Stallion Stories | Horse Racing News

Award-winning author Margaret Ransom continues her series of Stallion Stories, which occasionally focuses on geldings. Previous subjects in the series include Seattle Slew, Silver Charm, Grindstone, Storm Cat, Go For Gin, and gelding John Henry.

Jump Start

By Margaret Ransom

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 some of the most successful and well-known breeding farms in the Bluegrass, including Spendthrift Farm, Three Chimneys and Overbrook Farm. He’s also worked at the Kentucky Horse Park. Over his 30-plus year career, the 54-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 on most things thoroughbred racing, Lanter is sharing his favorite stories about the horses whose lives he considers himself privileged to be around. Since leaving as Equine Section Supervisor at the Kentucky Horse Park’s Hall of Champions in 2015, Lanter has been compiling stories about “his horses” and deciding where his next life chapter will come from.

The Horse

Pedigree:A.P. Indy—Steady Cat, by Storm Cat
Color: bay
Born: January 18, 1999—May 19, 2019
Owner/Breeder: Overbrook Farm (W.T. Young)
Trainer: D. Wayne Lukas
Career Record: 5-2-1-0
Career Earnings: $221,265
Notable Victories: 2001 Saratoga Special (G2)

Piecing A Stallion Back Together

Stallion Stories: Jump Start – Photo Courtesy of Wes Lanter

Lanter hadn’t been at Overbrook Farm long when Jump Start came into his world as one of the farm’s most promising young homebreds. The son of A.P. Indy didn’t end up being one of the more famous in his life, but he would become one of the more significant for a number of reasons.

As a racehorse, everyone in 2001 knew who Jump Start was, of course. The handsome bay D. Wayne Lukas trainee won the Saratoga Special (G2) and went in to a very deep and talented 2001 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) fairly highly regarded when the unthinkable happened.

Jump Start suffered a condylar fracture to his left front cannon bone and subsequently underwent extensive surgery to repair the injury.

I remember that Pat Day suddenly pulled him up on the backside,” Lanter recalls about that somewhat somber day shortly after the September 11 terrorist attacks on America. “But he was back at the farm literally a couple days after. I had a little three-horse barn up top that he was in for a while to recover. His leg was tough to see and we were careful, we didn’t breed him right away so he could get used to it, but before long he was in the main stallion barn and started his stud career just fine.

His x-rays (after the surgery) were unbelievable, I’ve never seen anything like it before or since. They fused his ankle and he had like 20 screws or more in there. But he did really well on it and got around fine, he also bred his mares without trouble on it at all.”

More often than not it takes some time for any horse to transfer from racehorse to breeding stallion, but that wasn’t the case for Jump Start. Lanter says the colt was always easy and fit right in right away.

Jump Start always had so much class,” Lanter remembered. “I mean from the beginning when he was barely off the track he never really did things horses barely off the track normally did. He was never silly or stupid.

“He always had a professional attitude. One time Seth Hancock (of Claiborne Farm) came out to see him and he told me that one morning at Churchill Downs he was giving Pat Day a ride over to the frontside from the stable area and Pat Day said, ‘Lukas has an A.P. Indy colt who could be any kind,’ referring to Jump Start. And coming from a rider like Pat Day, you knew it was true. Jump Start was certainly a case of unfilled potential.”

A Kid’s Best Friend

For his entire tenure at Overbrook Farm, Jump Start’s paddock was closest to Lanter’s house, which was nearest to the stallion complex on the property. Most every morning as

Lanter headed off to work, Jump Start was there, waiting for his groom to bring him in for breakfast or for some attention from those coming and going through the farm’s back gate. And because of the proximity to his home, Lanter’s young son Noah and the stallion formed an enviable bond.

“Basically I had Jump Start running around in my front yard,” Lanter explained. “When Noah was little, he would always pet and play with Jump Start. And Noah would walk right up to the fence to see him and he’d run along the fence and they’d play. Noah really loved him and I never worried. He knew to respect the horses, but I couldn’t imagine Jump Start ever doing anything.

“We don’t use cutesy nicknames for the horses, but Noah called him ‘Jumpy’ and I let him. When Noah moved to (college in) Wisconsin, he told all his friends about him and it was like telling them about one of his closest friends at home. He was such a lucky kid to have grown up with the likes of Seattle Slew and Storm Cat and those types, but Jump Start was his favorite.”

A Useful Stallion, If Not Sometimes A Reluctant One

It’s easy to imagine that it’d be hard for any stallion to shine in the shadow of the legendary Storm Cat, but Jump Start certainly had his share of successes as a sire. Lanter remains proud of what he accomplished.

“He really turned into a useful stallion,” Lanter said. “I mean, just off the top of my head he sired (millionaires) Prayer For Relief and Rail Trip, and also Icabad Crane. He did go to South America and did a summer there and sired a couple of champions there as well. I was always pleased with his accomplishments.”

The only issue Lanter says he ever had with Jump Start is that the horse seemed to prefer hanging out in his paddock or visiting with people rather than being an actual stallion.

“I mean, he’d breed but it was like he didn’t really care about it,” Lanter recalled. “Sometimes we’d put him in the teaser’s stall to get him to tease the mares and try to get him in the mood.

“Overall he was better than most stallions. Too many people buy into the whole, ‘stallions are evil and they can kill you,’ thing and while it was certainly true of some – and I’ve certainly had a couple – most aren’t evil and Jump Start was the farthest thing from it. He had a tremendous attitude and was a joy to be around. He didn’t get a lot of visitors who just came to see him, but when people wanted to get closer to a stallion I always felt safe letting them be near him.

And he was handsome, especially for such a big horse. Sometimes big horses aren’t as refined and are more course-looking, but Jump Start was a very pretty horse.”

By 2009, Overbrook owner W.T. Young had passed away and the breeding operations at Overbrook Farm were winding down, horses were being sold through dispersals and the stallions were being sent far and wide. Jump Start was relocated to Pennsylvania, first to Ghost Ridge Farm and then Northview, where he lived out the remainder of his life before colitis claimed him a year ago. Lanter remembers the sadness he felt when he learned of Jump Start’s passing, mostly because he was more than just a horse in his life.

“When it comes to stallions, we’d always go in with realistic expectations so when they had success as a sire it was always nice when they exceed them and Jump Start certainly did,” Lanter remembers. “I enjoyed watching and reading about his runners and their successes.

“When I read that he passed I was sad, we were buddies, he was my son’s buddy,” Lanter remembered.

Stallion Stories: Raise A Native

By Margaret Ransom

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 some of the most successful and well-known breeding farms in the Bluegrass, including Spendthrift Farm, Three Chimneys and Overbrook Farm. He’s also worked at the Kentucky Horse Park. Over his 30-plus year career, the 54-year-old has worked with three Triple Crown winners, thoroughbred and standardbred, five additional Kentucky Derby winners and multiple champions and Hall of Famers.

The Horse

Pedigree: Native Dancer—Raise You, by Case Ace
Color: Chestnut
Born: April 18, 1961—July 28, 1988
Breeder: Happy Hill Farm
Owner: Louis Wolfson (Harbor View Farm)
Trainer: Burley Parke
Career Record: 4-4-0-0
Career Earnings: $45,955

Notable Victories

Great American Stakes, Juvenile Stakes

Accomplishments

American champion 2-year-old (1963)

Spendthrift’s Own “Big Red”

By the time Lanter rose to the ranks of the Spendthrift Farm stallion groom, Raise A Native had already made his forever mark on the thoroughbred breed. Though his racing career was short – undefeated in four starts with two stakes victories – by far his successes came as a sire, broodmare sire and sire of sires. Alydar, Mr. Prospector, Exclusive Native and Majestic Prince are just some of the runners sired by Raise A Native, while he is notably the grandsire of Affirmed, Alysheba, Easy Goer, Gulch, Genuine Risk, Conquistador Cielo, Strike The Gold, Smart Strike and so many more.

His name also shows up in the sire lines for nearly two dozen Kentucky Derby winners – 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, Affirmed and Majestic Prince.

It’s hard to look at any modern thoroughbred pedigree and not find Raise A Native in it, and it’s safe to say even people with a passing interest in thoroughbred racing and breeding know who Raise A Native was and his importance to the breed.

“He was already who he was by the time I made it to the stallion barn,” Lanter remembers. “But I quickly learned a lot about him. I mean, I remember looking at him and studying his sire stats and thinking it was tragic that he only ran four times. I think he set a track record every time he ran, too.

“Charles Hatton, the great turf writer, once wrote of Raise A Native as a 2-year-old: ‘Raise a Native worked down the Belmont backstretch this morning. The trees swayed.’ And I always thought of that when I thought of Raise A Native.”

Raise A Native was well into his 20s when Lanter and he first crossed paths, but what struck him about the stallion was how youthful he looked and how fit he was.

“He was an older stallion, but he was so muscular,” Lanter said. “He was built like a tank. I think any quarter horse person would have been impressed at how he looked. He looked like the epitome of ultimate fitness even at that age.”

One thing Raise A Native loved was his job as a stallion, Lanter says. Most stallions love their jobs, he noted, and Raise A Native was always a “good breeder.” But every time after his date with a mare he would get some special time with her before being led away.

“Clem (Brooks, famously the groom for the great Nashua) called him ‘Big Red’,” Lanter remembers. “So we all called him ‘Big Red’. And after every mating they’d take Raise A Native up to the mare’s head and Clem would say, “Kiss her, Big Red. Kiss her.” And he did, he’d nuzzle his mare. Raise A Native had a good personality, he really did.”

Raise A Native, The Teacher

Raise A Native, who was retired in 1963 after suffering a bowed tendon, absolutely earned his right to behave just about any way he wanted, though the crew of grooms at Spendthrift Farm still made him mind his manners for the most part. That didn’t mean the stallion didn’t test his humans, especially Lanter.

“Raise A Native wasn’t a bad horse at all and had a good personality,” Lanter recalls. “But he definitely knew his audience. He had guys he picked on and just made everything difficult for, and I was certainly one of those for him.

“Clem (Brooks) would tell me to go get Raise A Native. So I’d go down there to get him and he’d just be an ass. I’d get close to catching him and just he’d turn around and run away. It was like he was saying, ‘you’re not catching me, kid. You haven’t earned it yet.’ He could really be a jackass, but he was Raise A Native.”

Despite his imprint on the thoroughbred breed, Raise A Native didn’t attract the most fans for viewing once Triple Crown winners Seattle Slew and Affirmed showed up to Spendthrift Farm, Lanter remembers. But he was always considered the “pedestal horse” and when he was shown to visitors most were in awe of his beauty.

“I mean, everyone at that time mostly came to see the Slew and Affirmed,” Lanter said. “Which made sense since they’d both just won the Triple Crown, but we showed Raise A Native a lot and I heard people compare Raise A Native to an equine Adonis, which was a perfect description of him.”

Lanter had left Spendthrift Farm for new opportunities by the time Raise A Native was euthanized in 1988 at age 27 due to spinal degeneration, but feels a tremendous sense of pride when he remembers his time with the chestnut, who helped shape the breed forever more.

“I remember when he passed away,” Lanter recalls. “On the cover of the Blood-Horse, the last issue of his life, was a picture of Seeking the Gold and Forty Niner duking it out to the wire in that year’s Travers Stakes. It wasn’t lost on me that his two grandsons were dueling to win the Midsummer Derby, arguably one of the greatest stakes on the racing calendar. For better or for worse he changed the breed and that image was a classic example and a great tribute.

“Having worked with him certainly means more to me now than it did when I was 19. What’s to say about him? He was a great horse, a great influence and I was certainly fortunate enough to have been there at Spendthrift with him, too.”

Stallion Stories: J.O. Tobin

By Margaret Ransom

Lexington, Kentucky native Wes Lanter has spent most of his life surrounded by some of the best thoroughbreds of the last generation.

The Horse

Pedigree: Never Bend-Hill Shade, by Hillary
Color: Dark bay/brown
Born: March 28, 1974; Died: 1994
Breeder/Owner: George A. Pope Jr.
Trainers: Noel Murless, John H. Adams, Laz Barerra
Jockeys: Lester Piggott, Bill Shoemaker
Career Record: 21-12-2-2
Career Earnings: $668,159

Notable Victories

Laurent Perrier Champagne Stakes (G2T); Richmond Stakes (G2T); Swaps Stakes (G1); Coronado Handicap; Californian Stakes (G1); Malibu Stakes (G2); San Bernardino Handicap (G2); Premiere Handicap; Los Angeles Handicap (G2); Tom Fool Handicap.

Accomplishments

1976 top-rated British 2-year-old; 1978 Eclipse Award co-champion sprinter (with Dr. Patches); set NTR Hollywood Park, 1 1/8 miles in 1:47

The Stallion and the Rookie

At the time Lanter met J.O. Tobin, he was a 19-year-old groom fresh out of school and his short stint working with yearlings at Spendthrift in Lexington when he was “called up to the big leagues” to work with the stallions. This was a big deal for the rookie, who wanted more than anything to spend his career working with them.

“To make it to the stallion division, you were definitely being promoted to the ‘A’ team,” Lanter recalls of that day in 1983 when he walked into the old U-shaped stallion complex at Spendthrift. “So it was me – the kid – walking into this group of older men who’d been there forever, all of the older gentlemen, the longtime stallion grooms. They could be a bit crusty, but the job was their lives and they took great pride in it; they were all very proud to be stallion grooms.”

At the time Spenthrift bred more mares from just about everywhere and the stallion complex held some of the best sires in history.

“It was a big compliment that they trusted me enough to move me up to the stallion division,” Lanter recalled. “When you walked into that barn and turned right there was Seattle Slew, J.O. Tobin, Valdez, Caro, Gallant Man, Affirmed, Wajima, Lord Avie, Raise A Native, Mehmet, State Dinner and Northern Jove, who actually used to be a teaser in Maryland before they figured out he was also a good sire.

“I was just a kid, but I was a huge racing fan and I had read all about the stallions, especially the older ones. It was an honor to go to work every day.”

Next to Seattle Slew lived J.O. Tobin, which was interesting in that J.O. Tobin delivered his previously undefeated Triple Crown-winning neighbor his first career defeat in the 1977 Swaps Stakes at Hollywood Park. The well-bred son of Never Bend, who began his racing career in England before being brought home as a 3-year-old, was named for one of the founding members of the San Francisco Chronicle.

“J.O. Tobin, who we called just Tobin, quite possibly could still be the most handsome horse I’ve ever seen,” Lanter remembers. “I mean, he was stunningly handsome. He was basically an oil painting. And, of course, I knew he beat Slew and I was a big Slew fan, so there was that respect. I remember Karen (Taylor, co-owner of Seattle Slew) saying that there was an earthquake in Los Angeles the day before (the Swaps) and that it shook Slew, too, but I think that day that Tobin was just more ready for the win for a number of reasons.”

Tobin The Teacher

Stallions, as a rule, can be notoriously bad behavers, but few have the same negative quirks. Some are reported to be mean and/or difficult, others can be quirky in the breeding shed and others can just be unpredictable. Tobin, Lanter recalls, was just difficult.

“Tobin was the first stallion who ever got away from me,” Lanter remembers. “He reared up, got his leg over the shank and did that trick, and it was over. Everyone was shouting, ‘let him go, let him go’ and I did, but it was a lesson he taught me. He was always difficult, so it was him just being him. He was getting a shower and that’s when he did it. I learned then how to fix it, to just reach up and grab the shank up near the head, but he was my first lesson and I never forgot it.’’

And every day at work with Tobin was a lesson in patience, Lanter remembers.

“He was just high strung,” Lanter explained. “He wasn’t tough, really, or mean. He was just high strung, but manageable. He was difficult to take to his paddock and bring in every day, a challenge. He was good when you’d go to let him go, he wouldn’t break away from the gate before you were ready and pull away and do that, but he was always ready to go and stretch his legs.

“I remember (jockey) Eddie Delahoussaye telling me once that every Tobin (offspring) he ever rode was a little nuts and too high strung. Except Magical Mile, who was probably one of Tobin’s best sons. I don’t know if that was why he was never much as a stallion, but I guess he did pass that on unfortunately.”

A Visit From “Mr. May”

Stallions like J. O. Tobin didn’t get a ton of visitors to Spendthrift Farm, most people wanted to see the two Triple Crown winners, Seattle Slew and Affirmed. But that’s not to say that Tobin didn’t have his share of admirers, including one very famous baseball player.

Major-league slugger Dave Winfield came to Spendthrift for a visit in the mid-1980s and took a liking to J. O. Tobin. Lanter, who himself stands well over six feet tall, was showing the stallion to the 6-foot-6, 220-pound slugger when something happened that had never happened before.

“Winfield took the shank right out of my hand,” Lanter recalls. “He said, ‘here, let me hold that horse.’ And Tobin didn’t turn a hair. He stood there like a champ. I couldn’t believe it. There he was, this giant of a man holding on to this stallion who could be very difficult, but he was well-behaved and didn’t flinch. That day we all (stallion crew) took a picture with Winfield and Tobin of all horses.”

What Could Have Been

Both J.O. Tobin and Seattle Slew took up stud duty at Spendthrift the same year, 1979, and both commanded the same six-figure fee of $150,000. At the time they retired, the fees for both made sense.

“They went to stud at the same time and at the same fee and if you’d asked anyone back then who would have been a better stallion, the popular opinion was for sure Tobin,” Lanter explained. “He had the pedigree as a son of Never Bend, and was out of the good producer Hill Shade. He had a lot of positives. It’s hard to imagine it from back then considering how their stud careers turned out, but it’s true.”

And yet despite the fact that J.O. Tobin was highly regarded for both his pedigree and race record, and attracted some of the best mares in his first crops – “you don’t bring Becky from the Back 40 to a $150,000 stallion,” Lanter said – he was never able to live up to the initial hopes and expectations set for him when he retired, and left Spendthrift in the late 1980s, bouncing around different farms before finally finishing his career in New Mexico, where he died in 1994 at age 20.

“I don’t remember Tobin passing, I had moved on to Three Chimneys by then,” Lanter said. “But I did cut out his obituary from the Thoroughbred Times.

“I guess when I think of him – all of the ones I’ve worked with – at the end of it they’re all just horses. He didn’t make as big of an impression on me as some others, but he was as handsome as a horse could be and I remember that. And if you asked anyone who worked with him, he made a positive impression on them, too, even if he wasn’t the biggest star.”

Stallion Stories: Storm Cat

By Wes Lanter (as told to Margaret Ransom)

One thing about the thoroughbred industry as a whole is that it sometimes feels like it moves as fast as the horses. In just the Northern Hemisphere, each year starts with the hope of new foals, followed by the five-month-long breeding season with everyone’s fingers crossed, then the quest to wear Derby roses and the Triple Crown Trail, the big summertime meetings on each coast and, then, the countdown to the Breeders’ Cup, which winds down and celebrates what is always remembered as a sensational year. And at the end many of us look back and think, “How did it go by so fast?”

But as quickly as it feels like it goes by to some, time sometimes does stand still for others. The great stallion Storm Cat passed away 5 ½ years ago and it’s hard to believe it’s been ten years since the last three thoroughbred foals — plus one Quarter Horse — from the great stallion arrived, but his influence on the breed, as well as the people who loved and cared for him, remains.

For Wes Lanter, who was in charge of Storm Cat’s life at Overbrook Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, beginning in 2000 through the shuttering of W.T. Young’s celebrated thoroughbred operation in 2009 and even beyond, the years have ticked away — but the strong memories and love for Storm Cat remain, sometimes as if time is standing still.

With the 2019 breeding season just underway let’s take a walk down memory lane with Overbrook Farm’s former stallion manager and remember one of the most famous and prolific stallions in recent memory and his time at Overbrook Farm, where the Pennsylvania-bred spent his entire post-racing life.

Eyes on Storm Cat All the Time

Shortly after Lanter arrived at Overbrook Farm to take up his duties as stallion manager, the decision was made by the farm’s owners that Storm Cat would always have eyes on him. A high-tech security system was already in place and several nightwatchmen were responsible for maintaining the welfare of all horses when the day staff had gone home, but with Storm Cat’s stud fee of $500,000 (no guarantee) making him the most valuable stallion in North America at the time, more precautions were put into place to guarantee his safety.

“[At the time] they let a guy go,” Lanter recalls. “He lived and worked on the farm, but nobody was really sure about his life and activities outside of there. He was literally the most unlikely Overbrook Farm employee, a scraggly and unkempt guy and I don’t know how he made it past the first verbal portion of his interview, but he was definitely not typical.

“Mr. Young always protected his farm out of an abundance of caution, from the fencing rolling with the topography and not being just square paddocks, to the horses. He was an architect and an artist with an architect and artist’s keen eye and those decisions were always made in the best interests of the horses, too. The guy never made any threat that I’m aware of, but he definitely made some people nervous when he left.”

A small guard shack complete with full climate control was built into one of Storm Cat’s two paddocks, the one closest to the stallion barn and breeding shed, or “down below” where he’d spend most of the breeding season, and he had a full-time watch person near his paddock away from the center of the farm, or “top of the hill” during the summer and fall months. Nobody who wasn’t supposed to be near Storm Cat was ever near Storm Cat.

And even with eyes on him at all times, sometimes Storm Cat didn’t make things easy on his caregivers. He was always healthy, by and large, but he sometimes had a knack for causing unnecessary panic.

“He could be high strung, and sometimes he was a bundle of energy, so we were certainly concerned with him hurting himself, but he wasn’t mean,” Lanter remembers. “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

By early 2004, Overbrook Farm had a Derby winner, a Breeders’ Cup Classic winner and several champions residing on the property, located just south of the center of Lexington, and was a bustling and thriving breeding operation when the unthinkable happened. In January of 2004, Young suffered a fatal heart attack while at his Florida home — a death that sent shockwaves through the racing and breeding industry. When the dust from the shock finally settled, everyone on the farm had the sinking feeling that the farm would probably only be around as long as Storm Cat was.

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. And that was it. 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. It was bittersweet. 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. Can you imagine? 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.”

Margaret Ransom

California native and lifelong horsewoman Margaret Ransom is a graduate of the University of Arizona’s Race Track Industry Program. She got her start in racing working in the publicity departments at Calder Race Course and Hialeah Park, as well as in the racing office at Gulfstream Park in South Florida. She then spent six years in Lexington, KY, at BRISnet.com, where she helped create and develop the company’s popular newsletters: Handicapper’s Edge and Bloodstock Journal.After returning to California, she served six years as the Southern California news correspondent for BloodHorse, assisted in the publicity department at Santa Anita Park and was a contributor to many other racing publications, including HorsePlayer Magazine and Trainer Magazine. She then spent seven years at HRTV and HRTV.com in various roles as researcher, programming assistant, producer and social media and marketing manager.
She has also walked hots and groomed runners, worked the elite sales in Kentucky for top-class consignors and volunteers for several racehorse retirement organizations, including CARMA.In 2016, Margaret was the recipient of the prestigious Stanley Bergstein Writing Award, sponsored by Team Valor, and was an Eclipse Award honorable mention for her story, “The Shocking Untold Story of Maria Borell,” which appeared on USRacing.com. The article and subsequent stories helped save 43 abandoned and neglected Thoroughbreds in Kentucky and also helped create a new animal welfare law in Kentucky known as the “Borell Law.”Margaret’s very first Breeders’ Cup was at Hollywood Park in 1984 and she has attended more than half of the Breeders’ Cups since. She counts Holy Bull and Arrogate as her favorite horses of all time.She lives in Robinson, Texas, with her longtime beau, Tony. She is the executive director of the 501(c)(3) non-profit horse rescue, The Bridge Sanctuary.