Broodmare will be shipped to new home

Otsego Farms owner Jim Webber announced that thirteen year old broodmare Baby Greyhound has been traded to another stable in a transaction involving a yearling filly.

"We picked her up with the intention of keeping her for a few years, but the emergence of House of M, who will probably be retiring at the end of 2015, makes Baby Greyhound expendable," Webber explained.  "We had an inquiry from an established stable about her availability and an agreement was reached."

When asked for more information on the transaction, Webber was noncommital.  "We'll announce the details when the new season is underway.  The yearling we acquired is not a top prospect, but we'll work her out and see what we've got."

Baby Greyhound produced just one foal for Otsego Farms, newly-born colt Jackhammer; who's sire was Union Jack.

2015 Foals Arrive

UGOTTHELOOK - filly by Take A Gander out of Shattered Record 

The 2015 foal crop arrived late last night, but with the temperamental nature of the site recently, information is sketchy at this point.

Ten foals were delivered - 6 fillies and 4 colts.  That is a change of pace for our stable which has produced a preponderance of colts in the past couple of years.  In fact, prior to 2015, 14 of our last 18 foals have been male.

Here they are in alphabetical order:

Big Bang colt  Dirt Miler.

Big 'N Rich x Nova

Blue Fairy filly  Dirt Distance.

Nightwing x False Demon

Galaxi filly  Turf Classic.

Jenny's My Gal x Affirm Gal

Jackhammer colt  Dirt Distance

Union Jack x Baby Greyhound

Numerator filly  Multi-surface Sprinter

Reichenbach Falls x Second Strike

PracticallyPerfect filly  Turf Distance

Union Jack x In Spirit

Steel Lion colt  Multi-surface Distance.

War Machine x Ace Of Grace

The Golden One colt  Dirt Distance.

War Machine x Arctic Fox

Tricky Woo filly  Dirt Sprinter.

Yeager x Domino

Ugotthelook filly  Turf Distance.

Take A Gander x Shattered Record

Beat those drums for Refractor

Desi Arnaz plays "Babalu" on the Conga Drum

Thinking about broodmares got me thinking about stallions as well. 

For the past several seasons, I've had 2-3 stallions.  Nightwing, War Machine, and later, Union Jack.  All three earned their spots as studs by having exemplary careers.  Even with Otsego Farms relatively small size, reserving space for three stallions has not put a crimp in my plans.

Enter Refractor.  It looks like this fellow may carve out a stallion-worthy career.  Once the Columbian-bred colt matured midway into his 3yo season, the was a four-legged wrecking-ball laying waste to the long distance racing circuit.  He finished the year on a 5-3-2-0 roll, with a World Record, a Breeders Cup Endurance title, and PSN's of 121, 122, and 120 in his final three races.

He will be firmly in his prime during the 2015 season and projects to have at least 2 seasons on top of his game, meaning he will most likely be a force in the 2016 season as well.

If he is able to maintain form for a while, I'll have to consider keeping him on as a stallion, and that will upset my stall plans, which are already stretched tighter than the skin on a Conga drum.  But it's a good problem to have, right?

Just thinking aloud about my broodmare situation...

I positively cannot have more than 10 broodmares in my stable.

I am currently at full capacity and I have a fine broodmare prospect in House of M who will probably be retired at the end of the 2015 season.  Since I am interested primarily in Classic and Long Distance foals, Domino is the mare who least fits my needs, so she might end up on the chopping block, even as she is preparing to give birth to a foal any day now.

However, I'm not real comfortable letting Domino go.  I sold her once before, to my good friend Steven of Golden Acres, and immediately regretted it.  He was kind enough to sell her back when he ran into a stall crunch himself.  She eventually became an Otsego Farms broodmare, and rewarded me with a beautiful chestnut filly, Brick House (sire - Machete).

As I said, I'm partial to distance horses, but I'll take a nice sprinter if I can get one, and Brick House looks like a nice sprinter.  Multi-surface capable, with good speed and acceleration - what's not to like?  If Domino were to throw another talented sprinter this year (sire - Yeager), I would have reservations about letting her go.  I might be inclined to keep her and match her with a succession of sprinting sires.

If this were to happen, and my plans were to change, I would have to choose another mare to go and that would be either False Demon or Baby Greyhound.  False Demon was acquired specificially to breed with War Machine, but their first two tries were both disappointments; colt Trebuchet (who will debut this year) and filly Anck Su Namun.  In her career as a broodmare, Baby Greyhound has had mixed-to-poor results so far.  Mixing things up, I matched False Demon with Nightwing this year, and Baby Greyhound with Union Jack, who has a history of producing quality offspring.

So, one of those three (Domino, False Demon, Baby Greyhound) will be sold during 2015 to make room for House of M.  Who it will be depends entirely on how the new foals look.  Just a few more days...

Too long of a wait for 2015?

I think we'll all agree that Photo-Finish is an excellent horse racing simulation.  Yes, it has it's imperfections.  But they are being addressed on a case-by-case basis.  The game is a lot better now than it was 5 years ago.  There is progress on many fronts; from suggestions made by the rank and file and put into being by the sweat of Laurie's brow.

One fortress of concern however that has not been breached is the overlong off-season.  Three months is a period of time that will test the patience of even the most steadfast stable owner.

What can be done?  How can we bring this beast of an off-season to bay?

There are tasks that need to be done and they take time.  Perhaps, if we can cut out all of the fat, the best we can accomplish is cutting the off-season from 12 weeks to 8 weeks.  That would be a vast improvement.  I'd like to see it at 6 weeks.  Can this be done?

Suggestion One - Concerning Year-End Awards

Currently, Laurie makes the nominations then opens the voting process.  After the nominations are published, PF stable owners cast their votes and eventually the YE Awards are announced. 

I suggest a panel of 7 experienced PF owners with rotating membership that would make the decsions by vote.  These YE Award decsions could be made within a matter of days, saving a significant amount of time by removing the foot-dragging owners from the process.  This change could possibly save 1-2 weeks.

Suggestion Two - Concerning Year End Auction

This process can take up to 3 weeks from beginning to end.  First the time allotted to review the stock, then the auction itself, then the time to negotiate on unmet reserves, and finally the distribution of stock.

I suggest it be eliminated altogether.  Use the auction process during the year to buy and sell all horses, from breeders to foals.  Why not?  I see a potential savings of 3 weeks.

Suggestion Three - Concerning Breeding

This process consumes a month of Laurie's time and there is really no way to make a significant time savings with all of the manual labor that must be done. 

However, Laurie's idea of punishing owners who make mistakes by giving them a barren mare is OK with me.  This is a very important process and each of us should be willing to take a few minutes to make sure our information is completely accurate, rather than just haphazardly sending it in and expecting Laurie to sweep up after us.  Without her having to send incorrect spreadsheets back and wait for a revision, I would think that at least a week can be saved.

So, I envision a possible savings of 5-6 weeks if these suggestions were incorporated.  It seems that we could definately cut the off-season from 12 to 8 weeks and still give Laurie a little vacation as well.

Allright?  OK.  I'm glad that's settled.

Digging deeper to unearth a gem?

I took a look at the HRF statistics for my 3YO's as of their final race last season.  Without giving the actual numbers, here they are ranked from best to worst.

BREAK SPEED

1. Kit Fisto
2. You Know My Name
3. Deep Magic
4. Moondragon
5. Captain Britain
6. Azrael
7. Art of Seduction
8. Xtra Run

EARLY SPEED

1. Xtra Run
2. Moondragon
3. Azrael
4. You Know My Name
5. Captain Britain
6. Kit Fisto
7. Deep Magic
8. Art of Seduction

TOP SPEED

1. Xtra Run
2. Moondragon
3. Azrael
4. You Know My Name
5. Kit Fisto
6. Captain Britain
7. Deep Magic
8. Art of Seduction

STAMINA

1. Art of Seduction
2. Azrael
3. You Know My Name
4. Deep Magic
5. Kit Fisto
6. Captain Britain
7. Moondragon
8. Xtra Run

Interesting that Art of Seduction (AR says sprinter) has the highest stamina rating of the bunch.  His speed is poor, which again translates into him being a distance runner.

Azrael looks like the real deal to me.  His speed is good - just under the two sprinting mares Xtra Run and Moondragon, and his stamina is strong as well.  His prognosis is good for 2015.

Xtra Run is very fast, but has no stamina and her atrocious break speed is extremely problematic.  Even though her speed may be on a par with her sprinting peers, if she is 10 lengths down after the first furlong, the race may be over before she get stretched out.

Kit Fisto's relative lack of speed is partially offset by his quick starts.  His stamina is good, and should improve as he matures, so his modus operandi should be to get out front, put it on auto-pilot, and try to hang on until the end.

I am a bit concerned about Deep Magic's below-average speed.  He finished low both on early speed and top speed, and this is not an overly speedy bunch.  His stamina is a bit better than advertised though, so perhaps by running at 10F rather than 8F (as suggested by his AR) he can do better.

You Know My Name breaks well and has decent speed.  Coupled with her above-average stamina, it may be enough for her to build on her successful 2YO campaign.

Captain Britain (in spite of his decent showing as a 2YO) and Moondragon both look decidedly mediocre.  I'll be keeping a close eye on their progress in 2015.  If no improvement is made, they will be shipped out.

I hope you're not too attached to your heads.....

Wielding hooves like a pair of katana's and shooting glances as sharp as throwing stars, 2yo colt Samurai Jack hits the racing circuit for Otsego Farms this year.  Sired by Union Jack out of Affirm Gal, this handsome chestnut colt looks to follow in the footsteps of Captain Britain and You Know My Name, who were both sired by Union Jack and both scored victories as 2yo's last season.

Originally projected as our 4th best 2015 prospect, Samurai Jack has been moving up in the rankings due to excellent work on the track in training.  "Looks like he has a slight preference for dirt, although he'll run on turf as well", commented owner Jim Webber, who continued, "This is a quality racehorse, and I'd expect nothing less from a product of Union Jack."

Samurai Jack makes up one third of a triumverate of Union Jack colts that will compete in 2015, with the others being Jack the Ripper and Crackerjack.

A peek into the office of Jim Webber, Owner of Otsego Farms

Recent conversation between Otsego Farms owner Jim Webber and his Head Trainer:

HT: Do you have a few minutes to go over some horses Boss?

JW: Sure.  Let's do it.  Have a seat.  Would you like a Perrier?

HT: Thanks.  (Settles himself on leather couch and looks over notes.)

JW: Anything else I can get you?  No?  OK, let's get started.

HT: Shatterstar?

JW: He stays.  He's still serviceable King.  I want to race him one more year and then we'll see.

HT: (Nods head and jots down a note.)   Are we gonna send Kayson to any GR1 races this year?

JW: I know he's has disappointed in the GR1's so far King, but those 107/108/109 PSR's are going to start telling  very soon.  He's too darn fast not to win.  I want to see him in as many GR1's as possible.

HT: Uh huh.  Got it.  What about Machine Gun?

JW: That reminds me.  Excuse me King.  (Speaks into intercom to Secretary)  Celeste?  Please send Foxie four dozen roses and a $500 Gift Card to the Champagne Brasserie.  Thank you.  (Turns attention back to Trainer) I feel that Machine Gun will blossom this year King, but the clock is already ticking.  No more Stakes races.  GR3 or higher, OK?

HT: Gotcha.  We agree on Methy Bus?

JW: Right.  10F or farther until further notice.  He should have a monster year.

HT:  (Checks notes again) I want to race Refractor strictly at 16F.  Are we in agreement on that?

JW: Yes.  I want to own that distance King.  Is that clear?

HT: Crystal.  What about Art of Seduction Boss?

JW: You tell me King.  Is he a sprinter or not?

HT: He's no sprinter Boss.  I figure he should be running at 10-12F.

JW: Then make it so.

HT: (Smiles) OK Jean-Luc.  (Consults notes) What about Mocha Milkshake?

JW: That horse isn't going to be mature until he's 4 next year King, but not racing him is killing me.  Shoot for a debut in July and we'll see where we're at then.  Anything else?

HT: Just some odds and ends Boss.  Nothing we haven't already talked about.

JW: How's Juggernaut looking?

HT: He's a stunner Boss. 

JW: Excellent. 

2015 Preview - Incoming 2YO Racers

Nine new 2yo's will join the ranks of Racers at Otsego Farms in 2015.  It is a very exciting group, primarily composed of Classic and Distance runners. 

Boudica (filly - War Machine x Bold Alanna)

Maturing slowly, the white filly Boudica will probably sit out the 2015 racing season.  She is a dirt specialist who like distance.  We like this match quite a bit - Bold Alanna matched War Machine's strengths right down the line, leading us to believe that she will be a handful when she is mature.

Charlemagne (colt - War Machine x Second Strike)

This fellow's stately demeanor prompted his regal name.  He's a dirt distance type who projects as our 3rd best 2yo prospect.  Called "The King" by the grooms in the stable.

Crackerjack (colt - Union Jack x In Spirit)

The diminutive Crackerjack is a turfer like his sire.  Looks like he'll compete at classic distances.  Dam has produced two nice colts in a row in Crossbones and Kit Fisto, so we're expecting more of the same here.

Darkhawk (colt - Nightwing x Flawless)

A big fella at 17hh, Darkhawk appears not to have inherited his sire's stamina.  He'll top out around 9F, preferring turf.  Half-brother to 3yo Captain Britain, Darkhawk was the last foal that Flawless produced for Otsego Farms.

Jack the Ripper (colt - Union Jack x Ace Of Grace)

Projecting as our 2nd best 2yo prospect, Rip will run on turf at classic distances.  With his breeding, it's possible that he may stretch to longer distance as he matures.  Sire and dam were both adept at 16F so we're hoping that Jack the Ripper can do likewise.

Juggernaut (colt - Jenny's My Gal x Shattered Record)

Our top prospect, this light gray colt has no visible weaknesses.  He's a multi-surface threat who likes the distance.  Juggernaut will try to follow in the footsteps of older half-sister You Know My Name, who had success as a 2yo, winning twice.

Samurai Jack (colt - Union Jack x Affirm Gal)

A dirt classic runner, we like this match quite a bit.  Union Jack has has tremendous success in the past couple of years as a stallion and Affirm Gal is one of our up-and-coming broodmares.  The fact that SJ prefers dirt is a bit of a surprise though.

Trebuchet (colt - War Machine x False Demon)

Treb is extremely picky when it comes to surfaces.  The only going he will tolerate is soft dirt, which will undoubtedly be problematic.  He does like distance, so with the limited number of long races and his scratch-inducing nature, he may have a short career with limited starts.

Warp Factor Ten (colt - Run Missy Run x Nova)

Bred to go 8F or less, WFT became WTF? when it was determined that he preferred long distance over sprints.  We are a bit concerned about how an oddball collection of genetic traits may play out, but he does show speed so if all else fails, we'll run him in sprints anyway!

Strategy change for 2015

Now that 2014 is finished, I've been looking over the data to see how I've mismanaged my horses.

Sometimes a horse performs well at a specific distance and you fall into a rut.  You just keep rolling him out there figuring, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.  The problem is, there is a possibility that he may perform even better at a different distance, but we'll never know if we aren't willing to experiment a bit.

Consider Methy Bus.  Looking at his record, you've got to concede that he's a pretty fast horse.  Ten out of his 16 career races have exceeded 100 PSR.  Fast, right?

Wrong.  He's not particularly fast.  His success is rooted in his outstanding stamina.

His recent stats check in as BREAK SPEED 71, EARLY SPEED 86, TOP SPEED 88, STAMINA 73.

He's a rather slowish starter with average speed...period.  Nothing special there.  Where he excels though is that gaudy, diamond-tipped, razor-sharp, gold-plated 73 for stamina.  That my friends, is how this fellow pays the bills.  As long as the race isn't too short, Methy Bus will usually run down the horses that are starting to lather and blow.

Back to my original point though.  He's gonna run in longer races next year. 

Methy Bus was efficiently and successfully managed by Chris over at Smokey's Stable.  No doubt about that.  And I just followed suit for the past couple of races with middling results.  But now that I've had a chance to think about it, I'm convinced that he'll do even better with a little more distance.

In his longest races, he has tried twice at 10F.  The first was the Cox Plate and he was the favorite at 9/4.  He finished 3rd in a lackluster performance.  His next race was the Kentucky Derby, also at 10F but this time on dirt, which is his less preferred surface.  Again, he was well received by the oddsmakers with a 9/1 line and there were only 4 horses that had better odds.  He obviously disliked the going, finishing 18th.

So, those two disappointing races don't exactly support my hypothesis, do they?  Even so, two things are beyond contestation in my opinion: 

1. A top speed of 88 is really too low to go against Milers.
2. A stamina rating of 73 should equate to success at 12+ furlongs.

Therefore, Methy Bus will try his luck at much longer races next season.

 A sample of recent festivities in celebration of another successful season at Photo-Finish.  Pictured here in the 1st Annual 1F Sprint Handicap In Drag, are (from left) Steven from Golden Acres, Ryan from Spartan Stables, Jim from Otsego Farms, Jim from Hutton's Horse Haven, Josh from JD Kayll Racing, and Chris from Cold Steel.

Be fruitful, and multiply.

The 2014 season marked a milestone for Otsego Farms.  For the first time, it was a season that showcased a talented and potentially explosive group of 2yo's. 

Nova - Otsego Farms first homebred

Prior to 2012, my breeding operation was very limited.  In fact, in the 7 years from 2005 through 2011, I bred a total of 18 foals; an average of just 2.5 per year.  Coincidentally, I had very limited success with homebreds during this period.  Nova was a bright spot and Shatterstar was and still is serviceable.  Sabretooth also showed some ability, but won just 3 races in his career.  Other than those, it was a motley crew of washouts.

I often wondered why was my racing success was so limited with my homebred's early on.  Breeding-wise, I was just as careful during my early years as I am now. I look for appropriate pairings and mares with ability; never using a mare just because she's a mare. I breed strength to strength and try to cover weaknesses when possible.

Perhaps, I thought, it is just a numbers game.  Produce more foals with quality breeding and the odds are better that some good ones will pop up.  After getting some advice, I decided to gear up my breeding operation.

My current group of 2yo's was born in 2012 and was the first batch of the enhanced breeding strategy suggested by Steven of Golden Acres and Foxie of Foxies Lodge.   During the period of 2012 through 2015, I will have bred 36 foals; an average of 9.0 per year.  My first larger group has produced a boatload of talent...

Azrael 4-1-1-0.  Son of Nightwing has lungs.

Captain Britain 3-1-0-1.  Union Jack sired.  Loves turf and distance.

Deep Magic  4-0-2-0.  By War Machine and maturing nicely.

Kit Fisto 4-0-2-0.  Another War Machine product who can make the distance.

Moondragon 4-1-0-0.  Moet filly won debut and has some speed.

You Know My Name 4-2-0-0.  Filly by Union Jack who is gonna be a handful.

Every one of these horses has potential and I'm very excited to have them all running as 3yo's next year.  Additionally, my batch of upcoming 2yo's for the 2015 racing season looks stronger on paper than this group.

Results for Weeks 47-48

It was a pretty good week, with all five racers hitting the board.

Nebula won her second straight race at 6F.  It looks like her new pet distance, which shouldn't be a surprise since her dam Nova excelled at 6F.  Her AR and HRF stats hint at longer distances, but it looks like she may stick at sprints for awhile.  You can argue with success.

Deep Magic finished his season with a second consecutive 2nd place finish.  He showed a strong kick, even at 7F, which was his longest race of the year.  Looks like he'll be a miler as suspected.  His slowish starts are a bit of a concern, but 8F should be long enough to alleviate the poor starts.

Crossbones rebounded nicely from his last place finish in the Indiana Derby to finish 3rd in the Hollywood Derby.  He had a bad trip and didn't get any real running room until the last furlong.  He finished with a flourish and I feel he would have won had his trip been smoother.

Necromancer performed very well again.  He grabbed a 2nd place at 7.5F.  It is his 5th consecutive finish in-the-money for Otsego Farms.  In spite of his heroic performance for us, he'll get caught up in a numbers game and have to be moved at the end of the season.  

Refractor finished his 2014 season with a strong, but disappointing 2nd place finish in the Brisbane Cup.  He was beaten by 4yo Druido Supremo, for whom I have a tremendous amount of respect.  Surprisingly, Refractor, the younger horse, carried more weight.  

A record of 5-1-3-1 for the week.

Prediction? Pain.

Refractor is riding a dominating 3-race winning streak and heads into his last race of the season this weekend in the 16F Brisbane Cup.  In the past 3 months, he's won the AJC Chairman's Handicap, the Prix du Cadran, and the Breeders Cup Endurance; and has done so by an average of 7 lengths!

He'll face off against stout competition this weekend.  Some of the other entries include 3yo phenom Pluto, super-stayer Druido Supremo, the always competitive Roanoke, and the veteran mare Ride The Sun.

When asked for a prediction, Otsego Farms owner Jim Webber was not shy.  "Refractor is at the very top of his game right now.  I think he's unbeatable at 16F at the moment, so he should bring the pain to the rest of the field."

Encouraging start from current 2yo crop bodes well for 2015

Actor Kiefer Sutherland signals "thumbs up" to Otsego Farms owner Jim Webber (offstage) after Webber discussed his stables prospects on The Late Show with David Letterman.

Although there are no apparent superstars in out current crop of 2yo's, they have all performed admirably and have given us some bit of hope for the future.

Usually at this time of year, I am looking critically at the 2yo's with the purpose of sending a few of them packing.  In the past, it's been a fairly easy process - just look for the ones that haven't made any money and have shown no improvement over the course of the year.  For them, it's Bon Voyage.

This year is different though.  They have all shown me something, or at least shown enough to forestall their departure at year end.

Art of Seduction    3-0-0-0

I purchased this well-bred colt after his first race.  AR says sprinter, HRF stats say otherwise.  He has not hit the board in two races at longer distances, but has looked decent.  He'll get a chance to see what he can do next year at 10+ furlongs before any final decision is made.

Azrael    3-0-1-0

Slow-starting, hard-finishing colt, just like his daddy.  He has been steadily improving, culminating in a 2nd place finish in his last race.  Prognosis is good.

Captain Britain    3-1-0-1

This Union Jack sired colt has been steady, if unspectacular.  His PSR's have been modest, but he has a propensity to hit the board.  He may end up as a serviceable racer in the mold of Shatterstar.  Hopefully though, he'll step up and accomplish a bit more.

Deep Magic    3-0-1-0

This fellow carried very high expectations.  By War Machine out of Isca's Revenge, his breeding commands respect.  He has also showed steady improvement, finally hitting the board in his third race.  We anticipate a solid 3yo campaign.

Kit Fisto    3-0-2-0

Another Nightwing progeny, Fisto seems to have exceptional lung capacity.  A couple of 2nd place finishes in three tries bodes well for next year. 

Moondragon    3-1-0-0

She won her debut, then has regressed a little bit in the last two races.  Has speed and has shown she can win, so she'll get another season to show more consistency.

Xtra Run    4-0-1-0

Being by Run Missy Run out of Xtra Heat, she should ooze speed.  Her HRF stats do confirm that she has abundant ability, but so far, we've been unsuccessful in determining if she's a sprinter, a miler, or a distance horse.  She'll get plenty of time to sort herself out.

You Know My Name    3-1-0-0

She won her second race in spectacular fashion, paving her way to the the BC Fillies Juvie, then bombed just as spectacularly.  Has a ton of talent potential though and should be a credit to her sire, Union Jack, next season.

Mocha Milkshake    0-0-0-0

Slow-maturing 2yo who will not race until next season.  We love the breeding of Memcay x Gourmet Girl and our trainers tell us this fella loves distance, so bring on 2015.

All nine of these horses will get a good long look next season as 3yo's.  Azrael and Kit Fisto both have some potential as Kentucky Derby prospects, but they will have to show marked improvement early next year.

Brisbane Cup for Refractor?

Otsego Farms owner Jim Webber was coy when asked about entering Refractor in the Brisbane Cup.  "My first and strongest inclination," he said, "was to skip the trip to Brisbane and call it a season after the Breeders Cup win.  But you never know..."

Playing in favor of a Refractor appearance is the fact that Otsego Farms has a successful history in this race, with 3 victories in 10 years.  Nightwing won the Brisbane Cup in 2004 and 2005, and Union Jack won it in 2010.  "Yeah, I'd like to get another one," Webber continued, "but Refractor has had a bit of a busy schedule in the past couple of months so I'm playing it by ear." 

Refractor won the Prix du Cadran in Paris on October 7th, and followed that up with the BC Endurance victory at Churchill Downs on November 1st.  This caused an unidentified stable to make sarcastic and derogatory comments in the media about Refractor's schedule.  Webber bristled a bit at that.  "We transport our horses via our own corporate jet, so we can cut things a little tighter.  Of course, the smaller, less successful stables have to use public transportation.  So I can understand their envy."

Refractor romped home in both recent wins, leaving quite a bit of stamina untapped.  Webber concluded, "Physically, the horse could easily stand another 16F before the end of the year.  He wasn't pushed at all in either of the wins."

Pairings / Names finalized for upcoming breeding season

The final breeding pairs along with the names of all prospective 2015 foals have been released by Otsego Farms owner Jim Webber, who stated, "The expectation of the new crop is always an exciting time.  In that regard, we like to publish the foal names early to get the juices flowing here at the stable."

War Machine x Ace Of Grace

Colt - Steel Lion

Filly - Dream Girl

Note: We've wanted to use both of these names in the past and they've never come up.  We'll get one this year.

War Machine x Arctic Fox

Colt - The Golden One

Filly - Andromache

Note: Both names inspired from the "Troy" series of books.  Andromache is pronounced An-DRAMA-kee.

Jenny's My Gal x Affirm Gal

Colt - Galahad

Filly - Galaxi

Note: Gal x Gal = Gal

Union Jack x Baby Greyhound

Colt - Herriot

Filly - Tricky Woo

Note: These names came from the delightful Books and TV Series "All Creatures Great and Small".

Yeager x Domino

Colt - Flash

Filly - Lightning Lass

Note: Can't believe the name Flash has never been used.  Lightning Lass is a superhero name that I've thought about using a couple times.

Nightwing x False Demon

Colt - Schoolboy Crush

Filly - Blue Fairy

Note: Colt name is from a song I love.  Filly name came from the quest of the robot boy in the movie A.I., who was searching for the Blue Fairy to change him into a real boy; just like in Pinocchio.

Union Jack x In Spirit

Colt - Admiral Boom

Filly - PracticallyPerfect

Note: Mary Poppins.  Need I say more?

Big 'N Rich x Nova

Colt - Big Bang

Filly - She Bangs

Note: Big Bang just flows logically from sire and dam name.  She Bangs is a derivative of colt name, more or less.

Reichenbach Falls x Second Strike

Colt - Numerator

Filly - Numerator

Note: Got the name from an old 3M horseracing game, Win, Place, and Show.

Take A Gander x Shattered Record

Colt - Ugotthelook

Filly - Ugotthelook

Note: From the iconic Prince song.  I've never been a fan of names that are strung together like this, but it just felt right in this case.

So there you have it.  The colt and filly names for the 2015 breeding season.  All rights reserved on these names; now and in the future.

...and Crackerjack makes three?

Otsego Farms broodmare In Spirit is on a roll.

In Spirit is the dam of 3yo Crossbones (sired by Nightwing), who has surpassed the $1M mark in earning in just 13 starts, and finished 3rd in both the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes; and promising 2yo Kit Fisto (sired by War Machine), who has a career record of 3-0-2-0.

The success of these fellows has given us great hope for another In Spirit colt who will make his debut in 2015.  As implied by his name, Crackerjack was sired by Union Jack, who has had some success of his own in the breeding shed recently.

AR is displayed below:

Crackerjack (2013), 15.2 hand bay colt

By Union Jack out of In Spirit by Bellbuster

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 ok on 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 has physical problems that may lead to alot of injury downtime.

This horse has average ratability.

This horse looks like it can run at classic distances.

Shatterstar takes the long road to $1M in earnings

"This racehorse is as honest as they come.  He's not blessed with blinding speed or endless stamina, but he'll give you a solid effort every time out."  So said Otsego Farms owner Jim Webber when asked about 5yo Shatterstar finally reaching the $1,000,000 earnings plateau.

"He's been in-the-money in 26 out of 33 career races and has finished either first or second in over half of his starts", Webber continued.  "You gotta love a producer like that."

It has taken some time for Shatterstar to reach this milestone because he has never won a GR1 race and has had only one purse that exceeded $100,000.

There was some speculation that Shatterstar would be sold to make room for younger racers once the magical $1M mark was reached.  Those rumors were quickly squelched by Webber.  "No way I'm selling this guy.  He's coming back next year as a 6yo for another season."

Which will make him just the second horse in Otsego Farms history to have a 5-year career whilst wearing the blue and yellow.  Can you guess the other?

Breeders Cup Excitement and Disappointment

Otsego Farms came away with just one BC victory with Refractor putting away the field in the 16F Endurance.

"After I made several comments about Refractor being the top 2-miler in Photo-Finish, former stable owner Mike Noble stated that the Sunshine Stables stayer Pluto would shadow Refractor until the two met again", Otsego owner Jim Webber said after the race.  "He didn't have to wait long, did he?"

With the large field, and his come-from-behind style, Refractor struggled to find running room for most of the race.  But, with 3 furlongs to go, things finally opened up, and he was able to stretch out, pass the leaders and win in relatively easy fashion.

The other Breeders Cup entries did not go as well for Otsego Farms.  Webber had stated, in a tongue-in-cheek manner, that he would sweep the four races he entered.  Things did not go as planned.

"You Know My Name simply looked outclassed and had nothing at the end", Webber explained with a shrug.  "I honestly think that both Methy Bus and Kayson would have won their races, but both had terrible trips.  Kayson in particular was horrifically blocked by Medusa's Blood and had no possible hope of recovery.  This is the risk you take when you sign up for a big field."

Blood-Horse Breeders Cup Interview - Part 4

 Kayson will make his Breeders Cup debut in 2014

The fourth and final segment of the interview:

BH: The final race you've entered is the Breeders Cup Turf Sprint with Kayson.

JW: Right. 

BH: He's never won a GR1 race.  Does he deserve a shot at the BC?

JW: Kayson is maturing slowly like his sire, Handsome Man.  His best years are ahead of him and it starts right now.  This guy is a machine that consistently punches out 108 PSR's.  He's as good as any other horse in this race.

BH: Who are some of the other racers that concern you?

JW: A Rab is a tough racer, but I can't help wondering if he wouldn't be better off in the Mile.  Dutty Wine could also be problematic.  Ettore Fieramosca is not real well known, but has really blossomed as a 3yo and Undertaker seems to be peaking at about the right time.

BH: I'm surprised that you didn't mention Gorgeous George or Reining Money.

JW: Gorgeous George has won 4 races in a row, but frankly, I don't think he's fast enough for a straight-up sprint.  Reining Money just seems to be a little off his game right now.  He's a great horse but he won't be a factor in this race.

BH: So, it comes to this.  How will Kayson do?

JW: I think you know.

BH: You're predicting yet another win?

JW:  Of course.  Do you really think any of these horses can beat him?