Horse Chestnut, South Africa’s 1999 Horse of the Year and a U.S. Grade 3 winner and sire, died Feb. 20 from heart failure at Drakenstein Stud Farm in South Africa. The 19-year-old, from the first crop of Fort Wood, had resided at Drakenstein since 2009 after beginning his stud career at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Ky.
Although the basic principles of horse care remain unchanged in winter, extra attention must be paid to a few details to ensure good health.
Henny Hughes’s top runner has not yet seen action in 2015, but it’s already been a productive year for the stallion.
Horse of the Year Havre de Grace delivered her second foal, a colt by popular young commercial sire War Front, early Feb. 14 at Timber Town Farm near Lexington, Ky.
Daily Racing Form's special Midwest Stallions edition for 2014, featuring coverage of the market and profiles and statistics on leading Kentucky and regional sires. This page includes a free digital download of the complete edition.
When looking back on the year Tapit and his progeny had in 2014, the only problem is finding a place to start.
For all he has achieved at stud, there were a few accomplishments Giant’s Causeway had yet to check off his list. He was able to cross one off in 2014. Take Charge Brandi became the first Eclipse Award winner for her sire with a late-season surge to secure the divisional title as champion 2-year-old filly. Her efforts helped propel Giant’s Causeway, an 18-year-old Storm Cat horse based at Coolmore’s Ashford Stud in Versailles, Ky., atop the 2014 Kentucky juvenile earnings leader board
Success can be a moving target. On the sire list, Kitten’s Joy fell from first to third by total progeny earnings in 2014, a year removed from the season that made him a household name. By just about any other measure, it was the best season Kitten’s Joy has had as a sire.
It was a competitive season for freshman sires, with a deep group battling it out in the division. In the end, Quality Road, himself a multiple Grade 1 winner, prevailed atop the earnings list, thanks to runners who excelled over a variety of surfaces and distances.
Since the modern Thoroughbred was crafted into existence some 300 years ago, numerous prominent sires have contributed their DNA as genetic building blocks. Ultimately, though, only a handful could be termed true game changers: Eclipse, Lexington, Hyperion, Nearco, Bold Ruler, Northern Dancer, Mr. Prospector – individuals of such profound influence, they altered the landscape of the sport itself. These days, few would argue against the late Storm Cat’s inclusion on that elite list of breed-shaping sires.
