2006 Haskell Invitational Winner

January 23 - Bluegrass Cat

Bluegrass Cat, a son of Storm Cat, was raced by WinStar. He had a great two-year-old campaign in 2005 and set himself up as one of the early favorites for the Kentucky Derby, but his three-year campaign hit a bump in the road as he started running second in several prep races. By the time the KY Derby rolled around Bluegrass Cat was sent off at about 20-1. He put in a game effort to run second in the 2006 Derby to the high-flying effort of Barbaro. Bluegrass Cat would get redemption picking up his Grade 1 victory in the Haskell at Monmouth later that year. The Haskell is the race portrayed in the painting, but the source photo comes from a race at Tampa Downs when my brother, Brian, and I made the trip across the state just to see Bluegrass Cat. The source photo is one of Brian's. Artistic license was stretched to take the best source to recreate & relive that highlight reel moment.

On a side note: Brian, my techie brother, also created a silhouette of Bluegrass Cat that we have used a few places, including on the window of the gallery we closed a couple years ago in downtown Georgetown. The space was later rented by the Bank of England. They wasted no time peeling my name off the window, but to this day, the silhouette of Bluegrass Cat greets you as you pass by the Bank of England on Main Street!!! Now, you know who that horse is when you see it.

Bluegrass Cat was a top class three year old in 2006, the kind of colt who keeps showing up in the picture in every classic race even if the headline always seems to belong to someone else. He was a bay colt born in January of 2003 and bred by WinStar Farm in Versailles, Kentucky, who also raced him as a homebred in their famous green and gold silks. His father was Storm Cat, one of the most important American stallions of the modern era, whose stud fee climbed to 500,000 dollars at the height of his career. His mother was She's a Winner, by Distant View, who came from one of the deepest broodmare families in the world, tracing back to the great La Troienne through Numbered Account. He was trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher and ridden in his biggest races by John Velazquez and Garrett Gomez.

His three year old season was framed by some of the toughest horses of the decade. He came into the 2006 Kentucky Derby on the strength of his solid prep work and ran a strong second behind Barbaro, who won the Derby by an eye catching margin before suffering his tragic injury in the Preakness Stakes. Bluegrass Cat skipped the Preakness Stakes and pointed for the Belmont Stakes, where he finished second again, this time behind Jazil. Many three year olds would have wilted after two classic seconds, but Bluegrass Cat got even better in the summer. He took the Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park by seven lengths, finally putting his name in front of a Grade 1. A few weeks later he ran second in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga, this time chasing the brilliant Bernardini home. He retired from racing with five wins and four seconds from eleven starts and earnings of just over 1.76 million dollars.

Bluegrass Cat went home to WinStar Farm to stand at stud, beginning with the 2007 breeding season at a fee of 50,000 dollars. He sired graded stakes horses on dirt and turf and proved especially strong as a sire of fast turf milers. He later moved to Ballena Vista Farm in California and then on to stud duty in Turkey, where his sons and daughters made him a top stallion in that country. Bluegrass Cat is the kind of horse who reminds you that the headline races usually have a runner up, and that the runner up can still build a fine career around the rest of the calendar. He never won a classic, but he was a Grade 1 winner, a millionaire on the track, and a productive stallion across two continents.

Sources:

• Bluegrass Cat, Wikipedia

• Bluegrass Cat, Horse Racing Nation

• Bluegrass Cat to Ballena Vista, Thoroughbred Daily News

• Bluegrass Cat, Air Vice Marshal to Stud Duty in Turkey, BloodHorse

• She's a Winner, Dam of Bluegrass Cat, Euthanized at 25, BloodHorse