Mon, 05/19/2003 - 00:00

Booklet retired after injury

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Grade 1 winner Booklet has been retired from racing because of an ankle injury sustained in a workout at Keeneland earlier this month, his trainer, John Ward, said Monday. Booklet, a 4-year-old Notebook colt, is at Ward's barn at Keeneland while his owner, John Oxley, explores stud options for him.

Mon, 05/19/2003 - 00:00

Fasig-Tipton off to solid start

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Led by a $260,000 Unbridled's Song filly, the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-year-old sale got off to an aggressive start Monday at Timonium, Md.

Fri, 05/16/2003 - 00:00

Cal. breeding: Rivals become partners in Barretts sale topper

Trainer Bruce Headley attended the Barretts May sale in Pomona last week more as an observer than a potential buyer. Jess Jackson, the founder and proprietor of the well-known Kendall-Jackson winery, traveled from his home in Sonoma, Calif., with the intent of buying a few racing prospects.

By the end of the sale on Tuesday evening, the two men had not only become acquainted, but were partners on the sale topper - a French Deputy filly purchased for $375,000.

Fri, 05/16/2003 - 00:00

N.Y. breeding: Mayakovsky begins new life

Mayakovsky, a track-record holder at Saratoga Race Course, has been retired and will stand the 2004 breeding season at Mill Creek Farm in Stillwater, N.Y.

Phil Birsh, a New York-based breeder and owner, bought Mayakovsky for an undisclosed price from the horse's owner, Michael Tabor. Birsh said he plans on syndicating Mayakovsky, who will stand for $3,000. The horse arrived at Mill Creek Farm about 10 days ago. Mill Creek Farm, owned by Tim Little and Anne Morgan and located near Saratoga Springs, is also home to stallions Lycius and Storm of Angels.

Fri, 05/16/2003 - 00:00

Maryland breeding: Timonium sale offers 590 juveniles

A record number of juveniles are set to sell at Fasig-Tipton Midlantic's two-day 2-year-olds in training sale in Timonium, which kicks off Monday at 10 a.m. The 590 juveniles cataloged were foaled in 17 states, as well as Canada and Ireland, and Maryland is once again well represented. Nearly 40 Maryland-breds were scheduled to sell after scratches were announced through Thursday.

Fri, 05/16/2003 - 00:00

Fla. breeding: Industry lost true pioneer in Heubeck

The late Carl G. Rose had the vision. Elmer F. Heubeck Jr., whom Rose hired in 1945, was the man who made it happen. Together they were the real pioneers of Florida's Thoroughbred breeding industry. Heubeck died Monday in Ocala at the age of 85.

Sales for 2-year-olds in training are ubiquitous nowadays, but before Heubeck took his wiry, unfashionably bred Florida 2-year-olds in training to the south Florida market, there was no established place for them to be sold.

Fri, 05/16/2003 - 00:00

Canada breeding: Wild Again filly tops sale, buy-backs down

Highlighted by a decline in the number of buy-backs, the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society's 2-year-olds in training sale on Thursday held steady business compared with last year's auction.

Of the 70 juveniles cataloged, just 25 were listed as sold (24 were withdrawn) for gross sales of $628,000, up from last year's $594,700 for 23 juveniles sold.

The average slipped just under 3 percent, to $25,120 from $25,857 last year, but perhaps more significantly, the number of horses who did not reach their reserves dropped from 39 to 21 (for similar-sized catalogs).

Thu, 05/15/2003 - 00:00

Breeder of Peace Rules misses the jackpot

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Now that all the furor over Funny Cide has subsided, let's concentrate on his main rival in the Preakness, Peace Rules. A winner of four straight races and more than $1.1 million coming into the Kentucky Derby, Peace Rules raced up with a strong pace and stayed on through the stretch to finish a very solid third.

A slightly shorter race and a potentially less-demanding pace cannot harm the chestnut colt's chances of success in the second classic. Although Peace Rules has been sharing the limelight, the same cannot be said for his breeder, Dr. Ron Chak.

Thu, 05/15/2003 - 00:00

Prestons plan return to Bluegrass

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Funny Cide's rise to prominence in the Triple Crown series has prompted many in the Kentucky Thoroughbred breeding community to raise a toast to Jack, Art, and J.R. Preston.

Wed, 05/14/2003 - 00:00

Numbers up at Barretts May sale

After posting declines in its opening session, the two-day Barretts May 2-year-old sale burst back to strength Tuesday with sale-record prices.

Hip No. 256, a French Deputy filly out of West Forty Two, set a new Barretts May filly record when she sold for $375,000. Later, a Gilded Time colt out of Champaigne Amelia set a sale-record colt price of $335,000.