Breaking News! 2007 Eclipse Awards Announced!

On January 4th, the nominations for this year's Eclipse Awards were announced by the presenting organizations. The Eclipse Awards are named after the 18th century racehorse and foundation sire who was undefeated in 18 starts and left a breeding legacy of 344 race winners, including 3 Epsom Derby winners. This year, the Eclipse Awards, which honor the horses, owners, breeders, trainers, and jockeys of the thoroughbred racing industry and also gives special awards honoring great contributions will be held on Monday, January 21st at the Beverly Hills Wilshire Four Seasons in Beverly Hills, California.

Here are a taste of a few of the nominees for special categories:
1) 2 year-old male: Kodiak Kowboy, Pyro, War Pass
2) 2 year-old filly: Country Star, Indian Blessing, Proud Spellb
3) 3 year-old male: Curlin, Hard Spun, Street Sense
4) 3 year-old filly: Octave, Panty Raid, Rags to Riches

They do not release the nominations for Horse of the Year until the event itself!

This year, the Kentucky Horse Park is receiving a special Eclipse Award for their outstanding contributions to the racing industry. John Nicholson, executive director of the KHP, said, "We are exhilarated to be honored with the special Eclipse Award. This is the culmination of enormous efforts by many people over the past three decades who played a central role in the celebration of that special bond between man and the horse."

The Kentucky Horse Park opened in 1978 and served as the home of John Henry, that many award-winning, 2X Horse of the Year winning racehorse who lived their for 23 years before just passing away in late 2007 at the grand old age of 32. The leading officer for the Eclipse Awards cited the relationship between JH and the KHP when he announced why they deserved this special prestigious recognition: "John Henry's indomitable will and spirit symbolized the love and dedication that the Kentucky Horse Park has given to the thoroughbored industry over the years. On behalf of the presenting organizations of the Eclipse Awards, we are proud to bestow this most deserving honor to the men and women of the Kentucky Horse Park."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eclipse_Award_for_Horse_of_the_Year
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eclipse_Award

Stockwell and My Girls!

My girls are related to the 1849 born Stockwell who was considered "the very incarnation of ugliness" and "a bit savage," but also considered to be a very fine racer and the "emperor of stallions." He was 7 times the leading sire in England and the leading sire of the 1860s. His progeny through Phalaris were responsible for 70% of the stakes winners in the 1990s. Violet shares these Phalaris connections through Nasrullah, and Turn-To. Northern Dancer and Raise a Native are also part of this illustrious history, though only indirect relations to my girls. Hailee shares in Stockwell's glory through his English Triple Crown-winning progeny Lord Lyon, as well as his other progeny Man o' War and Doncaster! Stockwell is responsible for carrying the Eclipse line through to the modern day thoroughbred. When I look at my girls, I can see his nobility shining through. What beautiful girls I have! You can read more about their champion relative at the following links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockwell_(horse)

or

http://www.tbheritage.com/Portraits/Stockwell.html

or

http://www.bloodlines.net/TB/Bios/Stockwell.htm

Miss Woodford and My Girls

Miss Woodford was born in 1880 and her final race record was 48: 37-7-2. She was the first U.S. horse to earn over $100,000 during her career. She was owned by Mike and Phil Dwyer of Dwyer Brother Stables, and she was meant to replace their retired champion and relative of Violet and Hailee, Hindoo. They loved racing and not breeding, so she ran for a long time! She was born near Paris, Kentucky and was a daughter of Billet who was imported from England and a leading sire in America in 1883. Her dam, Fancy Jane, never raced. She ran for over 5 seasons, against the finest colts of her day, even at long distances of 2 1/2 miles. She was the American Champion Older Female in 1884-1886 from ages 4-6, and, in fact, she earned 7 Eclipse Awards, one division title for each year she ran, and two Horse of the Year Honors!!! She was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1967. When she was 3, 4, and 5, she won 16 consecutive races and was a national hero. She even won the Pimlico Stakes during that streak as a 3 year-old. She even beat the colt, George Kinney, who had won the Belmont Stakes. She was trained by James G. Rowe, a Hall of Famer. Five Hall of Fame trainers thought that she was one of the best fillies of all time. And in an American Trainers Association poll in 1955, she was voted 5th greatest filly in American racing history, with Gallorette voted first. She was so hip that she has her own race named after her, Miss Woodford Stakes, which is run each August at Monmouth Park Racetrack -- it's a race for 3-year-old fillies and mares. Of course, my girls are related to her through several shared relations, including the following: Glencoe, Touchstone, Hambletonian, Waxy, Eclipse, and Pot8os. You can read more about this truly stellar filly at the following links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Woodford_(horse)
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Woodford_Stakes
or
http://www.tbheritage.com/Portraits/Billet.html
or
http://www.tbheritage.com/TurfHallmarks/Champs/AmChampOlderFemale.html
or
http://www.racingmuseum.org/hall/trainer.asp?ID=285

Audience the big heart mare and my girls!

My girls have lots of Big Heart blood in their veins. In 1789, an autopsy of Eclipse showed that he had a 14 lb. heart as compared to the average of 6 lb hearts of the time. He had a big heart. Secretariat was found to have a heart over 22 lbs, much higher than the 9 lb. average. In fact, of Secretariat's heart, his autopsy physician, Dr. Thomas Swerczek, said, "We just stood there in stunned silence. We couldn't believe it. The heart was perfect. There were no problems with it. It was just this huge engine." They now believe that big hearts are tied to the female X chromosome. So, you can be a "single copy" or "double copy" mare and if you are a big heart stud, you can pass your X to your children too. If a "double copy" mare is bred to a large-hearted stallion, she will always produce large-heart foals and double copy fillies. Violet is directly related to four of the most famous Big Heart stallions, Princequillo, War Admiral, Blue Larkspur, and Mahmoud. Hailee also has big heart studs, including Moon Deck, Three Bars, Easy Jet, Top Deck, and Leo. Man 'O War was a big-heart stud. The thing with big-heart stallions is that they can only pass their big heart to their daughters. So, often since it takes a crop or two for their big heart gene to express or show itself, thoroughbred stallions will be "sold down river" to the Quarter Horse industry which is why the American Quarter Horse is filled with Big Hearts from their thoroughbred relatives. Man 'O War blessed both breeds with his big-hearted heritage. Among the relatives suspected of having big hearts, my girls have Rock Sand, Count Fleet, Eclipse, Pocahontas, Glencoe, Lexington, Domino, and La Troienne. And they have Audience, daughter of Sir Dixon (the Belmont Stakes Winner) and grand-daughter of Hindoo, the Kentucky Derby winner. She foaled Whisk Broom and in her own racing day, she won the all-important Kentucky Oaks! She is considered a big-hearted gal!! Among the ways she's related to my girls are through Po' Chile for Violet and Sir Bim for Hailee. The photo has a picture of her baby, Whisk Broom. You can read more about the X-Factor at the following links:

http://www.robertsfox.com/x_factor.htm

or

http://www.circledhorses.com/The%20X-Factor.htm

My Girls are Imps!!!

Imp was born in 1894 and lived for 15 years, passing in 1909. She raced a grueling 171 races, placing in the money 126 times. Her record was 171: 62-35-29. She beat the best boys of her day. She was owned and bred by Daniel R. Harness of Chillicothe, Ohio!! She was both a sprinter and a stayer, earning $70,069 in her career. She was voted U.S. Horse of the Year in 1899 and U.S. Champion Handicap Mare. She was inducted into the National Racing Hall of Fame in 1965. She was so famous that when she returned to Chillicothe for a visit, the town declared it a public holiday and had a parade and band. They played the popular song of the time, "My Coal Black Lady" after their famous equine citizen. She was buried in Lexington, but Walmart trampled over her grave, along with the graves of other famous horses. My girls are related to her indirectly through their own connections to Eclipse. You can read more about this famous girl at the following links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imp_(horse)

or

http://www.racingmuseum.org/hall/horse.asp?ID=91

or

http://www.tbheritage.com/TurfHallmarks/Champs/AmHorseoftheYear.html

or

http://www.pedigreequery.com/imp

Hailee's Lena's Bar!

Lena's Bar is Hailee's great-great-grandma on her daddy's side. She was bred to Jet Deck to produce Easy Jet. She was inducted into the AQHA Hall of Fame in 2003, and her Quarter Horse race track record was 76-24-18-10. Her sire was Three Bars and dam was Lena Valenti. She had six children, 4 boys, 2 girls. Easy Jet had a full brother named Jet Smooth whose children won $2,546,842 on the track. Lena's Bar has a royal pedigree herself, including Commando, Sweep, Eclipse, Pocahontas and Derby winner Ben Brush. Through Lena's Bar, Hailee is related to two English Triple Crown winners, Diamond Jubilee and West Australian. Look at the photo -- she looks just like my sweet, independent, fierce little mare! You can read more about Lena's Bar at the following link:

http://www.qhd.com/horse/stallion.asp?id=23302&sex=mare

My Girls are Ruthless!!!

Ruthless was a filly out of Eclipse and Barbarity. She was the first of 5 fillies from that combination. Her sisters included Relentless, Remorseless, Regardless, and Merciless. They were collectively called The Barbarous Battalion!. Ruthless was the first horse to win the Belmont Stakes in 1867, and one of only 2 fillies who have ever won the Belmont in over 100 years of the race's history. She was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 1975, and has a race named after her at Aqueduct called "The Ruthless." Hailee and Violet are related to this macho girl through the following horses (and others): Orlando, Whalebone, Touchstone, Bay Middleton, Selim, Camel, and, of course, Eclipse! You can read more about this Belmont Girl at the following links:

http://www.racingmuseum.org/hall/horse.asp?ID=129

http://saratogaracing.com/Aqueduct/stakes/Ruthless.html