stakes winners, including four graded stakes winners. Over his career, BELONG TO ME has sired the likes of Grade 1 winners Jersey Girl, Circle of Life, Lucky Roberto, Miss Houdini, etc., as well as group/graded winners Jack Sullivan, Ebony Breeze, Ocean Drive, etc.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--CANDY RIDE: THE NEXT BIG THING?
Jan. 1, 2010: CANDY RIDE (ARG) got off to a brilliant start at stud in 2008, and his reputation soared even higher when his first three-year-old group yielded a pair of Grade 1 winners in 2009. At season’s end, CANDY RIDE was a top five sire on the Leading Second Crop Sires list with nine black-type winners to his credit. That includes five at the graded level, which puts him as the co-leading sophomore sire by that measure, along with Medaglia d’Oro, and puts him ahead of Tapit (4), Birdstone (2), etc.
Over the last weekend of 2009, the quality of CANDY RIDE’s runners was once again on display when the superb sprinter Evita Argentina stormed down Santa Anita’s stretch to prevail in the G1 La Brea S. It was the chestnut’s sixth win in 13 starts, including a victory over males in the G2 San Vicente S., as well as tallies in the G2 A Gleam H. and G3 Sorrento S.
CANDY RIDE’s other Grade 1 winner is Capt. Candyman Can, who like Evita Argentina excels at the tricky seven-furlong distance. The gelding landed one of the most prized spoils on the horse racing calendar, the G1 King’s Bishop S., to add to his victories in the G2 Hutcheson S. and G3 Bay Shore S. He is four-for-four going seven furlongs.
CANDY RIDE is also the sire of the progressive Misremembered, who on the same afternoon as Evita Argentina’s La Brea win came flying for second in the G1 Malibu S. at Santa Anita. The Bob Baffert homebred previously won the G2 Indiana Derby and G2 Swaps Breeders' Cup S., ran a game second in the G2 Clark H., and has now finished first or second in seven of nine.
Meanwhile, CANDY RIDE’s son El Brujo won the G3 Kentucky Cup Sprint at Turfway Park in September, then doubled up with a tally in the G3 Perryville S. at Keeneland a month later, while multiple Grade 1-placed Chocolate Candy won the G3 El Camino Real Derby earlier in the year.
CANDY RIDE’s nine 2009 stakes winners puts him in a tie with Speightstown for third-most stakes winners for a sophomore sire, and he has more than double the number of Birdstone (4), etc.
CANDY RIDE’s emergence as a top young sire was recognized in the sales ring. Despite a down market, his yearlings were in top demand, with 35 sold for an average of $60,987. That number is impressive considering it came off a $12,500 stud fee, and was in his third year at stud, often considered a ‘bubble’ year. Leading the way was a colt out of the Heaven’s Gate mare Septieme Ciel who sold to Let’s Go Stable for $630,000. Others sold for $340,000, $185,000, $150,000, etc.
With numbers like these, Bill Oppenheim recently called CANDY RIDE outstanding value at his 2010 fee of $25,000:
“CANDY RIDE, unbeaten on the racecourse and sire of five GSWs in his first crop. He seems to have a new black-type horse every time you open up the paper.”
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--CITY ZIP: A PREMIER JUVENILE SIRE
Jan. 1, 2010: As the second-leading sire in the nation by juvenile winners (36) and fifth-leading sire by juvenile earnings in 2009, CITY ZIP again showed why he’s one of the premier sires of two-year-olds in the nation. Carson City’s heir apparent, who ended 2008 as the co-leading sire by number of juvenile stakes winners, was represented by three black-type babies in final month of the year alone. On the first weekend of the month at Aqueduct, his son City Trooper ran second in the $70,000 Damon Runyon S., while daughter Spirit of Rose was second in the $70,000 East View S. Then on Dec. 28, the exciting two-year-old filly Romantic Getaway notched the first black-type victory of her career with a driving two-length tally in Philly Park’s $75,000 Brandywine S. It was Romantic Getaway’s third win in four starts and pushed her earnings past the $100,000 mark.
A top 35 stallion on the General Sire List, CITY ZIP has proven he can get horses that train on, as well. That was in evidence at Monmouth Park over the summer of 2009, where his five-year-old son Get Serious dominated the local turf events...and some of the main-track events, too. Get Serious won four black-type races on the shore and lowered the track record for a mile not once but twice. His get included the G3 Red Bank S., the off-the-turf Listed Oceanport S., and the grassy Battlefield S., which he won in a blistering 1:32.70. Get Serious has now banked $541,191.
Other horses by CITY ZIP to star in 2009 include:
• Turf sprint ace Canadian Ballet, who collected her fifth overall stakes victory when she determinedly made all to prevail in the $200,000 Turf Amazon H. at Philly Park in late September. Tried in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint facing males, she was an excellent fifth, beaten just four lengths;
• Gleam of Hope, a two-year-old colt who romped by 2 1/4 lengths in the Cradle S. at River Downs Sept. 7. The victory improved Gleam of Hope's record to three wins in four starts and boosted his earnings to over $150,000. On the same day, CITY ZIP's three-year-old son Rooster City was beaten just a head when second in the nine-furlong Emerald Downs Derby;
• Zip Quik, the two-year-old colt who was runner-up in the G2 Saratoga Special S. and G3 Hollywood Juvenile Championship S.;
• Acting Zippy, the four-year-old who won the $100,000, 1 1/6-mile R. R. M. Carpenter Jr. Memorial S. at Delaware Park;
• Citizen, who captured the Mountain Valley S. at Oaklawn Park;
• Silver Cup, who won the Golden Gull Chris Brown Memorial S. at Charles Town, etc.
As a sire who's had to do it the hard way, proving his mettle first in New York before moving to Kentucky, CITY ZIP has seen his books improve in recent years, and those resulting foals are showing their talent on the track. From two-year-olds to older horses, going short or long, and on dirt, synthetics and turf, CITY ZIP is gaining the reputation as one of the country’s most versatile sires. And at a fee of $10,000 for 2010, one of the best value sires, too. That, at least, is according to industry expert Bill Oppenheim, who said in the Thoroughbred Daily News:
“Lane's End's CITY ZIP had 18 two-year-old winners [and] four black-type winners, including unbeaten Run Away and Hide, in his first Kentucky crop in 2008. This year, in his second Kentucky crop, CITY ZIP's had no fewer than 35 two-year-old winners and ranks number four on the national Two-Year-Old Sire List. Yet he drops 20 percent, from $12,500; that has to qualify as good value.”
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--CURLIN LEADING COVERING SIRE...BY A LONG WAY
Jan. 1, 2010: The buzz is already starting to build around two-time Horse of the Year CURLIN’s first foals, which are due this spring. Last fall, CURLIN was easily the leading North American covering sire among first-crop stallions, with 11 of the 15 mares in foal to CURLIN selling for a $231,545 average. That’s over three times his initial $75,000 fee. Only two other freshman sires had mares average above six figures, and Curlin was well ahead of both. They were Henrythenavigator ($151,062 average for 12 sold, $65,000 fee) and Big Brown ($105,714 average for seven sold, $65,000 fee).
Mares in foal to CURLIN who sold in 2009 included Tears I Cry (Chester House), knocked down to Vin Cox Bloodstock for $735,000; as well as Reverently (Pulpit), a half-sister to SMART STRIKE’s Grade 1 winner Square Eddie, who sold to Royal Oak Farm, agent, for $390,000.
Despite the success of these mares, CURLIN’s fee has been reduced to $60,000, offering continued value to breeders seeking to breed to this very exciting prospect.
To read more about CURLIN, continue reading:
One measure of a great horse is what he was able to accomplish against the odds. Put another way, did he do something horses aren’t supposed to do? For instance, are horses supposed to win at first asking by 12 3/4 lengths? Are horses supposed to place in the Kentucky Derby in their fourth career start? Are they supposed to re-rally to beat the Derby winner in the Preakness in their fifth? Are they supposed to romp over one of the deepest fields in Breeders’ Cup Classic history with relative ease? To come back at four, fly 7,000 miles and win the world’s richest race without turning a hair?
SETTING NEW STANDARDS
Not generally, they’re not. Yet, that’s what CURLIN did in two historic seasons on the track. He set a new standard as to what it means to be a World Champion in the modern-day era. He was fast. He was durable. He danced every dance and he never backed down from a challenge. He was a truly
unique horse on the racetrack, and there’s every reason to think the son of SMART STRIKE will be a truly unique sire now that he has retired to Lane’s End to stand stud.
TDN “RISING STAR”
It took CURLIN exactly one minute, 22 and one-fifth seconds to announce himself as a potential superstar. That’s the amount of time it took him to cover seven furlongs in his debut at Gulfstream Park in February of 2007. CURLIN won the race by a pole despite racing greenly and drifting very wide in the stretch. The Thoroughbred Daily News tabbed him a “TDN Rising Star.” Track announcer Larry Colmus exclaimed simply “Curlin--wow!”
STEPPING UP IN CLASS
The victory caught the eye of Stonestreet Stables’ Jess Jackson and his bloodstock advisor, John Moynihan. Stonestreet and partners purchased a majority interest in the colt, who was then transferred from the barn of Helen Pitts to trainer Steve Asmussen. Asmussen knew the caliber of horse he had, and asked the big chestnut to take the steep step up in class in the G3 Rebel S. at Oaklawn. In just his second career start and his first race around two turns, CURLIN captured the Rebel by a professional 5 1/4 lengths. In his next, the GII Arkansas Derby, he simply toyed with the competition, bounding home by a 10 1/2-length margin.
THE CLASSICS
Asmussen now asked even more of the colt, sending him into the toughest challenge a young horse can face: the rough-and-tumble mile and a quarter of the G1 Kentucky Derby. CURLIN lost little in defeat, overcoming a rough start with a rallying third-place effort to Juvenile Champion Street Sense and the tough-as-nails Hard Spun. It wouldn’t take long for CURLIN to settle the score.
In the G1 Preakness S. next out, CURLIN was commencing a rally on the far turn when Street Sense came flying past on his inside. With a furlong left to run, few gave him a chance against the Derby hero, who had opened up by a length. But CURLIN showed his grit, re-breaking under regular jockey Robby Albarado, and in the final jump he got up to defeat Street Sense by a head, with Hard Spun back in third.
CURLIN’s next race was one for the ages. In the third leg of the Triple Crown, the G1 Belmont S., CURLIN engaged with A.P. INDY’s superlative daughter and Lane’s End sales grad Rags to Riches and battled the length of Belmont’s long stretch. In the end it was Rags to Riches by a head, but it was a defeat that took little sheen off what CURLIN had accomplished in just six career starts.
JOCKEY CLUB GOLD CUP
Given a bit of time off, CURLIN returned in the G1 Haskell Invitational at Monmouth, where he finished third to Any Given Saturday and his old rival Hard Spun. But CURLIN was back to his best in his next, the historic G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup. It was his first start against older horses, and in the field was the menacing presence of LANGFUHR’s son Lawyer Ron, who was coming off a pair of huge wins in Grade 1 company at Saratoga. It was another battle for the ages, with each horse fighting for every inch of ground. CURLIN proved too good, though, asserting by a quarter length in deep stretch to the approval of a thrilled Belmont crowd.
BREEDERS’ CUP CHAMPION
If CURLIN showed the fight of a bulldog in the Jockey Club Gold Cup, he displayed the brilliance of an unqualified champion in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Classic four weeks later. The race had drawn arguably the best field ever assembled for the Classic. Street Sense. Hard Spun. Any Given Saturday. Lawyer Ron. George Washington (Ire). Tiago. All Grade 1 winners, all top-notch race horses. But over the soupy mud at Monmouth, it was all CURLIN. With dusk approaching and the crowd huddled together, CURLIN unleashed a dazzling display, powering to the fore nearing the quarter pole and splashing home 4 1/2 lengths clear of Hard Spun.
ECLIPSING THE COMPETITION
“Curlin, who had not raced before February, completed a sensational, ambitious campaign...at Monmouth Park with an emphatic victory in the $5-million Breeders' Cup Classic,” enthused Daily Racing Form’s Jay Privman. CURLIN was an overwhelming choice for Horse of the Year and Champion Three-Year-Old Colt, and was surely one of the most coveted stud prospects of the year.
SPORTING GESTURE AND A TICKET TO FLY
But Jess Jackson, in a sporting gesture rare in racing these days, kept CURLIN in training at four.
Following in the hoofsteps of brilliant Breeders’ Cup Classic winners like Cigar and PLEASANTLY PERFECT, CURLIN made the trip to deserts of Dubai to contest the world’s richest race, the $6-million G1 Dubai World Cup. First sent out to an easy handicap win at Nad Al Sheba in February, CURLIN was the overwhelming choice in the World Cup, which had also attracted the good horses Asiatic Boy (Arg) and Well Armed, among others. CURLIN lived up to advance billing, swooping to the front in upper stretch and striding home with authority to the delight of the crowd. “It was as comprehensive a win of the world’s most valuable race as you expect to see and confirmed CURLIN’s status as the world’s best Thoroughbred,” wrote The Blood-Horse magazine.
A GRADE 1 CAMPAIGN
While many a talented runner falter after the long trip to and from Dubai, CURLIN was as good as ever upon return. He captured the G1 Stephen Foster H. in June of 2008, ran second to Breeders’ Cup champ Red Rocks (Ire) in a grass experiment in the G1 Man O' War S. in July, then took the show on the road to Saratoga, where he annexed the G1 Woodward S. in August.
In his penultimate start, CURLIN was looking to become the first two-time winner of the Jockey Club Gold Cup since Skip Away. Favored at 40 cents on the dollar, he joined the esteemed company of five-time hero Kelso with a measured victory over Wanderin Boy, as well as dual Gold Cup winners Nashua, Shuvee, Slew o’Gold, and Creme Fraiche.
NORTH AMERICA’S RICHEST HORSE
The win was historic for other reasons, too. With the purse earnings of $450,000, CURLIN became racing’s first $10-million earner, pushing past Cigar’s previous record of $9,999,815.
Sent off the chalk to take his second renewal of the Breeders’ Cup Classic, too, CURLIN made an eye-catching move on the far turn to take command in upper stretch. His early exertions appeared to take its toll, however, and he came home fourth in a game effort. It wasn’t the win his connections had hoped for, but it was yet another example of CURLIN giving it his all, even in defeat.
Consider this: in the span of 13 short months, CURLIN went from an unraced maiden to a Classic winner, to a Breeders’ Cup Classic winner, to a Dubai World Cup hero. Over his full 20-month career campaign, CURLIN won 11 of 16 starts and missed the frame just once while earning $10,501,800. He registered huge Beyers, and in August of 2008 was honored as Timeform Global Rankings’ best horse in the world with a rating of 134.
MIND AND BODY
One of CURLIN’s biggest attributes, of course, was his mind. He took everything in stride, didn’t get excited by the screaming crowds, didn’t lose his composure as foes around him became unglued. Trainer Asmussen had this to say about his star performer, “CURLIN made his mark in the history books in so many ways: as a classic winner, as a colt who traveled to Dubai and captured the World Cup and who returned to take three more Grade 1 races and tally record earnings. His physical and mental attitude is unparalleled and he retires perfectly sound.”
THE REAL DEAL
CURLIN’s professionalism was matched only by his impeccable good looks. He had the heavily muscling of a sprinter, with the scope, range and bone of a true route horse. In a recent Daily Racing Form column titled “It’s always tough to see great ones go,” Jay Hovdey wrote this tribute to CURLIN, “It must be hard to let go, to climb down from the giddy heights of campaigning America’s best, most consistent racehorse for two solid seasons. And let there be no doubt . . . in an era of one-hit wonders, this horse was the real deal . . . CURLIN laid his big, gorgeous body down every time he ran, under all manner of circumstance, leaving behind a trail of loyal admirers to go along with an impressive pile of beaten opposition.”
BREED APART - FAST, STRONG, DURABLE
Even hardened rail birds readily admitted that this indeed was a special horse, a throwback to the days of Secretariat, Dr. Fager and Buckpasser. In short, if one were asked to compose a sketch of the perfect race horse, the result, in all probability, would look a lot like CURLIN. Majority owner Jess Jackson said, “After a stellar racing career, CURLIN is now in a position to carry on his iron horse bloodlines at Lane’s End, the premier stallion farm in the nation. He is one of the best examples of the breed - fast, strong, and durable. I predict he will make a substantial contribution to our sport through his gene pool and I am looking forward to seeing his foals compete and possibly exceed his unequaled race record.”
Will Farish said “The Jacksons are due great credit for allowing our sport to enjoy this great champion as a four-year-old. Many would have retired him after winning the Breeders’ Cup Classic and Horse of the Year honors as a three-year-old. CURLIN’s performance on the track, his pedigree, and his conformation make him the most exciting sire prospect to retire in many years. We are honored to have him join his champion sire SMART STRIKE at Lane’s End.”
HE’S GOT OUR VOTE!
Perhaps Steven Crist, Chairman and Publisher of the Daily Racing Form, summed CURLIN up best with this comment, “CURLIN is a first-ballot cinch for the Hall of Fame in 2014.”
ECLIPSE AWARD #4
At the January 26 ceremony, CURLIN cinched Champion Older Horse and Horse of the Year with an overwhelming number of votes!
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP: DIXIE UNION, THE QUANTITY OF QUALITY
Jan. 1, 2010: DIXIE UNIONhas garnered a reputation as a sire who consistently gets quality, and for good reason. Consider this: the son of Dixieland Band ended 2009 with seven graded stakes winners to his credit. Only seven stallions had more, and only one of those stood for less that $60,000, underscoring DIXIE UNION’s 2010 fee of $35,000 as superb value. The best example of DIXIE UNION’s prowess can be found in one of the nation’s premier juvenile fillies in 2009, Grace Stable’s Hot Dixie Chick.
Hot Dixie Chick finished second in her career debut at Churchill Downs in May, than proceeded to lower the historic track’s five-furlong track record when tearing through the distance in :56.48. Favored in the GIII Schuylerville S. at Saratoga in late August, she turned the race into a procession, winning off by 6 1/4 lengths. The winning margin of her next victory, the G1 Spinaway S. at the Spa, was “just” 1 3/4 lengths, but the manner in which she accomplished the victory was just as impressive, easily defeating for the second straight time the eventual G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies runner-up Beautician.
DIXIE UNION also could boast the three-year-old filly star Justwhistledixie, who dominated the proceedings at Gulfstream early in the year. The West Point Thoroughbreds colorbearer recorded five straight wins from late 2008 to the spring of 2009, including the G2 Davona Dale S. and G2 Bonnie Miss S. at the Hallendale oval. Sent off the choice in the G1 Acorn S., she ran a game second, then came back from a respite to run Sara Louise to a half-length in the G2 Top Flight S. at Aqueduct in late November.
Among DIXIE UNION’s males, Phipps Stable star Gone Astray helped lead the way. The three-year-old colt won or placed in seven of nine in 2009, with his victories including the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby and the G2 Ohio Derby.
Other runners by DIXIE UNION to star in 2009 were:
• Homebound, winner of the G2 Prix de Sandringham at Chantilly;
• Bold Union, heroine of the G3 Endine S. and a track-record-setter in 2009;
• Dixie Band, the up-and-coming winner of the G3 Arlington-Washington Futurity and Spectacular Bid S.;
• Dixie Chatter, the Grade 1-winning juvenile who secured victory in the G2 Arcadia H. and was third in the G1 Frank E. Kilroe Mile H.;
• Strike Again, a son of the SMART STRIKE mare Strike It Up who captured Saratoga s Tap the Admiral S.
Return 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--ENGLISH CHANNEL: CHANNELING GREATNESS
Jan. 1, 2010: Champion and six-time Grade 1 winner ENGLISH CHANNEL stands his first season at Lane’s End in 2010, and we are excited to be associated with this promising young sire.
During his first two years at stud, ENGLISH CHANNEL covered a superb book of mares, and his first weanlings were well received by the buying public at the 2009 bloodstock sales. They included a filly who was knocked down to Donarra Thoroughbreds LLC for $85,000 at Keeneland November. The filly was produced by the stakes-winning Storm Cat mare Flashy Four, dam of the graded horse Savoy Special and a half to the good sprinter Good and Tough.
Keep an eye out for ENGLISH CHANNEL’s yearlings in 2010! To read more about ENGLISH CHANNEL, continue reading:
By the time he retired to stud, ENGLISH CHANNEL had become one of the most accomplished U.S.-based turf champions of all time. Not since the great John Henry ruled the scene in the early 1980s had a grass horse been as consistent, year in and year out, in high-level competition as ENGLISH CHANNEL. His resume includes six Grade 1 victories, including back-to-back wins in both Belmont’s G1 Turf Classic Invitational and Monmouth’s G1 United Nations H. ENGLISH CHANNEL won the $1 million Virginia Derby at three, the G1 Turf Classic at Churchill at four, and, in his final career effort at five, dominated the $3 million G1 Breeders’ Cup Turf by seven lengths.
When all was said and done, ENGLISH CHANNEL had amassed a bankroll of over $5.3 million and earned the admiration of race fans and the respect of rival trainers.
Bred by Keene Ridge Farm in Kentucky, ENGLISH CHANNEL caught the eye of top horseman J.J. Pletcher at the 2003 Keeneland September Sale. The chestnut was perfectly proportioned--good shoulder, nice hip, a beautiful way of going--and Pletcher immediately gauged, correctly, that the horse was destined to be a runner.
Purchased by Pletcher on behalf of James Scatuorchio and turned over to his son Todd, ENGLISH CHANNEL showed himself to be something special from the outset. He won a two-turn Saratoga maiden in his lone start at two, then went on a four-race winning tear in the spring of his three-year-old year. He racked up tallies in Churchill’s Woodlawn S., the inaugural $500,000 Colonial Turf Cup, and the G3 Virginia Derby. In his first try in Grade 1 competition, ENGLISH CHANNEL was a head runner-up in the G1 Secretariat S. over a yielding Arlington course in August, then just lost the bob to older horse Shakespeare in Belmont’s G1 Turf Classic that fall.
THE ENGLISH RESOLVE
At four, ENGLISH CHANNEL won five of his eight starts. He beat subsequent champion and Breeders’ Cup Mile winner Miesque’s Approval in his seasonal debut in the Canadian Turf H., which put him on track for his first Grade 1 victory. Up against the top horse Cacique (Ire) in the G1 Turf Classic at Churchill, ENGLISH CHANNEL rallied four wide and was all heart to best that rival by a half-length. Two months later, the two met up again, this time in the G1 United Nations at Monmouth. Again, ENGLISH CHANNEL’s heart was on display. Rank early, he moved three wide in the stretch and staved off Cacique for the win, which earned him a big 111 BRIS Speed Figure.
Looking to avenge his loss to Shakespeare as the heavy 3-5 pick in his second go at Belmont’s Turf Classic, ENGLISH CHANNEL won in stylish fashion, earning a 108 BRIS fig and cruising home by nearly five lengths. He concluded his year with a good third in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Turf, but his best racing days were ahead.
ENGLISH CHANNEL kicked off his championship season with a gaudy performance at Gulfstream. Heavily favored in a nine-furlong turf allowance in his five-year-old bow in February, ENGLISH CHANNEL attended a wicked mile in 1:32 3/5, then powered home to win the race in a blistering, track-record 1:44 2/5. ENGLISH CHANNEL missed the nine-furlong world record by a mere .59.
After finishing a head adrift of Better Talk Now in the G1 Manhattan H. in June, ENGLISH CHANNEL went on to collect another edition of the G1 United Nations, this time breaking the 11-furlong track record after going 2:12 4/5. It was more of the same later that fall, when he registered yet another comprehensive victory in the Turf Classic, winning the 1 1/2-mile race in 1:25 3/5.
That set the stage for an appropriate career finale, to come in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Monmouth Park, where ENGLISH CHANNEL put in an effort for the ages. In front of an appreciative crowd rooting for their hometown hero, ENGLISH CHANNEL stalked early, then unleashed a dazzling turn of foot in the lane that left the others toiling for minor placings. His winning margin of seven lengths remains the largest in Breeders’ Cup Turf history, and he beat, among others, the very good Dylan Thomas (Ire), as well as previous Turf winners Better Talk Now and Red Rocks (Ire).
“He delivered big-time today,” said Todd Pletcher after the race. “He dominated some really good horses; he ran an unbelievable race.”
CHANNELING GREATNESS
As a stallion, ENGLISH CHANNEL offers to breeders credentials all too rare in today’s industry: he was fast, setting two course records and nearly lowering a world record; he was durable, starting 21 times from ages three to five; and he was classy, banking $1.1 million at three, $1.5 million at four, and $2.6 million at five.
Just as importantly, ENGLISH CHANNEL boasts the pedigree to be a top stallion. His sire is the two-time leading sire SMART STRIKE, whose versatility and consistency have earned him the reputation as one of the premier stallions in North America. Notably, ENGLISH CHANNEL was part of the memorable trifecta SMART STRIKE earned in October of 2007, when on the same afternoon at Belmont Park, Fabulous Strike won the G1 Vosburgh, ENGLISH CHANNEL won the G1 Turf Classic, and CURLIN captured the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup. No one could remember a sire registering three Grade 1 victories on the same afternoon, let alone at the same racecourse.
ENGLISH CHANNEL’s female family is also remarkably strong. His second dam was the five-time champion Committed, who beat males not once but twice in the G1 Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp. ENGLISH CHANNEL’s dam, the Theatrical (Ire) mare Belva, is a full-sister to Grade 1 winner Pharma and MGSW Hap, while ENGLISH CHANNEL is himself a full-brother to MGSP Sedgefield.
Important, too, is the support ENGLISH CHANNEL has received in his early days at stud. Scatuorchio and Brad Kelley, who purchased a major interest in ENGLISH CHANNEL, have been busy at the bloodstock sales in recent years, stocking ENGLISH CHANNEL’s book with the best mares to give the young stallion a chance to succeed.
ENGLISH CHANNEL’s first foals arrived this year so watch for those weanlings at this year’s mixed sales.
To read Alan Porter’s mating analysis, click here.
Return 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP: KINGMAMBO, STILL THE KING
Jan. 1, 2010: He was represented by just 113 runners in 2009, but with eight black-type winners to his credit, KINGMAMBO continues to show why he’s one of the most important global stallions in the game. His 2009 runners included the G1SW Archipenko, who added to his impressive resume when annexing the G3 Zabeel Mile in Dubai. The previous year, Archipenko won the important G1 Queen Elizabeth II Cup in Hong Kong.
Also winning in Dubai was Snaafy, who took the G3 Intidab Burj Nahaar at Nad Al Sheba. In England, son Campanolgist won the G3 Totepool Winter Hill S., while Alexandros beat, among others, the talented Twice Over (GB), when second in the G1 Juddmonte Lockinge S.
But it could be KINGMAMBO’s daughters who made the biggest impact in 2009. Among others, they produced the likes of Midday (GB), who defeated her elders in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf; Gozzip Girl, winner of the G1 American Oaks; Wiener Walzer (Ger), winner of the G1 Deutsches Derby; and Miss World, winner of the G1 Garden City Breeders' Cup S.
KINGMAMBO is also the broodmare sire of champions and/or Grade 1 winners like Duke of Marmalade (Ire), Maids Causeway (Ire), Red Giant, Gallica (Aus), etc. Ranked 19th on the Leading Broodmare Sires List, he is the youngest member on the list by several years.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--LANGFUHR: TOP 15 SIRE SEVEN YEARS STRAIGHT!
Jan. 1, 2010: Since 2003, only three sires have made the Top 15 on the General Sires List each and every year. Unbridled’s Song? Storm Cat? Elusive Quality? No. Need a hint? All three stand at Lane’s End. The first two, leading sires A.P. INDY and SMART STRIKE, are easily guessed. But the third--LANGFUHR--might be a surprise to some. That is, until you review his career achievements as a stallion.
LANGFUHR is the sire of six champions, including Canadian Triple Crown winner WANDO, multiple Grade 1 winner Lawyer Ron, $1.8 million earner Mobil, and Three-Year-Old Champion Filly Kimchi. He is also the sire of G1 Arlington Million hero Jambalaya, Grade 1 winners like Imperial Gesture and Lang Field, and graded winners like Imperialism, Sister Star, Marlang and Last Answer.
In all, LANGFUHR has sired 62 black-type winners, 19 of whom have won at the graded level. He is well over the century mark with stakes horses, with 115 to his credit, with his runners earning a whopping $66,918,004.
In 2009, LANGFUHR continued to show why he’s one of the best values in the business. His veteran son Interpatation became his eighth Grade 1 winner when taking the G1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational S. over pro-tem divisional champ Gio Ponti. His 11 stakes winners last term included the two-year-old filly Dad's Crazy, as well as Akilina, Arganil, Cassique Lady (Ire), Euroears, Gangbuster, and Woodsmoke, while his graded performers include Yield Bogey, Absolutelyfabulous (Aus), and the MG1SP Casanova Move.
And considering that only two sires on the Top 30 General Sires List stand for less, LANGFUHR, at a 2010 fee of $17,500, offers breeders a chance at the home-run horse, without the big-league stud fee.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--LEMON DROP KID: 18 STAKES WINNERS IN ‘09!
Jan. 1, 2010: LEMON DROP KID finished the 2008 season as a top 15 sire with a remarkable 21 stakes winners to his credit, and the son of KINGMAMBO recently put the wraps on an equally impressive 2009. Again a top 15 Kentucky sire, LEMON DROP KID ended the year with 18 black-type winners to his credit. That put him as the co-second-leading sire by stakes winners, on par with compatriot A.P. INDY, and ahead of Distorted Humor, Dynaformer, Elusive Quality, etc.
What’s most impressive about LEMON DROP KID’s number of stakes winners is that they hailed from a relatively small group of runners. LEMON DROP KID had 159 individual starters in 2009, meaning that 11.3 percent of those went on to black-type success. By way of comparison, Giant’s Causeway, who led all sires with 24 stakes winners, had a strike rate of 6.6 percent with his runners.
End-of-year figures also confirmed the versatility of LEMON DROP KID’s runners, as he was ranked sixth among Kentucky sires on the Leading Turf Sires list, and 16th on the All-Weather Sire list among active Kentucky stallions.
LEMON DROP KID is the sire of five Grade 1 winners, including a pair in 2009. Santa Teresita won the G1 Santa Maria H. early in the year, while the progressive Richard’s Kid stamped himself as a top handicap horse with a victory in the G1 Pacific Classic and a fast-closing third in the G1 Goodwood Breeders’ Cup S.
Other LEMON DROP KID runners to start in 2009 include:
• The three-year-old Charitable Man, winner of the G2 Peter Pan S. in impressive fashion;
• Bronze Cannon, who captured the G2 Hardwicke S. and G2 Jockey Club S. in England;
• Cosmonaut, winner of the G3 Fort Marcy S.;
• Kiss the Kid, hero of the G3 Appleton S.;
• Citrus Kid, the up-and-coming juvenile colt who won the Dover S. at Delaware and finished third to SAINT LIAM’s Buddy’s Saint in the G2 Remsen S. at Aqueduct Nov. 28.
In a 2009 update to his APEX rankings in the Thoroughbred Daily News, Bill Oppenheim gave high marks to LEMON DROP KID in nearly all categories. From sires standing from 1996 through 2005, LEMON DROP KID is the fourth-leading stallion in Kentucky by A runner index, behind only stablemate SMART STRIKE, Street Cry (Ire) and Unbridled's Song. His ABC runner index is even better--he is second among Kentucky stallions--prompting Oppenheim to comment:
"Of the more ‘mainstream' among these 534 stallions, Distorted Humor and Galileo are tied with a 2.48 ABC Index--just under 20 percent of their runners. LEMON DROP KID is just a tick behind with a 2.45 index--he is definitely one of the most consistent sires around of horses that pay their way."
And with a fee of $35,000 for 2010, Bill Oppenheim recently extolled the value of LEMON DROP KID. Oppenheim commented:
“LEMON DROP KID ($35,000, from $50,000) is a model of consistency: he was 10th on the General Sire List in 2007, 14th in 2008, and is 14th again this year. He is short on Grade 1 winners (has five), perhaps, but he is so solid at all other levels that for $35,000 it’s easily worth the gamble that more Grade 1 winners are in the pipeline.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--MINESHAFT: LEADING THIRD-CROP SIRE
Jan. 1, 2009: In a tough sire class that includes Empire Maker, Sky Mesa, Harlan’s Holiday, etc., no third-crop stallion has more stakes winners in 2009 than MINESHAFT’s nine.
His get included a trio of talented runners for Robert LaPenta and trainer Nick Zito. Coal Play took down the G3 Salvator Mile H., while 2008 G2 Fountain of Youth S. winner Cool Coal Man, a Lane’s End Sales grad, continued to be a top performer, with his victories including the Albert the Great S. and Lord of the Night S. in New York. Meanwhile, the three-year-old colt Miner's Escape won the $100,000 Federico Tesio S. at Pimlico.
The $1.75-million juvenile Patricia's Gem emerged as a talented turfer in California, running Tuscan Evening (Ire) to a nose in a thrilling renewal of the G2 Royal Heroine Mile S. and finishing third, beaten 1 1/2 lengths by Magical Fantasy, in the G1 John C. Mabee S.
MINESHAFT has some exciting juveniles, too. His son Discreetly Mine, an E. Paul Robsham Stables homebred, was a dead-game second in the prestigious G1 Champagne S. at Belmont Park Oct. 10. The bay, a half-brother to Discreet Cat, romped by six lengths in a Saratoga maiden Aug. 22 and was second in the G2 Futurity S. at Belmont Sept. 19.
Mineralogist, a Chester and Mary Broman homebred out of Grade 2 winner Seeking the Ante (Seeking the Gold),won the $108,500 Joseph A. Gimma S. by daylight and the Maid of the Mist S. at Belmont in remarkable fashion. In the latter, she was off slowly and dead last in the early going. Some 10 lengths back after the first quarter, the 3-5 pick began picking off foes with a dazzling move rounding the turn and, after opening a clear lead, held well in what announcer Tom Durkin called a “remarkable win.”
Among MINESHAFT’s 2009 stakes winners are his promising daughter Platinum, who captured Saratoga’s Mollie Wilmot S. near the close of the meet. Hammered down to 1-2 favoritism coming off a pair of daylight victories in maiden and allowance company, the three-year-old Platinum didn’t let her backers down, laying down all the leading fractions and cruising home a facile 3 3/4-length winner in what was her stakes debut. Platinum is a Peter Blum homebred.
Donald and Mary Zuckerman's homebred three-year-old Platinum Girl, meanwhile, won Monmouth’s Little Silver S. in a wicked 1:33 3/5; Strut the Canary won Laurel's Marshua S.; and Rock Candy took Tampa Bay's Gasparilla S.
In all, MINESHAFT had no fewer than 19 stakes horses in 2009, including last year's star three-year-old Casino Drive, and was the leading third-crop sire of 2009 stakes winners.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--PLEASANT TAP: RACEHORSE SIRE
Jan. 1, 2010: Veteran sire PLEASANT TAP, long considered a prominent source of top-class, durable race horses, eclipsed the half-century mark for black-type winners during the 2009 season. The sire of Grade 1 winners like Tiago, Premium Tap and David Junior registered his latest stakes winner at Remington Park, when Pleasant Storm kept his record perfect in the Oklahoma Classics Juvenile S. Nov. 22. The colt opened his account with a debut victory at the track Oct. 17 and looked sharp in a two-length tally in the Juvenile S. Pleasant Storm was PLEASANT TAP’S 52nd career stakes winner.
Earlier in the fall, the four-year-old filly Leamington led every step and came home a sharp winner of Saratoga’s grassy Voodoo Dancer S. It was the first stakes victory for the Hickory Tree Stable colorbearer, who has been first or second in eight of 12.
On Sept. 7, daughter Pleasantly Blessed launched a strong bid to secure her own initial--and well-deserved--black-type score. Previously second in four stakes events, she won the one-mile Ricks Memorial S. at Remington by a length. The consistent performer has been first or second in 13 of 16.
PLEASANT TAP’s five-year-old mare Indescribable capped off another strong season. The Courtlandt Farms homebred was a convincing 3 1/2-length winner of the G3 Kentucky Cup Distaff S. in September. Indescribable won the G3 Doubledogdare S. earlier in the season, and in 2008 captured the G3 Arlington Matron H. and G3 Cardinal H. and was third in the GI Go For Wand H. She has seven victories to her credit and has banked $476,159.
PLEASANT TAP is the sire of seven percent stakes winners to foals, and has 20 graded stakes winners to his credit, including Grade 1 winners David Junior, Premium Tap, Tap Dance City, Tiago, Tap to Music, Pt's Grey Eagle, and I Believe In You.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--PLEASANTLY PERFECT: 10 BLACK-TYPE HORSES
Jan. 10, 2010: Top 15 second-crop sire PLEASANTLY PERFECT registered an impressive 10th black-type runner from his first crop when son Pitched Perfectly finished a close second in Aqueduct’s one-mile Monarch's Maze S. in late November, helping to close out a successful season for this exciting young stallion.
According to the chart, the colt, “dropped back soon after the start, trailed to the turn, circled five wide into the stretch and closed strongly in the middle of the track to gain the place.” Pitched Perfectly is owned by Lael Stables and trained by Barclay Tagg.
PLEASANTLY PERFECT was responsible for one of the better three-year-old turf fillies in the nation in 2009 in the form of Shared Account. The Sagamore Farm colorbearer registered a powerful victory in the G2 Lake Placid S. at Saratoga in August, then was easily second best in the G1 Garden City S. at Belmont. In the G1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup S. at Keeneland in October, Shared Account assumed command from the outset, turned back the challenge of favored Gozzip Girl and ran on gamely to be second to Hot Cha Cha. The bay, a $170,000 KEESEP Lane’s End Sales graduate, was bred by William Carl. She was produced by the SMART STRIKE mare Silk n' Sapphire and had earlier finished second in the G3 Virginia Oaks.
PLEASANTLY PERFECT’s other stakes horses included Ned Evans’s very talented homebred Light Green, who notched her first stakes win in Belmont’s Fall Aspen S., which she won by eight lengths and for which she was awarded a gaudy 109 Beyer Figure. Light Green then came back to be second to Cat Moves in July’s G1 Prioress S., where she was beaten just 3/4 lengths by her rallying stablemate despite having already battled through wicked :21 2/5 and :44 flat fractions. Light Green, sidelined by a minor injury, is scheduled to return to action at Gulfstream.
Evans also bred PLEASANTLY PERFECT’s three-year-old colt Silverside, who in May captured the Premio Cimera Paras las Carreras at Hipodromo La Zarzuela-2,000 Guineas, the first leg of Spain’s Triple Crown, by 2 1/4 lengths in Madrid. Unfortunately, Spain is a Part III country in the International Cataloguing Standards so this race does not receive black type.
Another PLEASANTLY PERFECT sophomore to make an impact in Europe is Edmund Gann’s up-and-coming filly Pearlescence, a €140,000 DEAAUG yearling who was third in the G3 Prix Minerve at Deauville in August.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--ROCK HARD TEN: A STAR ON THE RISE
Jan. 1, 2010: With three stakes winners from his initial crop in 2009, including a pair of graded stakes winners,ROCK HARD TEN confirmed why he is one of the most exciting young stallions in the country.
The son of Kris S. got off to an auspicious start early in the summer when his daughter Long Lashes debuted in the Listed Ballygallon Stud S. at The Curragh and promptly strolled home a convincing winner. Sold to Team Godolphin, the strapping bay later added the G3 Sweet Solera S. to become ROCK HARD TEN’s initial graded/group winner.
In November, The Mailet became ROCK HARD TEN’s second graded stakes winner. At Hollywood Park, The Mailet took the G3 Miesque S. in late-running fashion. Owned by J.W. Singer LLC, The Mailet was well off the leaders as she settled into a smooth stride early, then parlayed a powerful move on the turn into a comfortable half-length win. The New York invader was coming off a victory in her grass debut at Belmont.
Not long after that at Woodbine, ROCK HARD TEN’s son Bear Hard Ten captured the $155,000 Display S. Off at 5-2 odds in his route and stakes debut, the Bear Stables-owned, Reade Baker-trained colt was hard held in second before closing from between rivals at the quarter pole. Shaken up shortly thereafter, he powered clear with huge strides to register the 3 3/4-length success in what track announcer Dan Loiselle called a “dazzling” display.
Impressively, all of ROCK HARD TEN’s 2009 winners came in special weight company, bar the aformentioned Long Lashes.
Other winners by ROCK HARD TEN include:
• Krypton, who while making his first start at a route and on the green stuff led every step in a Belmont maiden special weight Oct. 3;
• Addahab, another Godolphin representative, who took her second career start at Wolverhampton Oct. 29;
• Octogarian, a good-looking wire-to-wire heroine at Hollywood Park for owner J. Paul Reddam;
• Doubles Partner, the WinStar colorbearer who rallied launched a furious rally over the grass to get up and win by a head at Churchill Nov. 28. Doubles Partner, trained by Todd Pletcher, was a $450,000 FTSAUG yearling and was produced by a full-sister to Serena's Song.
ROCK HARD TEN’s early success has ensured his continued popularity in the sales ring. The 2008 second-leading freshman sire by yearling average concluded 2009 as the leading sire from his crop by average! In all, 27 of his yearlings sold for an average of $115,309. He boasts a better yearling average than Pulpit, Gone West, Tiznow, etc.
ROCK HARD TEN’s 2009 yearlings included a half-sister to PLEASANTLY PERFECT’s SW Pomona Ball who sold to John McCormack for $425,000; a filly out of Incredible Story who went to Mercedes Stable for $350,000; a colt out of Betty Gar who was purchased by Nicoma Bloodstock for $325,000; a colt out of Quiet Dream who went to Silverton Hill for $260,000, etc.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--SAINT LIAM: BRILLIANT LEGACY
Jan. 1, 2010: It was a big year for Lane’s End’s late SAINT LIAM, whose son Buddy’s Saint, a top Triple Crown contender, spearheaded a troupe of promising youngsters.
Buddy’s Saint dazzled in the big fall races in New York. After being DQ’d to second in his debut at Belmont in September, he broke his maiden with style in a 12-length romp in the G2 Nashua S. at Aqueduct Nov. 7. Three weeks later, he was hammered down to 3-5 favoritism in the G2 Remsen S., and after settling into a relaxed gallop behind the leaders, launched a wide bid into the lane and strode away with authority to win by 4 3/4 lengths. Track announcer Tom Durkin’s exclamation at the wire--“He is geared down--he absolutely subjugated this field today”--spoke to the ease at which he won. SAINT LIAM led home a 1-2-3 for Lane’s End sire’s, with STEPHEN GOT EVEN’s Peppi Knows in second and LEMON DROP KID’s Citrus Kid third.
A day later, another juvenile by SAINT LIAM earned black-type. Daughter Moment of Majesty, who was produced by the A.P. INDY mare Lady Indy, ran third in the Ontario Lassie S., shortly before Sheltowee, a colt by SAINT LIAM, completed the exacta in the $105,000 Jim Edgar Illinois Futurity at Hawthorne.
SAINT LIAM had four black-type horses from his first crop, with son Coccolo (Mex) capturing the CL Carlos Gomez S.-G1-Mex. The 2005 Horse of the Year and GI Breeders’ Cup Classic hero concluded the year with 14 individual winners and was a top 10 freshman sire.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--SMART STRIKE: ANOTHER BRILLIANT YEAR
Jan. 1, 2010: SMART STRIKE, the leading sire in North America in 2007 and 2008, concluded another fine season to cement his status as one of the world’s premier sires. SMART STRIKE was ranked third on the General Sire List when all was said and done, with his runners earning $9,593,731 in 2009. By North American earnings, SMART STRIKE was the leading sire in the nation, edging out A.P. INDY.
SMART STRIKE had 15 black-type winners in 2009-- including a stellar nine at the graded level--who accounted for 25 stakes wins. SMART STRIKE was the third-ranked sire by both number of graded stakes winners and by stakes wins.
Just like in recent years, SMART STRIKE’s runners shone on racing’s biggest day, the Breeders’ Cup. In the G1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, the developing Furthest Land upset a strong field. Though the four-year-old was a big price at 21-1, he had shown he was a talented horse when setting a track record while winning the Golden Bear S. at Indiana Downs before an initial graded stakes win in the G2 Kentucky Cup S. at Turfway Park. Furthest Land won six of nine in 2009 and has earned nearly $870,000.
But for a wide draw, SMART STRIKE may have added another Breeders’ Cup to his resume. The highly regarded Lookin at Lucky, the favorite in the G1 Breeders’ Cup juvenile after putting together an unbeaten record that included wins in the G1 Del Mar Futurity, G1 Norfolk S. and G2 Best Pal S., was always going to have to run a huge race to overcome his 13 post. And run a huge race he did. Forced very wide, the Mike Pegram and partners colorbearer settled toward the back of the pack, then unleashed a furious rally in the stretch only to fall a head short and finish second. Despite the narrow defeat, the colt likely ensured himself an Eclipse as the nation’s top juvenile colt when he accounted for Noble’s Promise, et al, in the G1 CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park in December.
While Lookin at Lucky has made the case for himself as the best two-year-old colt in the nation, the veteran Fabulous Strike continued to be one of the country’s top sprinters. The six-year-old Grade 1 winner annexed the G2 True North H. in June (111 Beyer), the G2 Alfred G. Vanderbilt in August (112) and was a hard-trying second in the G1 Vosburgh H., contested over a rain-soaked Belmont track in early October.
Other 2009 stars for SMART STRIKE included:
• Smart Bid, who on the Breeders’ Cup Saturday undercard registered his first stakes win in the Damascus S. at Santa Anita;
• Daughter Mining My Own, who produced G1 Kentucky Derby hero and G1 Preakness S. runner-up winner Mine That Bird;
• The five-year-old mare Smart Surprise, a Lane's End-bred and -sold mare who has missed the board only once in 22 starts, with her wins including the 2009 G3 Hendrie S. at Woodbine and four other stakes events;
• The two-year-old colt Zanzibari, who carried Sheikh Mohammed's Darley silks to victory in the G3 Prix de Cabourg at Deauville;
• Atomic Rain, who won the Long Branch S. at Monmouth in June and also placed in the G1 Wood Memorial S.
• Papa Clem, who won the G2 Arkansas Derby and who was a very good third in the G1 Malibu S. Like Lookin at Lucky, he was produced by a BELONG TO ME mare;
• Denomination, a three-year-old filly who won Longchamp's G3 Prix Vanteaux-Beachcomber Hotels Le Royal Palm;
• Twilight Meteor, winner of the G3 Canadian Turf S. at Gulfstream.
Notably, SMART STRIKE was ranked third by highest Average Earnings Index (2.67 AEI vs. 2.06 CI) among sires with horses four years old and up.
On the sales scene, SMART STRIKE saw 27 of his 2009 yearlings sell for an average of $211,619 (off a $75,000 stud fee). They included a Lane's End co-bred and sold daughter at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale who elicited a bid of $875,000 from John Ferguson. The chestnut miss was produced by a half to another Lane's End-bred and -sold horse, Dunkirk, and is a granddaughter of Lane's End's G1 Kentucky Oaks heroine Secret Status (A.P. INDY).
His accomplishments--and a 2010 fee of $75,000--prompted Bill Oppenheim to call him one of the best values among North America’s premier sires:
“Lane’s End...dropped two-time leading sire SMART STRIKE by 40 percent, from $125,000 to $75,000. Considering he’s proven at all ages, over all surfaces, and in Europe as well, this is a really righteous price. Both SMART STRIKE (he’ll be 18 next year) and A.P. INDY will be standing in 2010 for half of what they stood for in 2008.”
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--ANOTHER YEAR, ANOTHER CLASSIC PROSPECT FOR STEPHEN GOT EVEN
Jan. 1, 2010: With runners like champion Stevie Wonderboy and MGSW Don’t Get Mad to his credit, STEPHEN GOT EVEN has always shown the ability to get precocious horses with Classic potential. And in 2009, the son of A.P. INDY turned out yet another major player on the Triple Crown trail, this time in the form of I Want Revenge.
Considered by some to be the most innately talented colt of his crop, I Want Revenge came into 2009 with big expectations, due to his game nose runner-up finish in the G1 CashCall Futurity in December of 2008. A good third in the G2 Robert B. Lewis S. in sophomore debut at Santa Anita, I Want Revenge really blossomed once moved to the conventional dirt tracks of New York. He coasted home by 8 1/2 lengths in the G3 Gotham S., then overcame a terrible start in the G1 Wood Memorial S. to take that nine-furlong even by daylight. The morning-line favorite heading into the G1 Kentucky Derby, I Want Revenge was unfortunately scratched the morning of the race because of an ankle injury.
In 2009, STEPHEN GOT EVEN was also represented by Mr. Tommy, winner of the G1 Clasico Francisco Aias Paredes y Alberto Arias Espinosa.
If his two-year-olds are anything to go by, 2010 could be a good one for STEPHEN GOT EVEN. Last Labor Day, his daughter Sound of Thunder made as auspicious a debut as a juvenile can make when she rallied to take the $125,000 Muskoka S. at Woodbine in her career opener. Bred by Terra Farms in Ontario and purchased by our own Woodford Racing for $105,000 as a yearling, Sound of Thunder was dismissed as a 41-1 shot in the seven-furlong race, and had a bad draw leaving from the 13 hole. In last through the opening three furlongs, the Mark Casse-trained filly began to mow down rivals with a powerful move rounding the turn and, once straightened for home, closed resolutely to get up in plenty of time and win by a long neck.
On Halloween, the gelding Peppi Knows battled the length of the stretch and asserted to win the Finger Lakes Juvenile S. by a head. Peppi Knows, who previously had been a close third to subsequent Grade 1 winner Noble’s Promise in the Fitz Dixon Jr. Memorial Juvenile S. at Presque Isle, then went on to finish second behind SAINT LIAM’s Buddy’s Saint in the G2 Remsen S. at Aqueduct!
In total, STEPHEN GOT EVEN has 21 career stakes winners to his credit and can boast 10% lifetime stakes horses to starters.
Return to 2009 Year-End
2009 WRAP-UP--WAR PASS: GET READY FOR “WAR”
Jan. 1, 2010: In November of 2008, we were pleased to announce that Robert LaPenta’s talented three-year-old WAR PASS, undefeated winner of the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and 2007 Champion Two-Year-Old Male, would stand stud at Lane’s End upon his retirement. Our excitement about the chances of this immensely talented son of Cherokee Run has only grown, based in part on the fine mares WAR PASS attracted in his first season at stud.
They included Java (GB), a sister to champion Fiji (GB) and dam of MINESHAFT’s good stakes performer Coffee Bar. The 10-year-old mare was sold by Lane’s End for $350,000 at Keeneland November, with Ryan Norton signing the ticket. Lane’s End also sold the Lemon Drop Kid mare Lemon Souffle, in foal to WAR PASS, to agent Dr. Oscar Benevides for $150,000.
WAR PASS’s appeal as a sire prospect is well-deserved. He is arguably the best son of GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner and champion Cherokee Run, who in turn was the best son of the versatile and very good sire Runaway Groom. Cherokee Run has thus far been represented by runners like champion Chilukki (G1), Yonaguska ( G1), Zanjero (G2), Kafwain (G2), Sir Cherokee (G2), etc. And his sire sons have gotten off to a fine start at stud. Yonaguska was a top 30 sire last year with horses like Musket Man to his credit, while
Kafwain was represented by The Pamplemousse and Don't Forget Gil.
WAR PASS has a serious female family, too. His first three dams are by some of the very best sires of the past half-century. His third dam Bayou Blue, who was produced by the Champion Three-Year-Old Filly Bayou, is by the incomparable Bold Ruler, the eight-time leading North American stallion who sired a remarkable 22 percent stakes winners. Hoist the Flag, sire of WAR PASS’s second dam Harbor Flag, sired 20 percent stakes winners. WAR PASS’s first dam, meanwhile, is by Mr. Prospector--15 percent stakes winners--who helped change the face of American breeding with an infusion of class and speed few other sires can compare to.
That pedigree has shone through on the track for both WAR PASS and his relations. Graded winners like Great Intentions and Country Light can be found under his second dam, while his own dam Vue was a classy stakes runner who has now produced a pair of Grade 1 winners. Vue showed early on what kind of broodmare she was when her daughter Oath, by Known Fact, won the G1 Spinaway S. at two. Oath later sold as a broodmare for $2.7 million and is the dam of the progressive Honest Man, winner of the 2008 G3 Philip H. Iselin S. Another daughter of Vue, Vision of Beauty, by Danzig, was a Grade 2 performer.
Then came WAR PASS. In July of 2007, he burst onto the scene with a rousing 2 1/2-length score sprinting six furlongs at Saratoga. Knowing that Zito rarely gets them cranked up at first asking, horsemen knew well that WAR PASS was a horse to watch. The striking dark bay handled his next with ease, taking an allowance sprint at Saratoga by 5 1/2 lengths a month later, and it was time for a test in deeper waters. Stretched to a mile for his stakes debut, the G1 Champagne S. at Belmont Park, WAR PASS beat some of the best juveniles on the East Coast, cruising home to a clear-cut 1 1/2-length tally over the likes of Grade 1 winner Majestic Warrior and the highly regarded Pyro.
The victory earned WAR PASS favoritism in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and, with the Monmouth Park track a sloppy stew of mud and water, WAR PASS turned nary a hair. Put on the lead from the start, he ran grueling fractions of :22 3/5, :45 2/5 and 1:09 3/5, but just kept on running under jockey Cornelio Velasquez, splashing home a 4 3/4-length winner with hardly any mud on LaPenta’s silks. Runner-up was Pyro, who subsequently flattered WAR PASS’s win with a trio of graded wins at three, with eventual Canadian Champion Two-Year-Old Colt and MG1SW Kodiak Kowboy back in third.
WAR PASS was rewarded with a 113 Beyer, the highest ever given to a winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. It was the second-highest winning Beyer of the day, behind Curlin’s 119, and ahead of Sprint winner Midnight Lute (108), Distaff winner Ginger Punch (104), Juvenile Fillies winner Indian Blessing (95), etc.
That meant tallying the votes for Champion Juvenile Male was, for all intents and purposes, a mere formality, and at the Eclipse Awards, WAR PASS became the first champion for the deserving LaPenta. WAR PASS received all but three of the 265 votes cast.
At three, WAR PASS opened his sophomore campaign with a facile victory against Gulfstream allowance horses on Feb. 24. In his final start, WAR PASS finished a close second in the G1 Wood Memorial S. He enters stud with five wins and a second in seven starts and earnings of over $1.5 million.
Five wins by a total margin of 22 lengths. Two wins sprinting, three wins routing, including two at a flat mile. A pair of Grade 1 victories. A record Beyer in the toughest race of the year for two-year-olds. A championship. By a tough-as-nails sire, a half to a Grade 1 winner, produced by a daughter of the great Mr. Prospector and a championship.
Maybe now you can see why we might be a little excited . . . about WAR PASS
Return to 2009 Year End
2009 SALES WRAP UP
Jan. 1, 2010: Lane’s End has been a leading consignor for over two decades, and Grade 1 winners like Court Vision, Diamondrella (GB), Quality Road, and Mr. Sidney helped carry our banner proudly in 2009. Each of those passed through a Lane’s End consignment as a yearling, and they underscore why buyers have confidence in Lane’s End when it comes to finding quality. Those buyers, in turn, help Lane’s End’s clients realize top dollar on their horses. The was in evidence at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale, when a colt by Storm Cat--Onaga who was consigned by Lane’s End realized $2.8 million, the highest price for a yearling in the U.S. in 2009. John Ferguson was the winning bidder.
According to the Blood-Horse, Lane’s End sold a total of 194 yearlings for $23,914,000 in 2009, ranking us third by all consignors by gross. Importantly, the average price for a Lane’s End-sold yearling was $123,268, which put us above gross leader Taylor Made ($95,546 avg.) and runner-up Eaton Sales ($98,396 avg.) by that measure.
In fact, Lane’s End was the only yearling consignor in the nation to have sold more than 100 yearlings and have those yearlings average more than $105,000. Lane’s End was also third-ranked in the nation by weanling gross and by broodmare gross.
Some highlights of our 2009 consignments include:
Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Selected Yearling Sale
• $1 million Bernardini--Crystal Music colt, to Ken McPeek;
• $875,000 SMART STRIKE--Code Book filly, to John Ferguson.
Keeneland September Sale
• $775,000 Dynaformer--Awe That colt, to Brushwood Stable;
• $750,000 Storm Cat--Moon Safari colt, to Westrock Stables;
• $700,000 Dynaformer--Cozzy Corner, to Shadwell Estate Co.
Keeneland November Sale
• $900,000 Loves Me Only (Storm Cat--Monevassia), to Katsumi Yoshida.
Lane’s End would like to sincerely thank all of the breeders, owners and buyers who helped make 2009 another successful year. Best of luck to all in 2010
Return to 2009 Year End
ALAN PORTER'S MATING ANALYSIS
Another free addition to the Lane’s End website is a mating analysis on each
Lane’s End and Lane’s End Texas stallion written by pedigree expert Alan Porter. To access this free information go to our stallion roster, click on any stallion’s
name and follow link on the right.
MATINGS TOOL: G1 GOLDMINE STALLION MATCH
A recent addition to the many matings tools offered by Lane’s End is the G1 Goldmine Stallion Match. To access this new feature, choose the G1 icon
from any stallion page. Then enter your mare’s name and click on the “Match Similar” button. The stallion match feature will display a list of Graded Winners with a
similar mating pattern. To read more about G1 Goldmine Stallion Match, click here.
If you have any questions about this mating program please contact Gemma Freeman.
Return to Stallion News 2010
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