Storie di stalloni

La pluripremiata autrice Margaret Ransom continua la sua serie di Stallion Stories, che occasionalmente si concentra sui castroni. I soggetti precedenti della serie includono Seattle Slew, Silver Charm, Grindstone, Storm Cat, Go For Gin e il castrone John Henry.

J.O. Tobin

Gatto della tempesta

Sigaro

Vai al gin

Wild Again e Slew o' Oro

Partenza con salto

Di Margaret Ransom

Wes Lanter, nativo di Lexington, Kentucky, ha trascorso la maggior parte della sua vita circondato da alcuni dei migliori purosangue dell'ultima generazione.

Il veterano cavaliere ha servito sia come stalliere che come manager di stalloni in alcuni degli allevamenti di maggior successo e famosi nel Bluegrass, tra cui Spendthrift Farm, Three Chimneys e Overbrook Azienda agricola. Ha anche lavorato al Kentucky Horse Park. Nel corso della sua carriera di oltre 30 anni, il 54enne ha lavorato con tre vincitori della Triple Crown, sia purosangue che standard, altri cinque vincitori del Kentucky Derby e più campioni e Hall of Famer.

Un'enciclopedia ambulante sulla maggior parte delle corse di purosangue, Lanter condivide le sue storie preferite sui cavalli di cui si considera privilegiato. Da quando ha lasciato la carica di supervisore della sezione equina presso la Hall of Champions del Kentucky Horse Park nel 2015, Lanter ha raccolto storie sui "suoi cavalli" e ha deciso da dove verrà il suo prossimo capitolo della vita.

Il cavallo

Pedigree: A.P. Indy—Steady Cat, di Storm Cat
Colore: baia
Nato: 18 gennaio 1999—19 maggio 2019
Proprietario/allevatore: Overbrook Farm (W.T. Young)
Allenatore: D. Wayne Lukas
Record di carriera: 5-2-1-0
Guadagni di carriera: $221.265
Vittorie notevoli: Speciale Saratoga 2001 (Sol2)

Riunire uno stallone

Storie di stalloni :Jump Start – Foto per gentile concessione di Wes Lanter

Lanter non era a Overbrook Farm da molto tempo quando Jump Start è entrato nel suo mondo come uno dei giovani allevamenti più promettenti della fattoria. Il figlio di A.P. Indy non è diventato uno dei più famosi della sua vita, ma sarebbe diventato uno dei più significativi per una serie di motivi.

Come un cavallo da corsa, nel 2001 tutti sapevano chi era Jump Start, ovviamente. Il bellissimo allievo D. Wayne Lukas ha vinto il Saratoga Special (G2) e ha partecipato a una Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) del 2001 molto profonda e di talento, molto apprezzata quando è successo l'impensabile.

Jump Start ha subito una frattura condilare all'osso del cannone anteriore sinistro e successivamente è stato sottoposto a un ampio intervento chirurgico per riparare la lesione.

Ricordo che Pat Day lo ha improvvisamente tirato su per il sedere", ricorda Lanter di quel giorno un po' cupo poco dopo gli attacchi terroristici dell'11 settembre in America. “Ma era tornato alla fattoria letteralmente un paio di giorni dopo. Avevo una piccola stalla da tre cavalli in cima alla quale è rimasto per un po' di tempo per riprendersi. La sua gamba era difficile da vedere e siamo stati attenti, non l'abbiamo allevato subito in modo che potesse abituarsi, ma in poco tempo è stato nella stalla principale degli stalloni e ha iniziato bene la sua carriera di stallone.

Le sue radiografie (dopo l'intervento) erano incredibili, non ho mai visto niente di simile prima o dopo. Gli hanno fuso la caviglia e aveva tipo 20 viti o più lì dentro. Ma se l'è cavata molto bene e si è comportato bene, ha anche allevato le sue cavalle senza alcun problema."

Il più delle volte ci vuole un po' di tempo prima che un cavallo si trasferisca da cavallo da corsa a stallone da riproduzione, ma non era il caso di Jump Start. Lanter afferma che il puledro è sempre stato facile e si è adattato subito.

Jump Start ha sempre avuto così tanta classe", ha ricordato Lanter. “Voglio dire dall'inizio, quando era appena uscito di pista, non ha mai fatto cose che i cavalli a malapena facevano normalmente. Non è mai stato sciocco o stupido.

“Ha sempre avuto un atteggiamento professionale. Una volta Seth Hancock (di Claiborne Farm) è uscito per vederlo e mi ha detto che una mattina a Churchill Downs stava dando a Pat Day un passaggio fino alla parte anteriore dall'area delle stalle e Pat Day ha detto:"Lukas ha un AP Indy colt che potrebbe essere di qualsiasi tipo", riferendosi a Jump Start. E venendo da un pilota come Pat Day, sapevi che era vero. Jump Start è stato sicuramente un caso di potenziale non sfruttato."

Il migliore amico di un bambino

Per tutta la sua permanenza alla Overbrook Farm, il paddock di Jump Start è stato il più vicino alla casa di Lanter, che era il più vicino al complesso di stalloni nella proprietà. La maggior parte ogni mattina come

Lanter si è diretto al lavoro, Jump Start era lì, in attesa che il suo sposo lo portasse a casa per la colazione o per ricevere l'attenzione di coloro che entravano e uscivano dal cancello sul retro della fattoria. E grazie alla vicinanza con la sua casa, il giovane figlio di Lanter, Noah, e lo stallone hanno formato un legame invidiabile.

"Fondamentalmente avevo Jump Start che correva nel mio cortile", ha spiegato Lanter. “Quando Noah era piccolo, accarezzava e giocava sempre con Jump Start. E Noah camminava fino al recinto per vederlo e lui correva lungo il recinto e loro giocavano. Noah lo amava davvero e non mi sono mai preoccupato. Sapeva rispettare i cavalli, ma non potevo immaginare che Jump Start facesse mai qualcosa.

"Non usiamo soprannomi carini per i cavalli, ma Noah lo chiamava 'Jumpy' e io glielo lasciai fare. Quando Noah si è trasferito (al college) nel Wisconsin, ha parlato di lui a tutti i suoi amici ed è stato come parlare di uno dei suoi amici più cari a casa. È stato un ragazzo così fortunato ad essere cresciuto con artisti del calibro di Seattle Slew e Storm Cat e quei tipi, ma Jump Start era il suo preferito."

Uno stallone utile, se non a volte riluttante

È facile immaginare che sarebbe difficile per qualsiasi stallone brillare all'ombra del leggendario Storm Cat, ma Jump Start ha sicuramente avuto la sua parte di successi come padre. Lanter rimane orgoglioso di ciò che ha realizzato.

"Si è davvero trasformato in uno stallone utile", ha detto Lanter. “Voglio dire, appena fuori dalla mia testa ha generato (milionari) Prayer For Relief e Rail Trip, e anche Icabad Crane. È andato in Sud America e ha fatto un'estate lì e ha anche generato un paio di campioni. Sono sempre stato contento dei suoi successi."

L'unico problema che Lanter dice di aver mai avuto con Jump Start è che il cavallo sembrava preferire uscire nel suo paddock o fare visita alle persone piuttosto che essere un vero stallone.

"Voglio dire, si sarebbe riprodotto ma era come se non gli importasse molto", ha ricordato Lanter. "A volte lo mettevamo nel box del teaser per convincerlo a stuzzicare le cavalle e cercare di metterlo dell'umore giusto.

“Nel complesso era migliore della maggior parte degli stalloni. Troppe persone credono nell'insieme, "gli stalloni sono malvagi e possono ucciderti", cosa e mentre era certamente vero per alcuni - e ho sicuramente avuto un paio - la maggior parte non sono malvagi e Jump Start era la cosa più lontana da. Aveva un atteggiamento straordinario ed era una gioia averlo intorno. Non riceveva molti visitatori che venivano solo a vederlo, ma quando le persone volevano avvicinarsi a uno stallone mi sentivo sempre al sicuro lasciando che gli fossero vicini.

Ed era bello, soprattutto per un cavallo così grande. A volte i cavalli grandi non sono così raffinati e hanno un aspetto più naturale, ma Jump Start era un cavallo molto carino."

“Quando si tratta di stalloni, abbiamo sempre aspettative realistiche, quindi quando hanno avuto successo come tori è sempre stato bello quando li hanno superati e Jump Start sicuramente lo ha fatto ", ricorda Lanter. "Mi è piaciuto guardare e leggere dei suoi corridori e dei loro successi.

"Quando ho letto che è morto ero triste, eravamo amici, lui era l'amico di mio figlio", ha ricordato Lanter.

Storie di stalloni:alleva un nativo

Di Margaret Ransom

Wes Lanter, nativo di Lexington, Kentucky, ha trascorso la maggior parte della sua vita circondato da alcuni dei migliori purosangue dell'ultima generazione.

Il veterano cavaliere ha servito sia come stalliere che come manager di stalloni in alcuni degli allevamenti di maggior successo e famosi nel Bluegrass, tra cui Spendthrift Farm, Three Chimneys e Overbrook Azienda agricola. Ha anche lavorato al Kentucky Horse Park. Nel corso della sua carriera di oltre 30 anni, il 54enne ha lavorato con tre vincitori della Triple Crown, purosangue e standard, cinque ulteriori vincitori del Kentucky Derby e più campioni e Hall of Fame.

Il cavallo

Pedigree: Danzatrice nativa—Raise You, di Case Ace
Colore: Castagno
Nato: 18 aprile 1961—28 luglio 1988
Allevatore: Happy Hill Farm
Proprietario: Louis Wolfson (fattoria con vista sul porto)
Allenatore: Burley Parke
Record di carriera: 4-4-0-0
Guadagni di carriera: $ 45.955

Vittorie Notevoli

Great American Stakes, Juvenile Stakes

Risultati

Campione americano di 2 anni (1963)

Il "grande rosso" di Spendthrift

Il suo nome compare anche nelle linee dei padri di quasi due dozzine di vincitori del Kentucky Derby:Country House, Justify, American Pharoah, Always Dreaming, I'll Have Another, Super Saver, Street Sense, Smarty Jones, Funny Cide, War Emblem, Monarchos, Fusaichi Pegasus, Real Quiet, Grindstone, Thunder Gulch, Strike the Gold, Unbridled, Alysheba, Genuine Risk, Affermato e Majestic Prince.

È difficile guardare un pedigree moderno di purosangue e non trovarvi Allevare un nativo, ed è sicuro dire che anche le persone con un interesse passeggero per le corse e l'allevamento di purosangue sanno chi Alleva Un nativo era e la sua importanza per la razza.

"Era già quello che era quando sono arrivato alla stalla degli stalloni", ricorda Lanter. “Ma ho imparato presto molto su di lui. Voglio dire, ricordo di averlo guardato e di aver studiato le statistiche del suo padre e di aver pensato che fosse tragico che corresse solo quattro volte. Penso che anche lui abbia stabilito un record ogni volta che ha corso.

"Charles Hatton, il grande scrittore di erba, una volta scrisse di Raise A Native a 2 anni:"Raise a Native ha funzionato lungo il tratto dorsale di Belmont stamattina. Gli alberi ondeggiavano.' E ci ho sempre pensato quando ho pensato a Allevare un nativo."

Raise A Native aveva ben 20 anni quando lui e Lanter si sono incontrati per la prima volta, ma ciò che lo ha colpito dello stallone è stata la sua giovinezza e la sua forma fisica.

"Era uno stallone più anziano, ma era così muscoloso", ha detto Lanter. “Era costruito come un carro armato. Penso che qualsiasi persona da quarter horse sarebbe rimasta colpita dal suo aspetto. Sembrava l'epitome della massima forma fisica anche a quell'età."

Una cosa che Raise A Native amava era il suo lavoro di stallone, afferma Lanter. La maggior parte degli stalloni ama il proprio lavoro, ha osservato, e Raise A Native è sempre stato un "buon allevatore". Ma ogni volta, dopo il suo appuntamento con una cavalla, passava del tempo speciale con lei prima di essere portato via.

"Clem (Brooks, famoso lo sposo del grande Nashua) lo chiamava 'Big Red'", ricorda Lanter. “Così lo chiamavamo tutti 'Big Red'. E dopo ogni accoppiamento portavano Raise A Native sulla testa della cavalla e Clem diceva:"Baciala, Big Red. Baciala." E lo fece, avrebbe strofinato il muso sulla sua cavalla. Raise A Native aveva una buona personalità, davvero."

Alleva un nativo, l'insegnante

Raise A Native, che è stato ritirato nel 1963 dopo aver sofferto di un tendine piegato, si è assolutamente guadagnato il diritto di comportarsi come voleva, anche se l'equipaggio di stallieri di Spendthrift Farm continuava a gli ha fatto badare alle buone maniere per la maggior parte. Ciò non significava che lo stallone non mettesse alla prova i suoi umani, specialmente Lanter.

"Raise A Native non era affatto un cattivo cavallo e aveva una buona personalità", ricorda Lanter. “Ma sicuramente conosceva il suo pubblico. Aveva ragazzi con cui prendeva di mira e per cui rendeva tutto difficile, e io ero sicuramente uno di quelli per lui.

“Clem (Brooks) mi diceva di andare a prendere Raise A Native. Quindi andrei laggiù a prenderlo e lui sarebbe solo un asino. Mi sarei avvicinato a prenderlo e lui si sarebbe girato e sarebbe scappato. Era come se stesse dicendo:"Non mi stai prendendo, ragazzo. Non te lo sei ancora guadagnato.' Poteva davvero essere un idiota, ma era Raise A Native.'

Nonostante la sua impronta sulla razza purosangue, Raise A Native non ha attirato il maggior numero di fan per la visione una volta che i vincitori della Triple Crown Seattle Slew e Affirmed si sono presentati alla Spendthrift Farm, ricorda Lanter. Ma è sempre stato considerato il "cavallo da piedistallo" e quando veniva mostrato ai visitatori la maggior parte rimaneva in soggezione per la sua bellezza.

"Voglio dire, tutti a quel tempo venivano per lo più a vedere lo Slew e si affermava", ha detto Lanter. "Il che aveva senso dal momento che avevano appena vinto entrambi la Triple Crown, ma abbiamo mostrato molto a Raise A Native e ho sentito persone paragonare Raise A Native a un Adone equino, che era una descrizione perfetta di lui."

Lanter aveva lasciato la Spendthrift Farm per nuove opportunità quando Raise A Native fu soppresso nel 1988 all'età di 27 anni a causa di una degenerazione spinale, ma prova un tremendo senso di orgoglio quando ricorda il suo tempo con la castagna, che ha contribuito a plasmare per sempre la razza.

"Ricordo quando morì", ricorda Lanter. “Sulla copertina di Blood-Horse, l'ultimo numero della sua vita, c'era una foto di Seeking the Gold e Forty Niner che si scontravano fino al limite nel Travers Stakes di quell'anno. Non mi era sfuggito che i suoi due nipoti stavano duellando per vincere il Midsummer Derby, probabilmente uno dei più grandi pali del calendario delle corse. Nel bene e nel male cambiò razza e quell'immagine fu un classico esempio e un grande tributo.

“Aver lavorato con lui significa sicuramente più per me ora che quando avevo 19 anni. Cosa c'è da dire su di lui? Era un grande cavallo, una grande influenza e sono stato certamente abbastanza fortunato da essere stato anche lì a Spendthrift con lui."

Storie di stalloni:J.O. Tobin

Di Margaret Ransom

Wes Lanter, nativo di Lexington, Kentucky, ha trascorso la maggior parte della sua vita circondato da alcuni dei migliori purosangue dell'ultima generazione.

Il veterano cavaliere ha servito sia come stalliere che come manager di stalloni in alcuni degli allevamenti di maggior successo e conosciuti nel Bluegrass, tra cui Spendthrift Farm, Three Chimneys e Overbrook Azienda agricola. Ha anche lavorato al Kentucky Horse Park. Nel corso della sua carriera di oltre 30 anni, il 54enne ha lavorato con tre vincitori della Triple Crown, sia purosangue che standard, altri cinque vincitori del Kentucky Derby e più campioni e Hall of Famer.

Il cavallo

Pedigree :Never Bend-Hill Shade, di Hillary
Colore :baia scuro/marrone
Nato :28 marzo 1974; Morto:1994
Allevatore/proprietario :George A. Pope jr.
Istruttori :Noel Murless, John H. Adams, Laz Barerra
Fantini :Lester Piggott, Bill Shoemaker
Record di carriera :21-12-2-2
Guadagni di carriera :$668.159

Vittorie Notevoli

Laurent Perrier Champagne Stakes (G2T); Richmond Stakes (G2T); Swap quote (G1); handicap coronado; puntate californiane (G1); Pali di Malibu (G2); Handicap San Bernardino (G2); Prima Handicap; handicap di Los Angeles (G2); Tom Fool Handicap.

Risultati

Bambino britannico di 2 anni più votato nel 1976; 1978 velocista co-campione dell'Eclipse Award (con Dr. Patches); imposta NTR Hollywood Park, 1 1/8 miglia in 1:47

Lo stallone e il novellino

All'epoca in cui Lanter incontrò J.O. Tobin, era uno sposo di 19 anni fresco di scuola e il suo breve periodo di lavoro con gli yearling a Spendthrift a Lexington quando è stato "chiamato alle grandi leghe" per lavorare con gli stalloni. Questo è stato un grosso problema per il debuttante, che voleva più di ogni altra cosa trascorrere la sua carriera lavorando con loro.

"Per arrivare alla divisione stalloni, sei stato sicuramente promosso nella squadra 'A'", ricorda Lanter di quel giorno nel 1983 quando entrò nella vecchia U- stallone a forma di complesso a Spendthrift. “Quindi ero io, il ragazzo, che entravo in questo gruppo di uomini più anziani che erano lì da sempre, tutti i signori più anziani, gli stalloni di vecchia data. Potevano essere un po' scontrosi, ma il lavoro era la loro vita e ne erano molto orgogliosi; erano tutti molto orgogliosi di essere stalloni stalloni.”

All'epoca la Spenthrift allevava più fattrici da ogni dove e il complesso degli stalloni ospitava alcuni dei migliori tori della storia.

"È stato un grande complimento che si siano fidati di me abbastanza da spostarmi nella divisione stalloni", ha ricordato Lanter. “Quando sei entrato in quel fienile e hai girato a destra, c'era Seattle Slew, J.O. Tobin, Valdez, Caro, Gallant Man, Affermato, Wajima, Lord Avie, Raise A Native, Mehmet, State Dinner e Northern Jove, che in realtà era un teaser nel Maryland prima che scoprissero che era anche un buon padre.

“Ero solo un ragazzino, ma ero un grande fan delle corse e avevo letto tutto sugli stalloni, specialmente quelli più grandi. È stato un onore andare al lavoro ogni giorno."

Accanto a Seattle Slew viveva J.O. Tobin, che era interessante in quel J.O. Tobin ha consegnato al suo vicino imbattuto, vincitore della Triple Crown, la sua prima sconfitta in carriera negli Swaps Stakes del 1977 all'Hollywood Park. Il figlio ben educato di Never Bend, che ha iniziato la sua carriera agonistica in Inghilterra prima di essere portato a casa all'età di 3 anni, è stato chiamato per uno dei membri fondatori del San Francisco Chronicle.

“J.O. Tobin, che abbiamo chiamato solo Tobin, molto probabilmente potrebbe ancora essere il cavallo più bello che abbia mai visto", ricorda Lanter. “Voglio dire, era incredibilmente bello. Era fondamentalmente un dipinto ad olio. E, naturalmente, sapevo che aveva battuto Slew e io ero un grande fan di Slew, quindi c'era quel rispetto. Ricordo che Karen (Taylor, co-proprietario di Seattle Slew) disse che c'era stato un terremoto a Los Angeles il giorno prima (gli Swaps) e che aveva scosso anche Slew, ma penso che quel giorno Tobin fosse solo più pronto per il vincere per una serie di motivi."

Tobin l'insegnante

Gli stalloni, di regola, possono comportarsi male, ma pochi hanno le stesse stranezze negative. Alcuni sono segnalati come cattivi e/o difficili, altri possono essere bizzarri nel capannone di allevamento e altri possono essere semplicemente imprevedibili. Tobin, ricorda Lanter, era semplicemente difficile.

"Tobin è stato il primo stallone a sfuggirmi", ricorda Lanter. “Si è impennato, ha messo la gamba sopra lo stinco e ha fatto quel trucco, ed era finita. Tutti gridavano:"Lascialo andare, lascialo andare" e io l'ho fatto, ma è stata una lezione che mi ha insegnato. Era sempre difficile, quindi era solo lui. Si stava facendo una doccia ed è allora che l'ha fatto. Allora ho imparato come aggiustarlo, basta allungare la mano e afferrare il gambo vicino alla testa, ma è stata la mia prima lezione e non l'ho mai dimenticato.''

E ogni giorno al lavoro con Tobin era una lezione di pazienza, ricorda Lanter.

"Era solo molto nervoso", ha spiegato Lanter. “Non era duro, davvero, o cattivo. Era solo molto teso, ma gestibile. Era difficile portarlo nel suo paddock e portare ogni giorno una sfida. Era bravo quando andavi a lasciarlo andare, non si staccava dal cancello prima che tu fossi pronto e si allontanava e lo faceva, ma era sempre pronto ad andare a sgranchirsi le gambe.

“Ricordo (fantino) Eddie Delahoussaye che una volta mi disse che ogni Tobin (figlio) che aveva cavalcato era un po' matto e troppo nervoso. Tranne Magical Mile, che era probabilmente uno dei migliori figli di Tobin. Non so se fosse questo il motivo per cui non è mai stato uno stallone, ma immagino che sfortunatamente l'abbia trasmesso."

Una visita da “Mr. maggio”

Stalloni come J. O. Tobin non hanno ricevuto moltissimi visitatori alla Spendthrift Farm, la maggior parte delle persone voleva vedere i due vincitori della Triple Crown, Seattle Slew e Affirmed. Ma questo non vuol dire che Tobin non avesse la sua parte di ammiratori, incluso un giocatore di baseball molto famoso.

Il picchiatore della major league Dave Winfield venne a Spendthrift per una visita a metà degli anni '80 e prese in simpatia J. O. Tobin. Lanter, che a sua volta è alto più di un metro e ottanta, stava mostrando lo stallone al picchiatore di 6 piedi e 6, 220 libbre quando è successo qualcosa che non era mai successo prima.

"Winfield mi ha tolto il gambo dalla mano", ricorda Lanter. "Ha detto:'Ecco, lasciami tenere quel cavallo'. E Tobin non si voltò di un capello. Rimase lì come un campione. Non potevo crederci. Eccolo lì, questo gigante di un uomo che si aggrappava a questo stallone che poteva essere molto difficile, ma era ben educato e non sussultava. Quel giorno noi tutti (l'equipaggio degli stalloni) abbiamo scattato una foto con Winfield e Tobin a tutti i cavalli."

Cosa avrebbe potuto essere

Entrambi J.O. Tobin e Seattle Slew hanno assunto il servizio di stallone alla Spendthrift lo stesso anno, 1979, ed entrambi hanno ricevuto lo stesso compenso a sei cifre di $ 150.000. Quando sono andati in pensione, le tasse per entrambi avevano un senso.

“Sono andati a stallone allo stesso tempo e allo stesso prezzo e se avessi chiesto a qualcuno allora chi sarebbe stato uno stallone migliore, l'opinione popolare era di sicuro Tobin», spiegò Lanter. “Aveva il pedigree come figlio di Never Bend, ed era fuori dal buon produttore Hill Shade. Aveva molti aspetti positivi. È difficile immaginarlo da allora, considerando come si sono rivelate le loro carriere di stalloni, ma è vero."

Eppure nonostante il fatto che J.O. Tobin era molto apprezzato sia per il suo pedigree che per il record di razza, e ha attirato alcune delle migliori fattrici nei suoi primi raccolti - "non porti Becky dal Back 40 a uno stallone da $ 150.000", ha detto Lanter - non è mai stato in grado di vivere fino alle speranze e alle aspettative iniziali stabilite per lui quando è andato in pensione e ha lasciato Spendthrift alla fine degli anni '80, rimbalzando in diverse fattorie prima di concludere la sua carriera nel New Mexico, dove è morto nel 1994 all'età di 20 anni.

"Non ricordo la morte di Tobin, a quel punto ero passato a Three Chimneys", ha detto Lanter. “Ma ho ritagliato il suo necrologio da The Thoroughbred Times.

“Immagino che quando penso a lui – tutti quelli con cui ho lavorato – alla fine sono solo cavalli. Non mi fece una grande impressione come altri, ma era bello come può essere un cavallo e me lo ricordo. E se hai chiesto a qualcuno che ha lavorato con lui, ha fatto un'impressione positiva anche su di loro, anche se non era la più grande star."

Storie di stalloni:Storm Cat

Di Wes Lanter (raccontato a Margaret Ransom)

Una cosa dell'industria dei purosangue nel suo insieme è che a volte sembra che si muova alla velocità dei cavalli. Solo nell'emisfero settentrionale, ogni anno inizia con la speranza di nuovi puledri, seguito dalla stagione riproduttiva di cinque mesi con le dita incrociate di tutti, quindi la ricerca di indossare le rose Derby e il Triple Crown Trail, i grandi incontri estivi su ogni costa e, poi, il conto alla rovescia per la Breeders' Cup, che si chiude e celebra quello che viene sempre ricordato come un anno sensazionale. E alla fine molti di noi si guardano indietro e pensano:"Come ha fatto a passare così velocemente?"

Ma per quanto per alcuni sembri che il tempo passi velocemente, a volte il tempo si ferma per altri. Il grande stallone Storm Cat è morto 5 anni e mezzo fa ed è difficile credere che siano passati dieci anni da quando sono arrivati gli ultimi tre puledri purosangue - più un Quarter Horse - del grande stallone, ma la sua influenza sulla razza, così come sulle persone che lo amava e si prendeva cura di lui, rimane.

Per Wes Lanter, responsabile della vita di Storm Cat alla Overbrook Farm di Lexington, nel Kentucky, a partire dal 2000 fino alla chiusura della celebre attività di purosangue di WT Young nel 2009 e anche oltre , gli anni sono passati, ma i ricordi forti e l'amore per Storm Cat rimangono, a volte come se il tempo si fosse fermato.

Con la stagione riproduttiva del 2019 appena iniziata, facciamo una passeggiata nel viale dei ricordi con l'ex manager degli stalloni di Overbrook Farm e ricordiamo uno degli stalloni più famosi e prolifici della memoria recente e il suo tempo a Overbrook Farm, dove il ragazzo di razza Pennsylvania ha trascorso tutta la sua vita dopo le gare.

Occhi sempre il gatto della tempesta

Poco dopo che Lanter è arrivato all'Overbrook Farm per assumere il suo incarico di allevatore di stalloni, i proprietari dell'allevamento hanno deciso che Storm Cat lo avrebbe sempre tenuto d'occhio. Un sistema di sicurezza ad alta tecnologia era già in atto e diversi guardiani notturni erano responsabili del mantenimento del benessere di tutti i cavalli quando il personale diurno era tornato a casa, ma con la quota di allevamento di Storm Cat di $ 500.000 (nessuna garanzia) che lo rendeva lo stallone più prezioso del Nord All'epoca in America, furono messe in atto più precauzioni per garantire la sua sicurezza.

"[All'epoca] lasciarono andare un ragazzo", ricorda Lanter. “Viveva e lavorava nella fattoria, ma nessuno era veramente sicuro della sua vita e delle sue attività al di fuori di lì. Era letteralmente l'impiegato più improbabile di Overbrook Farm, un ragazzo trasandato e trasandato e non so come sia riuscito a superare la prima parte verbale della sua intervista, ma non era decisamente tipico.

“Mr. Young ha sempre protetto la sua fattoria per molta cautela, dalla recinzione che rotolava con la topografia e non essendo solo paddock quadrati, ai cavalli. Era un architetto e un artista con un occhio attento da architetto e artista e quelle decisioni venivano sempre prese anche nel migliore interesse dei cavalli. Il ragazzo non ha mai fatto alcuna minaccia di cui io sia a conoscenza, ma ha sicuramente innervosito alcune persone quando se ne è andato."

Una piccola baracca di guardia completa di climatizzatore completo è stata costruita in uno dei due paddock di Storm Cat, quello più vicino alla stalla e al capannone di allevamento, o "sotto" dove trascorreva la maggior parte della stagione riproduttiva e aveva una persona di guardia a tempo pieno vicino al suo paddock lontano dal centro della fattoria, o "in cima alla collina" durante i mesi estivi e autunnali. Nessuno che non avrebbe dovuto essere vicino a Storm Cat è mai stato vicino a Storm Cat.

E anche tenendolo sempre d'occhio, a volte Storm Cat non rendeva le cose facili ai suoi assistenti. Era sempre in buona salute, nel complesso, ma a volte aveva un talento nel causare panico non necessario.

"Poteva essere molto teso e a volte era un concentrato di energia, quindi eravamo sicuramente preoccupati che si facesse del male, ma non era cattivo", ricorda Lanter. “He had a reputation, I suppose, when he was younger, but he was, what, 17 years old by the time I started working with him later in his life, so maybe he’d aged out of a lot of it, I don’t know.

“I remember the first time I went to put the shank on him [and] I don’t know if he was testing me or what, but he kind of acted up and I let him get over it. We always got along well after that. He always knew when it was time to come in; it was like he wore a wristwatch. He came in every day at two when he was turned out and, when we’d head up there to get him, he’d start walking — like he was reminding us it was his time to come in.

“One rainy day, he was out and he went tearing across it and he kind of did this little jump and side kick, and when he did it and landed, the wet ground kind of went out from underneath him and he did a complete somersault right in front of me. I immediately called [resident vet and general manager] Dr. Yokum and he checked him out thoroughly and he was fine, but it definitely took a couple of years off my life.”

The King Meets the Queen

Sometime in about 2002, during Storm Cat’s reign as the leading sire in North America with a $500,000 stud fee, seven-figures paid for his offspring at auction, consistent stakes winners and a steady stream of the best mares in the game visiting him daily, arrangements were made for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to visit Overbrook Farm and inspect the famed stallion. Her love of horses — especially racehorses — has never been a secret to the world, so it was not a big surprise when the farm workers were notified of her scheduled visit a couple days ahead of time.

And while the Queen was interested in seeing all the horses and touring the farm, Storm Cat was her priority.

“There was no ‘meeting’ the Queen for me,” Lanter recalls. “We were given some protocol a day or so in advance to not speak to her and things like that, but we showed her both Storm Cat and also Jump Start.

“And I know she’s a grandmother, and a great grandmother and all, and she was actually dressed like one, not like you’d think a queen would be dressed. She was wearing this little printed frock you’d probably see any grandmother wear and it was kind of nice seeing her in that context. She came with [former British Ambassador and Lane’s End Farm owner] Will Farish and she seemed to enjoy inspecting [Storm Cat]. And it’s probably the only time I’ll ever be around royalty again.

“Storm Cat always had regular visitors, but the farm was private so it wasn’t a steady stream like other farms. A few celebrities came to see him over the years and, of course, breeders and mare owners, but the Queen was his most famous when I was there.”

‘The Best Beat’ and an Unlikely Friendship

As a native Lexingtonian, Lanter was well aware of the stature of Overbrook Farm owner W.T. Young and his contributions to not only the city, but also the entire state of Kentucky itself when he started his duties as Overbrook’s stallion manager. While those of us in the racing and breeding industry remember him as a successful owner and breeder of fine thoroughbreds, the late businessman is probably better known globally for his business acumen and his philanthropic endeavors.

The University of Kentucky’s library is named the William T. Young library and he served on the board of trustees for Transylvania University. Young also revived the central Kentucky village known as Shakertown, which is now a national landmark and a popular tourist destination. He was an Army officer in World War II before founding Big Top Peanut Butter, which became the brand “Jif” after Procter and Gamble purchased the company in the 1950s, and he also built and owned just about every commercial storage facility in central Kentucky. He was personally charitable, donating a large portion of his own money to many causes both in and out of the thoroughbred industry.

To Lanter, though, he was known simply as “Mr. Young” and also as an unlikely friend.

“When I started at Overbrook in 2000 I was kind of going back between Three Chimneys [where he was previously stallion manager] and Overbrook, because they hadn’t hired anyone to replace me yet,” Lanter remembered. “The opportunity to be working with Storm Cat was too much to resist and the thought of working with him was pretty cool. He was already established as a successful sire and he was absolutely a horse to be in awe of.

“He was a good racehorse, I remember that. He won the Young America Stakes and then was beaten by a nose by Tasso in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Once, Mr. Young told me that if he had won the Breeders’ Cup that he was gone, that he’d have been standing stud somewhere else. He told me it was the ‘best beat he ever took’ and, of course, he was right. Look where Storm Cat ended up — and where’s Tasso? In Saudi Arabia or something.

“One day, during the breeding season, I got a call from Mr. Young’s ‘Man Friday’ saying that Mr. Young wanted me to go to opening day at Yankee Stadium. He had heard I was a Yankees fan and he was one too. I said something about it being in the middle of breeding season, to which his assistant simply replied, ‘Mr. Young would like you to go to opening day at Yankee Stadium.’

“So we flew up there in the jet and sat in George Steinbrenner’s box in Yankee Stadium and [businessman/publisher] Steve Forbes was there, and Yogi Berra and all the greats. And I remember telling Mr. Young thank you for the experience and he simply said to me, ‘Wes I just wanted to spend some time with you and get to know you.’ He was that nice and generous, he really was.”

The Legacy That Is Storm Cat

Storm Cat, by Storm Bird, was out of the great Secretariat race mare Terlingua, who was bought by Young after her racing career was over with hopes she would become somewhat of a foundation mare for the Overbrook Farm breeding and racing program. And a foundation mare she was — almost from the start. Her first foal, a filly by Lyphard named Lyphard’s Dancer, never raced, but her second mating to Storm Bird produced Storm Cat.

Of her 11 foals, Chapel of Dreams (by Northern Dancer) was her most successful on the racetrack as a multiple graded stakes winner, but Storm Cat was her most successful overall and the one who would pass her blood on to generations of thoroughbreds to come. Terlingua spent her entire post-racing life at Overbrook. First as a member of the broodmare band and, then, as a pensioner alongside her buddy Island Kitty (by Hawaii, also a graded stakes winner and the dam of noted sire Hennessy), where she died at the ripe old age of 32.

“We had [champion and Hall of Famer] Serena’s Song visit Storm Cat every year,” Lanter remembers. “And Banshee Breeze came and, unfortunately, died foaling and so did that foal. And also Miesque, which was pretty cool. Flanders lived there and, when Serena’s Song came in, we’d all remember their history together in the [1994] Breeders’ Cup [Juvenile Fillies]. That wasn’t just a stretch run, that was a battle from the starting gate to the wire between the two. Really, the best mares came to see Storm Cat year after year.”

With his fertility declining, Storm Cat was pensioned following the 2008 breeding season, where he managed to get three thoroughbred mares in foal while artificial insemination helped create the winning Quarter Horse Stray Cat, who stands at stud today in Oklahoma.

Storm Cat was North America’s leading sire twice (1999 and 2000) and was the leading juvenile sire seven times (1992, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2002 and 2004), a record that stands today. He has been a leading broodmares sire and, according to The Jockey Club, has been represented by 811 winners from 1,452 named foals and 177 stakes winners overall. More than 90 of his yearlings sold for $1 million or more at auction and he also is recognized as a successful sire of sires.

“I’d have to say Giant’s Causeway was [Storm Cat’s] best foal,” Lanter said of the recently deceased stallion. “I mean, in the Breeders’ Cup when Mick Kinane dropped that rein and Giant’s Causeway dropped out of the bit, I thought for a minute I’d drive down to the Clay’s Ferry bridge and throw myself off. I am in no way knocking or blaming Kinane because he is one of the best ever, but it was terrible. Storm Cat always had the unfortunate reputation of not being able to produce classic-distance horses, even though he also had Cat Thief and Tabasco Cat, but Giant’s Causeway winning would have helped that a lot I think.

“Really it’s hard to choose just one because he had so many good ones, but Giant’s Causeway was the whole package. A world class racehorse and sire.”

The Long Goodbye

After the final three Storm Cat foals had arrived and the great stallion was pensioned, the writing was definitely on the wall. Arrangements were being made for the remaining active stallions to be relocated and the vibe around the farm was of impending doom.

“One day we all got called into the office and were told, ‘well, we’re dispersing,’ We were all kept on at least until after the dispersal [which was held at the 2009 Keeneland September yearling sale] and I stayed beyond, mainly to keep an eye on Storm Cat and Clockstopper [an old gelding the farm owned and raced] and to be a presence. I eventually got a job at the Kentucky Horse Park and moved off the farm, but I stopped by to visit Storm Cat as often as I could.

“Then, in the spring of 2014, I got the call telling me the time had come and that Storm Cat would be put down the next day, so I went to say goodbye. When I got there he had his head in his feed tub and he was eating, but when he realized I was there he came over to see me, as if to say goodbye, like he knew. E così è stato. He was put down the next day.”

Storm Cat was buried whole at Overbrook in spot Lanter believes won’t be in danger of being developed if the farm is sold. When Young was alive he commissioned three statues of the great stallion, one which currently marks his final resting place.

“You’d have to know the farm to find him,” Lanter said. “It’s a safe spot. He is under one of his statues, and there’s one still standing outside the old stallion division. There were three commissioned and I don’t know where the other one is, but Mr. Young did have a lot of warehouses after all, so I suspect it’s probably in one of those.”

Looking back on his tenure as Storm Cat’s chief caregiver and protector during the majority of the final years of the stallion’s life, Lanter is aware of his good fortune having been a part of his life, but more so of the stallion’s contribution to the thoroughbred breed overall.

“He has to be a top-five stallion,” Lanter said. “The legacy he left and what he produced and his influence on the industry with more than just his genes will be felt for generations. I do feel pride, like I do with all my kids. But I spent so much time with this one. It is a little different when you live right next to them and occasionally have to get up in the middle of the night in a thunderstorm to bring them inside like I did many times for Storm Cat. Sometimes when bad weather hits, those kinds of memories sneak up on you. Overall, I just appreciate having had him in my life at all.”

Stallion Stories:The Unconquerable, Invincible, Unbeatable Cigar

By Wes Lanter (as told to Margaret Ransom)

Originally posted on December 15, 2017

A racing fan to the core, there hasn’t been an important race that well-respected Kentucky horseman and stallion manager Wes Lanter hasn’t watched, especially if it included any children or grandchildren belonging to one of his boys. But in 1994, Lanter was card-carrying bandwagoner for reigning Horse of the Year Holy Bull, who would meet up with the eventual superstar known as Cigar in the 1995 Donn Handicap (GI).

What Lanter remembers most from that 1 1/8-mile race was that it was a passing of the torch from one great racehorse to another. Cigar would earn his fourth consecutive victory on the way to an eye-popping and then-record-setting streak to tie the great Citation for the most consecutive modern day wins with 16, and Holy Bull would be shuttled off to stud at Jonabell Farm in Kentucky, suffering a career-ending injury before ever reaching the half-mile pole.

If one had to take the place of his beloved Holy Bull and carry the torch and the weight of a racing industry always looking for its next superstar, Lanter couldn’t think of a better candidate than Cigar.

Cigar

Palace Music—Solar Slew, by Seattle Slew
Sex:horse
Color:bay
Lived:April 18, 1990 – October 7, 2014

Owned by:Allen E. and Madeleine Paulson
Bred by:Allen E. Paulson (Maryland)
Trained by:Bill Mott
Ridden by:Jerry Bailey

Career Record:33-19-4-5, $9,999,815

Notable Accomplishments:U.S. Racing Hall of Fame (2002), two-time Horse of the Year (1995, 1996), two-time champion older horse (1995, 1996), 12-time grade 1 winner, inaugural Dubai World Cup winner.

In 2010, Lanter returned to the Kentucky Horse Park and would manage the care of a number of top racehorses in the Hall of Champions, including a number of other standouts in harness and thoroughbred racing, none whose light shone as bright as the great Cigar. Lanter closely monitored nearly every movement Cigar made every day for four years until Cigar’s death from complications following spinal surgery in 2014.

Instant Connection

“Honestly, I was into Holy Bull,” Lanter recalls. “I remember I went out to Keeneland to watch [the Donn Handicap] and it was very anti-climactic for me to say the least. But I did have a distant connection to Cigar, because when I flew with John Henry back to New York [for his retirement tour], Palace Music [Cigar’s sire] was on the airplane. And when I was in Australia with Chief’s Crown, Palace Music was standing just down the road.”

Just about anyone who showed even a passing interest in horse racing knew who Cigar was as he stormed through 1995, and Lanter watched along with every racing fan as the Bill Mott trainee picked up victories from coast to coast, winning stakes at Oaklawn Park, Pimlico, Sufffolk Downs, Hollywood Park and Belmont Park before making the gate for the Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) as that year’s prohibitive 3-5 favorite.

“That year’s Breeders’ Cup, if you remember, was a miserable, terrible sloppy day,” Lanter said. “Watching that head-on after that race was surreal. I mean it was a miserable, wet day and, when Cigar crossed that wire, what stood out to me is that you could tell what kind of a trip he had because (jockey) Jerry Bailey’s silks were pristine and white, I mean I don’t think he got a spot of mud on him.”

And like every fan, Lanter celebrated the horse’s regular highs and irregular lows.

“It was a real pleasure to watch him [rack up wins] and I remember the appreciative crowd in Chicago,” Lanter said of the Arlington-Citation Challenge written by the Chicago area track to secure the coveted 16^th consecutive win for the Allen Paulson homebred. “And I was devastated when he lost the Pacific Classic. I don’t think there were any real racing fans who could say they didn’t feel something [when he lost].”

Breeding Industry’s Loss Becomes Racing Industry’s Gain

In 1996, after a third-place finish in his second appearance in the Breeders’ Cup Classic held that year at Woodbine, Cigar was retired to Ashford Stud in Versailles, Kentucky, to take up stallion duty as part of what was rumored to be one of the most lucrative stallion deals in thoroughbred breeding history. Early into the 1997 breeding season, however, rumors around central Kentucky started circulating about Cigar and his fertility.

“I had heard things,” Lanter remembers. “There’s a joke about how if you want to know anything about what’s going on on the farms, talk to a blacksmith or a van driver. I head he had bred 34 mares and none of them were in foal. I know at that point they hired [equine fertility specialist] Dr. Norman Umphenour, who was also the vet at Gainesway for years. Basically, he found that Cigar’s sperm had no progressive motility and would swim around in circles or their heads were largely separated from their tales.

“So the insurance company, Assicurazioni Generali, had not much choice but to pay out, but they kept trying with him before they did. And I think if he were my horse and I had to pay out on a multi-million dollar insurance policy I’d keep trying, too.

“For a while he’d go to Dr. Phil McCarthy’s place, Watercress Farm, and they’d work with him doing multiple different therapies to hopefully improve his fertility and then he’d go to the Kentucky Horse Park’s Hall of Champions for the show series. And this went on until he was 15 when they reached the end of trying and he was donated to the Commonwealth of Kentucky where he landed at the Hall of Champions permanently. It was the most interesting story and I’d never seen it before, not like that, and certainly not since.

“It’s sad that his second career ended before it ever got started, but, in the end, he did more for racing than he ever would have done as a stallion. He gave racing the most accessible and important ambassador the sport had ever seen.”

Always Everyone’s Friend

“Cigar was a very kind horse and he let a lot of people get close to him, sometimes too close if you ask me. But he never harmed anyone, he was that good,” Lanter remembers. “He’d come out of his stall and he’d stand there and pose as if to say, ‘I am the Kentucky Horse Park Ambassador.’ He loved his job and greeting people.”

Like any celebrity, the sheer volume of visitors who flocked to see him at the Kentucky Horse Park every year was staggering. He had regular yearly fans and some who lived closer who came more than once a year. With so many admirers, it was hard for Lanter to remember any who stood out, save a couple.

“One guy came from Western Kentucky pretty regularly,” Lanter recalls. “And he’d spend hours out there, sometimes three or four hours, taking pictures. I can’t imagine how many pictures he took of Cigar, had to be thousands. And one lady came on his last day ever at the Horse Park. I remember I told her I was going to groom him and I’d leave the stall door open so she could watch, and at one point I reached over and handed her a bit of tail hair and she got really emotional about it. It was nice he and I could make her happy.”

But like many celebrities, the meet-and-greets for Cigar could become exhausting. Lanter explained that the “show season” for the Hall of Champions lasts from March through Nov. 1 and while they tried to keep Cigar’s showings down to twice a day, it was sometimes hard to say no to people who came a long way to see him and had time constraints. So, the Horse Park staff compromised, sometimes much to Cigar’s chagrin.

“Sometimes, Cigar would get cranky toward the end of the season, all of the horses did,” Lanter said. “Cigar didn’t get mean or anything, he just got difficult. I don’t know if was the colder, darker days or what, but when the season was over he knew it was time.”

Signs the End Was Near

Cigar spent the better part of nine years contentedly greeting fans and visitors at the Kentucky Horse Park when, in late March of 2014, Lanter noticed that when the 24-year-old horse come in from his paddock to eat his breakfast, he was dragging his left hind leg a bit. Up until that point Cigar had only faced issues associated with most healthy horses his age, but that day was different.

“I always came in early and was the first one there to feed the horses,” Lanter remembered. “When I put his feed in he always came right up, but that day it took him longer and he was dragging his left hind leg. At first I thought he had injured it, but since I couldn’t find anything outward aside from swelling, we treated just the cellulitis.

“He had a full bandage and a sweat on that back leg and he had every treatment possible:the eStem, acupuncture, physical therapy — everything you can imagine. He seemed to improve, but by late April or early May, he was standing and kind of listing to one side so we started treatment for EPM. When that didn’t work, we took him to Haygard Davidson McGee [equine hospital] for a full x-ray, one that was better than the mobile ones he’d had up until that point.

“The x-rays unfortunately showed he had a vertebra out of alignment and it was possibly pinching his spinal cord and causing severe ataxia. So, we brought him home and did a lot of therapy, including a deep tissue massage therapy that was a five-week process. By the first week of October, though, we had shipped him to Rood and Riddle for a myelogram with the different dyes and contrasts and, right after that, the discussions started about whether or not to do the ‘Seattle Slew surgery’ and fix the vertebra.

“It all happened so fast, but [after the operation] he never could get his hind end underneath him again even with the sling. I was there with him every minute and we were all urging him to fight and once I even joked with him, ‘Come on and stand up and fight you sterile bastard.’ To which he replied by turning his head and giving me the dirtiest look. He literally gave me the stink eye and I had to laugh. But he didn’t have much fight left, unfortunately.”

Memories to Last a Lifetime

Losing Cigar at the Hall of Champions was palpable to the fans and visitors, but most especially to the people who cared for him and watched over him daily. The constant reminders of his life remain, however, right down to his final resting place.
“Every day when he was let out into his paddock he’d run down to the corner and rear straight up, as high as a horse could rear and to the point where we were afraid he’d flip over. But he never did. He just exuded greatness in everything he did and was always ready to put on a show. His attitude and demeanor was always suited to be the great racehorse he was and I’m sorry his stallion career didn’t work out, but his racehorse personality was also perfectly suited to be the great racing ambassador that he became.”

And in fitting tribute, Cigar was buried in the corner by his paddock at the spot where he was happiest — the same location he’d rear with happiness every day he was let out.

“Also there was this one spot in his paddock where he’d roll every day and it actually left an indention in the ground where he did it — the exact same spot every day. It’s Funny Cide’s paddock now, but I hope the indention is still there.”
The Kentucky Horse Park held two memorials for Cigar, one a few weeks after his death and another to unveil the Douwe “Dow” Blumberg statue just over a year later.

“The first was on a typical cold, winter day in Kentucky,” Lanter remembers. “We had to honor him closer to his death and the fans had to come pay their respects. We couldn’t get any of his connections to come on short notice, but, as cold as it was, I think at least 300 people came out to say goodbye. Era agrodolce. I gave a eulogy; it was hard, but it was something I had to do.

“Then the questions came up about his second memorial and statue and what the statute would look like. I thought of the Barbaro statue at Churchill Downs, a running statue. It was my thought that Cigar was a great racehorse and wasn’t ever known as a great stallion, so he should be memorialized not standing like a stud, like all the other statues, but as the racehorse he was. And everyone agreed.

“The artist who did it is the same one who did the statue honoring the victims of the Lexington plane crash from flight 5191 in 2006 that’s at the the Arboretum with a dove representing each of the victims. Before he started, he went to all the families and was given a personal memento in each of cavity of each dove. He’s that kind of artist, so Cigar’s statue was perfect.”

On Oct. 27, 2015 on the 20^th anniversary of Cigar’s first Breeders’ Cup Classic victory at Belmont Park, a crowd of people that included his Hall of Fame jockey (Jerry Bailey) and trainer (Bill Mott) turned out at the Kentucky Horse Park to witness the unveiling. The horse had been gone a year, but his absence was felt by everyone in attendance and each of his connections spoke about their memories of the great Hall of Famer.

Lanter said that once he had a discussion with someone about how sometimes living beings save their loved ones the memory of their last moments by dying when they’re not present. Looking back on the last day of Cigar’s life, he believes that Cigar chose this route, ending his fight while nobody who loved and cared for him was around.

“The day he passed Dr. [Steve] Reed said for all of us to go and take a break and get a sandwich or whatever. And while we were gone, he died. I was told that the nerves in an operation like that can sometime affect the diaphragm, so he just stopped breathing. He waited for all of us to leave so he could go… dignified ending to a dignified life.

“On the night Cigar died we had a typical Kentucky thunderstorm, tremendous lighting and thunder. I thought it was fitting, I thought it was the heavens welcoming home the lightning on earth we had for a little while.”

Wes Lanter has spent most of his life surrounded by some of the best thoroughbreds of the last generation. The veteran horseman served as both stallion groom and/or stallion manager at the most successful and popular breeding farms in the Bluegrass, including Spendthrift Farm, Three Chimneys and Overbrook Farm, in addition to a pair of separate stints at the Kentucky Horse Park. Over his nearly 30-plus-year career, the 52-year-old has worked with three Triple Crown winners, both thoroughbred and Standardbred, five additional Kentucky Derby winners and multiple champions and Hall of Famers.

A walking encyclopedia of most things thoroughbred racing, Lanter is sharing his favorite stories about the horses whose lives he considers himself to be privileged to have been a part of throughout his career. Since leaving his position as Equine Section Supervisor at the Kentucky Horse Park’s Hall of Champions in 2015, Lanter has been working on compiling stories about his horses and deciding where his next life chapter will come from. Lanter also is the proud father of 21-year-old Noah, a standout baseball pitcher and outfielder at Ridgewater College in Willmar, Minnesota.

***

Stallion Stories:Go For Gin

By Wes Lanter (as told to Margaret Ransom)
Originally posted on May 2, 2018

This year marks the 24^th anniversary of Go For Gin’s triumph in the 1994 Kentucky Derby (G1), and while he’s not the oldest living Kentucky Derby winner – 1993 winner Sea Hero is reported to be a happy pensioner in Turkey – he is the oldest one on American soil, and is also very accessible to thousands of racing fans every year as a resident at the Kentucky Horse Park’s Hall of Champions.

Though not impeccably bred or particularly expensive, Go For Gin did boast some lofty connections in his breeder (a DuPont), owners (a board game tycoon and financier), and his Hall of Fame trainer and jockey. Everything came together perfectly for the son of Cormorant on that first Saturday in May in 1994.

Go For Gin stood several seasons at Claiborne Farm in Kentucky and was then moved to Bonita Farm in Maryland before landing in his forever home at the Kentucky Horse Park. He lived out his remaining years just about an hour up I-64 from where he earned what would be his last, yet most important career victory in the Run for the Roses at Churchill Downs.

In 2011, Wes Lanter was serving as Equine Section Supervisor at the Hall of Champions when the decision was made by Go For Gin’s living co-owner, Joe Cornacchia, to donate the then 20-year-old stallion. For more than four years, Lanter was responsible for the day-to-day life of the big, brown stallion and he considers himself very fortunate to have spent several years showing him off to racing fans from around the world.

Go For Gin

Cormorant—Never Knock, by Stage Door Johnny
Sex:Horse Color:Dark Bay/Brown
Foaled:April 18, 1991

Owned by:William Condren and Joseph Cornacchia
Bred by:Pamela DuPont Darmstadt
Trained by:Nick Zito
Ridden by:Chris McCarron

Career Record:19-5-7-2, $1,380,866

Notable Performances:Won 1994 Kentucky Derby, won 1993 Remsen Stakes (G2), won 1994 Preview Stakes (LS), second 1994 Preakness Stakes (G1), second 1994 Belmont Stakes (G1).

Surprise Resident

Lanter remembers the Horse Park – somewhat surprisingly — being asked to care for Go For Gin and place him in the Hall of Champions. John Henry had passed away and the thoroughbred stars at that point were Cigar and Funny Cide, so Go For Gin would at that time make a nice addition, Lanter remembered. “It was a bit different in that he was an in tact, breeding stallion,” Lanter recalls when told the news.

“And when he arrived he definitely let everyone know. He had quarantined for about a month at Dan Considine’s place before coming over so we had time to get ready; and though we were ready, it took Go For Gin a bit to settle in.

“When the Hall of Champions was built, it was kind of by itself with not much around, but over the years they constructed all these show barns around it so there was a ton of activity. And he arrived in the summer, so there were shows all the time. People would tie their horses to the fences around his paddock and it got him, um, worked up. There were signs to stay off the grass and there was a little space between his paddock and the fence, but it was rough for him at first because nobody stayed off the grass.

“He settled in eventually and once he got used to the crowds and that level of attention, he became thoroughly content as a resident. Anytime a Derby winner is in residence somewhere, it always brings a little extra excitement, so that was great.”

Though Go For Gin sold at auction for $150,000 as a Fasig-Tipton New York August yearling in 1992, his final sales price was on the lower end of horses selling through auctions in the early 1990s. He didn’t have a flashy pedigree and was only a $32,000 weanling the previous fall, but when Lanter first laid eyes on Go For Gin he recognized immediately what made the stallion a stand out.

“He is absolutely magnificent looking,” Lanter said. “He is very regal and even to those who see horses every day, he stood out as a very good looking horse. It is not an understatement to say he is a very, very good-looking horse. And he was smart. Though he is pushy, kind of a bully, he isn’t mean or aggressive. He just pushes you. And he’ll drag you if he could. And that’s his way, so we all got used to it.

“One young lady worked for me and she really didn’t like him at first; he pushed all her buttons, but he grew on her and before long became her favorite and they kind of became peanut butter and jelly. I noticed the other day when it was his birthday, she was the first to wish him a happy birthday on social media. He was that kind of horse, he tested you and you fell in love with him.”

Remembering a Derby Champion

An important part of life for the residents of the Hall of Champions are the shows they do for fans, sometimes three per a day. While some employees needed a class or a cheat sheet on Go For Gin, Lanter remembered the horse’s time in the sun well, being a consummate racing fan.

“I remember the weather being a blessing for him on Derby day that year,” Lanter recalled of that May day in 1994. “I remember how he loved the mud and just kind of skipped across the surface that day. Strodes Creek definitely made a run at him, but he could not get by Go For Gin. And I know the Derby was his last career victory, though he was second in the other two (Preakness and Belmont Stakes).

“One thing I definitely remember is Chris McCarron working him one last time before the Derby. He was in town, I think, for the Derby Trial that Saturday and (trainer Nick) Zito asked him to work him the next Sunday morning. I remember Chris working him and getting off and saying to everyone, ‘Yeah he’s good. That was good.’ I remembered that when he won.”

Disappointing Stallion Career Becomes Fan Bonus

Expectations for Go For Gin as a sire, who retired in 1995 to Claiborne Farm after suffering a tendon injury, were high, but he never really took off for breeders and after some dismal crops, was transferred to Bonita Farm in Maryland for nine years. Though he was represented by Grade 1 winner Albert The Great, I don’t think anyone is shy about saying his stallion career was a disappointment overall.

“The sad thing about Go For Gin is his stallion career,” Lanter remembered. “I think he sired only, like, seven stakes winners and his success as sire was sparse. Sending him to the Kentucky Horse Park was the best thing for him, he could finally be remembered for the great racehorse he was and not the disappointment in the breeding shed.

“I remember one lady had an OTTB who was a daughter of Go For Gin. She came over to see him one day. And Chris McCarron would come out and visit. I mean, that was kind of Chris’ stall since John Henry was also in there. I remember walking back from lunch one day and Chris was out there in the middle of his paddock. I was thinking, ‘Chris, you do know that is still an in-tact stallion.’ But I knew he was ok, though I think when he did that he didn’t take his time coming out of the paddock, but he was OK.

“The thing I think people learn quickly about Go For Gin is that he’s a really, really neat horse and he gets to show that to people as a member of the Hall of Champions.”

***

Stallion Stories:Remembering the First Breeders’ Cup Winner Ever

By Wes Lanter (as told to Margaret Ransom)
Originally posted on November 1, 2017

Lexington, Kentucky, native Wes Lanter has spent most of his life surrounded by some of the best thoroughbreds of the last generation. The veteran horseman served as both stallion groom and/or stallion manager at the most successful and popular breeding farms in the Bluegrass, including Spendthrift Farm, Three Chimneys and Overbrook Farm, in addition to a pair of separate stints at the Kentucky Horse Park. Over his nearly 30-plus-year career, the 52-year-old has worked with three Triple Crown winners, both thoroughbred and Standardbred, five additional Kentucky Derby winners and multiple champions and Hall of Famers.

In April of 1994, longtime Kentucky horseman John Gaines announced his plan for the Breeders’ Cup championship racing series featuring multiple divisions and ages based on stallion nominations and foal payments. Now, 34 years later, Lanter remembers the years he spent and the global adventures he shared with the winner of the first-ever Breeders’ Cup race ever, 1994 Juvenile winner Chief’s Crown.

Chief’s Crown

Danzig – Six Crowns, by Secretariat
Sex:horse
Color:bay
Lived:April 7, 1982 – April 29, 1997

Owned by:Star Crown Stable
Bred by:Carl Rosen
Trained by:Roger Laurin

Record:21-12-3-3, $2,191,18

Notable Accomplishments:Champion 2-year-old (1984), eight-time Grade I winner.

In 1984, as a few handful of horses headed to Hollywood Park and the first-ever Breeders’ Cup, Wes Lanter was a groom at Spendthrift Farm near Lexington, KY, and readily admits his focus was mostly on Slew o’Gold and a troublesome foot that could jeopardize his chances to win the inaugural Classic. But as a racing fan, he knew Chief’s Crown, as the first big son of Danzig, would be the one to beat in the Juvenile off five straight graded stakes scores.

Stallion Geography

“I, of course, knew who Chief’s Crown was when I arrived at Three Chimneys in 1990,” Lanter remembers. “How can any racing fan not know the first winner of any Breeders’ Cup race ever? I mean, he was a four-time Grade 1 winner and really put Danzig on the map. So, I showed up at Three Chimneys and he was there and from then on he was always special to me.”

After five years at Three Chimneys with Chief’s Crown, the Kentucky farm made a deal with Arrowfield Stud in Australia for the southern hemisphere breeding season. At the time, Lanter saw it as an opportunity for an exciting travel experience with one of his favorite horses.

“They really wanted him down there and they wanted someone to go with him, except nobody wanted to go,” Lanter remembered. “I said, ‘Hell yes I’ll go.’ I saw it as an exciting experience, so I packed up and moved. My girlfriend at the time went with me and Chief and off we went.”

Lanter recalls his time in Australia as a learning experience.

“Australia is brilliant, but for some things they have entirely different ways of doing things,” Lanter remembers. “They do a lot of things in a group management situation. It’s definitely not as ‘hands on’ as we do things up here and they operate with less help, but it works — can’t argue with their results.”

After six months Down Under, Lanter and Chief’s Crown returned to Central Kentucky and their duties as stallion and stallion manager at Three Chimneys. It wasn’t long before Chief’s Crown became one of Lanter’s all-time favorites.

“Chief was always very easy,” Laner recalls. “He was always all-business. He knew his job and did it well. He didn’t have time for any bull.

“Once he had some visitors and, we all know the type, the ones who consider their horsemanship skills infallible. And you can’t tell them anything, so I didn’t tell him anything. So, this guy and his friend and myself went out to see Chief and I said, ‘I can bring him out if you want.’ He told me no, of course, that it wasn’t necessary and proceeded to lean up against the fence right in front of Chief.

“I told him I didn’t think it was a good idea to stand so close and to maybe give Chief some space, but he said he was fine and that he knew horses. Chief literally came charging, scaring the guy and knocking him back on the ground on his butt. His buddy couldn’t stop laughing and said to him, motioning to me, ‘He told you.’ And it wasn’t that Chief was a mean horse, he just liked things certain ways. What that guy didn’t know is that Chief was actually a very special soul and had he done things Chief’s way that wouldn’t have happened at all.”

The All-Around Horse

“Not too many horses win four Grade Is as a 2-year-old and then turn around and win four Grade Is as a 3-year-old and Chief’s Crown did that,” Lanter remembers of the Travers winner, who also beat older rivals in that year’s Marlboro Cup. “He was champion 2-year-old, but I think he should have been champion sophomore too. He didn’t win the Derby, but he just got nailed at the wire in the Preakness. He was the perfect all-around racehorse and he definitely passed that down to his offspring.

“I remember so well when Erhaab won the Epsom Derby. We were all watching at Three Chimneys and Erhaab came from so far back — like way back — and just got up in time at the wire. [Three Chimneys manager] Dan Rosenberg was so happy he brought us all out champagne to celebrate.

“He put Danzig on the map as a sire, but he was also an incredible sire himself.”

Goodbye Dear Friend

Chief’s Crown was humanely euthanized at age 15 after being found with a life-ending knee injury in his paddock. Lanter prefers to keep the details of the day to himself and instead focus on the “amazing” horse he says he was lucky to care for for so many years.

“He was my Chief,” Lanter says, voice cracking with emotion. “I don’t know how else to explain it. Yes, he won the first Breeders’ Cup race ever. And, yes, he was a champion. And he was a hell of a sire. But to me, I don’t know how else to explain it except to say that he was just ‘Chief’ to me.

“He had this air about him, a presence. Majestic, I don’t know. But of all the horses I have been lucky to have been around — and there have been many — only a couple others’ deaths hit me as hard as his . He was so much more than just a racehorse and a stallion to me. He took me around the world.”

***

Stallion Stories:Remembering the First Breeders’ Cup Classic — Wild Again and Slew o’ Gold

By Wes Lanter (as told to Margaret Ransom)
Originally posted on October 17, 2017

A walking encyclopedia of most things thoroughbred racing, Lanter is sharing his favorite stories about the horses whose lives he considers himself privileged to have been a part of throughout his career. Since leaving his position as Equine Section Supervisor at the Kentucky Horse Park’s Hall of Champions in 2015, Lanter has been working on compiling stories about his horses and deciding where his next life chapter will come from. Lanter also is the proud father of 21-year-old Noah, a standout baseball pitcher and outfielder at Ridgewater College in Willmar, Minnesota.

A racing fan to the core, there hasn’t been an important race Lanter hasn’t watched, especially if it included any children or grandchildren belonging to one of his boys. In 1984, Lanter intently followed the road to the inaugural Breeders’ Cup Classic since, at the time, Grade 1 winner Slew o’ Gold was representing his great sire Seattle Slew, who Lanter worked with at Spendthrift Farm. Back then, when he watched the slugfest that developed in deep stretch on that October day at Hollywood Park, he had no idea how much a part of his life both Wild Again and Slew o’ Gold would become — let alone how they both would become a pair of his all-time favorites or that the two stallions would spend the better part of their stud careers in the very same barn.

Slew o’ Gold

Seattle Slew — Alluvial, by Buckpasser
Sex:horse
Color:bay
Lived:April 19, 1980 – October 14, 2007

Owned by:Equuesentitiy Stable (Karen and Mickey Taylor, Jim and Sally Hill)
Bred by:Claiborne Farm
Trained by:John Hertler

Record:24-12-5-1, $3,533,534

Notable Accomplishments:U.S. Racing Hall of Fame (2002), champion 3-year-old (1983), champion older male (1984), Woodward Stakes, Whitney Handicap, Jockey Club Gold Cup, Marlboro Cup, Wood Memorial.

Wild Again

Icecapade — Bushel-N-Peck, by Khaled
Sex:horse
Color:dark brown
Lived:May 22, 1980 – December 5, 2008

Owned by:Black Chip Stable (Bill Allen, Terry Beal, Ron Volkman
Trained by:Vincent Timphony

Record:28-8-7-4, $2,204,829

Notable Accomplishments:Won Breeders’ Cup Classic (1984), won New Orleans Handicap, won Oaklawn Handicap, won Meadowlands Cup.

Fate Cannot Be Controlled

Slew o’ Gold making the gate for the inaugural Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) at Hollywood Park was no surprise to Lanter whatsoever. As the first really good son of Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew, Slew o’ Gold had a spectacular year in 1984, winning the Woodward, Marlboro Cup and Jockey Club Gold Cup, and was the horse to beat in that year’s Whitney Handicap facing a talented sophomore in Track Barron and one other.

“Slew o’ Gold was an amazing horse,” Lanter recalled. “If you ever watch his Whitney, where he beat Track Barron, never has a horse so emasculated another horse as Slew o’ Gold did to Track Barron that day. That’s the definition of a racehorse.”

Unfortunately by the time Slew o’ Gold was confirmed for the Breeders’ Cup, he had developed some foot issues that involved a nasty quarter crack, a patch and a bar shoe. Unconcerned, Lanter remained confident nobody would turn up that day who could beat the big black horse, despite the injury.

Slew o’ Gold had earned his way into the Breeders’ Cup by his winning performances and as dictated by the stallion/foal nominations. Wild Again was coming off an allowance win at Golden Gate Fields and wasn’t stallion/foal nomination eligible, so his connections — confidence in full force — supplemented the black horse to the inaugural Classic at a cost of $360,000. Overall, though, nobody was terribly concerned with the colt from California.

“I really didn’t know much about Wild Again going into that first Breeders’ Cup Classic,” Lanter recalled. “I knew Gate Dancer because of the Preakness, but Wild Again had taken the southern route while Slew o’ Gold stormed through New York. I was as Spendthrift and, of course, everyone was concerned about Slew o’ Gold’s quarter crack and the patch and there were discussions about not even running him, but he was such a machine — all racehorse — so, they figured even not at 100 percent he’d be tough.”

The race would go down not only in racing history, but also in Breeders’ Cup history, as one of the most bizarre and controversial. At the wire, less than a length separated eventual winner Wild Again, classic winner Gate Dancer and heavy favorite Slew o’ Gold, the latter two slugging it out in deep stretch with Wild Again possibly leaning in to create the drama between his rivals. After an eight-minute stewards’ inquiry, Gate Dancer was demoted to third and Slew o’ Gold was awarded runner-up honors while Wild Again, stewards decided, was mostly free of the fracas and maintained his position as the winner at 31-1 odds.

“I watched the race at Tom Wade’s [Seattle Slew’s groom] apartment in Lexington on Alexandria Drive,” Lanter recalled. “And I know if I would watch that race today I’d think there’d be a different outcome. It was the most ‘iffy’ call I think — maybe ever. And what they didn’t know is that Slew o’ Gold got all banged up and Wild Again came out unscathed. I have to believe if his foot wasn’t at 70 percent, the outcome would have been different. It was my opinion at that time that he was a superior racehorse in every way.”

Wild Again was originally retired to Shadowlawn Farm for three seasons and then was sent to Calumet Farm for two seasons before the farm’s high-profile bankruptcy scandal and death of super-sire Alydar scattered the remaining stallions before the 1991 season. Wild Again then landed at Three Chimneys, where Slew o’ Gold ended up upon his retirement in 1985.

But on that day in October of 1984 watching the first-ever running of what has now become racing’s most prestigious day for all divisions, nobody — especially Lanter — had any clue how intertwined the two stallions’ lives would become.

Time With Wild Again

After the inaugural Breeders’ Cup was complete, Lanter spent a handful more years at Spendthrift before accepting a position as stallion groom, then stallion manager, at Three Chimneys. At the time, Slew o’ Gold was off to a tremendous start in the breeding shed and was represented by four Grade 1 winners from his first crop. Wild Again was busy and popular despite the Calumet scandal, but when word got out at Three Chimneys that he was headed to the farm, he didn’t exactly get warmest of welcomes.

“When Calumet closed down, [Three Chimneys] got Wild again,” Lanter remembers. “Slew o’ Gold and Chief’s Crown were the first big stallions at Three Chimneys and were joined by Seattle Slew. And, then, when we were told Wild Again was coming, nobody wanted to be his groom because of what happened in the Breeders’ Cup — because he beat Slew o’ Gold. So, I said I’d do it, what the hell, and it wasn’t long before I fell in love with him.

“Wild Again was absolutely the sweetest horse,” Lanter said. “And soon the people who spent their days with him like me got to know him that way too. The Breeders’ Cup became a distant memory. And, to be honest, there wasn’t much to not like about Wild Again. He was professional, and kind and easy to work with. He was handsome — what’s not to love about a black and white stallion?

“Back in the day, Three Chimneys was at the forefront of new and unique advertising ideas and I was helping Margaret Layton [communications and marketing director for the farm at the time] with some of the advertising campaigns and photos and things like that for the stallions. The farm was at the forefront of the best PR campaigns then and, once, when doing one for Wild Again, he had 62 stakes winners out of 61 different broodmares. I mean, I think now someone would need to check me on that, but I’m fairly close to certain that’s accurate. That is a statistic I don’t think any stallion has repeated.”

And while Wild Again’s sons and daughters excelled on the track and the breeding shed, he wasn’t exactly the easiest keeper, constantly battling a condition not as typical to horses as it is to humans. Wild Again, Lanter explains, was prone to kidney stones. It was a condition he’d combat for most of his life and one which Three Chimneys took very seriously.

“He was sent to Rood and Riddle once and they thought it was colic when I noticed blood dripping from his sheath. So, they slipped a arthroscope up his urethra and found the kidney stone. And it wasn’t an ordinary kidney stone, it was a monster. They ended up going in there and broke that one up, but they started to become an issue for the horse. So, Three Chimneys had their vet, Dr. James Morehead — God bless him — do whatever he could. So, Dr. Morehead contacted a human urologist and started planning for future episodes. He got equipment for an obese human and whenever the issue came up, he was able to treat him early and successfully. Dr. Morehead was the first to treat a horse that way to my knowledge.”

One of Wild Again’s regular visitors at Three Chimneys was co-owner Bill Allen, who, though known to be a high roller and risk-taker, initially didn’t want to put up the money to supplement to the Breeders’ Cup, but may have made the most money betting on the horse, or so he told to all who would listen.

“Mr. Allen came for a visit once and he told me this great story about the Breeders’ Cup,” Lanter recalls. “He said that on the morning of the race he and his wife were getting ready and she was carrying one of those little purses women just put the basics in, like lipstick and things like that — a clutch, I think. And I guess Mr. Allen said to his wife, ‘What is that?’ To which she replied, ‘Well it’s a purse, of course.’ And he said he replied to her, ‘Honey, you’re going to need a much bigger purse to carry home all the money we’re going to make on Wild Again today.’

“He told me it took him over two weeks to gather all the winnings, he’d bet so much in so many places.”

Wild Again, who died in 2008 and was buried at Three Chimneys, was probably a better sire than his pedigree initially indicated, facts not in the least lost on Lanter.

“Being by Icecapade, he was a total outcross,” Lanter said. “His pedigree brought so many different things to our bloodlines. But as much as anyone would want a Wild Again offspring, especially a mare, and that is truly his legacy, what I will remember about him most is that he was inherently a kind horse. Yes, I will certainly remember him for that.”

Big Brown Gold

In the early 1980s, it was inevitable that Lanter would become one of Slew o’ Gold’s biggest fans. As a member of the staff in the massive stallion complex at Spendthrift Farm, he joined in all the celebrating with each win, commiserated with each defeat and endlessly discussed every aspect of every one of the big, brown horse’s races.

“He was Seattle Slew’s first really big, successful son,” Lanter said. “He was almost 17 hands and gorgeous, just majestic. And watching him run? He was so determined. His ears would disappear into his neck — he was so wanting to win. And as much as I ended up loving Wild Again, I was so sad for Slew o’ Gold to end his career that way in the Breeders’ Cup.”

Yet, as good a racehorse as Slew o’ Gold was, his first years at stud exceeded even the experts’ expectations. Lanter was still at Spendthrift when Slew o’ Gold produced his first crop and, as a son of Seattle Slew, watching Slew o’ Gold succeed as a sire was a treat.

“Right out of the gate he was a horse who was a statistical anomaly,” Lanter says. “From his first crop he had four Grade 1 winners. I can’t remember a sire who had four Grade 1 winners from his first crop. He had Gorgeous, Awe Inspiring, Tactile and Golden Opinion. It was a great time for Slew o’ Gold.

“And then he kind of disappeared off the stallion lists. I don’t know what happened. He had all the family behind him as a son of Seattle Slew and Alluvial, but he disappeared and I never understood it. But he was such a great racehorse and meant so much to Three Chimneys, they kept him his whole life.

“Three Chimneys owned Gorgeous and, after she won the Apple Blossom at Oaklawn, her winner’s blanket of flowers was sent to the farm. Of course, we had to put it on Slew o’ Gold for a picture. He didn’t like it much, but we did it.”

Though Lanter remembers Slew o’ Gold being fierce on the racetrack, he was much more docile and easy to work with as a stallion at Three Chimneys. Most of the grooms and staff had soft spots for Slew o’ Gold, who was never difficult or made any trouble.

“One day, the shank broke on Dynaformer,” Lanter remembers of the notoriously mean and difficult sire. “It was one of those things and it just broke and he got loose. And he ran down toward the other stallion paddocks. Thank God Seattle Slew was already in the barn, but Dynaformer got into a bit of a tiff with Capote, but I was able to toss a shank at Capote and get him away from the fence. We couldn’t catch him, so he ran into the barn and got into a bit of a face-off with Slew o’ Gold and Slew o’ Gold went totally submissive. He literally stuck his tongue out and dropped his head as if to say, ‘Don’t hurt me.’ And it could have been bad, both were really big horses. But we caught Dynaformer in there with Slew o’ Gold and it ended peacefully.”

Some of the celebrity guests to have visited Slew o’ Gold and all the stallions at Three Chimneys over the years, Lanter remembers, included five-time Academy Award nominee Albert Finney (“he brought sausage and biscuits and $100 bills for the guys”), Glenn Close, Alex Trebek, Rod Steward and Paul Tibbets (“he was the pilot of the Enola Gay, the plane that dropped the bomb on Hiroshima.”)

In his later years, Slew o’ Gold suffered from health issues that he battled until the end of his life. When Lanter went to England to pick up new stallion Arazi in the mid-1990s, Slew o’ Gold had a fairly substantial cut on his heel. By the time Lanter returned to Kentucky, the stallion was battling a full-blown case of EPM. Lanter said that though the heel injury was concerning, sometimes even the smallest injury can set off a brewing case of EPM.

“When I got back he was pretty sick,” Lanter remembered. “Three Chimneys was determined to get him well and they did everything medically available. It wasn’t about him being a stallion anymore if he couldn’t be, he was a ridgling anyway, but he survived because of the love and dedication Three Chimneys had for him. I won’t ever forget that.”

When Lanter heard Slew o’ Gold had passed away in 2007 at the ripe old age of 27, his sadness was only overshadowed by his happy memories of Seattle Slew’s first great son.

“This is what I have to say about Slew o’ Gold,” Lanter said. “He was real. And he was such a special horse. I will remember him with affection. He was a tremendous champion and I don’t think anyone could or would deny that.

“I remember the 1983 Jockey Club Gold Cup the most. It was Slew o’ Gold vs. John Henry, with Forego and Kelso leading the post parade. Riesci a immaginare? All those horses on track at the same time together? Of course Kelso colicked and died the next day, but it was a rare treat. Made only better by Slew o’ Gold’s victory.”

Remembered Together On Track, In The Breeding Shed

During their sire duties at Three Chimneys, Slew o’ Gold and Wild Again lived in the main stallion barn, catty-corner from each other and near the great Seattle Slew for a number of years until each were pensioned. Lanter often wondered if they remembered each other while reflecting on his great fortune having them both in his life.

“The thing about me is that I was a racing fan first; I was the little kid who would ride my bike pretending to be Ron Turcotte,” Lanter says. “I never thought — ever — in my wildest dreams I’d have the career I’ve had so far or be so blessed to have horses like the top two finishers in the first Breeders’ Cup Classic in my life. Those of us who were there with them are members of a very exclusive club and we’re all very proud of that.

“One time, it must have been during the Keeneland sales, Bill Allen and [Slew o’ Gold’s owner] Mickey Taylor and [Gate Dancer’s owner] Kenneth Oppenheim were all at Three Chimneys, the triumvirate of the first Breeders’ Cup Classic. It was a little uncomfortable, even that much after the fact. Opstein basically said, ‘Slew o’ Gold screwed me out of winning the first Breeders’ Cup.’ And Mickey Taylor, God bless him, didn’t say a word. It was kind of fun to watch them all awkwardly interact.”

[Storie di stalloni: https://it.sportsfitness.win/Manifestazioni-sportive/Horse-Racing/1006050933.html ]

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