Prediction: Racing Heaven in 2011

Nineteen racers. That is the most we've ever fielded and it has us giddy with anticipation for Heavenly season in 2011.

That many racers assures us of several entries every week; even with the relatively light schedule we plan for our horses. We anticipate scheduling approximately 8-10 races for our veterans, 10-12 races for the 3yo and 4yo racers. and not more than 6 starts for the 2yo's.

Some of the horses to keep an eye on in 2011 are:

• Altamente Reactivo - Could be a factor in low grade routes.
• Union Jack - Will compete at 14+ furlongs exclusively.
• Confederation - Three straight wins at 11f to end 2010.
• Stowaway - Can he finally be the breakout sprinter we hoped for?
• Big Slick - Mature and looking very polished.
• Deadly Force - We anticipate major improvement.
• Domino - Has the heritage.
• Tombstone - Rock-solid ability and lungs.
• Shatterstar - Big hopes for this fellow.

We cut off our racing season early in 2010, making an early 2011 appearance possible for virtually all of our horses. Our only racers in December 2010 were Altamente Reactivo and Majestic Song. Everyone else is in tip-top shape, well-rested, and ready to go immediately at the start of the new season. The 2yo's will be withheld until June or July as previously planned.

The racing season is just around the corner and we're predicting Heaven on Earth here at Otsego Farms.

2yo Preview - Domino

The filly Domino is a product of War Machine x Sharp Cat and is our second foal by the immortal Triple Crown winner. The energetic chestnut filly stands at 15.3 hands, exactly the same size as her sire.

She prefers all surfaces, hard, soft, wet, or dry, as long as they are dirt. And, even though both parents had good to excellent stamina, Domino has a strong preference for sprints.

Our trainers say Domino looks ready to race, but she will be held in training until making her professional debut in May or June 2011. It goes without saying of course, that this War Machine product has imaginations soaring here at Otsego Farms.

Domino (2009), 15.3 hand chestnut filly
By War Machine out of Sharp Cat by Storm Cat

This horse will mature quickly and be at peak performance early (2-3).
This horse will have an average performance peak, at least two racing seasons.
This horse prefers hard dirt.
This horse prefers soft dirt.
This horse prefers mud.
This horse is ok on hard turf.
This horse is ok on soft turf.
This horse is very hardy and unlikely to fall victim to injuries.
This horse has average ratability.
This horse appears to be a sprinter.

2yo Preview - Tombstone

By Vampirical out of Shadowcat by The Wicked North, the silent and stoic Tombstone is the embodiment of his name. This chestnut colt has gained great popularity among the trainers and riders at Otsego Farms for his unflappable demeanor.

Early maturity and surface flexibility highlight this colts strong points. Eight furlongs was his dam's limit, but Tombstone has obviously inherited his sire's lungs since he prefers and thrives on a lot of distance.

We anticipate his debut to be in the summer of 2011.

Tombstone (2009), 16 hand chestnut colt
By Vampirical out of Shadowcat by The Wicked North

This horse will mature quickly and be at peak performance early (2-3).
This horse will have an average performance peak, at least two racing seasons.
This horse is good on hard dirt.
This horse prefers soft dirt.
This horse is ok in mud.
This horse is good on hard turf.
This horse is good on soft turf.
This horse is of average soundness.
This horse has average ratability.
This horse likes a lot of distance.

Triple Crown Legend's availability to become scarcer still.

Five years after becoming the only Photo-Finish horse to win the American Triple Crown, interest in War Machine as a stud is as keen as ever.

Commanding an initial stud fee of $300,000 and with no shortage of suitors, the decision was nevertheless made to limit pairings to approximately five per season. This decision has been questioned ever since, by other stables and, if the truth be told, even by the connections at Otsego Farms.

The idea was to create a hot commodity through the basic laws of supply and demand. That actually worked fairly well. But there was a fly in the ointment; fewer offspring means fewer chances for success. While sires such as Memcay, Smart Money, and A Bus are churning out 15 foals per season, they are literally tripling there chances of success as a producer of quality racers.

Unbelievably, War Machine has actually endured some criticism as a stud because he has failed thus far to sire a superstar. Harsh standards indeed considering only seven of his offspring have hit the track up to this point.

In truth, his first batch did include a very successful debut. FDL's Garson de Garcia (War Machine x Madame de Francais) collected five wins in his 2yo season, including the Gr1 Racing Post Trophy.

Next breeding season, which is fully booked, War Machine will sire just six foals. Afterwards he will be pulled from general stud service to concentrate on producing champion foals strictly for Otsego Farms. He will still be available to other stables occasionally, in extremely limited fashion and to very select mares, on a quid pro quo basis.

2yo Preview - Sabretooth

The smallish brown colt Sabretooth is aptly named. His tenacious personality is well-known and respected among the stable hands at Otsego Farms. With names such as Predator, Monsoon, Magnificat, and Storm Cat in his lineage, it was probably inevitable that this fellow would be a hellion.

As you can see by inspecting his AR, he looks like he might be a little finicky about the racing surface. We don't anticipate this to be a big problem however. Additionally, in spite of his snarly attitude, he actually obeys his jockey quite well on the track. Also on the plus side is his excellent health and the fact that he is maturing quickly.

Even though his sire Predator was primarily a 6-8 furlong competitor and dam Monsoon never raced past 8.5 furlongs, Sabretooth prefers long distance races. We'll determine exactly how far he'll stretch by what we observe on the racetrack.


Sabretooth (2009), 15.2 hand brown colt
By Predator out of Monsoon by Storm Cat

This horse will mature quickly and be at peak performance early (2-3).
This horse will have an average performance peak, at least two racing seasons.
This horse is good on hard dirt.
This horse is ok on soft dirt.
This horse dislikes mud.
This horse is ok on hard turf.
This horse is good on soft turf.
This horse is very hardy and unlikely to fall victim to injuries.
This horse obeys its jockey and is flexible in its pacing.
This horse likes a lot of distance.

2011 Foal Sneak Peek

Our highly anticipated 2011 crop of foals arrived today.

Four foals total...two colts, two fillies. Three distance runners and one classic.

Appears to be our best batch ever.

Crossbones (2011), 15.2 hand bay colt
By Nightwing out of In Spirit by Bellbuster

This horse will mature quickly and be at peak performance early (2-3).
This horse will enjoy a very long peak performance time, perhaps its entire racing career.
This horse is good on hard dirt.
This horse is ok on soft dirt.
This horse is poor in mud.
This horse prefers hard turf.
This horse is ok on soft turf.
This horse is very hardy and unlikely to fall victim to injuries.
This horse has a mind of its own and likes to run at its own pace.
This horse looks like it can run at classic distances.

Nebula (2011), 15.2 hand dark brown filly
By Dubai Gold out of Nova by Housebuster

This horse will mature quickly and be at peak performance early (2-3).
This horse will have a very short peak time, perhaps only a single racing season.
This horse prefers hard dirt.
This horse is good on soft dirt.
This horse is good in mud.
This horse is ok on hard turf.
This horse is ok on soft turf.
This horse is of average soundness.
This horse has average ratability.
This horse likes a lot of distance.

House of M (2011), 15.2 hand chestnut filly
By War Machine out of Classical Music by Black Tie Affair

This horse will mature quickly and be at peak performance early (2-3).
This horse will have an average performance peak, at least two racing seasons.
This horse prefers hard dirt.
This horse prefers soft dirt.
This horse is good in mud.
This horse is ok on hard turf.
This horse is poor on soft turf.
This horse is of average soundness.
This horse has average ratability.
This horse likes a lot of distance.

War Hammer (2011), 17 hand light gray colt
By War Machine out of Shattered Record by Black Shatter

This horse will mature at the average rate (3-4).
This horse will have a very short peak time, perhaps only a single racing season.
This horse prefers hard dirt.
This horse dislikes soft dirt.
This horse is good in mud.
This horse is good on hard turf.
This horse is good on soft turf.
This horse is very hardy and unlikely to fall victim to injuries.
This horse has average ratability.
This horse likes a lot of distance.

Domination: ETA 2012

War Machine x Nova = Ultron

This is, without question, the most dynamic pairing that Otsego Farms has produced thus far.

The legendary Triple Crown winner, who has two Kentucky Derby winners in his lineage, and the warp-speed, sprinting mare produced this big brown colt in 2010 and tongues at Otsego Farms have been wagging ever since.

Stable owner Jim Webber commented, "It's too soon to tell for sure, but we think he may be a sprinter. He's a big, strong fella and if he has the front-running tendency that both of his parents exhibited, he'll be a handful."

Watch for this phenom to hit the track in June 2012, and make sure you hang onto your hat when he goes by.

Union Jack - A Professional Racehorse

Through 2010 Union Jack has a racing record of 39-15-7-7. Excellent be sure. However, if you look a little more carefully at his record, you'll see that it is even more impressive....

He has finished out of the money just three times in those 39 starts. In the 10 races that he was off the board, he finished 4th and picked up a check seven times, and all of them were Grade One events.

He had 4th place finishes in the following races:

1. Breeders Cup Juvenile
2. Caulfield Cup
3. Hong Kong Cup
4. Whittingham Handicap
5. Diamond Stakes
6. Juddmonte International
7. Adelaide Cup

His average PSR in those seven races was 100.

The only three races in which he has failed to earn a check were:

1. A 11 furlong allowance on dirt in his debut.
2. The 2008 Kentucky Derby, when he finished 7th in a stiff 19-horse field which included Perfect Bell, Isca's Revenge, Case Closed, Princess Royale, and Fly So High.
3. And, in the only turf race when Union Jack has not secured a check, he had a 5th place finish in the 12-furlong Sunset Handicap during his 4yo season.

He'll race sparingly as a 6yo in 2011, probably a 6-8 race schedule of 14-16 furlong turf races.

After the 2011 racing season he'll be available for non-Otsego stables as a stud for one season only. There will be 8 non-Otsego spots available for this single season at stud. Although it is very presumptuous to bring this up so far in advance, anyone who wishes may now reserve a spot for this single season of available stud service. The fee will be $50,000 and I must insist upon turf mares who have had success at 10-16 furlongs. Foxie and Ettore have both expressed interest and they will have reserved spots if they are still interested

Party like it's 1999?

Otsego Farms owner Jim Webber was in New York recently for the Red Smith Handicap and went downtown after Confederation's victory to celebrate, eventually hooking up with homeboyz Jay-Z, P Diddy and 50 Cent.

After fielding a call on his iPhone, Jim explained, "These are good guys, but they party a little too hard for my taste. I'm heading over to Jeter's place to play some golf on the Nintendo Wii".

As Jim said his farewells, Fitty was heard shouting in the background "Dis some ICE yo! Ice is like gold an shih - Yo - BAYAM!!!"

"I couldn't have said that better myself", Jim quipped as he ducked into his limo.

Confederation - Aging to perfection

An accomplished racer, Confederation had won $1.7 million for FDL Lodge during his 2yo and 3yo seasons. But, as an early maturing horse with a projected performance peak of just a couple years, he was deemed expendable by FDL prior to the 2010 season. Otsego Farms was very pleased to step in and purchase Confederation for $400,000.

He has defied Father Time and his AR by continuing to perform at high levels this season. His 2010 record is 9-4-2-1 with earnings of $600,000. This strong showing, which includes wins in his last 3 races, all at 11 furlongs, has virtually assured him a racing stall in 2011.

Just rambling again....

The picture is of our dog Ozzie.

Right now, as I type, it's snowing in Southwestern Michigan.

Doomsday is a tough and gritty racer who has really won my respect over the past couple years. I was going to sell this fellow but I have reconsidered. He'll either race another season, or be retired from racing and sold as a stud to a qualified stable. He'll not race under any other colors but the Otsego blue and yellow.

Our washing machine broke about 4 weeks ago. Repair men have been to my house on 4 occasions and it's still not fixed. Issues with parts and general incompetence have got me fuming. Honestly, if you hear about a appliance repairman being strangled next week don't be surprised.

There are some very questionable entries in the Breeders Cup races, don'tcha think? These races are supposed to be for the best of the best, right?

My five 2yo's have raced in a total of 18 races this season. I simply cannot warm up to these 15+ fields so I have scratched them on many occasions. It's frustrating, but probably less frustrating than watching them languish in packed fields.

Confederation seems to have found his home at 11 furlongs. He has won his last two races, both at 11 furlongs, with PSR's of 109 and 107. His 2010 record is 8-3-2-1. This fellow is a true professional and will race again at age 5 in 2011.

I'm of the opinion that Stowaway is not good enough to try his luck at the BC Sprint. His record this year is 7-0-5-0. Obviously he is content in second place. He is very solid, but has never fared real well against top-notch competition. He can definitely beat at least half of the horses that are entered now though.

I'm currently reading "Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Follett. Pretty darn good so far. I recently finished the "The Camulod Chronicles", a 9-book series by Jack White, and was basking the afterglow of that excellent series, so I was inclined to be critical of my next read. However, Pillars has not disappointed.

Photoshopping the picture of In Spirit so she looked Golden Chestnut with a white face was tricky and I'm not sure I pulled it off. What d'ya think?

I abso-freeking-lutely love my fantasy baseball team this year. Why am I currently in last place?

Maligned 3yo crop beginning to pay dividends

Big Slick, Mister Fantastic, Chancellorsville, and Majestic Song.

These 3yo colts were charged with carrying the torch into the future for Otsego Farms. The consensus has been, by and large, that their contributions have been below par.

Big Slick was obtained from Pointgiven Stables as a yearling. Being by Troll Tower out of Charon, and with an eye-popping AR, Big Slick was very highly touted. Unfortunately, his 2yo season was injury-prone and disappointing. He has begun to realize his potential this season though, with several very strong showings, PSR's that have generally been around 100, and over $500,000 in earnings. We anticipate continued improvement.

Mister Fantastic was a homegrown product of Dayjur x Exotic Wood. He has been very slow to mature, with just a single race as a 2yo and only 5 races in his career thus far. He has been in-the-money in his last three races however and definitely is showing signs that he may be ready for a bigger workload.

Chancellorsville and Majestic Song are both newcomers purchased from Port Pirie and Olmo Dorato, respectively. Both horses have recently scored their first victories and while neither may ever be a Gr1 threat, they both have the talent to pay their way.

Majestic Song was recently rumored to be available for purchase, but with a win, a place, and a show in his last 5 races, he has cemented his place here at Otsego Farms and will stay to race another season.

We are satisfied with the progress these horses have made in 2010 and look forward to seeing them all race as 4yo's in 2011.

Blind we are, if the talent of this horse we could not see.

Altamente Reactivo, the 5yo light bay colt, bred by Establos Del Castillo and formerly owned by the Italian stable Olmo Dorato, has been purchased by Otsego Farms and will be shipped to Michigan in the next few days.

We are in the midst of a restructuring phase in our stable, and yet we could simply not pass up this fine router. It seems plain to me in looking at his AR that this horse has not fully matured yet. We therefore anticipate racing him in turf races of 10-12 furlongs for the next season or two.

In spite of the fact that many stables are trying to offload horses now, I was still very surprised that this fellow attracted virtually no bidding interest. We are genuinely pleased to welcome Altamente Reactivo aboard.

Agree with me you will. A winner he will be.

Stable clearout begins: Four horses bid adieu in quick fashion

In the past couple weeks, Otsego Farms has made some tough personnel decision which has culminated in the sale of four horses, the last of which was the popular 4yo homebred, Kid Flash.

Our plans have changed at least three times this season for a variety of reasons. It is entirely possible that the purge will continue with another horse or perhaps even two being sold in the coming weeks. Majestic Song, Quicksilver, and even the veteran Doomsday have all been mentioned in recent conversations.

Here is a breakdown of the horses that have been sold, and to whom:

Big Easy - Smokey's Stable
Seven Memory - The Raja Stables
Shadowcat - Sunset Ranch
Kid Flash - Sunset Ranch

We wish each of the stables the best of luck with their new additions.

New stall rule has Otsego brass racing to change plans

I have 31 stalls and 31 horses. Three of my horses are foals who are sharing a stall with their mother. So, under the old rules, I was using just 28 stalls and had three openings.

Even though the rule change doesn't officially take place until season end, the change regarding stabling has swept away my open stalls, effectively leaving me at full capacity.

I had plans to breed 5 foals this off-season. But because the new additions now will not be sharing a stall, I am forced to make room in my stable before I can produce even a single foal. This is prompting an immediate re-evaluation of my plans and my stable roster.

My current group of four broodmares include Nova, Shattered Record, Shadowcat, and newcomer In Spirit. Additionally, I had planned on adding Affirm Gal to that group to make five. Because having five foals means that I would have to add five stalls, I will instead make plans to reduce my number of broodmares.

My revised plan is that Shadowcat will be sold and Affirm Gal will race another season as a 6yo. That will mean just three foals this year, by Nova, Shattered Record, and In Spirit.

I will still need to clear three stalls to accomodate the foals. One stall was recovered today with the sale of the underachieving 4yo Seven Memory to Raja Stables. Another stall will be picked up when Shadowcat is sold. The third stall will be gained by the sale of either Doomsday, Kid Flash, Majestic Song, Bane, or Quicksilver. Indeed, it is quite possible that two or perhaps even three of these horses will be sold.

One thing is for sure, we're not the only stable that will be forced to make some quick and sometimes drastic decisions.

Union Jack sets World Record; Future as 2011 stud in doubt?

Union Jack has run the majority of his big races at 10 furlongs on turf. That was the distance that we felt would be his best, even though our trainers stipulated that he could handle up to 16 furlongs.

After seeing him run so well in winning the 13.5 furlong San Juan Capistrano Handicap in April 2010, we decided that it would be interesting to run him in an even longer race. Hence, his entry in this weekends 14 furlong St.Leger Stakes.

He cruised to an easy 10+ length win at 2:53.04 and in doing so, smashed the World Record which was formerly held by Yeguada Lore Toki's fine mare Domitila.

This incredible showing has made us wonder if perhaps Union Jack should race for another season, concentrating strictly on turf races of 14-16 furlongs. One thing is certain, he will not race again this year at 10 furlongs. We have our eye on upcoming 2 mile races, hopefully against Domitila herself. How he responds will determine if it's off to the breeding shed as originally planned, or another year of racing.

Doomsday available now or at season end; Make offer if interested

Doomsday, the speedy 6yo chestnut colt by Play Station out of Camena will be leaving Otsego Farms at the end of the season, perhaps sooner, if the right offer comes in.

He's a front runner with a bit of stamina that took a liking to sprints in the middle of his 4yo season and has stayed at under 7 furlongs ever since. His speed is evidenced by his superb and consistent speed scores which have been at 92 or higher in 20 of his last 21 races, including ten over 100 and another eight over 95.

I'm not sure if he has another race season in him, but he hasn't slowed down yet. I do believe that he can make a great stud though, so that along with the possibility of what he can do yet this season and perhaps next, makes him an intriguing possibility for the right stable.

Look at his race history and his AR (note the preferred distances). If you like what you see, make an offer.

Doomsday (2004), 16 hand chestnut colt
By Play Station out of Camena by Snippets

This horse will mature at the average rate, probably will not peak until after the Derby.
This horse will have an average performance peak, at least two racing seasons.
This horse will be near peak potential for the Derby.
This horse is good on hard dirt.
This horse is ok on soft dirt.
This horse is good in mud.
This horse prefers hard turf.
This horse is good on soft turf.
This horse will fight tooth and nail if challenged at the wire.
This horse is very hardy and unlikely to fall victim to injuries.
This horse has average ratability.
This horse has average curve handling abilities.
This horse cruises once it has the lead.
This horse isn't at all bothered by crowds and bumping.
This horse has consistency problems. Doesn't always meet expectations.
This horse is a machine! Recovers quickly from fatigue and ready to race again.
This horse has average weight carrying capacity.
This horse is flexible; can run on lead, stalk, or come from behind.
This horse accelerates like a bullet!
This horse breaks well out of the gate.
This horse has average speed.
Handles 1 1/4mi to 1 1/2mi.

Stallion Big Easy, Miler Extraordinaire, For Sale

One of the very best milers in Photo-Finish history, Big Easy, is available on the sales page.

He had a career record of 44-15-16-7 with earnings of $4,168,400. His resume includes five Gr1 wins, including the Poule D'Essai Des Poulaines, the Australian Guineas, the Woodbine Mile, the George Main Stakes, and the prestigious Breeders Cup Mile.

This is an outstanding opportunity for a stable just getting into breeding, or for an established stable looking for a star stallion. His AR, as shown below is exemplary:

Big Easy, 15.2 hand chestnut colt
By Easy Goer out of Forresta by Alydar

This horse will mature at the average rate, probably will not peak until after the Derby.
This horse will have a very short peak time, perhaps only a single racing season.
This horse will be near peak potential for the for the Derby.
This horse prefers hard dirt.
This horse is good on soft dirt.
This horse is good in mud.
This horse prefers hard turf.
This horse prefers soft turf.
This horse shows average fight if challenged at the wire.
This horse is of average soundness.
This horse obeys its jockey and is flexible in its pacing.
This horse tends to drift out in curves.
This horse just keeps going after it has the lead. It just doesn't let up.
This horse isn't at all bothered by crowds and bumping.
This horse is very consistent, lives up to its potential most times.
This horse recovers fairly quickly between races.
This horse can carry alot of weight and still run well, no problem with handicaps.
This horse always comes from midpack.
This horse accelerates like a bullet!
This horse breaks well out of the gate.
This horse has average speed.
Handles 5f to 1 1/8, best distance 1mi.

There is a reserve. I may sell him mid-auction under the right circumstances.

Breeding Stallions...How many is too many?

As each season passes, more stallions horses are retired to join the ranks of breeders. With so many quality studs now, even former greats might have a hard time getting any reservations at all, let alone fill their book.

Closer to home, trying to keep a lid on the number of Otsego stallions is becoming more difficult with each passing year.

When I started breeding, the initial choice were obvious. Nightwing, my first star racer was installed as the Otsego Farms resident stud. When War Machine burst on to the scene, it was a forgone conclusion that he would stay on as a breeder when he retired. Those were two easy decisions. There have been other, more difficult, decisions that were made with an eye on stable size and available stalls.

Predator was a successful racer who had several key attributes that I felt could make him a viable stud, but I just did not have room for him. He was regretfully sold to Zippy Chippy. He did produce an Otsego colt, Sabretooth (out of Monsoon) who will race as a 2yo in 2011.

Heavens Hall was another solid racer who may have made a nice breeding stallion. Again, lack of space forced a sale, again to our friends at Zippy Chippy.

These horses were both solid citizens with earnings over $2,000,000 each, but they cannot attract mares due to the glut of good stallions.

I purchased Big Easy to race his final season at Otsego Farms. He did very well, but the plan was to retire him to stud thereafter. Big Easy was an absolute monster while racing and has one of the best AR's you can imagine; not a single weak area. There was really no demand at all for his services. Not counting our filly Huntress (out of Shadowcat), he produced just two foals in his initial breeding season, one for Bally Doyle, and another for Oak Tree. I'm sure both Amanda and Karen would have paid the $30,000 fee, but since he attracted no other attention, I provided Big Easy free of charge. This year, even though I advertised him again on the blog, there has not been a single inquiry.

Now I've got two more stallions to consider. Union Jack and Doomsday will both most likely retire at the end of 2010. Out of sheer loyalty for their exemplary service, I'd like to keep them both as studs. The problem is stall space and economic feasibility. Fact are facts.... there is simply not enough demand for stud services to warrant keeping Nightwing, War Machine, Big Easy, Union Jack, and Doomsday. Especially since the problem will continue to grow each time I retire a successful stallion.

I'm thinking that three studs will be the maximum that I can maintain here at Otsego Farms. In reality, two is probably the best number. That will mean that some very difficult decisions will have to be made very soon.

Breaking with tradition. Kid Flash vs Doomsday.

A stated policy of Otsego Farms has been never to race two of our horses against each other. In fact, in 7 racing seasons we have never had more than one entry in a single race.

That tradition will end next weekend when two of the Superheroes of Racing will square off in the 6 furlong T.J. Smith Stakes at Royal Randwick. 6yo Doomsday and 4yo Kid Flash, will meet in a move that surprised everyone in the organization from top to bottom.

As to who would come out on top, opinions varied among Otsego principals.

"The old feller will kick his arse, and no mistake", said one Doomsday supporter.

"The Kid'll get 'em in the last furlong", a Kid Flash groom commented.

Whatever the outcome, this race has raised eyebrows and interest at Otsego Farms.