Stallion Profile: Shackleford

It's no secret that Shackleford may be my favorite horse running today. He's gutsy; he's versatile; he's fast; he wins. Anything you could ask of a champion, Shack has it in spades.

He's won at a mile and 3/16ths in the Preakness. He's won at a mile in the Met Mile. He's won at seven furlongs in the Churchill Downs Stakes. He's even going to try six furlongs in the Vanderbilt. Unless he goes out and wins a steeplechase, I'm not sure what else he could do. He's got a real nose for the lead and you can see has a competitive streak that just won't allow him to cede to anyone without a fight. His gutsy run in the Met Mile was as impressive a win as you will see. Combine that with a really special pedigree, and you end up with a horse that could end up being a very good stallion.

His stallion is Forestry, who is by Storm Cat out of Shared Interest (Pleasant Colony). I'll just quote myself about Storm Cat, since I'm lazy:

Storm Cat. Storm Cat is by Storm Bird out of Terlingua (Secretariat). He is the sire of influential stallions Tabasco Cat, Giant's Causeway, Forestry, Bluegrass Cat, and Hennessy. He is also a top end broodmare sire and his second generation offspring through mares includes Speightstown. From 2002 to 2007, Storm Cat stood for a North American-topping $500,000 in Lexington. His last season, 2008, his fee was reduced to $300,000 ([author]'s note: reduced to $300k? Ridiculous), and this during a period of declining fertility. He was the top Juvenile Sire 7 times and was prolific at siring stakes winning 2 year olds. In fact, you can basically trace the demand for 2yos in the auction ring directly to him. His offspring were capable of winning at the graded stakes level anywhere from a sprint (i.e. Forest Wildcat) to the classic distances (i.e. Tabasco Cat). From 2004 to 2008 he sired an incredible 13.8% stakes winners and lifetime, he sired an unbelievable 8.75% stakes horse from all foals. His progeny had an average winning distance of 7.33f.

So. No issues with Forestry there. Shared Interest only has two progeny of note. Forestry, and Cash Run. Cash Run is a mare by Seeking the Gold. She won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. Afterwards, she was sold for $7.1 million at Keeneland November 2003 sale to the connections of Coolmore (John Magnier). They've repeatedly bred her to Storm Cat and his son Giant's Causeway with good success.

So, Forestry is by a great sire and out of a very good dam. His average winning distance of his progeny is around 6.5 furlongs. His major offspring are:

• The Green Monkey. Lifetime record: The best ever. But seriously, he is important in the sense that he is an example that you can get magnificent 2 year old specimens
• Discrete Cat. Foaled 2003. Currently at stud. He was 15th on the Juvenile Sires list last year, but had zero SWs. This year he is 5th on the second crop list, and already has three SWs. Was best at a mile and less. Winner of the G1 Cigar Mile and the G2 Jerome Breeders' Cup Handicap. Additionally, he won the UAE Derby (G2).
• Diplomat Lady. Foaled in 2003. She won the Hollywood Starlet Stakes (G1) at 2 and the Beaumont Stakes (G2) at 3. Sold for $1.3 million at Keeneland November 2006 as a broodmare prospect. Has one foal of racing age, a low level winner.
• Smokey Glacken. Foaled in 2001. A sprinter who won a fistful of graded events. Sold for $1.35 million as a broodmare prospect. Has 4 foals, one winner.

Looking as his list, there is no doubt that Forestry can produce stakes horses that like going a mile, but also have enough speed to win in the 6 furlong events as well. No surprise with Shackleford's talents there.

Unbridled is Shack's Broodmare sire. Unbridled was an amazing sire. His average winning distance for his progeny is a stout 9 furlongs. Currently, he ranks 15^th on the Broodmare Sire Rankings, despite being euthanized in 2001. His get include winners of all three Triple Crown races, sires Unbridled's Song, Broken Vow, Eddington, and Grindstone, as well as BC Juvenile Champion Anees and BC Juvenile Fillies winner Halfbridled. Unquestionably, Unbridled is a top notch influence in Shack's pedigree.

As a damsire, he is very good. He has 1,319 foals with 59 stakes winners, good enough for a 4.5% stakes winning rate. While this does not place him amongst the elite, you can write off a bit of the difference to the fact that he was only 14 when he had to be put down due to complications from colic. This lack of opportunity doesn't mean he's punchless though. In fact, he is the grandsire of Eight Belles and Birdstone, and the great grandsire of Mine That Bird, so clearly he is still a large influence on his 2^nd and 3^rd generation offspring through his sons and daughters.

Shackleford's dam is Oatsee. She is by Unbridled out of With Every Wish (Lear Fan). Oatsee is the 2011 Broodmare of the year and is listed stakes placed. But her production record is remarkable:

So let's see... Lady Joanne won the Alabama Stakes (G1) at 10 furlongs. Baghdaria won the Iowa Oaks (G3) at a mile and a sixteenth. Afleeting Lady finished 2nd in both the Falls City Handicap and the Fleur de Lis Handicap which are both G2 and 9 furlongs. Stephanoatsee placed in a listed stakes race at Aqueduct at a mile and 70 yds. So, Oatsee is unbelievable. Her foals all love running on the dirt for more than a mile.

Oh, and her foals seem to really enjoy making lots of money too. So they got that going for them.

Oatsee's dam is With Every Wish. She is by Lear fan out of Amo (Hold Your Peace). She did her best running between 8 and 9 furlongs on the turf. She is listed stakes placed twice. Her lifetime record is 34-4-5-8 with earnings of $110,143. She had 9 registered foals, 2 of note:

• Oatsee, see above
• Root Beer Float, foaled 1998. Gelding. High level claimer at low level tracks like Mountaineer. Lifetime record of 52-7-12-5 with earnings of $110,160.
• Roused, foaled 2001. Insignificant as a runner but has one foal (Dobra) that has won $202,000 as an allowance horse at Parx.

Shackleford's granddam is Amo by Hold Your Peace out of Taminette (In Reality). Her race record 5-1-0-0 and she earned a miniscule $7,230. Her only foal of note:

• Amos. Foaled 1992 by Cryptoclearance. Gelding. Lifetime record of 46-9-7-1 with earning of $191,248. He won a listed stake at a mile and 70 on the dirt.

Normally, I would stop here. But I have to make an exception for the next 5 mares in Shackleford's female family. All 6 are Reines De Course (Taminette, Tamerett, Mixed Marriage, Persian Maid, Aroma, and Aloe).

Taminette has two major foals: AP Jet (G3 winner of $1.4 million in JPN) and Tappiano (Winner of 3xG1 and 4xG3 in her career, but died after having only 4 foals)

Tamerett is the dam of Secrettame, Known Fact, and Ten Tam. Secrettame is the dam of Gone West. Known Fact was a Champion 3 year old in GB and a stallion at Juddmonte in Lexington. Ten Tam won the Met Mile and the United Nations, amongst other graded stakes.

At this point, we are getting so far back (several foals are sired by War Admiral) that dollar figures and race names stop really having meaning, well, to me anyway. I'm not an historian by any stretch. But Aloe is the corner stone of the 2F family of thoroughbreds. So Shackleford, via his dam Oatsee is a direct descendent of one of the most influential broodmare lineages in the world. In short,

The sum total of all influences in Aloe's pedigree make up an overwhelming portrait of classic stamina. Aloe's own story, of course, is but the prelude to the continuation of this family by her great daughters. Successive chapters in the story tell the stories of Feola, Sweet Aloe and Aroma.

Aloe died in 1942, ending chapter one in the remarkable story. A story which began with a smallish filly of class and courage who could never win a single race. A filly who, through the likes of Marju and Blade, Sharpen Up and Bemissed, Restoration and Sideral and all the other important horses already mentioned, would carve her name in history. Carve it so deeply and with such utter quality that it can truly be said of Aloe, "Ah, now there was a mare!"

Quote and information taken from Reine de Course.com. In fact, the following are all classified as Reines and are in Shackleford's direct female lineage

While many of these female influences certainly lay far back in his pedigree, there is no denying that the direct lineage is without parallel. Most importantly, the 2F family of Aloe has a propensity for amazing broodmares to populate the family despite a poor race record or a dam that didn't produce well (as in Oatsee). There is no doubt that this bodes well for Shackleford as a broodmare sire, but unfortunately it is difficult to build value off of that, as returns could be 20 years down the line.

That being said, the quality of pedigree through Oatsee is unmatched. That family has shown a general propensity to produce runners of classic distances and an uncanny ability to pass top notch genes to their progeny. Forestry seems to produce milers, or thereabouts, and has shown the ability to sire a quality sire already with Discrete Cat. Combine that with Shackleford's seemingly bottomless versatility, I think you could see a very desirable sire here.

I think he settles in the $30,000 range for a life foal stands and nurses contract. If he's less, I'll get in line with whatever mares I can find.