The Rock on Which Cain was Raised

They had raised him-and now they were raising the roof. “I think he's number 12,” Codee Guffey was saying. “I think that's him?!” If he wasn't sure, if in fact he was nearly incredulous, it was not because he had got the number or the silks wrong. Of course he knew the horse perfectly well, muddied as he was, with that white patch on his forehead. It was just that Raise Cain (Violence) was suddenly putting it all together in pretty unrecognizable fashion, relative to five previous starts that had made him 23-1 for the GIII Gotham S.

“He was on that rail, at the turn there, but then bounced outside and got to the center of the track,” Guffey recalls. “And from there, well, he just put on a show.”

Sure, the placed horses had also been way off the early pace. But Raise Cain left them for dead, too, checked in his run before bursting seven and a half lengths clear. And whatever he does from here, Guffey and the rest of his family are ecstatic to have produced a GI Kentucky Derby contender within a decade of founding Rock Ridge Farm as complete outsiders to the industry.

Raise Cain's dam is one of only 15 mares at this boutique, 274-acre operation near Versailles, established by Guffey's uncle Kerry Smith, his wife Lou and their son Joe. It's a genuine family affair, with Guffey residing on the farm with his wife and their young daughter, while also maintaining a role in Smith's construction business. So while even the biggest Bluegrass farms would be abuzz after last Saturday's race, you can imagine the glow suffusing one as intimate as this.

“We're all over the moon,” Guffey confirms. “We can hardly believe that we raised a colt that's currently sitting fifth on the Derby leaderboard. We've had others that we thought might bring us that recognition, but you get used to your hopes getting let down. At some point you kind of become numb to it, it's just racing, you can't assume or guarantee anything.

“Raise Cain hadn't run a bad race yet: some better than others, but he'd shown the potential to run respectably. But to see him run a monster race like that was a total surprise, and had us all just extremely proud to even be associated with him. And we're very, very hopeful he'll go on from here.”

Raise Cain is out of Lemon Belle (Lemon Drop Kid), acquired for $285,000 as an 8-year-old at the 2018 Keeneland November Sale. She had won only a sprint maiden in a light career but was a half-sister to GI Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic winner Unrivaled Belle (Unbridled's Song), whose daughter Unique Bella (Tapit) had recently rounded off her career with a third Grade I win. And, crucially as things have turned out, Lemon Belle was carrying a foal by Violence.

When she delivered an outstanding colt, it was quickly decided that she should return to Hill 'n' Dale for a repeat cover. After all, Rock Ridge had already had a good experience with Violence, having bought a mare carrying a filly from his debut crop that made $235,000 as a yearling.

“Typically, we don't keep colts,” Guffey says. “But Lemon Belle's first Violence colt was such a super physical that we certainly tossed that idea around. We did end up selling him, at the Keeneland September Sale for $125,000. Unfortunately Violence didn't really have a lot going for him at that time, but Kip Elser spun him around as a 2-year-old and Spendthrift bought him for $550,000. They named him Nasty Habit, Bob Baffert had him for a while, and I think he bounced around to a couple different trainers without making a start. But I did see he's now back on the work tab [breezed at Payson Park Sunday].”

It would be a bonus if that colt can repay such perseverance, but the stakes have now been raised for the dam regardless.

“So then she had this second Violence colt,” Guffey says. “And he was just like his brother, a beautiful yearling-which Violence will get you. Though he follows the mare, too, in that she's extremely classy and handles everything so well. He was the same, always a good-looking, classy horse, definitely a favorite in our crop that year.”

With Violence having meanwhile renewed commercial momentum, the colt we now know as Raise Cain made $180,000 from Andrew N. Warren, again at the Keeneland September Sale, but conversely proved no kind of pinhook-returning from OBS the following June as a $65,000 RNA.

“I was disappointed when I saw he was in the 2-year-old sale, and then didn't even get sold,” Guffey admits. “I thought maybe he had regressed. But I'm glad they hung in with him and saw it out, because they're being rewarded now.

“I was interested to read Ben Colebrook complimenting the horse on how well he handles things. He thought he'd navigate the larger field better than he would a small one, and that didn't surprise me at all: he was just so laidback and easy-going from day one.”

Guffey and his family find themselves well placed to profit now, having since ponied up fees for Lemon Belle to visit Constitution-their son was safely delivered just a couple of weeks ago-and Justify next.

“I was just so positive that one of her Violence colts would hit, so we rolled the dice a bit,” Guffey explains. “So you could say Raise Cain is kind of hitting just at the right time for that mare. We loved her pedigree when we bought her. She's quite a plain Jane, she's Lemon Drop Kid, doesn't have a lot of chrome on her-but she's a pretty mare. And with the strength of her family, that's probably what interests us more than anything at this stage: trying to buy into really deep families, and to keep some fillies to build off of that.”

Unfortunately they haven't yet got a filly out of the mare, who has now given them four colts in a row. Otherwise, however, Lemon Belle is becoming a model for the evolving strategy: keep the quantity limited, gradually increase the quality.

“When we bought the farm, I had just graduated from U.K. and my uncle just pitched the idea on our way home from Keeneland one day,” Guffey recalls. “Living in central Kentucky, we'd always enjoyed going to the races there, but when he said how about finding some Thoroughbred mares, I thought he was crazy. But we're all very tight-knit, I worked for his company, and so I thought, 'Well, if that's what he wants, I'll make it happen.'”

The land had to be good, out there on Grass Springs Road, if the neighbors included the likes of Pin Oak and Woodford Thoroughbreds. It had been lying idle for a while, having been part of the ill-fated ClassicStar venture, and needed some patching up.

“But we jumped in there and made repairs and improvements,” Guffey recalls. “A real labor of love, that's for sure. And the following fall we went to the sale and started buying mares. It was a little intimidating. You're a new buyer and everybody comes running, wanting to sell you something. But we still have a couple that we bought that first year.”

To be fair, they actually felt a degree of comfort with the whole environment, as longstanding breeders of pedigree cattle.

“This is on a much larger scale and, obviously, takes more money,” Guffey acknowledges. “But the purebred cattle, where you're evaluating pedigrees and matings, made it easier to catch onto, I guess. Just doing your nightly research, you catch on pretty quick to what sells. And actually I've got registered Angus and Hereford cattle right here on the horse farm. Six months later, there may be yearlings in that same field. They coexist on our farm, and I think they complement each other.”

Guffey stresses his gratitude for the mentorship of Hunter Simms of Warrendale, who handles all their sales, and also to Dr. Jeremy Whitman of Equine Medical. But while he will always bounce ideas around with Simms, in reducing his shortlists of potential purchases or matings, ultimately Rock Ridge do everything on their own account.

“Everything takes place here on the farm,” Guffey says. “Our farm manager is Mike Bryant and since adding him to our operation, around 2016, he's really helped move our program forward. But yes, we do everything ourselves. Hard work was bred into my family, and that's how they raised me and my cousins as well. Work hard and put in the time, and you'll be rewarded.”

The time, of course, itself being a type of work.

“That's what I tell everybody,” Guffey emphasizes. “You've got to be patient. You buy these mares, and you've got to give them a couple foals to see how they're going to produce. Well, you're talking about eight years before you can begin to see what you've got. So that's what feels good right now, to be approaching that timeline where we're starting to see the fruits of our labor.”

In playing the long game, Rock Ridge always have a little ongoing action on the racetrack, too, sending Dallas Stewart and Helen Pitts either nicely-bred fillies bought as yearlings, or one or two homebreds that don't get an adequate market response.

“Right now we have a nice filly named Alexa Lou, she's by Speightstown out of a full sister to Rachel Alexandra (Medaglia d'Oro),” Guffey notes. “We bought her from Stonestreet as a yearling [$285,000 RNA] and she broke her maiden second time out at Churchill in the fall. She had to come home for a little while, had a screw put in a knee, but she'll start back jogging [with Stewart] next couple of weeks and we're real excited about her.”

Their biggest racetrack thrill to date was the GIII Peter Pan S. success of Promise Keeper (Constitution) a couple of years ago. He was bred on the farm but Rock Ridge were welcomed back into partnership by Woodford Thoroughbreds and WinStar. His mother Mira Alta (Curlin) now has an Essential Quality filly at foot and was only this week favored by an audience with Flightline himself.

“Now that we've gained a bit of confidence in what we're doing, we're starting to breed these mares to better stallions,” Guffey explains. “And also trying to buy better mares, which is easier said than done. Starting out, we wanted to cut our teeth a little. But we feel good about where we're at, and confident about putting more in them.”

Casting his mind back, Guffey marvels at everything that has grown from that first, nearly throwaway remark by his uncle.

“He's a risk-taker,” he says admiringly. “I mean, he started his construction company 40 years ago from nothing, so that was most definitely his style. He likes to throw you to the wolves and let you figure it out! So you've got to be willing to put in the work, and fight through the harder times and see it through. And we've definitely done that.”

Guffey was getting married right about the time the venture was getting underway. When he told his fiancée Hailey what his uncle was suggesting, she said: “Do you realize how hard that industry is? Are you sure you know what you're doing?”

“No, I really don't know what I'm getting into,” Guffey replied. “But we're going to try it anyway.”

“Living our whole lives in the Lexington area, I guess you get somewhat educated in parts and pieces of it,” Guffey reflects now. “So she knew well enough that it was a very tough game. But we've had a lot of fun, we've met some great people and we love raising these foals. This is my favorite time of year, when you get to see the babies born and watch them grow. Our little girl is only three but loves when we all go to the barn together. And my uncle and aunt, and all my other family, come out on the weekends to look at the foals and it's kind of an escape from the day job.

“So while I doubt I fully understood what my uncle was getting at, that day, I definitely don't regret it. Like I said, it's disappointing when horses don't pan out quite the way that you hope. What we hope for, when we go to the sale, is that these horses will get in good hands so that they can do some of the work for us and improve the mare's page. You can't do it all yourself, the way those larger operations can. So when one comes along like Raise Cain, it's surreal. When we got into it, raising horses of that quality was what we dreamed of. And knowing that they're few and far between, we're going to enjoy every second.”

The post The Rock on Which Cain was Raised appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Promise Keeper Flying The Flag For Up-And-Coming Breeder Rock Ridge Thoroughbreds

Woodford Thoroughbreds, WinStar Farm and Rock Ridge Racing's Promise Keeper posted a 2 1/4-length score in Saturday's Grade 3, $200,000 Peter Pan, proving himself a top contender for the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets on June 5.

Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, the Constitution chestnut, piloted by Luis Saez, stalked the early pace of Wolfie's Dynaghost before taking control at the stretch call and fending off Nova Rags and stablemate Overtook's charge.

Out of the Curlin mare Mira Alta, Promise Keeper was bred in Kentucky by Rock Ridge Thoroughbreds, which was established in 2013 and is located in Versailles, Kentucky.

Rock Ridge Thoroughbreds is owned by Kerry Smith, proprietor of Smith Contractors, Inc., his wife Lou, their son Joe and his nephew Codee Guffey.

The 30-year-old Guffey, who oversees the operation with his wife, Hailey, makes his primary living with the family-owned construction business.

“We're new to the industry. We bought the farm in 2013 and I went to my first Keeneland sale that fall,” said Guffey. “The mare, Mira Alta, we purchased in our second year in the industry. We're still learning and to be able to get a mare like her early was a blessing.

“We keep 12 to 15 mares,” continued Guffey. “This is a family affair. My family owns a construction company and that's our livelihood. We decided to get into this as something we could all enjoy together. I work for the family business and my wife and I live on the farm and oversee the operation here. We never had horses before. We had some cattle. But being in the construction industry, we're not afraid to work. We just try and use a common sense approach and it's been very rewarding.”

Mira Alta was purchased for $200,000 at the 2015 Keeneland November sale. In addition to Promise Keeper, she has produced the stakes-winner and graded-stakes placed mare Wicked Awesome and the graded-stakes placed colt War Stopper, who is in training with Pletcher for owners Salerno Stables and Madaket Stables.

Guffey said Mira Alta made a tremendous first impression.

“Her page is what made me mark her down, but it was her looks that got me hooked,” said Guffey. “She's a gorgeous chestnut mare with a blaze face. I like to say Promise Keeper got his looks from her. I know Constitution can throw some good-looking foals, but she's a gorgeous mare and she has a respectable pedigree in her own right.

“A sister to Mira Alta produced Owendale and he's a very nice colt,” added Guffey. “She's out of a nice mare that Stonestreet owns but I guess Mira Alta didn't earn a place in their band because she's unraced. Stonestreet has some very nice mares and they can't keep them all.”

Multiple Grade 1-winner Tiz the Law is currently the most famous son of Constitution. The New York-bred captured last year's Grade 1 Belmont Stakes for trainer Barclay Tagg and owner Sackatoga Stable.

Guffey said the farm has been a strong supporter of Constitution with the mating to Mira Alta priced at $15,000 before the stallion's runners elevated his stud fee to $85,000. Promise Keeper was purchased by Woodford Thoroughbreds for $160,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, where he was consigned by Warrendale Sales.

“He was a super nice foal and yearling. He was always a standout,” said Guffey. “Unfortunately, the year we sold him, Constitution didn't have Tiz the Law or 3-year-olds at the time and just didn't have that hype about him yet. We were about a year early on that. But Woodford bought him for $160,000 and anytime you can get 10 times the stud fee, you best take it.”

Promise Keeper graduated at second asking when stretched out to one mile on February 6 over a sloppy Gulfstream Park main track ahead of a troubled stakes debut in the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby on March 6.

He redeemed himself with a dominant 5 1/2-length score in a nine-furlong optional claiming score on April 8 at Keeneland and proved his class with Saturday's graded triumph which garnered a career-best 89 Beyer.

“We were really excited for the Tampa Bay Derby because we felt like he fit with those horses and was a top quality 3-year-old,” said Guffey. “But he literally fell to a knee coming out of the gate. He lost a shoe. He got bumped in the turn. It was just a bad trip. We just decided to forget about that – it's horse racing.

“We were all there for his Keeneland win and that gave me the reassurance that he's the horse we thought he was,” he added.

Guffey said the farm bought back into Promise Keeper after his maiden win.

“We were fortunate to get back in on him after he broke his maiden and we were really proud of his effort yesterday,” said Guffey. “It's different when you raise these horses, you get a lot of emotional ties to them.”

Guffey said the farm generally breeds to sell, but bought back into Promise Keeper with an eye to supporting their star pupil at stud.

“We take everything to the sale and put a price on it, but we do tend to keep our homebred fillies and get blacktype and make mares out of them,” said Guffey. “We don't have a lot of desire to own the colts, but we always felt highly about this one.

“From a breeding standpoint, we'd love for him to become a stallion and be able to support him in that process.”

Guffey said Mira Alta, who has a 2-year-old by Shanghai Bobby, has again been covered by Constitution.

“We have an Honor Code filly that's a yearling. That one may not make the sale if Promise Keeper continues to improve,” said Guffey. “The mare has a really nice Mastery colt at her side now. It's early, but we like to say it's her best one yet. He's a chestnut and has not quite the markings that Promise Keeper has, but he's a pretty colt.”

Rock Ridge Thoroughbreds is also the breeder of Hit the Woah, a dark bay daughter of Vancouver out of the More Than Ready mare Christie's Ready.

Trained by Christophe Clement, the stakes-placed Hit the Woah is nominated to Saturday's Grade 3 Soaring Softly at seven furlongs on the Belmont turf for sophomore fillies.

Guffey said he is proud of the farm's early success from their young broodmare band.

“We only had eight foals from Promise Keeper's crop and he's now a Grade 3 winner,” said Guffey. “If we could get two graded stakes winners out of an eight-foal crop that would be a huge accomplishment for our breeding program. Hit the Woah is by Vancouver. He stood for $15,000 and we sold her for $150,000.

“I bought all young mares, so we have to be patient,” he added. “Hit the Woah was that mare's first baby. We have a Malibu Moon colt from her and she's back in foal to American Pharoah.”

While hope springs eternal in the breeding business, Guffey said his family is enjoying their foray into racing and would dearly love to be at Belmont Park on June 5 for the “Test of the Champion.”

“We sure have enjoyed it so far and hope to for many years,” said Guffey. “We have a great group here that works for us. If Promise Keeper is there June 5, we'll be there. I promise you that.”

The post Promise Keeper Flying The Flag For Up-And-Coming Breeder Rock Ridge Thoroughbreds appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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