florida horse setember 2012

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4 THE FLORIDA HORSE • SEPTEMBER 2012

6 THE BROCK TALK8 FLORIDA FOCUS 47 LEADING SIRES48 LEADING JUVENILE/FRESHMAN SIRES60 FARM MANAGEMENT:

Manure Laws in Other States By Jamie Cohen

61 CHASE TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP62 PRACTICALLY SPEAKING:

Horses and Myths By Mark Shuffitt

64 YOUR FLORIDA HORSE PARK By Connie Duff Wise

66 PLAYER’S PAGE: Crowning Glory Turned Local Event?By Paul Moran

FEATURES14 STONEHEDGE FARM’S LARRY KING

Larry King Considers Himself a Lucky ManBy JoAnn Guidry

22 ENCORE PERFORMANCE Emma’s Encore has now won four of sixstarts for Hall of Fame trainer AllenJerkens By Brock Sheridan

24 Q&A WITH FTBOA PRESIDENTPHIL MATTHEWS

26 LITTLE MIKE WINS BIG IN MILLIONLittle Mike is flawless in stunning Arling-ton Million victory By Brock Sheridan

30 DREAM TEAMJames Culver and Kostas Hatzikoutelisare realizing personal dreams throughtheir Dream Team Racing StableBy Michael Compton

36 FLORIDA STALLION STAKESUndefeated in three career starts,Two T’s At Two B takes the Dr.Fager division of the Florida Stal-lion Stakes By Brock Sheridan

44 SARATOGA SUPERFECTATurbulent Descent tops Floridafour in New York’s Ballerina By Brock Sheridan

56 EQUINE CARE: Fungal Skin ProblemsBy Heather Smith Thomas

DEPARTMENTS/COLUMNS

September • 2012 VOL 55/ISSUE 7

COVER PHOTO OF LITTLE MIKE: FOUR FOOTED FOTOSCONTENTS (TWO T’S AT TWO B): LIZ LAMONT

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FTBOA OFFICERS ANDBOARD OF DIRECTORS

Phil Matthews, PresidentBrent Fernung, First Vice President Francis Vanlangendonck, Second Vice President

Sheila DiMare, Secretary Bonnie M. Heath III, Treasurer

DIRECTORS

CEO & EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENTLonny T. Powell

801 SW 60th Avenue • Ocala, Florida 34474(352) 732-8858 • Fax: (352) 867-1979 • www.ftboa.com

American Horse Publications • FLORIDA MAGAZINE ASSOCIATION • MEMBER BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU

© THE FLORIDA HORSE (ISSN 0090-967X) is published monthlyexcept July by THE FLORIDA HORSE, INC., 801 SW 60th Ave.,Ocala, Florida 34474, including the annual Statistical Review inFebruary.

Opinions expressed herein are those of the authors anddo not necessarily reflect those of Florida Equine Publicationsor the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Associa-tion. Publication of any material originating herein is expresslyforbidden without first obtaining written permission from THEFLORIDA HORSE©.

Statistics in the publication relating to results of racing inNorth America are compiled from data generated by Daily Rac-ing Form, Equibase, Bloodstock Research Information Serv-ices, and The Jockey Club Information Systems Inc., thecopyright owners of said data. Reproduction is prohibited.

Advertising copy deadline 5th of month precedingpublication. Subscriptions and change of address: Pleasemail to – Circulations Department. THE FLORIDA HORSE,801 SW 60th Ave., Ocala, Florida 34474.

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THE FLORIDA HORSE • SEPTEMBER 2012 5

Joe Barbazon Linda Appleton PotterCraig Bernick George RussellDean DeRenzo Jessica SteinbrennerRoy Lerman Charlotte C. WeberDiane Parks Greg Wheeler

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Brock Sheridan

BUSINESS MANAGER

Patrick Vinzant

ART DIRECTOR

John Filer

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

JoAnn Guidry

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Beverly Kalberkamp

CORRESPONDENTS

Jay Friedman, Doug McCoy, Cynthia McFarland, Mark Shuffitt, Michael Compton

PUBLISHERFlorida Equine Publications, Inc.

(A corporation owned by the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association)

Executive Office - 801 SW 60th Avenue • Ocala, Florida 34474

BOARD OF DIRECTORSPhil Matthews, President/Board Chairman

Brent Fernung, 1st Vice PresidentFrancis Vanlangendonck, 2nd Vice President

Sheila DiMare, SecretaryBonnie M. Heath III, Treasurer

CEO & EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT Lonny T. Powell

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Caroline T. Davis

Masthead_WithChange_Layout 1 8/30/12 11:20 AM

Florida Equine Publications and the Florida Thor-

oughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association is

proud to introduce the newest member of our re-

spective staffs, Tammy A. Gantt.

I say “staffs” because Ms. Gantt will be serving The

Florida Horse, Wire to Wire and Horse Capital Digest as a

contributing writer while also providing additional support

in advertising sales. In addition to her capacity with Florida

Equine Publications, Gantt will also be spending consid-

erable time on the FTBOA side of the office building as

the Coordinator of Membership Services and Programs.

A graduate of the University of Arizona Race Track

Industry Program and with an agriculture communications

and journalism degree from Missouri State University,

Gantt has spent her entire professional life working in the

horse racing industry.

Many of you will recognize Gantt as she comes to

Ocala from Miami Gardens, Fla., where she worked at

Calder Casino and Race Course for more than 13 years.

While at Calder, Gantt worked in marketing as the pro-

motions, events and sales director so she should be no

stranger to many of you who have traveled to Calder over

the years. She also brings non-profit experience to the

FTBOA having worked in the marketing departments of

the American Quarter Horse Association, United States

Trotting Association and Harness Tracks of America.

Gantt likes to create awareness of the industry through

community service and education.

For over a decade, she activated the track’s outreach

program with “Mini Mascots” Thunder & Lightning. They

visited Miami area hospitals, urban schools, youth pro-

grams, sporting events and fundraisers to create industry

awareness.

In addition, she focused efforts on student volun-

teerism, sports management internships and Junior

Jockey Club, a monthly educational program about the

racing and breeding industry. Her favorite program was

“Adopt a Horse” in which youths ages three to 16 “got” a

2-year-old racehorse. Kids saw their horses run, studied

pedigrees, wrote stud farms, met the trainers and devel-

oped feeding plans. After seeing pets lost from their own-

ers after Hurricane Katrina, Gantt collaborated to form a

program for free micro-chipping for underprivileged dog

and cat owners and she received the Carlos Arboleya

Community Service award from Greater Miami Chamber

of Commerce for her efforts.

Gantt has already been in the Marion County community

as a part of your Association’s team, attending to the FTBOA

booth at the recently concluded Ocala Breeders’ Sales Com-

pany Yearling Sale in August, speaking with potential adver-

tisers and visiting farms.

She will also be accessi-

ble to those of you who

would like to share ideas,

volunteer time or are

seeking information.

A look through her new office in Ocala and one will

first notice Ms. Gantt’s passion for horses as exhibited by

her personal library and numerous horse racing memen-

tos and souvenirs from around the world.

“I am very honored to be a part of an organization

that is so dedicated to its mission and membership,”

Gantt said. “Almost overnight, the FTBOA has rein-

vented itself into a forward thinking, dynamic and idea

fostering environment. Being involved in the success-

ful execution of the vision of the future of FTBOA gives

me an opportunity to give back to the Florida thor-

oughbred industry that

has been good to me

for so long.”

We are looking for-

ward to having Ms.

Gantt aboard and hope

to enjoy her leadership,

knowledge and person-

ality that make her a

natural addition to your

FTBOA team.

“Being involved in the successful execution of the vision of the future ofFTBOA gives me an opportunity to give back to the Florida thoroughbred

industry that has been good to me for so long.” —Tammy Gantt


the Brock talk

Brock SheridanEditor-in-Chief

Florida Equine Publications

Tammy Gantt

WelcomingOur Newest Member

JOHN

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OTOS

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Seniority, Florida-blood Prevail for Romacaca in Modesty Stakes

Let go as the fourth choice at 9-2 odds be-

hind 7-5 favorite Upperline in the Grade 3

Modesty Stakes Jul. 14 at Arlington Park in Ar-

lingtinon Heights, Ill., Florida-bred Romacaca

picked up her 14th career victory and her sec-

ond in three starts by taking the $200,000 event

for fillies and mares at 13⁄16 miles on the grass.

As one of two 6-year-olds in the Modesty,

(35-1 long shot and last-place finisher Pathway

was the other), Romacaca had plenty of expe-

rience going into the Modesty, especially with

42-year-old veteran jockey Francisco Torres

aboard. She has also been in the barns of four

different trainers seven separate times during

her 28-race career and was making her first

start of the second stop running from trainer

Danny Miller’s shed row.

Miller had previously

trained Romacaca from

April 2009 to March of

2010 and had won four

races including two stakes.

She had previously

been saddled by Luis

Ramirez and Nick Canani,

each also having her

through two separate stints,

and by David Fawkes very early in her career.

Bred in Florida by Cashel Stud Inc. of Ocala,

Romacaca now races for owner Frank C. Cal-

abrese of Des Plaines, Ill.

Romacaca broke well from post six in the

Modesty and tracked early leader She’s All

In through fractions of :23.92, :49.62, and

:1:14.37 before moving to lead the field

around the far turn. Turning for home, Snow

Top Mountain engaged Romacaca from the

outside and those two went stride for stride

through the final three-sixteenths of a mile.

At the wire however, Romacaca was a neck

in front with Snow Top Mountain a tena-

cious second and a length and one-quarter

ahead of Upperline in third.

“There was [some concern about the dis-

tance] but she’s more and more settled now,”

trainer Danny Miller said after the Modesty.

“She’s 6 years old and I really felt strongly she

could do it. Right now we have to point for

[the Grade 1 Beverly D. Stakes at Arlington

Park on Aug. 18.]”

“This [mare] is just awesome and she gets

better and better every time I’ve been on her,”

FloridaFOCUS

It took six tries for Tiree to win his first

race but since breaking his maiden at

Presque Isle Downs in Erie, Pa., on May 16,

it has been picture time after each race. The

3-year-old grey gelding also won his first

stakes race Jul. 16 when he won the $66,400

Coach Jimi Lee Stakes at Arlington Park

near Chicago against fellow sophomores at

seven furlongs. In between the two mile-

stones, Tiree had won two allowance races at

Presque Isle May 31 and June 27.

Bred in Florida by Strouds Lane Farm of

Ocala, Tiree is trained by Gerald S. Bennett

for Harold L. Queen, also of Ocala. He was

ridden in the Jimi Lee by jockey Francisco Torres, who would later win the Modesty Stakes

at Arlington that day on another Florida-bred in Romancaca.

Tiree was bumped at the start of the Jini Lee from post five but momentarily took

the lead before being settled into second behind Arcade, who had led the field of seven

down the backstretch in :23.69 and :47.11. Around the far turn, Torres and nearly every

other jockey in the Jimi Lee began to move toward the leader as Sweet Luca and Macho

Coach also burst into contention at the top of the stretch. Those four came down the

stretch spanned across the track with Tiree getting the nod at the wire over Arcade in sec-

ond and Sweet Luca in third.

Tiree has now won four of eight career starts and has career earnings of $135,718 while

racing exclusively on artificial main tracks at Presque Isle and Arlington.

Fourth straight win forFlorida-bred Tiree

FOUR

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Florida-bredRomacca

Florida-bred Tiree

Compiled by Brock Sheridan

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said winning jockey Francisco Torres. “I was

going in there 100 percent confident. When

[Snow Top Mountain] came to me, all that

did was make my [mare] run a little harder.”

The Modesty was the fifth win in seven

starts over the Arlington Park turf course for

Romacaca, who earned $117,600 for the

victory to boost her bankroll to $799,492

while improving her overall record to 14

wins from 29 starts.

Romacaca gave jockey Francisco Torres his

second stakes winner of the afternoon with a

Florida-bred after he had previously guided

Harold Queen’s Tiree to win the $66,400

Coach Jimi Lee Stakes earlier in the card.

Broken Dreams breaksThrough in Osunitas

On April 18, 2010 at Tampa Bay

Downs in Tampa, Fla., Broken Dreams

broke third in a $25,000 maiden claiming

race, kept that position down the back-

stretch before taking the lead around the

turn then extending out to a 14-length win.

That was the Florida-bred mare’s first start

and about as close as she has been to win-

ning one of her previous five career victo-

ries while leading from gate to finish.

Until Saturday, Jul. 21 at Del Mar Race

Course that is.

Bred in Florida by her owner, Leonard

Lavin’s Glen Hill Farm in Ocala of which

Craig Bernick is President and CEO, Bro-

ken Dreams went right to the front from

post seven in the $93,110 Osunitas Stakes

at Del Mar, was sent directly to the rail by

jockey Garrett Gomez and began to set a

moderate but pressured pace of :24.11

:48.14 and 1:11.78 with 3-1 choice Halo

Dolly racing just to her outside. Sent off as

the fifth choice at 7-1 in the field of eight,

few expected her to maintain the lead. But

she fought off Halo Dolly and the late charge

of 2-1 favorite Byrony, holding on to win by

a half-length. Byrony got up for second but

by only a nose ahead of Halo Dolly in third.

Florida-bred Briecat was fourth.

Final time for the 11⁄16 mile Osunitas on

grass was 1:41.71 and the Osunitas was the

third win on the day for jockey Garrett Gomez.

Trained by Thomas F. Proctor, Broken

Dreams was winning for

the first time since taking

the Senator Ken Maddy

Stakes (G3) at Santa Anita

in September. Since then

she had finished 13th in

the Breeders’ Cup Lady’s

Turf Sprint (G2) at

Churchill Downs in No-

vember. However, in three

previous races this year,

Broken Dreams has

shown steady improve-

ment, finishing sixth in the $70,000 Lady’s Turf

Sprint at Gulfstream Park in March before a

fifth in the $75,000 Great Lady M at Holly-

wood in May. In her last race, Broken Dreams

tried to go wire-to-wire in the $72,000 Redondo

Beach Stakes at Hollywood Jun. 10, but was

caught in the stretch and finished a close fourth,

beaten just more than two lengths.

Indian Gracey fastest in Cal.State Fair Sprint

Indian Gracey started awkwardly in the

California State Fair Sprint Handicap in

Sacramento Jul. 21, but ended the six furlong

stake on a much higher note, winning by a

head over English Royal in second and Paris

in April in third.

As the starter dispatched the field of eight

fillies and mares in the State Fair Sprint, In-

dian Gracey hesitated and hopped slightly,

giving jockey Julien Couton plenty of work

to do for the remainder of the $75,000 race.

But the 4-year-old filly quickly did her part

to make up for the early mistake and had

sprinted up to chase the leading Trapper’s

Bounty and English Royal from three lengths

Good Lord gets secondStraight stake in Bernhardt

It took Good Lord 40 races before the

Florida-bred gelding won his first stakes

race when taking the $100,000 Wild and

Wonderful Stakes at Charles Town Race

Course on Jun. 30, but since then he appears

to have really got the hang of it. In his next

start, the Forrest Kaelin-trained bay came

right back to win the $50,000 Don Bern-

hardt Stakes at Ellis Park on Jul. 21.

A multiple winner at the allowance level

and a consistenct money earner while rac-

ing against stakes competition, Good Lord

finally managed to break through the invis-

ible barrier that had kept him from hitting

the winner’s circle after an added money

event.

Breaking from post four with jockey

Gabriel Saez aboard, Good Lord tracked the

leaders while racing in the third position off

the rail just behind 8-5 favorite Noble’s

Promise and Florida-bred Hurricane Ike

who went the first quarter in a sturdy :22.24

and the half-mile in :44.63. Around the far

turn, Good Lord made up ground on the

leaders and took the lead at the top of the

stretch. Noble’s Promise fought back as they

raced to the wire but Good Lord prevailed

by a half-length at the finish over Noble’s

Promise in second and Shrill, who was an-

other three lengths back in third. Running

time for the six and one-half furlongs was

1:14.46.

It was the sixth career victory for Good

Lord, who was bred in Florida by Marilyn

Fazio Seltzer of Golden Beach, Fla. Good

Lord now has a career bankroll of $299,063.FOUR

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Florida-bred Broken Dreams

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Florida-bredGood Lord


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off the pace in third. Racing three-wide

around the far turn, Saez and Indian Gracey

began to close the gap between them and the

front-runners who had gone the first quarter-

mile in :22.67 and the first four furlongs in

:44.92. Trapper’s Bounty began to fall back

and English Royal hung tough but was just

edged at the wire by a steadfast Indian

Gracey. The final running time was 1:10.75.

It was the third career win for Indian

Gracey who was bred in Florida by Donarra

Thoroughbreds, LLC of Ocala, Fla. After fin-

ishing fourth in her next start in the Grade 3

Rancho Bernardo Handicap at Del Mar on

Aug. 19, Indian Gracey now has career earn-

ings of $154,360.

Eden’s Moon takes to the turfAnd wins San Clemente

For the second time in two days, a

Florida-bred went wire-to-wire to win a

stakes race at Del Mar Race Course as Eden’s

Moon took the $150,000 San Clemente

Handicap (G2) at the Southern California

track Jul. 22. The day before, Florida-bred

Broken Dreams won the Osunitas Stakes by

leading the field gate to wire.

Trained by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baf-

fert, Eden’s Moon was at one time this year

considered one of the top 3-year-old fillies in

America after she won the Grade 1 Las Vir-

genes Stakes at Santa Anita in early March

then coming back to finish third behind Willa

B Awesome in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Oaks

later that month. Then traffic troubles resulted

in a last-place finish in the Kentucky Oaks

(G1) at Churchill Downs May 4 before Eden’s

Moon came back to run what may have been

her best career race, finishing second by a

nose to Potesta after bumping her in the stretch

of the Grade 2 Hollywood Oaks at Betfair Hol-

lywood Park in Inglewood, Ca., on Jun. 23.

But there would be no traffic problems,

no bumping and nobody to catch Eden’s

Moon in the San Clemente. Making her first

start on turf, Eden’s Moon and jockey Rafael

Bejarano sped away from the field shortly

after the gates opened in Sunday’s San

Clemente. Sent off as the favorite at 9-10 in

the San Clemente, Eden’s Moon set fractions

of :23.00, :47.09 and 1:11.24 under pressure

from long shot Don’tgetmadalexis until the

top of the stretch when Eden’s Moon began

to pull away. Don’tgetmadalexis tired in the

stretch but Open Water made a rally from

fifth to get second, a length and one-quarter

behind Eden’s Moon and the same distance

ahead of Indigo River-Ire in third. Final time

for the one mile on grass was 1:34.38.

The remaining order of finish was

Byrama in fourth, Killer Graces, Don’tget-

madalexis and Oblivion

last.

Bred in Florida by Bri-

dlewood Farm of Ocala,

Eden’s Moon had her third

victory from just seven ca-

reer starts for owner

Kaleem Shah Inc. of Vi-

enna, Va. The $90,000

earned in the San

Clemente increase her ca-

reer bankroll to $358,600.


FloridaFOCUS Sr. Quisqueyano cruises In Seacliff

While D’nied Permission and

Putyourdreamsaway were deserving

winners in the prestigious Florida Stal-

lion Stakes at Calder on Aug. 25, the

most impressive performance on the

Juvenile Showcase

program was put

forth by Rosa Taveras’

Sr. Quisqueyano, a

commanding 13 ¾-

length winner of

the $75,000 Seacliff

Stakes.

The Luis Oli-

vares-trained son of

Journeyman Stud

stallion Exclusive

Quality merely toyed

with his rivals

through the opening stages of the Sea-

cliff, biding his time in third before un-

leashing a winning move down the

backstretch that saw the colt open up a

seven-length lead at the top of the

stretch, expanding that margin with ease

through the wire while running one mile

in 1:41.44.

“He broke good and it seemed like

he wanted to go a little bit, but I wanted

to play it safe, take him back a little, and

maybe teach him something for later,”

winning rider Jozbin Santana said. “And

once he realized I wanted him to settle,

he settled down and let go of the bit.

“Coming to the backside I saw the

horses in front starting to get a little

tired, so I let my horse creep up a little

bit and get close to the horse on the

lead. After that, he just galloped out.”

The Seacliff victory was the third

straight for the unbeaten Sr. Quisqueyano,

who broke his maiden by nearly three

lengths on April 22 before returning in

an entry-level allowance on Aug. 11

where he was 12 ¼ lengths better than

his nearest pursuer, Affirmed Division

hero D’nied Permission.

Sr. Quisqueano was bred in Florida

by Do Little Farm.

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Florida-bred Sr. Quisqueyano

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Florida-bred Eden’s Moon

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Tune Me In dials up long shotWin in Oceanport Stakes

There weren’t manywho backed Tune Me

In through the mutual windows before the

$152,500 Oceanport Stakes (G3) at Monmouth

Park on Jul. 29, but for those who did, they were

aptly rewarded.

Sent to the post at odds of nearly 26-1 in the

1 1/16 mile turf race for 3-year-olds and older,

the Florida-bred Tune Me In broke well from

post three under jockey Paco Lopez and settled

into second behind 5-2 second choice Get Se-

rious. Those two raced in tandem as they passed

the grandstand for the first time and stayed that

way for most of the way around the track with

8-1 choice Crepulso and favorite Queen’s-

platekitten just more than a length behind. After

covering most of the course in an unhurried

:25.85, :50.12 and 1:13.36, Get Serious tried to

kick away from Tune Me In but was unable to

get clear around the turn. Into the stretch, Tune

Me In responded to Lopez and began to edge

away and hit the wire a half-length in front of

Queen’splatekitten in second and Get Serious

in third. Final time was 1:43.39.

“No one wanted to go with Get Serious so

we did,” trainer Bruce Alexander said. “The

whole race was won when they went :25[.82]

and then :50[.12]. [Tune Me In] is a good horse

and he showed it today. We’ll find another

stakes for him after this.”

Trained by Alexander for Patricia A. Gen-

erazio of Tequesta, Fla., Tune Me In was bred in

Florida by Joseph and Helen Barbazon of Mor-

riston, Fla. The $90,000 winner’s check pushed

Tune Me In’s career earnings to $289,845.

The Oceanport was the fourth victory in 20

career starts for Tune Me In and the first vic-

tory over stakes company. His last win before

the Oceanport had come against optional

claimers and allowance horses in two consecu-

tive victories at Monmouth last July and Sep-

tember. The Oceanport was the grey/roan colt’s

third start of 2012 having finished third in the

$65,000 John McSorley Stakes in June at Mon-

mouth and seventh against optional claimers

Jul. 5 at Belmont Park.

Florida’s Currency Swap takesAnother New York prize

Florida-bred star Currency Swap may

have the Sunshine State in his blood, but his

heart is in New York.

At least that is what his race record shows.

In seven career starts, the son of Ocala Stud

stallion High Cotton has four wins—all in New

York and three of which are at Saratoga Race

Course in Saratoga Springs. Currency Swap

broke his maiden at Saratoga then won the

Grade 1 Three Chimneys Hopeful Stakes at the

Spa last year. This year, the Terri Pompay

trainee has won the $83,000 You and I Stakes at

Belmont Park in Elmont, New York and Sunday

took the Amsterdam Stakes (G2) back at

Saratoga.

Ridden by Rajiv Maragh, Currency Swap

was hustled away from the gate and quickly

took position just behind the speedy Doctor

Chit, who had put daylight on the field of seven

in the first few strides of the race. Down the

backstretch, Doctor Chit maintained a length

lead on Currency Swap in second as he rolled

through fast fractions of :21.34 for the opening

quarter-mile and an almost equally fast :44.04

for the first half.

Around the far turn, Currency Swap began

to make his move and at the top of the stretch

was on equal terms with Doctor Chit with Lau-

rie’s Rocket just to their outside. Those three

fought to the sixteenth pole when Currency

Swap began to kick clear and eventually hit the

finish line a length and three-quarters in front.

Doctor Chit hung on for second, a neck in front

of the late running Unbridled’s Note in third

with yet another neck back to Laurie’s Rocket

in fourth. Then came the Florida-bred tandem

of Fort Loudon and Gun Boat followed by Po-

litically Correct. Fort Loudon did not fire and

Gun Boat broke poorly and was never able to

get back into the swift race. Final time for the

six and one-half furlongs was a sharp 1:15.33.

“[Currency Swap] loves it here [at

Saratoga],” Pompay said beaming after the Am-

sterdam. “He’s been really doing well. I looked

at him [during the race] and it was like he was

doing it easy. I’d rather have him sit and stalk

than be on the pace.”

And that is exactly what Maragh did. “[Cur-

rency Swap] is an amazing horse,” Maragh

said. “He’s got a lot of speed. All the way he

was giving me a lot of energy and came on

strong. From day one, this horse always showed

a lot of ability. I wasn’t concerned with the pace.

I just wanted to have a clean trip and be in a

stalking position, regardless of how fast they

were going.”

Currency Swap is owned by Seth Klarman’s

Klaravich Stables Inc. of Boston, Mass., and

William Lawrence and now has a career

bankroll of $508,300.

Toby’s Corner returns to winMountainview

Toby’s Corner hasn’t exactly had things

all his way in his racing career that now spans

just less than two years. After finishing third in

his debut at Delaware Park in October of

2010, the chestnut Florida-bred went on to win

four of his next five starts including the Re-

sorts World Casino New York Wood Memo-

rial (G1) in April of 2011—a race in which he

defeated his much more heralded stablemate

Uncle Mo who was third.

EQUI PHO

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Florida-bred Tune Me In

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Florida-bredCurrency Swap

B & D PHOTO

Florida-bred Toby’s Corner



The Wood victory would make Toby’s

Corner one of the favorites to win the Ken-

tucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands

(G1) that year but an injury to the colt’s

left hind leg would change all that. Toby’s

Corner missed the Derby and was sent to

the sidelines for the remainder of the year

and would not return to the races until

February of 2012 when he was third in the

General George Handicap (G2) at Laurel,

then third again in the New Orleans Hand-

icap (G2) at Fair Grounds in April. An-

other short break and trainer Graham

Motion put him back into action in the

Pimlico Special May 18 where he was sev-

enth, then entered him in the Jun. 23 Don-

ald Levine Memorial Handicap at Parx

Racing where he finished fourth.

All of the bad karma was behind the

son of Bellamy Road on Jul. 28 at Penn Na-

tional Race Course in Grantville, Pa., as

Toby’s Corner won the $175,000 Mountain-

view Handicap for older horses at 1 1/8 miles.

With jockey Jeremy Rose aboard,

Toby’s Corner broke with the field from

the outside post five in the five-horse race

and settled in nicely just to the outside of

pacesetter Isn’t He Perfect with favorite

Marilyn’s Guy in third about two lengths

back. After modest fractions of :24.38 and

:48.64, Toby’s Corner took the lead in the

far turn and had two

lengths on the group

as they straightened

away for home. At

the wire, Toby’s Cor-

ner was just less than

four lengths ahead of

Isn’t He Perfect in

second and Not

Abroad in third. Run-

ning time for the nine furlongs was

1:49.15.

Bred in Florida by Diane D. Cotter of

Alachua, Fla., Toby’s Corner picked up

$105,000 for Cotter, who still owns the 4-

year-old colt in partnership with Julian

Cotter, also of Alachua. He now has five

wins from 11 career races with earnings of

$898,240.

Florida-breds flash brillianceFrom start to finish in Honorable MissFlorida-breds stole the show in the Grade

2 Honorable Miss Handicap at Saratoga on

Aug. 3 but the excitement was not all at the

finish line. Repre-

senting the Sunshine

State in the $200,000

race for fillies and

mares at six furlongs

was 120-pound high-

weight C C’s Pal

breaking from post

three; number five

Beat the Blues, win-

ner of Oaklawn Park’s $75,000 Carousel

Stakes in April; 9-5 favorite It’s Me Mom

breaking from post seven; and Belle of the

Hall, fourth in the Vagrancy Handicap (G2)

behind winner C C’s Pal in post two.

The buzz from the Sartaoga Springs, N.Y.,

crowd began after the first quarter-mile when

It’s Me Mom and jockey Willie Martinez broke

third but chased down front-running Winning

Image, got the lead about an eighth of a mile

from the start and led the field through the

fastest quarter-mile of the meeting, flashing

:21.14 for the first two furlongs. It’s Me Mom

was not totally alone however, as Winning

Image kept close down the backstretch and a

length and one-half to two and-a-half lengths

ahead of Roman Treasure in third. When they

hit the half-mile pole approaching the far turn,

C C’s Pal was fourth, some six lengths off It’s

Me Mom who had begun to further separate

herself going around the bend and breaking

away by two full lengths at the quarter-pole.

But that’s when the gas ran out. Roman

Treasure made a mild bid and took the lead at

the top of the stretch but soon all three of the

early leaders began to sputter after screaming

through a half-mile in :43.78. At that time C

C’s Pal began to move on the rail but failed to

hit a hole taken up by Maple Forest as they left

the turn. Jockey Junior Alvarado then had to

check C C’s Pal to keep from running over

Winning Image, who was almost in reverse at

this time, then swerved the 5-year-mare to the

FloridaFOCUS

Gourmet Dinner serves up win in Majestic LightAfter three unsuccessful tries on the turf, Gourmet Dinner went back to the main track

in fine fashion as he took the $100,000 Majestic Light Stakes at Monmouth Park on Jul. 29.

It was the first win for the Bruce Brown trainee who last went into a winner’s circle fol-

lowing the 2010 Delta Jackpot (G3) at Delta Downs in Vinton, La.

Bred in Florida by Ocala Stud and William J. Terrill of Ocala, Fla., Gourmet Dinner

broke next to last in the field of seven and jockey Javier Castellano was more than con-

tent with sixth-place position some five

lengths off of frontrunner I’m Steppin’ It

Up. After an opening quarter-mile in a slow

:23.89 and half in :47.70, the pace appeared

to be working against Gourmet Dinner until

Castellano began to move the 4-year-old colt

around the far turn, picking up horses while

going four-wide. At the top of the stretch

Gourmet Dinner was with the leaders and

by the time they hit the furlong marker, he

had put a head in front of Ponzi Scheme and

those two battled to the wire.

At the finish Gourmet Dinner was a neck in front with Ponzi Scheme in second the

Small Town Talk third. Running time for the 11⁄16 miles was 1:44.20 over a track la-

beled fast.

BILL DEN

VER PH

OTO

Florida-bred C C’s Pal

BOYD

GAM

INGS

PHO

TO

Florida-bred Gourmet Dinner (No.1)

Florida Focus continues on page 52


By JOANN GUIDRY

Over the span of nearly 40 years and count-

ing, he has shared in the success of two

major Florida Thoroughbred operations.

Those successes have included a Kentucky Derby

winner, a Breeders’ Cup champion, numerous

graded stakes winners, several millionaires and a

trio of Eclipse champions. And here’s the kicker:

King has never had to load up a van and move to

another farm; he just stayed put on the same prop-

erty while it underwent an ownership and name

change. The latter status going from Timothy Sams’

Waldemar Farms to Gilbert and Marilyn Campbell’s

Stonehedge Farm South.

“I’ve been very fortunate to do what I love to

do for two outstanding Thoroughbred operations,”

said King, 57, who has been Stonehedge Farm

South farm manager since 1988. “I was just a kid

when I moved here. So the older I get, I appreci-

ate it all more and more.”

King doesn’t remember a time that horses

weren’t part of his life. Born in Texas and raised in

northern Louisiana, King’s father, Joe, was an all-

around horseman. The elder King progressed from

showing and then racing Quarter horses. Training

Thoroughbreds soon followed with a stint manag-

ing a cattle ranch in between.

“As young kids, my sisters and I helped my fa-

ther work on the cattle ranch,” recalled King. “We

were expected to ride and to work. That’s just the

way it was.”

In 1971, Joe King landed a job managing Walde-

mar Farms in Williston, just northwest of Ocala.

Two years later, his son followed and moved on the

farm that would become his home to this day.

“I was a senior and I graduated from Williston

High School in 1973,” said King. “Dad put me to

work the minute I got on the farm. I did everything

from grooming to exercising horses to maintenance.

Dad was right there too and we worked long days.”


SERI

TA H

ULT P

HOTO

S

“I’ve been very fortunate to do what I love to dofor two outstanding Thoroughbred operations. I was just a kid

when I moved here. So the older I get, I appreciate it all more and more.”

LARRY KING considers himself a fortunate man.

LarryKing7pages_USE_Florida Horse_template 9/5/12 9:31 AM

As fate would have it, the same year that King came

to work alongside his father, there was a Waldemar

Farms-bred yearling who would soon make history. The

1972 bay colt was by Waldemar Farms stallion What a

Pleasure out of the Tom Fool mare Fool Me Not. Named

Foolish Pleasure, King remembers prepping the colt for

the 1973 Saratoga yearling sale.

“He was always a tough colt to handle,” said King.

“He was rank and head-shy. He wasn’t a favorite around

the barn at all.”

At the Saratoga yearling sale, Foolish Pleasure was

bought for $20,000 by John L. Greer. It proved to be a

bargain price.

As an undefeated juvenile in 1974, Florida-bred Fool-

ish Pleasure broke his maiden and then rolled to six graded

stakes wins in seven starts. He captured the Champagne

Stakes (G1), Sapling Stakes (G1), Hopeful Stakes (G1),

Cowdin Stakes (G2), Tremont Stakes (G3) and a division

of the Dover Stakes (G3). Trained by LeRoy Jolley, he

banked $284,595 on the season. More importantly, he was

named the North American champion 2-year-old colt.

“It was very exciting to have a national champion

bred and raised on the farm,” said King. “I think we

liked Foolish Pleasure a little more after that.”

Foolish Pleasure’s popularity grew in 1975 when he be-

came the third Florida-bred to win the Kentucky Derby


“It was unbelievable that we had a Kentucky Derby winner, another national champion and What aPleasure, the leading sire in the country in the same year. We were starting to think this was easy.”— Larry King

LARRYKing


(G1). He was second in the Preakness Stakes (G1) to Mas-

ter Derby and runner-up to Avatar in the Belmont Stakes

(G1). In addition to winning the Run For The Roses, Fool-

ish Pleasure also scored victories in the Flamingo Stakes

(G1) and Wood Memorial Stakes (G1). He was also sec-

ond in the Governor Stakes (G1) and third in the Florida

Derby (G1)on his way to banking $716,278 on the season.

But it wasn’t enough to nab another championship title

with Wajima named the 1975 champion 3-year-old colt.

WALDEMAR WONDERS

But as it turned out, Waldemar Farms didn’t go with-

out a national champion that year. Florida-bred Honest

Pleasure, a 2-year-old colt by What a Pleasure out of *Tu-

laria, by *Tulyar, dominated the juvenile class with four

key victories. He captured the Champagne Stakes (G1),

Arlington-Washington Futurity (G1), Laurel Futurity

(G1) and Cowdin Stakes (G2). Also trained by Jolley,

Honest Pleasure earned $370,227 and was named the

1975 Eclipse champion 2-year-old colt. Owner Bertram

Firestone had bought Honest Pleasure from Waldemar

Farms for $45,000 at the 1974 Saratoga yearling sale.

“It was unbelievable that we had a Kentucky Derby

winner, another national champion and What a Pleas-

ure, the leading sire in the country in the same year,”

said King. “We were starting to think this was easy.”

In 1976, Honest Pleasure rolled to wins in the

Flamingo Stakes (G1), Florida Derby (G1) and Blue


Opposite page fromright—The StonehedgeFarm team. Darrell Sulley(broodmare manager)Larry King (farm man-ager) and Jamie King(trainer)


Grass Stakes (G1) on his way to being the favorite in

the Kentucky Derby. But at Churchill Downs, he

would finish second to Bold Forbes. Honest Pleasure

rebounded from that loss with a victory in the Travers

Stakes(G1), setting a track record of 2:00.20 for the

mile and a quarter. He closed out the season with three

graded stakes-placings to earn $445,547. After but

four starts in 1977, including a win in the Ben Ali

Handicap (G3), Honest Pleasure was retired with ca-

reer earnings of $839,997.

As for Foolish Pleasure, he won the 1976 Suburban

Handicap (G1) and Arlington Golden Invitational Handi-

cap, as well as being graded stakes-placed twice. He was

retired after that season with career earnings of $1,216,705.

Not to be overlooked is Florida-bred For The Moment,

a full brother to Honest Pleasure. In 1976, he became the

third consecutive Waldemar Farms-bred colt to win the

Cowdin Stakes (G2). Raced by Gerald Robins, he also

won the Futurity Stakes (G1) that year and the Blue Grass

Stakes (G1) the following season before finishing eighth

to Seattle Slew in the Kentucky Derby. For The Moment

retired after the 1977 season with career earnings of

$337,483 and later stood at Waldemar Farms.

What a Pleasure, thanks to the racing success of Foolish

Pleasure, Honest Pleasure and For The Moment, was the

leading sire by progeny earnings in North America in 1975

and 1976. By Bold Ruler out of Grey Flight, by *Mahmoud,

What a Pleasure sired two champions, 59 stakes winners, 15

graded stakes winners, 37 stakes-placers and recorded life-

time progeny earnings of $17.8 million.

“After all that success, we hit a dry spell,” said King.

“That’s when you realize how tough the Thoroughbred

business is.”

But there was indeed one last hurrah for the Walde-

mar Farms era. In 1985, Florida-bred Tasso won the

Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1), Del Mar Futurity (G1) and

Breeders’ Futurity (G2) on his way to being named

Eclipse champion 2-year-old colt. By Fappiano out of

the What a Pleasure mare Ecstacism, Tasso was bred and

raced in his championship season by Sams and Robins.

Tasso, who retired with career earnings of $1,207,884,

later raced for Robins and Will Farish.

ENTER STONEHEDGE ERA

Big changes were coming for King. In 1988, Gilbert

and Marilyn Campbell bought the Waldemar Farms

property and renamed it Stonehedge Farm South. Joe

King decided it was time to retire and Larry King be-

came the Stonehedge Farm South farm manager.

“Again I was very fortunate that Mr. Campbell gave

me a great opportunity,” said King. “Right from the be-

ginning, we’ve had a great relationship.”

Campbell, an East Coast-based real estate developer

and entrepreneur, first became involved in the Thorough-

bred business in 1982 as co-owner of Florida-bred stakes

winner Shananie. Later, Shananie would become the first

stallion to stand at Stonehedge Farm South. Shananie

would be the first of several successful Stonehedge Farm

South stallions over the years, in-

cluding Sword Dance (Ire), Un-

tuttable and West Acre.

“Waldemar had operated as a

commercial breeding operation,”

said King. “But Mr. Campbell

liked racing, so the farm switched

to being primarily breed-to-race.

He wanted to race homebreds, so

he bought mares to breed mostly

to his own stallions.”

Establishing a homebred rac-

ing operation takes time, but it

wasn’t long before Campbell

began to enjoy racing success

with his Florida-bred runners.

The breakthrough came in 1996

when Campbell notched his first

Grade I stakes winner as a

breeder and initial Florida-bred

champion as a breeder/owner.


LARRYKing

“We love watching the horses weraise, break and train on the farm go onto do well on the racetrack,” said King.

“For all of us, it’s what makes it worthwhile.”— Larry King


Marlin, a 1993 colt by Sword Dance (Ire) out of the

Damascus mare Syrian Summer, had been sold by

Campbell through Bedford Hills, agent, for $30,000 at

the 1994 Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s August year-

ling sale. Racing for Michael Tabor, Marlin won the 1996

Secretariat Stakes (G1) and Hollywood Derby (G1) on

his way to earning $854,500.

Racing for Campbell, Blazing Sword was named the

1996 Florida-bred champion 2-year-old colt. By Sword

Dance (Ire) out of Demetroula, by Singular, Blazing

Sword won the Dr. Fager Stakes and Affirmed Stakes of

the Florida Stallion Stakes. He finished second in the

Breeders’ Futurity (G2) and In Reality Stakes on his way

to earning $246,710 that season. Blazing Sword raced

for four more seasons, winning three graded stakes and

retiring with a bankroll of $1,184,055.

As for Marlin, he continued his graded stakes-win-

ning way in 1997. He scored tallies in the Arlington Mil-

lion Stakes (G1), San Juan Capistrano Invitational

Handicap (G1), Sunset Handicap (G2) and San Luis Rey

Stakes (G2). On the season, Marlin earned $1,521,600

and retired at the end of the year with a career bankroll

of $2,448,880. Marlin was named the 1997 Florida-bred

champion turf horse and Campbell was honored as the

1997 Florida Breeder of the Year.

“No doubt about it, Blazing Sword and Marlin were

the farm’s first big horses,” said King. “It was very grat-

ifying to see Mr. Campbell enjoy that early success.”

Marlin and Blazing Sword also greatly contributed to

Sword Dance’s success as a sire. Bought privately by

Campbell to stand at Stonehedge Farm South, Sword

Dance was by Nijinsky II out of the Secretariat mare Rosa

Mundi. In addition to graded stakes winner Marlin and

Blazing Sword, Sword Dance also sired graded stakes win-

ners Friel’s for Real, Dance for Thee and Ryan’s for Real.

Of Sword Dance’s graded stakes winners, Campbell bred

all but Dance for Thee. Sword Dance also sired 21 other

stakes winners, 28 stakes-placers and posted lifetime prog-

eny earnings of $26.5 million. Sword Dance died in 2010.

Since that initial breakthrough success, Campbell has

been consistently a Top 10 leading Florida breeder and

has enjoyed an on-going parade of stakes winners. To

date, he has bred at least 57 Florida-bred stakes winners.

In addition to the aforementioned graded stakes winners,

Campbell has also bred graded stakes winners Ivanav-

inalot, who was the 2002 Florida-bred champion 2-year-


“When it starts to get close to weaning,we start feeding the babies in a stall nextto their mothers twice a day. Then whenit’s time to wean, we just bring the babyin the stall and take the mare to anotherbarn. By then, the baby is focused moreon the feed than its mother and you canwean them with no fuss.”— Larry King


old filly, Garemma, This Ones for Phil and Watch Me Go.

“We love watching the horses we raise, break and

train on the farm go on to do well on the racetrack,” said

King. “For all of us, it’s what makes it worthwhile. We all

want the Campbells to do well.”

FARM MAINTENANCE 101

Over the years, Stonehedge Farm South has grown from

the initial 200 acres purchased to 510 acres. The broodmare

band currently numbers 55; Campbell was the leading

Florida breeder by foals in 2010 and 2011, with 47 and 43

foals, respectively. On average, 40 yearlings are broken each

season at the farm’s training division. The latter is overseen

by King’s nephew, Jamie King.

In addition to veteran stal-

lion and Untuttable, the newest

Stonehedge Farm South stallion

is Factum. By Storm Cat out of

multiple graded stakes-producer

Starry Dreamer, by Rubiano, Factum will stand his initial

season in 2013. He is a half-brother to graded stakes winners

War Front, Teammate and Ecclesiastic.

“When it comes to running a farm, the best thing you

can do is never think you know everything,” said King.

“I’ve learned to watch, listen and learn. If something’s

not too farfetched, I’m willing to give it a try.”

Part of the Stonehedge program is to begin loading foals

in a trailer while they are still at their dam’s side. King

pointed out that “a foal will follow his mother anywhere so

they’ll just go right on in a trailer with her.” Then he adds

that “later when it’s time to ship them to another part of the

farm or to the racetrack, they load without any problems.”

King admits to learning a good way to wean babies

from reading an article in a trade publication. He thought

the process made sense and decided to give it a try.

“When it starts to get close to weaning, we start feed-

ing the babies in a stall next to their mothers twice a day,”

said King. “Then when it’s time to wean, we just bring

the baby in the stall and take the mare to another barn. By

then, the baby is focused more on the feed than its

mother and you can wean them with no fuss.”

And because the farm’s focus is on breeding-to-race,

there isn’t as much a time crunch when it comes to the

breaking and training process. In mid to late August,

the yearlings are accustomed to bathing, being led

around with bridles and saddles and then ponied.

“We don’t usually put a rider on their backs until late

September and October,” said King. “Then they’re bro-

ken to ride and are ridden out in the fields. We let the horse

tell us when it’s time to start galloping on the racetrack.”

The most precocious of the two years olds are then sent

to longtime Stonehedge Farm South trainer Kathleen

O’Connell at Calder. If a youngster is being sold as a year-

ling or a juvenile, then they are sent to respective consignors.

While still logging long days on the farm, just like he

did alongside his father, King also takes time to enjoy

life outside of the Thoroughbred business. After knee in-

juries and surgeries ended his running days, King began

riding a recumbent bike for exercise. He typically bikes

10 miles a day, on the farm and on the backroads of

Williston. King recently did a 48-mile ride to raise

money for the Levy County School Foundation.

King has been married for 33 years to wife Cookie,

who is a real estate agent. Their son Kirby, 22, also has his

real estate license and plans to become a real estate lawyer.

“When we go on vacation, Cookie and I like to go

scalloping,” said King. “We find it very relaxing. There’s

just something very calming about being out there on the

water. It just makes you slow down and appreciate life.”

Especially if you’re a fortunate man. �


“When it comes to running a farm, the best thing you cando is never think you know everything. I’ve learned to watch,listen and learn. If something’s not too farfetched, I’m willingto give it a try.”— Larry King

LARRYKing

LarryKing7pages_USE_Florida Horse_template 9/7/12 2:02 PM


Emma’s

By BROCK SHERIDAN

Last year Emma’s Encore failed to hit the winners’circle in three tries and in her first start this year,she put in her best career effort to that point, fin-

ishing third against $50,000 maiden claimers at Gulf-stream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., Feb. 2. It was herfirst start from the barn of Hall of Fame trainer AllenJerkens but there would be a turnaround in her next race,as she broke her maiden against maiden special weightcompany by more than four lengths three weeks later atGulfstream. Including that race, though, Emma’s Encorehas now won four of six starts with a second against op-tional claimers at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., in Mayand a last in the Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2) Mar. 31.In her last two races, the 3-year-old dark bay or brown

filly has taken two stakes including the Grade 3 VictoryRide at Belmont Jul. 7 and the Grade 1 Prioress StakesAug. 4 at Saratoga in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. But what-ever the 83-year-old trainer has figured out about Emma’sEncore to take her from a maiden claimer in February toa Grade 1 winner in August, she seemed to have returnedto Jerkens in gratification.“Like the old days,” Jerkens said with tears in his eyes

after the race. “We get to havea [painted] jockey [statue] infront of the clubhouse. I al-ways like to get a jockey infront of the clubhouse.”Jerkens has won 3,833 races in his career, but none

stand out as much as when he saddled the Florida-bredOnion to an upset victory over Secretariat in the 1973Whitney Handicap. On Whitney Day in 2012, Jerkensadded to his legacy by sending out another Florida-bredin Emma’s Encore to a nose victory in $300,000 Prioress.The Prioress was his first graded stakes win at

Saratoga since Any Limit captured the 2008 Grade 2Honorable Miss and his first Grade 1 since Miss Shoplanded the 2007 Personal Ensign at the Spa. After the

race, the Saratoga crowd applauded Jerkens.“It’s nice,” he said. “It’s what breaks me up.”Odds-on favorite Agave Kiss broke best from post

five and drew away to lead the field by some twolengths through fast fractions of :22.15 and :44.64 andshe kept the lead until a sixteenth of a mile before thewire when Judy the Beauty took the lead with Emma’sEncore still driving to the outside. As they hit the wire,Emma’s Encore stuck a nose in front of Judy the Beautywith Agave Kiss another length and three-quarters backin third. Final time for the six furlongs was 1:09.35.“I think [Emma’s Encore] improved a little [from the

Victory Ride],” Jerkens continued.” She had to run hervery best. [Jockey Junior Alvarado] has been good. It allcounts. Everything has to go well. The horse has to rungood. She really had to run today. Nothing was in herfavor. It looked like speed was holding on pretty good.”Alvarado said that he too had noticed something dif-

ferent since the win in the Victory Ride, but he was talk-ing mostly about himself . “After [Emma’sEncore] won the Victory Ride, I was reallyconfident in her,” Alvarado said. “She brokereally good again and I got her to settle and

feel comfortable in the race. Turning for home, she wasmoving, but we were wider than I wanted to be. Shegave me a really nice kick at the end.”Emma’s Encore, who was bred in Florida by Equest

Thoroughbred Inc. paid $12.40 for a $2 win, $5.10 toplace and $2.80 to show. Judy the Beauty paid $3.90and $2.70 while Agave Kiss returned $2.20. Emma’sEncore now has a career record of four wins from 10starts and the $120,000 first-place check in the Prioressincreases her career earnings to $282,958.,�

“Like the old days. We get to have a [painted] jockey[statue] in front of the clubhouse. I always like to get

a jockey in front of the clubhouse.”—trainer Allen Jerkens

EmmasEncore2pgs_Florida Horse_template 9/7/12 1:56 PM


You see we aren’t in a bubble. I think a smallportion of our membership believes that all thisassociation needs to do is distribute breeder’sawards. It is very important that we communi-cate with, work with, negotiate and lead whennecessary with, all of the players with stakes inthis Florida industry. That means the race tracks,the HBPAs, the ADWs, the legislature, theFlorida Department of Ag, Marion County, Cityof Ocala, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foun-dation, the American Horse Council, and on andon. If we don’t have a seat at these tables and wedon’t press for our concerns on all levels, we be-come weaker. Lonny’s ability to hit the groundrunning on all of these fronts has exceeded ourexpectations.

Lonny gets all that and knows how to workin that world. He also has considerable CEOexperience that makes him a good administrator.He is an enthusiastic team builder. He puts peo-ple in a position to get the most out of them andcreates an environment of support and empow-erment in which they can flourish. That trans-lates to an efficient, competent and accountablestaff that gets things done for the Association.As a business owner, I understand the impor-tance of strong corporate culture. It is para-mount in making a business successful. Lonnyunderstands this to the tee.

TFH: How do you see Florida Equine Pub-lications now and in the future relative to theFTBOA?

PM: I have always thought that the need fora public relations arm to be so necessary. We arefortunate to have a staff that produces a greatproduct, a product that wins awards year afteryear. What FEP produces accomplishes a lot ofthings for the FTBOA, most notably helping en-sure our relevance to the rest of the world, bothwithin and outside of the industry. The web site,The Florida Horse, the Wire to Wire give ourmembers a source in which to advertise theirproducts, to help get their stories and accom-plishments told, to keep up with the industrychanges and news, all of these things.

An important point that I think is alwaysworth reminding people of is that without FEPwe would be outsourcing any public relationsand marketing efforts. This way it is done well,under our complete control and by people thatunderstand our needs and purpose. And as itstands, FEP is a profit asset for the FTBOA.

TFH: Would you like to touch on the re-cently announced supplement bonus programthat is now in its second year?

PM: I’d like an opportunity to clarify if nec-essary the supplemental bonuses. The bonus af-

fects awards received during the 2011 calendaryear. Anyone that received a bonus during thatyear will get a check for an additional 11%. Tomake the math easy, if you received $1000 in2011, you will receive a check for $110. From apure blended percentage standpoint we are nowat the highest level in our history-and we hope tocontinue this upward trend in the future It’s alsoexpanded to pay bonuses for first, second andthird place, meaning more bonuses than before.Oh, and one more thing, those checks should besent out by mid-October at the latest.

TFH: You’ve talked about maintaininghealthy, live thoroughbred race dates inFlorida; will Marion County be a part of thatformula?

PM: Yes, the FTBOA created OTR [OcalaThoroughbred Racing] for the express purposeof converting the quarter horse permit to a thor-oughbred permit. This was accomplished inAugust. It has been the opinion of the board thatwe need to do whatever we can to ensure rac-

ing, and as many racing dates as possible, toexist in Florida. This was seen as a tool in ourtool box toward achieving that goal. It is a toughmountain to climb, but I assure you that OTR ispushing hard to make racing available to us inMarion County. And the type of racing venuewe can be proud of that will support the bottomline of owners and breeders through purses andbreeders awards, as well as create even moreawareness and relevance with the public.

TFH: It’s been widely reported that pari-mutuel barrel racing is a significant threat tothoroughbred racing and breeding in Florida.Can you expound on this threat?

PM: This is certainly a topic that is para-mount on my mind. It gets back to what manyof us feared from the advent of racinos aroundthe country and slots and card rooms coming into Florida. It has always loomed as a double-edged sword. They were seen as a savior for rac-ing because of the boon it has been to purses and

“It is very important that we communicate with,

work with, negotiate and lead when necessary with, all

of the players with stakes in this Florida industry.”

see Phil Matthews page 49

Presidents Report2pgs_tweaked_EditorWelcome 9/13/12 3:52 PM

By BROCK SHERIDAN

Although Little Mike took a different riderinto the starting gate of the Arlington Mil-lion (G1), the game plan was the same. So

obvious was the plan that the opposing jockeyswere well aware that Little Mike would get theearly lead in the $1 million race—but still they

could do nothing to defeat him.And that is the way Little Mike

and jockey Ramon

Dominguez executed the course of action in the 1¼mile turf race at Arlington International RaceCourse near Chicago. Little Mike jumped out of thegate and went right to the lead from post positionfour with Wilcox Inn giving chase in second andColombian racing third, more than a length back,as they passed the grandstand for the first time. Justas fast as Little Mike got the lead however,Dominguez was able to slow theFlorida-bred horse into his win-ning pace, going the first quar-ter mile in :25.10 and the firsthalf-mile in :49.95. As if thatwasn’t slow enough, theynearly put the field of 11


Little Mike Flawless In Arlington Million Victory

LittleMike_ArlingtonMill_Florida Horse_template 9/5/12 1:34 PM


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international runners into a gallop as they finished six

furlongs in 1:15.03 and the mile in 1:39.54.

By that time the race was all but over as Little Mike

sprinted away from Wilcox Inn and Colombian as they

turned for home. At one point in the stretch, Little Mike

was more than four lengths in front before eventual run-

ner-up Afsare made his late run that fell short by a length

and one-half. Afsare was another length and-a-half ahead

of Rahystrada and Colombian, who had dead heated for

third. Final time of the race was 2:02.44 as Little Mike

ran the last quarter of a mile in a rapid :22.50.

“[Little Mike] was running very comfortable,”

Dominguez said after the race. “Turning for home

when I decided to let him run, he beautifully started

opening up. I wasn’t sure how slow we were going. I

got him to the three-eighths pole and he started to

open it up. I tried to slow him down [early], but [for

the rest of the way] I was going to let him spring

home. He galloped home like a freight train.”

It was the second Arlington Million for Dominquez

who also won aboard Gio Ponti in 2009. Just as Dom-

inquez was elated with the way the Arlington Million

played out however, Kieren Fallon aboard Afsare felt

nothing but frustration.

“I knew what was happening [with eventual winner

Little Mike setting a slow pace]. But there was noth-

ing I could do about it,” Fallon said. “I had to ride my

horse to win, and there was nothing I could do. I had

to ride my horse to win, and there was no pace.”

Pace is the key to success for Little Mike. In his last

five races going back to a Dec. 22 optional claiming

race victory at Gulfstream Park, when Little Mike has

been able to get to the half-mile pole in :47.90 or slower,

he has won. He went the half in :48.27 in winning the

Grade 1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic at Churchill

Downs May 5 and he went in :48.01 while winning the

$150,000 Sunshine Millions Turf Jan. 28, also at Gulf-

stream. Distance does not seem to factor into his suc-

cess too much. Both of those races were at 11⁄8 miles. In

his last race, he was third behind Florida-bred Jeranimo

in the Shoemaker Mile (G1) at Betfair Hollywood Park

after a half in :46.40. He also won the 2011 Canadian

Turf (G3) at one mile after a half in :45.42 so he is ca-

pable of going faster early and winning. But give Little

Mike a half in :48 or so and he appears deadly.

It was the eleventh win from 19 career starts for

Little Mike who is trained by Dale Romans for

Priscilla Vaccarezza of Parkland, Fla. The $570,000

first -place check in the Million makes Little Mike the

newest Florida-bred millionaire with a career bankroll

of $1,436,412. He also joins Ron the Greek as Florida-

breds with two Grade 1 victories this year.

Bred by Carlo E. Vaccarezza, also of Parkland, Lit-

tle Mike will now be pointed to Breeders’ Cup at Santa

Anita Nov. 3 as the Arlington Million was a “Win and

You’re In” race. Entry fees to either the Breeders’ Cup

Turf or Breeders’ Cup Mile and a travel expense al-

lowance will now be paid to Ms. Vaccarezza.

“This is Florida’s horse,” said Carlo Vaccarezza,

who owns Frank and Dino’s restaurant in Dearfield

Beach and Damiano’s

restaurant in Boca Raton,

Florida along with partner


“This is Florida’s horse. And I want to say that Dale Romans is not justmy trainer but my friend. He’s done such a tremendous job with Little Mike.

A great deal of credit also goes to Jimmy Crupi.”—Carlo Vaccarezza

MIKE’SMILLION

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John Williams. “And I want to say that Dale Romans

is not just my trainer but my friend. He’s done such a

tremendous job with Little Mike. A great deal of credit

also goes to Jimmy Crupi [of Ocala and who gave Lit-

tle Mike his early training.]

“But I was also so happy to win the Arlington Mil-

lion for America. Before the race, the [Europeans]

were all so cocky saying they were going to beat us.

But Little Mike kicked [them into defeat.]”

Little Mike ended a streak of eight straight wins by

European-based runners in International Festival races at

Arlington Park that also include the $750,000 Beverly D.

(G1), $500,000 Secretariat Stakes (G1) and the $400,000

American St. Leger Stakes. The last American-based

horse to win a Festival race was the Dale Roman’s-trained

Paddy O’Prado who took the 2010 Secretariat Stakes.

Little Mike paid $9.80 for a $2 win ticket, $5.60 to

place and $4.40 to show. Afsare returned $6.60 and

$4.80. Rahystrada paid $4.40 to show while Colom-

bian returned $3.80 to show. �


Pace is the key tosuccess for Florida-bred Little Mikewhohas won 11 of 19career starts.

The Real Little Mike: Mike Vaccarezza, right, with brother Nick, celebrating his namesake’s win.

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mBy MICHAEL COMPTON

Thanks to partnership groups, the cost of own-

ing Thoroughbreds doesn’t carry the hefty

price tag it once did. The simple mission of

James Culver and Kostas Hatzikoutelis’ Dream Team

Racing Stable is to introduce the unique Sport of

Kings experience to Thoroughbred industry enthu-

siasts minus the cost of a king’s ransom.

In search of new stable acquisitions at the Fasig-

Tipton Saratoga New York yearling sale in August,

Dream Team’s principals took time out to share the

stable’s philosophy.

“Dream Team partners have enjoyed many suc-

cesses on the track but the most rewarding aspect of

our business is enabling individual partners to share

in the many benefits of horse ownership and enjoy

the Sport of Kings with a nominal investment while

minimizing the risk,” said Hatzikoutelis.

Dream Team Racing Stable began in earnest

about six years ago. Both Culver and Hatzikoutelis

had participated in other partnership groups. With a

complete understanding of the costs, opportunities

and risks involved in owning racehorses, Culver,

president and racing manager of Dream Team, de-

veloped a business model that allows for affordable

participation in the ownership ranks. Investors, or

partners, receive all the benefits of horse ownership,

but are able to substantially reduce their risk by pur-

chasing fractional interests in one or several horses

for as little as an $800 investment.

“I was a partner in another syndicate and prices

started going up,” said Culver, who is based in New

York. “So, I bought a couple of horses on my own.

Some family and friends wanted to get involved. Our

stable kind of evolved from there. All I’ve ever

wanted to offer was a cost-effective form of owning

racehorses. Today, we have more than 200 partners.”

Culver oversees the stable’s operations, farm re-

lationships and sale purchases. Hatzikoutelis, Dream

Team’s vice president, resides in Georgia and spear-

heads partnership sales, client relations and

marketing efforts. Both partners are lifelong Thor-

oughbred industry enthusiasts and they explain that

the bulk of their business thus far has stemmed

from passionate advocates spreading the word.

“Jim deserves a lot of credit,” said Hatzikoutelis,

who was introduced to horse racing by his father,

Steve, while growing up in Pennsylvania. “He has im-


Kostas Hatzikoutelis (left)and James Culver (right)try and enable people to

enjoy the sport with a mini-mal risk. In the middle isJohn Rio, Mucho Macho

Man’s breeder.

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DARETODream

DreamTeam_Florida Horse_template 9/5/12 1:39 PM

mersed himself in this business for the last 15 years.

What he started is very intriguing. The horse business

needs to find more people to get involved. Jim’s business

model does just that. We want the owner who can only af-

ford to invest in one percent of a horse. We want those

people to be a part of this game. Jim’s model works.

“What attracted me to Dream Team was Jim’s ap-

proach,” Hatzikoutelis added. “His willingness to share

is hard to find. We

want to keep owners

involved. A big compo-

nent of the model is

that it has to be affordable. We want to make it conven-

ient for people to get involved in the ownership ranks.

We want to offer a prince’s experience at a pauper’s

price. We are able to do that by not spending a lot of

money advertising what we are about. Most of our busi-

ness has come through word-of-mouth marketing.”

DUE DILIGENCE

The key to Dream Team’s success is acquiring

horses at prices that can offer value to the stable’s part-

ners. Culver says he rarely entertains going above

$85,000 to purchase a prospect. Culver prefers to focus

on yearling acquisitions so that he can implement

Dream Team’s program in developing racehorses.

“I believe two-year-olds can be pushed too hard too

early,” Culver said. “I

prefer to buy yearlings.

That way we can move

at our own pace. We

have had more success doing that.”

Dream Team retains 30 to 50 percent of every horse

in the stable.

“We believe we should have skin in the game,” said

Hatzikoutelis. “That is a key to our approach.”

Finding horses that fit the physical criteria and

budget can be a challenge, but Culver and his self-

trained eye zero in on candidates to add to the stable

while staying true to the disciplined system he crafted.

“Jim has tremendous discipline,” said Hatzikoutelis.

“If he has set a limit of $40,000 at a sale and the horse

hits $41,000 Jim is out. He will walk away. He sticks

to a formula and it works.

“Pedigrees are great,” he added, “but with robust

pedigrees come robust prices. We look for sound horses.

We know they are not all going to be perfect. A little

pedigree does help, but we place our focus on value.”

Culver developed his eye through years of experi-

ence and an appetite for industry knowledge.

“I started down this road about 12 years ago,” Cul-

ver said. “I read everything I could. I went to sales, I

hung around the racetrack and I asked a lot of ques-

tions. I go to sales with a team and I am still learning.

I don’t think anyone can know this business com-

pletely. There’s always something new to learn.”

Currently, Dream Team has 20 horses in its stable.

The stable’s trainers include Bill Mott, Dale Romans,

Bill White at Calder, Kathy Ritvo, Joshua Signs, Pat

Quick, Jeff Runco and Dallas Stewart.

“We try to do things the right way,” said Hatzik-


“We believe we should have skin in the game,” said Hatzikoutelis.“That is a key to our approach.”

Dream Team partners(above) enjoyed the rideof a lifetime through lastyear’s Triple Crown runwith Florida-bred MuchoMacho Man (at left).

James Culver and Kostas Hatzikoutelis are

offering ownership opportunities to Thoroughbred

enthusiasts while realizing personal dreams through

their Dream Team Racing Stable PHOTO CO

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outelis. “We understand working with recognizable names

in the industry will only help us achieve the desired results

we’re looking to offer to our partners. We work hard at

identifying where our horses will best fit and we place

them accordingly. We want our runners to be competitive.”

At sales, Culver will assemble a short list and then

seek counsel from trusted sources close to the stable.

“Up until a few years ago I traveled with a team,” said

Culver. “These days I do most of the legwork by myself

and then I’ll ask Dale Romans to look at them for us. His

support and encouragement is a big vote of confidence. We

get a lot of different looks from trusted eyes and trainers.”

THE BIG HORSEDream Team’s Ocala roots trace back to the first

horse to carry Dream Team’s silks. John and Carole Rio

of Ocala’s Rosegrove Thoroughbred Farm have been

breaking and training Dream Team’s young runners

since the beginning.

“The very first horse I bought was from the Rios. They

have been great,” Culver said. “Their hands-on approach

has played an important role in developing our young

horses and preparing them for their racing careers.”

Dream Team partners enjoyed the ride of a lifetime

through last year’s Triple Crown run with Florida-bred

Mucho Macho Man. Owned in partnership with Reeves

Thoroughbred Racing and the Rios, Mucho Macho Man

is truly a Dream Team success story.

“The Rios told me they were breaking a promising

Macho Uno colt they bred,” said Culver. “They said he

was training very well and he had a huge stride. They

thought he was special, so we bought in.”

Mucho Macho Man has delivered on that promise.

Second in a pair of Grade 2 stakes—the Nashua and the

Remsen Stakes—as a juvenile, Mucho Macho Man

stamped his ticket to the 2011 Kentucky Derby (G1) with

a win in the Risen Star Stakes (G2) and a third in the

Louisiana Derby (G2) at three.

“I remember the Remsen very well,” Culver said. “We

were closing on To Honor and Serve. If that race had been

1¼ miles, I think we would have beaten that horse. I was

real quiet at dinner that night because all I could think

about was that we had a shot to win the Kentucky Derby.”

Hatzikoutelis also remembers dinner the night of the

Remsen. Instead of celebrating a second-place finish in

an important graded stakes race, the partners, now a

table of hushed dreamers, quietly entertained visions of

Churchill Downs on the First Saturday in May.

“We were supposed to be celebrating,” Hatzikoutelis

said. “Once Jim shared with us why he was so quiet,

everyone at dinner went quiet just thinking ahead to

what might be in our future. It hit us that people work

their entire lives in this business just to be in the position

we were in. It was almost unreal.”

For Culver, the architect behind Dream Team, Hatzik-

outelis and all the partners, the journey only got better.

“Derby day was surreal,” Culver explained. “Just to

walk over with the horse in front of that large, enthusi-

astic crowd left me speechless. I can’t even begin to de-

scribe the feeling.

“The impact Mucho Macho Man had on strangers

during Derby week was amazing to me,” he added. “One

day there was a little girl sitting on a fence and she was

so taken by the name on his saddle cloth. They took pic-

tures of him everywhere we went. I’ve never seen any-

thing like it. The whole experience flew by.”

Mucho Macho Man carried Florida’s banner and the

Dream Team colors to a game third-place finish behind

Animal Kingdom and Nehro in the Kentucky Derby under

Rajiv Maragh. He closed out his run through the classics

with a 6th-place finish in the Preakness Stakes (G1) and a

7th-place finish in the Belmont Stakes (G1).

“There are so many feel-good stories attached to

Mucho Macho Man,” said Hatzikoutelis. “From his

trainer, Kathy Ritvo, and what she overcame in her life

(heart transplant in 2008) to the horse and his humble

roots. All of the stories just fed our experience and

made it that much richer for all involved. My father


“For us, it’s about the connections. We must have had 50 people in the winner’s circle with Mucho Macho Man at

Gulfstream Park last winter. “At the Belmont Stakes we had 60 partners there with us.”—Kostas Hatzikoutelis

DARE TODream

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even traveled from Greece to take it all in with us.

“Mucho Macho Man really started the ball rolling for

us,” he added. “I had nearly 8,000 bracelets made that we

handed out to Mucho Macho Man’s fans. Today, I am down

to 100. Some of these popular horses are like rock stars,

thanks in large part to the following they generate through

social media. We definitely shared the ride with his fans.

Mucho Macho Man was the catalyst for making Dream

Team a defined name in the Thoroughbred industry.”

Recently, Dream Team sold its share in Mucho

Macho Man to Reeves Thoroughbred Racing but retain

a stake in the horse through the end of this year. Winner

of the Sunshine Millions Classic at Gulfstream Park in

January, Mucho Macho Man has added wins in the

Gulfstream Park Handicap (G2) and most recently the

Suburban Handicap (G1) at Belmont Park.

“We’re certainly hoping he continues his tremendous

success,” said Hatzikoutelis. “We want to get him to the

Breeders’ Cup. He appears to be peaking at the right

time. One thing is certain: This horse has been a blast

for us. He is truly a special horse.”

THE PILLARS

Dream Team’s blue and white silks clearly define the

pillars that reflect the stable’s mission with three bold

stars on each sleeve. The stars represent: The Horse,

The Partner and The Stable.

“We have met many wonderful people through Dream

Team,” said Hatzikoutelis. “Our partners mean everything

to us. That’s why we emblazon the stars on our silks.

The stars are not just for us but for our partners.”

Culver and Hatzikoutelis recognize the heights they’ve

already scaled can be difficult to experience again. The

desire to return to the stage reserved for the industry’s elite

fuels their passion and pursuit of the next big horse.

“Were committed to the success of our partners,” said

Hatzikoutelis. “We’re both horse racing junkies. We love

this industry. Getting to the Derby was a big dream. Now

we want to get back there again.”

While the Kentucky Derby experience is forever

etched in his memory, Culver will never forget the

stretch run of the Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds.

“I was standing near the eighth-pole when Mucho

Macho Man had about a one-length lead,” Culver said. “I

ran the length of the stretch with him. I kept telling my-

self, ‘we’re going to the Derby, we’re going to the Derby.’”

With any luck, more memorable afternoons at the

racetrack are on the horizon for Dream Team’s partners.

“For us, it’s about the connections,” said Hatzikoutelis.

“We must have had 50 people in the winner’s circle with

Mucho Macho Man at Gulfstream Park last winter. “At the

Belmont Stakes we had 60 partners there with us. About

an hour before the Belmont, we won a $10,000 claiming

race at another track and all of us were high-fiving each

other and celebrating. It’s the reason we do this. Our com-

petitive natures kick in and winning a race, any race, and

sharing it with people is what this game is all about.” �

Hatzikoutelis(right) and Culver(second from left)with some DreamTeam partners.

“Derby day was surreal. Just to walk over with the horse in front of that large, enthusiastic crowd left me speechless. I can’t even begin to describe the feeling.”—James Culver


DreamTeam_Florida Horse_template 9/13/12 11:30 AM

FLORIDA DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE AND CONSUMER SERVICESAdam H. Putnam, Commissioner 850-617-7341 • Fax 850-617-7331

e-mail: [email protected] S. Calhoun • 416 Mayo Building, Tallahassee, FL 32399

FLORIDA THOROUGHBRED BREEDERS’AND OWNERS’ ASSOCIATION

Lonny T. Powell, CEO and Executive Vice President801 SW 60th Ave. • Ocala, FL 34474 • 352-629-2160Fax: 352-629-3603 • www.ftboa.com • [email protected]

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www.facebook.com/thefloridahorse

Florida...the Best State for Business

BreedLikeRabbits.qxd:Layout 1 4/12/12 3:25 PM Page 2

By BROCK SHERIDAN

It is difficult to crown the king of the South Florida 2-year-olds after just the first of three open divisions inthe Florida Stallion Stakes , but at the end of the six furlong Dr. Fager Division at Calder Casino and RaceCourse July 28, Two T’s At Two B certainly gave reason to begin pricing thrones.

The second divisions of the Florida Stallion Stakes was run at seven furlongs at Calder Aug. 25 with the$125,000-estimated Susan’s Girl for 2-year-old fillies and the open Affirmed Di-vision, also with an estimated $125,000 purse. The Florida Stallion Stakesconcludes Oct. 13 with the My Dear Girl Stakes for 2-year-old fil-lies and the open In Reality Division, both offering $300,000-estimated purses at 11⁄16 miles on the main track.


Undefeated in three career starts Two T’s At Two B takes the Dr. Fager

Division of the Florida Stallion Stakes

StallionStakes_Florida Horse_template 9/10/12 11:55 AM


COAD

Y PH

OTOSTwo T’s At Two B won in

almost effortless fashionas he crossed the wire in

front by 33⁄4 lengths.


Sent off as the odds-on choice with 3-5 odds, Two

T’s At Two B did not disappoint in an almost effortless

victory for owner-breeder Gilbert G. Campbell of Tyn-

gsboro, Mass., and trainer Kathleen O’Connell. Two T’s

At Two B broke alertly from post four and went right to

the lead under jockey Eduardo Nunez, blazing the first

quarter-mile in 22.09 seconds. Nunez was then able to

settle the Florida-bred son of Untuttable into a more

moderate pace of :45.75 for the half and :58.39 for five

furlongs while maintaining the lead by about a length

ahead of pressure from 9-1 third choice Cat Five Hurri-

cane in second and long shot Billos Boy in third.

“[Two T’s At Two B] wanted to go right to the lead, and

I wasn’t going to fight it,” Nunez said following the race.

Around the far turn, Two T’s At Two B began to draw off

somewhat and by the top of the stretch, the bay colt had in-

creased his margin to three lengths. Nunez did nothing but

let the young colt run and he galloped down the stretch to

eventually win by three and three-quarters lengths, stopping

the clock in 1:11.68. Dixie High rallied to get up for second

while Billos Boy hung on for third. Joshua’s Compromise

was fourth followed by Cat Five Hurricane and Wardroom.

“When [Two T’s At Two B] came to the three-eighths

pole, I asked him to take off,” Nunez said. “He opened

up his lead, and when I saw that no one was coming to

us, I eased up on him. Everything he does, he does like

a professional horse.”

Two T’s At Two B is now undefeated in three career

starts, having also won a maiden race and the $100,000

Frank Gomez Memorial Stakes, both races at Calder in May

and June respectively. In those three races Two T’s At Two

B has been headed only once—when just a bit away from

the early lead in the Gomez, and he has now moved into six

figures with $132,135 in career earnings. He has now won

his three races by a combined 16 and three-quarters lengths.

Two T’s At Two B returned $3.20 for a $2 win ticket

and $2.20 to place and $2.10 to show. Dixie High paid

$2.80 and $2.20 while Billos Boy had the highest return

on a $2 straight investment, paying $3.40 to show.

CANDY CODED UPSET IN DESERT VIXEN

If the Dr. Fager Division of the Florida Stallion

Stakes was a conformation of Two T’s At Two B as the

early standout among Calder Casino and Race Course

juvenile males, the Desert Vixen Division was a can of

worms that had been opened

by Candy Coded Kisses in

defining the best of the young South Florida fillies.

While Two T’s At Two B won at 3-5 odds, Candy

Coded Kisses went to the post in the Desert Vixen at

odds of more than 24-1 under jockey Cecelio Penalba.

It is just about there that this dissimilarities end. Al-

though Candy Coded Kisses did not get the lead out of

the gate quite as quick as her male counterpart, she did

break well from post seven in the Desert Vixen, but was

a length behind pacesetter Talent Passion after the first

furlong in a swift :22.15. The determined Candy Coded

Kisses was bound for the front however, which she had

after a half-mile in a more moderate :46.08. At the top


The Desert Vixen Division of the Florida Stallion Stakes wasa can of worms that had been opened by Candy Coded Kissesin defining the best of the young South Florida fillies.

FLORIDAFLORIDA Stallion Stakes


of the stretch, the bay filly extended her lead to three

lengths then drew away under the urging of Penalba, hit-

ting the wire four lengths in front of favored Putyour-

dreamsawy in second and So Blessed in third.

“I was confident going into the race and the fact she

won doesn’t really surprise me,” winning jockey Ce-

cilio Penalba said. “But I think a lot of people are prob-

ably surprised right now. If she can be on the lead, the

plan was to be on the lead,” Penalba said. “But that other

filly went, and my filly was happy to put herself in that

early position. And then, when I asked her to go, she

did it very easy.”

Candy Coded Kisses returned $51.40, $13.00, and

$5.00 for her shocking victory. Putyourdreamsaway paid

$3.00 and $2.80 when finishing second, while third-

place finisher So Blessed returned $4.40.

Saturday’s victory was the second straight for Candy

Coded Kisses, who broke her maiden by a neck on July

6 in a $50,000 maiden-claimer against male rivals. The

daughter of Omega Code has a lifetime bankroll of

$60,370. Candy Coded Kisses is trained by Easton DeS-

ouza who co-owns the filly with Elsaida DeSouza.

Candy Coded Kisses was bred in Florida by Carlos

Rafael and the Briggs and Cromartie Bloodstock

Agency of Ocala.

The Florida Stallion Stakes culminates with the

$300,000-estimated In Reality and My Dear Girl divi-

sions on the October 13 Festival of the Sun card. �


Candy Coded Kisseswon the Desert Vixen Division. It was the sec-ond straight victory forthe Florida-bred filly



he Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’Association announced in April an agreementwith Calder/Churchill Downs Inc. and the Florida

Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association forthis year’s Florida Stallion Stakes Series at Calder. The lucrative series for two-year-olds was created in

1982 to benefit the Florida Thoroughbred Breeding in-dustry. The popular series features three legs—an opendivision and a fillies division—run in July, August andconcluding in October for juveniles by Florida stallionsregistered with the FTBOA.The initial legs carry purses of $75,000 each for a total

of $150,000. Purses are increased to $125,000 for thesecond legs, totaling $250,000. Purses for the series fi-

nale swell to $300,000 each for a $600,000 total. Includ-ing Nominator Awards and $5,000 FSS Supplements forfillies (15) and colts (15) totaling an estimated $85,000,the estimated purse payments total $1,160,000.The FTBOA, FHBPA and Caldereach contributed to the program.

“I believe all parties involved recognize the impor-tance of the Florida Stallion Stakes to Florida’s ownersand breeders,” said Lonny Powell, FTBOA CEO and ex-ecutive vice president. “The juvenile program at Calder isone of the strongest in the country year in and year out,and we’re looking forward with great anticipation to thissummer’s renewal of the Florida Stallion Stakes Series.I’d like to thank the FHBPA, Calder and the members ofmy Racing Advisory Committee for assisting us in bring-ing some continuity and stability to the program.”“The Florida Stallion Stakes have long been a tradi-tion here at Calder that showcases our two-year-olds forthe whole country,” FHBPA president Phil Combest said.“Many champions have come out of the series and we atthe FHBPA are pleased that the track, breeders andhorsemen came together to support an important cor-nerstone of South Florida racing.”The first legs of the series are slated for July 28. The two

$75,000 races are the Desert Vixen Division for fillies andthe Dr. Fager Division for colts. Both races will be run at sixfurlongs. The second legs—the $125,000 Susan’s Girl Di-

vision and the Affirmed Divisions will be run Aug. 25 duringCalder’s Juvenile Showcase program. The races will becontested at seven furlongs. The FSS finales are set for theFestival of the Sun card on Oct. 13. The series concludeswith the $300,000 My Dear Girl Division and the $300,000In Reality Division. Both races are at 1 1/16 miles.2012 FLORIDA STALLIONSTAKES SERIES SCHEDULEJULY 28

Florida Stallion Stakes-$75,000 estimated Desert Vixen DivisionFlorida Stallion Stakes-$75,000 estimated Dr. Fager Division

AUG. 25Florida Stallion Stakes $125,000 estimated Susan’s Girl DivisionFlorida Stallion Stakes $125,000 estimated Affirmed Division

OCT. 13Florida Stallion Stakes $300,000 estimated My Dear Girl DivisionFlorida Stallion Stakes $300,000 estimated In Reality Division

In recent years, Fred and Jane Brei’s Jacks or BetterFarm has dominated FSS proceedings. Fort Loudoncapped off a three-race win streak last year when he wonthe In Reality Division while stablemate Awesome Bellewon the My Dear Girl Division the same day. Both ofthose runners are sired by Journeyman Stud stallionAwesome of Course, as is Redbud Road, who annexedthe Desert Vixen Division last year.The 2011 Florida Stallion Series also marked the third

consecutive year that Jacks or Better Farm and trainerStanley Gold swept either the open or fillies division ofthe series. They combined to win the fillies series in 2010with Awesome Feather, also by Awesome of Course, andswept the open division in 2009 with Jackson Bend.Another recent notable sweep was Harold Queen’s

Big Drama, who swept the 2008 Florida Stallion StakesSeries. Big Drama was conditioned by David Fawkes.In addition to the FSS and the lucrative purses for

Florida-bred juveniles, there are plenty of other substan-tial earning opportunities for Florida-breds during theCalder meet which runs through Aug. 31. The Tropical

Rewarding ExcellenceThe Florida Stallion Stakes at

Calder Keeps on Rolling

continued on page 43

AcceleratedEarningPower2Sprds_Florida Horse_template 9/6/12 6:38 AM


Advert isement

JIM LISA PHOTO


FTBOA:THE VOICE OF FLORIDA’S THOROUGHBRED INDUSTRY

Since its inception, the Florida ThoroughbredBreeders’ and Owners’ Association has been re-sponsible for Florida-bred registration and adminis-tration and distribution of the industry’s incentiveawards program, which encourages individuals tobreed, train and race Thoroughbreds in Florida.

The FTBOA is dedicated to ensuring a pros-perous business climate for the industry. WithFlorida’s low taxes and smart growth policies, bas-ing a Thoroughbred operation in the SunshineState makes perfect business sense. For more in-formation, contact the FTBOA at (352) 629-2160.

2012 FLORIDA-BRED STAKES PROGRAM AT CALDERDate SEX AGE DISTANCE SURFACE PURSE RACE Definition FTBOA Supplement5/12 Fillies 3 Yo’s 6 fur. Dirt 75,000 French Village FSS 20,000 FTBOA5/12 Open 3 Yo’s 6 fur. Dirt 75,000 In Summation FSS 20,000 FTBOA

Preview Summit of Speed6/9 Open 3 Yo’s 6 fur. Dirt 75,000 Unbridled 10,000 FTBOA6/9 Open 3 & Up 6 fur. Dirt 75,000 Ponche Hdcp. 10,000 FTBOA6/9 F & M 3 & Up 6 fur. Dirt 75,000 U Can Do It H. 10,000 FTBOA6/9 Fillies 3 yo’s 6 fur. Dirt 75,000 Leave Me Alone 10,000 FTBOA6/30 Fillies 2 Yo’s 5 1/2 fur. Dirt 100,000 J J’s Dream FS Pref 45,000 FTBOA6/30 Open 2 Yo’s 5 1/2 fur. Dirt 100,000 Frank Gomez Mem. FS Pref 45,000 FTBOA7/7 Open 3 & Up 5 fur. Turf 75,000 Bob Umphrey (T) Sprint7/21 Fillies 3 Yo’s 1m 70 yds. Dirt 75,000 Three Ring FSS 20,000 FTBOA7/21 Open 3 Yo’s 1m 70 yds. Dirt 75,000 El Kaiser FSS 20,000 FTBOA7/28 Fillies 2 Yo’s 6Fur Dirt E. 75,000 Desert Vixen FSS7/28 Open 2Yo’s 6Fur Dirt E. 75,000 Dr. Fager FSS8/18 Fillies 3 Yo’s 7 1/2 fur. Turf 75,000 Crystal Rail FSS 20,000 FTBOA8/18 Open 3 Yo’s 7 1/2 fur. Turf 75,000 Naked Greed FSS 20,000 FTBOA

Juvenile Showcase8/25 Fillies 2 Yo’s 7 fur. Dirt E.125,000 Susan’s Girl FSS8/25 Open 2 Yo’s 7 fur. Dirt E.125,000 Affirmed FSS8/25 Fillies 2 Yo’s 1 mile Dirt 75,000 Lindsay Frolic FS Pref 20,000 FTBOA8/25 Open 2 Yo’s 1 mile Dirt 75,000 Seacliff FS Pref 20,000 FTBOA8/25 Fillies 2 Yo’s 5 fur. Turf 75,000 Catcharisingstar 20,000 FTBOA8/25 Open 2 Yo’s 5 fur. Turf 75,000 Fasig Tipton (T) Dash 20,000 FTBOA



meet begins Sept. 1 and runs through Nov. 30 this year.New at Calder this year is a Starter Series, which offers a

combined $200,000 in purse money along with a $5,000bonus to the trainer of the points-leader at the completion ofthe series. The four-race series began in April and runsthrough May 26. It attracted a total of 74 nominations. “The Starter Series has generated a great deal of interest

from our horsemen and we’re thrilled with the positive responsewe have received,” Racing Secretary Mike Anifantis said. “Weexpect large and competitive fields for each of the four races.”The four-race series is restricted to 4-year-olds and up that

have started for $20,000 or less in 2011 or 2012 and will berun at progressively longer distances while alternating be-tween the main track and the turf course. Bisnath Parbhoo, the top trainer at the 2010-2011 Tropical

Meet, leads the way with seven horses nominated to theStarter Series, six of which run in the silks of the 2011 CalderMeet leading owner Sherry Parbhoo. Two-time leading ownerFrank C. Calabrese, winner of the 2011 and the 2010-11 Trop-ical titles, has five horses nominated to the Starter Series,three for trainer Kirk Ziadie and two for Nick Canani. Other trainers of note that have horses nominated to the

Calder Starter Series include the northern-based outfits ofVickie Foley, Jamie Ness, Jason Servis, and Peter Walder,along with longtime Calder stalwarts Dave Fawkes, Bill Ka-plan, and Stanley Gold. A $5,000 bonus will be awarded to the trainer of the horse

that accumulates the most points throughout the series, withpoints allocated to the first six finishers in each race.

THE CALDER STARTER SERIES SCHEDULE:

APRIL 14Seven Furlongs—Dirt

APRIL 28One Mile—Turf

MAY 12One Mile and Seventy Yards—Dirt

MAY 26One and One-Sixteenth Miles—Turf

Advert isement

FLORIDA THOROUGHBRED BREEDERS’ AND OWNERS’ ASSOCIATION

Lonny T. Powell, CEO and Executive Vice President 801 SW 60th Ave. • Ocala, FL 34474 • 352-629-2160Fax: 352-629-3603 • www.ftboa.com • [email protected]

www.facebook.com/thefloridahorseFLORIDA DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

AND CONSUMER SERVICESAdam H. Putnam, Commissioner • 850-617-7341 • Fax 850-617-7331

e-mail: [email protected] S. Calhoun • 416 Mayo Building, Tallahassee, FL 32399

Date SEX AGE DISTANCE SURFACEPURSE RACE Definition FTBOA SupplementPreview Festival of the Sun9/15 Fillies 3 Yo’s 1 1/16 m. Turf 75,000 Judy’s Red Shoes S. FSS 20,000 FTBOA9/15 Open 3 Yo’s 1 1/16 m. Turf 75,000 Needles Stakes FSS 20,000 FTBOA9/15 Fillies 2 Yo’s 1m 70 yds. Dirt 100,000 Brave Raj Stakes FSS Pref 35,000 FTBOA9/15 Open 2 Yo’s 1m 70 yds. Dirt 100,000 Foolish Pleasure Stakes FSS Pref 35,000 FTBOA9/29 Fillies 2 Yo’s 6 fur. Dirt 100,000 Cassidy S. FS Pref 35,000 FTBOA9/29 Open 2 Yo’s 6 fur. Dirt 100,000 Birdonthewire S. FS Pref 35,000 FTBOA

Festival of the Sun10/13 Open 3 Yo’s 1 1/8 m. Turf 75,000 Tropical Derby 10,000 FTBOA10/13 Fillies 3 Yo’s 1 m. Turf 75,000 Francis A. Genter 10,000 FTBOA10/13 Fillies 2 Yo’s 1 1/16 m. Dirt E.350,000 My Dear Girl FSS10/13 Open 2 Yo’s 1 1/16 m. Dirt E.350,000 In Reality FSS

Florida Million11/10 Fillies 2 Yo’s 1 1/16 m. Turf 100,000 John Franks Juvenile Fillies Turf State 50,000 FTBOA11/10 Open 2 Yo’s 1 1/16 m. Turf 100,000 Arthur I. Appleton Juvenile Turf State 50,000 FTBOA11/10 Fillies 2 Yo’s 7 fur. Dirt 125,000 Joe O Farrell Juvenile Fillies State 50,000 FTBOA11/10 Open 2 Yo’s 7 fur. Dirt 125,000 Jack Price Juvenile State 50,000 FTBOA11/10 Open 3 & Up 6 fur. Dirt 125,000 Jack Dudley Sprint H. State 50,000 FTBOA11/10 Open 3 & Up 1 1/8 m. Turf 125,000 Bonnie Heath Turf Cup State 50,000 FTBOA11/10 F & M 3 & Up 1 1/16 m. Dirt 150,000 Elmer Heubeck Distaff H. State 50,000 FTBOA11/10 Open 3 & Up 1 1/8 m. Dirt 150,000 Carl G. Rose Classic State 50,000 FTBOA

FTBOA Racing/Stakes Committee: Brent Fernung, Chair,Phil Matthews, George Russell, Fred Brei, Lonny Powell




Turbulent Descent tops Florida four in New York’s Ballerina

TurbulentDescent topped a Florida-bredsuperfecta in New York as she won the Ballerina

Stakes at Saratoga Race Course Aug. 24 over fellow Florida natives Der-win’s Star in second, All Due Respect in third and Belle of the Hall in fourth.It was the fourth career Grade 1 victory for Turbulent Descent who wasmaking her first start for her new owners and trainer.Let go as the odds-on choice at 2-5, the chestnut filly was purchased pri-

vately by Michael Tabor, John Magnier and Derrick Smith after winningthe $72,000 Desert Stormer Handicap at Betfair Hollywood Park on Jun. 17and was subsequently sent to trainer Todd Pletcher’s barn in New York fromMike Puype’s base in Southern California.It was under Puype that Turbulent Descent won the 2011 Test Stakes (G1)

at Saratoga, the Santa Anita Oaks (G1), the Beaumont Stakes (G2) atKeeneland and the 2010 Hollywood Starlet (G1) and $100,000 MoccasinStakes at Hollywood Park before going to Pletcher for her eighth win fromjust 12 career starts.

By BROCK SHERIDAN

Ballerina_Superfecta_Florida Horse_template 9/6/12 6:51 AM


CO

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However, the Ballerina was not the easiest of wins

for the 4-year-old filly. At the start of the seven furlong

Ballerina, Turbulent Descent, breaking from post five,

bumped with number four Nicole H at the start before

being settled some three lengths behind early leader All

Due Respect. The 20-1 long shot quickly put two lengths

between herself and Island

Bound on the rail, Nicole H be-

tween horses and Turbulent De-

scent on the outside as they went

the first two furlongs in an hon-

est :23.02 and the first half-mile

in an equally calculated :45.33.

Island Bound could not keep up around the turn as Tur-

bulent Descent and Nicole H ranged up to catch All Due

Respect coming out of the bend. Not far into the stretch,

Nicole H dropped back while Turbulent Descent took the

lead and began to pull away from Nicole H. Turbulent De-

scent went on to win by more than a length as Derwin’s

Star had rallied from fifth to get up for the place. All Due

Respect fought hard down the stretch and kept the show

spot. The final time for the seven furlongs was 1:22.13.

“Turning for home [Turbulent Descent] kind of

bumped with the horse inside of us and she got into the

bridle a little bit earlier than I hoped for,” jockey John

Velazquez said after the race. “But she ran a great race.”

The $300,000 first-place check

allowed Turbulent Descent to join

the Florida-bred fraternity of mil-

lionaires as she now has a career

bankroll of $1,201,640. Pletcher

also made note of her career ac-

complishments after the race.

“You’re talking about a filly that’s a Grade 1 win-

ner at [ages] two, three and four and that’s pretty rare,”

Pletcher said.

The Ballerina was a “Win and You’re In” race, giv-

ing Turbulent Descent an automatic berth in the Breed-

ers’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (G1) to be run at Santa

Anita Nov. 2. �

SaratogaSuperfecta

“You’re talking about a fillythat’s a Grade 1 winner at

[ages] two, three and four andthat’s pretty rare.”

—trainer Todd Pletcher


Turbulent Descent (inside) bests three other

Florida-breds for an allFlorida Superfecta



The following list includes currently active, deceased, and pensioned stallions, with racing results updated through September 4, 2012. Statistics provided by The Jockey Club Information Systems Inc.

Leading Florida Sires

PUT IT BACKWILDCAT HEIR CHAPEL ROYALNA Stk Gr Leading Leading Yrlg Yrlg 2yo 2yo

Name Sire Name Farm Name Earnings Strtrs Wnrs SW's Wins SW's Earnings Earner Earnings Sold Avg Sold Avg

Wildcat Heir Forest Wildcat Journeyman Stud $3,325,922 164 87 5 5 1 $3,405,559 Derwin’s Star $233,000 24 $26,458 16 $47,813

Put It Back Honour and Glory Bridlewood Farm $2,929,345 177 81 7 10 4 $3,152,371 Yara $292,250 32 $17,556 28 $42,679

Chapel Royal Montbrook Signature Stallions $2,147,187 192 85 3 3 0 $2,159,171 Dolly Peach $121,875 17 $14,629 7 $15,500

With Distinction Storm Cat Hartley/DeRenzo $2,124,443 146 78 0 0 0 $2,129,197 Canuletmedowneasy $138,930 21 $26,200 22 $25,432

Full Mandate A.P. Indy Hartley/DeRenzo $2,064,914 86 49 1 2 1 $2,094,771 Ron the Greek $1,022,932 2 $1,600 3 $20,500

Repent Louis Quatorze Cloverleaf Farms II $1,879,063 159 63 2 4 0 $1,885,242 Lotta Lovin $124,914 9 $16,078 7 $20,386

Leroidesanimaux (BRZ) Candy Stripes Stonewall Farm Ocala $1,471,978 81 36 4 5 1 $1,647,874 Aquitania $130,000 21 $37,293 5 $125,400

Halo’s Image Halo Deceased $1,548,500 60 29 1 2 1 $1,548,500 Turbo Compressor $677,180 4 $5,675 3 $12,167

Graeme Hall Dehere Winding Oaks Farm $1,418,180 92 40 0 0 0 $1,418,312 Duke of Mischief $212,000 12 $19,342 14 $29,464

Value Plus Unbridled’s Song Stonewall Farm Ocala $1,307,305 101 47 0 0 0 $1,408,967 Sweet Jody $67,329 22 $10,582 6 $33,750

Leading Sires_Florida Horse_template 9/13/12 3:55 PM



Leading Florida Juvenile Sires

WILDCAT HEIRPUT IT BACK HIGH COTTONNA Stk Gr Leading Leading Yrlg Yrlg 2yo 2yo


Put It Back Honour and Glory Bridlewood Farm $549,179 24 12 3 3 1 $549,179 Putyourdreamsaway $115,975 32 17,556.25 28 $42,678

Wildcat Heir Forest Wildcat Journeyman Stud $320,414 26 7 0 0 0 $320,414 Heir Kitty $66,000 24 26,458.33 16 $47,812

High Cotton Dixie Union Ocala Stud $308,867 15 5 1 1 1 $308,867 Spurious Precision $168,000 9 26,222.22 19 $34,500

With Distinction Storm Cat Hartley/DeRenzo $224,680 18 7 0 0 0 $224,680 Too Fast to Pass $51,420 21 26,200.00 22 $25,431

Bring the Heat In Excess (IRE) Ward Ranch $197,176 11 4 1 1 0 $197,176 Rip Roarin Ritchie $70,645 2 $40,000

Doneraile Court Seattle Slew Stonnewall Farm Ocala $184,752 17 6 1 1 1 $188,618 Scherer Magic $110,400 11 10,465.83 1 $20,000

Untuttable Unbridled Stonehedge Farm South $162,365 5 2 1 2 0 $162,365 Two T’s At Two B $144,385

Value Plus Unbridled’s Song Stonewall Farm Ocala $162,133 14 4 0 0 0 $162,133 Baby Princess $48,000 22 10,581.82 6 $33,750

Chapel Royal Montbrook Signature Stallions $154,210 16 6 0 0 0 $159,712 Mr Rodriguez $43,000 17 14,629.41 7 $15,500

Cowtown Cat Distorted Humor Journeyman Stud $147,474 15 5 0 0 0 $150,123 Calgary Cat $49,499 25 17,000.00 22 $43,068


Leading Florida Freshman Sires

CIRCULAR QUAYCOWTOWN CAT GOT THE LAST LAUGHNA Stk Gr Leading Leading Yrlg Yrlg 2yo 2yo


Cowtown Cat Distorted Humor Journeyman Stud $147,474 15 5 0 0 0 $150,123 Calgary Cat $49,499 25 $17,000 22 $43,068

Circular Quay Thunder Gulch Journeyman Stud $99,073 12 5 0 0 0 $99,073 Jewel in the Sky $43,313 14 $13,014 19 $36,826

Got the Last Laugh Distorted Humor McKathan Brothers $84,835 5 3 0 0 0 $84,835 Giggle Fit $27,000 4 $5,625 4 $12,375

The Green Monkey Forestry Hartley/DeRenzo $80,085 5 1 0 0 0 $80,085 Kinz Funky Monkey $64,400 1 $2,000 3 $48,667

Gottcha Gold Coronado’s Quest Ocala Stud $70,750 10 1 0 0 0 $70,750 My Daddy’s Dollars $22,530 7 $7,386 13 $26,769

Keyed Entry Honour and Glory Bridlewood Farm $61,429 10 1 0 0 0 $61,429 Hyena $48,000 17 $5,918 16 $33,313

Belgravia Mr. Greeley Hartley/DeRenzo $17,740 4 1 0 0 0 $17,740 Bel Dancing $10,400 16 $12,331 13 $15,038

Indy Wind A.P. Indy Journeyman Stud $4,120 5 0 0 0 0 $4,120 Rose Indy $2,040 4 $7,875 4 $12,500

Leading Sires_Florida Horse_template 9/13/12 3:56 PM


breeder’s awards. But many of us were waitingfor the next shoe to drop, when some tracks fig-ured a way to have their casinos, and slots, butnot have the investment and demands of live rac-ing at all or curtail it significantly. That is exactlywhat is happening with barrel racing. These bar-rel racing rogue permit holders are trying to cre-ate a venue by which thoroughbred racing canbe eliminated. They pay very small purses, havea very small number of horses to provide spacefor and still qualify for their other forms of morelucrative gaming. It is an ugly thing that is hap-pening.

I want everyone to realize two other pointsthat are very important about this diabolicalprocess. These people are doing everything theycan do to delegitimize the now legitimate, andtraditional, horsemen’s groups. That is theFTBOA and the FHBPA [Florida Horsemen’sBenevolent and Protective Association]. Wehave always been the groups that the racetrackshad to enter in to agreement with for breeder’sincentives and purses. The Gretna people wantto create their own “cozy” horse groups, basi-cally run by them, which they will supposedlynegotiate with, and by doing so cut us out of theprocess. And I don’t mean the barrel racingprocess, I mean Thoroughbred racing!

The second point I want to make is this.Where have the race tracks been on this issue?The silence has been deafening. They don’t vis-ibly take a stand but they are just waiting to seewhat happens. As one high ranking racing offi-cial said to me, “Hey, we like it. We like the flex-ibility it could provide.” This should send a chilldown the spine of any individual or organiza-tion truly dedicated to live thoroughbred racingin Florida.

TFH: What do you see as some of thelarger challenges and opportunities aheadfor the FTBOA?

PM: I think our members create and providemany of their own opportunities by breedinggreat horses that continue to consistently andsuccessfully compete on a world stage. Weshould all be incredibly proud of the product thatis turned out by the people of this state. We needto work as an association to protect the pastachievements and continue to strive for more.We need to work toward an equitable solutionwith Advance Deposit Wagering and to have aseat at the table when destination resort casinosbecome a reality, we need to be able to producequality and economically rewarding racing inMarion County as the other tracks contract theirdates as they are trying to do.

The challenges are many. The economy maybe our greatest challenge and one that we havethe least control over, so we must focus on thosethat we can influence. I’ve already mentioned thebarrel racing debacle. I mentioned ADW as anopportunity, which ultimately it will be, but in themeantime it is a struggle, certainly a challenge.

You know, unfortunately, there is a long list ofchallenges to our industry. That is why strength,vibrancy and relevance need to be key focalpoints of this association. We are and must bemore than “just an administrator of BreedersAwards.” It is our responsibility to also lead, fa-cilitate, advocate and otherwise promote theFlorida thoroughbred industry.

Brock, let me digress for a minute. There are many in our membership who

speak to one topic only; increasing our breeder’sawards. On one level, I think that is fair, it shouldbe a major priority. The higher they can be thebetter. Who in their right-mind would ever thinkdifferently? It allows present breeders more po-tential to get more money and it provides addedincentive for more people to come to Florida tobreed their horses.

So what I think amajor challenge is; is toeducate our membershipabout how that can hap-pen. As I said, we don’texist in a bubble. We area very unique industrythat few people under-stand and, unfortunately,fewer are embracingevery year, referring tothe fan and owner base.So let’s couple that withwhere the money comes

from. It comes from the handle and the slot ma-chine and card room revenue at the racetracks.Therefore, it is absolutely imperative to protectthese sources; our only sources of income.

To do that, we need relevance. We need tobe relevant to the legislature. We need to showthem on both a professional and unified basisthat we are a large and vital part of the econ-omy in Florida and that we are a significantgrass-roots voting bloc. So that we can per-suade them that we need help with immigra-tion, taxation, workman’s comp law, ADW,awards flexibility, etc. We need to be relevant

to the state, to the people of the state, so thatthey see us as a vital industry, not simply thesport of kings or a rich man’s hobby as so manyperceive We need to be strong and relevant tobe able to negotiate with the other stake hold-ers in the industry, negotiate positions that pre-serve racing dates and as strong a percentageof handle and other revenues as possible to-ward our trust fund, our breeder’s awards,purses and our future.

It is this relevance that is so important. Iwould argue it is more important now than ever.Gretna and other gaming interests want to claimwe are irrelevant; that our time has come andgone. They want to write us off as being unableto get beyond the in-fighting; that we shouldn’thave a place at the negotiating table.

To counter this andachieve our goals weneed to be the wholepackage. Good legalcounsel, good lobbyist,strong and savvy CEO,hardworking board andofficers and a unifiedmembership. This ishow this Associationprotects and forwardsthe interests of its mem-bers.

We must do all ofthese things. I’m afraidit is naïve and totally un-realistic to think that theFTBOA should consistof a bean counter in theback room that reaches

in to a pot of money and sends out breeder’sawards. The pot will quickly dry up under suchlimited vision. There are people working veryhard, every day, through their selfish interests,trying to dry that pot up. Many of our mem-bers realize this and are enthusiastic and fo-cused on moving forward in a constructive,unified manner.

That being said, we continue to make thearea of membership services and education amajor focus of what we do and something thatLonny, myself and the FTBOA staff are excitedabout building upon. We also believe that it isvery important that the board and managementcontinue to be proactive as we look down theroad. Toward this end, I am working withLonny to have a board and staff strategic plan-ning session in the near future. To make thisworkable, we are currently planning a formatby which the members can provide theirthoughts and concerns for the board’s consid-eration in this effort.

Florida is a great place to breed, raise,train and race horses. It is up to us, all of us,to protect this fine tradition and make it as re-warding to our current members as possiblewhile enticing people outside of the state tojoin us. People in our business are forever op-timistic; I’m no different. �

“Florida is agreat place tobreed, raise, train and race

horses. It is up to us, all of us,to protect this fine tradition andmake it as rewarding to ourcurrent members as possible

while enticing people outside ofthe state to join us. People inour business are forever opti-mistic; I’m no different.”

Phil Matthews from page 25

Q&A with FTBOA President Phil Matthews

Presidents Report2pgs_tweaked_EditorWelcome 9/13/12 3:52 PM

Florida...the Best State for Business

FLORIDA THOROUGHBRED BREEDERS’AND OWNERS’ ASSOCIATION

Lonny T. Powell, CEO and Executive Vice President801 SW 60th Ave. • Ocala, FL 34474 • 352-629-2160Fax: 352-629-3603 • www.ftboa.com • [email protected]

has a leg upon the

competition

Florida...

LegUp.qxd:Layout 1 7/10/12 12:52 PM Page 1

From coast to coast, Florida’s tax-friendly,pro-business environment is poised and ready to attractnew companies and create new employment opportunities.

• No personal state income tax.• No individual capital gains tax.• National leader in veterinary and equine research.• Ranked third in the U.S. for number of horses and size of horse industry.• Horses are exempt from sales tax when purchased from their original breeder.• Feed and animal health items, along with other specific items, are also exempt.• Florida’s greenbelt exemption provides property tax breaksfor Florida horse farms.

• No tax on stallion seasons.• Physical climate allows for year-round training, racing, showingand business opportunities.

FLORIDA DEPT. OF AGRICULTUREAND CONSUMER SERVICESAdam H. Putnam, Commissioner 850-617-7341 • Fax 850-617-7331e-mail: [email protected] S. Calhoun • 416 Mayo Building, Tallahassee, FL 32399 www.facebook.com/thefloridahorse

LegUp.qxd:Layout 1 7/10/12 12:53 PM Page 2


outside and chased down Maple Forest and

Roman Treasure. Taking the lead with some

100 yards to run, C C’s Pal then fought off a

hard closing Island Bound in second and the

Florida-breds Beat the Blues and Belle of the

Hall in third and fourth respectively. Final time

for the six furlongs was 1:09.88.

“It was awful quick up front,” trainer

Richard Dutrow Jr., trainer of C C’s Pal said

after the race. “We wanted to save ground and

the turn. [C C’s Pal] can lead, stalk… she fired

another bullet.”

Winning jockey Junior Alvarado was

equally complementary of C C’s Pal, who was

bred in Florida by Beth Bayer of Ocala. “The

filly is just amazing,” Alvardo said. “It’s a lit-

tle easier for you when you ride this kind of

horse. Rick Dutrow really had her ready, too.

“My filly has enough speed to close if they

are going slow or if they’re going fast, I know

I’ll be in a good spot. That’s pretty much what

happened. They went real, real fast and I was

in a nice spot saving ground. She really gave

me a nice kick in the end.”

Royal Currier majestic inTeddy DroneMat Stable LLC’s Royal Currier raced to the

lead entering the stretch and then held off the

late charge of fellow Florida-bred Soaring

Stocks to score by a nose in the $100,000 Teddy

Drone Stakes at Monmouth Park Jul. 29.

Royal Currier broke well from post five

and went with Secret Commander to set the

early pace of :22.26 for the first quarter and

:44.97 for the half. Around the far turn,

jockey Joe Bravo began to ask Royal Currier

and the two had the lead when they straight-

ened away for home. Soaring Stock began to

drop back at that point while Travelin Man

made a three-wide rally and nearly caught

Royal Currier. However, Royal Currier found

more and held on to win by a nose. The fi-

inal time was 1:093⁄5

for the six furlongs.

Royal Currier is

trained by Patricia

Farro and was ridden

by Joe Bravo for his

second win of the day.

This was the sec-

ond straight stakes

victory at Mon-

mouth for Royal Currier, a 4-year-old son

of Red Bullet who captured the Mr. Prospec-

tor Stakes here on July 8. Royal Currier was

bred in Florida by Adena Springs.

Cash Rules responds to Correction by Saez

Part of being a successful jockey is

being able to find one’s mistake in a race

lost and correct it. It may have been in the

Calder Casino and Race Course jockeys’

quarters after the Primal Stakes on July 12,

when jockey Luis Saez, looking up at the

replay on the television monitor, realized

his mistake. Perhaps he had known it the

moment he crossed the finish line—the re-

play only confirmed it. In any case, he had

seen his error.

What Saez saw on the replay was that he

had taken the lead at the top of the stretch

aboard Cash Rules in the $51,000 stake after

stalking pace-setter Oligarch through much of

the 11⁄16-mile race. But just as he took the lead,

Rip Roarin Ritchie tearsThrough Tyro StakesRichard Ravin’s Rip Roarin Ritchie did not

disappoint his backers betting at Monmouth

Park Aug. 5 when the Florida-bred son of

Bring the Heat was sent to the post in the

$60,000 Tyro Stakes at the odds-on choice at

4-5. The Tyro Stakes

featured a field of

eight 2-year-olds

going five furlongs on

grass at the Oceanport,

N.J., track.

Bred in Florida by

trainer Wesley Ward of

Hallandale Beach, Rip

Roarin Ritchie broke

well from the inside post and quickly as-

sumed command under jockey Elvis Trujillo.

The dark bay or brown colt opened up day-

light on the field taking them through quick

fractions of :22.04 for the first quarter-mile

and :44.67 through the first half-mile. De-

spite the quick early pace, like most Florida-

breds Rip Roarin Ritchie held on for the win,

a half-length ahead of runner-up I’m Bound-

toscore, who had chased him from the sec-

ond spot for most of the race. I’m

Boundtoscore was a neck ahead of third-

place finisher Itsmyluckyday, who had ral-

lied from the fifth spot to almost catch the

leaders. Final time for the five-eighths of a

mile was :56.46 over the firm turf.

“He broke really fast out of the gate,” win-

ning jockey Elvis Trujillo said. “The gates

opened and he was three lengths in front al-

ready. He relaxed really well, but I had to ride

him a little in the stretch because he started

looking around.”

The $36,000 winner’s check increased the

lifetime earnings for Rip Roaring Ritchie to

$70,645.

He now has two wins from three career

starts having also won a maiden special

weight event at Churchill Downs in

Louisville, Ky., on Jun. 15. In the colt’s only

loss, he was third against maiden special

weight company at Woodbine Race Course

near Toronto, Ont., May 13—a race in which

winner Uncaptured would later go on to win

two $150,000 stakes.

FloridaFOCUS

EQUI PHO

TO

Florida-bred Rip Roarin Ritchie

COAD

Y PH

OTO

Florida-bred Cash Rules

DENV

ER PHO

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Florida-bred Royal Currier

continued from page 12



South Florida nemesis Numb Lips sped past

and went on to win by three-lengths. Cash

Rules fought on stubbornly to hold second,

but Saez knew he had not given the Florida-

bred gelding his best ride.

Saez responded and would change his

strategy slightly in the $55,000 Band Is Pass-

ing Stakes at Calder Aug. 11 and it worked

to perfection as Cash Rules avenged his loss

in the Primal by winning the 11⁄16 stake over

a sloppy main track. The Band Is Passing

was scheduled for the turf, but thunder-

storms had forced officials to move the race

to the main track.

Again Oligarch set the pace, taking the

Band Is Passing field through sluggish frac-

tions of :23.92, :48.29 and 1:13.69. Again

Saez and Cash Rules laid back in third, about

two lengths behind the frontrunner with long

shot Runyon Humor separating them in sec-

ond. At the top of the stretch, Oligarch began

to tire and drifted out just a bit. Saez, waiting

a bit more patiently this time, could not pass-

up the opportunity to hit the hole on the rail

and shot Cash Rules to the lead. This time

Cash Rules had plenty left and he went on to

extend his lead to two and one-half lengths at

the wire. The final time was 1:46.26.

Numb Lips rallied for second but was

never a threat. Finishing third was Liberty Cap

while Oligarch and Runyon Humor faded to

sixth and seventh respectively. Duc Duc was

fourth and Flatter This was fifth to complete

the order of finish.

Trained by Dave Fawkes for owner and

co-breeder Larry Fugate of Dade City, Cash

Rules was bred in

Florida by Fugate and

Marsh Novak and

Suzanne Novak also of

Dade City, Cash Rules

won his fifth race from

12 career races and in-

creased his earnings to

$167,226. The Band Is

Passing was his second

stakes win of the current Calder meeting hav-

ing also taken the Sumter Stakes on May 5 at

the Miami Gardens, Fla., track.

The win by Cash Rules was the sixth of the

day for Saez, who became just the ninth jockey

in the 40-year history of Calder to win that many

races on a single card. The last to accomplish

the feat was Manoel Cruz in November, 2005.

Eddie Castro holds the one-day win record at

Calder, riding nine winners in June, 2005.

Bridgetown spans Troy forSecond timeThere weren’t many surprises in the

$100,000 Troy Stakes at Saratoga Aug. 15. Eu-

gene Melnyk Racing Stables’ Bridgetown was

expected to be on the lead early in the five and

one-half furlong turf race and as the 7-5 favorite,

was also expected to be in front at the wire.

As it turned out,

all came true.

Trained by Todd

Pletcher, Bridgetown

broke second from

post three but quickly

had the lead and took

the field of seven 3-

year-olds and older

through a quick first

quarter-mile in :23.34 and a half in :44.08 while

running stride-for-stride with 2-1 second choice

Perfect Officer in second and Freudian

Dilemma, a length and one-half behind in third.

At the top of the stretch, Freudian Dilemma

dropped back while Bridgetown and Perfect

Officer turned for home together under little

urging by their riders. Three-sixteenths from the

wire the running became more serious as both

John Velazquez on Bridgetown and Javier

Castellano on Perfect Office threw their re-

spective crosses and began to ride with more

urgency as they battled to the finish line. Perfect

Officer hung tough down the stretch but

Bridegetown was too much as he went on to

win by a half-length over Perfect Officer in sec-

ond. Florida-bred Wekiva Wachee rallied for

third some four lengths back with Night Offi-

cer, Regally Ready, Zeb and Freudian Dilemma

completing the order

of finish. Final time

was 1:101.52.

After the race,

Pletcher said there

were aspects that he

had expected and

everything turned

out almost exactly

as planned.

It was the second consecutive victory in

the Troy Stakes for Bridgetown, who won

this race last year with Valazquez aboard.

Although the race was a bit easier in 2011

for Bridgetown when he won by more than

Old Time Hockey ices La JollaOnly four horses started in the 72nd running of $147,000 La Jolla Handicap (G2) at

Del Mar Aug. 11 and three hit the wire together.

Old Time Hockey, who was bred in Florida by owner Leonard Lavin’s Glen Hill Farm

in Ocala, won the 11⁄16 turf test over My Best Brother in second in what was a rematch of

the faster division of the $109,000 Oceanside Stakes run at Del

Mar July 18. In that race, My Best Brother was the winner and

Old Time Hockey was third.

Ridden by jockey Joe Talamo for the first time in the La Jolla,

Old Time Hockey sat behind My Best Brother and Chips All In as

they set fractions of :23.80, :47.85 for the first quarter and half-mile.

Chips All In made a run at My Best Brother down the backstretch,

but the favorite drew clear again as they went the six furlongs in

1:10.72. By that time Old Time Hockey began to make a move while

racing three-wide and was able to eventually chase down My Best

Brother in the last strides while Chips All In would not give in either. At the wire, Old Time

Hockey was a nose in front of My Best Brother, who was a head in front of Chips All In in

third. Blingo was fourth. Final time for the 11⁄16 miles on the grass was 1:40.55.

It was the third career victory from nine starts for Old Time Hockey and the career

earnings for the 3-year-old gelding now stand at $200,228.

BENO

IT & ASS

OCIATE

S PH

OTO

Florida-bred Old Time Hockey

COGL

IANE

SE PHO

TO

Florida-bred Bridgetwon



six lengths, this running went according to

plan but had some challenges as well.

Bridgetown was also bred in Florida by

Eugene Melnyk, owner of Winding Oaks

Farms in Ocala, and was named after the

city of Bridgetown, the capital of Barbados.

Melnyk resides in Barbados. It was the

eighth victory and sixth stakes win from 18

starts for the 5-year-old horse who now has

a career bankroll of $844,700.

Awesome Belle scores Second straight stakes In Crystal RailHaving halted a nine-race losing streak

with a victory in the $75,000 Three Ring

Stakes on July 21, the Jacks or Better

Farm, Inc. homebred filly Awesome Belle

won for the second straight time when

leading at every call to take the co-fea-

tured $75,000 Crystal Rail Stakes at

Calder Casino & Race Course on Aug. 18.

Having made an easy lead under some

aggressive handling from jockey Fernando

Jara, Awesome Belle never faced any real

threat as the pacesetter, guiding the field

of 3-year-old fillies through moderate

early fractions of :24.87 and :48.54.

Awesome Belle was forced to repel a

mid-turn challenge from Montessa G, and

the filly responded willingly, opening up a

1½-length lead at the top of the stretch and

expanding that margin to 2¼ lengths at the

wire, running the 7½-furlong trip, over a

turf course listed as good, in 1:30.53.

“When I asked her to go, she was there

for me, and she started to run again,” Jara

said.

With her Crystal Rail Stakes victory,

Awesome Belle increased her career earn-

ings to $353,387. The Stanley Gold-

trained daughter of Awesome of Course is

now a four time winner from 17 starts, and

is a three-time stakes winner at Calder,

adding a victory in last year’s $300,000

My Dear Girl Division of the Florida Stal-

lion Stakes to her 2012 Three Ring and

Crystal Rail triumphs.

Awesome Of Course stands at Journey-

man Stud in Ocala, Fla.

Empire Builder constructsFirst stakes winLuis Duco Stables, Inc.’s sophomore

colt Empire Builder became a stakes-

winner on grass for the first time when

taking the $75,000 Naked Greed Stakes

by two lengths on Aug. 18.

“He is a good horse on the dirt,”

winning rider Jonathan Gonzales said

of the 3-year-old colt, already a two-

time stakes winner on the Calder main

track. “But I think I saw today that he’s

much better on the grass.”

Content to settle in fifth-place

through the opening quarter-mile of the

Naked Greed, Empire Builder was

asked to run a bit earlier than usual

when advancing on the early leader

Harrison Bay through an opening half-

mile that went in :47.32.

“I knew where I wanted to put him

early; so out of the gate I was able to get

a position,” Gonzales said. “When I saw

the half-mile (marker) coming, I knew

it was time to go. And when I asked him

(to run), he just went.”

Empire Builder made the lead rather

easily and quickly opened up a three-

length lead on his overmatched rivals.

While that margin was whittled away

late, at no point in the stretch was the

result ever in peril as the son of Kitten’s

Joy ran unchallenged through the wire,

covering the 7 ½-furlong trip in 1:29.47.

“At the finish line, my horse still

wanted more,” Gonzales said.

With his victory in the Naked Greed,

the Luis Duco-trained Empire Builder

improved his career record to five wins

from 12 starts, with lifetime earnings of

$151,145.

West Acre was euthanized due to com-

plications of laminitis Thursday, August

16 at Stonehedge Farm South, where he

stood for owners Gilbert and Marilyn

Campbell, since 1998.

To date, the unraced son of Forty Niner

has sired 179 winners from 12 crops of

racing age and earners of more than $13

million. Among West Acre’s 30 graded

stakes horses are Ivanavinalot, winner of

the Grade 2 Bonnie Miss Stakes and the

My Dear Girl division of the Florida Stal-

lion Stakes and his leading money earner

with a $647,300 career bankroll; Tampa

Bay Derby (G2) winner Watch Me Go;

and Orchid Stakes (G3) victor Speak Easy

Gal, a winner of $413,761.

In 2010, West Acre was the only

Florida sire with three 2-year-olds on the

Experimental Free Handicap and he was

the second-leading Florida sire of juvenile

stakes horses the same year, with six. He

currently has 20 winners and six stakes

performers from 40 starters.

Florida sire West Acre, Dead at 17

FloridaFOCUS

COADY PHOTO

Florida-bred Awesomes Belle

COADY PHOTO

Florida-bred Empire Builder

LOUISE REINAGEL PHOTO

West Acre



Shadowbdancing lands Millionaire status withPrairie Meadows winShadowbdancing seems to pass mile-

stones with every start and the 7-year-

old horse did just that again Jul. 28 at

Prairie Meadows while winning the

$98,000 Prairie Meadows Handicap.

Bred in Florida by Ocala Stud Farm

and by Montbrook, who stands at the

Ocala farm, Shadowbdancing grabbed

control of the 1¼ race around the first

turn when he and jockey Quincy Hamil-

ton took the lead and the field through

the first quarter mile in :23.76 and the

first half-mile in :46.90. Around the far

turn Shadowbdancing edged clear of

stalker Hope for Today and had a three-

length advantage at the top of the

stretch. That margin only increased as

Shadowbdancing hit the wire seven

lengths ahead of Hope for Today in sec-

ond and It Happened Again in third.

Shadowbdancing picked up $60,000

for owner RNB Racing LLC, pushing

his career earnings into six figures at

$1,000,147. Shadowbdancing now has

six of his 15 career wins at the Altoona,

Ia., track where is also just one of two

horses (the other being Wayzata Bay) to

win all three of the track’s big races for

older horses after also winning the 2009

and 2012 Jim Rasmussen Memorial

Stakes and the 2010 Cornhusker Hand-

icap (G3).

BOYD

GAM

INGS

PHO

TO

Florida-bred Shadowbdancing



By HEATHER SMITH THOMAS

Skin diseases in horses have many different

causes, including pathogenic fungi. These

tiny organisms can survive and multiply

in a wider range of temperature and environ-

ments than most bacteria or viruses. Some fungi

are parasites, causing skin or systemic infections

in humans and animals, multiplying by sending

out microscopic spores. The spores can survive

in the environment for long periods of time. Fol-

lowing are examples of equine diseases caused

by fungi and fungal-like organisms.

RINGWORM – The most common fungal in-

fections in horses are the dermatophytes (para-

sitic fungi). Some of these are commonly found

in soil (geophilic fungi) or in animals (zoophilic

fungi), according to Dr. Leonel Mendoza (Bio-

medical Laboratory Diagnostics, Michigan State

University). “The most important of these in

horses are Microsporum gypseum, Trichophyton

metagrophytes, and Trichophyton equinum.

There are also a few unusual cases in horses

caused by Microsporum canis, which is much

more common in cats and dogs. I had a case in

a horse that developed extensive lesions, and

found that the barn cat was sleeping on top of the

saddle blanket during the night,” says Mendoza.

“Sometimes we see unusual cases of Tri-

chophtyton verrucosum which is more common

in cattle. But because cattle and horses are often

pastured together, horses may develop this type

of ringworm. It can be difficult to diagnose in

horses because the lesions are more inflamma-

tory, with wet exudates rather than dry skin with-

out hair.” The horse owner should have a veteri-

narian examine the horse for proper diagnosis.

“The only way to get a diagnosis is by taking

a skin scraping to send to a laboratory. They will

look at it under a microscope, using 10% potas-

sium hydroxide, and try to find filamentous hy-

phae, arthrospores, and invasion of the hair. The

fungus goes inside the hair, damages it, and the

hair falls out,” says Mendoza.

When a horse has ringworm, the fungi can

spread to other areas of the body, and to other an-

imals and humans. “This disease is insidious.

The horse may rub against a fence and leave

some spores on the fence. Humans may pick up

the infection, leaning against the fence, putting

their arms over the fence, or climbing over a

fence. If a horse rubs and creates small cuts or

abrasions in the skin, or a human has small nicks

in the skin, dermatophytes can pass from the

fences to other horses and humans,” he says.

“These dermatophytes can survive in the envi-

ronment a long time. We think these fungi originally

lived in the ground, and then adapted to living on

mammals. They are geophilic, which means they

live in the soil. Some have adapted to living on hu-

mans and have become what we call anthropophilic

(able to live on human skin) or zoophilic (living on

animals). They often spread from one species to an-

other, especially from animals to humans, and only

rarely from humans to animals,” he says.

“Most ringworm agents are zoonotic, which

means they can travel from one animal to another

species of animal, and from an animal to humans,”

EquineCare

EquineCare_USE_Florida Horse_template 9/6/12 7:09 AM

says Mendoza. If you have a pet or a horse with ring-

worm, be aware that you could get this infection, too.

Children often get ringworm from dogs or cats that har-

bor Microsporum canis.

Ringworm is often more common during winter in

horses and cattle and can be readily spread from one an-

imal to another. “One animal may be a carrier, and

spreads it to the others,” he says.

TREATMENT FOR RINGWORM – If you have several

horses with ringworm, the treatment is expensive be-

cause it takes a lot of medication to provide an adequate

dose for such a large animal. Anti-ringworm drugs work

well for dogs and cats, but the cost would be high for a

horse. “The usual treatment I recommend, which is

cheaper, is to use potassium iodine or sodium iodine so-

lution (diluted to about 5 or 10% with water) to wash

the skin,” says Mendoza.

“These iodine compounds can be given orally, but

you must use the prescription drug for animals. Your

veterinarian could give advice on dosage. These drugs

are used in combination with topical iodine treatment.

The iodine-based shampoos can be used over the whole

body if the horse has many areas affected,” he says.

“There are vaccines that can be used to prevent and to

cure ringworm infections in cattle, and these have been

used in Norway, Sweden, Germany and Russia, but I

don’t think they’ve been used in horses,” says Mendoza.

SUBCUTANEOUS INFECTIONS – Some fungal and fun-

gal-like infections are not on the skin, but just under the

skin. “There are several of these, such as Conid-

iobolous, Basidiobolus (caused by fungi that live in the

ground) and Pythium infections (usually acquired after

contact with contaminated water in ponds). They are

not really skin diseases; they are subcutaneous infec-

tions,” says Mendoza.

“Conidiobolomycosis is usually found around the

nostrils in horses, producing lesions inside the nos-

trils. The spores are on the grass, and if the horse has

a small cut or abrasion in the nostrils, these spores can

penetrate and cause infection if the horse encounters

them while grazing. This type of infection is very

common in the southern part of the U.S. and less com-

mon in the northern part of the country,” he says.

“One of the less common types of infection that

has been reported and described in horses is called

pheohyphomycosis. This subcutaneous infection is

caused by black fungi, and very unusual in horses. It

produces small, bumpy lesions in the skin,” he says.

“Another unusual type of subcutaneous fungal in-

fection in horses is caused by mycetomas. All of these

types of infection must have an opening in the skin to

get started, and exposure to organic material such as

plants that have mold, or wood splinters. If the fungi

are there, and can penetrate the skin, they cause infec-

tion.” These types of fungal infections are difficult to

treat. The affected area of skin usually must be cut out.

Pythiosis is caused by Pythium insidiosum (a fun-

gal-like organism) and was originally considered a

rare disease in the United States. “About 20 years

ago we started seeing cases, especially in the Gulf

Coast states, and now we see thousands of cases an-

nually in the southern part of the U.S. and some cases

as far north as Wisconsin. Most of the cases I’ve seen

have been from Florida, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama,

and other warm regions,” says Mendoza.

“This organism likes warm weather. If the sum-

mer is hot and rainy, we generally see more cases of

pythiosis,” he explains.

“This fungus lives in the ground, and loves water. It

is one of the water molds, in swampy areas. It goes

through its life cycle in water, and produces spores with

flagella that swim in the water. When it comes in con-


When a horse has ring-worm (above), the fungican spread to otherareas of the body, and to other animals and humans.

PHOT

OS COU

RTES

Y DR

. LEO

NEL M

ENDO

ZA


tact with skin, if there is an

opening in the skin, the spores

will produce a hyphea (small

tube) which can penetrate

under the skin and cause infec-

tion.” A horse may get this dis-

ease when wading in water.

Not all horses exposed to

this pathogen become infected.

“If 10 horses wade in the

swamp, maybe one will be in-

fected. Some may not have

skin lesions. Or, certain horses

may have a defect in their im-

mune response, and are more vulnerable to this infection. There are

many theories about how certain horses become infected,” he says.

Treatment is difficult. “People have been using anti-fungal drugs

with varied results. Some people think a treatment worked, and oth-

ers say it never worked in the cases they treated. Treatment only

works in about 5% of cases—so we know pythiosis doesn’t respond

very well to anti-fungal drugs. If your horse has this type of infec-

tion, he will probably die with it, unless treated with immunother-

apy,” says Medoza.

This is a relatively new way to treat this infection. “Pythium im-

munotherapy treats the infection by stimulating the immune re-

sponse to act against the pathogen—enabling the horse’s body to

fight it. It puts the immune system into better shape (stronger) and

then the immune system itself can defeat the pathogen. A company

in Texas, called Pan American Veterinary Laboratories

(www.pavlab.com), makes this vaccine, and in horses it works about

70% of the time,” he says.

It helps if this disease is recognized early and the vaccine given

quickly. “If a horse can be vaccinated within the first 2 weeks of

the infection, he has a 100% chance for cure. After that, the im-

munotherapy works in about 70% of cases. This is why an early di-

agnosis is very important,” he explains.

Another treatment, which is more invasive, is surgical removal

of the growths. “Surgery only works in the very early stages of the

infection. If the growth has become huge, it won’t work,” says

Mendoza.

FUNGAL INFECTIONS CAN’T BE PREVENTED – There is no easy

way to control or prevent these diseases in horses. “The fungi are

everywhere—in the water, grass, soil, etc. The only suggestion I

have for horse owners is if

they see a small cut or le-

sion, call the veterinarian if

it looks unusual,” he says.

You should check it in the

early stages, because if it’s

any type of fungus you

should not ignore it and as-

sume that it will heal on its

own. The earlier you diag-

nose any of these diseases,

the better chance you have

for a good resolution with

proper treatment. �


Fungal infection Pythiosis (left), Conidiobolus (above) and Pythium (below)

EquineCare


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Phone: (352) 368-8200 Mon - Fri: 8:00 am - 5:00 pm • or Online at mariontax.com

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Hello to all. I hope everyone had a good sum-

mer and those starting to break babies are get-

ting the season nicely underway. Occasionally,

I like to discuss what’s going on in other states so every-

one can appreciate how important water protection has

become all over the country and world. The start of a

year or season is always an appropriate time to step back

and reevaluate the farm’s manure management prac-

tices. It’s important for farm owners and managers to

understand why careful farm management practices are

essential, in order to become better stewards of the land

and water. Improved practices also help to keep already

existing county, state and federal legislation from get-

ting bigger and more stringent. This

month, Pennsylvania’s strict land

application regulations on animal

waste (that means spreading ma-

nure) will be examined.

REQUIREMENTS FOR MANURE MANAGEMENT PLANS

Every farm in Pennsylvania that land applies manure

or agricultural process wastewater (generated on the

farm or received from an importer), regardless of size,

is required to have and implement a written Manure

Management Plan. This includes manure and agricul-

tural process wastewater application by various types of

equipment and/or direct application of manure by ani-

mals on pastures and in Animal Concentration Areas

(ACAs). In other words, farms that do not mechanically

apply manure but which do have pastures or ACAs still

need a manure management plan.

The Manure Management Plan format in this man-

ual must be used for the written manure management

plan unless the farmer gets approval from DEP for an al-

ternative plan format. In addition to developing a writ-

ten plan, the farmer must also complete and maintain

records to demonstrate compliance with the Manure

Management Plan. DEP has developed a Manure Man-

agement Plan Workbook for farmers to use that contains

the forms described in this manual.”

The above passage was taken directly from Pennsyl-

vania’s Land Application of Manure Manual, page 1,

which was developed by the PaDEP, or Pennsylvania

Department of Environmental Protection. Effective Oc-

tober 29, 2011, this lengthy document lists requirements

(in great detail) concerning land application for farms

having EVEN ONE ANIMAL. What does that mean

for your farm in Florida and why worry about what is

happening as far away as Pennsylvania? I share this in-

formation to educate all on where the whole country is,

concerning manure handling. So, when you are feeling

like it’s too strict in Florida, or that our state is “picked

on”, you can realize that in the big scheme of things,

Florida has it pretty easy. However, it’s a great “wake-

up” call about where everyone’s mind should be NOW,

because other states have legislation already in place.

We are tremendously fortunate to be afforded the lux-

ury of several different options of manure management

in Florida, none of which require written documenta-

tion/permitting in most parts of the state (except for very

large facilities). However, these days are coming to a

close, so with continued development and the growth of

both people and horses coming to Florida, it is impera-

tive to become better stewards of the water and land now,

get educated on Best Management Practices (BMPs) and

set the farms up more carefully so that future legislation

will represent no trouble or additional expense.

Different parts of the state have different issues spe-

cific to the region, but the main problem remains uni-

fied: water quality. I have said it before; water is the

new oil and its importance to all should be beyond

measure. We can live without electricity, or running our

cars and trucks, but no one survives without clean water!

Extension Services, and other agencies and organi-

zations, are here to help. Remember, you can always

contact me or your local Extension agent about your

specific questions and concerns. As

always, keep up the good manage-

ment practices! �

FARM MANAGEMENT

Schedule a Farm Call: 352-671-8792

Jamie A. Cohen • Farm Outreach CoordinatorUF IFAS/Marion County Extension [email protected]

In Pennsylvania every farm,regardless of size, is requiredto have and implement a writ-

ten Manure Management Plan.

Pennsylvania—

Concerning Manure Laws in other States

Cohen_FarmManagement_Florida Horse_template 9/6/12 7:21 AM Page 56


Following are the “FTBOA Chase to the Championship ” Point Standings through September 5, 2012.

Year-end divisional champions will be determined using the “FTBOAChase to the Championship” point system, a ranking that awards points forsuccess in stakes races. The “FTBOA Chase to the Championship” allocates points for stakes wins in

graded races, open-company stakes and Florida’s signature racing days, with thenumber of points awarded based upon the classification of the race. Internationalstakes race status is governed by the International Cataloguing Standards Com-mittee. The first three finishers in all Group/Graded and listed races appearing inPart I of the International Cataloguing Standards and International Statistics Bookprinted by The Jockey Club receive “black-type” designation. Ten point bonus tobe awarded to any 2-year-old colt or filly sweeping all three legs of the Florida Stal-lion Stakes in determining the Champion 2-year-old Florida-bred.The Florida-bred with the most points in each division on December 31

is deemed champion of that division. Horse of the Year, Broodmare of theYear and Breeder of the Year will be voted on by the FTBOA Board of Di-rectors and announced at the FTBOA’s annual awards dinner.In the case of a year-end tie in points in any division, earnings will be

used to decide the tiebreaker. — Points are assigned as follows:

� World Thoroughbred ChampionshipBreeders’ Cup Race:Win: 20 points Place: 15 points Show: 10 points

� Grade 1 Stakes Race:Win: 15 points Place: 10 points Show: 5 points

� Grade 2 Stakes Race: Win: 5 points Place: 3 points Show: 2 points

� Grade 3 Stakes Race: Win: 3 points Place: 2 points Show: 1 point

� Sunshine Millions (equivalent to a Grade 2 Stakes Race): Win: 5 points Place: 3 points Show: 2 points

� Other Florida-bred Signature Race Days(equivalent to a Grade 3 Stakes Race):(The Florida Million, Florida Cup, Florida Stallion Stakes Series): Win: 3 points Place: 2 points Show: 1 point

� Open-Company Stakes ($50,000+Purse) Points for WIN ONLY: Win: 2 points

� Selection Criteria for Florida-bred champions

Horse Breeder Owner Trainer

Two-Year-Old Colt/GeldingRolling Fog (Posse) - 15 British Mist Racing and Breeding Arnold Zetcher LLC Bob BaffertTwo T's At Two B (Untuttable) - 6 Gilbert G Campbell Gilbert G Campbell Kathleen O'ConnellSpurious Precision (High Cotton) - 5 Michael Chamberlain Klaravich Stables & William H Lawrence Richard Violette Jr

Two-Year-Old FillyCandy Coded Kisses (Omega Code) - 5 Carlos Rafael & Briggs & Cromartie Easton & Elsaida DeSouza Easton DeSouzaPutyourdreamsaway (Put It Back) - 5 Southern Chase Farm Inc, Karen & Greg Dodd Ione & Herbert J Elkins William KaplanSalamera (Successful Appeal) - 5 Tanourin Stable Tanourin Stable Rodolfo GarciaHeir Kitty (Wildcat Heir) - 3 Pedro Gonzalez & Jorge Herrera D Bernsen, M Bloom, L Kruse & Altamira Racing Stable Peter Miller

Three-Year-Old Colt/GeldingCurrency Swap (High Cotton) - 10 Stonecliff Farm Klaravich Stables Inc & William H Lawrence Teresa PompayFort Loudon (Awesome of Course) - 7 Jacks or Better Farm Inc. Jacks or Better Farm Inc Stanley GoldOld Time Hockey (Smarty Jones) - 5 Glen Hill Farm Glen Hill Farm Tom Proctor

Three-Year-Old FillyEden's Moon (Malibu Moon) - 23 Bridlewood Farm Kaleem Shah Inc. Bob BaffertEmma's Encore (Congrats) - 18 Equest Thoroughbreds Inc Brenda Mercer & Peter A Berglar H Allen JerkensRegalo Mia (Sligo Bay) - 6 Juvenile Diaz Steven Ciccarone Michelle Nihei

Older Male (Four-Year-Olds and up Colt/Gelding)Ron the Greek (Full Mandate) - 45 Jack T. Hammer Brous Stable, Wachtel Stable & Jack T. Hammer William MottLittle Mike (Spanish Steps) - 38 Carlo E Vaccarezza Priscilla Vaccarezza Dale RomansMucho Macho Man - 25 John D & Carole A Rio Reeves Thoroughbred Racing Katherine Ritvo

Older Female (Four-Year-Olds and up Filly/Mare)Musical Romance (Concorde's Tune) - 30 Ocala Stud Pinnacle Racing Stables & William A Kaplan William A KaplanC C's Pal (Alex's Pal) - 18 Beth Bayer Eric Fein Richard Dutrow JrTurbulent Descent (Congrats) - 15 Ocala Stud Mrs John Magnier, Michael Tabor & Derrick Smith Todd Pletcher

Male Sprint (Three-Year-Olds and up Colt/Gelding, race distances one mile and less)Jackson Bend (Hear No Evil) - 20 Jacks or Better Farm Inc. Robert V. LaPenta & Fred J. Brei Nicholas ZitoJeranimo (Congaree) - 19 Brylynn Farm Inc B J Wright Michael PenderCurrency Swap (High Cotton) - 10 Stonecliff Farm Klaravich Stables Inc & William H Lawrence Teresa Pompay

Female Sprint (Three-Year-Olds and up Filly/Mare, race distances one mile and less)Musical Romance (Concorde's Tune) - 30 Ocala Stud Pinnacle Racing Stables & William A Kaplan William A KaplanEden's Moon (Malibu Moon) - 20 Bridlewood Farm Kaleem Shah Inc. Bob BaffertEmma's Encore (Congrats) - 18 Equest Thoroughbreds Inc Brenda Mercer & Peter A Berglar H Allen Jerkens

Male Turf (Three-Year-Olds and up Colt/Gelding, races run on the turf)Little Mike (Spanish Steps) - 38 Carlo E Vaccarezza Priscilla Vaccarezza Dale RomansJeranimo (Congaree) - 22 Brylynn Farm Inc B J Wright Michael PenderTurbo Compressor (Halo's Image) - 17 Bridlewood Farm P and G Stable & Off the Hook LLC Todd Pletcher

Female Turf (Three-Year-Olds and up Filly/Mare, races run on the turf)Bay to Bay (Sligo Bay) - 13 Adena Springs Robert Smithen Brian LynchWild Mia (Wildcat Heir) - 7 Montgomery Farm Rosemont Stud Syndicate Jerry FanningHooh Why (Cloud Hopping) - 6 Gail Gee Estate of Gail Gee, Mark Hoffman & Earl Trostrud, Jr. Michael L ReavisRegalo Mia (Sligo Bay) - 6 Juvenile Diaz Steven Ciccarone Michelle Nihei

ChaseToChampionship_Florida Horse_template 9/12/12 9:08 AM Page 52


The horse has been and still is a symbol of:

courage, strength, speed, pride, death, war and

even the passage of time and human life.

In mythology, the Sun is said to be drawn in his char-

iot by celestial horses in his daily journey across the skies.

To the Norsemen and Romans of old, the horse was sim-

ilarly associated with the moon, drawing that god’s char-

iot across the skies. Additionally, Neptune is credited with

creating the horse in a contest with the other gods for the

honor of naming what was to be the city of Athens.

The first sea horses had a horse’s head, forefeet and

barrel, terminating in a fish tale. Later the sea horse had

the head of a horse and the body of a fish. Sea horses

were also prevalent in early Irish myths. When a tempest

breaks over the sea in Ireland, the breakers are said to be

the white horse of the Gaelic God of the Sea.

According to German legend, there was once a beau-

tiful young maiden, named Lorelei, who threw herself

headlong into the river in despair over a faithless lover.

Upon her death she was transformed into a siren and

could from that time on be heard singing on a rock

along the Rhine River. Her hypnotic music so mesmer-

ized the sailors that they would crash into the rocks on

the narrow gorge of the river. After luring sailors to their

destruction, Lorelei would place them in a sea-green

chariot drawn by white horses.

The Hungarians and Spanish believed all black

horses were lucky while the French claimed the reverse.

The afore mentioned horse myths are amusing to

think about and help fuel the romanticism associated

with horses, while other myths associated with raising

and managing horses may be at best unnecessary and

costly and at worst detrimental to horse training

and/or overall health.

Not long ago, I was in a local barn at feeding time and

noticed one of the grooms mixing feed for the afternoon

feeding. He opened two bags of commercial feed and

poured the contents into the wheelbarrow. Next, he mixed

two bags of steamed crimped oats with the feed. I asked

him why he was mixing oats with the feed. He said the

broodmare manager had told him to. My curiosity got

the best of me and I asked the manager why she was hav-

ing the crew mix oats with the feed. She said they mix in

oats because that’s the way her Daddy did it. To make a

long story short, her daddy was buying a pre-mix in bulk

and only had to mix in oats to complete the ration.

The point is, be sure to know the reason(s) why

you’re doing something and always seek advice from re-

liable sources. To learn more about the many myths and

misconceptions related to raising and managing horses,

be sure to attend this year’s Florida Equine Institute and

Allied Trade Show Thursday, September 13 from 8:00

a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Southeastern Livestock Pavilion

in Ocala, Florida. This University of Florida Extension

program is committed to providing Florida Horsemen

and Horsewomen with the most current equine man-

agement information and a “working” Trade Show.

Scheduled topics for 201 include: Horse Farm Weed

Control; Myths and Misconceptions, Horse Health

Myths and Misconceptions, Unraveling the Caterpillar

and MRLS mystery: What Every Horse Owner Should

Know, Equine Athlete Selection, Matching Form To

Function, Florida Agriculture Center & Horse Park Up-

date, and Feeding Horses Fact or Fiction.

Contact Marion County Extension at 352-671-8400

for more information or to register for the Florida

Equine Institute. Early registration $25, student regis-

tration $15 (ID required) before September 7, 2012.

Regular or on-site registration $50. �

PRACTICALLY SPEAKING

by UF/IFAS MarionCountyLivestock Agent

Mark Shuffitt

Horses And Myths

Myths are amusing to think about and help fuel the romanticism associated with horses, while other myths

associated with raising and managing horses may be atbest unnecessary and costly and at worst detrimental to

horse training and/or overall health.

Shuffitt_Florida Horse_template 9/6/12 7:17 AM Page 1

As we navigate through steady progress at the

Florida Agriculture Center and Horse Park,

it’s clearer all the time that we have something

really special here in our own backyard. Unlike any-

thing else in the state, and perhaps also unique to the

rest of the world.

Where can you tighten up your shoe laces and go

for a run on sweet pine needle-covered trails for miles

and miles…and see a baby deer on your journey?

Where can you bike under the shady coolness of

grand-daddy oaks and choose to either tackle a mud

puddle or steer clear and hit the more solid route, then

end up at a picnic table with all the right lunch fixins?

Where can you ride your horse on good footing in

a pristine environment and stumble upon a perfect

view of nesting or hunting hawks and bald eagles?

Where can you spend a Saturday afternoon watch-

ing international-level equestrian sports, with a frosty

mug of Southern sweet tea or pristine Silver Springs

water in hand, together with your family and friends?

Where can you lease a solid, safe, steady horse to

take you out on the Florida Greenways for a leisurely

ride with trusted guides?

Where can you watch polo, compete in various events,

cheer on Olympians, or support

your local pony club members?

Right here at the Florida Agri-

culture Center and Horse Park.

This summer, in addition to

our regularly scheduled events,

we put on an outdoor band con-

cert as a fund raiser at the park that attracted everyone

from dignitaries in high office to local trail riders, polo

players, families with children, equestrian clubs, ther-

apeutic riding organizations. By the end of the evening,

we were all new friends making fun new opportunities.

Yes – the Florida Agriculture Center and Horse Park

offers acres and acres of outdoor adventure. Miles and

miles of fun.

We invite you to come see us. Come ride with us.

Come volunteer with us or sponsor something special.

Send a tax-deductible donation, which keeps this proj-

ect sustainable and growing better to serve. In the end,

and for generations to come.

P.S. Just a thought – did you know the Florida Agri-

culture Center and Horse Park has its own specialty li-

cense plate? It’s called “Discover

Florida’s Horses” and it’s a direct

benefit for the park. For your

car, your truck, your horse

trailer, or – hey, even your neigh-

bor’s boat! Join the movement;

you’ll be glad you did.

Most sincerely,

Connie Duff WisePresident, Foundation for theFlorida Horse Park


YourThe Rythym. The Beat. The Story.

It’s All Right Here!

FLORIDA HORSE PARK

Come join us...and be part of something really special

YourFloridaHorsePark_NEW.qx_Florida Horse_template 9/6/12 7:15 AM Page 1

Louise E. Reinage lHORSE PHOTOGRAPHERVisit me at www.louiseereinagel.com

E-Mail: [email protected]

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It has been well received in New York, Toronto,

Chicago, Dallas, South Florida and on the Jersey

Shore, places that fit the original vision and intended

purpose of the Breeders’ Cup, the current leaders of

which have chosen to ignore out of hand while turning

what was not so long ago the crowning glory of the rac-

ing business into a local event held annually in suburban

Los Angeles.

What was once a moveable feast of tremendous na-

tional importance has been shifted in recent years be-

tween Southern California and Louisville but it is not a

certainty even that Louisville will host another Breeders’

Cup. For all its appeal to racing enthusiasts, it has never

been particularly profitable for the host track and the

management of publically-owned Churchill Downs, Inc.

is no longer primarily racing oriented, its focus having

shifted toward other forms of gaming and maintenance of

shareholder value. Racetrack ownership and Wall Street

have never worked well in concert,

which probably removes from the

mixture of potential host tracks other

Churchill-owned properties that

would be attractive settings for the

event – notably Arlington Park, an ac-

commodating host but only once, and

The Fair Grounds. What better setting

than New Orleans? Keeneland, not-

for-profit and privately held, has been

mentioned as a Kentucky alternative

to Churchill– an idea worth consider-

ing. The fact that Del Mar has never hosted the event is

astonishing. A bid by Monmouth Park, a successful host

of the rain-swept Breeder’s Cup of 2007, was dismissed

this year. Woodbine, another victim of weather discrim-

ination, has not been seriously considered since it hosted

the 1996 renewal.

Important racetracks in some key markets – Florida

among them -- are not suitable to the event. In its current

form, Gulfstream Park, a highly popular destination in

years past, is no longer a candidate. Belmont Park, with

a 12 furlong dirt course and two turf courses and vast ca-

pacity, is probably the ideal host from a purist view but

the New York Racing Association, woefully rudderless,

is awash in both money and with the state in control of its

board and subsequently its management, uncertainty.

Perhaps the Breeders’ Cup will one day return to the fi-

nancial, cultural and sports capital of the nation, but at no

time soon.

The choice between Santa Anita and anywhere else

is not the only point at which the Breeders’ Cup has

strayed. The abandonment of what was one of its most at-

tractive qualities – exposure of the Breeders’ Cup to as

many racing markets as possible – is as unfortunate as

the pollution of the original format by the steady intro-

duction of meaningless races that are run without conse-

quence simply for the purpose of creating a lightly

viewed second afternoon of television.

The vision of founder John Gaines has in less than

three decades of reverse evolution been poorly recon-

structed, perhaps beyond recovery, by misguided leader-

ship. What was once a five-hour, Saturday afternoon

televised racetrack happening is reduced this year to the

point at which only one race, the Classic, will be seen

live on the NBC Network with the remainder of the two-

day event relegated to the network’s secondary dedicated

sports affiliate. Who agreed to this?

Nine Breeders’ Cup races, the original seven, the Filly

& Mare Turf and Dirt Mile, both added later, are relevant

to the event’s stated purpose, which is to determine

American championships. (Admittedly, there is no

Eclipse Award for champion miler but there should be.

One handed to the champion handicapper. There is

something radically wrong here.) The races added later

have no bearing whatsoever on any divisional title, serve

no real purpose and in fact have done nothing except di-

lute what was once a focused afternoon of racing that

worked brilliantly in its original form.

The smartest person in the history of the Breeders’

Cup is John Gaines and attempts to improve on his

original concept have been no less ill conceived than

attempting to reshape the wheel. What has happened

to the event in the years since it was first run, in 1984,

the initial execution of Gaines’ vision, has done little to

further its purpose, advance its cause or heighten the

impact of what should be, but is not, America’s Day at

the Races. �

PLAYER’S PAGE

by Paul Moran

What was once a moveable

feast of tremendous national

importance has been shifted

in recent years between

Southern California and

Louisville but it is not a cer-

tainty even that Louisville will

host another Breeders’ Cup

Crowning GloryTurned Local Event?

PlayersPage_Florida Horse_template 9/6/12 7:20 AM Page 1

florida horse setember 2012

Documents

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