Andrew Caulfield, August 30, 2011-Stay Thirsty PEDIGREE INSIGHTS BY ANDREW CAULFIELD TRAVERS S.-GI, $1,000,000, SAR, 8-27, 3yo, 1 1/4m, 2:03, ft. 1--sSTAY THIRSTY, 126, c, 3, by Bernardini 1st Dam: Marozia, by Storm Bird 2nd Dam: Make Change, by Roberto 3rd Dam: Equal Change, by Arts and Letters ($160,000 yrl '09 KEESEP; $500,000 2yo >10 FTFFEB). O-Repole Stable; B-John D Gunther & John Darren Gunther (KY); T-Todd A Pletcher; J-Javier Castellano; $600,000. Lifetime Record: 10-4-3-0, $1,400,000. *1/2 to Andromeda=s Hero (Fusaichi Pegasus), GSW & MGISP, $836,961; Superfly (Fusaichi Pegasus), SW & GISP, $187,944. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the brisnet.com chart, the brisnet.com PPs o r the free brisnet.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Taylor Made. With memories of Secretariat remaining vivid to this day, it is easy to understand why breeders were always keen to inbreed to this legendary performer. As the 1973 Triple Crown winner was responsible for the dams of the champion sires A.P. Indy and Storm Cat, it was inevitable that breeders would jump at the chance of combining the two. To the end of last year, Storm Cat mares had 73 foals by A.P. Indy, with another 128 by sons of A.P. Indy, including 10 from the first crop by the dazzling Bernardini. So far this type of cross has produced just two Grade I winners in Sky Mesa and Dialed In, both of whom were sired by stallions representing the potent A.P. Indy/Mr. Prospector nick. As for Bernardini, the best of his 3-year-olds out of Storm Cat mares appears to be Buffum, but there have also been recent maiden victories by Refugio and Achieving at Woodbine, to take his total of winners among his 10 3-year-olds to five. He has also recently been represented by Spare Change, a maiden winner at Saratoga, who is one of nine members of Bernardini=s second crop with a Storm Cat dam. Summer Squall, a stallion bred on the same Storm Bird/Secretariat cross as Storm Cat, has also come into the picture thanks to his daughter Heat Lightning. Mated to A.P. Indy=s sons Stephen Got Even and Bernardini, she has produced the champion 2-year-old Stevie Wonderboy and the three-time English stakes winner Theyskens= Theory, respectively. These two are inbred 3x3 to Secretariat=s daughter Weekend Surprise, which means that they are also inbred 4x4 to that highly influential mare Lassie Dear. J Watch Out for “TDN Rising Stars” J Stars of tomorrow grabbing the spotlight today... www.coolmore.com The question that has to be asked is how much is The first, her Fusaichi Pegasus colt Andromeda=s inbreeding to Secretariat contributing to the success of Hero, was second to Afleet Alex in the 2005 this type of cross. I suspect the answer is not a lot. GI Belmont S. and later finished third behind Invasor in Mating A.P. Indy or his sons to mares by Storm Bird, the GI Suburban H. and behind Bernardini in the the sire of Storm Cat and Summer Squall, doesn=t GI Jockey Club Gold Cup. produce any inbreeding to Secretariat. Yet there are Andromeda=s Hero=s younger full-brother Superfly two stakes winners among A.P. Indy=s 14 foals out of showed he was also above average at two when third Storm Bird mares, and now there are two graded in First Samurai=s GI Champagne S. But Stay Thirsty is winners among the first 46 foals by sons of A.P. Indy. undoubtedly Marozia=s best effort. She can now be The latest is Stay Thirsty, who followed in Bernardini=s mentioned in the same breath as Storm Bird=s other footsteps to triumph in the GI Travers S. , having earlier good broodmare daughters, which include Dear Birdie emulated his sire=s success in the GII Jim Dandy S. The (dam of Birdstone and Bird Town), Weekend Storm only inbreeding in Stay Thirsty=s first five generations is (dam of Court Vision), Line of Thunder (dam of Thunder 5x3 to Northern Dancer. Gulch), Classy Mirage (dam of Dublin), Mystic Goddess Darley must have been delighted to see Bernardini (dam of the good English sire Medicean) and Starlet come up with his third Grade I winner following last Storm (dam of Flanders). Commentator, Sand Springs, year=s victories by Biondetti (another out of a Thorn Song and Avanzado are other Grade I winners grand-daughter of Northern Dancer) and A Z Warrior. with dams by Storm Bird. Coincidentally, Darley also bred Stay Thirsty=s dam, Stay Thirsty showed plenty of determination in Marozia. This daughter of Storm Bird was distinctly winning the Travers. He had previously shown plenty of ordinary as a racemare and it wasn=t until she was four stamina in finishing a close second to Ruler On Ice in that she gained her only victory in nine starts, in a the Belmont S., a race which in the past fell to 1 1/2-mile handicap for horses rated zero to 70 on Bernardini=s sire and grandsire. His dam, as previously Lingfield=s all-weather surface. mentioned, also won over a mile and a half, showing Darley promptly dispatched her to the 1998 more stamina than many daughters of Storm Bird. For December Sales, where Eaton Sales paid 210,000gns this she could thank her dam Make Change. Although for her, in recognition of her excellent American Make Change won only a minor stakes race, she was bloodlines. It is easy to see why Marozia would be good enough--and unfortunate enough--to finish second considered surplus to Darley=s requirements. Time in four Grade I events, including two over a mile and a Changes, her year-younger three-parts sister by Danzig, quarter. had won the Listed Prix Isola Bella over a mile nine days With Roberto as her sire and a granddaughter of before Marozia was sold. Ribot as her dam, Make Change was bred similarly to As often happens, the less talented racemare has Dynaformer, Sunshine Forever and Brian=s Time. The proven the superior producer. Not that Time Changes granddaughter of Ribot was the CCA Oaks runner-up failed to make her mark. Although her Halling gelding Equal Change, a daughter of yet another Belmont S. Age of Reason had a Timeform rating of 116 at his winner in Arts and Letters. Equal Change was herself a best, this pales in comparison with Marozia=s feat of half-sister to Solford, the Nijinsky II colt who landed the producing three sons with Grade I form. G1 Eclipse S. in 1983. Older readers may recognize that this is a first-rate STAY THIRSTY, c, 2008 female line. Stay Thirsty=s fifth dam, Equal Venture, Bold Reasoning was best known as the dam of Prove Out, who became Seattle Slew My Charmer one of the few horses to defeat Secretariat, in the A.P. Indy Secretariat 1 1/2-mile Woodward S. This grandson of Ribot also Weekend Surprise Lassie Dear won the Jockey Club Gold Cup in its days over two Bernardini Fappiano miles. Equal Venture was herself a sister to the 1946 Quiet American Demure Triple Crown winner Assault, so no one could accuse Cara Rafaela Spectacular Bid Stay Thirsty of having a pedigree unworthy of a Oil Fable Northern Fable potential leader of his generation. Nearctic Northern Dancer Natalma Storm Bird New Providence Marozia South Ocean 9-1-2-1, $10,367 Shining Sun 9Fls, 2GSW, Hail to Reason Make Change Roberto 1SW SW & MGISP, Bramalea $506,338 Equal Change Arts and Letters 8Fls, 1SW 10Fls, 2SW Fairness.