Northern Dancer Herd

I begin a survey of young stallions for 2007 whose female families go back to mares familiar to me as a youngster because of their connection to Windfields Farm.

Act of Duty, a son of Mr. Prospector from Nuryette, by Nureyev, was the most expensive yearling son in his sire's last crop. He placed in three starts. He traces back to Taylor-bred Square Angel, source of important mares like Kamar and Seaside Attraction. His first foals arrive in 2007.

Alke, a son of Grand Slam from Pasampsi, by Crow, was GR-111 SW, UAE-1 placed. He traces to Queen Maud, a winning daughter of Nearctic. This is the family of Posse, a multiple GR-11 SW. His first foals are yearlings of 2007.

A.P. Warrior, by A.P. Indy from Warrior Queen, by Quiet American, was a GR-11 SW, and GR-1 placed. He traces back to Windfields foundation mare, South Ocean, dam of Storm Bird. His first foals will arrive in 2008.

Arouse, by Lure from Buena Noche, by Quiet American, traces back to Windfields Farm bred, Buena Notte. This is the family of Hansel, winner of the Preakness and the Belmont. His first foals arrive in 2007.

Arthur's Ring, by Unbridled's Song from Camlan, by Brave Shot, placed in three starts. Family of champion sprinter, Apelia, and Fleetstreet Dancer, Jpn-1 SW, and Native Street, Kentucky Oaks. Traces back to Windfields Farm broodmare, Street Ballet. First foals arrive in 2007.

Chapel Royal, by Montbrook from Cut Class Leanne, by Cutlass was GR-11 SW, GR-1 placed. Traces back to Windfields foundation mare, Windy Answer. Family of Fanfreluche, Cool Reception. First foals are yearlings of 2007.

During, Cherokee Run from Blazing Saddle, by Blade, was a GR-11 SW, including Swaps Stakes. Traces back to Silver Betsy, daughter of Nearctic, great granddam of Barbaro. Her only non-winner, Marlodge, by Tentam, is granddam of During. His first foals are 2007 yearlings.

Fullbridled, by Unbridled's Song from Constantia, by Relaunch, was a stakes-placed winner on turf. Traces back to one of original foundation mares of E.P. Taylor, Nandi, dam of one of his original legendary stalllions, Windfields. Her descendants in this pedigree include Chilly, by Nearctic, under whom you have over thirty SW. His first foals come in 2008.

Bye and Near's first crop, conceived while he was still running, numbered three foals of 1970. They were all from his owner's mares, a trend throughout his stud career. Bye the Willow, a bay filly from Willow Strip, by Woodchuck, was a winner. Twice Nightly, a chestnut gelding from Twice Shy, by Double Eclipse, and thus a half brother to the excellent Nearctic mare, Not Too Shy, was unplaced. The last, Men are Near, a chestnut colt from Menaris, by Menetrier, was injured in a fight with another yearling and was put down in 1971.

His crop of 1971 numbered nine, with three allowance winners, Near the Willow, a brown filly from Willow Strip, Near Bye Lady, a chestnut filly from Menaris, and Twice A Week, a bay filly from Twice Shy. There were four other winners and one unplaced.

Bye and Near's crop of 1972 numbered four. Near the High Sea, a bay colt with a star from Song of Tara by Menetrier, was a SW with a second in the Queen's Plate. Bed Shy, a bay filly with a big star, two white hinds and a left white fore, from Twice Shy, won two stakes and placed in six others, including the Coronation as a 2YO against colts. Another son of this crop, Black Hawk Jim, a bay colt, also with a star, from Victory Feathers, by Bull Vic, also was a SW in Ontario. Bye that Man, a chestnut colt from Menaris, was a winner and rounded out this excellent crop.

Again in 1973, there were only four offspring. Raising Men, a chestnut colt with a star stripe, from Menaris, was a SW and stakes placed on turf. He died at five. Jammed Bear, a bay colt with a star, from major Canadian SW, Jammed Lovely, by Jamie K, was stakes placed, as was Natalba, a bay filly from Easter Seals, by Tim Tam, stakes placed on turf. The fourth member of this crop was unplaced..

In 1974, once more, four only. Bye Jamie, a chestnut colt from Jammed Lovely, ran into a fence as a yearling, yet became a winner. Be Near Me, a chestnut filly from Menaris, was stakes placed on turf and dirt. The other two were unplaced..

In 1975, the crop shrunk to three. Forty Bye Two, a chestnut colt with a star blaze and two white hinds, won four stakes and placed or showed in four more. The other two did not win.

In 1976, only two. Bye Connie, a chestnut colt with a blaze, from major Canadian SW, Connie Pat, by George Royal, was a winner. The other, Near the Sky, a bay gelding with a snip and two white hinds, from Twice Shy, placed.

On July 15, 1976, Bye and Near died. His cause of death is not known to me. He sired one foal in that breeding season that I know of, a bay colt from Miss Attractive, by Victoria Park, whose name and destiny are unknown to me.

Five SW, three stakes placed from thirty foals is just not bad at all. Bye and Near, a great local runner and a great local sire, functioned as such with almost exclusively his owner's mares. Whether this was deliberate or because no one else was interested, I do not know, but one can only dream of what might have been.

Nearctic's 1963 crop, his third, was known for its fillies. Ice Water won 11 stakes in Ontario, including the Belle Mahone three times. Snow Time and Gay North were also SW. Northern Minx won the Canadian Oaks. Northern Dancer's little sister, Arctic Dancer was stakes placed in two starts, and then retired to produce champion La Prevoyante.

But the real lion of the group of 1963, in my estimation, was a flashy chestnut colt, bred by sportsman, Conn Smythe, named Bye and Near. He had a flaxen mane and tail, a star and a snip, two white hinds and a left white fore.

His owner loved a horse that would go to the lead right away in a race and challenge the field to overtake him. In Bye and Near he had that kind of a runner. He raced from two to six, winning stakes in every year except his 2YO season. His two wins from nine starts at two gave no indication of what lay ahead.

Bye and Near would win ten stakes, run second in fifteen more and third in five. As a 6YO, he was named champion Older Male. He won the important Dominion Day H twice, the Mohawk Stakes three times. He was second in the Connaught Cup three times and second in the Horometer, the Kingarvie and the Fair Play all twice. He ran second in the Queen's Plate to Taylor bred Titled Hero.

Bye and Near was an iron man, starting 84 times, with 21 wins, 27 placings and 9 shows, winning just over $200,000. His female family was tough and sound producing. His dam, Bye Bye Bunty, was a daughter of the great Canadian runner and sire, Bunty Lawless. The good racehorse and sire, Deputy Minister, is inbred to Bunty Lawless. Bye Bye Bunty's dam, Broomflight, was by Diel from Air Post, by Ariel.

The same year, 1969, that Bye and Near won his championship he was bred to three mares. The pattern was set, as we shall see next time, for tiny crops but quality runners, mostly from his owner's broodmares.

On December 10, 2006, Tap Dancing Mauk set a new track record for nine furlongs at Zia Park in winning the $200,000 Zia Park Distance Championship Handicap. He is a son of the Northern Dancer Preakness winning grandson, Louis Quatorze, from the mare Bronzed Tap, by Pleasant Tap from Copperplate, who is a daughter of Secretariat from Copernica, who is the offspring of Taylor bred Nijinsky 11 from Copper Canyon.

From the first crop in 1972 of Nijinsky 11, Copernica was his first North American starter, and she won her first start. She was a brave filly as she only had sight in one eye, and if that wasn't handicap enough, she was foaled in the same year as Ruffian. Copernica spent her first year racing chasing that great filly, and she probably was Nijinsky 11's best running filly never to win a stakes race. At two, from 8 starts, she had 2 wins and 5 seconds. She was second in the $100,000 Frizette, the $50,000 Matron, the $25,000 Fashion, the $25,000 Colleen and the $25,000 Astoria, some of which Ruffian won. As a 3YO, from nine starts, she had 3 wins, 2 seconds and 2 thirds, placing in the $40,000 Grey Flight and showing in the $40,000 Dark Mirage.

As a broodmare, Copernica gave us Crusader Sword, a SW colt by Damascus who took the Hopeful (GR-1) and the Saratoga Special (GR-11), and Copper Butterfly, by Blushing Groom, a SW in France.

Copernica's daughter, Copperplate, granddam of Tap Dancing Mauk, produced SW Copper Horizon and the GR-111 placed runner, Gold of Autumn. Copernica also gave us the stakes placed His Majesty filly, Latin Lyric, and the hurdle stakes placed runner, Penny Bank, by Key to the Mint.

In addition, Copernica had a winning full sister, Cherokee Phoenix, who was dam of the Flamingo Stakes (GR-1) winner, Cherokee Colony, by Pleasant Colony, and also the producer of SW Risen Colony, also by Pleasant Colony. As is obvious, Nijinsky 11 and Pleasant Colony did well with this family, and Copernica's class on the racetrack brought her to the courts of some of the very best stallions. If it hadn't been for the wonderful Ruffian, Copernica might have been a multi-stakes winning champion 2YO filly.

On October 16, 2006, the Totesport.Com Silver Tankard Stakes for 2YOs was run in England. I am interested in the second and third place finishers, Champlain (Seeking the Gold-Calando, by Storm Cat) and Empire Day (Lomitas-Evil Empire, by Acatenango. There once was another Champlain, and another Empire Day, both with Windfields Farm connections.

The E.P. Taylor Champlain was a bay colt with a star, March 28, one of the 15 foals in Nearctic's second crop, 1962, from the great Windfields bred SW, Canadiana, winner of the Queen's Plate and important stakes in Canada and the USA. In fact, she was Taylor's first truly international campaigner. Thus much was expected of Champlain.

He ultimately placed in a turf stakes and ran third in a division of the Plate Trial. He was given a chance at stud once he was retired with 3 wins from 16 starts, and modest earnings of just over $11,000. He died in 1971, leaving about 27 foals from 4 crops.

From his first crop of 9, he sired the Taylor bred June 1, 1968 filly, Champ de Soleil, a winning bay filly from Solarism, by Menetrier. She became a Windfields broodmare and gave us SW Deep Meadow, a bay filly by Taylor stallion, Right Combination, who won the 2YO filly stakes, the Mazarine, and placed in the 3YO filly stakes, the Star Shoot.

In 1969, from a crop of 4, came Flamme d'Or, a SW bay filly from Flaming Issue, by Ace Marine. She won the 2YO Mazarine and showed in the Princess Elizabeth.

In winners from foals, Champlain did well, with 7 of 9 in 1968, 3 of 4 in 1969, 8 of 9 in 1970, and 2 of 5 in 1971 winning, for a total of 20 of 27.

Finally, the E.P. Taylor Empire Day was the Nearco son of Lady Angela who accompanied her across the ocean after her purchase in England, when she was carrying Nearctic in utero. Empire Day was involved in the drama at the unloading of the horses in Canada, when an inexperienced dock hand tried to remove the mare first, leaving behind her foal. Lady Angela fought valiantly to stay with her foal, in the terror risking aborting the foal which would have been Nearctic. Windfields employee, Harry Green, arrived in time to save the day, by taking out the foal, Empire Day, first, with a docile Lady Angela following after. The bloodline history of modern thoroughbreds was thus determined in critical minutes in a ship in a Canadian harbour.

Empire Day became a stakes placed winner - all of Lady Angela's many foals were winners. He was a chestnut, unlike his illustrious younger brother, the dkb/brown Nearctic. Empire Day's only claim to fame as a stallion was in siring the fine, Canadian bred sprinting gelding, E Day.

It seems there's a lot more to the Albert the Great family story than what I mentioned when discussing his exciting 2YO son, Nobiz Like Shobiz a number of postings ago. I mentioned how breeding Windfields broodmare, Passing Look, Albert the Great's great granddam, to the Northern Dancer son, Vice Regent, had made sense because Passing Look's dam, Gay Meeting, had produced the GR-111 SW, Gay Jitterbug, when bred to the Dancer. What I didn't say at that time was how fruitful the mating of Vice Regent and Passing Look would be.

One of those matings produced In My Cap, a SW, who produced Bright Feather, by Fappiano, who would be the dam of Albert the Great, to the cover of Go For Gin. Bright Feather ran second in the Canadian Oaks. Bright Feather also produced SW Watch the Bird, by Rahy, and SW Sheer Bliss, by Relaunch, as well as GR-11 placed Crimson Hero. In My Cap produced 9 winners from 9 starters, including Chekhov, GR-111 placed, Marie J, also GR-111 placed and In On the Secret, stakes placed and dam of GR-111 SW, Ask Me No Secrets.

I neglected to earlier mention Passing Look's other two Taylor-bred daughters of Vice Regent, Trumpet's Blare and Passing Vice. Trumpet's Blare became a SW of over $500,000, including a GR-1 win in the Arlington-Washington Lassie Stakes. Passing Vice won over $330,000, including a GR-111 win and a GR-1 placing. The third sister, In My Cap, won Canada's most important 2YO filly stakes, the Princess Elizabeth, as well as five other stakes on the Ontario circuit. She also ran second in the Canadian Oaks, as her daughter, Bright Feather, would.

It would be nice to see Albert the Great wake up as a sire, for his own sake and that of his own sire, Go for Gin.

Flaming Page, allowed to settle into best stride, moved up fast on the outside when advancing along the backstretch and around the far turn, took command approaching the stretch, briskly drew clear and was intermittently urged to maintain a safe advantage over Choperion.

Choperion, slow to respond while racing along the inside early, was taken to the outside when commencing his rally on the final bend and continued strongly through the stretch but could not reach the winner.

Peter's Chop, never too far back, joined the leaders along the backstretch and lacked the needed late response.

King Gorm, unhurried through the first half mile, steadily worked his way up to reach a striking position entering the stretch and closed determinedly.

Sun Dan followed the pace closely, forged to the front along the backstretch and weakened when the real test came.

The final time was 2:04 and three fifths.

Luro felt Choperion had bad racing luck in that he had to go outside around the final turn. He had only two horses beaten after three quarters of a mile.

Peter's Chop had no excuse. "The best horse won," said his jockey.

Fitzsimmons reported, "Flaming Page was last going by the grandstand for the first time. She started picking up horses at the five eighths pole leaving the backstretch. She took the outside all the way as fillies can't stand too much bumping. I wanted to keep her in the clear. I shook the whip at her a couple of times to keep her mind on running. I would rather have waited a little longer before making a move to the front, because the filly sometimes loafs when she gets on top. But things worked out fine. I didn't put her to a drive and she was full of run at the finish. I only hit her once under the girth at the eighth pole to shake her up and we coasted home."

It was a happy day at Woodbine for Fitzsimmons. He had been voted Ontario's most popular jockey by his fellow riders the year before.

Two headlines summed it up: "Plate Story: "Buy Taylor" It Pays Off", and "Fitz Never Let Filly Turn it On".

The Queen Mother's comment to Jim Fitzsimmons, "Your filly won this race with real style. She was outstanding".

The Toronto paper had a photo of four heads of horses with the caption, "The Big Four in Guineas Gallop". The guineas refers to the prize of 50 guineas the British monarchy donates to the race each year. The big four were Peter's Chop, King Gorm, Choperion and Flaming Page. The weather was looking on the sunny side, and breezy, good enough to produce a fast track on race day.

Of the local newspaper's eight commentators, two picked Flaming Page, including the only woman, three picked Peter's Chop, and one each picked Choperion, Sun Dan and King Gorm.

The presence of the Queen Mother at the race was only the third time royalty had attended. The Queen Mother and the late King George V were there in 1939, and Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip arrived in 1959 for the centennial of the race. At that time, they watched Windfields' New Providence prevail as he set out on his successful run for the Canadian Triple Crown.

The Globe and Mail's Sports Editor, Jim Vipond, presented a fantasy column about the Plate where he had the horses presenting their predictions of the race. For Flaming Page it read like this: "This is ladies day. Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, deserves nothing but the best, that is why I'm going to kick dirt in the faces of all the boys, and add the Plate to my Oaks victory. I hope Jim Fitzsimmons doesn't forget his whip with the built-in powder puff". Ouch! You can tell it's 1962!

From the breeding end, Windfields' stallion, Chop Chop, was the leading Queen's Plate sire in number of previous winners. He sired Canadiana in 1953, Lyford Cay in 1957, Victoria Park, 1960 and Blue Light, 1961, all bred by E.P. Taylor. In the 1962 running, Chop Chop had Peter's Chop, Monarch Park and Choperion representing him, again all Taylor breds. Chop Chop was semi-retired in 1962. He had been Canada's leading sire five times, 1953, 1954, 1959, 1960 and 1961.

Sailors Sunset, a grey/roan gelding, 3YO, won the December 2, 2006 Vernon O Underwood Stakes (GR-111) at six furlongs at Hollywood Park. He's a son of Petionville from Caymen Sunset, by Wolf Power from Winter Display, by Cold Reception, from Show Off, by Olympia from Look Ma. Cold Reception was a son of Secretariat from SW Cold Comfort, one of Nearctic's best daughters, from Scarlet Letter, by Native Dancer.

Look Ma is also a daughter of Native Dancer. When she was bred to Nearctic, Look Ma produced the very fast miler, North Sea, one of the speediest of his crop along with two other miler sons of Nearctic in that generation, Explodent and Icecapade. Icecapade was also from a Native Dancer mare, Shenanigans. Cold Comfort, a May 1, 1967 foal, won the Belmont Matron, the Barbara Fritchie, the Gallorette and the Hempstead. She placed in the Matchmaker, the Acorn and the Distaff, and showed in the Beldame. Cold Reception was her first foal. She disappointed as a broodmare.

Financingavailable, a grey/roan mare, 5YO, carrying top weight of 124 lbs, won the seven furlong, $130,000 Besssarabian Stakes for fillies and mares, on November 26, 2006, at Woodbine. She is a daughter of millionaire, Kiridashi, a Canadian SW and stallion, who was by Bold Ruckus from Sharp Briar, by Briartic. Her dam is Fascigrant, an unraced daughter of L'Emigrant from SW Fascinating Girl, by Sir Ivor. In 1962, Fascigrant sold for $962 at an Ontario sale in foal to Secret Claim. The resultant foal, Fascinating Secret 1993, a grey/roan gelding, won over $37,000. Fascigrant's 1995 foal, the grey/roan filly, In A Whisper, was a stakes placed winner of over $160,000, selling as a yearling for $4405.

Her 2001 foal, Financingavailable, the SW in question, sold as a yearling for $3205, also at an Ontario sale, and has now won over $800,000 with six stakes wins on the Ontario circuit.

L'Emigrant was a group one performer in France and the USA, a champion 3YO colt in France, with a classic win in the Poule d'Essai de Poulins (GR-1). He also won the Prix Lupin (GR-1) and was second in three group ones, the Prix du Jockey Club, the Prix Jacques Le Marois and the Prix du Moulin de Longchamp. He was third in the Man o'War Stakes (GR-1) in North America. He ran only at two and three and was never out of the money in twelve starts.

He is a dark bay/brown 1980, 15.3 hands high son of The Minstrel, the glamorous, hard knocking Windfields bred son of Northern Dancer from Flaming Page's daughter, Fleur, by Victoria Park. L'Emigrant is a half brother to the Northern Dancer SW filly, Salpinx, (GR-11), herself dam of a GR-11 winner, Zalazl. Their dam is unraced Suprina, by Vaguely Noble from Perfecta, by Swaps from Cosmah, a half sister to Natalma, dam of the Dancer. Cosmah was dam of the very good runner and sire, Halo, and Tosmah, among others. She was granddam of Kentucky Derby winner, Cannonade. L'Emigrant has crosses of Hyperion, Nearco and Almahmoud, yet fell short as a major sire. All six SW in his first four crops were based in Europe, including French performer, Mary Linoa, who took the Prix Marcel Boussac (GR-1).

Financingavailable, given her family and price, can be seen as a tremendous bargain, but only because her bloodlines lived up to their promise. With Nearctic's son, Briartic, in there, we have the Nearctic/Northern Dancer pattern again.

The headline read: "Flaming Page Didn't Beat Much in Oaks". As recently as early May, Battling Way, who finished third in the Oaks, ran for $2500. She won but was defeated six weeks later for $3500. She won her next two starts, but they were at the $3500 level. Beauty Strip, who ran fourth in the Oaks, toiled at the $2500 level a couple of times. Which is far and away below such types as Choperion, King Gorm, Sun Dan, Monarch Park and Peter's Chop..

Taylor Entry One-Two? Both Choperion and Flaming Page will run in the Plate. Joe Thomas, stable manager for Windfields Farm, thought they'd run well, maybe one-two. The filly ran well in the Kentucky Oaks, and Choperion was beaten a head in an allowance race at Aqueduct last week. Horatio Luro trained both of the runners, although Pete McCann developed them.

Trial Reports. Restless Rick, winner of the first division, had won his first race eleven days before the Trial. Peter's Chop's connections are extremely confident about the Plate. His jockey, Sam McComb, after riding him last year, predicted he would win the Plate. Peter's Chop bettered Restless Rick's time for the mile and one sixteenth by one and three fifths seconds. Yet Peter's Chop came off six furlongs that were a full second slower.

Of the twenty gallopers in yesterday's preview of the Plate, Peter's Chop actually was the only one who did what was expected of him. He did it well, too. There were a couple of others who did what wasn't expected - and did it well. In this category you have Choperion and Welcome Effort. Neither had run in mud before. Because of the mud, the Trials may not have proved much.

"In Light of Plate Trials, Flaming Page's Chances Improve" The big boys didn't do a thing in the Plate Trials that would make a filly of Flaming Page's stamp go skittering off to hide behind her trainer's jodhpurs.

Reckless Rick started only once as a 2YO late last fall, and finished fourth. His first outing this season came at Old Woodbine and he was second. He was fifth his next try and finally won a race for maidens at Old Woodbine. That was his last effort before glory in the Plate Trial. His connections thought he had a chance because he ran well late. People were warned not to overlook him. He remains the Cinderella horse.

14 Queen's Platers to start Saturday. Post positions of the ones we have been following were: Choperion, no. 2; Flaming Page, no. 6; King Gorm, no. 7; Peter's Chop, no. 10; Monarch Park, no. 11; Restless Rick, no. 13; Sun Dan, no. 14.

Horatio Luro on his chances: "A dry track would not help Peter's Chop. On a fast track, I think we have a good chance with Choperion. In the event of mud, our filly Flaming Page moves up, but so does Peter's Chop. So I prefer a fast track. Then we have two good chances. In mud, I believe we only have one good chance.

This horse, Reckless Rick, which won one half of the Plate Trial, must not be discounted. It was no fluke. Restless Rick is by Phalanx. I have trained several Phalanx colts. They develop late. It's a characteristic of the breed. Restless Rick could be dangerous.

Strategy? The filly lacks early speed. She resents having early speed forced upon her. Choperion is a horse which runs well close to the pace. So each of our riders will be told he is on his own. Their horses run differently. Each has a chance to win. We do not care which one does it."