Better than Honour at November Fasig-Tipton

So, the farm that owned Better than Honour decided to focus their work on race-horse development, so they made an agreement to disperse their broodmares. Well, among their herd, they had Better than Honour, Kentucky Broodmare of the Year who is the mother of Casino Drive and the mother of back-to-back Belmont Stakes winners Jazil and Rags to Riches. Mind you, Rags was the first filly to win the Belmont in 105 years! Anyway, she went in the Fasig-Tipton November Sale and she sold to the fellow who wanted to keep her from this dispersal for $14million. Everyone interviewed said that she is worth every penny. She is leaving a genetic heritage which will run like a river through the thoroughbred pedigree -- a blue, blue, royal blue hen. Namaste!

Breaking News! Renny's Weight and Other Equines!

All right, so soon, September 3rd, Renny will have to have his first dewormer. So, Monica at Westview Veterinary called me recently to talk about setting up an appointment for Fall shots. She conferred with Dr. Z about baby's weight and he told me the secret formula to figure out his weight for medicine dosages. Get a tailor's measuring tape, measure his heart girth, substract 25, and divide by .07. So, this morning, I go out to the stable to weigh my little guy. I have a tailor's tape AND a regular horse weight tape because I want to take two measurements with two devices. I was impressed. I got within 5 lbs using both measures.

Baby Renny weighs somewhere between 287 and 292 pounds. My baby is a big boy! And a naughty one. This morning, he gave Derek a hassle about being turned out, he sneezed snot all over himself, he danced around like a ballerina while I was trying to measure him, and he generally just showed impatience about everything EXCEPT the carrot treats that I brought him. Grandma is cool when she has treats, but she's become a drag when she expects baby to behave! Can you believe that my little man who was just a scrap of flesh and bone a few scant weeks ago in May is now a 292 porker! Way to go!

In other news, Better than Honour is going to go on the block at the Fall Fasig-Tipton sale! Hill 'n Dale is dispersing their stock and reorganizing their business and because they are in a double partnership, they felt that selling their stock was the only fair way to handle a division of assets. Unbelievable. She is expected to earn between 12 and 15 million, as she is the producer of back-to-back Belmont winners, the first filly to win the Belmont in 105 years, and a current G1 stakes winner, Casino Drive. She's not surprisingly a Kentucky Broodmare of the Year. Sure wish I had spare change. I would put on my best southern belle hat, my kid gloves, and go to that sale to buy that perfect girl!

Also, in other news, the trainer for Big Brown dissed Curlin the other day, saying his horse BB was much better because he could win the Derby, win the Haskell, win on turf, and had never been beaten by a filly. So, today the owners of Curlin put up good money for a charitable cause (for child care for Belmont Park workers) to get Big Brown to enter the Woodward Stakes on August 30th for a showdown between the big boys. I think this would be good because it would answer once and for all which of the two would make a good sire for Violet's first baby! ;)

Octave, Panty Raid, and Rags to Riches

In these photos by Cindy Pierson Dulay, Barbara Livingston, and Equisport Photos, you see the lovely competitors for this year's Eclipse Champion Three-year-old Filly Award -- Panty Raid,Octave and Rags to Riches.

Octave was foaled April 13, 2004 and purchased for $350K at the Keeneland Sales in September 2005. Her parents are Unbridleds Song and Belle Nuit by Dr. Carter. Her record was 13: 4-7-2 and she earned $1,660,934, so she definitely paid back her purchase price! She won 2 Grade 1 races, the Mother Goose and Coaching Club American Oaks, and was runner-up in the Fairgrounds Oaks and Kentucky Oaks. She was purchased by Darley Stud to be a broodmare, and she retired in November 2007. She'll be bred to the freshman sire, Discreet Cat.

Panty Raid was foaled March 8, 2004, Violet's birthday, but a year later! Her parents are Include and Adventurous Di by Private Account. She was purchased in April 2006 for $275K at the Keeneland Sales. Her race record is 9: 5-1-1 and she has earned so far $1,052,380, again, earning her keep! She won the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes.

Rags to Riches was foaled February 27, 2004 and her parents were A.P. Indy and Better than Honour by Deputy Minister. She was purchased at the September 2005 Keeneland Sales for $1.9 million! So far, she has earned $1,342,528, so she hasn't quite paid herself off yet. However, she did give her human parents a big dose of pride in winning the Belmont Stakes and earning the NTRA "Moment of the Year" by kicking the butt of Curlin, this year's Eclipse Horse of the Year winner! She won her Champion three-year-old filly Eclipse Award and was a runner for Horse of the Year, losing to the boy she beat -- another story of a great gal falling to the politics of the old boys network! Aargh. Anyway, she not only has won the Belmont Stakes, but she has also won the Kentucky Oaks (practically yawning, it was so easy) and the Santa Anita Oaks and Las Virgenes Stakes.

Such lovely girls!

Kentucky 2007: Claiborne's Seeking the Gold!

Here are some photos of Seeking the Gold, the grand old stallion of Claiborne Farms. His 2007 stud fee was $125,000! He earned $2,307,000 on the track and in 15 starts had 8 wins and 6 places! His dad and mom were Mr. Prospector and Con Game by Buckpasser. One of his children is Jazil whose mom is Better than Honour, the same mom as Rags to Riches who also won the Belmont!

Anyway, Seeking the Gold has had 17 foal crops and 899 foals. Fifteen of his crops are of racing age, and 839 of his children are of racing age. He currently has 63 2 year-olds, 49 yearlings, and 11 weanlings. His yearlings and weanlings sell in the hundreds of thousands of dollars! The tour guide told us a story that because Seeking the Gold has been around the block, he tends to take a long time in the breeding shed. He will often take up to 45 minutes to get "in the mood" as compared to a few fierce seconds. He can cause quite a little traffic jam of mares waiting to be bred. When Barbie and I went home, Tom verified this story, telling about how he had to wait one day outside in the cold with a mare while Seeking the Gold took his sweet old time! Hey, you can't rush making priceless gems!! You take your time, stud!

My girls are related to him in numerous ways, including Case Ace, Nasrullah, Count Fleet, War Admiral, Traffic Court, Sir Gallahad, Blue Larkspur, and Teddy. You can read more about this beautiful elder statesman at the following links, including seeing footage of him in some of his races!
http://www.claibornefarm.com/stallions/seeking-the-gold.shtml
or
http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/stallion-directory/stallion.aspx?stallion_no=1043178
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seeking_The_Gold
or
http://www.equineline.com/extendedcontent/tt_content.cfm?StallionRef=1043178&rtype=stats
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=4RSGq-JfMgc
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=BlGlhukSBTk
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=wj47oeisobQ
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=35pA7AI2Rhk
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=e8Ki-sx3kTo

Better than Honour and my girls!

Better than Honour is related to Violet and Hailee, and, of course, is the mom of the 2006 Belmont Stakes winner, Jazil, and the 2007 Belmont Stakes winner, Rags to Riches!. Right now, she is an 11 year-old mare who has foaled five children out of Mineshaft, Seeking the Gold, A.P. Indy, and Storm Cat. Jazil's sire is Seeking the Gold, and Rags' sire is A.P. Indy. Better than Honour was purchased as a yearly at a July 1997 sale. Her trainer, John Kimmel said, "She was a gorgeaus filly by Deputy Minister out of a Kentucky Oaks winner (Blush with Pride). She was the most expensive yearling filly to sell. At that time, they had the summer and fall sale. The fall usually was a little less quality than the select Keeneland horses. She was the best of what was there. She was a beautiful horse physically with tremendous pedigree. She turned out to be a good racehorse." She had an 8-race career and won the Demoiselles Stakes! Her grandpa on her dam's side is Violet's great-grandpa, Blushing Groom!

Hill 'n Dale

This story is amazing. In April 2006, Tom invited Carla and myself to go on a "shed run" while we were visiting during Kentucky Rolex. We got up very early in the morning and Tom picked us up at our hotel in Paris, Kentucky with his trailer filled with a thoroughbred mare ready to visit Stormy Atlantic at Hill 'n Dale. When we arrived at this lovely green, quiet, early morning place, we were invited to sit in an elegant viewers' booth to watch the process, the very important date! Hill 'n Dale is a full facility farm in the heart of horse country Kentucky. And the year we visited, they reported was there best ever. They earned 4th overall at the September Yearling sales, and then 3rd overall at the November Breeding Stock sales at Keeneland. A highlight in 2006 was the selling of a $4.6 million yearling colt by Vindication which is a record for a freshman sire. Some fantastic stallions stand stud there, including Grand Reward who is out of Stormy Atlantic and Serena's Song (the 1995 Eclipse Award winner for 3 year-old filly of the year and earner of over $3.2 million track dollars). Besides the fabulous stallions they manage, they have some fantastic broodmare residents, including Better than Honour (Rags to Riches and Jazil's mom), Dance Smartly, and Quendom (mom to Invasor, 2006 Eclipse Award Horse of the Year), among a few. Hill 'n Dale is also the final resting place of Seattle Slew, 1977 Triple Crown winner, and A.P. Indy's sire! In the photo, you see Jazil winning the 2006 Belmont Stakes, and making his mom, Better than Honour, proud, and leading the way for his little sister, Rags! You can read more about this truly lovely, amazing, spectactular facility at their home link:

http://www.hillndalefarms.com/

Violet, Hailee, Rags to Riches, 3 peas in a pod!

Here's a picture of Rags to Riches right after her historical win with her beautiful blanket of white carnations. Doesn't she look happy! Anyway, Rags, Violet, and Hailee share relatives. Rags to Riches' dad is A.P. Indy (who won the Belmont) and her mom is Better than Honour (who produced last year's Belmont Stakes winner, Jazil). So, apparently, Better than Honour deserves a special mother's day card, since she keeps producing Belmont-winning babies! You go, girl!! Rags to Riches also has the very special Secretariat and Seattle Slew in her tree. And what I think is very cool is that she has Busher, War Admiral's rockin' sockin' daughter. Now, here are some of the relatives my girls share with Rags: Blushing Groom, Bimelech, Nasrullah, Traffic Court, War Admiral, Baby League, Bubbling Over, and Equipoise, among many others. In fact, Violet can be proud that they share the same great-grandpa (Rags has Blushing Groom on the bottom, Violet has him on top). And Hailee can be super proud that they share Bubbling Over and Baby League! I am so proud to own a filly thoroughbred, and in the first year that Violet is part of my family, her close filly relative wins the Belmont in historical style. It's good to be part of the equine power girls!!!