2000 A.G. Vanderbilt Handicap
March 9 - Successful Appeal
Successful Appeal was raced by Starview Stable, Joe and Pam Petruska. We've gotten to be friends over the years. When I spoke with them last fall, we talked about Walmac Farm where Successful Appeal had been for the past 15 years or so. While he was there, his best stable buddy was Cactus Ridge. Cactus Ridge was owned by Toby Kieth and his Dream Walkin' Farm in Oklahoma. Pam told me that when WalMac closed Toby took Cactus Ridge back to Oklahoma and to keep the buddies together Toby also took Successful Appeal there as well.
Most of you know, Toby passed away a couple weeks ago and most of you know he loved his horses. I think keeping the buddies together showed an ever kinder side of his heart.
(Before you ask, I don't know what will happen with Toby's horses including Successful Appeal. I'm sure he took care of them in advance of his passing. If I hear anything else about Successful Appeal - I will try to pass it along.)
Happy Birthday, Sussie, as Joe and Pam call him.
Successful Appeal carved out a fine career on the racetrack and an even better one as a stallion in the Florida and Kentucky breeding sheds. He was foaled in 1996, a son of the Florida sire Valid Appeal out of the Fortunate Prospect mare Successful Dancer. He was bred in the Sunshine State by Harry T. Mangurian Jr. and raced for Starview Stable, with John C. Kimmel handling the training. The same trainer would later condition standouts like Premium Tap.
Successful Appeal showed quality from his first starts. As a two year old in 1998 and 1999 he captured the Grade 2 Cowdin Stakes, marking him as one of the better juveniles around. He came back at three with an even better year, sweeping a string of important stakes that included the Grade 2 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct, the Grade 3 Amsterdam Stakes at Saratoga, and the Grade 2 Kentucky Cup Sprint at Turfway Park. Those wins earned him the 1999 Florida Bred Sprint Champion title.
He kept on running well as a four year old in 2000. Successful Appeal added another Grade 2 to his record by winning the A.G. Vanderbilt Handicap at Saratoga, beating top older sprinters in the process. He retired soon after with eight wins from 22 starts and earnings of more than $654,000. His combination of speed, durability, and Florida pedigree made him a logical choice to enter stud, and his connections sent him off with a good book of mares for his first crop.
Successful Appeal flourished as a stallion. In 2004 he was crowned the leading freshman sire in North America, becoming only the second representative of the In Reality male line through Valid Appeal to claim that title. He sired multiple stakes winners and continued the In Reality branch into the modern era of breeding. Successful Appeal is remembered as a classy hard knocker on the track and as one of the most influential Florida bred stallions of the early 2000s.
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