Keeneland Magazine Summer 2023 Edition

K EENELAND

celebrating bluegrass traditions

More personalized cancer care. More hope.

CHI Saint Joseph Health has been leading the way in cancer screenings, diagnosis and treatment for more than 40 years. As we continue to bring world-renowned cancer care to our communities, we’ve expanded our afliation with Cleveland Clinic Cancer Center - rated as one of the nation’s top cancer programs by U.S. News & World Report - to reach more Kentuckians.

To schedule a cancer screening, call 844.940.HOPE (4673).

Top-class Grade 1 winners, all with first yearlings selling soon.

tTIZ THE LAW, Champagne, Florida Derby, Belmont (11⁄8m) and Travers winner by

tDermot Ryan, Charlie O’Connor, Adrian Wallace, Robyn Murray, Blaise Benjamin, Charles Hynes or Michael Norris. Tel: 859-873-7088

Constitution

JUSTICE REAL ESTATE

FORT BLACKBURN—Adjoining a division of Stone-street Farm, Fort Blackburn boasts an unparalleled location on Old Frankfort Pike. Horse improvements include 3 world-class 20-stallhorsebarns,12+milesofplank fencing, a covered walker, equipment/ shop building, and hay barn. Lovely renovated historic 2,650 SF home.

MILLENNIUM FARM—Te former Buckland Farm consists of 317± acres, 8 horse barns, & 128 stalls. Te 6,150 SF main residence includes 7 bd, 6 full & 2.5 baths. Te farm is further complementedwith5employeehouses, yearlingcomplexwitha31stallCharlie Parker built barn, adjoining covered 70’ round pen, & 6 horse walker.

We have placed both of these turn-key horse farms under contract with a due diligence period that allows the buyer to void for any reason. Please visit our website for a detailed brochure on both farms if you want to view, and/or make a back up offer, please give us a call.

TIMBERTOWNFARM—Perfectsize, location,andqualityofimprovements on this 130± acre horse farm just minutes from downtown Lexington, Keeneland,andthehorsepark.Allthe ingredients you need to make your mark in the bluegrass: gracious main residence,guest&managershomes,3 barnswith39stalls,farmofce,newer shop, and hay/equipment buildings. Historic stone wall and mature tree lined driveways. $3,500,000

CORNER WOODS FARM—First time on the market in over 40+ years!

Tis 198± acre farm is as beautiful as it is known for producing superior race horses like Informed Decision and Keats. Improvements include the inviting 5200 SF historic main residence (with elevator); 3000 SF Manager’s home; two employee houses, fve barns, with 50 stalls. Located on the corner of Ferguson and Greenwich Pikes with excellent soils. $3,870,000

SHADAYID STUD—847± acres on both sides of Leestown Road.

•6identical14stallconcreteblockhorsebarns.

•2–18-stallconcreteblockhorsebarns.

•Rehabbarnwith8stallsandoffices.

• Show barn, calving barn, 3 hay barns, turn-out barn,shopandequipmentbuilding.

•Managerhouse,4employeehouses,andoffice.

•SouthElkhornCreekonrearboundary.

•35 miles of fencing and over fve miles of paved roads. $16,750,000

ERHAAB STUD—525 acres on Georgetown Road.

•9 concrete block horse barns with 105 stalls with41paddocks.

•6run-insheds–eachmeasuring20’x100’.

•Shop/paintbuildingandequipmentshed.

•A c.1870s 5,900 SF home (currently used as anoffice)and4employeehouses.

•BorderedbytheSouthElkhornCreek.

•22± miles of fencing and nearly 4 miles of paved roads. $11,500,000

JUSTICE REAL ESTATE

BUCKSTONE FARM—Located on the corner of Jackstown and Blacks Cross Roads, this highly desirable 96± acre farm is in the immediate area of Adena Springs, Sparks View and BrandywineFarms.Gated entrances on each road lead you to its three horse barns with 34 stalls. Te farm has primarily V-mesh fencing and ofers city and well water. You will discover several wonderful building sites on this truly picturesque farm. $1,200,000

Location! Developed 268± acre horse farm on highly desirable Mt. Horeb Pike and adjoining Castleton Lyons. Improvements include 6 horse barns with 78 stalls & 3 employee houses. Overlooking the Elkhorn Creek, and in a park like setting you'll discover the wonderful 4-bedroom 3.5 bath home whose lower level serves as the farm ofce, but suitable for living area. $5,765,000

—DEVELOPMENTPOTENTIAL— Flexible “PD Zoning” on this Clark County farm allows for commercial, retail, multi-family, residential. All utilities are available. Central location to nearby schools, restaurants, and regional hospital. $700,000

farm

vistas, rolling pastures, stockedspringfedpond,&roadfrontage on Hinkston Creek. Te improvements include underground utilities, two 30'x60' metal barns, 34'x50' shop with 992 Sq f attached 1 bd apartment, 30amp RV hookup, original 30' deep well, 16'x16' log garden cabin & a restored 1780's log home. Te cabin features a library,vaultedceilings,3stonefreplaces, pinefoors,exposedbeams,wrapporch, backdeck,&fre-pit. $1,486,000

LYNNWOOD FARM—Te stately mainresidenceoriginallyconstructed in the Victorian Style was built in 1859withthreeadditions.Tefarmis made up of 196± acres, 4 barns with a total of 51 stalls, 3 employee houses, Houston Creek runnizng through and frontage on Lexington Road and Hume Bedford Road. $4,950,000

Location! 31± acres in Fayette Co. is in a tremendous location, close to Keeneland and Bluegrass Airport with frontage on two roads. Property is PDR protected. Tis would make a beautiful estate farm for any equestrian discipline. $1,100,000

614 WALNUT GROVE—Tis 84 acre

ofers

WINCHESTER FARM—Location!

5411 PARKERS MILL—Location!

2000 BOONESBORO—31± acres

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All photographs portrayed in this advertisement are artist renderings. This advertisement is not an offering. It is a solicitation of interest in the advertised property. No offering of the advertised units can be made, and no deposits can be accepted, or reservations, binding or non-binding, can be made until an offering plan is fled with the New York State Department of Law. This advertisement is made pursuant to Cooperative Policy Statement No. 1, issued by the New York State Department of Law. File No. CP22-0055. Sponsor: RVD Holding LLC, 353 Broadway, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866

Blueg ass Brilliance

FEATURES

44 MINING FORTALENT

by Lenny Shulman

58 LAND OF PLENTY

by Edward L. Bowen

This second in a series examines how James Ben Ali Haggin, inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2022, created a farm whose acreage produced generations of important horses through a succession of owners to this day.

72 HOW SECRETARIAT WENT MAINSTREAM

by Maryjean Wall

Talent, timing, and savvy management have kept Big Red frmly alive in the popular imagination.

88 FOR THE GOOD OFTHE HORSE

by Cynthia Grisolia

Spy Coast Farm has developed a state-of-the-art rehabilitation facility for horses of all breeds.

96 FRANKLY FUN

by Patti Nickell

Boonedogs serves up specialty franks at a lively family spot on Old Richmond Road.

ON OUR COVER

Study of a Sprinter

Oil on canvas, 30 x 36 by Jaime

Corum

A Kentucky native, Corum grew up steeped in the horse culture of the Bluegrass State. She began drawing the horse at age 7 and riding at age 11, pursuing the equestrian disciplines of eventing and dressage. She received her undergraduate degree from Bellarmine University and her Master of Fine Arts in painting from the University of Kentucky. Time and work in the studio helped develop her realist painting technique, but she credits her years of hands-on experience with horses with refning her eye for equine conformation, movement, and character. Corum’s equine art and portraiture are collected widely in the United States, and her work can also be found in collections in Canada and the United Kingdom.

The Wycoff family’s Three Diamonds Farm, active in racing and sales, excels with its turf runners and savvy claims.

CRESTWOOD FARM Family operated for over fifty years

The McLean family has owned and operated their full service, 1,000 acre Crestwood Farm since 1970. Since then, Crestwood has bred and/or raised multiple Hall-of-Fame inductees, multiple Champions and over 290 stakes horses.

by Vickie Mitchell

The Foster Care Council helps children persevere through an unsettling change in their lives. by

ON Mark Ratzlaff paints against time to capture Lexington cityscapes “in the moment.”

William Bowden

Reign In The Horsepower

K EENELAND

celebrating bluegrass traditions

The offcial magazine of Keeneland Association, Inc. published by Blood-Horse LLC 821 Corporate Dr., Lexington, KY 40503 (859) 278-2361/FAX (859) 276-4450

KeenelandMagazine.com

BloodHorse.com

Editor: Jacqueline Duke

Artists: Catherine Nichols (Art Director), PhilipTruman

Copy Editors: Rena Baer, Judy Marchman

Visuals Director: Anne M. Eberhardt

Creative Services: Jennifer Singleton (Director), Forrest Begley

Account Executive: Amanda Ramey Masters

Sales Support: Catherine Johnston

CORPORATE OPERATIONS

Circulation Accounting Manager: Lauren Glover

General Manager: Scott Carling

PUBLISHED BY Blood-Horse LLC

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

James L. Gagliano, Carl Hamilton, Ian D. Highet, Stuart S. Janney III, Brant Laue, Dan Metzger, David O’Farrell

KEENELAND ASSOCIATION, INC.

4201Versailles Road P.O. Box 1690 Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.A. 40588-1690 Tel: (859) 254-3412 (800) 456-3412

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© 2023 Keeneland Association, Inc.

To order Keeneland magazine and additional copies, call 1-800-582-5604 TO SUBSCRIBE OR TO SEND A GIFT SUBSCRIPTION to Keeneland magazine, visit BloodHorse.com/KeenelandOffer

Derby Trifecta for the September Sale

Keeneland September is your source for success on racing’s biggest stages, as Mage led home a Keeneland sales trifecta in the Kentucky Derby.

1ST | MAGE

2ND | TWO PHIL’S 3RD | ANGEL OF EMPIRE

The unmatched opportunity of the

September Yearling Sale

Begins Monday, Sept. 11

President’s Message

What matters?

Every summer has a story. As a child, I remember summers of swim meets; North Carolina camps; trips to Lake Hamilton in Arkansas at the Cella family lake house; frst jobs. As an adult, I live summers in part through my children’s eyes, hoping they have some of the same magical experiences I was fortunate to have as a child.

But each summer story isn’t an easy one. There are diffcult challenges as well. At Keeneland, we always spend the summer preparing for the busy fall ahead, with the September yearling sale, October race meet, November breeding stock and horses of racing age sales, and the Sporting Art Auction.

This summer we are also working hard on plans for additional amenities to offer in the years ahead, modeled in the same style as our current facilities, draped in stone and enclosed by windows with the trademark Keeneland arch. Through those windows, there are decades of stories to be told, including the experiences offered by Keeneland with the Headley and Haggin families when they welcomed visitors to the races in 1936; the victory of Devil Diver over Whirlaway in the 1942 Phoenix Stakes; Queen Elizabeth II’s visit in 1984; the sale of Seattle Dancer, a yearling colt by Nijinsky II out of My Charmer, for a record $13.1 million in 1985; the frst Breeders’ Cup World Championships hosted at Keeneland in 2015; and the sale of an interest in undefeated Horse of the Year Flightline for $4.6 million in 2022.

Keeneland has offered many experiences to our visitors, and we want each person who walks through our doors to feel welcomed, appreciated, surprised, and delighted by their time here.

But as stewards of Keeneland, we owe more to this majestic place than to focus only on its beauty, your experience when you visit us, and the pageantry of our race days. We owe our sport, the equine community, our fans, employees, guests, and above all — the horse — the commitment to do all in our power to make our sport as

safe as it can possibly be.

You might have heard complaints about too many horses being scratched by state veterinarians at our April race meet and prior to the Kentucky Derby; and disagreements and litigation leading to dysfunction over how our sport is to be governed, powered by well-heeled funders more interested in politics than in racing, using the sport and the horse as pawns in their plans.

SHANNON ARVIN President and CEO

I truly believe the vast majority of people in our industry are honest horsemen and horsewomen, fair competitors, and avid sports enthusiasts. Take Mike Repole, a competitor who knows what it means to work hard. He and Vinnie Viola co-own champion Forte, the Kentucky Derby favorite who was scratched by the state veterinarians the morning of the race because of a foot bruise. Athletes in all sports sustain injuries; when they do, they have to sit on the sidelines. Mike’s comments? “The hardest adversity often leads to the greatest moments of your life. Keep fghting, keep going, never surrender, never give up, never stop, keep grinding. The toughest situations build the strongest people and horses in the end.”

Keeneland’s racing and safety practices are sound. Dr. Stuart Brown leads our equine safety team with unwavering commitment and attention to every detail that could impact the safety of horses on our grounds. With just a few unfortunate exceptions, our industry is working together to make our sport safer. The silver bullet or easy answer? There isn’t one. But as Mike Repole said, the largest challenges are usually the most rewarding.

At Keeneland, our summer story will be replete with the hard work we’ll be doing, along with many in our industry, to meet the challenges. We will work with horsemen and horsewomen and with the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority to make our sport as safe as possible. We will get it right for our community, our industry, and for the horse. We are counting on you all — fans as well as industry shareholders — to be a unifed voice, strong and loud in support of our efforts. Cheers to working through the challenges we face and the blue skies beyond. KM

SHARED GOALS SHARED SUCCESS

In racing, breeding and sales.

For more than 40 years, our team has been defined by the success of our partners – and that goal is what continues to drive us.

This is what we stand for.

WILLIAM BOWDEN

(For the Kids’ Sake) most recently worked as publications editor at Transylvania University. He was formerly a writer and an editor at the Somerset (Kentucky) Commonwealth Journal, the Lexington Herald Leader, and the NationalTour Association.

EDWARD L. BOWEN

(Land of Plenty) is the former president of the GraysonJockey Club Research Foundation. He is a former editor-in-chief of BloodHorse and has authored 22 books aboutThoroughbred racing and breeding. His latest book is “Doing the Usual,

Unusually Well: A History of Claiborne Farm.”

CYNTHIA GRISOLIA

(For the Good of the Horse) Originally from NewYork, Cynthia Grisolia is a freelance editor and journalist living inVersailles, Kentucky. Her articles have appeared in Keeneland, BloodHorse, Kentucky Monthly, Equestrian Quarterly, and others.

VICKIE MITCHELL

(Chasing the Light) writes for regional and national publications as well as for small businesses and nonproft organizations. She lives and works in Lexington.

PATTI NICKELL

(Frankly Fun) is a freelance travel writer whose work has appeared in major newspapers and national magazines. She currently writes travel articles for the Lexington Herald Leader.

AMY OWENS

(Keeneland News/ Connections) is Keeneland Communications Associate.

LENNY SHULMAN

(Mining forTalent) is a senior correspondent for BloodHorse and the author of “Head to Head: Conversations with a Generation of Horse Racing Legends,” “Justify: 111 Days

toTriple Crown Glory,” and “Ride ofTheir Lives:The Trials andTurmoil ofToday’s Top Jockeys.”

MARYJEAN WALL

(How SecretariatWent

Mainstream) won multiple Eclipse Awards during her 35 years asTurf writer for the Lexington Herald Leader. In addition to “Madam Belle: Sex, Money, and Infuence in a Southern Brothel,” she is the author of “How Kentucky Became Southern: ATale of Outlaws, HorseThieves, Gamblers, and Breeders.” She holds a doctorate from the University of Kentucky.

Keeneland News

COMPILED BY AMY OWENS SUMMER

Keeneland Donates $100,000 to Lexington Public Library Foundation

Te Lexington Public Library has received a $100,000 gif from Keeneland to the Library Foundation’s capital campaign for the new Marksbury Family Branch to open on Versailles Road late this year.

ANOTHER RECORD HANDLE AT KEENELAND SPRING MEET

Exceptional racing during Keeneland’s 15-day spring meet held April 7-28 generated record all-sources wagering of $224 million, marking the ffh consecutive season of record wagering at the track.

“A huge thanks to our fans, the community, and our horsemen who turned out in full force this spring to support Keeneland racing,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “From morning works to watching the races along the rail or tailgating on Te Hill in the afernoon — there are many ways to celebrate Keeneland. It’s rewarding to see memories being made and traditions shared across the grounds and around this great sport.”

All-sources wagering (not including whole-card simulcasting at Keeneland) for the season totaled $224,348,745, surpassing the previous record of $219,284,979 set during last year’s 15-day spring meet.

Wagering was boosted by an all-time record Pick 6 handle of $4,788,759 on April 21.

Average daily purses at Keeneland this spring were a record $1,185,532, resulting in full felds that averaged nine starters per race. Keeneland awarded a season record $8.05 million for 19 stakes.

In the meet’s signature race, Whisper Hill Farm and Gainesway Stable’s Tapit Trice prevailed by a neck in the $1 million Toyota Blue

Grass (G1) and became a leading contender for the Kentucky Derby (G1). Trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by Luis Saez, he sold for $1.3 million at Keeneland’s 2021 September yearling sale.

Another Keeneland sales graduate, Magdalena Racing, Colette Vanmatre, and James Ball’s Defning Purpose, was the upset winner of the $600,000 Central Bank Ashland (G1) to propel her into the Kentucky Oaks (G1). She was ridden by Brian Hernandez Jr. for trainer Kenny McPeek.

“Tremendous thanks to our horsemen and women, who continually elevate the quality of racing here at Keeneland,” Keeneland Vice President of Racing Gatewood Bell said. “Keeneland in the spring is so competitive. Te best owners, trainers, and jockeys all converge here; many of them don’t get a chance to race against each other any other time. It makes for a fun season of racing for them and for the betting public.”

Leading horsemen were jockey Tyler Gafalione (21 wins), trainer Wesley Ward (12 wins), and owner Godolphin (six wins). Ward has been the spring meet’s leading trainer for six years in a row.

Meanwhile, Keeneland teamed with corporate and horse industry partners to host a number of special events with philanthropic goals and support community organizations.

“Our support of the Lexington Public Library Foundation continues Keeneland’s founding mission to enhance the quality of life in our community,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “In this case, the Marksbury Family Branch will positively impact a neighborhood where many horse industry workers and their families live. We are thrilled to have a resource nearby for these families to take advantage of important educational opportunities.”

Te new two-story facility will include community and study rooms, a dedicated classroom, makerspace, outdoor reading area, expanded adult and children’s areas, and a drive-thru window where customers can pick up and return borrowed materials. Te Library Foundation has committed to raising $5.3 million in support of the $18 million project through a public-private partnership.

“It’s been exciting for Keeneland to have a hand in making the Marksbury Family Branch a reality,” Keeneland Senior Director of Operations and Community Relations Kara Heissenbuttel said. “As a state-of-the-art space, this facility ofers tremendous potential to both welcome visitors to Lexington and to serve people of all backgrounds.”

Te library will name a 16-seat meeting room on the frst foor of the Marksbury Family Branch in Keeneland’s honor.

Tapit Trice, left, prevailed by a neck in the $1 million Toyota Blue Grass.

COADY PHOTOGRAPHY

Congratulations to Mage’s connections: Owners: OGMA Investments, LLC, Ramiro Restrepo, Sterling Racing LLC & CMNWLTH

Breeder: Grandview Equine

Trainer: Gustavo Delgado

www.hillndalefarms.com

LGB, LLC 2023 / Photo: Coady Photography

2022 BREEDERS’ CUP HAS $81 MILLION ECONOMIC IMPACT

The 2022 Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Keeneland generated a total estimated economic impact of $81,846,897 in Lexington and surrounding areas. Results of the study led by University of Louisville economics professor Tomas E. Lambert, Ph.D., represent the second-highest economic impact in Breeders’ Cup history, following the record set in 2017 at Del Mar.

Economic benefts of the 2022 Breeders’ Cup include:

• $30.5 million in on-track spending, including wagering, concessions, parking, merchandise, and more.

• $33.6 million in spending on hotels, retailers, food and drink, transportation, and of-track entertainment.

• $10 million in track improvement investments for Keeneland, with $7.5 million in labor and material costs generated by the projects boosting the Lexington economy by an estimated $17.5 million overall.

• $900,000 secured in state and local tax revenues and $5.3 million secured in federal tax revenues.

“When the Breeders’ Cup comes to town, Lexington has the opportunity to step into the international spotlight and demonstrate why we are known as the Horse Capital of

Keeneland Launches Collegiate Opportunities Program

Designed to foster strong, professionally well-rounded candidates and create lifelong fans of Toroughbred racing, Keeneland’s new Collegiate Opportunities Program is ofering two types of paid positions — as a college ambassador or an intern — based on a student’s level of interest and feld of concentration.

the World — clearly we’re home to the best track in the world, Keeneland, and to the best Toroughbreds,” Mayor Linda Gorton said. “Te event has a signifcant economic impact that helps our hotels, our restaurants, and our entire community.”

“Keeneland and Lexington are intimately connected to the history of our great sport, and it was wonderful to work with our highly engaged community to host an event that benefted everyone involved,” Breeders’ Cup President and CEO Drew Fleming said.

Ticket purchasers traveled to Lexington from all 50 states and 18 countries, contributing to a signifcant increase in trafc at Blue Grass Airport.

“Te results of this study show with certainty that Lexington fully embraces the Breeders’ Cup,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “Breeders’ Cup and Keeneland share a mission to conduct racing at the highest levels of quality, safety, and integrity, and to contribute to our community.”

Keeneland Library Lecture Series Scheduled

Keeneland’s popular Library Lecture Series returns with public events that celebrate recently published works about Toroughbred racing whose authors conducted research at Keeneland Library.

Tickets are $20 per event and are available at Keeneland.com/library. Proceeds beneft the Keeneland Library Foundation, which funds Library preservation, education, outreach, and access eforts.

On June 22, Mark Shrager will talk about “Te First Kentucky Derby: Tirteen Black

Jockeys, One Shady Owner, and the Little Red Horse Tat Wasn’t Supposed to Win.” Shrager’s work is related to the library’s current exhibit, Te Heart of the Turf: Racing’s Black Pioneers.

On Aug. 24, Jennifer Kelly will discuss “Te Foxes of Belair: Gallant Fox, Omaha, and the Quest for the Triple Crown.”

On Sept. 28, Patricia McQueen will review “Secretariat’s Legacy: Te Sons, Daughters and Descendants Who Keep His Legacy Alive.”

All programs are at the library from 6:308:30 p.m.

“Keeneland is proud of the success of our college ambassadors and interns. Coordinating these two programs under the umbrella of a collegiate opportunities program enables us to strengthen the curriculums in exciting new ways,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “We hope to introduce the college demographic to everything Keeneland encompasses and create awareness that many careers in our industry don’t require a background or expertise with horses, such as fnance, marketing, public relations, operations, and technology. Our goal is to attract young people to the horse industry and help them fnd ways to participate, whether it be as a career or a lifelong fan.”

Trough the College Ambassador Program Presented by Lane’s End, students will support Keeneland staf during race meets and auctions; assist with Keeneland-related community events; and participate in educational, interactive, and career development experiences.

Internships during the academic year are available in such areas as accounting and fnance, communications, horsemen’s hospitality, library sciences, marketing, patron experience, ticketing, special events, catering and hospitality, and facilities. Opportunities are designed to give students with a specialized focus unique access and mentoring from skilled industry leaders.

For more information visit Keeneland.com/college.

ANNE M. EBERHARDT

The 2022 Breeders’ Cup provided a signifcant boost to the local economy.

SIX GRADE 1 WINNERS

CURRENTLY RANKS #4 ON THE GENERAL SIRE LIST WITH ONLY TWO CROPS TO RACE.

$2.2M OBS APRIL SALE TOPPER

CYBERKNIFE

ECHO ZULU

GUNITE EARLY VOTING

Transylvania University’s undefeated women’s basketball team, which won the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Tournament, was honored on opening day of the spring meet and presented the trophy after the Kentucky Utilities Transylvania.

Frankie Dettori treated Keeneland fans to his fying dismount after riding Team Valor International’s Hurricane Dream to victory in the fourth race on opening day of the spring meet.

After Stonestreet Stables’ Corona Bolt won the Lafayette Stakes on opening day of the spring meet, University of Kentucky football head coach Mark Stoops presented the trophy to winning owner Barbara Banke and jockey Florent Geroux.

Joining Perry Ouzts, North America’s leading active jockey with more than 7,300 wins, April 16 in Keeneland’s Jockeys Quarters were international stars William Buick (left) and Frankie Dettori.

4

SCHOLARS On College Scholarship

Day Presented by Lane’s End April 14, Gabrielle Gill (left) of Midway University and Jacob Daugherty of Blue Grass Community and Technical College each received $10,000 scholarships. They are joined by Ande Farish Day of Lane’s End.

Commissioner Dan, a 2-year-old colt by Commissioner, who won his career debut during Keeneland’s spring meet, on April 30 became the most expensive horse of the April selected horses of racing age sale on a $500,000 bid from Pedro Lanz, agent for KAS Stables of Saudi Arabia.

KEENELAND PHOTO

1 | PERFECTION

2 | TAKING FLIGHT

3 | FIRST DOWN

| RACING

5 | RIDING ROYALTY

6 | DAN THE MAN

Keeneland Crafted Events 2023

Explore the upcoming series of extraordinary events curated and designed by Managing Director Marc Therrien and the Keeneland Hospitality team.

SUMMER CALENDAR

A TASTE OF KEENELAND TOUR

May 25 | June 1 | June 8 | June 15

July 13 | July 20 | July 27

While there is no live racing at Keeneland, participate in a historical betting challenge while crafting a signature race day cocktail before embarking on a behind the scenes racing tour.

THE EXHIBIT DINNER

May 24 | July 19

Six-course tasting menu experience inspired by historic race track menus from the Library archives while browsing the Heart of the Turf exhibit.

THE CHEF’S SECRET DINNER SERIES

June 21 | July 27 | August 23

These intimate family-style dinners provide an opportunity to enjoy locally-sourced cuisine, craft cocktails and live music in unique and unexpected locations throughout Keeneland’s grounds each month.

BREAKFAST AT THE TRACK

June 17

For fans of all ages, experience the beauty of Thoroughbreds during the morning works at Keeneland while enjoying an array of unique breakfast oferings from Keeneland Hospitality and familyoriented activities.

1150 Conner Station

• 92+/- acre Estate in the heart of Shelby County KY horse country

• Spectacular Georgian style residence with formal living rooms, dining room, paneled study and 200+ year old re-built log cabin room

• Extravagant pool and pool house complex

• Barn with ofce, tack room, 10 stalls and indoor trailer parking Party Barn with tongue and groove ceiling, wide plank fooring and wood beams

• Shop with full bath, 4 bay equipment shed and round pen

5301 Old Richmond Road

• 20+/- acre extraordinary property in a superior location with excellent amenities

• 5,200 sq ft exceptionally maintained main residence and separate garage apartment

• 19 stalls in 4 barns

• 10 paddocks with excellent fencing, asphalt roadways and much more

• Fantastic location

225 Harp Innis Road

• 173+/- acre stunning turnkey horse property minutes from downtown Lexington and the Kentucky Horse Park

• 3 barns with 29 total stalls including 5 12x24 foaling stalls

• 150x200 outdoor ring with all-weather GGT footing and 10hp canon irrigation, wash rack, grooming areas, tack room, hot walker

• Run-in sheds, auto waterers, 2 large ponds and 2 gated entrances

• 3BR 2.5 BA manager’s house and apartment with ofce area

• Incredible property designed for optimal horse care and management

685 Handy Pike

• One of the fnest estates and turnkey equine training facilities in Kentucky

• Immaculate 4 BR 5 BA main residence flled with top quality fnishes and a beautiful pool with limestone accents

• 31 stall main training barn with tack/feed rooms, 330x42 indoor arena, barn lounge and more

• 28 stall broodmare barn and huge hay/ equipment storage barn with concrete foor

• Historic guest cottage, log modular residence and an additional employee residence

DID YOU KNOW...

... AFTER ANOTHER TIGHT INVENTORY MARKET IN 2022, BIEDERMAN REAL ESTATE WAS ABLE TO HELP OUR CLIENTS IN THE BUYING AND SELLING OF OVER $55 MILLION IN CENTRAL KENTUCKY PROPERTY

... IN 2022, BIEDERMAN REAL ESTATE WAS ABLE TO IDENTIFY SEVERAL HIGH-QUALITY PROPERTIES THAT WERE NOT “LISTED” FOR OUR BUYER CLIENTS, RESULTING IN OVER $15 MILLION IN SALES!

Cave Spring Farm

3555 Keene Road, Nicholasville, KY

744± ACRES 4 3.5

61 stalls 5 barns 6-horse equiciser and 52 ft. round pen

Do you want to buy a farm on which G1 winners MSHAWISH and TOM'S D'ETAT were raised?

Stonereath Stud

2539 Georgetown Road, Paris, KY

252± ACRES 4 5

Stonereath Stud is a completely proven, turnkey horse farm located in the center of the Bluegrass and Kentucky’s horse industry. Long known as a very productive and recognized Thoroughbred nursery, Stonereath Stud is suitable for any equine discipline and for any owner that wants the best land in the world for raising and housing quality bloodstock.Themanyhorseimprovementsinclude 60 stalls in four barns, 24 paddocks, 7 felds, auto waterers, 6-horse covered Kraft Equiciser, 60ft roundpen, and yearling show ring area.

Stonereath is world renowned for a reason; great land, on which great people have raised wonderful horses for decades. Located 20 mins to the Kentucky Horse Park and in the neighborhood of Town and Country Farm and Denali Stud.

Tom's d'Etat

Mshawish

CHASING THE LIGHT

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MARK RATZLAFF PAINTS AGAINSTTIME

TO CAPTURE LEXINGTON CITYSCAPES

By Vickie Mitchell

On the last day of February, artist Mark Ratzlaf stands at his easel on Level 6 of Cornerstone Garage, the University of Kentucky campus parking structure at the corner of South Limestone and Winslow Street.

From the garage’s top deck, his view stretches for blocks to the northeast, from the edge of campus to Main Street downtown. It’s the “deep space” viewpoint he relishes. Te sun, at the artist’s back, starts its slow, downward slide to the horizon.

As the buildings and glass windows begin to glow and clouds blush, Ratzlaf accelerates. He is determined to capture, in these last few hours before the sun sets, what he and others call the golden hour, when the dropping sun brings visual drama.

Mark Ratzlaff works on “Lexington View Over the Rooftops” from the top of a University of Kentucky parking garage.

Photos by Kirk Schlea

Spotlight On

MARK RATZLAFF

Ratzlaf rocks side to side, rolling from the toe of one foot to the heel of the other in his worn Adidas, four to fve brushes fanned in his lef hand as he captures the sky above or a shadow he sees on the street below. A few feet from where he stands, well-squeezed tubes of oil paint lie in a pile. His square wooden palette, on an easel to the lef of the painting that’s in progress, pops with colors.

On brief breaks, he pufs a Marlboro and sips from a large bottle of Smartwater. His black baseball cap turned backward, the cord of his earbuds snaking under his black shirt to the ancient iPod in the back pocket of his Levi’s, the 48-year-old fts in with the college students who pass by headed to their parked cars.

Several stop and stare at the luminous streetscape taking shape. “He’s good,” says one. “You’re doing a wonderful job,” says another. As another student drives past, on his way to the garage exit far below, he stops and rolls down his car window. “Tat’s pretty cool.”

Ratzlaf hears none of it. Earbuds in, he’s tuned out to the streets below where sirens blare, horns honk, students laugh, trafc buzzes, and the sky above, where jets simmer by and helicopters chop the near-spring air.

A PASSION FOR PLEIN AIR

Painting from the top deck of a parking garage isn’t new to Ratzlaf. Before he moved to Lexington in mid-2018, he lived in another university town, Bloomington, Indiana, for about 18 years. One day, Ratzlaf says, as he worked atop a Bloomington parking garage, a security guard ordered him to leave. “He said I was loitering.” Ratzlaf refused but then packed up when the guard called police. Later, the artist posted a picture of one of his downtown Bloomington paintings with a message along the lines of “Bloomington won’t be seeing any more of these.” Te mayor reached out. He told Ratzlaf that he was welcome to paint from the top of the garage.

As an artist who works en plein air — French for “outdoors” — Ratzlaf paints not only from parking garage decks but on street corners, in parking lots, and along roadsides. In the Bluegrass he’s mainly painted urban scenes. Asked why, he has a quick answer. “Have you noticed there are no shoulders on country roads in Kentucky?” he replies. “Whenever you are picking a painting spot you are actually picking two spots — a point of view and also a place to stand and not get hit by a car. Tat’s why you haven’t seen one yet.”

Ratzlaff paints outdoors, or en plein air, and strives to capture a moment in time, giving his work an immediacy in lighting and mood.

Painting en plein air is a long tradition. It’s the way Monet, Sisley, Renoir, and other famous Impressionists worked. Americans Mary Cassatt, John Singer Sargent, and Childe Hassam are just a few American artists who did the same.

Lexington has its share of plein air painters, many of whom are members of the long-standing Plein Air Painters of the Bluegrass.

But Ratzlaf does difer from some plein air painters in a couple of ways.

“Typically, they work on much smaller canvases than Mark does,” says Kate Savage, executive director of Arts Connect. “Usually, 6 inches by 9 inches.” Going small makes sense given how quickly they must work. “Tey are chasing the light,” she says. “It is a time-sensitive pursuit.”

Artists also might start a painting outdoors, but then,

FARM

Tapeta Farm is a truly magnifcent private setting with rolling hills, vistas, and horse training improvements, which are second to none. A true horseman will appreciate what two-time Breeders’ Cup winning trainer Michael Dickinson has meticulously designed, constructed, and maintained here at Tapeta. The 196 acre estate is designed as a training mecca with six diferent training surfaces, including: “Summer”, which is best utilized at that time when most other turf surfaces are harder; “Main Tapeta”, 7 furlongs with its long uphill gallop; “Tapeta Round”, a 4 furlong warm-up track on Tapeta surface; “Boomers Hill Turf”, 5 ½ furlongs uphill gallop for conditioning; “Noah’s Arc”, good even with 2 inches of rain; and “Normal”, which is best utilized under normal conditions. Also included is a modern 40 stall barn and a separate facility called the Tapeta Performance Center featuring a vibrating platform, salt room, cold-water spa and an eight horse Eurociser. Adjacent to the Performance Center is a swimming pond (with central dock) and extensive paddocks of varying sizes.

There are numerous trails, both wooded and felds, throughout the property for allowing the horse to relax and unwind. Tapeta is also accented by a beautiful 4,500 sq. ft. updated English Manor House situated on a hill overlooking the upper waters of the Chesapeake Bay. North East, Maryland allows for access to numerous racetracks that one will not fnd anywhere else in the United States.

For inspection please call:

For inspection please call: A. John Price

A. John Price

Ratzlaff, who moved to Lexington in mid-2018, primarily paints urban scenes.

given time limitations or weather, move indoors to a studio to fnish, using photographs to recall the scene.

Ratzlaf doesn’t have a studio, save the small living room of his small apartment, where a cart he fashioned for painting supplies can be rolled out of a closet. But he’d rather work outdoors. His large paintings aren’t fnished in a day; instead, he works on them over weeks, sometimes months.

“He works so hard to capture the light and refection,” Savage says. “I’ve seen him masterfully paint puddles of rain and the light refracting of the street. Tat is tough stuf.”

His oil paintings, painted on board, turn bricks and mortar, sidewalks and roadways, power lines and garbage cans, and headlights and taillights into scenes you want to step into. It’s no surprise he was called “the Back Alley Artist of Bloomington,” given his ability to turn what seem to be pedestrian places into scenes that remind us that

PAINT THETOWN

Art will be outdoors in downtown Lexington Saturday, June 17, as 50 to 60 artists set up their easels and whip out their brushes, oils, and acrylics.The goal for each artist?To create a painting in a scant six hours during the 11th annual Paint theTown.

Organized by Arts Connect, the event celebrates painting en plein air, French for “outdoors.” Artists work on street corners, in parking lots, in parks, and in other green spaces. People can watch the artists at work, keeping in mind that they are working under deadline pressure.

Painters begin their work after an 8 a.m. check-in and deliver completed paintings to the Lexington Public Library by 2 p.m., where the works will be exhibited in the library’s gallery until July 24.

The exhibition kicks off with a public opening at 6:30 p.m. on June 17.Tickets are $35 a person and include one drink.When a guest buys a painting that night, $25 of their ticket price goes toward their purchase (one ticket per purchase). Artists also attend the opening, where awards are presented.

This year, Paint theTown does not confict with two other popular annual events, the Lexington Pride Festival and the Ashland Lawn Party, as it has in the past.

For more information, visit www.artsconnectlex.org/ paint-the-town Ratzlaff might return to the same spot for weeks and sometimes months to fnish a painting.

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beauty exists in the urban landscape. He works outdoors in all types of weather, except two. “When it’s too windy, or there’s lightning,” he says.

Otherwise, he’s out there. His 2018 piece “Lights on Victorian Square” was painted on November evenings, between 4 and 7. He clamped a light on his easel so he could see to work. He started work on “Short Street Lights,” purchased by UK HealthCare for the collection it displays in hospitals and clinics, on Christmas Eve in 2018, the frst holiday season Ratzlaf had spent alone in many years.

He’s painted other subjects. Cross Gate Gallery owner Greg Ladd urged Ratzlaf to paint a hunting dog for the 2019 Sporting Art Auction, an annual collaboration between the gallery and Keeneland. His

“Pointer” sold for $4,500, exceeding the $2,000-$3,000 estimate. He takes commissions, although somewhat hesitantly as his opinions about subject matter and viewpoint don’t always jibe with his clients. He’s painted ponds and other scenes on Bluegrass “ranches,” as they call them in the Midwest; he painted the gardener’s cottage at Ashland for one client, a pet Labrador retriever for another. Once, in Bloomington, he painted a dead possum in the road, a challenging subject from a sensory standpoint. Before the pandemic, his artwork was displayed — and sold well — at Great Bagel on Woodland Avenue.

His work has also appeared in several local exhibitions including a group show at City Gallery, where he’s scheduled to be one of two to three featured artists in an exhibi-

tion set for February and March 2025.

He’s won Best of Show twice, in 2020 and 2022, in the Paint the Town plein air event organized by Arts Connect. “Te couple of times he has participated — he doesn’t show up every year — but when he’s shown up and has done a piece, he’s always won frst prize,” Savage says.

None of this would probably surprise the arts community in Indiana, where he has won numerous awards. He was named Outstanding New Exhibitor by the Hoosier Salon, the near 100-year-old nonproft aimed at promoting art by artists in Indiana. He also won its awards for best landscape and excellence in oil painting.

“His work is exceptional, and I think anyone would recognize that,” says Savage. “He works so hard at it and takes his

MARK

Only strong wind and lightning can dissuade Ratzlaff from painting outside.

Spotlight On

MARK RATZLAFF

practice seriously. I have seen him rework the sky and rework the sky, and I say ‘Mark, the sky looks perfect,’ and he’ll say, ‘No, no, that cloud is not right.’ ”

A LIFELONG LOVE OFART

Ratzlaf has loved art since he was a child. “I wasn’t that good at anything else,” he says. Encouraged by his mom, high school art teachers, and others, Ratzlaf landed at Missouri State University in Springfeld, where he’s from, and studied painting, drawing, and art history. He also studied at the New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture in New York City, but it was at MSU that he began to see painting as a calling.

He credits Zhi Lin, then an art professor at MSU, now a Seattle-based artist and professor at the University of Washington.

— MARK RATZLAFF

He’d signed up for one of Lin’s classes but dropped it. “I was no good at it. It was too challenging.” But then, Ratzlaf began to notice how his peers were improving under Lin’s tutelage. “I wasn’t getting any better but I saw Zhi’s students rise. I had to buckle down.” He took Lin’s advanced drawing class. “He took my pencils away and gave me charcoal and made me draw with that the whole semester. I got so much better.” For the next several years, he took as many of Lin’s classes as he could.

On a study trip to Italy, Ratzlaf painted and drew. One of his pieces was a selfportrait. It is small and hangs, unframed, on a door in his bedroom. It may be the most important piece he’s created because it made him realize he had talent. “Tat was an aha moment. It was the best thing I had done.”

WHENEVERYOU ARE PICKING A PAINTING SPOTYOU ARE ACTUALLY PICKING TWO SPOTS — A POINT OF VIEW AND ALSO A PLACETO STAND AND NOT GET HIT BY A CAR.”

Ratzlaff’s talent has won him Best in Show twice at Arts Connect’s Paint the Town plein air event.

Spotlight On

GOODBYE TO BLOOMINGTON

If not for a bad breakup, Ratzlaf might still be in Bloomington, a town he lef with sadness. In his description of the painting “Goodbye Bloomington,” he writes: “I don’t know what to say except I truly love that place and so many wonderful people who supported my work for so many years. Bloomington will be part of me forever.”

But move on he did, packing up his 2001 navy blue Taurus and his dog, who has since died, and heading for Lexington, where a good friend ofered fnancial and emotional support.

In his life here, the Taurus plays several supporting roles.

“It’s my studio,” he says, and a look inside ofers quick confrmation — from paint on the carpet and upholstery to paint supplies tumbled about. Ratzlaf removed the car’s backseat so he could haul the 8-foot easel he needs for his large paintings. Te big open space also holds his large paintings, sometimes as big as 3 feet by 4 feet.

Te Taurus also helps pay the bills. When he’s not painting, Ratzlaf works for Uber Eats and other delivery services. His delivery bags sprawl on the car’s foorboards.

Savage and others who admire Ratzlaf’s work hope those bags will someday be a thing of the past.

“His work is extraordinary,” Savage says, “and I just wish he could make a living at it and not have to do DoorDash or whatever terrible thing he has to do.”

Celeste Lewis, who manages the Pam Miller Downtown Arts Center, remembers the frst time she saw his work.

“I thought, ‘Who is this?’ ”

She invited him to be in the City Gallery exhibition that she is curating for early 2025. And, more recently, he had two pieces in a group show at the gallery.

Little by little, perhaps, he’s becoming known in his new town.

“I remember thinking when he came to pick up those pieces,” Lewis says, “‘Te world needs to see more of this.’ ” KM

MARK RATZLAFF

Ratzlaff’s 2001 Taurus, which he uses to deliver food for DoorDash and Uber Eats, also serves as his studio.

One aspect of Ratzlaff’s work that sets him apart from other plein air painters is the larger-than-usual size of his canvases.

A busy spring brought Kirk Wycoff to Keeneland among several racing-related stops.

The Wycoff family’s Three Diamonds Farm, active in racing and sales, excels with its turf runners and savvy claims

By Lenny Shulman

Photos by Kirk Schlea

Kirk Wycof is blasting through what would be termed an eventful spring. Te failure of Silicon Valley Bank has sent shock waves through the banking industry, and Wycof happens to be the principal of Patriot Financial Partners, a private equity frm that has invested more than a billion dollars in small community banks over the past 16 years.

With this latest banking crisis, Wycof’s workdays have lengthened as he redoubles his eforts to ensure that the institutions with which he is associated are run conservatively and efciently.

MINING

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Which also happens to describe Wycof’s participation in Toroughbred racing and breeding: busy and efcient. In the space of a week this spring, Wycof attends an auction of 2-year-olds in Florida; sees his grade 1 winner Atone run in a graded stakes in Louisiana; witnesses in South Carolina one of his star millionaires, Cross Border, triumph for the frst time in a steeplechase event; and hits opening day at the Keeneland spring meeting,

where his Dude N Colorado ran in the grade 3 Kentucky Utilities Transylvania Stakes.

Described by associates as a hard-nosed businessman, Wycof nevertheless displays a sof spot in his heart when it comes to horses. Tis yin and yang balance has achieved substantial success for Wycof when it comes to his Tree Diamonds Farm, a racing, breeding, and selling concern that now includes an actual farm in the Bluegrass. Te banker in Wycof serves as the perfect fulcrum when weighing and identifying the risks and rewards of the Toroughbred world and pushes him to identify the undervalued aspects of the industry that best satisfy his business instincts.

Not many bankers would venture into the racing game to enhance their overall balance sheets. It takes someone with a true, deep-seated love of the animal to make the emotional and fnancial deposit in horses that has marked Wycof’s participation. Te sport could use a thousand or two more like him.

The Wycoff family has added a Bluegrass farm to its equine portfolio. The property accommodates breeding stock and has facilities for show horses.

MINING TALENT for

Wycof’s base has long been the historic countryside just outside Philadelphia. Early on, he acquired his admiration for equines while taking riding lessons near his home in Valley Forge. Before he emerged from his teens, he had ridden and shown horses, and as soon as he reached legal age he was spending his nights at Penn National, training license in hand. Along with his passion for horses, Wycof began another love afair, this one with a jumper rider named Debra, whom he eventually married.

Kirk and Debra matriculated together at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Both of their majors wound up being with horses. While Kirk trained at Penn National, Debra rode each day, and the couple began claiming racehorses out of the bargain bin. When Kirk started winning with some of them, the hook was frmly in place.

First, though, the couple concentrated on raising their children, Jordan, Kirby, and Ashley, who collectively became the inspiration for the stable name Tree Diamonds. To support his family, Wycof worked various jobs in the banking industry, and in 1991, he

saved a failing bank named Progress Federal and eventually sold it to Fleet at a proft. So, when a friend in the fnancial world ofered him 50% stakes in a couple of 2-year-olds, Wycof rejoined the world of Toroughbreds.

“I’ll never forgive him,” Wycof joked.

Five years later, with their children of to college, both Debra and Kirk circled back to their youthful passions. Debra began riding jumpers competitively once again, and Kirk jumped into the deep end of Toroughbred ownership. He admits to being a person “who can’t not buy a horse at a sale,” and is equal-

ly engaged with claiming horses at the racetrack, having learned the cardinal lesson that a good horse can come from anywhere.

And Tree Diamonds always seems to have a good horse. Jordan Wycof in 2015 insisted to his father that they claim a horse for $32,000 who was running at Aqueduct. Bigger Picture wound up making more than $1.5 million for them, winning the grade 1 United Nations Stakes in 2017 and the grade 2 Dixiana Elkhorn Stakes at Keeneland in 2019. Next Question became a grade 1 winner. Army Wife and Hembree

As a farm owner Wycoff enjoys being close to his horses. He also appreciates not paying boarding bills.

Stone pillars at the main entrance display the three diamonds motif.

each scored in grade 2 events.

Field Pass, a modest $37,000 yearling, took the Transylvania Stakes in 2020 and Del Mar’s grade 2 Seabiscuit Handicap in 2021. And then came Fire At Will, hammered down to Tree Diamonds for $97,000 at the Keeneland September yearling sale in 2019. A year later, he won the With Anticipation Stakes at Saratoga, the grade 2 Pilgrim Stakes at Belmont Park, and the grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Presented by Coolmore America at Keeneland, delivering the Wycofs to the top of the Toroughbred world.

“Debra and I prioritized winning a Breeders’ Cup race as our No. 1 goal for Tree Diamonds, and it was the thrill of a lifetime,” Wycof noted. Today, Fire At Will stands stud at Sequel Stallions in New York and will be

supported by a bevy of broodmares sent his way by the Wycofs.

It is no coincidence that the lion’s share of Tree Diamonds’ success has come in grass races. (Tat trend continued in a big way in early 2023 when Atone won the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational Stakes, a grade 1 afair at Gulfstream Park.) Using a parallel line of reasoning to one he employs in banking, Wycof determined that turf horses represented an undervalued aspect of the

Toroughbred market. Horses with turf pedigrees tend to sell for less money at auction, and the kinder surface — when compared to racing on dirt — generally allows grass runners to achieve longer-lasting careers than do their peers on dirt.

With a relatively modest budget, Wycof concluded, “We couldn’t compete with the bigger owners in dirt races, so we thought from a return-on-investment standpoint we’d look for horses that we could stretch out in distance or switch from dirt to turf,” when claiming horses. Te formula has paid of, with interest.

And it has led to a deeper commitment — to the horses and the industry. On a visit to Kentucky to attend the Run for the Roses in 2021, the Wycofs decided to come early. “Which was a fatal mistake because we had an

The Wycoffs were shown the farm during a trip to Kentucky for the 2021 Derby.

MINING TALENT for

extra day to look at real estate,” Kirk said with his typical humor. On Iron Works Pike just north of Lexington, they were shown a 150acre property in the heart of Toroughbred country. Te farm had been owned by noted equestrian Reed Kessler, a show jumper who has competed in the Olympic Games.

“She had built a fancy show barn and indoor ring and grand prix feld on one side of a Toroughbred farm,” Wycof noted. “Te place had been on the market for years because the Toroughbred people didn’t want the show horse part, and the show horse people wouldn’t buy it because of the Toroughbred section. So, the real estate agent was looking for some sucker who actually liked both sides of the business, and in come my wife and I. I’m sure he was delighted.”

Tere are both practical and spiritual advantages to the farm, which has been christened Tree Diamonds. “From a business standpoint, there are gaps that can get expensive between the weaning of a foal and when

it can be broken and raised, or sold as a yearling,” Wycof noted. “So, the farm sets up nicely. Also, we have a layup barn, so when horses need time or get a rest over the winter, I’m not paying boarding bills. Tere is also the joy in getting around and being able to touch every horse every day when we are at the farm.”

Tat is no small consideration for Wycof, according to Meg Levy. Trough her Bluewater Sales, Levy has long consigned the Tree Diamonds horses to various auctions, and also kept Wycof’s mares before he purchased

his own farm.

“Kirk loves horses,” Levy said. “When he had them here, he would walk around the felds with them; that was his favorite thing to do. People like him are hard to fnd anymore. People who are deeply into the business in a fnancial way in racing and buying and selling, and still love the horses like that. He is a very tough businessman, but under that tough exterior, he has a huge heart and a great passion for horses, horse people, and the horse business.”

Farm manager Chris McGrath brings to Three Diamonds a decade of experience working for Coolmore operations in Ireland, Australia, and Kentucky. The farm is home to a number of Three Diamonds mares and young horses.

MINING TALENT for

In the banking industry, Wycof pays special attention to assembling the right management teams to ensure that entities are being run in the correct manner. His Toroughbred interests mirror that philosophy. Realizing the afnity that trainer Mike Maker has shown for maximizing the success of older longdistance turf runners, Wycof recognized he wanted Maker to condition his runners. Todd Pletcher, who like Maker came up under the legendary D. Wayne Lukas, also gets Tree Diamonds horses.

In Wycof’s pinhooking operation, in which he buys weanlings to resell as yearlings, or yearlings to resell as 2-year-olds, he partners with cream-of-the-crop operations such as Ciaran Dunne’s Wavertree Stables, John Gleason of Woodford Toroughbreds, and David McKathan and Jody Mihalic at Grassroots Training and Sales. Tree Diamonds Farm is managed by Chris McGrath, who

TOP HORSES

spent a dozen years with Coolmore’s international operation in Ireland, Australia, and Kentucky.

“Kirk is open-minded and a fantastic person to work for,” McGrath said. “He listens to every option and opinion. He makes the fnal call, but he’s very much about making the best decision as a team. I can’t emphasize enough the collective efort of everyone involved.”

Dunne, of Wavertree, concurs. “Debra and Kirk do this for the love of the game and the love of horses. It’s refreshing. He goes about it in a very businesslike fashion, but it’s a labor of love. He’s very hands-on, but he also surrounds himself with successful people and gives you enough room to do your job. If you’re not getting it done, he’ll move on, but he gives you the opportunity.”

What was once a racing stable has morphed into a far more diversifed operation, as Tree Diamonds is active today in virtually every segment of the Toroughbred world. Such layering helps achieve Wycof’s goal of adhering to sound business principles and trying to make a proft. Although

he cracks that the genesis of their broodmare band was “my wife saying we can’t sell any flly that won a stakes for us,” from a business standpoint, creating a roster of broodmares from the racing stable is cost-efcient when compared to the price of stakes-quality mares at auction.

Tus, former race mares such as four-time stakes winner Kiss the Girl, two-time stakes winner Jakarta, stakes winner Time Limit, and graded stakes-placed Amalf Princess all enjoy the paddocks at Tree Diamonds, or at Sequel in New York. Wycof has sent 20 broodmares to Fire At Will as the Breeders’ Cup winner begins his stallion career. Fire At Will represents the fnal — and perhaps most lucrative — silo of the Toroughbred business for Tree Diamonds: the stallion side, which is high-risk, high-reward should the son of Declaration of War make good as a stud horse.

“Outside of those going to Fire At Will, the broodmares are just for the love of the horse,” Wycof said. “I’m pretty sure we don’t know how to make money in broodmares and

Next Question won the 2012 Nearctic Stakes at Woodbine.

Bigger Picture won the 2019 Dixiana Elkhorn Stakes at Keeneland, bringing the Wycoffs to the winner’s circle, below.

Fire At Will gave the Wycoffs their frst Breeders’ Cup victory when he took the 2020 Juvenile Turf.

Atone triumphed in the 2023 Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational Stakes.

KEENELAND PHOTO/PHOTOS BY Z

MICHAEL BURNS

KEENELAND PHOTO/PHOTOS BY Z

SKIP DICKSTEIN COGLIANESE PHOTOS

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breeding, but we’re going to learn. Trough racing, we’ve been able to cover the stable expenses and some of our pinhooking expenses. If we have a successful pinhooking year, we have more money to spend at sales and put more bullets in the chamber.”

Since 2018, Tree Diamonds’ racetrack earnings have tallied up like fxed interest. Tat year, the stable earned $3.2 million in purses. Te next four years it registered $3.9 million, $3.6 million, $5.0 million, and $3.8 million.

As far as sales go, Tree Diamonds’ purchases depend on whether it is looking to resell the horse or keep it for racing.

“For the pinhooks, we buy because we like the physical. Tey’re not specifcally turf horses,” allowed Wycof. “We have great partners who know what a fast horse looks like, and we rely on them. When I frst went to the sales in 2009, I was 100% sure I was the only person on the grounds who didn’t know which horses were stakes horses. Nobody tells you that every expert is also going to be wrong 90% of the time. So, at least it’s a fair fght.

“As far as our racing stable, we look for horses that have turf pedigrees or are by sires that excel at both dirt and turf. We rarely buy a horse that looks all dirt because we’re more likely to win purses using Mike Maker’s skills on the turf.”

Although Wycof leaves it up to his trainers to determine which surface best suits his runners, he is making use of one further advantage of grass runners: their ability to transition into jumpers late in their careers. Cross Border, a 9-year-old multiple grade 2 winner of more than $1.1 million on the fat, has recently begun competing in steeplechase events. Although already an 11-time winner, Cross Border was eligible for a steeplechase race against maidens (nonwinners), and on March 25 at Aiken won for the frst time over jumps.

“Certain horses ft that program,” Wycof noted. “Tey might be out of options on the fat, but they can be happy and run on over jumps until they’re 9, 10, 11, or 12. If they can be competitive, great.”

Trainer Keri Brion, longtime assistant to Jonathan Sheppard, who excelled at training horses in both disciplines, handles the jumpers for Tree Diamonds.

“Cross Border loves to jump,” she said.

“How cool was that to see him win? He ran on the front and jumped like he’d done it his whole life. It’s not every day you get a million-dollar earner sent your way. I’m so grateful and appreciative to Kirk Wycof for the opportunity. And Tree Diamonds also has Girl Dad, who is only 5 and should be a stakes horse over jumps at Saratoga this summer.”

Tree Diamonds remains as it started: a family operation. Debra, who has won amateur jumping divisions in both Florida and Kentucky, “has discovered that winning races is fun too, and she is taking particular interest in that,” according to her husband. “We do all of it together; go to the barn together. Jordan is one of the best handicappers I know, and we collaborate on buying and claiming horses. My daughter Kirby is very involved in tracking and rehoming our racehorses, which is no small job when you’re turning over 60 or 70 a year. She really enjoys that.”

Efciency and fun. Love and passion. Tat’s quite the statement from a banker. KM

The farm’s previous owners built an indoor arena and an outdoor feld for jumping.

Left, Kirk and son Jordan regularly attend the Keeneland sales. Above, Wycoff conferred with jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. and trainer Todd Pletcher at Keeneland recently.

ANNE M. EBERHARDT

A beautiful form of politeness

Have you ever heard the expression "being well dressed is a beautiful form of politeness"? We believe the same goes for presentation in real estate. The keen attention paid to each property entrusted to us is our hallmark. From the vivid imagery captured in photographs and video to the richness our careful research provides, we're storytellers writing a Bluegrass love story.

Why? It's just one way of conveying the respect we have for our clients, from the loving investment a seller has made to the discerning eye of a buyer. They deserve the best--and so do you.

Please visit us at the new KirkFarms.com

The land assembled by James Ben Ali Haggin formed the nucleus of what became a string of prominent Thoroughbred breeding farms bordering Paris Pike.

LAND of PLENTY

This three-part series examines how JAMES BEN ALI HAGGIN inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2022, created a farm whose acreage produced generations of important horses through a succession of owners to this day

JAMES BEN ALI HAGGIN,

By Edward L. Bowen

KIRK SCHLEA

DURING THE 14 decades since the name Elmendorf Farm frst became known to the world of Toroughbred racing, a key phase occupied only a bit more than 10 percent of its history. James

Ben Ali Haggin purchased the 544-acre core of Elmendorf in 1897 and set about extending its acreage in grandiose fashion. By the time of Haggin’s death at 93 some 17 years later (in 1914), his purchases of contiguous land had swelled the farm total to some 9,000 acres.

Since then, most of the continuing harmonies of Elmendorf’s success have involved its being divided and subdivided into subchapters with their own importance. Te names afxed to the various farms up and down Paris Pike that briefy were

owned by Haggin resound in the halls of Turf distinction: Greentree, Gainesway, C.V. Whitney Farm, Domino, Spendthrif, Faraway, Walmac, and on and on. Teir success mirrored, and in some cases exceeded, the success of Haggin himself as an owner, breeder, and consignor.

During most of those years, the original core acreage of Elmendorf also saw its own sequela of changing ownership. Although the name of that portion of land still few the Elmendorf banner, its success was the work of various members of the vaunted Widener family, plus new

Haggin built an unrivaled Bluegrass mansion in Green Hills, but subsequent owner Joseph E. Widener had it demolished. Today, only the columns remain.

Clockwise from left, Daniel Swigert bought Preakness Stud and renamed it Elmendorf Farm. He bred champion Hindoo and stood the stallion Glenelg. Subsequent owner C.J. Enright bred the colt Hamburg at Elmendorf.

names such as Maxwell Gluck and Jack Kent Cooke. (Tis segment in a three-part series focuses on that core property, with more details on the other farms to be featured in the fnal chapter.)

ORIGIN OF THE NAME

History presents a connection of the name Elmendorf with the name Woodburn. Te latter name had been etched onto the history stone of Bluegrass country as the archetype of the modern Toroughbred farm — standing stallions, raising yearlings for auction, etc. — while still carrying the DNA of landed gentry raising Toroughbreds for their own sporting gratifcation. Te stallion nonpareil, Lexington, stood at Woodburn and led the annual sire list 16 times.

Daniel Swigert had given noble service to the family of R.A. Alexander in helping Woodburn achieve its epochal dominance. Two years afer Alexander’s 1867 death, Swigert lef the farm’s management to heirs and in-laws and purchased nearby Stockwood Farm for himself. At Stockwood, he furthered his reputation for a

bit more than a decade. He then purchased another farm, paying Milton H. Sanford $150,000 for 544-acre Preakness Stud.

Sanford had shown a touch of destiny by naming the farm for his famous horse who was immortalized in the naming of a classic race in Maryland. In a more mundane bit of rechristening, Swigert named the farm for a relative, and not even one of his own blood kin. In a 1981 article in Te Toroughbred Record, Cherie Suchy noted that Swigert named his farm for his wife Annette’s Dutchborn paternal grandmother, Blandina Elmendorf.

Swigert bred on his own for 23 years. Te greatest among the champions he bred, Hindoo, was foaled at Stockwood, but Swigert’s 10 years at Elmendorf brought success as well. For example, he stood the stallions Virgil and Glenelg, who led the sire list a combined fve times. In 1891, Swigert retired, and he sold Elmendorf. Te buyer was C.J. Enright, who bred the colt Hamburg there. (Hamburg was acquired and named by John E. Madden. In due course, Madden launched another lasting bit of Lexington civic vocabulary by naming his primary farm Hamburg Place.)

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THE WIDENER ERA

In 1923, Joseph E. Widener and his nephew George D. Widener became the new owners of Elmendorf. Joseph E. maintained the name Elmendorf for his portion, while George D. used the name Old Kenney for his portion. Te elder Widener was 17 years older than the nephew, and perhaps the younger relative to some degree flled a void created by an indifference to racing demonstrated by Joseph E.’s son, P.A.B. Widener II.

Te family wealth had originated with the frst P.A.B. Widener selling mutton to the Union Army. He later got into Philadelphia politics, and his wealth multiplied from involvement in modernizing streetcar railways. From Philadelphia, Widener ventured into that industry in New York City and Chicago as well as being involved with the formation of U.S. Steel and the American Tobacco Co. Te one-time apprentice butcher eventually bequeathed a large art collection of European paintings and Chinese porcelain to the National Gallery in Washington, D.C.

Joseph E. developed such a broad and deep interest in the Toroughbred world that his contribution went far beyond the success of the steeplechasers and fat race classic horses he bred and owned. In his development of Hialeah racetrack in South Florida, Joseph E.

made a contribution still unique in racing annals. He had the creative vision to commission a grand chateau-style stand, surrounded by lovely palm tree-lined access. Te scene also offered the beguiling images of a colony of famingos in the infeld. Hialeah thus was turned into a treasure of sport as well as a contributor to the economic vitality of South Florida’s winter tourist season.

While Joseph E. was a pioneer in developing a high-class racing circuit in Florida, he also revered the well-established sense among East Coast sports families that New York was the ultimate circuit of U.S. racing. He became involved in the management and guidance of historic Belmont Park in New York and placed the Belmont Stakes on a pedestal, over and above even the Kentucky Derby. He won the Belmont Stakes with Chance Shot, Peace Chance, and Hurryoff.

Nephew George D. Widener followed suit as a successful owner and breeder as well as a leader in the sport and industry. He served for years as chairman of Te Jockey Club and was involved in the creation of the National Museum of Racing. As for the Belmont Stakes, he, too, saw it as a cherished target. It was elusive, as well. He had been involved in racing for nearly 40 years before winning the 1962 Belmont with Jaipur, whom he both owned and bred.

In 1924, Joseph E. made a business decision that would lead to an epiphany with regards to his son’s lack of interest in Toroughbreds. August Belmont II, the breeder of the beloved champion Man o’ War and many other important horses, died that year. Widener stepped up to purchase all the Belmont breeding stock (stallions, mares, young prospects), which included Fair Play, the revered sire of Man o’ War. P.A.B. “Pete” Widener and his bride, Gertrude, were invited to attend the occasion of the horses being transferred from the nearby Belmont farm, Nursery Stud.

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From left, Joseph E. Widener bought Elmendorf in 1923 with his nephew George D. Widener (shown above with Alfred Vanderbilt, right). The elder Widener developed Hialeah racetrack in South Florida and changed the landscape of American racing. Widener imported English stallion Sickle, who would have a profound influence on the breed.

ABOUT

This limited time exhibition highlights the lives and careers of 80 African American horsemen and women from the mid-1800s to the present through interpretive panels, photographs, artwork, artifacts, and video interviews.

VISIT

Visit the Keeneland Library now through August 31 to experience The Heart of the Turf: Racing’s Black Pioneers.

To book an exhibit guided tour for adults or an educational program for 5th to 12th grade students, email Roda Ferraro at rferraro@keeneland.com.

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Te younger Widener would look back on the day with awe and appreciation: “We went out of curiosity. We came home with a new enthusiasm. Te course of our lives had been changed by a golden horse,” Widener said in his autobiography, “Without Drums.” Te majesty of Fair Play was one element. Another was the openly tearful response of his erstwhile handlers as Fair Play was led away from them and his home farm over to Elmendorf. A “passionate devotion to the Toroughbred” was born, and Pete and Gertrude Widener joined in the spirit of a family enthralled with the Turf.

As would be expected, Joseph E. Widener dealt in high-class bloodstock both at Elmendorf and at the farm he established in France. He bred 79 North American stakes winners. An exceptional and lasting contribution he made to American breeding, however, came from utilizing what once was a lesser strain of a prime sire line acquired abroad.

Widener leased the colt Sickle from Lord Derby, a masterful breeder in England. Sickle was by the key stallion Phalaris and was foaled from Selene, a daughter of Chaucer. At the time, Selene had not yet foaled Hyperion, who was to be a classic winner and internationally important stallion of lasting infuence. Selene also later foaled another important winner and stallion, Pharamond.

Sickle was foaled in 1924 and was his dam’s frst foal. His form at 2 and 3 ranked him not far from the top English-raced juveniles of 1926 and 3-year-olds up to about a mile in 1927. Widener later purchased the horse for $100,000 from Lord Derby.

Sickle was imported to Elmendorf and sired 45 stakes winners. He was America’s leading sire in 1936 and 1938, but did not have prestige comparable to that of his half brother Hyperion back home. Sickle’s stakes winners included Unbreakable, who was a solid racehorse in England for Widener without being near championship status. Nevertheless, Widener decided to stand him at Elmendorf. Te horse’s stallion record of only 13 stakes winners bespoke the pedestrian performance in line with his racing reputation, but one of the 13 was Polynesian. Stunning chapters loomed ahead.

THE P.A.B. WIDENERS

Widener passed away in 1943, when Polynesian was a yearling. Te heir, Pete Widener, made Polynesian an anniversary gif to his wife. Polynesian won the Preakness and 15 other stakes while earning more than $300,000. Te tale became historic when Polynesian sired Native Dancer, a glamorous gray who became one of the frst racehorses to be a television idol. Alfred Vanderbilt’s Native Dancer won 21 of 22 races, his only loss being in the 1953 Kentucky Derby when he was edged at the wire by Dark Star.

A legacy to all who were involved with him, Native Dancer became the sire of 44 stakes winners. Tey included Raise a Native and other important stallions. Tus, the sire line imported by Joseph E. Widener lives on in the male-line descent of such modern stallions and major runners as Mr. Prospector, Sea-Bird II, Afrmed, American Pharoah, Alydar, Majestic Prince, Curlin, Candy Ride, Quality Road, Gun Runner, Keen Ice, 2022 Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike, and many more.

Late in Joseph E. Widener’s life, his son, Pete, spent a lot of time at Elmendorf. It was said he got to know the broodmares almost as closely as the farm staff that had responsibility to care for them.

Afer the senior Widener’s death, Pete and Gertrude and their son, P.A.B. III, operated Elmendorf in partnership. In 1944, they altered the business plan and began selling yearlings at auction. Tat year coincided with Kentucky breeders and owners Hal Price Headley and A.B. Hancock Jr. developing a co-op named Breeders’ Sales Co. to take up the sales baton from the Keeneland Association. Keeneland had held its frst auction in 1938, but with the advent of World War II, the track had decided not to conduct further sales. Te frst summer yearling sale held there in 1943 was conducted by the established sales frm Fasig-Tipton, and Breeders’ Sales was subsequently established. Breeders’ Sales and Keeneland’s auction division did not merge into a single corporation until 1962.

Elmendorf was successful in its segue into the market in the four years before Pete

Joseph Widener’s son, P.A.B, shown with wife Gertrude, gained an appreciation for racing when his father bought the breeding stock of the late August Belmont II, including the stallion Fair Play, who was memorialized with a statue after his death.

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Widener’s death in 1948.

Some years afer her husband’s death, Gertrude Widener began sending a few yearlings to be trained and raced in France, and she made a strong mark there. Her frst draf of four yearlings included Neptune, who was to win two major juvenile races. Her second draf set the stage for a classic expansion of the blood of Polynesian. Gertrude’s colt by Polynesian’s great son Native Dancer was named Dan Cupid. Dan Cupid came within a head of winning the French Derby, but more important he was to sire Sea-Bird II, winner of the Epsom Derby, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, and other major races in 1965. Sea-Bird II came to be spoken of in tandem with Ribot in many observers’ ratings as the two best horses in Europe post-World War II. At stud in Kentucky, Sea-Bird II sired Preakness/Belmont winner Little Current and international champion Allez France.

Gertrude Widener passed away in 1968. Te Polynesian chapters were still in the family’s destiny, however, through her daughter, Ella Cortright Wetherill. Te Wetherills bred the brilliant Raise a Native, a Native Dancer colt and a key factor in the Polynesian sire line, as explained above.

Backtracking to what had been taking place on Elmendorf, P.A.B. Widener III as early as 1950 sold some 600 acres of the core farm. Tirty-one mares and the stallions Unbreakable, Roman, and Chance Shot were involved in the deal, as well as the right to use the name Elmendorf. Not included in the sale was some 700 acres of Elmendorf property that was leased to Mildred Woolwine. (A few years later, Woolwine added to the legacy of the land when she organized investors to purchase

the breeding stock of historic Belair Stud afer the death of William Woodward Jr. She later resold them at the Keeneland January sale of 1956, when champion Nashua’s dam, Segula, was purchased by Stavros Niarchos for $126,000, a world record for a broodmare at the time.)

Te buyers of the Elmendorf section in 1950 were Tinkham Veale III and Sam A. Costello, who were sons-in-law of the late horseman A.C. Ernst. Te latter was a Cleveland, Ohio, businessman who had established Ernst Farm on a tract of Col. E.R. Bradley’s old Idle Hour Stock Farm in Lexington in 1937. While P.A.B. Widener III did not leave the horse business when he sold a portion of Elmendorf, he did follow his keen interest in police work. He rose to the rank of county patrol chief, and then an old school friend, Gov. Happy Chandler, appointed him Kentucky State Police commissioner. Widener died at age 74 in 1999.

GLUCK’S CHAMPIONSHIP YEARS

Veale and Costello, the Elmendorf buyers in 1950, did not maintain the property for long. In 1952, they sold it to Maxwell Gluck, a self-made businessman who was destined to bring new glory to the farm. Gluck’s purchase included handsome old barns, as well as the columns that had fronted the elaborate home built years earlier by James Ben Ali Haggin. Joseph E. Widener had razed the house to avoid paying taxes since his residence was elsewhere. Te columns remain a Lexington landmark to this day.

Given that Haggin had earned his original wealth via mining enterprises in the West, the fact that Gluck was a Texas native who built his own wealth seems to ft well. However, while the image of a wealthy Texan might ofen bespeak ranches, oil, or both, Gluck made his fortune in clothing. And it came not in cowboy hats, leather jackets, and chaps, but in ladies’ fashions. His family had moved to Philadelphia to establish a clothing business, and Gluck then moved to New York City where he prospered under the corporate name of his Darling stores. His frst shop opened near the time of the Wall Street crash of 1929,

From top, Polynesian, a son of Unbreakable, sired Native Dancer, considered one of the greatest horses of the 20th century. Native Dancer in turn sired Dan Cupid, above, who sired another 20th-century great in Sea-Bird II.

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Tat year, Gluck was North America’s leading breeder in money earned. Elmendorf’s total of $2,128,080 broke the long-standing previous record set by iconic Calumet Farm in 1952. Elmendorf followed Calumet as only the second breeder with an earnings total of $2 million for a single season. Gluck also led that statistical title in 1982 and 1983, and was the leading owner in earnings category in 1977 and 1981.

Maxwell Gluck passed away at 85 in 1984. A few months before, he and his wife, Muriel, had devised a plan to create lasting beneft to Toroughbred breeding and racing. Tey pledged $3 million to establish an equine research facility at the University of Kentucky, contingent on the industry and state government each matching the fgure. Te resultant $9 million total gave rise to the Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center. Some four decades later, the Gluck Center is a key leader in the world of research to beneft the horse.

THE JACK KENT COOKE YEARS

but he built the chain to include some 150 Darling stores and also became chairman of several other clothing frms.

Gluck was wealthy by middle age, and an interest in horses and racing led to his 1952 purchase of a portion of Elmendorf. Outside racing, he was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Ceylon by President Dwight Eisenhower.

Gluck owned Elmendorf for 32 years and bred 145 stakes winners. He was breeder and owner of a rare double in 1973, when his homebreds Protagonist and Talking Picture were Eclipse Award winners in the juvenile colt and juvenile flly categories, respectively.

Te self-made Maxwell Gluck was succeeded as master of Elmendorf by another colorful entrepreneur: Jack Kent Cooke, who in truth was far better known in sports than Gluck. A native of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Cooke was well known as the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League. Moreover, he built the spectacular sports arena named Te Forum in California. Te billionaire, however, was said to hold his National Football League team, the Washington Redskins, closer to his heart.

Te status to own franchises and build Te Forum was begun selling encyclopedias door to door. Cooke later graduated to the publishing and broadcasting sphere. By 1960, when he was in his late 40s, his fortune was said to be at the $600 million level, and he was granted U.S. citizenship by an act of Congress.

In the days before much public sensitivity was expressed over the ethnic cliche of the name, Cooke’s Redskins won three Super Bowls and a large share of love from people who didn’t own the team, as well as from Cooke himself. Not so well known before his big Elmendorf move was Cooke’s love of horse racing. He conversationally placed the Kentucky Derby and Super Bowl above other sports ambitions.

Once Cooke decided to buy a ready-made Toroughbred farm, he was rebuffed at frst by Gluck, who was not yet ready to sell, and also failed to nudge owners of several other major farms into selling mode.

Afer Gluck’s death, Cooke bought 503 acres of the old Elmendorf core, which included a main residence, employee residences, and nine barns. Te trade press later reported the price at

The Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center at the University of Kentucky is a leader in the world of research to benefit the horse.

Left, Maxwell Gluck, with pedigree advisor Robert Bricken, bred 145 stakes winners, including Protagonist, the leading juvenile colt of 1973.

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$7.5 million from an overall transaction reported as $42 million. Te huge deal included 327 horses, among them more than 100 mares and 67 horses of racing age. Six stallions were in the deal, as well as shares in 17 other stallions.

Such fgures refected a comment attributed to Cooke by Keith Chamblin in Te Blood-Horse: “It flls the last remaining void in my life in the sports feld. I entered this sport four years ago … and I decided it’s fun and probably a proftable venture, so why not go into it in frst-class style. I can’t think of anything more frst class than Elmendorf.”

Cooke never won a Kentucky Derby but had 16 stakes winners. His best included Flying Continental, winner of grade 1 races on both coasts — the Jockey Club Gold Cup in the East and the Strub Stakes in the West. Flying Continental earned a career total of $1.8 million.

Family and health issues limited the length of Cooke’s era at Elmendorf. One of his sons had been managing the farm as Cooke preferred to live in Middleburg, Virginia, and was not frequently on the Kentucky property. Te son passed away in 1995, and Cooke later announced plans to begin selling the horses in segments. Cooke also had health issues and passed away in 1997 at age 84.

An extra layer of sentiment blends with history to distinguish part of the current status of Elmendorf Farm. James Ben Ali Haggin, whose acreage acquisitions brought the farm to its zenith in terms of size, was a Kentucky native but of Turkish descent. Today, the original acreage is part of some 1,000 acres under lease to Turkish native Murat Sancal, who uses the name Sancal Racing at Elmendorf.

Sancal developed an interest, knowledge, and personal connec-

tion to the Toroughbred industry as a trainer in Turkey, which has a thriving industry and sport. He moved to the United States some 14 years ago. Sancal Racing at Elmendorf is a multipurpose company that buys mares, many at Keeneland sales, then raises and breaks their foals. Sancal said he sends a large number of horses to race in Turkey and also races in the United States.

Te core farm had come onto the market with the death of Jack Kent Cooke. It was purchased in 1997 by Louisville, Kentucky, sportsman Dinwiddie Lampton. A horseman of a different order from earlier owners, Lampton was a polo player and coachman who hosted an annual steeplechase race at his Hardscuffle Farm near Louisville. Lampton passed away in 2008, and the Elmendorf tract is now owned by his family in the name of Hardscuffle Inc. Daughter Nana Lampton is chair of Hardscuffle as well as corporate head of American Life Insurance.

Nana Lampton was pleased to say that one of the horses sent to Turkey became a winner of the Turkish Derby. She also explained that, in addition to Sancal Racing at Elmendorf’s operation, part of the farm hosts show jumping stables as well as the housing of some 50 carriages. Te manager is John Hayes, who also is the contact for arrangements for private visits.

Tus, the current owner’s stewardship of the farm also recognizes and respects the place it holds in the hearts of Central Kentucky. KM

Jack Kent Cooke did not have a long tenure at the helm of Elmendorf but enjoyed success as an owner and breeder.

Cooke color bearers included top turf female Antespend and multiple grade 1 winner Flying Continental.

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Secretariat’s record-setting Belmont Stakes remains a defning moment in sports.

TALENT, TIMING, AND SAVVY MANAGEMENT HAVE KEPT BIG RED FIRMLY ALIVE IN THE POPULAR IMAGINATION

By Maryjean Wall

FIFTY YEARS HAVE PASSED, and we’re still talking about Secretariat. Our memories and imaginations merge into a sepia-toned panorama spanning North American racing during that magical year of 1973.

Tere was the Triple Crown (the frst in 25 years), the horse’s Belmont Stakes (31 lengths), his adieu to racing over Woodbine’s turf course (going out an international winner), and his deplaning at Lexington’s Blue Grass Airport followed by the long, bittersweet van ride to Paris, Kentucky, and his new career breeding mares sent to Claiborne Farm. A crowd of at least 200 had waited for the plane to land.

How Secretariat Went Mainstream f

We remember his story did not end there; his fans weren’t willing to let him go. Te phones began ringing at Claiborne with requests not only from racing insiders but also from ordinary folks hoping for an audience with Big Red. It became the thing to do in Central Kentucky: take your friends or house guests out to see Secretariat. Claiborne began ofering farm tours beginning in the mid-1970s, perhaps the frst of the major farms to reinstate an old-time Kentucky practice of welcoming visitors into the stallion barns. Something had to be done, as people who didn’t know a horse from a pony were showing up in Kentucky wanting a glimpse of the Famous One.

A cult of personality was swirling madly around Secretariat, and a person had to be perched on a mountain in Tibet not to realize this. Te miracle of this horse was he leaped across the frontiers of racing, across all sports, and into the general culture, a phenomenon that made him a household name. People go to Claiborne and still want to experience Secretariat, even if now, 34 years following his death, only his grave remains to be seen.

How, then, did this Toroughbred charm so many people during his lifetime? How does the memory of him cause some to

break into tears at the sight of his grave? And when did it all begin? Not all his current-day visitors were alive when he won the Triple Crown. Nor when he died in 1989. But still, they come to Claiborne with the sincerity of true seekers. Tey turn into the entrance, drive up to the ofce alongside Kennedy Creek, and step out of their vehicles expecting that rarest of all experiences: a personal encounter, even if only in remembrance of the horse, with the ideal of raw celebrity that was Secretariat’s persona. His celebrity was ideal because he was fawlessly famous. His celebrity was not marred with the human condition. He arrived here from Planet Perfect.

Are we overreaching? Was Secretariat just a mere horse afer all, a creature caught up in some human need to seek out celebrity? Did he exist on a plane no higher than that of the famous 1960s Palomino whose television opener always began with “a horse is a horse, of course, of course?” Maybe Secretariat was just playing us.

But no, he was not. Secretariat made his own celebrity. He took the controls and mastered his image, partly through talent and partly through his open personality. Like any intelligent animal he knew how to work humankind because he understood how to

Secretariat’s Belmont stretch run elicited one of racing’s most famous calls when announcer Chic Anderson exclaimed into the microphone: “Secretariat … is moving like a tremendous machine.”

BOB COGLIANESE

make humans “ooh” and “aah” in his presence. One way was by posing for cameras, a skill he perfected during his racing years. He knew those little boxes in peoples’ hands were pointing at him and him only. He learned to prick his ears and look at the cameras. He never met a camera he didn’t like.

Ten there was the trick he developed at Claiborne Farm. He’d spy a crowd gathering on the far side of his paddock. He’d raise his head from grazing, engage the gears in his legs, whip his head around, and fy across the paddock looking like he was

Secretariat’s last race was a dazzling turf victory in the Canadian International Champion Stakes.

For 25 years the Triple Crown trophy remained unclaimed until the golden year of 1973.

At Claiborne Farm Secretariat thrilled to visitors and often galloped up to the fence to greet them.

His racing career concluded, Secretariat landed at Lexington’s Blue Grass Airport with groom Eddie Sweat to a throng of well-wishers.

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Went

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going to run right through the fence and into the humans standing there. Ten he’d stop. Just in time. He must have enjoyed a good horse laugh, because he made this a habit.

Everyone realizes Secretariat brought unprecedented attention to himself when he won the Triple Crown of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes. No horse since Citation in 1948 had managed to pull of this feat; people believed that no horse ever would. Too much time had passed with too many disappointments. Each year in June, the Triple Crown trophy was taken from its vault in New York, given a shine, and placed in public view at Belmont Park. Ten it went back unclaimed into the vault — until Secretariat brought the trophy home for Meadow Stable, the entity that raced him.

Growing mystique

Penny Chenery Tweedy had increasingly stepped up to help run Te Meadow, a farm near Doswell, Virginia, founded by her father, Christopher T. Chenery, even before her father’s death in January 1973. Tis meant she also managed the Meadow Stable, which raced the ofspring of well-bred mares Chenery had acquired. It was well known that following the patriarch’s death, Tweedy and her siblings, Margaret and Hollis, faced a huge bill for estate taxes.

Secretariat’s and Riva Ridge’s mission was to help pay of the taxes, as well as keeping Chenery’s farm and racing operation proving its merit. A major step was in the syndication of Secretariat for breeding in a $6.08 million deal: a record amount for a horse that then-president of Claiborne, Seth Hancock, put together in 1973. Te syndication was accomplished prior to the Kentucky Derby, with the dollar amount turning it into a major newsmaker.

Te very idea of a $6 million horse grabbed attention. Anyone on the street surely asked, how could one animal be worth so much money? Consider the context of the times: Americans were soon to line up on alternate days in 1973 to buy gasoline for their cars and trucks due to supply shortages. Americans were still reeling from the country’s loss of innocence in 1972, beginning with a break-in at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C., during the presidential reelection campaign. Public protests over the war in Vietnam were occurring on many fronts. And into this mélange stepped a $6 million horse. Of course he began creating headlines.

Arguably not one single moment created Secretariat. Te seed of his mystique grew from numerous singular moments that melded into an ever-widening notion that he was a historic, very special creature. Racing insiders had known this since long before his frst race as a 2-year-old in 1972. Racing columnist Charles Hatton was quoted by William Nack, in his book “Big Red of Meadow Stable,” on his impression at Secretariat’s frst race: “First thing I know, I look around, and there was a circle of people standing there like Man o’ War was being saddled.” Numerous comparisons to Man o’

Top, Secretariat set the racing world ablaze with his sensational 2-year-old season. Above, trainer Lucien Laurin and owner Penny Chenery celebrate in the winner’s circle after the Sanford Stakes.

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War would emerge over Secretariat’s racing career. Man o’ War, who retired to stud in 1920, was the gold standard of racehorses, but it is just possible that Secretariat surpassed the Great One. Tey both possessed a super-long stride, greater than most horses, but comparisons are a matter of opinion. It was not by accident that Secretariat acquired the nickname of Big Red, just as Man o’ War had some 50 years previously.

Secretariat’s juvenile season turned into the spring campaign of 1973 with all eyes on the Kentucky Derby. Even before the Derby, Secretariat was getting his name out there. He won two Derby preps — the Bay Shore and Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct — then shocked the sports world by losing his fnal Derby preparation, the Wood Memorial Stakes, also at Aqueduct. Tat was a headline, for sure.

Te loss gave people pause. Perhaps the $6 million horse was not so perfect afer all. His sire, Bold Ruler, was not acclaimed for running long distances, and here was Secretariat running only third at the longest distance he had attempted: 11⁄8 miles. If some Secretariat fans began to fear his breeding might stop him in the 11⁄4-mile Derby, their concerns were exacerbated by the trainer of a ri-

val horse, Sham. Frank “Pancho” Martin thought Lucien Laurin had arrogantly handled Secretariat’s training. Martin believed when Secretariat ran third in the Wood to stablemate Angle Light and Martin’s horse, Sham, that Laurin was getting his just reward. A trash-talking imbroglio, initiated by Martin, followed the trainers and their horses from New York down to Kentucky, as did more headlines. Secretariat’s name was getting passed around.

Grabbing headlines

Nothing like controversy fuels the media, and Martin refused to let his resentment go in the week leading to the Derby. Laurin had bigger problems to focus on. By now it was understood that one reason Secretariat might have lost the Wood was he’d raced with an undiscovered abscess in his mouth. Dr. Robert Copelan of Paris handled the colt’s veterinary work at Churchill Downs and realized the dilemma they faced in hoping the abscess would resolve in time for the race: Tey could not use anti-infammatory medications. Tese would have remained in Secretariat’s system well past the race, and he would have been disqualifed if he’d won.

Copelan oversaw the only treatment possible:

Secretariat and stablemate Riva Ridge, right, guaranteed the survival of Meadow Stable. Riva Ridge won the 1972 Derby and Belmont.

Former Claiborne Farm president Seth Hancock brokered Secretariat’s record syndication.

THE MIRACLE OF THIS HORSE WAS HE LEAPED ACROSS THE FRONTIERS OF RACING… AND INTO THE GENERAL CULTURE.

STEVE HASKIN

ANNE M. EBERHARDT

Secretariat set a Preakness record although it took 39 years for it to be made offcial.

Groom Eddie Sweat applied hot compresses to the abscess. In the fnal days before the Derby, the infection broke and drained. Tis was great news that advanced Secretariat’s name even further beyond the world of sports. Secretariat was feeling himself again when he won the Derby in record time, defeating Sham. While not quite quieting Sham’s trainer, Martin, Secretariat became a newsmaker like only the Kentucky Derby can produce. He also set himself up as Sham’s rival. Nothing like a rivalry leads to more headlines.

You couldn’t have set up more attention-grabbing headlines than the Preakness produced. Secretariat defeated Sham again; in record time, again. But Secretariat’s record was only according to some racing experts who had timed the race manually, with stopwatches. A bit of a dogfght ensued over this one, with the hand-timing experts insisting the electronic timing mechanism had robbed Secretariat of a record by 13⁄5 seconds. Secretariat munched hay in his stall while the humans disagreed over the record 1:53

enough attention to inform your grandmother and Aunt Mildred that something important was afoot with this horse.

for the 1

⁄16 miles that the manual timekeepers insisted was his true time for the race. It took the state of Maryland 39 years to agree that the electronics had indeed malfunctioned; the kerfufe brought Secretariat

It was on to the Belmont Stakes. Secretariat’s Derby had been broadcast to far-fung corners of the earth via Cawood Ledford’s call of the race over U.S. Armed Forces Radio, helping to spread Secretariat’s name. As well, the customary televised broadcast of the Derby had gone out over networks. Te Derby was an annual rite of sports. But at Belmont Park the general-interest television shows began showing up, including the “Today Show.” Secretariat had gone mainstream with the compelling question hanging over his approaching race: Could he be the frst horse in 25 years to win the Triple Crown? Secretariat took it all in stride. He was loving the cameras.

Te story lines abounded. Penny Tweedy was portrayed as an ordinary housewife (she was hardly ever ordinary) called upon to save the family farm (the Chenery estate if you will). On whatever level you

Secretariat’s Derby victory vindicated his loss in the Wood Memorial, which was attributed to a mouth abscess.

Penny Chenery contributed to the myth of Secretariat while savvily managing his career.

BLOODHORSE LIBRARY

JIM McCUE/MARYLAND JOCKEY CLUB

PAUL SCHAFER

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Went

Mainstream

thought this story through, the part that ran closest to real-time life was the backdrop. Tweedy had chosen to save her father’s interests by striding into a sports world dominated by powerful men — at the very time American women were campaigning nationwide for equal rights. Nack quoted her in “Big Red of Meadow Stable”: “Can the girl from Colorado fnd success and happiness among the ruthless and powerful men of New York racing?”

What she did accomplish, against this backdrop of woman-angst, was to sign on Secretariat with the William Morris Agency of New York. Tis was an inventive move for any horse owner, quite unlike anything the powerful clan of males had considered. Te result was the Chenery family held the power to determine how Secretariat’s image would be presented. Te horse now had his own public relations frm.

If only we’d known at the time about the afair Chenery had through Secretariat’s 1973 racing season with her trainer, Laurin. Chenery (she reverted to her family name following a divorce) did not reveal this secret until 2013, four years before she died in 2017. Tat would have been fodder for gossip and headlines at the time.

Devoted owner

As it was, Secretariat did not need gossip to spice his headlines. As always, he was keeping his name out in the general population of people who did not customarily follow horse racing. Some 69,000 persons went to Belmont Park to watch the third race in the Triple Crown, and many thousands more watched on their televisions. No one who heard the race call has forgotten that moment when the New York Racing Association announcer, the late Chic Anderson, exclaimed into the microphone: “Secretariat … is moving like a tremendous machine.” His winning margin of 31 lengths — in record time — had the crowd at Belmont Park screaming and throwing their caps and Racing Forms in the air. Te red horse had done the impossible, winning the elusive Triple Crown.

Every publication in existence got in on the action. Secretariat was the cover horse for TIME, Newsweek, and Sports Illustrated, back in those days when these weekly news magazines, along with daily newspapers, were the primary sources of information. Secretariat etched his name in big, bold letters without the aid of the internet or cellphones.

SECRETARIAT BENEFITED GREATLY FROM THE ENERGY CHENERY PUT INTO PROMOTING HIS LEGACY.

Secretariat dominated the news in the spring of 1973 and inspired a Walt Disney Productions movie in 2010.

DISNEY ENTERPRISES

Went

Mainstream

One sad footnote to the Belmont Stakes was Sham’s last-place fnish. Martin’s diatribe against Secretariat and Laurin was over. Sham never raced again; he had injured himself in the race.

Another who’d had enough was Edwin Whittaker, owner of Angle Light, the horse who had defeated Sham and Secretariat in the Wood Memorial weeks earlier, prior to the Triple Crown campaign. Nack wrote in his book that Whittaker became the brunt of Penny Tweedy’s anger afer Secretariat lost that race. Laurin trained both horses. Tweedy was overheard berating the trainer in a Lexington restaurant, prior to the Derby, for favoring Angle Light over Secretariat. Here evolved another bit of controversy seeping into the Secretariat story. Tweedy made little efort to hide her dislike of Whittaker, who was not an establishment horse owner but an electric company executive. Nack wrote that Whittaker never got over his unpleasant Derby experience with Tweedy, saying she essentially told him “to pick up his marbles and go home.”

Human foibles continued to seep into Secretariat’s saga, but one thing that clearly emerged was Chenery’s devotion to the horse. For the remainder of her life she worked hard to keep his name vibrant in horse racing’s unfolding history. She always played the long game, framing the manner in which Secretariat would be remembered. Just as Man o’ War’s owner had realized earlier in the 20th century, Chenery recognized that bronze statues would be the most permanent way for Secretariat to be remembered. At least six bronze depictions of Secretariat are known to exist, including two at the Kentucky Horse Park, one at Belmont Park, one at the

National Museum of Racing at Saratoga Springs, New York, and one in a trafc circle in Lexington on Old Frankfort Pike. Two additional bronzes are in the works, one for a new Secretariat Park in Paris and the other for his birthplace in Virginia.

In fact, Secretariat benefted greatly from the energy Chenery put into promoting his legacy. She always made herself available for Secretariat-themed events, such as the Secretariat festival in Paris. Jockey Ron Turcotte also made himself available for numerous events, even afer he was partially paralyzed in a racing accident that lef him in a wheelchair. Together these two accommodated the public in ways that ensured the memory of Secretariat would not fame out following

Left and above, Chenery and jockey Ron Turcotte helped keep Secretariat’s legacy alive with countless appearances.

Secretariat devotees continue to make pilgrimages to Claiborne Farm to see the great horse’s grave.

ANNE M. EBERHARDT PHOTOS DAVID COYLE

his retirement from the track in the autumn of 1973.

Secretariat came alive for a new generation in 2010 when Walt Disney Productions released a movie, titled “Secretariat,” starring Diane Lane as Chenery. Lane also was narrator for a documentary about Chenery titled “Penny & Red.” Secretariat.com became the ofcial website for approved Secretariat merchandise and information. Books have been written about the horse. Secretariat’s face appeared on a U.S. postage stamp.

Te Kentucky Derby Museum at Churchill Downs also is remembering Secretariat with a special exhibit that was scheduled to open ahead of the 2023 Kentucky Derby to mark his 50th anniversary. Te exhibit was designed “to showcase Secretariat’s life, stardom, and incomparable impact on horse racing, America, and the world,” as a press release stated, noting it is rare for the museum to dedicate a permanent exhibit to a singular Toroughbred. Te museum also collaborated with Woodford Reserve on a commemorative bottle of Woodford Reserve Double Oaked Personal Selection in recognition of Secretariat’s ffieth.

Te latest recognition coming his way will be the Secretariat

Park under construction in downtown Paris, where an oversize mural by artist Jaime Corum was unveiled this past fall on the exterior of a building adjacent to the park. Tis coming autumn, a bronze of Secretariat, the work of sculptor Jocelyn Russell, will be installed and dedicated at the park.

Secretariat Park will bring the saga of this beloved racehorse full circle: He was sired by Bold Ruler, who stood at stud at Claiborne Farm, and it was to Claiborne that Virginia-foaled Secretariat was sent for his second career as a breeding stallion.

Walker Hancock, Claiborne Farm president, said fans still ask to see his grave and have made some rather strange requests concerning the site.

“We get constant requests,” he said, remembering one that sought the farm’s permission for a couple to marry over top of the Departed One’s grave. Claiborne Farm politely declined. Too many details were involved.

Everyone in Paris, not just at Claiborne Farm, seems to have a Secretariat story lovingly treasured, ready to tell. Secretariat gave us all a lot of memories, which is why everyone knows his name. KM

From left, Secretariat is celebrated with statues at Belmont Park, on Old Frankfort Pike in Lexington, and at the Kentucky Horse Park.

An oversize mural of Secretariat by artist Jaime Corum, right with Dr. Robert Copelan, who was the horse’s vet in 1973, was unveiled in Paris, Kentucky, in fall 2022 in anticipation of this year’s 50th anniversary celebrations.

ANNE M. EBERH ARDT

ANNE M. EBERHARDT

MARYJEAN WALL

MARYJEAN WALL PHOTOS

Masters of Meet Keeneland Mercantile’s CRAFT

The awards competition highlights regional artisans and makers across multiple disciplines while celebrating craftsmen and businesses who manufacture and produce products in the U.S.A.

From a centuries-old tradition made anew to an innovative take on a fashionable classic, the best woodworkers, tailors, bakers, and makers have done it again. Our judges deliberated for days (and so did you!) to select these incredible finalists, Patrons’ Pick and overall winner in our second annual Masters of Craft Awards.

GREENFIELD WOODWORKS

V MEDIUM VICTORIAN CAROUSEL ROCKING HORSE Mercer, Pennsylvania | $2,450 | greenfeldwoodworks.com

After leaving a Store Planning position for Walmart, Brett Schroyer built his frst rocking horse in 1999 and never looked back. It all started in his parent’s garage. “I discovered a book on the old-world tradition of hand-carved rocking horses,” Schroyer says. Before he knew it, he and his father built a small woodworking shop where he planned to start carving his frst piece. Schroyer learned the basics of the craft in Mansfeld, Ohio, where one of the country’s last remaining carousel factories was offering one-week courses.

Now, Schroyer has created pieces for hundreds of families around the nation. Being accepted to the Shaker Woods Festival, the third-largest celebration of craftspeople in the country, opened several doors and he has since had work displayed in the Butler Museum of American Art in Youngstown, Ohio, and the Napua Gallery of Art in Maui, Hawaii.

What makes his work so special is the attention to detail from nose to tail. Very

few carvers can do it all, but for the past 20 years Schroyer has honed his skills from start to end—the construction, the carving, the painting, the fnishing. “I fnd ways to make each better,” he says. “Whether it’s the shape of the leg or a curve in the neck.” He also uses nothing but the best materials. The body is chiseled from basswood and poplar; the mane and tail are made from real horse hair; the tack and saddle, real leather; and the details are all hand stitched and fnished with brass or nickel embellishments.

While Schroyer’s respect for the art runs deep, his creations go beyond the aesthetic appeal and spark a sense of whimsy. Oldworld carvers often planted tokens inside their creations as good luck charms, but this modern-day maker puts his own spin on the tradition. “I invite families to add their personal memorabilia,” he says. “In a hundred years or so they’ll fnd the hidden mementos along with a few extras that I include.”

WEARS WINNER

BRACKISH

V EDISTO BOW TIE Charleston, South Carolina | $225 | Brackish.com

Brackish began with a single bow tie—a gift designed by Ben Ross for his groomsman, Jeff Plotner. It was such a hit, the friends decided to build a brand that has since evolved into a full line of accessories conceptualized and handcrafted in Charleston, South Carolina. There are several reasons to call their products unique, but the most obvious is their signature choice of materials: everything is made using all-natural, sustainably sourced feathers. Superior craftsmanship makes

each piece as functional as it is fashionforward.

The Edisto Bow Tie, which takes fve hours to make, is crafted with a colorful combination of pheasant and guinea fowl feathers. As a nod to Ross’s time spent on Edisto Island as a kid, the design consists of navy accents that represent the water, deep green to resemble the land and speckled guinea feathers that are reminiscent of the starry night sky.

2023 MASTERS OF CRAFT HANDMADE & OVERALL WINNER

“Te level of craftsmanship that this exemplifes is just incredible. Being a jeweler, I look at small details and I can tell he’s passionate about what he’s doing.”

—Darren K. Moore, Darren K. Moore Jewelry

“Tis exemplifes innovation because when it comes to weddings, and even fashion, for men it’s very hard to come up with a new product... it’s not a trend, it’s here to stay.”

—Beth Lewis, Old Tyme Marketplace

FOOD & DRINK WINNER

ART EATABLES

V SMALL-BATCH BOURBON TRUFFLE Louisville, Kentucky | $11–$46 | arteatables.com

Kelly Ramsey had been making candy as a small business for years, and decided it was time to make something new. It started by accident and grew into an art form. Somewhere in between whipping up treats for birthday parties and landing a major distillery as its frst big partner, Art Eatables was formed. First, there was Maker’s Mark, then they became partners with the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

Art Eatables truffes are different from other liquor-centric candies because the focus is on the confection and the liquid equally. “We pick chocolates that accent the character of the bourbons,” Ramsey explains. “Sometimes they even pull out hidden notes you might not have

HOME GOODS & PATRON’S PICK WINNER

OAK & MOORE

V BOURBON BARREL STAVE BAR CART Versailles, Kentucky | $625 | Oakandmoore.com

Anyone who cares about a well-crafted cocktail knows the presentation is just as much of the experience as the recipe. Lane Moore takes the idea of elevating your libations a step further with his impressive, built-by-hand bar carts. While he’s not the frst to build something from authentic Kentucky bourbon barrels, he aims to be the best. “No one else is taking the time to kiln dry the barrels,” he says, explaining that the process ensures a long lifespan without altering, cracking, or warping over time. “I take pride in crafting a lifelong product; there are no shortcuts.”

It doesn’t get any more Kentucky than bourbon and almost every inch of Moore’s creations is crafted from the

barrels the liquor is made in. The staves make up the frame, the head is reused as the shelves, and the metallic accents come from the metal bands that wrap around the cask. Moore painstakingly handpicks each band to make sure a “KY” is on the rivets and hand-sands the entire structure to guarantee each one is splinter-free. To fnish, each bar is mounted on gold-plated casters—the perfect garnish for a bourbon-born masterpiece.

noticed before.” But you don’t have to be a whiskey connoisseur to appreciate the nuance of these sweets. The creator says even people who don’t like bourbon fnd themselves enjoying these. The favors are intoxicating in the most indulgent way, but these bites have good looks going for them, too. Thanks to the fnishing touches that include custom logos for their clients, Ramsey says you can spot their work from across the room and know it’s an Art Eatables chocolate.

the aromas and favors you get with a beautiful complex bourbon and pairs it in ways that are surprising with chocolate.”

—Heather Wibbels, Cocktail Contessa

“Te detail and the craftsmanship were over the top. We all were very impressed by how he picked which parts of the bourbon barrel to showcase.”

—Emily Riddle, Gathered Mercantile and Amsden Cofee Club

FOOD & DRINK

WOODSTOCK LAVENDER CO.

V SOMERSET, KENTUCKY

Gourmet Lavender Syrup

$18 | woodstocklavender.com

HANDMADE

HILEN ART

V BLUE NUMBER 3

Lexington, Kentucky

$4,450 (original)

$35–$500 (prints) stephaniehilen.com

SUNHOUSE CRAFT

V TAMPICO WING & DUSTPAN

Berea, Kentucky | Set, $45 sunhousecraft.com

WEARS

FORME’ MILLINERY

V MILLINERY HATS

Louisville, Kentucky

BEE GREAT

V RUM BARREL

AGED HONEY

Fort Wayne, Indiana $25 | beegreatlocal.com

LEATHER BY DESIGN

V MARBL’D™ LEATHER SNAFFLE

BIT BRACELET Lexington, Kentucky

$60 | marbledleather.com

HOME GOODS

THEBAR2GO

V THEBAR2GO

New Orleans, Louisiana

$37–$120 | thebar2go.com

MISC. GOODS CO.

V CERAMIC FLASK

Louisville, Kentucky

$125

misc-goods-co.com

FOR THE GOOD OF THE HORSE

Spy Coast Farm has developed a state-of-the-art rehabilitation center for horses of all breeds

By Cynthia Grisolia

Photos by Amy Lanigan

A horse gets a hydrotherapy treadmill treatment as part of a customized program to build ftness and core strength while recovering from a lower limb injury.

2-year-old Toroughbred is waiting in a holding area in the airplane-sized hangar that is the Rehabilitation and Fitness Center of Lexington-based Spy Coast Farm. His emotional support horse, 18-year-old Captain Bucky, stands agreeably nearby, keeping the proceedings stress free. Te colt — for the sake of confdentiality we’ll call him Patient X— is recovering from “basket” surgery, a spinal-fusion procedure that alleviates pressure on the spinal cord, and he’s here for a hydrotherapy treadmill treatment that will use water pressure and buoyancy to expedite healing and restore ftness.

Nearly four months post-surgery, the colt is doing, well, swimmingly. “We’re very happy with his recovery,” said Alan Bassett, manager of Winchester Place Toroughbreds in Paris, Kentucky, which bred and owns the colt. “He’s been just a superstar through it all.”

Te water treadmill is just one of the state-of-the art modalities available to equines treated at Spy Coast. Open since 2018, the rehab center is headed by Julie Vargas, DVM, and is only part of Spy Coast’s vast 800-acre facility located adjacent to the Kentucky Horse Park. For horses referred here, there’s a long list of rehabilitative and regenerative treatment options on the menu. Some have ultra-techy titles (Multi Radiance ACTIVet Pro Laser); others have mysterious acronyms (EquiPulse PEMF); and some are so simple you might fnd one in your own kitchen drawer (a measuring tape). What all of them have in common, however, is they help horses with injuries get better — way better. Here, sport horses of all breeds and disciplines — from grand prix jumpers to racehorses and even foals — can rebound from a range of setbacks: surgery, sof tissue injuries, fractures, trauma, lacerations. “In the beginning we thought we would get mostly suspensory and sof tissue injuries, the ones that are more difcult,” said Vargas, “but over

AA patient with a soft tissue injury gets a Multi Radiance Alphavet laser treatment from tech Annette Lokkesmoe. This class 4 laser uses energy generated from light at varying wavelengths to promote healing.

time we have found that it’s pretty darn diverse out there.”

Not every horse here is injured, though. Daily ship-ins arrive for short-term ftness help; yearlings come for Toroughbred sales prep; broodmares are there to lose baby weight. But for those on the mend, access to rehabilitative medicine has made their chances of a full recovery surprisingly good. In 2022, nearly 1,800 horses passed through the center for either in-house or ship-in treatments, and Vargas notes that approximately 75% of those with injuries returned to some level of competition or work. “Every horse that comes in here we have to believe is going to heal, and it will be a success story,” said Vargas. “If we didn’t believe that, we shouldn’t even take on horses.”

The Rise of Rehab

Te Rehabilitation and Fitness Center was designed by Spy Coast owner Lisa Lourie along with leading sport horse veterinarian Duncan Peters, who briefy served as its chief vet. Tanks to a distinctive open layout and the choice of cutting-edge equipment, Vargas and her team — which includes rehab manager Alicia Bradshaw, client relations manager Mary-Kate McClure, and barn foreman Tomas Garcia — feel fully equipped to take on whatever malady trots through the barn door. “Tey had some very good ideas about the layout,” said Vargas, noting the foor plan was laid out with the consideration of such things as a horse’s herd mentality. “And these are the therapies that are going to ofer the most beneft,” she added, noting that the variety of

therapeutic options available make treating the catalog of “diverse” injuries much easier. “We just don’t have a hammer and everything becomes a nail.”

Lourie, a Massachusetts native, began Spy Coast Farm as a private homestead in 2003 on Strong’s Neck in Setauket, New York, a peninsula on the North Shore of Long Island. But about 2007, she was struck with the seed of an idea while attending horse shows with her daughter. “She was doing the high junior jumpers — jumping 1.45 meters [nearly fve feet]. Tat’s pretty high in the show jumping world,” said Lourie. “And I realized that since these were kids’ horses [with good temperaments], they were probably some of the best on the showgrounds. But not much ever happened with the mares once they were done with their show career.”

Lourie saw that as an opportunity to launch a warmblood breeding program in the United States. Warmbloods — a designation of various sport horse breeds that populate show arenas — had, for decades, originated in Europe, and American equestrians typically few across the pond to shop. “I knew I could get these older mares when they were done and get the very best genetic material because Americans had bought some of the very best bloodlines,” Lourie added. “I thought I could take advantage of that.”

A nurse by profession with a master’s in health care management, Lourie took to the breeding business quickly, studying bloodlines and pedigrees. Soon, she discovered breeding was only one part of the warmblood equation. Training and development were also crucial elements, and so she began to grow Spy Coast. To date, it has

The Rehabilitation and Fitness Center, one part of Spy CoastÕs 800-acre facility, was designed by owner Lisa Lourie and sport horse veterinarian Dr. Duncan Peters.

Lisa Lourie has developed Spy Coast Farm into a multi-faceted operation.

FOR THE GOOD OF THE HORSE

Clockwise from top left:

(1) Blue light emitted from the ACTIvet Pro LaserShower can treat wounds and skin infections.

(2) Tech Becky Woody works the therapeutic EQultrasound, which engages low-frequency sound waves.

(3) Dr. Julie Vargas applies the PulseVet Shock Wave, which uses sound waves.

(4) The Magnus Magnetica PEMF machine applies electromagnetic pulses.

(5) Annette Lokkesmoe uses the Sound SmartRLT Regenerative Laser that can repair tendons and ligaments and reduce scar tissue.

(6) The Multi Radiance Alphavet is applied to a pastern.

mushroomed into a powerhouse of the sport horse community, breeding some of the most elite show jumpers in competition and providing across-theboard services that take horses from embryo to elder statesman.

Lourie made the decision to relocate from New York to Kentucky about 2008. “Long Island was not a good place to be breeding,” she said. “Te Cornell Rufan Center [a top veterinary hospital] didn’t exist yet, and you had to take a ferry to get to an equine clinic. It was an inconvenient place.” She was hell-bent on acquiring property next to the horse park, which she eventually did. “I went way over my budget, and I got more land than I was planning but I got it,” she said with a laugh.

Originally 300 acres, the Kentucky venue, which sprawls along Lexington’s

Newtown Pike, has expanded to 800 acres that now house the cornerstone breeding operation, a young horse development center, stallion barn, sales division, quarantine facility, and education center. (Spy Coast also has satellite locations in North Carolina and Florida.) Te rehab wing, noted Lourie, was a natural extension of the business.

“I wanted to utilize the facility and our staf’s expertise for our young horses,” she said. Lourie has also stated that a long-term goal is to improve the longevity of the older horse. “Top horses are so expensive; you can’t aford to cast them aside just because they have an injury.”

Indeed. Taking a page from human medicine, the use of equine rehabilitation and physical therapy has grown rapidly in the past two decades, ofering horses new options and, in some cases,

A Spy Coast patient gets acupuncture, which aims to stimulate the central nervous system and turn on the bodyÕs natural healing abilities.

“THERAPY CAN ACCELERATE RECOVERY AND CAN OFTEN GET THE HORSE TO THAT NEXT LEVEL THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN IMPOSSIBLE TO REACH WITHOUT IT.”

— DR. JULIE VARGAS

GOOD OF THE HORSE

life-saving ones. “Te idea that your horse is broken and you need to put him down has reduced signifcantly from what it used to be, particularly with sport horses,” said Daniel Devis, a sports medicine and ambulatory vet from Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital. “I do believe time will heal best, but with the new modalities available to us, what we can do now is speed the process and, in some ways, improve the way of healing.” Devis added that sport horse owners and competitors have become more invested in longterm care of their animals. “Tey are more likely to treat these horses as a complete athlete, which they are, and do what it takes to keep them going.”

Vargas confrms: “Terapy can accelerate recovery and can ofen get the horse to that next level that might have been impossible [for an owner] to reach without it,” she said. “What we can ofer is a safe space to get to the next step.”

The Rise of the Machines

A walkabout on the rehab center’s foor reveals the various tools at the disposal of Vargas and her team. Starting small, there are a variety of handheld lasers used mostly in the treatment of sof tissue injuries. “All of these therapies are some source of energy,” explained Vargas. “ACTIVet Pro uses light. Te PulseVet Shock Wave is using sound waves as energy to go in and thump, thump, telling the cells, ‘Let’s start healing.’ Te PEMF is using magnetism pulsating as energy. While we might grab the PEMF or shock wave for bone injuries, the class 4 laser is better suited for sof tissue injury.”

On the larger scale is the cold salt water spa, a walk-in unit that uses 35-degree salt-dense water (“it’s like the Dead Sea in there,” Vargas noted) that can reduce swelling and infammation in lower leg injuries; one warm water treadmill; and one dry treadmill, all of which are used to increase ftness, develop core strength (a key to preventing further injury), and improve range of motion. Back in the 32-stall barn,

The water treadmill can be used with various water levels, temperatures, speeds, and inclines to improve a horseÕs ftness, balance, range of motion, and core strength.

horses can munch hay while getting a full body massage on the vibrating plates, visit with the acupuncturist and chiropractor, or go under saddle for an evaluation or training session with Spy Coast’s regular rider Michaela Cordova in the indoor arena — one of nine working surfaces equipped with footing monitored quarterly by engineers to assure consistency.

“Tat’s one of the things that makes us unique,” said Lourie. “Each surface is engineered for the purpose it’s used for. A tendon or suspensory injury might start on a hard surface, gradually go sofer until you’re under saddle on a deeper surface,” she added. “We pay a lot of attention to that.”

To some, that may seem like minutiae, but it’s this kind of detail that is contributing to the recovery of most patients and bringing joy to their owners. In October 2019, Rebecca Byers brought her fox hunter Charlie to Spy Coast afer he’d been written of as a lost cause following a paddock accident. “He tore both the collateral and impar ligaments in his hoof,” said Byers. “It was pretty catastrophic and difcult to treat.” At the suggestion of friend and farm owner Lisa Biederman (who works at Spy Coast conducting public tours), Charlie came to see the rehab team. “My vet had told me there wasn’t going to be any way to fx him,” said Byers, “so I thought I might as well give it a try.”

Charlie lived at Spy Coast for nearly 60 days. In that time, “We threw everything but the kitchen sink at him,” Byers said with a laugh. Te then-11-year-old Cleveland Bay underwent both regenerative treatments (PRP injections — which use a formulation of the horse’s own blood plasma — as well as stem cell injections to stimulate regrowth and healing) and rehabilitative work, including cold water spa, lasers, and eventually, under-saddle work. By April 2020, Charlie was back home trail riding and fox hunting, and four years later, still is.

Byers credits the whole rehab team not only for Charlie’s recovery but her own. “Te approach they take is benefcial to both

horse and owner,” said Byers. “I didn’t know anything about this stuf — they could have said they were going to stick him in a balloon. But Dr. Vargas guided me through; they were very open and communicative,” she added. “Owners, we need a lot of therapy, too, when our horse is hurt.”

Aye, ThereÕs the Rub

While rehabilitative medicine for horses is quickly becoming more widespread, there is still one hitch: Te cost of treatment is somewhat daunting to the average horse owner. “I will say, it is not a cheap thing to do,” said Byers. “It was a commitment fnancially. Te fact that this was even an option for me was a gif.”

Te prices of treatments vary from the afordable — a single 20-minute water treadmill treatment is $85 — to the wallet-busting, all-inclusive “comprehensive package.” Tis includes full board, grooming, medications, turnout, and access to all vet-recommended modalities and can run into the mid-to-high four fgures for a month.

“Our prices, while not inexpensive, are in line with comparable services in the area,” said Lourie. “We do comparative price checks annually, and in our case, we also have a full-time veterinarian available to consult with the client and their veterinarian,” Lourie said, adding that the farm can ofer discount packages. Treatment, added Vargas, is “customizable. We provide packages that take into account a horse’s need and ofer discount packages for frequent fyers.”

For most, however, the positives far outweigh the price tag. “It’s

In addition to therapeutic treatments Spy Coast patients get a lot of TLC.

worth it to know your horse is receiving around-the-clock treatment and is in a safe environment,” said Byers, adding that fnding a new horse with the same talent and suitability would have been more difcult and equally costly. “Plus, I love him and wanted to give him a chance,” she said. “If the rehab had not been successful, at least I would be able to say I tried.”

Hope Springs Eternal

Finished with the frst of his thrice-weekly sessions, Patient X is heading home. For now, his prognosis is good. “We can do really good things for horses with neurological conditions,” said Vargas. Hydrotherapy is “not only for strength but also for things like body awareness, limb placement, and retraining gait patterns,” she added. “It’s like a stroke victim — we are helping to redevelop nerves and regenerate neuro pathways. You need to challenge the horse but in a safe environment like this.”

At the end of the day, Winchester Place’s Bassett is hoping to achieve the ultimate goal: getting this well-bred son of an elite stallion to the races. “It’s a long ride,” said Vargas, “but we’re hopeful.”

“Getting him to the races would be like winning the Kentucky Derby,” Bassett added with optimism. “If there is ever a win picture, I’ll be there with tears running down my face.” KM

One of Spy CoastÕs unique options includes arena surfaces precisely engineered for depth and frmness to cater to specifc injuries and enhance various phases of rehabilitation.

With 13 specialty hot dogs, Boonedogs has a frank for every taste.

FRA NKLY F U N

BOONEDOGS serves up specialty hot dogs at a lively family spot on Old Richmond Road

By Patti Nickell

Adrive along Old Richmond Road, headingsoutheastoutofLexington, takes you through a scenic landscape where a patchwork of rolling hills is home to Toroughbred farms, wineries, and a nature sanctuary.

Some people make the drive just to experience the essence of the Bluegrass and have no particular destination in mind. Others, however, are on a mission and have a defnite destination in mind. Tey’re headed to Boonedogs Bar & Restaurant, a roadhouse/bourbon bar that quickly has become a Lexington favorite, to indulge in what are arguably the area’s best hot dogs.

When it opened in January 2021, Boonedogs attracted an immediate following, with people focking there even during the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tey haven’t stopped coming since.

Patrons of all ages enjoy the camaraderie, country setting, and roadhouse feel found at Boonedogs.

Who knew that hog dogs had such star power, particularly when you consider that over the past few decades the humble hot dog has fallen out of favor with the public? All that changed with a post-pandemic yearning for simpler times and nostalgic pleasures. Peruse the Boonedogs menu and you will see a smattering of other comfort food items — chicken tenders, hamburgers, salads, and fried bologna and grilled cheese sandwiches.

But make no mistake, people don’t come from all around the Bluegrass for a fried bologna sandwich or a chef salad. Nor do they come for a limp hot dog on a soggy bun — found mostly at convenience stores if at all in hamburger-obsessed Lexington.

Tese devotees of dogs come for an elevated wiener experience. Forget the ballpark hot dog slathered with mustard and ketchup. Boonedogs patrons are looking for an haute cuisine version of hot dogs. Maybe a mac and cheese dog with bacon and crispy onions; a Kentucky dog with chow chow, sport peppers, house pickles, tomatoes, and special seasoning; a BLT dog; or any of the 10 other specialty dogs and four types of sausages listed on the menu.

One question you’ll never have to ask is “where’s the beef?” as Boonedogs eschews fllers and by-products and opts for all-beef products — pasture-raised Kentucky beef at that.

Patrons also come for the genuine camaraderie that is characteristic of a traditional roadhouse. On this particular Friday, no one appears interested in what’s happening on the three large-screen TVs or even the music playlist where Garth Brooks warbles about having “friends in low places.”

Instead, a bourbon tasting is in progress at one end of the wellstocked bar that takes up an entire wall. At the other end, a couple of people have commandeered bar stools and attempt to chat up the bartender during his runs back and forth for more bourbons requested by the tasters.

At the restaurant’s scattering of tables, a diverse group of diners are all in hot dog heaven. At one table, a young woman with impressive tattoos and a young man with a spit and polish military-style haircut seem, at frst glance, an odd couple. Nevertheless, this unlikely duo is united in their love of hot dogs — for her, a brunch dog (pancake-battered breakfast sausage, fried egg, spicy cheese

In addition to its signature item — “We like to say we do dressed-up dogs for dressed-down friends,” says Tim — the restaurant features a wide array of bourbons, center.

Boonedogs occupies the former Judyray Food Mart and has retained some of its predecessor’s country market ambience.

Top, Hilary Boone IV and his wife, Charlotte, partnered with entrepreneurs Tim and Jessica Jones, bottom, to create Boonedogs.

COURTESY OF BOONEDOGS COURTESY OF BOONEDOGS

COURTESY OF BOONEDOGS COURTESY OF BOONEDOGS

RICK SAMUELS

grits, and bourbon maple syrup) and for him, the atomic dog spiced with cheddar jack cheese, fried jalapenos, and chipotle mayo.

At another table, a couple who appear to be of retirement age are a bit more conservative in their choice of dogs but not in their lip-licking enjoyment of them.

Ten there are rugged individualists such as the three petite young women laughing it up at a corner table where they opt for the “Build Your Own Dog,” with its assortment of available toppings.

Whether it’s the usual ketchup, mustard, and mayo, or the traditional onions, pickles, and white cheddar, or the downright exotic such as a fried egg, chow chow, and crispy potatoes — rest assured, they have your dog covered.

Tese satisfed customers are not the only ones singing the praises of Boonedogs. No less an arbiter of good taste than Bloomberg gave a nod to Boonedogs on its recent list of America’s 13 best hot dogs.

ANOTHER KIND OF DOG

When it comes to dogs, those on a bun are the most welcome here, but those on a leash come in a close second. During good weather, the canine versions accompany their humans to enjoy an afternoon of activities on the restaurant’s expansive one-acre lawn.

If you have any doubt just how welcome they are, check out the dog photo gallery lining one wall.You’ll fnd pictures of pups such as Camp, a black Lab; Wrigley, a golden retriever; and Reggie, an Australian shepherd/blue heeler mix — all of whom have given Boonedogs their enthusiastic bark of approval.

Even the dog-less enjoy Boonedogs’ backyard with its picnic tables for family get-togethers and the Adirondack chairs surrounding a fre pit, a popular spot for those engaged in nosing their bourbons and puffng on cigars.

The more active take on challengers in games such as cornhole, horseshoes, and chess on the life-size chessboard set up at the rear

Which dog got all the love from the Bloomberg staf? Tat would be the pimento dog, topped with pimento cheese, pickled red onions, bacon bits, and fried green tomatoes. Good choice, but how could these so-called hot dog experts have overlooked the hot brown dog, with country ham, turkey, mornay sauce, cheddar jack, bacon, tomato, parmesan cheese, and chives? Or the hambassador, a dog embellished with country ham, bacon jam, and pickled red onion? Or even the footlong? Tis one has its name in lights — in a sign over the bar touting the establishment as “home

of the lawn. Some folks have even been known to bring their own tents and stake out their territory for the day.

Tailgating is welcome, but your fun has to end when the restaurant closes. Sorry, overnight camping is not allowed.

Boonedogs pays tribute to its canine fans with a photo gallery honoring regulars.

A patron shows off a generously appointed specialty hot dog.

RICK SAMUELS

RICK SAMUELS

KENTUCKY derby winners are bred in KENTUCKY

In a rousing Run for the Roses, Kentucky-bred MAGE won the 149th running of the $3 million KENTUCKY DERBY (G1) at Churchill Downs in just his fourth lifetime start.

Congratulations to breeder Grandview Equine for earning the $50,000 award for a KBIF-registered Derby winner.

MAGE (KY)

F-T Midlantic ’22 - $290,000

Owners: OGMA Investments LLC, Ramiro Restrepo, Sterling Racing, & CMNWLTH

Breeder: Grandview Equine

Trainer: Gustavo Delgado

of the world-famous footlong.”

It may be stretching it a bit to claim global fame, but there’s no question that the footlong’s notoriety stretches across Central Kentucky where overachievers order it on a regular basis. “Some of the people even add chili or one of the other toppings,” said Hannah Sturgill, a Boonedogs server.

When queried as to whether it is truly 12 inches in length, she nods enthusiastically, and then as if to defend the gluttony of some patrons, sheepishly adds, “It’s OK because it is a skinny hot dog.”

ENTERPRISING ENTREPRENEURS

Te rapid rise of Boonedogs has come as something of a surprise to two of the young entrepreneurs behind it. Horseman Hilary Boone IV, who owns 250-acre Wimbledon Farm on Walnut Hill Road, and his wife, Charlotte, an advertising executive at the agency started by her father, Kip Cornett, are part of a foursome who own Boonedogs.

Tey are quick to acknowledge, however, that they didn’t start out to give the Bluegrass its very own hot dog heaven. What they wanted was a general country store along the lines of Judyray Food Mart, which served as a beloved neighborhood gathering spot from the 1970s through the 1990s.

Clockwise from above, varieties include the pimento dog, BLT dog, a sausage sampler, and mac and cheese dog.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF BOONEDOGS

Hilary recalls frequent afer-school stop-ins for a deviled egg, one of the items Judyray’s was known for. “Tinking of it brings back fond memories of my childhood,” he said.

Hilary and Charlotte were classmates at Te Lexington School and later at Sayre School before taking separate paths for college — he went to Louisiana State University and she went to the University of Georgia.

“On the day we got married, the Tigers played the Bulldogs,” said Hilary with a laugh.

Tat kind of split allegiance might herald doom for many alliances, but not for the Boones. Tey complement each other personally and professionally, collaborating on everything that has to do with the business.

Still, it wasn’t until they partnered with another power couple, Tim Jones, entrepreneur and television personality, and his wife, Jessica, co-founder with her husband of Lexington-based Gents Original cocktail mixes, that the concept of a general store morphed into a gourmet hot dog restaurant.

“It was Tim’s idea to open a place ofering specialty hot dogs and sausages,” said Hilary, adding that, even with the coolness factor,

The hambassador includes country ham, bacon jam, and pickled red onion.

COURTESY OF BOONEDOGS

they planned to keep the heart and soul of Judyray’s intact.

Tim said that the idea for an upscale hot dog restaurant had been brewing with him and his wife for several years before becoming a reality.

“Every great city has a great hot dog place,” he said. “To be honest, Jessica and I kept waiting for someone else to come up with the idea. It took the two of us partnering with Hil and Charlotte to decide to do it ourselves.”

“While we had originally planned for Boonedogs to be an adult roadhouse, it has evolved into more of a family spot, just as our own lives have,” said Charlotte, who is mother to 2-year-old Caroline and 1-year-old Hilary V.

Tat means a schedule of summer activities and events that will make Lexingtonians feel right at home — whether they bring their debutante daughter or their unpedigreed dog.

Family night will be on Wednesdays, while Tursdays will be bike night for both road bikers and motorcyclists. Fridays and Saturdays will feature live music from several local and visiting country and bluegrass bands. Tis July, Boonedogs will celebrate National Hot Dog Day (July 19) with an entire week of festivities, culminating in its annual hot dog eating contest. Patrons are invited to come hungry and sign up when they arrive.

“Te object is to see how many footlongs someone can eat in fve minutes,” said Charlotte. Te record is four-and-a-half footlongs. “He just couldn’t handle that last half-foot,” quipped Hilary.

Additional activities and events planned throughout the year and into next include a fall festival, classic car club rallies that will see the cars either start or fnish their route at Boonedogs, and a dog parade that will coincide with a holiday such as Mardi Gras or Easter.

“We haven’t decided that yet,” said Charlotte.

One thing the couple has decided on is their own favorite Boonedogs ofering. Charlotte prefers the corn dog, while Hilary goes for the mac and cheese dog or one of the brats.

Whatever your preference, they are confdent you will fnd it here.

For the two couples, Boonedogs is all about exploring a new frontier of favor and turning a standard hot dog into something special by combining fresh ingredients with a healthy dose of their creative talents.

“While each of us brings something diferent to the table, our common goal is for Boonedogs to be a destination restaurant that is a muststop in Lexington,” said Tim. “We like to say we do dressed-up dogs for dressed-down friends.”

It’s a philosophy that Lexington’s hot dog lovers have enthusiastically endorsed. KM

“WHILE WE ORIGINALLY PLANNED FOR BOONEDOGS TO BE AN ADULT ROADHOUSE, IT HAS EVOLVED INTO MORE OF A FAMILY SPOT…”

—co-owner Charlotte Boone

Left, hot brown fries are big enough to share. Dogs come loaded but plenty of accompaniments as well as appetizers and sides ensure no one goes hungry.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF BOONEDOGS

In the heat of the race, these are the qualities that separate a champion from a contender and what separates a veterinary expert from a practitioner.

Hagyard puts over 145 years of expertise behind every diagnosis and care plan we provide so clients can breathe easier when the stakes are high.

Making a Difference THE FOSTER CARE COUNCIL

FOR THE KIDS’ SAKE

The Foster Care Council helps children persevere through an unsettling change in their lives

By William Bowden

Photos by Mark Mahan

Lauren Burgess credits the Foster Care Council with helping her turn her life around. She graduated from college and now runs a successful business.

Making a Difference

LLauren Burgess was acutely aware of how far behind she was at the beginning of her freshman year at Lafayette High School in Lexington. Having just entered foster care with a new family the year before and lacking a solid middle school preparation, she knew there was a signifcant gap between her academic background and that of her classmates.

“Ninth grade was hard for me,” she recalled. “I was missing math and English basics and felt kind of lost. Because of foster care, I didn’t see myself as a normal kid. I didn’t really care about school at that point.”

But Burgess turned her life around with help from individualized tutoring that allowed her to develop a serious attitude toward school and achieve a weighted GPA of 4.4 by her junior year. She was even chosen for a prestigious Lexington Sister Cities cultural and educational trip to Japan. Tis success paved the way for a college education and now a budding career in business.

Funding for that all-important tutoring was provided by the Foster Care Council (FCC), a Lexington-based nonproft organization that ofers fnancial help and other support to foster families for things not afordable through government foster care stipends or the family’s own resources. In addition to tutoring, FCC programs include mentoring, funding for enrichment activities and summer camps, and a free clothing store.

Te FCC’s overall mission is to help children in foster care persevere and become strong, successful adults. “Foster parents will come to us and want to give their child the best home they can,” said Cassie Slone, founder and executive director of the organization. “Tis is where we step in with options and opportunities that help the kids achieve a brighter future.”

BEYOND THE BASICS

Kentucky’s Department for Community Based Services administers the state foster care system. Foster families receive stipends to help defray the basic costs of caring for a child who has been removed from their home due to neglect, abuse, or abandonment. But foster parents typically want to provide much more than just the essentials for the child.

“Te foster parent is supposed to make sure the child is safe,

well fed, healthy, progressing in school, and living as normal a life as possible,” Slone said. “But for a child to persevere, it’s more than just food and shelter. Caseworkers with the state or from a private foster child placement agency will send us requests from the families for funding to cover tutoring or enrichment activities.”

In Burgess’ case, she not only earned better grades but developed a whole new way of thinking about herself through the tutoring opportunity. “I began to develop logical thinking and disciplined study habits,” she said. “I started to cheer up and understand that my teachers were trying to help me.”

Cassie Slone founded the Foster Care Council in 2012 to help provide foster children extra tools to succeed in life.

All of that studying paid dividends for Burgess as she went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pikeville and now is the owner/operator of a Sonic Drive-In restaurant. Having long ago shed whatever anguish she may have felt at being a foster child, Burgess now has the self-confdence to speak at FCC meetings about her journey to happiness. “I was determined not to become just a foster child statistic,” she said. “I stand proud.”

Tat is the kind of outcome the FCC rejoices to see. It’s also a continuing source of pride for Judi Burgess, an administrator with the Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center at the University of Kentucky. She welcomed Lauren into her home as a 13-year-old and adopted her in 2015.

“Lauren took the opportunity her tutor was giving her to become a better student and made the most of it,” Burgess said. “I couldn’t have aforded that chance for her without the help of the Foster Care Council.”

For her part, Lauren gives Burgess full credit for encouraging her to put the past behind her and start over. “I had counseling, but Judi was the key to my getting excited about my future.”

Tina Brooks, a special needs educator with Fayette County Public Schools, is among the 13 qualifed tutors Slone can assign to work with foster youth. Brooks has found her task usually

involves as much motivation as it does pure academics.

“Most of the students I work with are behind in their classwork,” she said. “Sometimes they seem to have lost hope. If they bring some of their work to the session with me and they can complete an assignment, they feel empowered when they take that back to school. I do whatever I can to help them have a sense of accomplishment.”

Brooks recalled one such student who was struggling with algebra but fnally began completing assignments on their own and was excited about being able to graduate. “At our fnal session the student said, ‘Miss Brooks, I’m going to get my cap and gown!’ And I got to see them dressed that way just afer graduation.”

THE ‘UP PERISCOPE’ VIEW

In addition to academic help, foster children ofen need encouragement in developing self-esteem and thinking about a future afer they age out of the foster care system at 18. Tey also need practical help with job applications, interviewing skills, and personal budgeting. As a complement to tutoring, the FCC in 2021 launched a teen mentoring program for students in 9th to 12th grades to meet those needs.

Rick Burslem, former head of school at Lexington Christian Academy and now with Sunrise Children’s Services, volunteers as an FCC mentor. He uses what he metaphorically calls the “up periscope” view of life in his sessions with foster youth. “Tese kids have been underwater, pulled from their homes and away from the abuse they may have sufered,” he said. “Te goal is to help them see a brighter path based on their hopes and dreams.”

One of his mentees had been in six different foster homes before Burslem frst met with him. “A lot of mentoring is listening, not telling,” he said. “I think of my approach as involving connection, communication, and care. We developed a high level of trust where he has been able to express his disappointments but also a hopefulness to be adopted. Finding that forever home is a goal of virtually all foster youth. Tey want that sense of belonging.”

Another way the FCC helps youngsters survive the stress of foster care is through

While in foster care Lauren Burgess was able to take riding lessons, which she said helped her forget her troubles and “just be a kid.”

COURTESY LAUREN BURGESS

Making a Difference

THE FOSTER CARE COUNCIL

funding for enrichment activities that can include lessons for music, art, or swimming; summer camps; and many other pursuits. Tese not only give kids fun and sometimes educational experiences, but also help them get their minds of weightier issues and shed the foster child feeling.

“An overriding desire of foster children is to feel like other

kids, to feel normal,” Slone said. “Kids in middle school and high school want to ft in, do things their peers are doing. Athletics is one way they can do that. For baseball, we’ve funded helmets, cleats, shin guards. We’ve paid for gymnastics and participation in soccer leagues.”

Adonis Tomas enjoyed running track at Lafayette High School, where he focused on the middle distances. “Te Foster Care Council funded equipment I couldn’t aford, clothing, and shoes,” he said.

Lauren Burgess received funding for riding lessons, which she says helped get her mind of troubling issues. “With horseback riding, I could relax, have fun, and just be a kid. I could forget about becoming a foster child and just enjoy myself.”

GOOD VIBRATIONS

Afer aging out of foster care, some youngsters choose to recommit through Kentucky’s independent living program, which provides young people with an apartment, food stipends, and bare essentials through age 21 on the stipulation that they are in school or employed. Te goal is to help with the transition from the dependency of foster care to self-sufciency.

Tomas chose that option, which also gave him access to the FCC’s newest program, My Vibe, an apartment makeover beneft. “A local home designer volunteers her time and we talk with youth like Adonis to get their vibe — the style they like, disco, butterfies, whatever,” Slone said. “We decorate their apartment, give them donated items, and provide a motivating, inspiring space for them to live in.”

In Tomas’ case, the redecoration included every room in his apartment. “Tey gave me some pillows, bedsheets, a dining table, plates and bowls, cooking utensils, even some giant pictures of cities for my living room.”

Tomas also got to revisit one of his favorite places — and one of the FCC’s most popular features — Studio Trify4 the Kids, a disco-themed free clothing store. Te name is a play on words recalling New York City’s famed Studio 54 disco club of the 1970s. Te store’s sparkly décor — disco ball on the ceiling, a dancer silhouetted on the wall — encourages kids to have fun while shopping. Te

Cassie Slone shows off one of FCC’s most popular features, Studio Thrifty4 the Kids, a disco-themed free clothing store.

My Vibe is a new FCC program that provides apartment makeovers for youth taking part in Kentucky’s independent living program.

COURTESY FOSTER CARE COUNCIL

Making a Difference

shelves are flled with clothing and shoes for small children to teenagers, ball caps, purses and makeup bags, jewelry, toys, and toiletry essentials.

Melanie McAdam, team leader and case manager with therapeutic foster care agency Omni Visions, is familiar with the store as she ofen turns to the FCC to support her work with foster families. Her frm is an example of the private agencies that work closely with Kentucky’s Department for Community Based Services to care for kids who may need more frequent and intensive oversight than a state caseworker can provide.

“Te Foster Care Council is a great organization that makes my job easier,” McAdam said. “Tey have helped me with tutoring and fnding various sporting activities like soccer leagues and a volleyball camp.”

Studio Trify4 the Kids is an especially helpful tool for McAdam as a positive experience for children. A caseworker had suggested to Slone that only one child at a time (or more if in the same family) should be in the store. “A lot of kids don’t want people to know they’re in foster care,” McAdam said, “and they get to be the only kid in the store. Tey feel kind of special and think that’s really cool.”

GIVING KIDS A CHANCE

Slone founded the Foster Care Council in 2012 as a 501(c)(3) nonproft afer serving as a board member for an organization of the same name while living in Naples, Florida. Te FCC can serve foster children anywhere in Kentucky, though most of the requests for support come from Lexington and surrounding counties.

Celebration of the organization’s 10th anniversary in 2022 reminded Slone of why she has devoted herself to this cause. “I just want these children to have a chance, and it’s a blessing to me to be able to do that,” she said, mentioning the approximately 9,000 children who might be in foster care at any one time in Kentucky. “People get the misconception that we are an arm of government, and we’re not. We fll in the gaps where government leaves of.”

Te FCC is funded through grants handled by Slone and by donations and fundraisers, the province of Lindy Hester, director of business development. Two major annual fundraisers are Lasso-A-Dream, a Western-garb gala in April complete with silent and live auctions, live music, and dancing; and Tee It Up for the Kids, a golf scramble in the

fall at various courses (Greenbrier Country Club in 2023).

“I spend a lot of time networking in the community, fundraising and friendraising, as I call it, to create awareness of our mission and remind people that we are not an ofce of state government,” Hester said. “Anyone who wants to help on a continuing basis can join our Champions for Children, an annual ongoing giving program.”

Lindy Hester, director of FCC’s business development, organizes fundraisers and handles donations. She’s shown at the Western-garb Lasso-A-Dream gala.

‘‘ AN OVERRIDING DESIRE OF FOSTER CHILDREN ISTO FEEL LIKE OTHER KIDS…”

— FCC’S CASSIE SLONE

BGCF PUTS YOU IN THE WINNER’S CIRCLE

Ray Daniels, President, Ed Brown Society Greg Harbut, Chair, Ed Brown Society

Making a Difference

A CHILD’S SMILE

Amy Worthington Johnson, ofce manager at Gray Solutions in Lexington, is president of the FCC board of directors. She enjoys seeing the changes in foster children’s lives that the organization’s support can help bring about.

“It’s seeing them come in two grades behind, but then jumping forward, be on the honor roll, and get a scholarship to college,” she said. “I love seeing the changes as they age out of foster care and go somewhere with their lives with great confdence.”

Sometimes a child’s simple expression of joy can convey the beginning of those momentous changes and give Slone a touching example of why the FCC exists.

“A caseworker brought two small children to Studio Trify4 the Kids who had just lef their home headed for foster care with nothing but the clothes they were wearing and a small bag of personal items,” she recalled. “Tey were a little wary until they discovered they were the only ones in the store. Tey began to move freely about, just being kids, and had great fun picking out clothes. Tey came in with a frown on their faces and lef with a smile.” KM

The Lasso-A-Dream fundraiser included silent and live auctions, live music, and dancing.

Fundraisers help the FCC provide benefts and services to foster children, as do grants and donations.