Video from Fasig-Tipton Festival of Racing Speakers Forum, Conformation Part 1
Not Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas. Not even celebrity chef Bobby Flay.
Meet the real star of the Fasig-Tipton Festival of Racing speakers forum on the thoroughbred industry.
He’s known, for the time being as Hip #40.
The first video shows sales consignor Meg Levy of Bluewater Sales explaining her enthusiasm for this colt.
Yes, that is Flay wearing a dark suit and standing in the shot while he checks out the colt as a potential addition to his racing stable.
But he didn’t get him.
And, yes, that also is Sheryl and me cooing in the background like sentimental bunny huggers.
But don’t judge any of us, including Flay for hovering and blocking my shot. You had to be there. As you can see, Hip #40 made a big impression on everyone in that pavilion. And well he should.
Dad – Empire Maker
In 2003, Empire Maker was “supposed” to win the Kentucky Derby. In the “Sport of Kings,” he carried the expected royal blood. His sire Unbridled had won the 1990 Kentucky Derby and Breeder’s Cup Classic.
His dam, then-queen broodmare of the Bluegrass Toussaud was so highly regarded that she reportedly enjoyed the company of a pet goat and an air-conditioned stall.
However, it’s all about which horse happens to cross the finish line first on that first Saturday in May. And Funny Cide beat him to it, although Empire Maker ran second.
Empire Maker finally got his revenge in the Belmont Stakes.
These days, Empire Maker is standing at stud at Juddmonte Farms where he gets a $75,000 stud fee.
Mom – Tempus Fugit
I’m having less luck researching Tempus Fugit, Hip #40′s dam. In case you’re having a tip-of-the-tongue moment, her name is Latin for “time flies.” That’s a great name for a thoroughbred racehorse.
She apparently went off at 46-1 odds in the Kentucky Oaks in the same year as Empire Maker. She did have the heart to make a run for the early pacesetter, only to fall behind.
But she wasn’t a nobody. According to Pedigree Online, Tempus Fugit had eight wins in 32 starts, three places and two shows. (First, second and third, if you’re new to racing lingo.)
Dosage profiles
Dosage profiles seem to have fallen so out of favor that I didn’t see them listed on the program at Saratoga. Too bad.
Because the DP tells you if a horse’s ancestors have the history of being ultra fast or having the stamina to close and go the distance of a race.
Anyone who bet on Smarty Jones for the Triple Crown and bet against Summer Bird in the 2009 Belmont knows that those “birds” keep flying when the others tire out.
Anyway, a glance at both Empire Maker’s and Tempus Fugit’s dosage profiles tell me that, yes, Hip #40 may have inherited the qualities to make it down that long stretch at Belmont, just like his daddy did.
A key? Those numbers on the right of the scale. If you haven’t read my post explaining dosage, a short version is that numbers to the left are all about speed while numbers toward the right are about distance. The higher the numbers to the left, even if there are numbers at all there, show that this horse could possibly go the distance in the Belmont Stakes.
Maybe. If he’s feeling fine. If he’s in the mood. If he likes the track conditions. If the stars are aligned just right. If the competition isn’t having a stand-out day.
After all, it’s a race. There’s no sure thing. That’s why it’s called “gambling,” not “winning.” The numbers can’t predict it, the pedigree can’t predict it and your cousin the exercise rider can’t predict it.
But right now, the horse formerly known as Hip #40 is possibility on the hoof. He’s a vessel of dreams. And he’s probably either in training or just starting race horse first grade. Because he sold.
More video from Meg Levy’s demo at Fasig-Tipton
The sale
Fasig-Tipton offered a live stream of its Selected Yearlings Sale, so I was able to watch Hip #40 go through the sales ring.
He was less calm then. A thoroughbred sale is hours of adrenalin as a steady stream of horses parades briefly in the small sales ring until the gavel bangs.
So, imagine the commotion … A nearly continuous auctioneer’s chant booming on the loudspeaker. A room full of intense strangers. After all, big money is on the line. Everyone studies each horse, who stands alone except for a handler, in front of all those people. The gavel bangs. Next horse, please.
Unlike his behavior during the demo, on Monday night Hip # 40 danced and swung on his lead. Moments later, the gavel dropped at $375,000.
Sales records say that he went to Robert Baker and William Mack.
Their trainer is D. Wayne Lukas, who got a close look at the horse earlier in the morning at the speaker’s forum.
Tags: Bluewater Sales, Bobby Flay, D. Wayne Lukas, Empire Maker, Fasig-Tipton, Fasig-Tipton Festival of Racing, Meg Levy, Tempus Fugit
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