Dec 17, 2007

Dec 12, 2007

RAYONA, RAYONA…HOW DO YOU WIN SO MANY?

Rayona won her fifth race of the year on the weekend at Turfway. She’s the first foal out of Zienat, a Woodman mare I bought privately for J. C. Davis of Henderson, KY. Zienat was a $260,000 yearling so you can imagine how good looking she is.

I bought her for $7000 after she failed to bring a reserve amount. Her second foal for Davis is Rayona who boosted her earnings to $93,000.

You can always find these heavily discounted opportunities if you are attuned to the race track and pay attention to broodmare trends. You didn’t have to be Tesio to invest in the idea of Woodman turning out good broodmares.

Most of my readers are too busy doing other things to notice the subtle ways of the marketplace. That’s why you need me to do the shopping!

Dec 8, 2007

MORE TERRIFIC TWOS

Christmas Ship finished second today in the Corte Madera stakes at Golden Gate. She was purchased by Dan Kenny Bloodstock for $95,000 at OBS on behalf of trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. The daughter of Montbrook-Show Your Pride is a half-sister to Trickey Trevor, a graded stakes-winner of some $700,000. Trickey Trevor (Demaloot Demashoot) was also bought at OBS from Ocala Stud for $52,000.

Our return on investment on purchased 2-year-olds continues to be impressive. We can do the same for you.

Dec 3, 2007

MORE GOOD DEALS

November Sale at Keeneland was so overheated that it may have been prudent to park your money on the sidelines and concentrate on the upcoming January Sale. Another reason to adopt this tactic is that it gives you a chance to review my impeccable record of buying broodmares at below-market prices over the past two decades.

Buying a Broodmare of the Year such as In Neon might be seen as a fluke among the legions of knockers that populate the sport. But repeated prime purchases, year after year, takes care of that.

FRANKS A LOT

Dan Kenny Bloodstock had a two-decade long association with the late John Franks, still the only owner to win four Eclipse Awards. In addition to In Neon, we purchased numerous stakes producers on his behalf. It was also my privilege to suggest matings for his hundreds of mares. Franks Farm finished in the top three nationally among breeders nearly every year of our time together. His name still appears on the leader board four years after his death in 2003.

The l993 Keeneland November Sale, my first since relocating from California, proved to be a pivotal event.

We purchased a stakes-winner named Constant Change in foal to Silver Deputy for $20,000. She was a half-sister to Very Subtle who had won the Breeders Cup Sprint over colts. The Silver Deputy foal was named Highfalutin who won nearly $400,000.

Next came Sunny Sara, an Affirmed mare for $32,000. She went on to produce three stakes horses.

Another ace from that sale was Sophisticated Sam, a stakes-winner of over $200,000 who was in foal to freshman sire El Prado, for $42,000. Her in utero foal brought $l35,000 and her next foal, mated at my suggestion with Cure The Blues, earned over $500,000.

Revered was a lovely little mare who had already produced two stakes-winners, including one by failed stallion Desert Wine. We bought Revered for $l00,000 in foal to Halo.
Revered’s yearling at the time turned out to be a $400,000 stakes-winner by Private Account.

We bought her weanling filly by Alysheba for $30,000 and she turned out to be a black-type runner also.

Mountain Fling was an Apalachee mare from a great family and we snagged a bargain at $l2,000. She went on to produce a couple of stakes-winners.

Premiere Express, a stakes runner by home stallion Premiership-a recommended mating-was bought in foal to El Prado for $40,000 and produced a stakes-winner.

At the time I also suggested that he buy out a partner on the Seattle Slew filly Slewzig for peanuts ($30,000 for half). Slewzig later produced three stakes-horses.

A pretty good week’s work.

O CANADA!

James Redekop of Vancouver called one day and asked me to buy him a mare at Keeneland. I selected Donna Roberta who had already produced a stakes-winner. She cost $l7,000 in foal to Geiger Counter who became a modest winner. When the mare reached British Columbia I suggested she be bred to local star Son of Briarctic. The resultant foal, named Ryson, won nearly $400,000.

Ten years or so lataer, Redekop rang again. Donna Roberta was by now a little long in the tooth and we were to find a suitable replacement. We chose Precious Brenda for $7,000, in foal to Minardi. Her then three-year-old turned out to be Austin’s Mom, who won the Grade III Correction Handicap at Aqueduct. The Minardi filly sold for $50,000.

Fellow Canadian Norman McAllister showed up in l997 at Keeneland with a somewhat larger bankroll and instructed me to round up about thirty mares. Talk about beginner’s luck! At our first session we latched onto Song of Syria who had a weanling that would grow into champion Chilukki. For $72,000 we had the dam of a champion! Song of Syria’s first foal for McAllister was a gorgeous filly by French Deputy who was sold for $500,000. The mare was bred to Storm Cat and brought $935,000.

That same fateful night we bought Grade I winner Single Blade for $50,000. This mare was, bar none, the most beautiful mare that I have ever seen. We sold foals out of her for good money for a decade thanks to the exploits of her Grade II winner Comeonmom who was a yearling when we bought the mare. She was in foal to Street Cry when she died of colic in 2006.

Another McAllister purchase was stakes-winner McKilts for $30,000. She has out a current stakes-winner by Sultry Song.

ROLLING STONERSIDES

We negotiated the purchase of Grade I winner Tout Charmant on behalf of Bob McNair’s Stonerside Farm. She won the Gr. I Queen Elizabeth at Keeneland and would likely have won the Breeders Cup with a better trip.

Anyhow, the deal involved sweetening of the pot to acquire Tout Charmant by tossing in a mare named Roujoleur as the “player named later”. Roujoleur (Red Ransom) is now dam of Chatain who is a graded stakes winner of $216,330 after winning a stakes in New Jersey in l.08 2/5 for six furlongs.


CLARITY BEGINS AT HOME

We have never been afraid to purchase a good horse with our own nickel. In fact, the best horse I ever owned was Sunny Blossom. I ran up quite a phone bill trying to get established clients to buy him. Finally, I put up my own money and formed a partnership to buy him. All he did was win $600,000 and run 6 furlongs in l.07.l at Santa Anita, a record which still stands l9 years later. By the way, I bought his dam for a pittance days before his first stakes win. Made a bundle.

Same goes for the mare Cherry Moon. I bought the stakes-winning daughter of Quiet American for $65,000 off a ranch in Northern California. I sold her to French agent Eric Puerari for a decent profit. Her first foal, named Cherry Mix, finished second by a head in the Arc de Triomphe. Cherry Mix was sold to Darley and won in Grade I company.

Down in Ocala I purchased a Franks Farm castoff named Nats My Gal who later foaled the good stakes-winner Gold For My Gal, by Franks’ home stallion Gold Alert. He bought the mare back from me for another nice profit.

Over the years I have owned perhaps 200 mares of my own. Ironically, it was another fellow reneging on a deal that turned up roses for me. I had agreed on behalf of a Louisiana horseman to purchase a group of l5 mares from Verne Winchell. At the time I was a house guest of an old school pal named Ted Campbell, a Lexington lawyer.

When he heard about my predicament he promptly agreed to have his bank loan me a six-figure sum. The late l970s market was on fire for mares and I resold the package for double what I paid in about 90 days.

TERRIFIC TWOS

I spent many years at the racetrack because that’s where the action is. Betting is more than a pastime with me and I later discovered that is the source of my success in dealing in bloodstick.

Two-year-old sales have been very good to me. Having been a clocker, I knew from experience what a good workout is supposed to look like. Two horses with similar training times will not always match up as racing prospects months and years down the road.

In the old days of the Hollywood Park sale, then one of the world’s top sales for juveniles, I would fly down from my Vancouver home to clock the stock some two weeks ahead of the sale. There’d be maybe one or two other people doing the same. There were no electronic teletimers available then. One survived by keeping his own counsel about what had been reported by duplicitous consigners in cahoots with official clockers.

My information was for sale and my initial patron was Vancouver homebuilder Peter Redekop. We hit right away with Sharp Hoofer and Pirate’s Quill winning stakes.
Peter has stayed loyal over the years and we have both prospered by the association.
Stakes-winners bought as two- year-olds for him are Above The Table, Act Smart, Ask For Speed, Ali’s Dancer, All The Roses, Alpine Queen, Shezashiningstar, Lady’s Excuse, As The Bell Tolls.

There were many juvenile sale graduates bought by Dan Kenny Bloodstock for a variety of clients. These include Bishop Court Hill (Gr. 1) Sam Lord’s Castle, Tricky Trevor, Riverbank Kid, Viana Ossiana, Blacksage Alley, Mapp Hill, Porey Spring, Sweet Ilima, It Is, Kirtons, Kendall Point, Miss Bank Robin, Lost At Sea.

Nov 27, 2007

January Keeneland Sale

Welcome back. We were otherwise detained for l7 consecutive days at Keeneland November Sale. Some well-deserved downtime followed. Now it’s time to get ready for more of the same six weeks hence.

Four Star Sales best lick in November actually came at Fasig-Tipton when Donation fetched $975,000 in foal to the unstoppable Distorted Humor. She is the dam of the highly accomplished Lawyer Ron.

Our thanks to owner Bob Trussell for entrusting Four Star with this exceptional mare.

Watch this space for further January Sale commentary in days ahead.

Nov 2, 2007

Leapin’ Lou Messina

Our title is handed down courtesy of Leapin’ Lou Messina, a New Orleans boxing promoter in the l960s. He got his nickname, it was said, when he leaped into the ring to stop a fight in which his guy was getting roughed up. His other dubious passion was betting on short priced horses. Lou was a certified bridge jumper who loved to bet thousands to show on perceived good things. Minimum payout in those days was $2.20 to show so a guy could grab a quick l0% for his trouble.

One stormy afternoon Lou raced up in his white Cadillac, leaving the motor running while he dashed in to make his only play of the day. I remember that it was raining hard all day but that didn’t stop our man from laying it down on a horse owned by T. Alie Grissom and ridden by David Whited who was miles on top of the jockey standings at the Fair Grounds.

Whited quickly opened up a daylight lead in the six furlong race and opened up around the turn to lead by five coming to the eighth pole. His mount began to come unglued at that point but bravely battled on with only three sound legs. He figured to hang on for third but the pain was too much and he lost a head bob for show.

Turning to me in the Fair Grounds press box he said, “Kid, this is a hard way to make an easy living”.

Nov 1, 2007

Good Deals

We spent $l5,000 of Norman McAllister’s money to purchase Papoose (by Apalachee) a few years back and she is the dam of Shilla who won the $l55,895 Fanfreluche Stakes at Woodbine on October 27.

A mare of our own named Coax Classic was sold to Ken Ramsey and her daughter produced the recent New York stakes-winner Cannonball. Cannonball went on to further glory six days later, finishing third in the inaugural Breeders Cup Juvenile Turf. Ramsey is in the black about $l million on that trade.

Four Star Sales alumni had a big weekend, too. Jupiter Pluvius remained undefeated in Ireland, taking the Group III Killavullan Stakes, becoming a hot item for next May’s 2000 Guineas at Newmarket. Jupiter Pluvius is a $475,000 Saratoga sale yearling bred by Smoot Fahlgren.

Good timing, indeed, as Four Star has on offer on November 6 a half-brother to Jupiter Pluvius selling at Keeneland by Successful Appeal.

It gets even better. The dam of Lawyer Ron and her 2007 colt by champion Smarty Jones go through the auction ring at Fasig-Tipton on November 3.

Four Star graduates have been competitive in exalted company in recent days. Grade I winner Hysterical Lady added to her reputation with a gallant second in the Breeders Cup Distaff. Dream Rush and Adieu are Grade I winners.

Next Of Kin

FATHERLY COMPASSION

Father who smiles with teeth as white as snow
And looks out at the world.
Who is fur and cloth.
Whose eyes are made from ocean water.
Whose nose is a small mountain.
Whose life is a snake
Who golfs for eternity
Is brightening the universe
Is listening to the sound of the world jumping around
Who has passion for horses
Whose first name is Dan
Who enjoys Keeneland and golf
Who has many brothers
Whose wisdom sparkles conversation
Who has a heart full as a balloon
Who had a mind as strong as a tornado
Who has an honest soul
Is the owner of two cats
Who goes to the derby each year
Whose love for me is never ending
Who I will always keep in my thoughts.


Brody Kenny
Room 6A, Christ The King School
2004
Lexington, KY

Oct 30, 2007

It's a miracle...such birth pangs to get this little fellow floating through the thin air of the cosmos.

Evren of Turkey midwife to the creation. Hoo Hoo Hoo, this is going to be fun.

"What hath God wrought"