The structure, a renovation of an old tobacco barn, will be named in honor of the horsewoman, philanthropist, and late owner of the renowned Pin Oak Stud in Versailles, Ky.

To date, $150,000 for the project has been raised, which includes a $50,000 donation by the Georgetown/Scott County Tourism board.

According to Old Friends President and Founder Michael Blowen, the President and CEO of Fasig-Tipton, Boyd Browning, was instrumental in introducing the Foundation to the idea of a structure to memorialize Ms. Abercrombie's legacy.

“After watching the television coverage regarding Old Friends on Kentucky Derby day last year, where Michael discussed wanting to build a new visitors' center, I called him and offered to help with the fundraising because I believed that it would fulfill a great need for the entire thoroughbred industry,” said Browning. “I can't think of a better combination than Old Friends and Ms. Josephine Abercrombie, because they symbolize such a wonderful commitment to horse welfare.”

Pin Oak Stud's Clifford Barry agreed that the concept of building such a facility at Old Friends is something Ms. Abercrombie would have truly liked.

“Ms. Abercrombie had entrusted us with some charitable endeavors, and after her passing, we felt like this was something that was very close to her heart and something she'd be very passionate about,” said Barry. “Through her whole life it had been about the care of the horse,” said Barry. “And this is a wonderful way to honor her name and her legacy here in the Bluegrass.

“Ms. Abercrombie was a part of the Bluegrass for a long, long time,” he continued. “She had a vision for philanthropy and did a lot of great things here locally, and I think this will just be one of those impactful contributions that would mean a lot to her. And, I think it would mean a lot to all of her friends, too.”

To help kick-start the project, Old Friends Board of Director's member Corey Johnsen, former co-owner of Kentucky Downs, enlisted the services of Todd Gralla, Director of Equestrian Services at Populous, the architectural firm's staff member responsible for the planning and design of the equestrian facilities at the 2012 London Olympics, among many other projects. According to Johnsen, Gralla, a longtime horse person, “stepped up to the plate, and we started working on the conceptual drawings and schematics.”

According to Blowen, when the renovation is complete, the climate-controlled center will be broken up into three big spaces. On one side there will be big-screen monitors for race viewing, while on the other side there's going to be a little stage for things like handicapping seminars, symposiums, guest speakers, and more.

There will also be display space showcasing a collection of horseracing memorabilia, artwork, and racing trophies donated to Old Friends by the Bobby Frankel Estate.

“In this way, not only will it be a great space for events, but it will also give people a place to go in the event of a rain storm during their tour of the farm,” said Blowen. “They'll be able to come inside and look at all the displays.

“We're also going to have these giant big-screen monitors to show the races of Old Friends horses,” he continued. “And, they'll not only get to watch the races, but G.D. Hieronymus, who does the video for Keeneland and for the Hall of Fame Inductions, is developing a kiosk, where a person can press a button on the name of any horse on the farm and watch their race.

“I want to thank everybody involved in Josephine Abercrombie's Pin Oak Foundation, Inc. for this, including Clifford Barry and John Backer, because I think it's certainly going to be, not only great for us, but it's going to be a very nice testament to have Ms. Abercrombie's name talked about on every tour we ever do,” Blowen said. “To have her name on the barn; it's an honor and a privilege to name it after her.”

To donate to help in the construction of The Ms. Josephine Abercrombie Center at Old Friends, click here.

The post Old Friends Breaks Ground on Abercrombie Center appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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“Leaving WinStar was a difficult decision and I want to thank Kenny and Lisa Troutt for all they have done for me over the past nine years,” said Danford. “I am excited about this new opportunity and am thankful to Jim and Dana Bernhard for trusting me with the duties at Pin Oak. Pin Oak has such a great history and it is an honor to be part of this new chapter.”

Prior to his time at WinStar, Danford had also been at Overbrook Farm, Starwood Farm, Margaux Farm, and Crestwood Farm. Originally from Southern Illinois, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture from Missouri's Truman State University.

The post Pin Oak Stud Names Jeff Danford New Farm Manager appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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“Mrs. A.”, as she was known to those blessed by her friendship or patronage, embraced the extraordinary opportunities to which she was born with so commensurate an appetite that one might ask how anyone could have compressed so much into a mere 95 years. Besides her careers as horsewoman and breeder, she threw herself with equal gusto into walks of life as diverse as boxing, skiing, dancing and Broadway.

Nor did Mrs. A. measure her benedictions only in material terms, having so prolonged the fulfilment she found in Pin Oak that the stable was only dispersed a matter of weeks before her loss. That said, the fact is that she was never going to require a GoFundMe page to sustain her final days, as was poignantly the case for the 81-year-old trainer of Seattle Slew.

(Listen to this column as a podcast)

Affectionate tributes to the skill and charm of Billy Turner did not tiptoe around the corrosion of his prime by a struggle with alcoholism. But he would be very comfortable with that, given his own, hugely commendable candor in reflecting, in later years, on the demons that had accompanied him to one of the summits of Turf history. Turner was only 37 when a $17,500 Bold Reasoning colt came his way, and it's right that people understand why he appeared to receive such scant reward.

Before the Derby, many considered Seattle Slew insufficiently seasoned after just three sophomore starts. The habits of trainers today, however regrettable, make Turner appear to have been ahead of his time. But his true legacy was securing the male line of Bold Ruler, with all its old school virtues.

Like so many of our finest horsemen, Turner learned the ropes in steeplechasing. But in trying to keep his weight down, even as his height soared (by six inches in his 19^th year alone), he yielded to temptations natural in a fraternity that rode so hard—and drank so much harder. Then, in soaking up the pressures of a Triple Crown campaign, he found the press equally willing to normalize excess at the bar. (Which charge I, for one, am certainly not going to refute). Those pressures, by the way, can be judged from Turner's pronouncement to a reporter while Slew was still a juvenile. “If he doesn't win the Triple Crown,” he said, “I haven't done my job.”

Turner and exercise rider Mike Kennedy on the way to the track with Seattle Slew in 1977

Doubtless the succor he found in drink contributed to Turner's notorious sacking by the owners of Seattle Slew; certainly it dragged him into desperate times thereafter. Much to his credit, however, he regrouped. If the home stretch brought fresh difficulties, in healthcare and its costs, it's edifying to know that Turner had overcome a still greater challenge, in his own life, than the one he met with Seattle Slew. By any measure, this was a man of accomplishment.

True, while renewing his personal stability, he could not fully reverse the professional odds that had steepened in the meantime. Even so, a Hall of Fame nomination should surely have been revived for Turner by the time he retired in 2016. Fully two decades after the glory days of Slew and Czaravich (Nijinsky), after all, he had supervised a 21-for-55 near-millionaire in Punch Line (Two Punch) plus a third Grade I winner in Gaviola.

The latter was by Cozzene, who also happened to sire the horse that first brought Mrs. A. to the attention of many of us Englishmen.

As in selecting her long-serving farm manager, Clifford Barry, Mrs. A. showed unerring judgement in entrusting Hasten To Add to Newmarket's peerless Victorian throwback, Sir Mark Prescott.

In 1993, Hasten To Add became subject of one of the great gambles in the long history of the Cesarewitch H.

“How far is this race?” asked Mrs. A., when Prescott introduced her to the project.

“Two and a quarter miles.”

“Gee, and how often do they pass the stands?”

“They don't,” Prescott replied. “It's a dogleg course, starting in Cambridgeshire and ending in Suffolk. And it's a handicap. The topweight concedes 28 lbs to some of the others.”

Prescott recalls a moment of silent incredulity at the other end of the phone.

“Really? And how many runners are there?”

“Thirty-six.”

“This I gotta see.”

On the day, when the cavalry emerged from the drizzle and mist, Hasten To Add was just in front. While apparently engaged in a desperate duel to the line, however, he was overhauled by two others on the other side of the track. But Mrs. A. avowed that for all the world she would not have missed an experience she condensed as “all those Dukes ['Dooks'] and Duchesses, standing in the rain looking at nothing…”

Mrs. A.'s immersion in the world of boxing confirmed her to be equal to any social milieu. On the Turf, of course, we take pride in the fact that nowhere else does High Life meet quite so comfortably with Low Life. To the young man I was then, that lent an exotic glamor to this Houston heiress, with her five husbands—and five divorces! But I'm not sure I quite understood, at the time, that Low Life fundamentally comprises a ruinous succession of low days; or that it can do, at least, with the kind of problems that had meanwhile withdrawn Billy Turner from the limelight filled so joyously by Mrs. A.

There's always been a seductive glamor to the Runyonesque margins of our sport, and I've seen good people succumb to it: smart, talented people deceived that flirting with addiction, whether to alcohol or betting or umpteen other temptations, would redeem them from the dread charge of dullness.

People who think this way are also tempted to suspect that the greatness of Seattle Slew, for instance, could only be drawn out by parallel flair. Either a double-edged sword, they say, or none at all.

Well, that's a pretty dangerous formula for living. Doug Peterson was just 26 when the owners transferred Seattle Slew to his barn from Turner. Though he secured the champ his Eclipse Award, as an older horse, Peterson would disappear from the racetrack barely a couple of years later, lost in a spiral of drugs and drink. Like Turner, he showed the resilience and character to embrace rehab; he edged his way back to the track, after stints as an entry clerk and in the gate crew, and in 1999 he saddled 40 winners from just 175 starters. But he was only 53 when he died, from an accidental overdose, in 2004.

All these different lives, rotating with the twists of fate like a kaleidoscope against the shining light of the racehorse. All these different legacies, too. From intimate, domestic ones we cannot know; to the kind of public benefaction that prompted Mrs. A. to found her school in Lexington. But if so many of our comforts prove shallow, or even downright perilous, then how wonderful that we can all share the immortality available through the medium of a Seattle Slew or Sky Classic.

With his famously eccentric libido, Seattle Slew's genetic bequest was a fragile one. Its rescue is one of many debts, by no means confined to such lessons in horsemanship, our community owes to John Williams. Lest we forget, we are blessed to have in our midst the most exemplary people. And little wonder, when they share devotion to the horse: this paragon of constancy, courage and beauty, so innocent of our avarice and addictions.

We may envy the worldly fortune of Mrs. A., and the wealth of experience it supported; but her loyalty is within the compass of the poorest among us. She brought Barry to the farm in 1984. Donnie Von Hemel trained for Pin Oak for 30 years, Graham Motion nearly as long, with Mike Stidham a novice at around 15 years. Before the dispersal, Barry told TDN: “She's about as competitive a person as you could come across, but there'd never be a finger pointed. It was always just, 'We got outrun today and we'll do better tomorrow.'”

That's a motto that would serve us all well—whether seeking the next Seattle Slew, or patching up some old claimer; whether drilling oilwells, or just seeking an oasis in a world full of dangerous mirages.

The post This Side Up: Two Very Different Lives, One Passion appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Abercrombie, the only child of Texas oilman and Cameron Iron Works founder J. S. “Mr. Jim” Abercrombie and Lillie Frank Abercrombie, was born Jan. 15, 1926, in Kingston, Jamaica. Growing up in Texas, her love of horses begun at a young age, evolving into a passion of American Saddle Horses, which led to her winning a 17 of 20 classes–the most blue ribbons during a single season–at Madison Square Garden. She was also one of only a handful of amateurs to show a World Grand Champion. Her passion for the sport, combined with her strong desire to support civic projects, led her to join her father in creating the Pin Oak Charity Horse Show in the mid-1940's, which supported the Texas Children's Hospital. Abercrombie's success on the horse show circuit eventually led her to major competitions in Kentucky, where she fell in love with the land and the horses.

Turning her energies toward Thoroughbred breeding and racing in the 1950's, she and her father purchased 4,000-acre Pin Oak, in Woodford County, Kentucky, and after 35 years on the original Pin Oak tract–where they raised cattle and grew tabacco–Abercrombie decided to move to a smaller 750-acre farm–named Pin Oak Stud–just down the road to focus solely on Thoroughbreds. A hands-on owner, she was present at many of the births of her Thoroughbreds and was active in the early schooling of young racehorses. Pin Oak hombreds were campaigned in her blue and gray racing silks, the school colors of her alma mater Rice University.

Pin Oak Stud has nearly 70 stakes winners–bred or raced-to its credit, including Classic winners in America and England and Grade I/Group 1 stakes winners in three countries. Among Pin Oak's homebreds are 1990 champion grass mare Laugh and Be Merry (Erins Isle {Ire}) and GISW Confessional (Holy Bull) in addition to top colts who went on to become successful stallions, including 1995 Canadian Horse of the Year and champion sophomore Peaks and Valleys (Mt. Livermore) and MGSW and GISP Broken Vow (Unbridled).

A total of 23 mares and foals were offered at Fasig-Tipton in a dispersal of Pin Oak Stud's stock this past September. Headlining the dispersal with a $650,000 finial bid was MGSW Don't Leave Me (Lemon Drop Kid), who was in foal to Authentic.

Recognized as the National Breeder of the Year, she also has been honored by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders with the Hardboot Award as well as the William T. Young Humanitarian Award. Additionally, Abercrombie was inducted into the Texas Horseracing Hall of Fame. In 2018, she was the Honor Guest of the Thoroughbred Club of America in appreciation for her “enduring sportsmanship, acumen and vision, and her devotion to the loftiest principles established by earlier leaders on the Turf.”

With a strong sense of responsibility to future generations, Abercrombie provided generous philanthropic support of civic, educational, and Thoroughbred industry projects, including support of her alma mater Rice University and the founding of The Lexington School.

Funeral arrangements are private. Contributions in Abercrombie's memory can be made to The Lexington School, attention Una McCarthy, 1050 Lane Allen Road, Lexington, KY 40504; Woodford Humane Society, attention Katie Hoffman, P.O. Box 44, Versailles, KY; or the Thoroughbred Charities of America, attention Erin Crady, P.O. Box 910668, Lexington, KY 40591.

The post Pin Oak Stud’s Abercrombie Passes at 95 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Born Jan. 15, 1926, in Kingston, Jamaica, Josephine greeted every new day of her extraordinary life with the quest to see what came next. The only child of Texas oilman and Cameron Iron Works founder J. S. “Mr. Jim” Abercrombie and Lillie Frank Abercrombie, Josephine spent her childhood in Texas.

At the age of seven, Josephine's love of horses led her to begin showing American Saddle Horses. This was the start of an illustrious career where, as a young woman, Josephine became a record holder at Madison Square Garden for the most blue ribbons won in a single season, winning 17 out of 20 classes. She was also one of only a handful of amateurs to show a World Grand Champion.

Her passion for the sport, combined with her strong desire to support civic projects, led Josephine to join her father in creating the Pin Oak Charity Horse Show in the mid-1940s.  This highly successful Houston fixture on the national circuit dedicated its support to Texas Children's Hospital, which Mr. Abercrombie had played a major role in establishing.

Josephine's success on the horse show circuit eventually led her to major competitions in Louisville and Lexington, Ky., where she fell in love with the land and being surrounded by horses.  In a short time, she began to turn her energies toward Thoroughbred breeding and racing.  In the 1950s, she and her father purchased a nearly 4,000-acre farm, which they named Pin Oak, in Woodford County, Kentucky, and established a Thoroughbred breeding and farming operation. Josephine quickly developed a deep respect and passion for the land and all it nourishes.

After 35 years on the original Pin Oak, where they grew tobacco and bred Simmental and White-faced Hereford cattle in addition to the Thoroughbred operation, Josephine decided to move to a smaller 750-acre farm just down the road to focus solely on Thoroughbreds.

The new farm, named Pin Oak Stud, became a labor of love for Josephine.  She relished the daily interactions on the farm and enjoyed the tranquility and mix of wildlife, along with the constant companionship of her beloved Weimaraner dogs. A hands-on owner, Josephine was present at many of the births of her Thoroughbreds and adored watching the young foals develop.  She was active in the early schooling of young racehorses and eager to see her blue and gray racing silks, the school colors of her alma mater Rice University, in competition on the racetrack. Josephine always wanted what was best for her horses, her farm, and for all the people who cared for and were involved in their well-being.

Pin Oak's Josephine Abercrombie hugs jockey Joe Bravo after Bravo guided her homebred Synchrony to victory in the Grade 3 Red Bank Stakes at Monmouth Park in 2018

To date, nearly 70 stakes winners have been bred or raced by Pin Oak Stud, including Classic winners in America and England and Grade 1 stakes winners in three countries.  A source of great pride for Josephine was racing some special homebreds, such as Eclipse champion females like Laugh and Be Merry and Confessional as well as top colts who went on to become successful stallions, including Peaks and Valleys and Broken Vow.

For nearly 15 years, Pin Oak Stud sponsored the graded Valley View Stakes at Keeneland, which she won twice with homebreds. Recognized as the National Breeder of the Year, Josephine also has been honored by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders with the Hardboot Award as well as the William T. Young Humanitarian Award.  Additionally, she was inducted into the Texas Horseracing Hall of Fame. In 2018, Josephine was the Honor Guest of the Thoroughbred Club of America in appreciation for her “enduring sportsmanship, acumen and vision, and her devotion to the loftiest principles established by earlier leaders on the Turf.”

With a strong sense of responsibility to future generations, Josephine was passionate about conservation and education.  She provided generous philanthropic support of civic, educational, and Thoroughbred industry projects.  In addition to her generosity to her alma mater Rice University, it was the founding of The Lexington School that was perhaps her crowning achievement.  There are legions of grateful parents, alumni, and students whose lives were all enriched by the educational journey sparked by this institution.

Late in her life, Josephine revisited her lifelong love of ballroom dancing and spent many years training for and competing in ballroom dancing competitions all over the country. Her zest for life and quest for new challenges never faded.

Josephine Abercrombie is survived by two sons, George Anderson Robinson IV and Jamie Abercrombie Robinson, as well as grandchildren George Anderson Robinson V and Blair Abercrombie Robinson.

Funeral arrangements are private.

For those wishing to honor Josephine Abercrombie's memory, contributions can be made to The Lexington School, attention Una McCarthy, 1050 Lane Allen Road, Lexington, KY 40504; Woodford Humane Society, attention Katie Hoffman, P.O. Box 44, Versailles, KY; or the Thoroughbred Charities of America, attention Erin Crady, P.O. Box 910668, Lexington, KY 40591.

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More about Josephine Abercrombie:

Abercrombie a Leader in Opposition to Horse Slaughter

Abercrombie's Gift Of Education Keeps On Giving…And Giving

Fighting Lady: Josephine Abercrombie Has Brought An Unlikely Presence to Boxing

The post Josephine Abercrombie Passes; Pin Oak Stud Founder, Champion Breeder And Philanthropist Was 95 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Racing as a homebred for Pin Oak Stud, the nom de course of Josephine Abercrombie's historic racing and breeding operation, Broken Vow was a five-time stakes winner for trainer Graham Motion. His top wins included the 2001 GII Philip H. Iselin H. and the GIII Ben Ali S., as well as another four graded placings, including the 2001 GI Gulfstream Park H. Broken Vow retired to his birthplace to stand his first season in 2002 at age five for $10,000.

Broken Vow's first crop included GI Beldame S. winner Unbridled Belle and GII Futurity S. winner Private Vow. While he only topped 100 foals twice in 17 crops of racing age to date, the bay continued to deliver consistent quality, with runners including MGISW Sassy Image, GISWs Rosalind and Cotton Blossom, and MGSW Imprimis. Overall, the 24-year-old's 80 stakes winners include 26 graded winners to date and progeny earnings of more than $80 million. Broken Vow is also making a name for himself as a broodmare sire with the 36 black-type winners out of his daughters including champion and sire Runhappy (Super Saver).

“First as a race horse and then as an anchor to our stallion roster for 20 seasons, Broken Vow is the embodiment of Ms. Abercrombie's breeding program, producing sound, competitive racehorses whose bloodlines endure,” said long-time Pin Oak Stud manager Clifford Barry. “We appreciate the industry's support through the years, but mostly we thank Broken Vow for his loyal service to the farm and look forward to providing a well-deserved retirement for him here at Pin Oak.”

Broken Vow stood his final season this year for $20,000. Last month, Pin Oak Stud dispersed 23 mares and foals at a special sale held at Fasig-Tipton. In addition, Chris McGrath recently delved into the legacy of Pin Oak and Abercrombie.

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The sale topper came in the form of Don't Leave Me (Hip 18), a 9-year-old graded stakes winning daughter of Lemon Drop Kid. Woodford Thoroughbreds purchased the mare, who was offered in foal to Horse of the Year Authentic, for $650,000 (video).

Don't Leave Me is out of Grade 1 winner See How She Runs, and has produced two foals to date, including I'm So Sorry (Uncle Mo), who is placed in one start this year at two, and a weanling filly by Medaglia d'Oro (Hip 19). The latter preceded her dam into the ring, and was purchased by Rigney Racing for $370,000, the top price paid for a weanling during the sale (video).

“We started showing Saturday morning,” said Denali Stud's Craig Bandoroff. “They were here at quarter to eight, and her 23 horses showed 1,056 times… [w]e were hoping that the community would appreciate the quality of the offerings and the quality of Ms. Abercrombie and Clifford's lifetime work, and they did. It was gratifying.”

Point System (Hip 5), a seven-year-old stakes winner by Pin Oak's own Broken Vow, sold for $420,000 to Shepherd Equine Advisors, agent from Larry Hirsch (video).

The second highest price of the evening, Point System was offered in foal to Eclipse champion Improbable. To date, Point System is represented by a yearling colt by Candy Ride (ARG).

Late in the session, Eaton Sales took home multiple Grade 1 placed stakes winner Gold Medal Dancer (Hip 23) for $400,000 (video). The 11-year-old daughter of Medaglia d'Oro is represented by Dance Recital, a winner this year at 4, as well as an unstarted 2-year-old in Dance Routine, and a weanling colt by Candy Ride (ARG).

“This has been her baby for 60-plus years,” added longtime Pin Oak Stud farm manager Clifford Barry of Abercrombie. “It's kind of nice to coming in tonight and showcase… [T]here are mares here today she's got three, four generations of. Very, very proud of her.”

Of three racing and/or broodmare prospects on offer, Fascination (Hip 20) took the top spot, selling for $185,000 to Harbut Bloodstock. A daughter of two-time and current leading sire Into Mischief, Fascination placed third in her debut this year at three. Her dam, Whimiscality (Hip 10), in foal to Collected, sold earlier in the session to BBA Ireland for $200,000.

All told, 23 horses sold for $3,999,000, good for an average of $173,870 and a median of $130,000.

Full results are available online.

The post Don’t Leave Me Tops Pin Oak Dispersal At Fasig-Tipton appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The 23 head, which were offered without reserve, sold for a gross of $3,999,000. The average was $173,870 and the median was $130,000.

“We were very pleased by the reception,” said Craig Bandoroff, whose Denali Stud handled the consignment. “We started showing Saturday morning and they were here at 7:45. We had 23 horses show 1,056 times. Broodmares don't do that. Foals do that. We were hoping that the community would appreciate the quality of the offerings and the quality of Mrs. Abercrombie and Clifford [Barry]'s lifetime work. And they did.”

Barry, who has served as Abercrombie's farm manager for over 30 years, agreed the evening was bittersweet.

“This has been Mrs. Abercrombie's baby for 60-plus years,” Barry said at the close of the auction Sunday. “It's kind of nice to come in here tonight and showcase the last part of it and make something happen and make a legacy. There are some mares in here that she's had for three and four generations. I'm very, very proud for her and a I have a debt of gratitude myself. I've been on pretty much a magic carpet ride for 35 years. I'm very proud of my staff. It came together very quickly. It was a pretty tough day when we told them what we were going to do. Friday was a tougher day putting those mares on the trailer. I won't deny it.”

Among the crowd at Newtown Paddocks Sunday were two of Abercrombie's longtime trainers, Graham Motion and Mike Stidham, as well as industry participants like Gabriel Duignan, Adrian Regan, Doug Arnold, Peter O'Callaghan, Chris Baccari, Terry Gabriel, John Greathouse, John Dowd, Mike Akers, Tami Bobo, Archie St. George, and Marette Farrell, many of whom had spent the day shopping and selling across town ahead of Monday's first session of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Both Barry and Bandoroff gave credit to Fasig-Tipton for putting together an unorthodox bloodstock sale.

“I want to take my hat off to Fasig-Tipton,” Bandoroff said. “It was their idea to do this. I was somewhat skeptical–it was out of the box, but Boyd [Browning] and Bayne [Welker] and Clifford said we could do it. And this sales company is unbelievable. They try hard and the answer is never no. The answer might be let me think about it, but it's always yes.”

Welker added, “We thought all along that we could do a stand-up sale to shine the light on the achievements of Mrs. Abercrombie and Pin Oak and what it's done over the years. We thought the consignment and the horses would take care of themselves. And they certainly did.”

Collins Takes Her Home

Don't Leave Me, winner of the GIII Ontario Colleen S. and GIII Bourbonette Oaks, proved the most popular of Sunday's 23 offerings. She is out of GI Selene S. winner See How She Runs (Maria's Mon). Her first foal I'm So Sorry (Uncle Mo), a $42,000 Keeneland September yearling last year, was second on debut at Saratoga Aug. 5 for trainer Brian Lynch.

“She's a lovely mare, it's the right pedigree, we like the [covering] sire,” Collins said of the 9-year-old's appeal. “As a commercial operation you have to consider that a lot of times these first-season stallions will be very popular. We have had a general upgrading program. She fit into it and Mr. Sykes was prepared to give it a go.”

Of the mare's final price tag, Collins added, “Mrs. Abercrombie is a great breeder and she's bred all kinds of good horses. You don't argue with people like her and Clifford Barry. When they've got a good one, you've got to pay up for it. It was richly deserved.”

Don't Leave Me had originally been scheduled to go through the ring before her weanling filly by Medaglia d'Oro, but after a last-minute change she followed after that dark bay youngster. Collins was underbidder on the weanling after Denali's Conrad Bandoroff signed for the filly at $370,000 on behalf of Rigney Racing.

“I was underbidder on the weanling,” Collins confirmed. “She was full of class, a beautiful mover. I hope it will end up as a beautiful yearling. If we had bought her for the client we were bidding for, that would have been to race. Inevitably if you love a foal that much, you've got to like the mare as well. In some respects, I wish that the Bandoroffs hadn't switched the order.”

Conrad Bandoroff said options for the session's top-priced weanling were up in the air.

“She is a lovely filly,” Bandoroff said. “We loved her when we saw her at the farm. She's a beautiful filly who presents you with a lot of options. There is a good chance she could end up at [Denali's] Barn 7a at Saratoga, but we will take it day by day. For now she will go back to Denali. We are thrilled to have her at the farm.”

As Bandoroff described plans for the weanling, Barry, standing nearby, jumped in to add, “I'll raise her if you want.” Bandoroff smiled and said, “I might have to take him up on that.”

Point System Joins Highlander Band

Bloodstock agent Clark Shepherd, bidding on behalf of Larry Hirsch, topped early returns at the Pin Oak dispersal when purchasing the 7-year-old mare Point System (Broken Vow) (hip 5) for $420,000. The stakes winner, in foal to champion Improbable, is a daughter of graded stakes winner Brownie Points (Forest Wildcat) and a half-sister to multiple graded winner Synchrony (Tapit) and graded stakes winner Chocolate Kisses (Candy Ride {Arg}), as well as to the dam of multiple graded-placed 'TDN Rising Star' Dream Shake (Twirling Candy).

“We will foal her out and we will see,” Shepherd said of plans for the mare. “Obviously we will have different plans if it's a colt or a filly. If it's a filly, you'd want to keep that family around. And if it's a colt, we will see how he develops and it could be 100% a commercial play. That's the plan as of right now.”

Hirsch, of Highlander Training Center, has a small broodmare band primarily focused on racing, according to Shepherd.

“He keeps some fillies that he races, but there is no scheme of building a big commercial broodmare band,” Shepherd said. “Our focus is on racing and if we can breed great racehorses, and in particular hopefully fillies, that would be the big picture.”

Of the dispersal dynamic, Shepherd said, “You come across good horses from great families all the time, but these were all centrally located in one spot. Dispersals tend to take on a certain mystery within themselves. And sometimes you overpay, but I think she was well worth that kind of money.”

Graded stakes winner Gold Medal Dancer (Medaglia d'Oro) (hip 23), in foal to Munnings, was the night's third-priciest offering when selling for $400,000 to Eaton Sales.

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“This sale provides people with an opportunity to access these wonderful families that have been cultivated and expertly maintained through Mrs. Abercrombie and Clifford Barry,” said Denali's Conrad Bandoroff. “You look through the catalogue, you have a lot of mares from good Pin Oak families and one of the main common denominators is that a lot of these mares could really run. Several are multiple graded stakes winners or graded stakes performers and graded stakes producers. Some of them have had some foals and may have a little age on them. But they could run and I think there is a lot of blue skies left with a lot of these offerings.”

Among the highlights of the offerings is Overheard (Macho Uno–Whisper to Me, by Thunder Gulch) (hip 2), who won the 2014 GII Dance Smartly S. and 2013 GIII Pin Oak Valley View S. She sells in foal to multiple Grade I winner McKinzie.

“She's really a testament to the Pin Oak program,” Bandoroff said of the 11-year-old mare. “She was sound and hard-knocking and she's in foal to a very exciting freshman stallion in McKinzie. This is a mare who would be a good addition to anyone's breeding program.”

Overheard's half-sister Tell All (Broken Vow) will be offered as hip 8 and the 9-year-old mare is in foal to red-hot freshman sire Gun Runner.

“Gun Runner needs no introduction,” Bandoroff said. “So she's a half-sister to a multiple graded stakes winner from a great Pin Oak family and she's in foal to a freshman-sire phenomenon who couldn't have made a hotter start to stud. She's a young mare with a lot of potential and another one who could fit anyone's program.”

Gold Medal Dancer (Medaglia d'Oro–Bachata, by Kingmambo), winner of the 2015 GII Azeri S., will be offered as hip 23. Third in the 2015 GI Apple Blossom H. and GI La Troienne S., the 11-year-old mare is in foal to Munnings.

“She is another mare who could really run,” Bandoroff said. “She is a Grade II winner and multiple Grade I placed and she earned over $600,000. She is a young mare and a very commercial prospect for any breeder.”

Bandoroff continued, “Medaglia d'Oro is certainly starting to establish himself as an emerging broodmare sire and he will have plenty of opportunity moving forward. And this mare is in foal to Munnings, who has had an unbelievable year.

Bandoroff said the Pin Oak offerings are generating plenty of interest ahead of Sunday's auction at Fasig-Tipton.

“The interest has been strong because the Pin Oak program and the Pin Oak brand is something that everyone respects,” Bandoroff said. “We have been very fortunate to work with Pin Oak for as long as we have and when you are selling a horse that is bred by Pin Oak and people ask where the horse was raised, it's something that we take great pride in, letting people know that this horse was raised by Clifford Barry at Pin Oak Stud. That means something to people. And that is something that generates interest because everyone has a great respect for Mrs. Abercrombie and Pin Oak and for Clifford Barry.”

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So it's a given, absolutely, that the root-and-branch dismantling of Pin Oak Stud into the Lexington lumberyards next week–two dozen mares, fillies and weanlings at Fasig-Tipton on Sunday evening, with 14 yearlings to follow across town at Keeneland–will partly be so coveted simply because of the sheer span of time devoted to its cultivation by Josephine Abercrombie.

But if it is quite remarkable for a breeding program still flourishing in 2021 to have been in the same two hands since the 1950s, then it must be unique for even such longevity to remain secondary–in terms of making Pin Oak Stud what it is–to the flair of its supervision.

Very few human beings are favored both by nearly a full century of vigor, and the material resources to match. But fewer yet can say that they have maximized those twin benedictions as exhaustively as this woman whose true riches, and distinction, abide far deeper than worldly fortune. As it is, her vitality has been able to sustain so many parallel “biographies” that even 95 years seem inadequate to encompass their range. By now too familiar to require reprising, these include colorful careers in boxing promotion, saddlebreds, skiing and ballroom dancing; much philanthropic commitment, notably as founder of The Lexington School; not to mention five marriages–and five divorces! But nothing has ever surpassed the Thoroughbred in her affections.

“Ms. Abercrombie has certainly led an amazing life,” says her long-serving farm manager, Clifford Barry. “But you know what, she'd tell you this, this has been her real love all the way through: being here on the farm, and developing these horses. It was something she really cherished and really took hold of, something she never took for granted. She always felt that if she could bring that passion to it, every day, success would follow. And I know that riding round the farm now, admiring the property, she would wish her dad she could see what she has done here.”

That was Houston oilman J.S. Abercrombie, whose eureka moment came with the blowout preventer, since used on oil wells all round the world. He went into Harry Cameron's toolshop and sketched out his idea on the dirt flooring with a stick. That was the start of Cameron Iron Works, and everything that followed.

Father and daughter shared a love of horses, and a ranch was soon acquired in Texas. He loved pin oaks, and ordered a bunch of them to be planted around the property. Some time later a visitor from New York looked around and told him there wasn't one pin oak on the place. These were all water oaks!

There was more arboreal precision when it came to planting up new land in Kentucky. Josephine made her first yearling purchases in a partnership, including her father, way back in 1949. Three years later they bought 1,348 acres of Woodford County, subsequently birthplace of a series of elite performers including 1976 Preakness winner Elocutionist (Gallant Romeo). But even greater success would attend the development of a new, slightly smaller estate nearby, in the 1980s, with homebred Peaks And Valleys (Mt. Livermore) perhaps the turning point in becoming Canadian Horse of the Year–in the process qualifying Abercrombie as Thoroughbred Breeder of the Year in 1995. Many other decorations and awards have ensued, while the Pin Oak legacy was further secured by such influential sires as Sky Classic (Nijinsky) and Maria's Mon (Wavering Monarch), with two homebred stallions still operating in Broken Vow (Unbridled) and Alternation (Distorted Humor). Though a premature loss at 14, Maria's Mon managed to sire two Kentucky Derby winners in Monarchos and Super Saver.

Impossibly condensed, that's just a snapshot of the genetic duct opening to breeders in Lexington next week. And even though the farm had a commercial function, too, its presiding spirit was that every equine family finds its greatest value in basic racetrack quality.

“This kind of thing is very hard to find anymore,” Barry argues. “Ms. Abercrombie never, ever wavered from where she wanted to be with Pin Oak. It was all about how to produce the best product in the afternoons, and how to get the most out of those mares. She knows every quirk these families present, and how to breed them out. There have been plenty of harsh decisions, when you have to sell young fillies, but there's no doubt overall she has done an amazing job with a very small group of mares, really. It's not like we've had 100 or 200. She's always been very strict on numbers, and I think at any one time it was never much above 30 or 40.”

So what does the Pin Oak brand represent, for those hoping to tap into it now?

“Soundness,” says Barry. “And quality. And just, show up in the afternoon. You can just look at these mares: they were turf, they were dirt, they were short, they were long, but there's always durability in these families, and always great racing minds.”

There has, moreover, been a reciprocal stickability between the boss, known universally on the farm as “Ms. A.,” and her people. Barry has himself been at Pin Oak since 1988; nor has there been any inconstancy in the racetrack roster. Donnie Von Hemel has been training for Pin Oak for three decades, Graham Motion isn't far behind, while Mike Stidham ranks as a relative newcomer at around 15 years. That's a testament not just to Abercrombie's loyalty, but also to her belief that working with a family, generation by generation, helps horsemen to read the run of the genetic grain.

“Donnie Von Hemel had a 2-year-old filly win first time out at Remington last Friday,” Barry says. “She's by Broken Vow out of a homebred mare called Bedanken (Geri), who Donnie trained [to win 11 of 19 starts]. He was saying he had to go back and look up the mare afterwards just to refresh his memory on what she was like. Getting the feedback from those guys on a yearly basis, before you do matings, has always been a huge help. If you look, Ms. Abercrombie often has horses where she has bred three or four generations on both sides. There are very few operations like that nowadays, outside maybe a Coolmore or a Juddmonte, or the Wertheimer freres. I think that's an art that's gone from American breeding.”

Whatever the practical advantages of these recurring cycles, fidelity comes naturally between the Pin Oak owner and her staff.

“She was loyal enough to hire me at 24 years of age, and give a young guy a chance,” Barry notes. “We've got one member of our staff who is coming up to 50 years here. And that just gives you an idea of what Mrs. Abercrombie is about. She was never afraid to roll up her sleeves and get out on the farm. She pushed you to be the best you could be, every day. Not one day a week: every day. Once Mrs. Abercrombie puts her faith in you, you know you have very high standards to meet. She definitely expected no stone left unturned in the care of those horses. But I think in return she took care of the staff the very same way.

“She has such a love and passion for the game. And that has not faded one bit over the years, whether here on the farm or going to the races, whether good days or bad days–and there have been plenty of both. She's about as competitive a person as you could come across, but there'd never be a finger pointed. It would always be just, 'We got outrun today and we'll do better tomorrow.' So while it was always straight back to the grindstone, to see how we could do better, it made my life and job so much easier whenever I had to give the bad news. Because you never had to hesitate to tell it like it is. That's what she expected, and from the trainers too: tell it like it is, and keep moving forward.”

Poignantly, however, there will now be no more moving forward. Barry admits the unorthodoxy of dispersing mares and weanlings on the eve of the September Sale, rather than in November, but credits Boyd Browning, Bayne Welker and the rest of the Fasig-Tipton team for a convincing case that the concept would dovetail well, with so many people in town.

“Hopefully it gives us the chance to showcase some really nice mares and offer some reverence to what Mrs. Abercrombie has done in this game for 60 years,” Barry says. “It's an amazing opportunity for the marketplace, to get into these families. I mean, these don't just pop up every November Sale. You've got Gold Medal Dancer (Medaglia d'Oro) [in foal to Munnings, Hip 23], you've got Don't Leave Me (Lemon Drop Kid) [in foal to Authentic, Hip 18]. These are families that Mrs. Abercrombie has held very tightly these last 30 years, plus.”

As for the stallions: Alternation is still young enough to come up with another Serengeti Express, whether in Kentucky or elsewhere, and options are under review; at rising 25, however, Broken Vow has probably earned a place among the pensioned stock that will remain on the farm, guaranteed diligent care in the years left to them.

Barry, for his part, is not dwelling on his own future. He will keep his head down; keep going in to work for Mrs. Abercrombie, same as always.

“I think I'll be doing that tomorrow like I did today,” he says. “I made a promise a few years ago to do everything in my power to see this through to the end. Ms. Abercrombie has been awful good to me, and my family. Deep down, it's going to be tough to see some of these horses go. But nothing in life stays the same forever, so I want us all to go out and represent as best we can Pin Oak and everything Ms. Abercrombie has put into this game.

“She's about as hands-on an owner as you could ever come across: she's lived here on the farm and watched these horses every day of their lives. Going to the races in the afternoons, too, she has loved that. There hasn't been any part of this thing she missed, from the matings all the way to the racetrack. And she was still out on the farm with me yesterday afternoon, riding around [on the golfcart], and then we went in and watched the replay of the 2-year-old at Remington.”

Barry and his team have doubtless been usefully distracted by maintaining their usual, exacting standards in the preparation of the draft, before handing over to Denali Stud for the sale.

“It'll be a tough couple of days,” says Barry. “I'd be lying if I said we won't feel it deep in the pit in the stomach. But at the same time, we're here to do a job as professionally as we can. These are Ms. Abercrombie's wishes at this stage of her life, we're going to respect that and do everything we can to get it done right. She never does anything on the spur of the moment: she wants to be in control of her legacy, and we've known for a while that we were on a kind of wind-down, and would ultimately get to this point.

“Since the news broke, I guess we've had time to reflect on it a little more. But I don't think I can put into words what Mrs. Abercrombie has meant, let alone to me, to everyone on the farm. You know, she didn't inherit any of these mares. She has built this on her own, from the ground up, and we all know that's a very hard thing to do. So you're talking about somebody that has all the passion, all the patience, and all the perseverance that this game requires. It's been an amazing ride for Ms. Abercrombie, and an amazing ride for all of us–and I feel very, very blessed to have been just a cog in that wheel.”

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