It’s difficult for a horse fanatic to keep their eyes on the road when traveling east on California Highway 246 between Buellton and Solvang. There’s too much to see and admire in that stretch of road well north of Santa Barbara. The journey between the two small towns is barely a few miles, but once past the famous Hitching Post restaurant and Ostrichland USA, the path narrows to a two-lane tree-lined road between horse farms. Much of this is the old River Edge Farm, operated for more than 40 years by Marty and Pam Wygod, which has been divided into different farms. One segment of the property on the north side of the highway is the emerging farm of Mike and Angie Scully’s Eclipse Thoroughbred Training center. The farm has a half-mile training track near the highway, close enough for drivers to see young horses jogging and galloping on mornings. Deeper into the property, significant changes are under way for Eclipse to stand the stallions Grazen and Unusual Heatwave in 2024. There are plans to add more stallions. The Eclipse farm is not just about stallions, racehorses, mares, and younger stock. Vineyards cover about half of the property, including the infield of the training track. There are plans to host wine tasting on the farm as early as 2025, once permitting is completed, and conduct public tours of the horse side of the property. “People can come by and see the horses,” Angie Scully said. “It will be a nice attraction when people come up here” from Southern California. If all goes to plan, the farm will be in a high state of activity by late winter, a much needed addition to the California Thoroughbred community, which has lost stallion farms at an alarming rate in recent decades. On an early November morning, the focus was on the early training of late-season yearlings. Some youngsters had lessons in a round pen. Others came and went from the training track. In back pastures, there was ample room for horses resting while on vacations from the racetrack, and a few well-known retirees in stakes winners Bob and Jackie and Misremembered crowding the fence line in search of attention. Eclipse has partnered with the Old Friends retirement home in Kentucky to provide housing for a few California veterans. Projects in advance of the breeding season, including refurbishing foaling barns and making the necessary arrangements for the stallions, were well under way. “We’ve been busy here,” Angie Scully said. The Scullys purchased the property from the Wygods, who have greatly reduced their involvement in racing compared to the heights of the 1980s to 2000s when they were among the state’s leading breeders and had leading runners racing throughout the nation. Under their direction, River Edge was one of the state’s leading stallion farms. Grazen, who will stand for $6,000, gives the Scullys a stallion with a high-profile position in the state. Through Dec. 15, Grazen led the state’s stallions in progeny earnings with more than $4.6 million. Grazen, owned by Nick Alexander, is by Benchmark, who stood on the same property for the Wygods. Unusual Heatwave, a three-time stakes winner in 2012 and 2014, will stand for $2,500. He was bred to a small number of mares in recent years. Unusual Heatwave is by the late Unusual Heat, who led California’s stallions in progeny earnings for six consecutive years from 2008-13. “His babies are nice,” Angie Scully said. “I don’t think he’s been promoted like he could be. We’re hoping just having him here with Grazen will help a lot.” Mike Scully is optimistic that more stallions will be added to the farm’s roster, perhaps as soon as the forthcoming breeding season. “I think starting out with three would be a good number,” he said. “No more than five would be good for the property.” Mike Scully is a third-generation horsemen who has a background with Arabian show horses in Scottsdale, Ariz. Angie Scully has a degree in physical therapy. The couple, who have been married for 10 years, were previously based at other farms in recent years farther north in Central California. Prior to the acquisition of their current property a few years ago, they were briefly based at Flag Is Up Farm on the same stretch of Highway 246. The farm is about a two-hour drive from Santa Anita, without messy traffic, convenient enough for several prominent trainers to use the facility for lay-ups. Kingfisher Farm, across Highway 246 from Eclipse, is another popular venue with Southern California stables for lay-ups. The farms are in the Santa Ynez Valley, a popular weekend destination for Southern California tourists. Mike Scully estimates Eclipse trains “145 to 150” yearlings annually, for Santa Anita-based trainers as well as owners and breeders in the Santa Ynez Valley, including Nick Alexander, who owns Grazen. Between the launch of the stallion operation and the wine tasting venture next year, the farm could become a destination for not only Thoroughbred breeders but someone who adores a glass of red. Perhaps one of them will inquire about owning a racehorse. “If we get a couple of people excited,” Mike Scully said, “it’s much the better for the industry.”