NEWS
Chandler: Juddmonte-Overbrook partnership
an ‘honorable agreement’
Posted: Wednesday, November 11, 2009 8:24 PM
by Pete Denk
Five years ago, Dr. John Chandler of Juddmonte Farms called Ric Waldman at Overbrook Farm and proposed a unique agreement: Juddmonte would supply mares from its world-class broodmare band and Overbrook would put up free breedings to its flagship sire Storm Cat.
The two legendary breeding operations would then divide up the foals.
“Storm Cat, obviously, was one of the best sires in the world then, and we thought it would be a good way to get to him without putting up $10-million in stud fees,” Chandler said. “We knew they would be attracted to our mares because of the female families, and we wanted to breed to Storm Cat.”
Honest Pursuit, the Storm Cat filly out of Honest Lady, by Seattle Slew, who sold for $3.1-million on Wednesday at the Keeneland November breeding stock sale, was one of the first foals produced by the agreement.
Overbrook was primarily interested in fillies, while Juddmonte wanted colts from the agreement.
“[Dr. Chandler] proposed a list of ten or 11 mares the first year. We weren't very picky about what mares they wanted to breed. Why would you be?,” said Chris Young, grandson of Overbrook founder William T. Young. “We flipped a coin that year and took turns picking foals. Then the following year, we rolled whose turn it was next into the next year's group of foals. There were fewer mares in the group as [Storm Cat’s] fertility declined.”
Khalid Abdullah’s Juddmonte never got a top-class Storm Cat colt out of the agreement, but there were no regrets, Chandler said.
“It didn’t produce a whole lot of success for us, but it was a worthwhile agreement,” Chandler said. “Mr. Young was a real gentleman, and we really enjoyed doing business with him. [Khalid Abdullah] had a great respect for him, and Mr. Young had a great respect for the Prince. It was two honorable men getting together on an honorable agreement. It was very nice.”
Juddmonte rarely sells mares from its top families. Before the Overbrook dispersal, the last significant Juddmonte mare to sell was Dissemble (GB), by Ahonoora out of the Highline mare Kerali.
Sold privately for just a few thousand dollars, Dissemble went to South America and produced 2005 champion turf male Leroidesanimaux (Brz).
“I believe we sold her for $3,000,” Chandler said. “We haven’t sold anything else out of that family.”
Despite recent downturns in the bloodstock market, buyers jumped at the chance to buy products of the Juddmonte-Overbrook partnership at Keeneland on Wednesday.
Dark Sky, a full sister to French classic winner Nebraska Tornado, sold for $1.3-million to Edward P. Evans.
Overbrook bred the winning four-year-old filly by Storm Cat out of Grade 2 winner Media Nox (GB), by Lycius. Juddmonte bred and raced 2003 Prix de Diane (Fr-G1) (French Oaks) winner Nebraska Tornado and her half siblings Burning Sun, a Group 2 winner, and Mirabilis, a Grade 3 winner.
“What we’re paying today, I don’t know if it’s better value but it’s good value for the families getting into,” said Chris Baker, farm manager for Evans’ Spring Hill Farm in Casanova, Virginia. “There aren’t many opportunities to get into that family. That was full price to get into it, but there aren’t many chances to do it.”
Pete Denk is sales editor for Thoroughbred Times
(Additional reporting by staff writer Jeff Lowe and bloodstock editor John P. Sparkman)
