Keeneland Magazine Spring 2022 Issue

GAINESWAY FARM EXCELS

VOICE OF KEENELAND

SAMANTHA FORE

HORSE MANIA RETURNS

K EENELAND SPRING 2022

celebrating bluegrass traditions

OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE

KEENELAND SPRING MEET

U.S. $5.00 (CAN. $7.50)

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2011 Leading First Crop Sires in North America

RK STALLION

SIRE

1 Scat Daddy 2 Hard Spun

Johannesburg Danzig

EARNINGS

$1,521,410 $1,510,235

BLOODHORSE.COM

2015 Leading First Crop Sires in North America

RK STALLION

SIRE

1 Uncle Mo 2 Twirling Candy

Indian Charlie Candy Ride

EARNINGS

$3,670,354 $1,167,144

BLOODHORSE.COM

2018 Leading First Crop Sires in Europe

RK STALLION

SIRE

1 No Nay Never 2 Australia

Scat Daddy Galileo

EARNINGS

€1,104,650 €552,328

STALLIONGUIDE.COM

2020 Leading First Crop Sires in North America

RK STALLION

SIRE

1 2 3 4

Uncle Mo Uncle Mo Giant’s Causeway Uncle Mo

Nyquist Laoban Not This Time Outwork

EARNINGS

$2,424,083 $1,559,748 $1,557,138 $1,260,790

BLOODHORSE.COM

2021 Leading First Crop Sires in Europe

RK STALLION

SIRE

1 Caravaggio 2 Cotai Glory

Scat Daddy Exceed And Excel STALLIONGUIDE.COM

EARNINGS

€934,042 €926,054

By SCAT DADDY, Champion First Crop Sire and sire of Champion First Crop Sires CARAVAGGIO & NO NAY NEVER. Unbeaten Triple Crown winner. First yearlings sold for $1,550,000, $950,000, $825,000, $775,000, $750,000, $750,000, $750,000 etc.

Fee: $100,000

By SCAT DADDY, Champion First Crop Sire and sire of Champion First Crop Sires CARAVAGGIO & NO NAY NEVER. Half-brother to INTO MISCHIEF. Grade 1 winner at 2, record-breaking Grade 2 winner at 3.

First yearlings sold for $900,000, $750,000, $510,000, $435,000, $400,000, $400,000 etc.

Fee: $35,000

By UNCLE MO, record-breaking Champion First Crop Sire and sire of Champion First Crop Sire NYQUIST. Grade 1 Hollywood Derby winner at 3 & Grade 2 Remsen Stakes winner at 2. First yearlings sold for $450,000, $300,000, $275,000, $255,000, $200,000 etc.

Fee: $7,500

Aisling Duignan, Dermot Ryan, Charlie O’Connor, Adrian Wallace, Robyn Murray or Blaise Benjamin. Tel: 859-873-7088. Fax: 859-879 5756.

J U S T I C E R E A L E S TAT E Due to unfortunate events, Fort Blackburn is back on the market, which gives you a second chance to purchase this world-class facility.

FORT BLACKBURN —Purchased by Will Farish as 264 acres off raw llandd in 1999, Mr. Farishh hhas ddeveloped l d this h

land into an exceptional horse farm. Adjoining a division of Stonestreet Farm and in the immediate area of Airdrie and Gainsborough, Fort Blackburn boasts an unparalleled location on Old Frankfort Pike. Horse improvements on this exceptional farm include 3 world-class 20-stall horse barns that are ideally situated. Additional improvements include a charming and renovated historic 2,650 SF home, over 12.5 miles of plank fencing, equipment/shop building with office and bath, metal hay barn, plus a covered walker.

WINDHAVEN FARM—Windhaven Farm offers one of the most desirable locations in Central Kentucky— prestigious Old Frankfort Pike. Adjoining historic Darby Dan Farm and Bluewater Farm, it is located directly across Old Frankfort Pike from the main division of Stonestreet Farm. You’ll discover two tree-lined entrances off Old Frankfort Pike—one to the main residence and the other is the farm entrance. Windhaven Farm features a 4,000 +/- square foot main residence with an excellent floor plan: first floor primary bedroom, three second floor bedrooms, three full and two half baths, plus an inviting pool. Improved with three horse barns with a total of 37 stalls; two round pens; and a walker. Seller has recently added substantial new 4-plank fencing. Minutes from downtown Lexington and offering excellent soils.

518 East Main Street, Lexington, KY 40508 u ( 859 ) 255-3657 u www.kyhorsefarms.com

VERY SPECIAL BLUEGRASS FARMS

ANNESTES FARM—Located in highly-desirable Woodford County, this exceptional 384 acre horse farm is exceptionally well-designed and constructed and is as aesthetically pleasing as it is functional. Two stone entrances greet you and lead you through over 3.5 miles of roads to its centerpiece 20+ acre lake. Along the way, you'll discover two world-class 28 stall barns with 2 larger foaling stalls and a wash bay. The stallion barn has 5 stalls and a breeding area, office, observation area, and bath. Additional improvements include an 1,800 SF Tudor office building and two 2,200 SF houses—one overlooking a pond. A 44' x 60' shop/equipment building and 25 miles of plank fencing complete this exceptional farm.

CE I R WP E N

A PORTION OF DIAMOND A FARM—Located in desirable Woodford County, Diamond A counts among its immediate neighbors such stalwarts in the horse industry as Coolmore/Ashford, Gainesborough, and Stonestreet farms. The centerpiece of the farm is its office/stallion barn complex which is situated in a well-landscaped courtyard with brick sidewalks and entered through an electronic stone-pillared gate via a mature, tree-lined driveway. The complex is comprised of an 8 stall stallion barn, a state-of-the-art breeding barn, and an auxiliary 5 stall stallion barn with an attached 1,500 square foot office. This complex is very adaptable to a yearling complex as well. Additionally, there are 5 exceptional horse barns with 86 stalls. The farm is further improved with a large metal hay barn, a metal equipment building, and a shop/maintenance building. You’ll also find a very nice manager home (suitable for an owner) plus a renovated employee house. Everything you need to make your mark in the Bluegrass! The 523 acre farm has contiguous frontage (with the exception of a half-acre lot) on Steele, McCracken, and New Cut roads. Quality construction was utilized throughout the farm and they are impeccably maintained.

Bill G. Bell (859-621-0607) u Mary Sue Walker (859-619-4770) u Marilyn Richardson (859-621-4850) Muffy Lyster (859-229-1804) u Allen Kershaw (859-333-2901) u Bill Justice (859-255-3657)

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Contents Contents SPRING 2022

2022 F E A T U RSEASON ES

58 ELITE PLAYER

by Lenny Shulman Indelibly linked with the origins of the Breeders’ Cup, Gainesway Farm honors its heritage while scaling new heights.

72 EXCEEDING

EXPECTATIONS

by Ron Mitchell The Breeders’ Cup has blossomed into a $31 million two-day international festival.

96 THOROUGHBRED BOULEVARD

by Edward L. Bowen The f rst in a three-part series traces the link between Old Frankfort Pike and the development of the Thoroughbred industry along this historic corridor.

112 STORY WORTH TELLING

by William Bowden LexHistory’s bold strategic plan envisions reviving a museum and expanding its community prof le.

84 YOUTHFUL SHOWCASE 124 TUK TUK AND AWAY

by Tom Pedulla Keeneland’s early 2-yearold races presage growing opportunities for juvenile runners that culminate at the Breeders’ Cup.

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by Jacalyn Carfagno Samantha Fore is making her name on the national food scene.

ON OUR COVER Winner’s Circle Oil on canvas, 84 x 72 by Ellen Skidmore Born in Baltimore, Ellen Skidmore moved to Kentucky in 1981 and graduated from the University of Kentucky. She worked in both Arizona and Oregon before returning to her current location of Paris, Kentucky. Of her painting, she says, “My work is about receiving the whole package of life; the good as well as the bad as the best of gifts. In embracing all of it, I fnd a certain beautiful spiritual rest for my soul.”

Skidmore also is the author of the book Ellen: The Little Girl Who Found Her Voice.

S A R ATO G A S P R I N G S , N Y

HE ALTH, HISTORY & HORSES

THE IDEAL DESTINATION IN SAR ATOGA SPRINGS!

F E AT U R I N G LUXU RY A C C O M M O D AT I O N S & W O R L D - C L A S S C U I S I N E

C A L L (518) 678-6000 TO B O O K YO U R STAY O R TO RE S ERV E A TA BL E IN O UR R E STAUR A NT S!

SALT CHAR A N A D E L P H I H OT E L R E STAU R A N T

365 Broadway, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 | www.TheAdelphiHotel.com | (518) 678 - 6000

Fine Italian

Contents SPRING 2022

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26 PRESIDENTÕS MESSAGE 30 CONTRIBUTORS 34 NEWS / 38 CONNECTIONS

42 SPOTLIGHT ON w.

Kurt Becker brings a unique voice to his job as Keeneland’s race-caller.

by Maryjean Wall

136 MAKING A DIFFERENCE The popular Horse Mania returns for the third time, helping to raise the prof le of the arts in Lexington.

by Robin Roenker

146 BREEDERSÕ CUP LEGEND A.P. Indy more than lived up to his sale-topping price as a racehorse and stallion.

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A UNIQUE EXPERIENCE AWAITS.

CASTLETON LYONS

offers a unique opportunity for serious breeders to board their thoroughbreds.

Here you’ll find a highly skilled staff in a state-of-the-art facility with old world charm.

Over one thousand acres of lightly grazed lush pasture supported by the best quality soil, so famous for producing great race horses, await your thoroughbred investments.

Individual, detail-oriented attention for horse and client in a top class environment can be found within minutes of Bluegrass Airport, Keeneland, Fasig-Tipton, and the world’s best equine hospitals.

Inquiries to Pat Hayes: 2469 Iron Works Pike, Lexington, KY 40511 (859) 455-9222 Fax (859) 455-8892 www.castletonlyons.com

K EENELAND

Live Jazz

celebrating bluegrass traditions

The off cial 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), Claudia Summers Copy Editors: Tom Hall (chief), Rena Baer 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

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

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James L. Gagliano, Carl Hamilton, Ian D. Highet, Stuart S. Janney III, Dan Metzger, Brant Laue, Rosendo Parra

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KEENELAND ASSOCIATION, INC. 4201 Versailles Road P.O. Box 1690 Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.A. 40588-1690 Tel: (859) 254-3412 (800) 456-3412 Keeneland.com © 2022 Keeneland Association, Inc.

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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

April Horses of Racing Age Sale After the Races | Friday, April 29 at 6:30 p.m.

Entry Deadline for Print Catalog: Friday, April 1 Approved Supplements will be accepted until sale day

ARTFUL & INNOVATIVE DOWNTOWN DINING

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RESERVATIONS

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Discover the Baird Diference At Baird, we take a diferent approach to wealth management – collaborative, holistic, respectful of your needs and goals.

Lexington-Beaumont 3120 Wall Street, Suite 310 Lexington, KY 40513 859-219-4260

FLTI Keeneland | Photos by Z ©2022 Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated. Member SIPC. MC-808651.

Lexington-Downtown 300 West Vine Street, Suite 1100 Lexington, KY 40507 859-255-9681

CRESTWOOD FARM Over fifty years of excellent care.

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 285 stakes horses.

Stallions CARACARO

FIRING LINE

Uncle Mo – Peace Time

HEART TO HEART English Channel – Ask the Question

1946 N. Yarnallton Pike

|

Line of David – Sister Girl Blues

JACK MILTON |

859.252.3770

YORKTON

TEXAS RED

Afeet Alex – Ramatuelle (CHI)

War Front – Preserver

Lexington, KY 40511

GET STORMY

Stormy Atlantic – Foolish Gal

|

email: stallions@crestwoodfarm.com

Speightstown – Sunday Affair

|

www.crestwoodfarm.com

President’s Message SPRING 2022

Excitement and Passion We regularly talk with Keeneland employ-

ask Keeneland employees. I have

ees about the importance of holding true to the

yet to meet an employee who does

Keeneland PROMISE, which stands for Pride,

not feel passionate about our work

Respect, Outstanding, Mission, Integrity, Service,

here, and I feel that excitement and

Excitement.

passion each day I drive through

I admit being slow to warm up to acronyms.

For example, how many of us are tired of hear-

the gates at Keeneland.

This industry is flled with hard

ing about the “coronavirus disease of 2019,”

workers — the “doers” — but they

which went from COVID-19 to what seemed like

represent more than just hard

COVID-20, COVID-21, and COVID-22? But the

work. In the words of Mr. Bassett,

Keeneland PROMISE resonates with me —

this is our life’s work, which we are

perhaps because I know it is genuine. Each word

privileged to do in dedication to the

this acronym’s letters represent is critically

most majestic of animals: the horse. We are stewards of

important to how we conduct our business

this institution, and each of us strives to leave Keeneland,

each day and how we deal with each other, our

our community, and our sport better than we found it.

patrons, and our clients. A component of the

That stewardship comes with hard work, but that doesn’t

acronym that interests me this time of year,

mean we aren’t having fun. I often say to our team here:

particularly in 2022, is excitement.

“If we can’t have fun working here with these fascinating

Our message to the Keeneland team about excitement reminds them to “Celebrate success and have fun! Show enthusiasm in everything

SHANNON ARVIN President and CEO

people and incredible animals, we should go do something else.”

With enhanced purses, new owners, a healthy racing

you do.” During this time of year, Keeneland

circuit in Kentucky, and the Horseracing Integrity and

employees kick into a higher gear to prepare for

Safety Act on the horizon, we have many reasons to be

the months ahead. It would be diffcult to exert

optimistic. We have a fantastic year ahead of us: The

the energy necessary to succeed in this industry,

spring meet is around the corner; our April horses of

particularly during our busiest months, without

racing age sale is on the fnal day of the race meet; our

that excitement and passion.

next sales cycle begins with the September yearling sale;

Ask veterinarians, who work through breed-

the fall meet flls October; the Breeders’ Cup World

ing and foaling season in cold temperatures at

Championships return Nov. 4-5; and the November

all hours. Ask trainers, who are at their barns

breeding stock sale soon follows.

early each day to care for and exercise our

Maya Angelou said, “My mission in life is not merely

equine athletes. Ask grooms, who think about

to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion,

their horses’ condition and care every hour of

some compassion, some humor, and some style.” Amen to

the day. Ask farriers, who work long hours to

that. Those are words to live by.

ensure horses’ feet are in top condition. And

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KEENELAND.COM

Cheers to blue skies ahead. KM

COMMITTED TO YOUR

SUCCESS

For more than 40 years, Lane’s End has pursued one mission: helping our partners achieve their goals in sales, breeding, and racing. That dedication to your success has guided us as we’ve stood with our fellow horsemen through the ups and downs of the industry—and will continue to guide us as we look toward our shared future.

This is what we stand for.

ACCELERATE | CANDY RIDE (ARG) | CATALINA CRUISER | CITY OF LIGHT | CODE OF HONOR | CONNECT | DAREDEVIL GAME WINNER | GIFT BOX | HONOR A. P. | HONOR CODE | LEXITONIAN | LIAM’S MAP | MINESHAFT | QUALITY ROAD THE FACTOR | TONALIST | TWIRLING CANDY | UNIFIED | UNION RAGS | WEST COAST

WE ARE POWERED BY COLLABORATION. Set in the serenity of rolling hills with lush Bluegrass.

Educated. Cultured. Collaboration found at every turn.

A vibrant, unexpected cosmopolitan city. Full of opportunity.

Lexington is a great place to do business. Visit LocateInLexington.com to fnd out why.

THE JEFF RUBY EXPERIENCE Always A Winning Bet. U.S.D.A. Prime Steaks | Seafood & Sushi | Impeccable Service | Live Entertainment

Contributors

SPRING 2022

WILLIAM BOWDEN

JACALYN CARFAGNO

(Story Worth Telling) most recently worked as publications editor at Transylvania University. He was formerly a writer and an editor at the Somerset (Kentucky) CommonwealthJournal, the Lexington Herald Leader, and the National Tour Association.

(TukTuk and Away) is a professional writer and an editor based in Lexington.

She has covered the equine industry and written restaurant reviews and commentary for the Lexington Herald Leader in addition to work for a wide range of clients.

EDWARD L. BOWEN (Thoroughbred Boulevard) is the former president of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation. He is a former editor-in-chief of BloodHorse and has authored 21 books about Thoroughbred racing and breeding. His latest book is The Lucky Thirteen, about the Triple Crown winners.

RON MITCHELL (Exceeding Expectations) is a Lexington native who recently retired after a 29-year stint at BloodHorse Publications, where his positions included online managing editor and sales editor. Prior to that he held editorial positions at Horsemen’s Journal, ThoroughbredTimes, and Thoroughbred Record.

AMY OWENS

LENNY SHULMAN

(Keeneland News/ Connections) is Keeneland Communications Associate.

(Elite Player) is a senior correspondent for BloodHorse magazine and the author of Head to Head: Conversations with a Generation of Horse Racing Legends; Justify: 111 Days to Triple Crown Glory; and Ride of Their Lives: The Trials and Turmoil of Today’s Top Jockeys.

TOM PEDULLA (Youthful Showcases) is a freelance writer who has covered everyTriple Crown race since 1998 and every Breeders’ Cup from 1998 through 2015. His work has appeared in the NewYork Times, the Los AngelesTimes, and USAToday among other major outlets. He co-authored Against the Odds: Riding for My Life, the autobiography of Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey.

ROBIN ROENKER (Horse Mania Returns) is a freelance writer and frequent Keeneland magazine contributor who writes for many Kentucky-based and national publications.

MARYJEAN WALL (Unique Voice) won multiple Eclipse Awards during 35 years as Turf 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: A Tale of Outlaws, Horse Thieves, Gamblers, and Breeders. She holds a doctorate from the University of Kentucky.

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Keeneland News

SPRING 2022

COMPILED BY AMY OWENS

KEENELAND PHOTO/PHOTOS BY Z

April Sale Set for Closing Day of Spring Meet

REVITALIZED SPRING MEET STAKES SCHEDULE WORTH RECORD $7.7 MILLION

K

eeneland will award a record $7.7 million for 19 stakes to be run during the 2022 spring meet, April 8-29. Te schedule features increased purses for all stakes and changes to the meet’s two historic classic preps for 3-year-olds: the Toyota Blue Grass is now a Grade 1 event worth $1 million, while the Central Bank Ashland (G1) for fllies has moved to opening day and is worth a record $600,000.

Contributing to the stakes purse increases is a total of $1.5 million available from the Kentucky Toroughbred Development Fund (KTDF). Purses for some stakes doubled for 2022, most prominently the $600,000 Maker’s Mark Mile (G1T), $400,000 Stonestreet Lexington (G3), and $300,000 Ben Ali (G3). Others, such as the Kentucky Utilities Transylvania (G3T), Beaumont (G3) Presented by Keeneland Select, and Shakertown (G2T) received signifcant boosts.

During the 15-day season, Keeneland will contest 10 stakes on grass and nine stakes on dirt while ofering multiple stakes on six days. Post time for the frst race is 1 p.m. with the exception of April

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9 and 29 when the frst race will be at 12:30 p.m.

Keeneland will be closed for racing on Easter Sunday, April 17.

“Keeneland is thrilled to ofer such a lucrative spring meet stakes schedule for horsemen, horseplayers, and racing fans,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “We look forward to worldclass racing this April setting the stage for a huge racing year that will continue with the fall meet in October and the return of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships on Nov. 4-5.”

Te 98th running of the Toyota Blue Grass and the 85th running of the Central Bank Ashland both are worth 170 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby and Road to the Kentucky Oaks, respectively. Te winners of each stakes will earn 100 qualifying points to the respective classic.

Te Toyota Blue Grass, Keeneland’s signature race and a key Triple Crown prep, leads fve stakes on opening Saturday. For 2022, the purse of the 11⁄8-mile race was increased from $800,000 last year and returned to the $1 million status of 2015-19.

Keeneland’s April horses of racing age sale will take place following the races on Friday, April 29, closing day of the spring meet. Post time for the frst race that day is 12:30 p.m., and the 10th and fnal race will go of at approximately 5:09 p.m. Te April sale will begin at 6:30 p.m.

“Keeneland is excited for this opportunity to bridge racing and sales and capitalize on the energy of the spring meet,” Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy said. “By hosting the April sale on a race day, we will introduce some race fans to the sales arena and hopefully develop new participants over time. We also can showcase the sale before industry focus moves to Louisville and Kentucky Derby Week.”

As in 2021, the April sale will be conducted as an integrated event, with live auctioneers at Keeneland and horses presented for sale both physically at Keeneland as well as at of-site locations, at the option of the sellers and consignors. Internet and phone bidding will be available to buyers.

“Keeneland is unique in its role as both a racetrack and sales company, and we want to continue to strengthen the synergy between those two operations,” Keeneland Vice President of Racing Gatewood Bell said. “Te timing of the April sale enables trainers to make adjustments to their racing stables as they move to their summer bases.”

Coolmore to Sponsor Grade 1 Turf Mile Stakes Coolmore, the globally powerful Toroughbred breeding operation whose Ashford Stud is near Lexington, will sponsor the Turf Mile (G1T) on Saturday, Oct. 8. Te 2022 Coolmore Turf Mile, for 3-year-olds and up, will ofer a purse of $1 million.

Te Coolmore Turf Mile marks the 25th running of a Keeneland stakes sponsored by Coolmore, which previously sponsored the Lexington (G3) and Jenny Wiley (G1T).

Army Mule

Kantharos

Midnight Lute

$7,500 LFSN

$20,000 LFSN

$15,000 LFSN

Curlin

Kitten’s Joy

Mucho Macho Man

$175,000 LFSN

$50,000 LFSN

$7,500 LFSN

Ghostzapper

Lost Treasure (Ire)

Violence

$75,000 LFSN

$5,000 LFSN

$25,000 LFSN

Good Magic

Maclean’s Music

World of Trouble

$30,000 LFSN

$50,000 LFSN

$7,500 LFSN

New for 2022

Charlatan $50,000 LFSN

5 4-1-0

$4,047,200 Charlatan, a Multiple Grade 1 Winner by a combined margin of victory of 26 1/2 lengths, arriving to Hill ‘n’ Dale at Xalapa

www.hillndalefarms.com

LGB, LLC 2022 / Photo: Bobby Shifet

Keeneland Mercantile, the one-of-a-kind retail experience in downtown Lexington, and Keeneland magazine have announced the new Masters of Craf Awards, a competition to recognize products of artisans and businesses that are made in the U.S. Te entry deadline was Feb. 25, and the grand prize winner, who will receive $5,000, will be announced in May. Te competition is open to products in four categories — food & drink, home goods, wears, and handmade. Twelve fnalists will be announced April 1 and be featured in the Summer issue of Keeneland magazine.

Serving as judges are these noted entrepreneurs and experts in Southern goods and services: • Allison “Al” and Mike Barker, founders of Made Market, Louisville’s fnest curated handmade market. Made Market hosts annual markets in four states.

• Dixon Dedman, winner of a Garden & Gun Made in the South Award and a James Beard Foundation’s America’s Classic Award, whose family owns Beaumont Inn in Harrodsburg, Kentucky.

• Emile “Emmie” Howard of Atlanta, founder of Southern Proper and president of Onward Reserve, two popular apparel lines.

• Ashley Smith, CEO of Black Soil KY. Black Soil is an agritourism social enterprise that fosters a greater market share for Black farmers, growers, and producers in Kentucky.

• Chris Tomas of Franklin, Tennessee, founder/CEO of Made South. Made South is focused on creating events that celebrate the South’s best makers and artisans.

For more information, visit KeenelandMercantile.com.

Healthy results of Keeneland’s 10-day 2021 November breeding stock and fourday 2022 January horses of all ages sales signaled continued confdence in the Toroughbred industry.

In November, a total of 2,470 horses sold for $203 million, the highest gross for the auction since 2016, with a record median of $37,000 to signal a resumption of the pre-pandemic bull markets.

Momentum from Keeneland’s 2021 September yearling sale again bolstered confdence in the demand for Toroughbreds, spurring healthy competition for breeding stock among a deep buying bench as evidenced by the 82 percent clearance rate.

ELiTE, agent, consigned the $3.1 million November sale topper, Grade 1 winner Paris Lights, a daughter of Curlin, purchased by Spendthrif Farm.

Phil Schoenthal, agent for D. Hatman Toroughbreds, paid $800,000 for a flly

by Frankel who was the year’s top-priced weanling sold at public auction in North America. Now named Determined Forever, she was consigned by Four Star Sales, agent.

In January, the sale of 1,013 horses for $46 million posted the second-highest gross for the auction since 2008. Top sellers were the 2-year-old flly Princesse Lele, a daughter of Quality Road, for $750,000, and the 3-year-old colt Belgrade, a son of Hard Spun who in December won his career debut impressively, for $700,000.

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Horse of the Year Knicks Go

SEPTEMBER SALE PRODUCES FOURTH CONSECUTIVE HORSE OF THE YEAR

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ive horses named 2021 Eclipse Award winners — led by Horse of the Year and champion older dirt male Knicks Go — are graduates of Keeneland’s September yearling sale, while other honorees have connections to Keeneland racing and sales.

Knicks Go is the fourth consecutive Horse of the Year who is a graduate of the September sale, following Justify (2018), Bricks and Mortar (2019), and Authentic (2020).

Owner Korea Racing Authority purchased Knicks Go at the 2017 September sale from the consignment of Woods Edge Farm (Peter O’Callaghan), agent, and in 2021 raced the son of Paynter to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1), Whitney (G1), Lukas Classic (G3), and Prairie Meadows Cornhusker (G3) while earning $7.3 million.

Knicks Go was conditioned by Brad Cox, who received the Eclipse Award as outstanding trainer.

Other alumni of the September sale who are 2021 champions are Corniche (2-year-old male), Echo Zulu (2-year-old flly), Jackie’s Warrior (male sprinter), and Malathaat (3-year-old flly).

Tese Eclipse Award winners as outstanding horsemen all won graded stakes at Keeneland in 2021: Brad Cox (trainer), Godolphin (owner and breeder), and Joel Rosario (jockey). Cox took the Toyota Blue Grass (G2) during the spring meet with Godolphin’s homebred champion 3-yearold, Essential Quality.

KEENELAND PHOTO

Market Confidence Continues at November, January Sales

SKIP DICKSTEIN

Masters of Craft Awards Competition Announced

Paris Lights topped the November sale.

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BY VIOLENCE OUT OF MELODY LADY

BY PULPIT OUT OF CARESS

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LGB, LLC 2022 / Photo: EquiSport Photos

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Connections

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2 | INDUSTRY STALWART JOSEPHINE ABERCROMBIE DIES Josephine Abercrombie, an exceptional horsewoman and philanthropist who had connections to Keeneland, died Jan. 5, just 10 days shy of her 96th birthday, at her Pin Oak Stud in Woodford County, Kentucky.

“Keeneland was especially honored when she attended the races here and tremendously excited to have her grace the winner’s circle,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said.

Beginning in 1998, Abercrombie’s Pin Oak

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Stable won eight Keeneland stakes with such horses as homebred Broken Vow, who became a successful stallion for her. From 2007-20, Pin Oak sponsored the Valley View (G3T) during the fall meet, and Abercrombie won the race with two homebreds: Bedanken in 2002 and Overheard in 2013.

Pin Oak, which Abercrombie and her father, J.S. “Mr. Jim” Abercrombie, founded in the 1950s, also was a consignor and buyer at Keeneland sales.

Abercrombie was a native of Texas who had an illustrious career showing American Saddlebreds before becoming involved in the Thoroughbred industry. Her many honors included being named the 2018 Honor Guest

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MICHELE MACDONALD/FULL STRIDE COMMUNICATIONS

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Ellen Skidmore, who created the painting “Winner’s Circle” for the spring 2022 cover of Keeneland magazine, will present a 30-year retrospective of her work April 8 to June 19 at the Headley-Whitney Museum in Lexington. Skidmore’s expressive paintings and murals are noted for their luminous color and elements of nature. Animals and music are delicately intertwined with ephemeral figures to express our fragile existence while savoring the present moment.

Skidmore, who imparts a humble beauty to each canvas, headlines the show “Intertwined” that also includes the works of architectural blacksmiths Matt and Karine Maynard and the exhibit “Homage” of rarely seen equine art from private collections. For more information visit www. headleywhitney.org.

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1 | ELLEN SKIDMORE’S OEUVRE

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of the Thoroughbred Club of America in appreciation for her “enduring sportsmanship, acumen, and vision, and her devotion to the loftiest principles established by earlier leaders on the Turf.”

“On behalf of Keeneland, we extend our deepest condolences to Mrs. Abercrombie’s friends and family and the entire Pin Oak team,” Arvin said.

The Winter 2018 issue of Keeneland magazine featured Abercrombie in the article “Thanks for all the fun.”

3 | CUMBERLAND RUN Groundbreaking on Cumberland Run harness track in Corbin, Kentucky, took place Jan. 31. Cumberland

Run and Cumberland Mint, a satellite historical horse racing venue in nearby Williamsburg, are a joint venture between Ron Winchell and Marc Falcone’s ECL Racing Management, majority owners of Kentucky Downs, and Keeneland Association.

Cumberland Run is to open Oct. 16.

4 |AUCTION HIGHLIGHT Art afcionados enjoyed the ninth Sporting Art Auction on Nov. 21, at the Keeneland sales pavilion, which grossed $1,908,015. The high seller was Andre Pater’s “War and Peace,” a pair of signed and dated pastels, which brought $115,000, including buyer premium.

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Spotlight On KURT BECKER

AS KEENELAND’S ONLY RACE-CALLER KURT BECKER HAS HONED HIS SINGULAR STYLE

By Maryjean Wall | Photos By Kirk Schlea

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Spotlight On KURT BECKER

uring the Great Depression, when everyone was hard-pressed to pay bills, one cost-saving measure made perfect sense for Keeneland: not hiring an announcer for the fedgling track. And thus Keeneland’s races went of unaccompanied by sound for the frst 61 years until 1997, when Kurt Becker became the track’s race-caller.

With Becker’s inaugural live race calls came radical change to the Lexington racecourse. In fact, the place was radically diferent than in 1936, when founder Hal Price Headley didn’t know if the track would be able to pay its purses each day.

“Tey were busted,” former Keeneland president Bill Greely said of the early decision to forego an announcer. “As they started making money [following the opening in autumn of 1936] they just didn’t bother with it.”

Becker was 28 years old the frst day he took up the Keeneland mic. “I never applied for the job,” Becker said. “I remember being at Pocono Raceway in July 1996, covering NASCAR. A phone call came to the landline in our broadcast booth. I can remember our producer handing me the phone and he said, ‘It’s a gentleman named Bill Greely with Keeneland, and he wants to speak with you.’ ’’ He had answered the Keeneland president’s summons to a job interview not even wanting to work here. “I found Keeneland intimidating, frankly,” Becker said. “I remember walking onto the grounds Kurt Becker prepares notes before the start of the day’s races. in the fall of 1996, and my frst reaction as I was walking into Mr. Greely’s ofce was, ‘I’m going to say no.’ Everything about Keeneland caused such a sense of awe that I track. Keeneland, afer 61 years, was looking for a unique voice to thought, ‘No way do I want to be the guy to end the tradition and bring charm to the track’s mystique of “racing as it was meant to be.” become the frst announcer here.’ ” “I was told, years later, that Russell Reineman [a steel industry Becker, though, was not entirely new to calling horse races. He’d titan and Chicagoan who bred Kentucky Derby winner War Emworked as a Standardbred track announcer and briefy in a similar blem] mentioned my name,” Becker said. “He had said Keeneland capacity for Arlington International Racecourse before switching was taking the big step of putting in a public address system, and to calling NASCAR races. Also, his father, Carl Becker, was a rethe board was hoping to fnd its own voice that could be unique to nowned race-caller of Standardbreds, including at Te Red Mile in Keeneland.”

Lexington. (Te elder Becker died in November at age 84.)

We might never know precisely what Greely said to change BeckTis was exactly what Keeneland was searching for: a talented er’s mind about joining Keeneland. But Becker said Greely himself race-caller but one not singularly associated with any other racehad a lot to do with this. “He was the face of Keeneland — and my

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frst impression of Keeneland — and I’ve never been disappointed in that decision,” said Becker, who turned 53 in March.

“Kurt Becker is one of the best, if not the best, announcers,” Greely said. “He is really, really good. I told him I didn’t want an announcer who’s going to be on the microphone the whole halfhour between races. I want you to get on there, tell people the horses are coming out of the paddock, that it’s post time, and call the race. I think he liked that.”

More than a quarter century later, it would be difcult to picture Keeneland without Becker, whom the track recognized last spring for his 25 years of service.

“We are very fortunate that Kurt is the voice of Keeneland, but it’s so much more than just his announcing style that makes him the perfect ft for racing and sales,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “He has a true passion for racing and an astonishing knowledge of its history; a tireless work ethic and commitment to excellence; a pitch-perfect sense of timing and when to inject a bit of levity, and an appreciation for the privilege we all feel in working at Keeneland. Tose are the qualities that have enabled his success and made him such an important part of our team.”

Becker grew up in Altamont, Illinois, where he still makes his home.

And when he travels from the town of 2,400 in Central Illinois about 90 miles from St. Louis, Missouri, to Keeneland and elsewhere, his small-town origins peek through, hinting of Midwestern county fairs, of ordinary folk eating cotton candy and riding Ferris wheels. Of the half-mile tracks once found at those fairs. Of the honest, downhome memories.

Becker said his father who called races at a lot of these small tracks in the Midwest was the reason he decided to get into race-calling.

“From the time I was 9 years old, in 1978, I’d go with him to fairs, sit in the grandstand, and listen to him,” Becker said. He was ready when his dad needed help one day.

“He had two county fairs to call in the same day and he couldn’t get a substitute,” Becker said. “So, I volunteered. I remember being very nervous. It was a rainy day, and I kept hoping they’d get enough rain to cancel the races.” But the fair was not rained out. He recalls the director of racing grabbing him at post time and saying, “It’s now or never.”

Tis was how he came to call his frst race.

Tese small fairs have formed Becker’s life stories, and many

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Notes prepared before a race help Becker identify the names of horses and their jockeys.

Becker takes a call from the clerk of scales about scratches for upcoming races.

mementos are contained in the curio cabinet where he placed the silver julep cup Keeneland gave him for his 25 years calling races at the track. And though the cup stands in a prominent spot, it has competition.

“I collect antique glassware,” Becker said.

Into Becker’s cabinet of curiosities has gone carnival glass, custard glass, cut glass, Vaseline glass, and all forms of American-made glassware from the early 20th century. Becker said he followed a friend into collecting, afer hearing his friend talk about the fun of competing in antique contests on the Illinois fair circuit.

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“Tat sounded like fun to me, too, so that’s why I got into it. I have won ribbons,” he said.

“Probably the crowning achievement was winning Best in Show at the Illinois State Fair.” His best-in-show reward was a large purple ribbon and a nickel-plated circular tray. He’d already won a blue ribbon for best in his category, so he took home a treasure chest of state fair booty. He won with a compote made of Vaseline glass, aka Uranium glass, which has a yellowish-green cast due to the uranium mix. He thinks the piece was manufactured in 1885.

Joe Cotton won the Kentucky Derby that same year but never mind. We’re talking glass here and the immense joy in taking Best in Show at the Illinois State Fair. Tat’s a big deal. Tat’s why Becker’s winning with his Vaseline/Uranium glass compote holds pride of place in his curio cabinet. (Sorry, Keeneland julep cup.)

Becker also collects racing memorabilia. Tis includes “primarily magazines and racing programs and occasionally something else,” he said. “For example, I have a banner promoting CBS coverage of the Triple Crown. I have some Standardbred fare and Derby glasses. I have a limited number of Keeneland mementos, as those are difcult to fnd.”

One prized possession he came across last

summer on eBay is a 1936 magazine centered on construction of Keeneland and the track preparing for its inaugural meet during autumn 1936.

Becker travels about 180 days annually — that’s half of any year — to NASCAR gigs charted from Pennsylvania to Alabama, Florida, Illinois, and Indiana. He’s worked the Daytona 500 about fve times as a playby-play turn announcer. In addition to his career at Keeneland, he called the Kentucky Derby twice at Churchill Downs, in 1997 and 1998, while briefy working at that track. He’s called the Breeders’ Cup World Championships twice at Keeneland.

Te frst time the Breeders’ Cup came to Keeneland in 2015, Becker once more was in awe. “I remember when the entries came out, there’s the frst Breeders’ Cup race, the Juvenile Turf, and Hit It a Bomb is entered.

I did not recognize the owner’s name, Evelyn Stockwell. Te trainer was Aiden O’Brien. I remember thinking, Aiden O’Brien is the private trainer for Coolmore, so who is Evelyn Stockwell? How did she manage to persuade Aiden O’Brien to train her horse?”

Becker phoned Ashford Stud in Versailles, the American division of Ireland-based

ANNE M. EBERHARDT

Coolmore. He asked, “I’m just curious as a racing fan, who is Evelyn Stockwell and how did she manage to persuade Aiden O’Brien to train her horse? Te person at Ashford laughed and said, ‘Tat’s John Magnier’s mother.’ (Magnier is Coolmore International’s principal owner).

“I got the biggest kick out of that,” Becker said. “Here we have Mr. Magnier’s mother, and John Magnier is one of the most infuential persons in the sport, but if Mom calls up and says ‘I want Aiden training my horse,’ then Aiden’s going to train her horse.”

Hit It a Bomb won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf at Keeneland. And when this happened, Becker knew well who Evelyn Stockwell was.

“I will do that from time to time: call a farm,” Becker said. “I call if I have a question on pronunciation of the horse’s name or something like that.

Also, through my role as announcer for the Keeneland sales I’ve gotten to know a lot of the folks who own or manage farms. Tat’s why I feel comfortable enough to pick up the phone and call.”

Becker also works with the auction team during Keeneland sales.

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“…I’M RELUCTANT TO CALL A CLOSE FINISH” — KURT BECKER

Undoubtedly the person answering the phone at the farm immediately recognizes the voice of Keeneland calling. Afer 25 years, everybody in racing recognizes Becker’s voice.

“People like to tease me because I’m reluctant to call a close fnish,” Becker said.

“For one thing, I’m a frm believer that that’s the job of the photo fnish technician. It’s always been my concern that if the announcer As horses begin the post parade, Becker makes sure he knows all the participants. gets it wrong, there’s no backing out of that swamp. If I’m a bettor and I’m clutching a ticket, if the announcer has already called a winner and the result comes back the other way, I just don’t want to go down that road. Te classic case was John Henry and Te Bart at the 1981 Arlington Million [a race he did not call]. Every time I watch that race it looks like Te Bart won [he lost by a nose to John Henry]. I laugh because there are still people in Chicago who say the camera lied because it looked like Te Bart won.”

Ryan Mahan, head auctioneer at the Keeneland sales, likes tweaking Becker about his reluctance to call those close fnishes. “He said once, ‘I think you would have called Secretariat’s Belmont too close to call [when Secretariat won by 31 lengths].’

“On that one,” Becker said, “I would have felt safe.”

Becker says that Keeneland’s two fnish lines, with the announcer’s booth positioned between the two, make calling a close fnish a perilous task. “When they come to the wire I will just say ‘photo fnish,’ and I will name the horses in the photo. I make the fans sweat it out like I do.”

Like all other racetrack announcers, Becker hears one question more than any other about his job: How does he learn all those horses’ names and colors so quickly before each race?

Here’s his answer: “I have found over the years that God-givBecker is now “live” as he calls a race. en ability is the best way I can describe it because I have never

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Clockwise from top left, Becker’s binoculars and his “cheat sheet,” program notes for pre-race announcements, and emails from the clerk of scales offce keep Becker up to date.

been able to explain sufciently how I do it. If you’re born with the ability to remember things in the short term and memorize them quickly, that’s a big part of being a track announcer.”

Ask him his favorite race he has called and it’s no surprise he answers with “American Pharoah’s fnal start.” Becker was doing the track call of the Breeders’ Cup races and Larry Colmus the call for NBC. “I’m grateful that Keeneland built a temporary booth for Larry,” Becker said, “so I could call races from my usual booth.”

He recalls still one more favorite race, from a sentimental standpoint. Tis was the 1999 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes won by Menifee.

His late grandmother Alfreda (Laveta) Hausman; his mother, Bonnie Becker; and his aunt, Cathy Gibson, bet on Menifee, afer handicapping the race in their own style. “I asked my grandmother how they picked that horse and she said, ‘I know Pat Day is a good jockey and Pat would try extra hard to impress Toyota (the race sponsor).” Tat night the family went out to eat on the ladies’ winnings.

Occasionally Becker has visitors to the announcer’s booth, and one notable visitor was from renowned New York Racing Association announcer Tom Durkin, now retired. “He was in town and came up to the booth to visit. He was looking across the racetrack and said, ‘You have a spectacular view.’ I said it is, but the only problem I have is during the fall meet there are two trees in the seven-furlong chute that still have leaves on them and they block my view of the start of a seven-furlong race. Tom took a step back and raised an eyebrow and said, ‘Let me tell you something. I called races for years at Saratoga, and there are trees

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all over that infeld. I think you can deal with two trees.’ ” Becker says one of the greatest pleasures he had upon joining Keeneland was becoming acquainted with Mike Battaglia, who called the track’s races for simulcasts prior to Becker’s arrival with his live calls. Battaglia also was the longtime announcer at Churchill Downs and the former Latonia, followed by Turfway Park. For most of his adult life, Battaglia was the voice of Kentucky racing.

“I’ve got tremendous respect for Mike both professionally and personally,” Becker said.

“About the third year I was here, 1999, I was hospitalized on opening weekend. I had had the fu. Management asked Mike if he would call the races that weekend and he said sure. He could have said no way. I spoke with Mike and said I want you to know I appreciate your willingness to do that. He said, ‘I was disappointed in some decisions that were made at the time you were hired, but I have never had a problem with you personally.’ I have never forgotten that. It was a learning moment for me. I’m glad that Mike and I are friends.”

Becker was absent one other time, having become ill with COVID-19 in 2020. Tis time, Travis Stone was available from Churchill Downs. He drove to Lexington to substitute for the closing day. Becker said, “We now know in the future if there’s an emergency, Travis is our backup.”

He laughed at the suggestion that Durkin could be fown in to substitute. But that wouldn’t work. Not enough trees.

Becker might be the only race-caller in the Toroughbred sport who has the dual role of announcing pedigrees at the Keeneland sales.

“Te September sale is fun because you never know with those yearlings who they are and where they’re going to end up. It’s fun to go back later and see what they achieved. And at the November sale it’s fun to see the grade 1 fllies coming of the track to be sold. If any of these is a flly that raced at Keeneland, it’s like seeing an old friend.”

“It’s been a wonderful experience that I never could have imagined,” he said. KM

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Indelibly linked with the origins of the Breeders’ Cup, Gainesway Farm honors its heritage while scaling new heights

By Lenny Shulman Photos by David Coyle

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If

Antony Beck has guided Gainesway to current prominence, overseeing its transition from a private farm to a commercial operation.

Gainesway Farm were a college basketball team, it would be the Gonzaga Bulldogs. With a student population one-ffh the size of the major schools against which it competes, the Bulldogs manage to recruit premier talent, defeat big-name teams, and contend for a championship seemingly every season.

Gainesway, under the direction of the Beck family for more than 30 years, does not carry on its 1,500 acres the population of mares that roam pastures at farms such as Spendthrif, Calumet, Hill ‘n’ Dale at Xalapa, or Lane’s End; nor does it currently have anywhere near the number of stallions that call those Toroughbred nurseries home. Yet it has increasingly excelled in this young century, frst by landing a legacy stallion in Tapit and then by building a sales consignment division that has produced overwhelming results, again, while giving ground in sheer numbers to its competitors.

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At its foundation Gainesway enjoys a home-court advantage because any successful Toroughbred breeding operation starts with the land upon which it sits. Here, history is on the side of Antony Beck and the farm he helms. Part of Gainesway’s current acreage housed Greentree Stud, the breeding arm of several generations of the Whitney family, and was responsible for producing such Hall of Famers as 1953 Horse of the Year Tom Fool; 1931 Horse of the Year Twenty Grand; and Devil Diver, champion handicap horse of 1943 and 1944.

Another parcel was home to the C.V. Whitney Farm, which was eventually overseen by Marylou Whitney until she sold it in 1998.

John Gaines began a Toroughbred concern in 1962 on the land that still carries his name. A maverick who is widely

Gainesway’s modestly sized broodmare band has yielded big results in the commercial marketplace.

credited with initiating the concept that begat the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, Gaines aggressively recruited stallions from around the world to stand at stud on his farm along Paris Pike just east of Lexington. Behind the immaculately crafed stone walls stood the likes of Lyphard, Riverman, Irish River, Green Dancer, Cozzene, Blushing Groom, and Mt. Livermore.

Using money from his family’s feed business, which produced products such as the ubiquitous Gaines-Burgers dog food popular in the 1960s, Gaines imported the best European blood when turf sires still enjoyed premier status and great popularity in North America.

Just more than a quarter century afer purchasing the farm, John Gaines sold it to Graham Beck, a South African whose businesses included coal and wine. Beck and his wife, Rhona, were particularly taken with the sycamore-lined drive that ran from the Paris Pike entrance to the heart of the farm. Rhona oversaw the planting of hundreds of additional walnut, pin oak, and various other trees to complement the oaks and maples that graced the grounds. Te farm today is a registered arboretum with a staf of horticulturalists that tend just to the trees, which form high canopies before breaking away to yield scenic views across the rolling pastures. Gainesway unfolds like the ideal incarnation of a Bluegrass horse farm.

DREAM STALLION Tirty years ago Graham’s son Antony married into an American racing family, tying the knot with the former Angela Levy, whose father, Robert, a renowned horseman, owned Atlantic City Racetrack. Antony lef South Africa for Lexington

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Unlike some of its competitors, Gainesway has a relatively small stallion roster of eight.

The farm is a registered arboretum, its trees tended by a staff of horticulturalists.

and took the reins of Gainesway as his father ran his other businesses around the globe.

Beck completed the transition of Gainesway from a private farm to a commercial afair, mirroring the movement of the Toroughbred industry. Te Whitneys raced the horses they bred, but today Toroughbreds are raised almost exclusively to be sold at auction, and farms must produce what the market desires in order to thrive. Having purchased Winning Colors, just the third flly in history to have won the Kentucky Derby, Beck announced Gainesway’s presence in the market by selling the highest-priced yearling at the 1994 Keeneland July sale — a flly by Mr. Prospector out of Winning Colors named Golden Colors, who fetched $1,050,000.

Ten years later Beck made the decision that reinstituted Gainesway into a major power in the Central Kentucky breeding industry. Te stallion game brings with it odds no sentient gambler would normally think of taking. Nine out of 10 stallions fail to make an impact as stud horses, even though a great many of them cost prohibitive sums to buy from their racing owners.

It is akin to purchasing a lottery

ticket — vast hope usually followed by disappointment. Beck, though, hit the winning numbers when he identifed Tapit as a prospect he wanted to bring to Gainesway as a stud.

Tapit certainly carries ample pedigree. He is a son of the brilliant A.P. Indy runner Pulpit, who had shown freakish speed early in his career, winning the Fountain of Youth Stakes and Keeneland’s Toyota Blue Grass before being injured in the Kentucky Derby and subsequently retired.

Tapit’s dam, Tap Your Heels, is a stakes-winning daughter of Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Unbridled, meaning both Tapit’s grandsire and broodmare sire are Breeders’ Cup Classic victors.

His pedigree and conformation made Tapit a soughtafer yearling, and agent David Fiske, representing longtime California-based Toroughbred owner Verne Winchell, paid $625,000 for him at the 2002 Keeneland September auction. Trained by Michael Dickinson, Tapit won at frst asking by 7¾ lengths, and added the Laurel Futurity in his second start by 4¾ lengths. So far, so good.

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his sophomore season, and he was ambitiously entered in the Florida Derby coming of a four-month break. He was well-beaten but returned in a month to win the Wood Memorial Stakes before running poorly in both the Kentucky Derby and Pennsylvania Derby, afer which he was retired. His short and spotty race record scared of many potential buyers, but Beck possessed tremendous respect for both Pulpit and Unbridled, and made a play based on pedigree.

“Tere was a fair amount of competition for him but not quite as strong as I was expecting,” Beck noted 18 years afer the fact.

“He had some poor eforts and some long layofs, but he had shown enough as a racehorse, and I really liked his pedigree. He was obvious to us, and he has made me look much more clever than I am.”

Tapit is the sire everyone dreams about.

At any given time, less than a handful of

Beck’s acquisition of Tapit 18 years ago was a game changer for Gainesway.

stallions dominate the upper edge of the market, and Tapit has been one of those chosen few for nearly a decade. Teir presence single-handedly lifs the profle of a farm, as well as the spirits of everyone who works on the grounds.

Tapit’s frst crop yielded champion Stardom Bound, and he has not backed of, sir-

ing champions Essential Quality, Untapable, Hansen, and Unique Bella; classic winners Creator, Essential Quality, and Tapwrit; and has proved to be a sire of sires, with sons such as Tapwrit, Constitution, Frosted, Essential Quality, and Tapizar standing at stud in Kentucky. Tree times, Tapit has been the leading North American sire, and his approximately ADVERTISING MATERIAL

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McKinzie is the newest addition to the Gainesway stallion roster.

$180 million in progeny earnings tops all others. His sons and daughters command top dollar at auction, and at age 21, Tapit stands in 2022 for $185,000. He reached $300,000 at his peak and generates an enormous amount of money each season for the Winchell family and for Gainesway and the breeding syndicate it put together.

However, the bottom line is only part of what having a horse like Tapit means.

“He has been a transformative stallion to have at the farm,” said Beck. “To continue the history here of the Whitney horses like Equipoise and the Greentree era of Tom Fool

Broodmares include Sharing, winner of the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

and Stop the Music; and the great stallions of John Gaines … Tapit has been better than any of those and stands apart as being able to consistently produce extraordinarily highclass runners. He’s very special, and everyone in the world comes to have a look at him. So having him on the farm is profoundly special, an achievement we all feel.”

Said Fiske, who manages the enormously successful Winchell Toroughbred operation, “From the very start Gainesway has been professional and taken good care of the horse and looked out for his [breeding] career. Tey’re some of the best people in

Gainesway owns approximately 70 broodmares and boards a similar number for clients.

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town. We’ve had a 20-year relationship with them that is still strong to this day. Tey’re a great institution; top-shelf.”

While enjoying the laurels Tapit has brought, there is little time to rest on them, and Gainesway is actively seeking a worthy successor to its star. McKinzie arrived to begin his stud career in 2021, and Beck is high on the potential of the son of Street Sense.

On his way to earning better than $3.4 million, McKinzie collected grade 1 victories at ages 2, 3, and 4. In a bid to take advantage of the increasing number of stakes events in North America for turf runners, Gainesway

ANNE M. EBERHARDT

has also brought to its stallion barn Breeders’ Cup Mile victor and multiple group 1 winner Karakontie and multiple grade 1 winner Raging Bull. Te Japanese-bred Karakontie and the French-bred Raging Bull harken back to the farm’s previous eras when international stock made its mark on North American racing and breeding in a large way.

“We respect turf racing and believe it has a big future here,” Beck noted. “Over the last 20 years the number of graded stakes on grass has steadily grown, so there’s a shif back toward turf, and we’re excited to have top turf horses available to breeders.”

Although competition for potential stallions among farms is as ferce as it’s ever been, Gainesway hopes to grow its stud roster through further syndications while maintaining its focus on quality.

General manager Brian Graves has helped raise Gainesway’s profile as a commercial seller.

SALES POWERHOUSE In that, the farm seeks to follow a similar path it has traveled in the progression of its sales consignment division. In ftting with the boutique model it has established, Gainesway has actually cut the number of broodmares it owns but has improved its product by acquiring and keeping highquality mares. Today it owns approximately 70 mares and will board a similar number

Youngsters enjoy an idyllic upbringing.

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for outside clients. However, its yearling sale consignments dominated the Toroughbred marketplace in 2021 and were the engine behind selling more than $65 million worth of Toroughbred stock last year, the second-leading total worldwide.

Tis ascension is particularly remarkable, given the fact that two decades ago, Gainesway essentially sold just those horses

it bred, grossing about $3 million per year.

A major factor in this stunning growth, according to Beck, is the arrival and blossoming of Brian Graves, who has risen to general manager of Gainesway.

“He is completely the reason why the sales side has grown to the extent it has,” stated Beck.

Graves, the son of renowned horseman and sales executive Bill Graves, learned his lessons well. Te health of a sales division depends on several factors. Graves has spearheaded the move to purchase quality broodmares. He has also identifed weanlings and short yearlings to purchase and resell (pinhook), hopefully at a proft. And the Gainesway consignments also reap the beneft of being able to sell their share of Tapit’s progeny. His yearlings throughout his stud career have averaged more than $300,000 at auction, and that fgure has climbed north of $400,000, most recently for 2020.

As a teenager, Graves began buying and selling horses with his father and also showing horses at sales for Lee Eaton and John Williams. Before he was old enough to vote, he knew what he wanted to do for a living.

“I’ve always had this desire to consign horses,” said Graves, 47. “I worked a horse

Gainesway yearlings destined for the sales ring get early handling. In 2021 the farm sold more than $65 million worth of horses.

sale for Gainesway, and they ofered me sire at Gainesway. Next came Iron Fist, a head. It is now also bolstering its breeding a job. Antony gave me the opportunity to full brother to Anchor Down who sold for stock consignment in November, sending build up the consigning end of the busi- a nify $1,550,000 at the 2013 Keeneland 100 head to Keeneland for that sale. ness here. He has always been completely September auction and who became a Beck, now in his late 50s, has much to supportive.” graded stakes winner and millionaire. look upon with satisfaction even as he Graves showed remarkable skill in buyGainesway in 2021 was the leading con- plans ahead for the next phase. He has ing weanlings to resell as yearlings, and signor at the Saratoga yearling sale and put in place a young team that includes along the way developed relationships that the leading consignor in every session up Graves, farm manager Sherri Ivanovich, turned into partners and clients for the to Book 5 in which it ofered horses at the bloodstock and racing manager Alex Solis farm. He has pinhooked fve horses that Keeneland September sale. Tat is by both III, and stallion manager Pedro Venegas. eventually became grade 1 winners, includ- gross and average. It was the only consign- He is surrounded by the natural beauty ing multiple grade 1 winner Practical Joke, or to sell four yearlings for a million dollars of Gainesway, enhanced by the def touch who today is a stallion at Ashford Stud; and or more that season, and it has earned the of his parents. He and Angela have raised Audible, a grade 1 winner who stands at trust and business of such top-notch clients fve children there. Tere is an organic WinStar. Tat kind of success makes head- as Don Alberto and Stonestreet, for whom vegetable garden outside their home that lines and brings buyers who are looking for it sells horses. Te Gainesway yearling con- would be the envy of anyone who has the next big thing to the Gainesway yearling signments at Keeneland — again keeping ever set tiller to dirt. He has inherited a consignments. with the profle and mantra of the farm — love of nature, and while surrounded by With a resource such as Tapit, it makes are driven by quality rather than quantity, it, has made all the right moves in human sense to build a broodmare band with an typically numbering between 100 and 150 and equine personnel to take a turn-key eye toward mares that cross well operation and fnd the correct with the gray star of the show. combination that has taken it Gainesway hit the bull’s-eye with upward still.

Successful Outlook, purchased And if he so chooses, Beck can relax as the sun ends its as a yearling for $95,000 at the daily work with a bottle of 2005 Keeneland September chardonnay or pinot noir from sale. Te daughter of Orienthe family’s Angela Vineyards tate won the grade 3 Tempted winery. Named in honor of his Stakes before being retired and wife, the wine is produced in bred multiple times to Tapit. She Oregon and is available at Lexproduced Anchor Down to his ington-area restaurants. Like cover. Anchor Down became a Gainesway itself, it is apt to multiple graded stakes winner The next generation of Gainesway horses likely will yield improve with age. KM and today stands alongside his high-priced auction yearlings and future stakes winners.

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EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS The Breeders’ Cup World Championships has blossomed into a $31 million two-day international festival

By Ron Mitchell

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By Louis Guida Photos by Lee Thomas

The Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile is one of the most popular additions to the lineup.

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Te World Championships have grown from a one-day afair featuring seven races with purses and awards of $10 million to 14 races over a two-day racing program that will pay $31 million in total prize money when the 39th edition takes place later this year at Keeneland. Te Nov. 4-5 event marks the third time Keeneland will have hosted the Breeders’ Cup, which rotates its sites. In 2015 a sold-out Keeneland crowd witnessed the dramatic career fnale of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah in the Classic, while in 2020 COVID-19 restrictions prevented fans from attending.

In addition to the two days of highcaliber sport, racing on the days leading up to the World Championships has

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Keeneland fans thrilled to American Pharoah’s Classic performance in 2015 and welcome the Breeders’ Cup back in 2022.

Caption

WILLIAM STRODE

When prominent horse owner and breeder John Gaines conceived a year-end championship for Toroughbreds in the early 1980s, few could have imagined that the event called the Breeders’ Cup would evolve into a weeklong extravaganza attracting horses and fans from throughout the world.

CHAD B. HARMON

W

The Breeders’ Cup is the brainchild of the late John Gaines, who envisioned the grand spectacle the event has become.

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Former Breeders’ Cup president Greg Avioli (shown left with Gary Player) came on board during an era of growth and credits a forward-thinking board of directors.

SKIP DICKSTEIN

become ever more competitive while Breeders’ Cup Ltd., host tracks, and their communities have worked together to create a festival experience for participants and fans.

Tese enhancements no doubt would please Gaines, a New York native and an intelligence ofcer in the Pentagon until the mid-1950s when he took over his family’s Standardbred breeding operation. It wasn’t long before the younger Gaines transitioned into Toroughbred racing and breeding, establishing Gainesway Farm, which became one of Central Kentucky’s preeminent farms.

By the time of Gaines’ death in 2005 at age 76, the Breeders’ Cup had evolved into an end-of-season race-of in various categories that would help decide that year’s best horses. But the championship-defning event was still short of its founder’s goal of elevating horse racing in the public’s mind-set to a level akin to other major sporting events such as the Olympics and Super Bowl.

Two years afer Gaines announced the concept, the frst World Championships were held in 1984 at the now-defunct Hollywood Park in Southern California (today the site of SoFi Stadium where the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams play and won this year’s Super Bowl).

Te 1984 Breeders’ Cup featured the world’s best horses in seven championship races based on age, gender, preferred racing surface (dirt or grass), and distance. Te inaugural day’s program was highlighted by Wild Again’s dramatic victory in the Classic, laying the foundation for that race to become a major factor in determining North America’s Horse of the Year.

Today’s expanded Breeders’ Cup was formed by a series of strategic decisions by the board in the mid-2000s that in-

SKIP DICKSTEIN

EXPECTATIONS

cluded the selection of new leadership from outside the horse industry, changing the process that made it easier for European horses to be nominated and participate, establishing the “Win & You’re In” program under which winners of certain major races throughout the world automatically qualify for the championships, and adding six new races that resulted in the World Cham-

pionships’ becoming a two-day event.

Greg Avioli, who was brought on board as Breeders’ Cup president afer previous management positions within professional golf and the Olympics, said the moves displayed bold decision-making by the board chaired by Bill Farish Jr. and were consistent with Gaines’ vision.

“Tey were willing to try new things to essentially jump-start the Breeders’ Cup,”

CHAD B. HARMON ANNE M. EBERHARDT

From left, despite initial misgivings by some, the Dirt Mile — whose winners have included Knicks Go, City of Light, and Goldencents — has enhanced the overall quality of the World Championships.

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EXCEEDING

ANNE M. EBERHARDT PHOTOS

EXPECTATIONS

The addition of turf races has proved a draw for Europeans such as Irish trainer Aidan O’Brien. Left, his Mendelssohn won the 2017 edition of the Juvenile Turf for Coolmore partners.

said Avioli, now president and CEO of Toroughbred Owners of Te original World Championships race menu consisted of California. “Tey made more changes in a two- to three-year period the Classic at 11⁄4 miles, the same distance as the iconic Kentucky than have been made in the entire history of the Breeders’ Cup. John Derby; Juvenile for 2-year-olds and Juvenile Fillies for 2-year-old Gaines would tell you in those days he really felt the Breeders’ Cup fllies, both run at a mile; Sprint, at three-quarters of a mile; Mile, had not fulflled the mission he wanted. It had beat a mile on grass; Distaf, for fllies and mares, at come a very big thing in racing, and he wanted it to 1¼ miles; and Turf, a 11⁄2-mile grass event. Previbe much bigger to the general public.” ous to 2007-08, the only other change had been Breeders’ Cup executive vice president and the addition of the Filly & Mare Turf in 1999. chief racing ofcer Dora Delgado, who has been Te additional races in 2007-08 expanded the with the organization since the outset, said the categories in which horses could participate, esIT DIDN’T impetus for the sea change that took place was to pecially within turf racing, an area particularly provide as many opportunities as possible for the attractive to foreign interests. Tey were the JuveNEED TO BE international racing community: owners, breednile Turf, Juvenile Filly Turf, Dirt Mile, Marathon ers, trainers, and fans. (last run as a Breeders’ Cup event in 2013), Turf CONFINED “It was challenging to the whole team to bring Sprint, and Filly & Mare Sprint. (All Breeders’ some new ideas to the table afer 23 years as a TO ONE DAY.” Cup races are classifed as grade 1, the highest single-day event,” Delgado recalled. “We wanted level of international racing.) to provide more opportunities for people to parTose new races have proved to be among the —Dora Delgado, ticipate in the championships themselves.” most popular for entries, with the number of executive vice Delgado agreed that Gaines would have aphorses running in each event consistently at or president and chief proved of the expanded Breeders’ Cup. near the Breeders’ Cup maximum feld size of 14. racing offcer “In any of my conversations with Mr. Gaines, he “Te expansion of the Breeders’ Cup has been was always of the opinion this was our Super Bowl, great for the sport,” said trainer Doug O’Neill, or horse racing’s Olympics, and that opportunities for horses and whose fve Breeders’ Cup victories include three in expansion owners to participate were such a good thing,” Delgado said. “We races — the Dirt Mile twice with Goldencents and the inauguthought it aligned strongly with our founder’s vision … It didn’t ral Filly & Mare Sprint with Maryfeld. “It’s great spreading the need to be confned to one day.” world-class racing over two days. From a trainer’s standpoint, it’s

‘‘

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EXCEEDING

Breeders’ Cup’s Dora Delgado and Drew Fleming, president and CEO, confer at the 2021 Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar.

The additional Breeders’ Cup races have given opportunities to horses such as Covfefe, winner of the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, and Pizza Bianca, who captured the 2021 Juvenile Fillies Turf.

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SCOTT SERIO/ECLIPSE SPORTSWIRE

Expanding the World Championships from one day to two also aforded an opportunity for Breeders’ Cup to ofer more amenities to the connections of the participating horses and racing fans. Te Breeders’ Cup, working with the host track and city, coordinates community activities and special events throughout the week leading up to race day.

“Usually, 60 to 70 percent of the people are coming to the event from out of town, so we wanted to make it more of a festival,” Delgado said.

Although such activities were limited in 2020 due to the pandemic, Keeneland, the city of Lexington, and Breeders’ Cup plan

SKIP DICKSTEIN

a blessing to have additional races to aim for.”

As with most other changes in an entrenched industry such as horse racing, the expanded racing menu was not without its share of criticism. For example, there was a strong sentiment that the Dirt Mile would detract from the size and quality of horses targeting the already established Classic and Sprint.

“Tere was huge controversy,” Avioli said. “Essentially, people asked why do you want to reward mediocrity. Tey said it (Dirt Mile) would take away from the Classic and if the horse can’t get a mile and a quarter, then it’s a sprinter. Tere was no end to the criticism there.”

Delgado added: “Te Dirt Mile was something breeders were asking for, but there was a little bit of trepidation in creating that race only because we knew the cannibalization factor from the Sprint and Classic — that it would take horses from both races.

We felt it would have a big following, and it has.”

Breeders’ Cup expansion, which has included a few tweaks over the years, has resonated with connections who welcome the additional opportunity for their equine stars to display their talents.

“It needed to (expand) because it had gotten stagnant,” British trainer John Gosden said previous to the 2008 World Championships when he saddled Raven’s Pass to win the Classic and Donativum to take the Juvenile Turf. “I think they should be applauded for the fantastic job they’ve done, creating two superb days of racing.”

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EXPECTATIONS

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EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS

‘‘

THE EXPANSION OF THE

BREEDERS’ CUP HAS BEEN GREAT FOR THE SPORT…” —trainer Doug O’Neill

the racing horizon, Breeders’ Cup ofcials continue to look for opportunities.

“Each year, in consultation with our racing department, we review all of the races on the championships program, and races around the world, to be sure we are presenting the highest-quality and most competitive races possible,” Fleming said. “Like anything we do, we want to ensure the Breeders’ Cup represents the highest quality of racing anywhere in the world. Adding a new race would have to meet certain criteria, including having a strong divisional component, be it for one gender, one surface, and a specifc distance that would draw large and competitive felds that match the quality of all other Championship races.”

John Gaines would likely be proud of Breeders’ Cup 2022. KM

ALEX EVERS /ECLIPSE SPORTSWIRE

to ofer a broad range of things to do during Breeders’ Cup week, as they did in 2015.

Current Breeders’ Cup president Drew Fleming credited the decisions in the mid-2000s with helping to make the World Championships more attractive to the worldwide racing industry.

“Adding a new day to the World Championships and increasing the number of races to our program from eight to 14 has been one of the reasons that the Breeders’ Cup continues to be one of the preeminent global events in Toroughbred racing,” Fleming said. “Our board and management in the 2000s recognized that growth and expansion of the Breeders’ Cup were essential to our mission and increasing global participation of horsemen in the World Championships.”

Although 14 races cover a broad swath of

Life Is Good was a popular winner of the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile.

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YOUTHFUL

Keeneland’s early 2-year-old races presage growing opportunities for juvenile

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A full feld of 2-year-olds breaks from the gate at Keeneland.

SHOWCASE runners that culminate at the Breeders’ Cup World Championships

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Caption

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Some will show they must take baby steps before they establish themselves as solid competitors. With others, it will quickly become obvious they are built for more distance than the initial 4½-furlong testing ground. A precocious special few will thrill onlookers by immediately displaying they have everything they need

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ew sights ofer more hope than watching 2-year-olds, rich in pedigree and promise, stepping into the starting gate for the frst time during Keeneland’s spring meet.

MARK PEARSON

In a 4½-furlong juvenile race, the feld completes the turn and enters the stretch. Left, Keeneland’s Tony Lacy says these juvenile races can produce racing’s next stars.

to take their connections to the races of their dreams.

Te excitement of eyeballing and handicapping frst-time runners lies in the unpredictability of it all. Will this be the race in which a star is born?

“All of us in this industry are optimists. We always see that the next horse could be the next coming, the next Triple Crown winner, the next Breeders’ Cup

winner,” said Tony Lacy, Keeneland’s vice president of sales. “We thrive on that.”

Keeneland will again provide an ample showcase of 2-year-olds during the 2022 spring meet that will stretch from April 8-29 and ofer a record $7.7 million in purse money. Te purse for each juvenile race spiked from $60,000 last year to $80,000.

“Te 2-year-old program is beginning to strengthen,” said racing secretary Ben Hufman, “because our purse structure in Kentucky keeps rising every year with the success of historical racing machines as well as wagering. Tis

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Twilight Gleaming fnished second in her debut at Keeneland last April and then was second at Royal Ascot in England before winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, above.

spring we will have the highest 2-year-old maiden purses we’ve ever ofered.”

Te 15-day spring meet will be more attractive than usual because Keeneland will host the Breeder’ Cup World Championships Nov. 4-5, marking the third time since 2015 it has welcomed the seasonculminating event. Trainers will especially want their 2-year-olds to have the beneft of a race over the track in the spring, when all things seem possible.

LAUNCHING PAD Keeneland has served as a launching pad to greatness on countless occasions, even for horses that do not win at frst asking.

Irish-bred Twilight Gleaming, owned by

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‘‘

THIS SPRING WE WILL HAVE THE HIGHEST MAIDEN PURSES WE’VE EVER OFFERED.” — RACING SECRETARY BEN HUFFMAN

Barbara Banke’s Stonestreet Stables, missed by one length at Keeneland last April 8.

With the beneft of that debut for groundbreaking trainer Wesley Ward, she scored her frst win the following month at Belmont Park.

It was on to Royal Ascot, where she showed she belonged by placing second in the Queen Mary Stakes. She was at her best for the Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Del Mar. Despite being under heavy pressure throughout the Juvenile Turf Sprint, she maintained an advantage at every call and prevailed by a stubborn half-length.

Many of Ward’s instant sensations were born and raised in the Bluegrass, sold at Keeneland’s famed September yearling

KEENELAND-COADY PHOTOGRAPHY MATHEA KELLEY

Following a playbook trainer Wesley Ward has employed with success, Lady Aurelia used a Keeneland April 2-year-old race to announce her talent, above, then confrmed it with a strong performance in the Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot, left.

sale, won their racing debuts at the same site where they passed through the sales ring, and went on to win at idyllic Royal Ascot in England as juveniles. Lady Aurelia, No Nay Never, and Hootenanny are among those who took that path.

Lady Aurelia, a bay flly with a ftting white star that raced on behalf of Stonestreet Stables (her breeder), George Bolton, and Peter Leidel, lost no time proving she was worth her $350,000 purchase price. Her 2016 Keeneland

debut was a sight to behold, a dominant 71⁄2-length decision in a then track record :50.85 for the 41⁄2 furlongs. Tat would be a harbinger of wonderful moments to come. She brought home the Queen Mary Stakes and topped that feat the following June by returning to Royal Ascot for her most resounding performance, overpowering older males in the King’s Stand Stakes.

No Nay Never and Hootenanny reminded buyers that grand success can

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come at bargain prices. No Nay Never, owned by Ice Wine Stable, Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor, and Derrick Smith, was a $95,000 purchase in 2012. He responded to Ward’s tutelage and provided immediate returns with memorable triumphs in the Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Darley Prix Morny in Deauville.

Hootenanny, also owned by Tabor, Smith and Susan Magnier, was hammered down for just $75,000. Two months afer an explosive 41⁄4-length score as a Keeneland maiden, he turned back some of the world’s best in the Windsor Castle Stakes.

He was still at peak form for Ward in

autumn, unleashing a lethal closing kick for international riding star Lanfranco Dettori to capture the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf.

Ward forever changed the way Keeneland’s spring meet is viewed. In 2009 he showed the scintillating possibilities it could create when he became the frst U. S.based trainer to win at Royal Ascot. He now owns 12 victories there — and counting.

“He opened up a whole new market for an American-trained horse where it can really prosper, mainly Royal Ascot but at a few other carnivals over in England,” noted Gatewood Bell, Keeneland

© BENOIT PHOTO

held at the start of Kentucky Derby week.

The auction now is being moved to the end of the spring meet, closing day on April 29.

Post time for that day’s 10-race card is being advanced 30 minutes from the customary 1 p.m. to allow the sale to begin at 6:30 p.m.

“We felt like the horses of racing age model, there is a lot of demand for it. But also we want as a racetrack to capitalize on the fact that we’ve got a race meeting that’s happening during April,” said Tony

Lacy, vice president of sales.

The change in timing is intended to alter the way Keeneland is viewed. “We’re trying to tie our racing department into our sales department,” said Gatewood Bell, vice president of racing. “The majority of your customers at the April sale are going to be trainers and owners looking to restock before they head to Churchill or NewYork or wherever they’re going. We thought it would be great to tie into the last day of the races.”

With so much buzz surrounding Derby week, the decision to get ahead of that hype makes all the sense. “I think what we want to do is give people a little bit of excitement. It’s something novel. You can come from the racetrack and cross the road into the sales pavilion and potentially participate,” Lacy said.

As it was last year, the April sale will be conducted as an integrated event, with live auctioneers at Keeneland and horses presented for sale both physically at Keeneland as well as at off-site locations based on the preferences of sellers and consignors. Internet and phone bidding are available to buyers.

There is every reason to expect demand to be high.The 2021 Keeneland September yearling sale set records with an average

April sale graduate Higher Power won the 2019 Pacifc Classic.

RACING-SALES CONNECTION

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TREVOR JONES

teeped in tradition, Keeneland is hardly bound by it. What was done in the past is constantly examined to see how it can be improved, leading to changes big and small.The evolution of the April sale exemplifes that.

It offered 2-year-olds in training from 1993-2014 before going on hiatus and resuming in 2019 to include horses of racing age.

After the pandemic forced a cancellation in 2020, the sale returned last year and was

Wesley Ward trainee No Nay Never won the Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot.

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price of $132,045 and a median of $65,000. also where you can earn serious monThe previous mark for average price had ey,” Bell said. “These tried-and-ready been $129,33l, set in 2018, and for median, racehorses are just worth more than they $57,000, established in 2017.There was a were 10 years ago for a lot of factors.” record clearance rate of a Whatever form the April little more than 80 percent. sale has taken, it has always Racing’s ability to conyielded signifcant horstinue during the pandemic es. When it was limited to while other sports were 2-year-olds, graduates include sidelined has undoubtedly winners of six spring classics: been a boon. “I think we Thunder Gulch (Kentucky developed a new core group Derby and Belmont, 1995), Big of fans, and we’ve got to Brown (Kentucky Derby and Gatewood Bell, vice capitalize on it,” said Lacy.

Preakness, 2008), Lookin At president of racing “It’s a very exciting sport.

Lucky (Preakness, 2010), and It’s very visual. It satisfes the gamblers because there are a lot of variables in play, so they can feel they have an opportunity to make money gambling.”

Some of those who previously considered ownership are taking the leap to take advantage of the signifcant money available at all levels of the game.

“When you look at our purse structure, look at Churchill’s for the summer, look at Kentucky Downs and then back to us and then you take in Belmont’s summer meet and Saratoga, these horses are taking you to some fun places but

Palace Malice (Belmont, 2013).

When the April sale resumed in 2019 to include horses of racing age, Hronis Racing seemingly was guided by a higher power when it acquired then 4-year-old Higher Power for $250,000 and assigned him to West Coast trainer John Sadler.

The reward that same year? A dazzling 5¼-length romp in the $1 million Pacifc Classic at Del Mar. He banked another hefty check when he fnished third in the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Higher Power continued to compete at the highest level at 5. He closed his career with almost $1.6 million in earnings.

MATHEA KELLEY

Wesley Ward’s Hootenany parlayed success at Keeneland and Royal Ascot, left, into a lateseason victory in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf.

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Although Ward’s success overseas has become almost an annual event, Bell emphasized the diffculty of the accomplishment. “It’s not easy to win a horse race in your own backyard, let alone fying across the ocean and doing it on their terms, their surface,” he said.

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Owner Barbara Banke and trainer Wesley Ward lead in Lady Pauline after the flly’s victory in an April 2019 juvenile race.

KEENELAND-COADY PHOTOGRAPHY

Ward described the frst taste of racing that his horses gain at Keeneland as “vital” to future success. “It’s a real good experience for them,” he said. “It teaches them to be competitive and they get that race experience without any real hard breaking right on the turn. You make a gradual ease into the home straight.”

Tose debuts serve as a critical proving ground for Ward as he determines his Royal Ascot contingent. “I’m trying to put my Royal Ascot hopefuls into races at Keeneland, and from there we’ll evaluate how we’re going to go,” he said. “Essentially, you have to run and win if you’re going to get into a race over there, so you have to have that frst step.”

Handicappers devote extra time to scrutinizing every juvenile Ward starts. Bell said of the debuts of Ward’s brightest stars, “Tey were kind of like watching LeBron James as an eighth-grader.”

Meanwhile, the popularity of Keeneland’s spring races for juveniles is such that Hufman sometimes struggles to meet the demand. It is not uncommon for him to receive more entries than the 12-horse starting gate can accommodate, a good issue to have.

“Tey don’t have to worry about shipping 2-year-olds to Keeneland and the race not flling. We don’t have that problem, knock on wood,” he said.

Hufman intends to continue with a new wrinkle that he introduced last year by ofering one 5½-furlong turf race for colts and one at that distance for fllies on grass. Te move was made in response to requests from trainers, some with dreams of emulating Ward’s success. KM

ANNE M. EBERHARDT

PROVING GROUND

Ward makes sure horses he points for Royal Ascot, such as Lady Aurelia (second, above), frst excel on the Keeneland turf.

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THOROUGHBRED BOULEVARD

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Old Frankfort Pike is a wellspring of history and beauty.

The frst in a THREE-PART SERIES traces the link between Old Frankfort Pike — designated a National Scenic Byway in 2021 — and the development of the Thoroughbred industry along this historic corridor.

By Edward L. Bowen | Photos by Crawford Ifland Photography

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O Farms along Old Frankfort Pike have produced exceptional Thoroughbreds since the mid-1800s. The land also has nurtured crops and livestock for countless generations.

n Oct. 20, 2021, a route of some 18 miles of the winding road known in Kentucky as Old Frankfort Pike was dedicated as a National Scenic Byway. Tis designation stamped with a sense of officialdom what local travelers and those attracted from near and far by historic farms have always known: Old Frankfort Pike is a wellspring of beauty and history, particularly in the world of Toroughbred breeding and racing.

As we begin a three-part series on farms that have graced this lovely trail, we look forward to visiting Old Frankfort Pike’s history in several eras. In the 19th century, the Alexander family’s Woodburn Stud did much to solidify Kentucky’s Bluegrass region as the center of Toroughbred breeding and sales. Woodburn stood the great stallion Lexington, and the farm’s yearling sales attracted Northern buyers as New York came to the fore of the racing sector.

Ten, through much of the frst half of the 20th century, Col. E.R. Bradley’s Idle Hour Stock Farm anchored Old Frankfort Pike’s ongoing importance. Bradley turned out four Kentucky Derby winners. Idle Hour was joined by such neighbors as the Kentucky division of Texas’ famed King Ranch.

Afer Bradley’s death, Idle Hour was divided into sections, the most prominent of which was secured by John W. Galbreath as Darby Dan Farm. Darby Dan not only continued the pattern of raising Derby winners but also imported for stud such great European runners as Ribot and Sea-Bird II. Since Darby Dan continues in the present century and decade under management of John W. Phillips, a grandson of

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THOROUGHBRED BOULEVARD

KENTUICKY HUMANITIES COUNCIL

Galbreath, demarcation of one era from the next is not signaled by handy dates. Indeed, Old Frankfort Pike today, as it has been over many years, is a collation of larger and small farms, some old but some very new. Tis continuity of both enduring and renewing is within the character of the byway and led to its formalized dedication. (See page 102.)

WoodburnÕs historic horses

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EDWARD TROYE

ROBERT A. ALEXANDER Developed Woodburn Stud

UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY PHOTO ARCHIVES

T

he Alexander family long associated with Woodburn Stud descends from a Scottish clan, some of whose ancestors are buried in the 15th-century Rosslyn Chapel in the village of Roslin. Over the centuries the Alexander family included not only an admixture of wealthy merchants and bankers, Presbyterian ministers, and at least one provost, but also the occasional resident of debtors prison. Te family and the farm history are traced by Preston Magnum III in A Kingdom for Te Horse, published in 1999 by Harmony House Publications of Louisville, Kentucky.

A key fgure in the family’s high standing in Toroughbred history was Robert A. Alexander (R.A.), son of Robert Alexander IV and grandson of merchant and banker William Alexander II. Robert IV was born in Scotland in 1764 but was raised in France.

Family tradition is that Robert IV was only 15 when named as secretary to Benjamin Franklin, then a diplomat posted in Paris by the new United States of America under its original Articles of Confederation. Te year was 1782. Franklin befriended the Alexanders and encouraged ventures in America.

William Alexander II, father of Robert IV, frst arrived in North America and linked several bits of history of the eras.

William Alexander II had developed heavy debts not long afer his frst wife died, and he fed Scotland for France. Tere he befriended Armaund de la Port, whom author

LEXINGTON An unparalleled stallion

A. J. ALEXANDER Took over after brother R.A.’s death

Magnum described as “a prominent French artist and Royalist.” Sensing political strife that eventually would culminate in the Reign of Terror, de la Port implored William Alexander to smuggle his daughters out of France. Tis William accomplished by moving to Virginia and also marrying one of the de la Port girls, Agatha. He was 63; she, 16. De la Port’s premonition of danger in France was fulflled by his own beheading.

Son Robert Alexander IV followed and by 1790 had purchased some 2,000 acres on Elkhorn Creek in Woodford County, Kentucky. He also became a prominent banker in Frankfort and married a Kentucky girl.

Moving forward again to the generation of William’s grandson, Robert A. Alexander (R.A.) was born in Kentucky but was educated at Cambridge. He inherited from an unmarried uncle in Scotland and returned to Kentucky, where he bought

UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY PHOTO ARCHIVES

HARNESS RACING MUSEUM HALL OFF FAME

BLOODHORSE

LIBRARY

GRACIOUS HOSPITALITY The Alexanders welcomed visitors to the manor house, which evolved over the decades.

BLOODHORSE LIBRARY

DUKE OF MAGENTA Another Woodburn-bred Belmont winner

HARRY BASSETT One of 10 Belmont Stakes winners bred at Woodburn

out the family interest in Woodburn. Tis was the property his father Robert IV had purchased from Gen. Hugh Mercer. Under R.A.’s management, Woodburn became a transitional breeding farm.

Kent Hollingsworth, then editor of Te Blood-Horse, summarized Woodburn’s pivotal role succinctly in a 1970 book, Te Great Ones, published by the magazine.

He paid tribute to Robert A. Alexander as “having changed the course of the Ameri-

can Turf in a short span of 11 years through the horses he bred and the type of breeding operation which he established.” Te Toroughbred was far from Alexander’s only interest. Typical of many other agriculturists of the day, Alexander was also deeply involved in breeding fne sheep, cattle, and swine, as well as other breeds of horses.

For the most part, the Colonists and later the citizens of the new United States of America had followed Old World

customs with regard to Toroughbred breeding and racing. Tis was a sporting pursuit largely to raise horses that would race for their breeders. By contrast, Woodburn raised horses for the market. In this case the market came into being as sportsmen of Northern states looked to the South for racing prospects. Te annual yearling sale — a phenomenon seemingly in the DNA of Kentucky Turf history today — became a Woodburn phenomenon. Afer the tragic disruptions of the Civil War, the creation of massive racetracks in New York gave an additional impetus to this pattern.

(As an aside, the byways role of Old Frankfort Pike as a lure for visitors fts coincidentally into another aspect of the history of this specifc Kentucky section. Even in the 19th century Woodburn had a reputation for hospitality. Indeed, records have been passed down of frequent visitors from up East, both yearling buyers and wealthy tourists, being treated to lavish meals by their hosts at Woodburn and neighboring Nantura Farm. In a Spur magazine article in 1985, Maryjean Wall recounted one particular feast at the Harper family’s Nantura, a menu that consisted of no fewer than 10 main items: “Boiled country ham, barbecued shoulder of southern mutton, roast shoate served whole with dressing…, ” etc., along with buttermilk, beaten biscuits and other breads, and coffee, plum pudding, ice cream, pumpkin pie, and homemade cheese. Glorious retellings of these trips, many by railroad, appeared in Eastern publications, encouraging more visitors.

Additionally, in time, Eastern sportsmen purchased Kentucky land as centers of their own breeding operations.)

R.A. Alexander died in 1867, and management of Woodburn fell to one of his brothers, A.J. Alexander. (Tis was a convenient way to identify the brother, whose name was actually Alexander John Alexander.) A.J. was more interested in farm animals than Toroughbreds, a reality that

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RECOGNIZING BEAUTIFUL ROADS n October 2021 Old Frankfort countryside and the industry that Pike was designated a National sets us apart from the rest of the Scenic Byway, the sixth such in world.”

Kentucky and one of 170 throughIn seeking national status for out the United States.

Old Frankfort Pike, an advisory Established by Congress in committee of nine local resi1991, the scenic byway program is dents, largely from the Thoroughadministered by the U.S. Departbred industry, turned to Amos ment of Transportation’s Federal Consulting Group for research Highway Administration. and organizational work. Amos The designations “recognize is the f rm of Christine Amos, those roads across the country who is based in Colorado but that exhibit one or more six-core spent many years in Lexingintrinsic qualities — scenic, ton and who earlier had been A Secretariat statue rises near the visitor viewing area. natural, historic, recreational, instrumental in the widening of archaeological, or cultural — Paris Pike. contributing toward a unique Amos designed the visitor travel experience,” according to viewing area, which lies on a hill program literature. overlooking the roundabout that Kentucky’s f rst designated links Old Frankfort Pike with byways, honored in 2002, were the Alexandria Drive extended. The Red River Gorge Scenic Byway, site marks the eastern edge of Wilderness Road Heritage Highthe off cial scenic byway, over way, and Country Music Highway. which presides a 3,800-pound Informative panels describe Old Frankfort “Look around you,” Lexingbronze statue of Triple Crown Pike and some of its farms and features. ton Mayor Linda Gorton said winner Secretariat. Amos comat last year’s dedication ceremony for Old magnif cent Secretariat statute, the beauty posed scripts for the network of informative Frankfort Pike. “These green f elds, the of driving along Old Frankfort Pike … This is panels that describe not only Old Frankfort Thoroughbred industry represented by the why we fght so hard to protect our beautiful Pike but also farms and features nearby.

ANNE M. EBERHARDT PHOTOS

I

Daniel Swigert, the highly successful horse division manager, took into account as he pondered his own future. Swigert lef to start his own Stockwood Farm, and his success led eventually to founding Elmendorf Farm in Lexington, another farm of lasting fame and infuence.

When Swigert moved to nearby Stockwood, management of the Alexander Toroughbred operation was handed to Swigert’s brother-in-law, Lucas Brodhead Jr. Te latter continued the success of Woodburn, but on a declining scale, until 1892.

Combining the eras of R.A. and broth-

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er A.J., the historian and breeder Abram S. Hewitt listed 27 “notable horses” bred by them. Tese were enumerated in Hewitt’s book, Te Great Breeders and Teir Methods (Toroughbred Publishers, Inc., Lexington, Kentucky, 1982). Ten of these he designated champions, in the unofficial use of that term in the eras before championship voting gave the phrase substance starting in 1936.

Ten of the 27 were winners of the Belmont Stakes, underscoring the interregional importance of the Woodburn yearling sales. Tis was in comparison to four Ken-

tucky Derby winners and two Preakness winners. Most renowned historically of the 27 include Harry Bassett, Tom Ochiltree, and Duke of Magenta, all of whom were elected years later into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs. Of the 27 notable horses, 13 were sired by the stallion Lexington and six by the stallion Australian. Both sires stood at Woodburn.

Lexington was by all odds the most important horse associated with Woodburn and the Alexanders. Tere is both an irony and a competitive angle to that fact. Despite

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THOROUGHBRED BOULEVARD

Elkhorn Creek flows through many farms along the Old Frankfort Pike corridor, enhancing the beauty and providing a water source.

all the major horses Woodburn bred, Lexington was not one of them. Moreover, his breeder, Dr. Elisha Warfeld, had a status that has caused him (not an Alexander) to be remembered as the Father of the Kentucky Turf. Warfeld studied medicine at Transylvania University in Lexington and later became so successful as a local merchant that he was one of the richest men in Kentucky. In addition to breeding Lexington, he was involved in creation of the Kentucky Association racetrack in town and was widely regarded as an expert and authority on pedigrees.

Te colt Lexington was by Boston— Alice Carneal, by Sarpedon. Warfeld was in his 70s when Lexington began racing and had been convinced by his physician and family to tamp down the excitements of racing. He leased the colt, and afer Lex-

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ington’s early performance came to the attention of horseman Richard Ten Broeck, Warfeld sold most of his interest to a small syndicate. Lexington was a great racer in an age of heat racing. He won six of the seven contests he entered at 3 and 4 (1854-55) before going to stud frst at John Harper’s Nantura.

Although Nantura was Woodburn’s neighbor, the Alexander farm’s acquisition of Lexington for his own breeding operation resulted in part from a trip to England.

R.A. Alexander was abroad looking for a stallion prospect and ran into Ten Broeck, who avowed there was no better young prospect anywhere than his own young stallion at Nantura.

Alexander paid the handsome price of $15,000 for Lexington, whose frst horses had not yet run. Te stallion, although he

became blind, authored the most distinguished stallion record ever seen. He led the American sire list 16 years in succession, the fnal two years posthumously. (Even the recent rampages on the British-Irish sire lists by Sadler’s Wells and his son Galileo each fell a few years short of such a reign.)

As Hollingsworth stressed in Te Great Ones, Lexington’s dominance occurred despite an immeasurable loss of opportunity caused by the Civil War: “When Lexington was in his prime as a stallion, many of his progeny went into the cavalry, mares carrying his foals were stolen and lost, and racing opportunities were scant.” So dramatic were the losses for a few years that Lexington’s third through ffh crops resulted from mating with 218 mares. Only 24 winners resulted from those crops, so rampant was the thef of horses by both armies.

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Nevertheless, Hollingsworth rated 84 of the 238 winners sired by Lexington as being “top class.” Eleven were designated as “champions” in the tenuous judgment of the Turf available from those years.

Among the gaudy aspects of his offspring was the winning of nine of the frst 15 runnings of the Travers Stakes for 3-year-olds at Saratoga. Although his sire line faded within a few generations, the blood of Lexington through his daughters proliferated to such a degree that current bloodstock expert and commentator Alan Porter summarized a few years ago: “His infuence [on the foundation of pedigrees was] incalculable. Without him, the breed we know today would be totally different.”

Australian, the second most important stallion, did in fact, promulgate a sire line that survived into the next century. In 1917, that sire line produced no less than Man o’ War! (In 2022 the historic house at Woodburn is the home of former Kentucky Gov. Brereton C. Jones and his wife, Libby Jones.

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CELEBRATED MATCH RACE Longfellow defeats Harry Bassett in 1872.

Left, Nantura’s Frank Harper

Mrs. Jones is a descendant of the Alexander family. Nearby, also on Old Frankfort Pike, is Mr. and Mrs. Jones’ thriving Airdrie Stud.

Teir son Bret has assumed a lead role in management, so the historic family property remains an important contributor to the ongoing history of the Turf.)

Nantura: glory and tragedy

N

eighboring Woodburn in the 19th century were properties on Old Frankfort Pike identifed on old maps as belonging to the Harper family. Tese acreages became known back then as Nantura Farm. Typical of the reverence Kentuckians had for Toroughbreds, the name Nantura celebrated a particular mare. Nantura was the dam of Longfellow and the second dam of Ten Broeck, the most renowned of the racehorses produced by the Harpers.

Another family, the Holtons, had been raising horses elsewhere along Elkhorn Creek, near Frankfort, for many years by the time John Holton sold Nantura to John Harper. (In case more historic charm is needed for this tale, another truth is that John A. Holton was a riverboat captain who plied the Mississippi as well as the Kentucky and Ohio rivers. Holton got into breeding horses when statesman Henry Clay swapped him a mare in return for riverboat passage from Frankfort to New Orleans.)

John Harper owned 1,000 acres or so that came down to him from a Harper ancestry in Holland. Members of this Harper family had moved to Virginia in the 1740s. Teir locus, Harper’s Ferry, was of signifcance during the American Revolution, and the aforementioned Spur article by Maryjean Wall recounted the family tradition that the Harper family “aided General Washington several times during those years.”

In 1795, one of the Harpers, Jacob Harper, moved to Kentucky, where he reported-

TOM FERRY

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TALL AND LONG Longfellow lived up to his name.

ly purchased a 700-acre tract that became the frst section of what was to be known as Nantura Farm. Jacob Harper was deeply interested in raising cattle and horses, but his preference in the equine feld was not Toroughbred racehorses, per se. A grandson, John Harper, moved the family enterprise toward Toroughbreds afer he and his brothers and sister inherited the property.

Wall’s article described the property as “a magnifcent tract, studded with grand old trees of black walnut, ash, hard maple, burr oak, hickory, elm and now and then a honey locust and hackberry.” Te aforementioned phenomenon of visitors being attracted to the area applied to Nantura and Woodburn both before and afer the Civil War. For Nantura, this appeal reached its zenith in the 1870s, when the success of the horses bred by the Harpers reached a peak.

Te Civil War years brought a frst family tragedy as well as ongoing turmoil. In 1864, marauders intent on gathering horses for the war shot and killed one of John Harper’s

ETCHED IN STONE Longfellow and Ten Broeck were honored with markers.

brothers. Tat ravaging group proceeded to Woodburn, where they were reported to have stolen four 2-year-olds by the stallion Lexington, as well as Asteroid, one of the sire’s greatest runners. (Asteroid was later rescued.)

Afer the Civil War, the raising of Toroughbreds took on heightened economic appeal to such as Woodburn and the Harper farms, abetted by the burgeoning of high-class racing in the North.

Produce of the Harper farms include Freeland, Drake Carter, and various others.

Longfellow and later Ten Broeck stood tallest among them, and both eventually were inducted into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame in the 20th century.

Of that pair, Longfellow stood not only tall but long. He was in fact named because of his length of body and leg, and the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once sent a letter of thanks for being honored by the name. Te Harpers belied slight familiarity with the niceties of poetry. John Harper,

running the farm for his family, was said to have inquired of a friend upon receipt of the letter, “Who is that feller anyhow, and what do you reckon he means.”

Te Turf, however, had its own elegance to describe Longfellow. “King of the Turf ’” was a phrase used to describe the winner of 13 races in 16 starts, and racing historian Walter Vosburgh opined, “No horse of his day was a greater object of public notice.

His entire career was sensational; people seemed to regard him as a superhorse.”

Longfellow raced in Kentucky and Tennessee but was also sent East to run at Saratoga and Monmouth Park. John Harper was his trainer, as well as owner and breeder.

Harper was said to have seen all but one of his races, including his battles with Harry Bassett, a hero from neighboring Woodburn. When Longfellow was clearly injured in a race too severely to continue racing, Harper was reported to be in tears as he gently blanketed the gallant steed and murmured, “I’m taking him home.”

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THOROUGHBRED BOULEVARD

Woodburn Stud and Nantura Farm influenced the Thoroughbred operations that came after.

Longfellow was a very successful stallion. He sired some 40 stakes winners and was America’s statistical leader among sires of 1891. Harper, however, had passed away earlier, and before Longfellow’s distinction of siring two Kentucky Derby winners, Leonatus and Riley.

A tragedy that exceeded that of the earlier raid was a stunning element of the Harper family during the career of Longfellow.

In 1871, when the horse was a 4-year-old, John Harper received word that someone might attempt to tamper with Longfellow, so he slept in the barn with him at the Lexington Association track. During the night, he shouted away an intended intruder, who

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he heard ride off. Te following day, the bodies of Harper’s brother and sister were discovered in their cottage on Nantura.

Tey had been stabbed repeatedly in the night. Jacob Harper was already dead, and Betsey Harper died two days later.

Had John Harper also been killed, the family estate worth more than $1 million would have gone in equal shares to nephews. Tis generated suspicion that one of the nephews had orchestrated what he hoped would achieve that very end in one night. One nephew was considered a suspect, but two grand juries declined to indict him.

John Harper carried on with the career of Longfellow, who won four of fve races

the following year before the injury that ended his racing days. Harper died two years later. Te remaining years of Nantura were managed by another nephew, Frank, who had never been implicated in the savagery of the family deaths.

Nantura and Woodburn did not exist in a vacuum. A number of nearby farms that also produced important horses included Swigert’s Stockwood, Gen. Abe Buford’s Bosque Bonita, and the Viley family’s Stonewall Farm. Old maps show them certainly as part of the fertile Toroughbred ground around the towns of Midway and Versailles, adding their input from within the environs of Old Frankfort Pike. KM

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STORY WORTH TELLING LexHistory’s bold strategic plan envisions reviving a museum and expanding its community profle

By William Bowden

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Photos by Mark Mahan

Foster Ockerman Jr., president and chief historian of LexHistory, has made the telling of Lexington’s history a life’s work.

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Caption

Among LexHistory’s trove of antiques and artifacts is a 1780s broad axe that belonged to Richard Foley, who helped found Lexington.

F

oster Ockerman Jr., president and chief historian of LexHistory, sits in the 1784 Adam Rankin House, Lexington’s oldest residence, discussing the importance of preserving the city’s rich history. As if to channel pioneer times in a visceral way, he lays his hand on the worn handle of a 1780s broad axe, an impressive artifact once hefed by an early settler of the town.

“Richard Foley brought this axe with him when he was a member of a small group of settlers from the Shenandoah Valley who came here under the guidance of Col. John Bowman to help found Lexington before Kentucky was even a state,” Ockerman said. “It was kept by Rich-

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ard’s descendants all these years and recently donated to us.”

Foley’s rugged-looking tool is in good hands with LexHistory, the umbrella organization for all matters related to the history of Lexington and Fayette County. A four-year strategic plan, adopted in May 2021,

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STORY WORTH TELLING has the twin goals of strengthening the group’s pivotal role as keeper of the city’s historical heritage and reestablishing the physical Lexington History Museum, where that prized axe will someday reside.

Importantly, the plan includes the launch of the Lexington History Collective, an initiative to bring together all the history-related entities in Fayette County and the surrounding region for discussions on how best to collect, preserve, and exhibit the city’s story. Tat exercise will be crucial in realizing LexHistory’s vision: “Be the recognized and respected leader

on Lexington history.”

“Many excellent historical entities, such as the Mary Todd Lincoln House and Ashland, the Henry Clay Estate, tell compelling stories about their particular slice of our city’s history,” Ockerman said.

“LexHistory is the only organization with the overall responsibility of refecting the community’s total history. Our task and our mission is to cover everybody’s story.”

Ockerman, who is also an attorney, said that discussions engendered through the Collective will inform decisions about reopening the museum and planning for the celebration of Lexington’s 250th anniversary in 2025. Te four-year plan was written to coincide time-wise with that historic event and envisions a leading role for LexHistory.

OUT OF THE ‘WILDERNESS’ Before all those lofy goals could be formulated in the strategic plan, LexHistory had to pull itself out of a somewhat dormant period that began in 2012 when the

Dickinson and Ockerman examine a weather vane that once sat atop the Fayette County Courthouse.

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Jim Dickinson is chairman of LexHistory’s board of trustees.

Lexington History Museum was forced to vacate its quarters in the former 1899 Fayette County Courthouse, never to return. Tat move was necessitated by the discovery of hazardous levels of asbestos, lead paint, dust, and mold in the building’s interior. A later restoration and renovation of the structure repurposed it for uses other than the museum.

Te museum was founded in 1998 as a nonproft 501(c)(3) organization at the direction of then-mayor Pam Miller. It enjoyed a very successful run in its original iteration, welcoming at its peak more than 10,000 visitors annually from all 50 states and 60 foreign countries.

When the axe fell (so to speak) in 2012 and the museum became homeless, the organization began a time of “being in the wilderness,” said Jim Dickinson, chair of

the board of trustees, an attorney, and administrative hearing ofcer and assistant attorney general for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Te museum sufered from decreasing community engagement and fnancial support during that period.

At a crucial board meeting in 2016, members made a frm decision to get LexHistory on the move again. A key event was the hiring of Ockerman in March of that year, with the charge of leading a revival of the organization.

With board members and volunteers being encouraged to step up their involvement, LexHistory began engaging in activities designed to keep its history mission in the public eye while pointing toward

the eventual reopening of the brick-andmortar museum. Prospects for the group’s future began to brighten considerably.

While LexHistory’s administrative ofces were housed temporarily in Victorian Square, it mounted eight exhibits to take part in LexArts Gallery Hops.

Pocket museums (temporary rotating exhibits in public places) were created, virtual tours of exhibits were added to the group’s website, and LexTalks, a speakers series, was revived.

A NEW PATH FORWARD Creation of the strategic plan in 2021 brought a whole new level of intensity and purpose to LexHistory.

“I think the plan has given us a better focus on what the tasks are for us to succeed,” said Linda Carroll, ofce manager at the Lexington engineering consulting frm Respec and a longtime LexHistory volunteer. “It will let us get over the past and start moving forward in a new direction.” She is a member of the Kentucky Heritage Council (appointed by the governor) and a past president of the Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation.

Te plan calls for expansion of temporary and virtual exhibits as well as the creation of an actual interim museum.

All of that activity will facilitate getting the collections out of storage in preparation for the eventual reestablishment of a

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STORY WORTH TELLING permanent, physical museum. Identifying an existing building, or a site for new construction, to house the Lexington History Museum is a board priority.

“We’ve looked at a dozen diferent possibilities, mainly downtown,” Ockerman said. “When we were in the courthouse, the museum was an essential part of the city’s tourism scene. Our largest demographic consisted of spouses of people attending conventions. We want to be downtown, within easy walking distance of hotels.”

Dickinson added that the historical nature of the organization makes a vintage building a favored choice. “I’m envisioning an old building combined with some new construction,” he said.

Te budget calls for a little more than $3 million in expenditures for the new museum. Te board is planning a general fundraising campaign and exploring government funding sources. As a nonproft, LexHistory enjoys generous contributions from individuals, companies, foundations, and grants.

Underscoring the community engagement side of LexHistory will be a new Partnership Council, contemplated in the plan, that will help better connect LexHistory with key government, business, educational, and civic leaders.

CONTINUING TO COLLECT When the new museum opens, it will ofer visitors a richer and more diverse

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Many citizens have donated attractively framed old family portraits.

Left, Ockerman stands with a portrait of Henry T. Duncan (1800-1880). Duncan was an ancestor of two Lexington mayors, including H. Foster Pettit.

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STORY WORTH TELLING experience than ever before. Even though it has been shuttered in a physical sense for a decade, collecting has continued apace.

Notably, many local citizens have donated large, attractively framed old family portraits done in oil. Te stylized weather vane from atop the cupola on the 1899 courthouse is a fascinating relic of the times, replaced (because of damage) and lef behind when the building was restored. It shows a Standardbred in full stride. Tere are wine bottles from the former Phoenix Hotel, a photography collection consisting of more than 1,000 images, and a cache of historic

THE ADAM RANKIN HOUSE SAVED FROM DEMOLITION t was pure serendipity that Foster Ockerman Jr., president and chief historian of LexHistory, was out and about on the day the 1784 Adam Rankin House, the oldest residence in Lexington, went on the market.

“I was walking down High Street going back to my car after attending an event at the convention center when a ‘For Lease’ sign on South Mill Street caught my attention,” he said. “It was

I

The Adam Rankin House in an earlier era

A bottle of bourbon labeled “Old Spendthrift” is among the collection of spirits.

Ockerman’s book was published in October 2021.

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postcards of Fayette County.

A signifcant scholarly addition to the museum was the publication in October 2021 of A New History of Lexington, Kentucky, written by Ockerman. It includes revelations about the free Black population of Lexington in 1860 on the eve of the

Civil War, drawn from two unpublished master’s theses from the early 2000s that Ockerman discovered in the University of Kentucky archives.

In his book Ockerman shows that Lexington in the antebellum period was a haven for free Blacks, many of whom

the Adam Rankin House. We immediately grabbed it.”

The home has served as the temporary administrative off ces for LexHistory since the group leased it in 2020, but the organization has plans to develop it as a house museum.

The residence was built as a log home by the Rev. Adam Rankin, minister of First Presbyterian Church. It was added on to in 1794 and later given clapboard siding. A portion of the log walls can still be seen inside a closet.

Originally sited at 215 West High St. (the north side), it remained there until

the early 1970s when it was slated for demolition as part of the urban renewal process along Vine Street. In 1971, the Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation stepped in to save it and had it moved one block west and just around the corner to its present site at 317 S. Mill St. “We have authorization from the Planning Commission to make it into a house museum,” Ockerman said. “Our thought is to make the interior showcase the history of the South Hill Historic District, where it’s now located. The neighborhood is listed on the National

Register of Historic Places.”

Ref ecting the view of many who have visited the modest (by today’s standards) two-story home, volunteer Linda Carroll said, “I f nd everything about the Rankin House to be charming. To me, it’s a little treasure.”

Added vice chair Laura Cullen Glasscock, “I think it can be a real sweetheart of a house museum. It’s small and cozy and family oriented.”

When it opens as a formal house museum, its charm will surely spread and give visitors a window into the life of a Lexington pioneer.

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STORY WORTH TELLING became prosperous through their skilled trades and were land, business, and homeowners.

“Tese theses illustrate part of our history that had gone unreported until last October,” Ockerman said. “Te writers used census data to show that the South Hill neighborhood in 1860 was an enclave of free Black professionals who built most of the homes here. Te city was integrated because people living in

JONNAE HARRIS

LexHistory board vice chair Laura Cullen Glasscock looks forward to the implementation of the strategic plan.

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An antique firearm from Lexington’s early days is tagged and waiting to be displayed.

Ockerman examines an old Lexington City Directory.

town didn’t own horses. Everyone lived within easy walking distance of where they worked, whether you were a barber, a cobbler, a mason, or whatever. You didn’t have a Black neighborhood from which Black people walked to the white neighborhood to work.”

Ten there is an intriguing historical document recently acquired by LexHistory known as the Madison Deed. It’s a land ownership instrument issued by Virginia Gov. Patrick Henry to future U.S. President James Madison.

“In the pioneer era of Kentucky, when we were still part of Virginia, Revolutionary War ofcers were paid with land warrants,” Ockerman said. “Madison bought two 1,000-acre warrants and had the land they represented on the Elkhorn River in Fayette County surveyed.

Gov. Henry executed the deed to Madison, who then sold them. We have that original deed.”

LexHistory also has plans to operate the Adam Rankin House as a house museum (see sidebar). It is currently using the home in the South Hill Historic District for temporary administrative ofces.

BLUEPRINT FOR SUCCESS At this point, LexHistory knows its strategic plan is a well constructed and comprehensive blueprint for where the organization wants to go but is realistic about what it will take to reach its destination. Reopening the actual museum is a goal that underlies everything.

“Even as we make use of virtual reality and other methods to keep the city’s history alive for the public, the value of reestablishing the brick-and-mortar Lexington History Museum is prominent in our thinking,” said board vice chair Laura Cullen Glasscock, a Kentucky State University journalism professor and publisher/editor of the digital public afairs journal Te Kentucky Gazette.

Richard Foley’s axe, James Madison’s deed, and all those striking family portraits, along with many more artifacts, will then fnd their proper home and be exhibited for all to enjoy. Tat will mark a new day for LexHistory as it strives to achieve the ideals embodied in its mission statement: “Inspire our future by collecting and preserving Lexington history and telling our stories.” KM

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Pop-up food tent impresario

SAMANTHA FORE making her name on the national food scene

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In her home kitchen, Samantha Fore tries out recipes for her television appearances and also cooks for family and friends.

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PHOTO CREDIT

Caption

Spices play a key role in Sri Lankan cuisine, which Fore describes as “the love child of Indian and Thai food.”

S

amantha Fore was supposed to be a doctor when she headed of to Boston University 20 years ago. “I was going into the seven-year medical program, and I was going to come out a doctor and that was going to be great.”

But afer a semester she knew she didn’t have her father’s passion for medicine and so she walked away, she said, from “the quintessential career for every South Asian child.”

Tese days, as she manages a packed schedule, fying to New York or Alabama to cook for benefts, to Boston to tape TV shows, or driving to Western Kentucky to help feed people devastated by tornadoes, her mother still kids her from time to time: “You could always go back to medical school.”

But there doesn’t seem to be much “going back” for Sam Fore.

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In the past few years her at-home brunches introducing friends to the Sri Lankan cuisine she learned from her mother and “aunties” has morphed into a pop-up food tent, Tuk Tuk Sri Lankan Bites, which in turn launched her onto the national food scene where she’s tried to Beat Bobby Flay on Food Network, had her roasted curry tomato pie land on the cover of Food & Wine, has guided chef and PBS personality Vivian Howard around

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jump head

Mortar and pestle are essential tools in Fore’s kitchen.

Fore presents her meal to friends who are more than willing to sample recipes the chef wants to test.

Fore adds curry leaves from her own plant to spices she roasts to release the favors.

Onions and lime add complexity to the food. Below, curried pineapple is one of Fore’s signature dishes.

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Kentucky’s food scene, and now regularly appears on Milk Street, a public television show produced by food guru Christopher Kimball.

Recently, during a break from her travels, Fore was at home in Lexington trying out recipes on friends, tending to her curry plant — a descendant of one brought over from Sri Lanka — planning her next foray onto the national scene, acting as trafc manager for her four dogs (“My saving grace,” she calls them. “Tese guys are just therapy in a four-legged package”), and still fnding her rise in the culinary world a little hard to process. “None of this was supposed to happen; none of it. In my head I’m still just cooking in a tent,” she mused.

Unlike many other chefs, Fore wasn’t in the kitchen from childhood. But she was at the table. Her mother, who “can cook circles around me,” prepared dinner for the family every night, and they ofen had friends over to eat and share cuisines. “For some reason my parents have a penchant for hanging out with people who can cook really well,” she

said. Tanksgiving might include some typical American and Southern fare but also her mother’s Sri Lankan dishes and whatever others, like the Persian and Japanese couple who were close friends, brought to the feast. “We had so many diferent infuences!”

At college in Boston, she said, connecting with the city’s Greek community “was one of my favorite things … it was the frst time that I’ve ever been to a home where a deep fryer was built into the counter.” And so her food journey continued, as did her work experience.

In college she began earning money as a “merch girl,” setting up and selling merchandise for bands that performed at the Paradise Rock Club. “I’ve sold so many ridiculous things in my life: hockey jerseys, stash tins, custom underpants.”

She also got to know a lot of people in the music industry, chatting with them backstage, telling them where to go for cofee or where to eat when their moms came to town. She stayed in Boston afer school and began designing web pages for businesses. In Boston she also met

“

I HAVE FOUND A JOB THAT LETS ME BE MYSELF…” — SAMANTHA FORE

Fore with her mother, Indra Weerakoon, in the Beaumont neighborhood of Lexington in the early ’80s

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DAVID BOONE

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Patrick Hallahan enjoys the noodle bowl at Mae Suramek’s Noodle Nirvana in Berea, where Fore took him as part of a Kentucky food adventure.

SPECIAL FOOD TOUR hat happens when you mix a rock band drummer with a Sri Lankan-Southern chef?

It sounds like the beginning of a bad riddle but the answer — when it’s Samantha Fore and My Morning Jacket drummer Patrick Hallahan — is a food tour of Kentucky.

The two met years ago in Boston when My Morning Jacket was touring, and college student Samantha Weerakoon earned extra money selling the T-shirts and other merchandise that fans buy from traveling shows. Flash forward several years and they reconnect through Instagram, their shared love of food, and Kentucky.

“We were both going to be at Railbird,” the music festival at Keeneland, in 2020, Fore said. Louisville-based My Morning Jacket was scheduled to headline day one, and Fore had a gig at the festival’s Sip & Savor featuring Kentucky chefs the same day. They agreed it would be both fun and funny if Hallahan joined her as a sous-chef. “People would be there to see a band, and they would have no idea that I’m actually super passionate about food and cuisine and culinary exploration,” Hallahan told her.

As it turned out, a pandemic shut down Railbird that year, but the two thought it was time they do something food-related together and came up

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with the idea of introducing each other to their favorite food haunts in Kentucky. Although Fore travels the nation eating at great venues and Hallahan has tried food all over the world touring with the band, each wanted to introduce the other to some hidden, and not-so-hidden, gems in their home state.

They assembled a flm crew and Fore hosted Hallahan in Central Kentucky, where they sampled noodle bowls at Mae Suramek’s Noodle Nirvana in Berea (“This is one of the best noodle bowls I’ve ever had, and it’s been hiding in Berea,” Hallahan exclaimed), Mexican food at Tortilleria Y Taqueria Ramirez in Lexington, and met with Ouita Michel at her Holly Hill Inn in Midway. “Patrick had never met Ouita before, and she’s one of his culinary heroes,” Fore said.

“What would you expect a James Beard-nominated bastion of Kentucky cuisine and a rock star who plays drums for thousands are geeking out over? Jam cake! And the qualities of the caramel icing.”

Next time Hallahan will introduce Fore to three of his favorites in the Louisville area.

Even though “he’s a straight-up Kentucky boy and I’m a straight-up Kentucky gal and we look nothing alike,” Fore said, “food is the great connector.”

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a fellow Lexington native, Chris Fore. United by their love for the Wildcats and the Bluegrass, they married and a decade ago moved back to Lexington.

As her interest in cooking grew and guests at her brunches outgrew their home, she began to think about opening a pop-up tent featuring Sri Lankan food, which she calls “the love child of Indian and Tai food.” She turned to her mother but nothing was written down, and “her handwriting is awful anyway.” So, long before she ever stood in front of a camera to cook, Fore picked one up to learn. “Te way that I got my recipes for the beginning of the tent was I followed my mom around with a camera. I still have those videos.”

Te Lexington food scene expanded with her Tuk Tuk Sri Lankan Bites such as meatball curry sandwich, spiced shrimp on coconut grits, fried chicken with lime juice and curry salt, and lentil fritters “served with a dollop of sweet chili sauce.”

Fore met her husband, Chris, a Lexington native, in Boston.

Left, Fore framed the frst menu from her Tuk Tuk Sri Lankan Food Bites pop-up tent along with the frst dollar she earned there.

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About the time Tuk Tuk took of, a small group of established Indian chefs in the region decided to join together for a dinner they called Brown in the South. “At the time it was a very small group,” said Meherwan Irani, whose Chai Pani in Asheville, North Carolina, serves Indian street food so good it’s been nominated fve times for a James Beard Award and garnered praise from the New York Times, Hufngton Post, and Fox News, among many others. Te question they wanted to explore together, he said, was, “At what point do I stop saying I’m an Indian living in the South and when do I ask myself the question, ‘Am I a Southerner who happens to be Indian?’ ” Tey decided to invite some younger, less wellknown cooks, and someone suggested “this young chef in Kentucky with a Sri Lankan pop-up.”

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A personal note from Chris Kimball at Milk Street is displayed on Fore’s refrigerator.

JENNIFER COX

Fore is developing spice mixes, including her popular fried chicken mixture, for Spicewalla, an offshoot of her friend Meherwan Irani’s restaurant business. Right, Fore flms an episode of Milk Street, food celebrity Christopher Kimball’s television show.

Fore was “just this fun, cool person,” Irani said. “We became fast friends.” Te dinners “captured media attention … people loved the idea of a group of Indians who thought of themselves as Southerners,” he said.

Food & Wine carried an article on them — there were eventually three dinners — and asked each of the participating chefs for a recipe to feature. It was Sam Fore’s tomato pie — a Southern standard with a south Asian twist — that wound up on the magazine’s cover. Another of Fore’s takes on a Southern favorite — fried chicken — has led to a collaboration with Irani’s ofshoot, Spicewalla. Te business features individual spices but also a collection of chef-created mixes. Fore’s fried chicken mix includes cumin, coriander, curry

leaves, and turmeric as keynote favors. Te food world “can be hard to break into at a certain level,” Irani said, and he believes the Brown in the South dinners helped Fore gain national exposure.

“Here’s the thing about Sam, though,” he added.

“She would have gotten there anyway. She’s just a force of nature; she’s a complete force of nature.”

Christopher Kimball agrees. “As far as I can tell, she was born to be in front of the camera,” he said of Fore, who now cooks regularly on his Milk Street television show. Kimball, whose four decades in food media include co-founding America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Illustrated, said she “connects with an audience right away and is able to bring people into her culinary world.” But on Milk Street Fore moves into other worlds too, cooking Greek, German, and other cuisines as well as her own Sri Lankan dishes.

For Sam Fore it’s important that she can cross boundaries in that culinary world. “I am a South Asian woman on public television who is not just cooking

Tools of the trade: Fore’s kitchen testifes to her profession.

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Fore raises some of the tastes she includes in her food, including Meyer lemons from this tree. She also has a curry plant that came from Sri Lanka years ago.

South Asian recipes,” she exulted. “Tat is a coup, I’m not being pigeonholed!”

Her success has given Fore a platform to speak her mind. “I have found a job that lets me be myself and I don’t have to apologize for it.” With that freedom she’s followed a family tradition of service, taking on issues such as sexual harassment in the restaurant business, the persistence of being pigeonholed as an Asian, and the psychological toll the food industry, and life, can take. “I annoy the aunties sometimes by talking about mental health,” she said, referring to the frst-generation women like her mother who, as immigrants, believed in keeping their heads down, working hard, and not talking too much about their problems. But the way Fore sees it, “If I can be a proponent for someone to not feel the way I did at my lowest, that’s a win.”

And Fore has no patience with people who put her home state down: “Kentucky gets such a bad rap, and people don’t get to see all the richness that’s here.”

“She’s a bridge; she’s not a gatekeeper; she’s bringing Kentucky with her,” Ashley Smith said of her friend. Smith, a co-founder of Black Soil, a Lexington-based organization that advocates for and encourages African Americans in agriculture, and Fore have been friends since before either Tuk Tuk or Black Soil was founded.

Smith said Fore supports Black Soil’s producers wherever she goes.

“She travels around and we basically send our produce with her,” including to the “Today” show in November 2020 when Fore appeared as a guest chef to talk about cooking for Tanksgiving.

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Fore calls her dogs “therapy in a four-legged package.”

To Smith, Fore’s success is intimately connected to her commitment to make life better for others. “Her star has continued to rise and glow even more because she’s shining the light on multiple people.”

Tat’s the way Fore likes it. “I have opportunities now. If I can’t share them, if other people can’t have a part of them, what’s the point? I can’t enjoy this ride by myself.” KM

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Making a Difference HORSE MANIA

HORSE MANIA RETURNS Popular public art exhibition makes its third appearance

By Robin Roenker | Photos by Rick Samuels

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orse Mania is back! And, just as it did in 2000 and 2010, the beloved public art exhibition will bring a stampede of colorful horses to Lexington, adding a welcomed breath of whimsy and artistic inspiration to downtown street corners this spring, summer, and fall.

While COVID-19 delayed the latest Horse Mania — it had been tentatively scheduled for 2020, to keep with the once-per-decade schedule — the timing of the 2022 exhibit has nonetheless turned out to be perfect.

Te fan-favorite exhibit ofers an ideal way for LexArts, the event’s organizer, to celebrate its 50th anniversary (see sidebar). Plus, the horses will stand as a perfect greeting card for visitors in town this fall for the 2022 Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Keeneland. Keeneland and Maker’s Mark are cosponsors of the 2022 exhibit.

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With sketch in hand, artist Priscilla Fallon greets her horse and visualizes how the completed work might look.

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The Horse Mania horses were delivered to Godolphin at Jonabell Farm in late winter, where participating artists picked them up.

“We couldn’t be more thrilled to provide a 2022 edition of Horse Mania, which coincides with the 50th anniversary of LexArts,” said Ame Sweetall, LexArts president and CEO. “For 50 years we’ve been providing arts activities, engagement, support, and services for all of our artistic sectors across Lexington. And Horse Mania is just a really great symbolic display of all of the wonderful things that art does for our community.”

Inspired equines More than 400 Horse Mania horse designs — some bold and playful, some historic in nature, others more emotionally charged — were submitted for consideration by more than 200 area artists earlier this year.

Representatives from various horse sponsor organizations, among them agencies such as Equus Standardbred Station, Red

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Mile, and JRA Architects, then chose their favorite designs from among the entries, resulting in a herd of roughly 70 Horse Mania horses anticipated to grace downtown sidewalks beginning in April.

Dozens of additional full-sized horses and smaller foals will also be created as part of an exhibit ofshoot called “Horse Play” meant to engage young artists. Tese horses — created by students at all public and private schools in Fayette County — will also be part of the broader public exhibit. In all, nearly 200 horses will be on display around Lexington.

Te chosen Horse Mania artists come from an array of backgrounds and sensibilities, and their varying aesthetics and approaches are part of what makes the exhibit so exciting for visitors.

Truly no two horses in the event will be alike — and the fun, as with past exhibits, will be the opportunity to enjoy a leisurely stroll through downtown, exploring what makes each one unique.

“Te 2000 and 2010 installations were wildly popular, and we eagerly await this year’s installation,” said Mary Quinn Ramer, president of VisitLex. “Tese intriguing pieces of public art will create a sense of community and celebrate our signature industry while bringing delight to visitors and locals alike.”

Selected horse designs include “Golden Gait” and “Sweet Cerulean” by acclaimed local artist Wylie Caudill, whose public murals have graced businesses such as Crank & Boom and Te Grove.

Both of Caudill’s designs are botanically inspired: Golden Gait envisions a horse covered in ornate golden tobacco leaves while Sweet Cerulean will be covered in bold, deep blue roses.

“I’m super excited. I love public art,”

Nathan Zamarron, community arts director at LexArts, helped load a Horse Mania horse onto a Sallee van to be delivered to a participating artist.

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Making a Difference HORSE MANIA

Maury Sparrow, LexArt’s communications director, said the response from artists to the Horse Mania announcement was overwhelming.

said Caudill, who will be painting both of his horses in an empty room of his home — since his usual studio space won’t easily accommodate them. “Tis will be my frst time painting on fberglass on such a large scale. I usually just paint on walls or canvas, so this will be brand new.”

Artist Priscilla Roberts Fallon — who previously participated in both the 2000 and 2010 Horse Mania exhibits — plans to create a 2022 horse inspired by famous works of late Kentucky artist Henry Lawrence Faulkner. Titled “Henry Faulkner’s NightMARE,” the horse will blend well-known motifs from Faulkner’s paintings.

“It will be a collage of bits and pieces of his paintings, which people will recognize,” explained Fallon.

For her “American Horse” design, Fleming County artist Gretchen Bainum, a former elementary school art teacher, plans to depict dozens of faces. Many of the faces will honor frst responders, at the request of the horse’s sponsor, CHI St. Joseph Hospital Foundation.

“Te hospital asked about incorporating frst responders, and I am thrilled to do that,” Bainum said. Te original concept of the face collage stems from a sketch of interlocking faces that Bainum’s late father had drawn — so adapting it for Horse Mania felt like a way to honor both him and recent

Artist John “Bo” Batts works the welder on his entry, the “Bourbon Bay Horse,” made with recycled bourbon barrel rings.

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Making a Difference HORSE MANIA

heroes of the COVID-19 pandemic, she said. ects ever completed in the United States,” “Tere will be all diferent emotions, ages, said Cooper, who took up needlepoint as a 50 YEARS and backgrounds represented,” Bainum said. hobby decades ago. “I think it’s going to be a OF LEXARTS “We’re all human, and we all have a full range really fun opportunity to connect with other of sadness and joy.” needlepointers.” ounded in 1972, LexArts proIn a unique departure from the typical vides grant funding and other acrylic-paint-on-fberglass approach most Celebrating Kentucky support to help integrate arts into Horse Mania artists will be taking, artists Following two difcult years of the panthe broader community. Its popuMike Cooper and Donna Eads will incorpodemic, when outlets for art were frequently lar events include LexArts HOP, rate an array of textured needlepoint designs shuttered, the “current craving for the arts is exhibitions at the LexArts Gallery, in their horse, “NEIGHdlepoint.” at a high point,” said Sweetall. and frequent, citywide public arts In fact, Cooper and Eads plan to engage In fact, when LexArts announced plans projects. the skills of needlepoint artists throughout the for this year’s Horse Mania event, calls to In celebration of the agency’s South to create several hundred needlepoint design and sponsor horses began fooding in 50th anniversary in 2022, LexArts squares showcasing the jockey silks of Kenimmediately. is planning an Anniversary Gala, tucky Derby, Toyota Blue Grass Stakes and “As soon as we made the announcement tentatively scheduled for August.

Breeders’ Cup winners, and iconic Kentucky about hosting Horse Mania, the calls from Find out more at lexarts.org. farms. artists and sponsors came in,” said Maury Te design idea came to Cooper when he Sparrow, LexArts communications director. saw similar 3D needlepoint works by French “Te level of interest has really been a wonartist Frédérique Morrel in New York’s Bergdorf Goodman depart- derful surprise for us.” ment store. Cooper has since been in touch with Morrel to glean tips Tis year — unlike in past events — thanks to funding from the about how best to tackle afxing the squares on the Horse Mania Lexington-based Kloiber Foundation, horses will be provided to horse. And, he plans to create a private Facebook group for the hun- both public and private schools for painting, free of charge. dreds of needlepoint artists who will contribute squares for the horse, Tis year’s event will also include four horses sponsored by Breedallowing them to share their progress and get to know one another. ers’ Cup and the Breeders’ Cup Festival that will celebrate Lexington’s “I think this will probably be one of the largest needlepoint proj- Sister Cities. Tese four horses will be created by artists fown in from

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Priscilla Fallon’s sketch for her entry, “NightMARE,” is inspired by the works of the late artist Henry Faulkner. Right, artists Mike Cooper and Donna Eads are incorporating an array of textured needlepoint designs into their horse, “NEIGHdlepoint.”

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Making a Difference HORSE MANIA

EXPLORING HORSE MANIA orse Mania horses are expected to be on display April through November. Download the new LexArts app (currently in development) for a complete map of horse locations — plus a day-by-day calendar of arts events happening around Lexington.

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Newmarket, England; County Kildare, Ireland; Deauville, France; and Shinhidaka, Japan.

Additionally, Independence Bank is sponsoring three horses whose auction proceeds will support rebuilding eforts in the tornado-ravaged communities of Madisonville, Bowling Green, and Mayfeld.

In addition to these various avenues of goodwill, Horse Mania provides a perfect opportunity to pause to celebrate all things horse-related and all things Kentucky.

“Te return of Horse Mania puts an exclamation point on a year in which we have so much to celebrate here in Central Kentucky,” Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin said. “We are thrilled to be a copresenting sponsor with our partners at Maker’s Mark, and we look forward to sharing these beautiful works of art with fans from across the globe attending the Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Keeneland.”

Keeneland will auction a selection of sponsored horses in December with proceeds to beneft local arts initiatives. KM

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What were uniform “blank canvases” in late winter were soon to be transformed into expressions of individual artistry.

Breeders’ Cup Legend

A.P. Indy capped his career with an authoritative victory in the 1992 Breeders’ Cup Classic.

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sale-topping Keeneland yearling always carries with it the hope that the horse will live up to the lofy price tag. A.P. Indy did that and more.

With an outstanding pedigree and ideal conformation, the son of Seattle Slew out of the stakes-winning and stakes-producing Weekend Surprise topped the 1990 Keeneland July select yearling sale at $2.9 million for breeders William S. Farish and William Kilroy. Japanese motorsport enthusiast Tomonori Tsurumaki bought the bay colt and named him A.P. Indy.

Entrusted into the patient hands of trainer Neil Drysdale, A.P. Indy signaled his talent by winning three of four races as a 2-year-old, including the Hollywood Futurity (G1). At 3, the colt with the low-headed, distinctive running style stepped up as Best of the West with victories in the San Rafael Stakes (G2) and Santa Anita Derby (G1).

“He was a gorgeous horse, a very exciting horse to be around,” Drysdale recalled some years later.

Kentucky Derby hopes were high in 1992, but a hoof injury

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BENOIT & ASSOC.

TERRY JONES; FOUR FOOTED FOTOS

ANNE M. EBERHARDT PHOTOS

A.P. INDY

At Lane’s End Farm A.P. Indy became a stallion sensation.

Trainer Neil Drysdale brought the best out in the colt.

forced A.P. Indy’s 11th-hour withdrawal from the race.

A.P. Indy earned his belated classic victory fve weeks later with a determined fnish in the Belmont Stakes (G1). Later that year he scored convincingly in the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) at Gulfstream Park, becoming another of just a handful of horses to win a Triple Crown race and the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

His exploits earned A.P. Indy Horse of the Year and 3-year-old champion male honors. A.P. Indy retired with a record of eight wins from 11 starts and earnings of $2,979,815.

Farish and Kilroy had bought back an interest in the colt, and A.P. Indy returned to Farish’s Lane’s End Farm in Kentucky to stand at stud. Tere, he became a breed-defning stallion whose initial purchase price would seem like a bargain.

A.P. Indy was twice North America’s leading sire as well as leading broodmare sire once. He sired 94 graded stakes winners and 12 champions, including Bernardini, Honor Code, Rags to Riches, and Mineshaf. Lane’s End honored him with a life-sized sculpture.

A.P. Indy retired from stud in 2011 and lived out his remaining years at Lane’s End Farm, dying peacefully on Feb. 21, 2020. KM

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