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Well-Stocked for Keeneland September, There is Nothing Random about Cove Springs’ Success

Richard and Connie Snyder moved their commercial breeding operation from New Mexico to Kentucky nine years ago with the aim of competing at the highest levels of the game. The Snyders' Cove Springs Farm seems to have that goal well in its grasp after a memorable August which saw the operation represented by its first Grade I winner when Randomized (Nyquist) captured the GI Alabama S. and by a high-water mark in the sales ring when a colt by Not This Time brought $725,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale. Cove Springs will hope the momentum carries into the new month with offerings from Book 1 straight through Book 6 of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, including a half-sister to Randomized who sells in Book 3.

Asked how the couple first got involved in racing, Richard Snyder paused before admitting, “Oh my goodness. That's too long ago. I can't remember that far back.”

Straddling breeding in New Mexico and Kentucky, the Snyders decided to commit to the bluegrass nearly a decade ago.

“We've had horses for a long time,” Snyder said. “We were breeding some horses in Kentucky and we decided, if we were to be successful and where we wanted to be, we needed to be here in Kentucky.”

The Snyders hung the Cove Springs sign outside their new farm on Paynes Mill Road in Versailles in August of 2014. One of their first big investments for the new farm was French Passport (Elusive Quality), who they purchased in foal to American Pharoah for $200,000 at the 2018 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.

“She was the first big-money mare that we bought,” Snyder said. “If you are going to live here and compete with these guys, you've got to play the game. You've got to compete.”

The unraced French Passport is a half-sister to graded winners Smooth Air (Smooth Jazz) and Overdriven (Tale of the Cat), as well as to the dam of multiple Grade I winner Got Stormy (Get Stormy).

“We were very familiar with the family,” Snyder said of the mare's appeal. “It's a deep family. At one time we had a stallion that is back in that family. So we just kept up with the family and knew it well and when she showed up in foal to American Pharoah, we knew this was where we were going to start.”

After RNA'ing for $225,000 at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase, the mare's American Pharoah colt sold for $550,000 at the 2021 OBS March sale. French Passport's second foal bred by Cove Springs was Randomized, who was purchased by Klaravich Stable for $420,000 at the 2021 Keeneland September sale. Klaravich came back to purchase the mare's yearling colt by Justify for $410,000 last September.

Randomized, a maiden winner at Aqueduct in March, was well-beaten in the GI Acorn S. in June, but rebounded with a win in the Wilton S. at Saratoga in July. She glided home a front-running four-length winner of the Alabama Aug. 19.

What was it like to watch the farm's first Grade I winner come down the stretch in front at Saratoga?

Snyder laughed. “It was unbelievable,” he said.

Snyder admitted he was impressed with French Passport's Nyquist filly right from the start.

“Did we know she was going to be a Grade I filly? Of course not,” he said. “But she always had a tremendous air about her and a great, great walk. She always wanted to do more than we would let her. This mare's babies are all like that.”

Through the Hidden Brook consignment, Cove Springs will offer a half-sister by Frosted to the Alabama S. winner as hip 1711 during Sunday's sixth session of the two-week auction.

“I love her,” Snyder said of the yearling. “She is beautiful and has the same aura about her. She knows she is who she is. And she's a great-moving filly. She's maybe not be as big as Randomized, but she's a beautiful filly.”

Cove Springs's September contingent is led off by a Book 1 filly by Justify (hip 133), who sells during Monday's first session of the auction with Four Star Sales. The yearling is the first foal out of Gaels Win (Daaher), a half-sister to graded winner T.D. Vance (Rahy) and to graded-placed Bergerac (Rahy) and Philippe (Mineshaft). Her third dam is Grade I winner Fantastic Find (Mr. Prospector), who produced multiple Grade I winner Finder's Fee, the granddam of Flightline.

“She is drop-dead gorgeous,” Snyder said of the bay filly. “She's a big, scopey, great-moving filly. And it's an outstanding family. I think buyers will appreciate this pedigree. It's loaded with both turf and dirt runners. So I think she will appeal to a wide range of people. We are expecting big things for her.”

The Snyders purchased Gaels Win, who is currently in foal to Tapit, for $375,000 at the 2020 Keeneland November sale.

“She was in foal to Into Mischief when we bought her,” Snyder said. “Unfortunately, she aborted that foal, so this is her first filly.”

Cove Springs has about 20 broodmares of its own and is home to some 10 to 15 outside mares.

The plan is to sell their foals as yearlings, Snyder said, adding, “That's Plan A. It doesn't always work out. Consequently our sales are pretty good, but our racing stable is not always on top. But we do have some nice horses in training at the moment.”

The operation enjoyed success in the sales ring in Saratoga when its colt by Not This Time out of Speightstastic (Speightstown) (hip 171) sold for $725,000 to Repole Stable and Spendthrift Farm.

“Realistically, we thought he would sure bring $500,000 to $600,000, so he brought more than we expected of course,” Snyder said. “But he was a beautiful horse. And I think he has a huge future in front of him.”

The couple will stay busy straight through to Book 6 of the Keeneland September sale when they will offer a colt by Good Samaritan out of Lightning Dove (Uncle Mo) as (hip 3752) with the Legacy Bloodstock consignment.

“We have some other really nice horses in the sale, all the way from Book 1 to Book 6,” Snyder said. “We have a great horse in Book 6. We are pretty proud of him.”

Connie and Richard Snyder are reaping the rewards of some 35 years of working together towards a common goal.

“Connie and I work hard at it,” Snyder said. “This is what we do and this is what it takes to get there. If hard work and want-to is the key, we should move forward.”

The Keeneland September sale begins with a pair of Book 1 sessions Monday and Tuesday beginning at 1 p.m. Book 2 sessions Wednesday and Thursday begin at 11 a.m. Following a dark day Friday, the auction continues through Sept. 23 with sessions beginning daily at 10 a.m.

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Drop the Crop: Letter to the Editor, by Dr. David Ranson

We have all been affected by the recent tragedies that have occurred in the racing industry. Whether reading of, heartbreakingly witnessing these horrors on national television, or while sitting with our friends at an event, we have all begun with breathless engagement in the grand spectacle of poetry in motion. We watch in admiration and awe as living, breathing works of art slice through the wind in full flight only to often sadly witness events that cannot be unseen; events that may haunt the recesses of our minds, creating fodder for nightmares to come.

How many of us bite our lips when the full flight of competitors turns the corner at the quarter pole hoping and praying that they cross the wire safely, not having to be destroyed for the sake of entertainment or for gamblers to experience another hit or miss? Upon witnessing these events, people walk away during watch parties, quickly change the channel, walk out of the racecourse on what purported to be a beautiful day at the races and eventually, walk away from the sport.

With no substantial uniform national rules, creating and sustaining entertainment value for a whole new and different culture is one of the many challenges of thoroughbred racing. We have had way too many deaths, irregularities and misinterpretation of rules which contributed to the prolonged delay of naming a Kentucky Derby winner as well as the conviction and possible imprisonment of a celebrated trainer winning an international event for cheating that involved veterinarians as well. Sadly, this is becoming the face of our sport.

With decreasing foal numbers and closing of racing venues over the years, it is no secret that we are not growing. In fact, we are dying as a celebrated sport and as a source of livelihood for thousands. The industry is in the trauma bay, and we need all hands on deck to survive and perhaps be able to again thrive.

Allow me to introduce myself and also offer a possible lifeline to the sport and industry: a lifeline based on physiologic fact that will perhaps quell the rising tsunami that threatens our very existence by supplying a palpable, visual solution while also serving as a public relations tool.

I am a human surgeon by training and a third-generation horseman by choice. My undergraduate degree is in animal and veterinary science which prepared me to enter vet school but I chose medical school and surgery as my primary profession. I have been competing in equine sport my entire life. I have a show horse background and have worked with and for trainers in different disciplines and have achieved world-championship status during my show career. I have been involved in the thoroughbred industry as an owner, principle of a racing LLC, creator of racing and sales syndicates, horse farmer and pinhooker for over 15 years. I have an intimate knowledge of these athletes, how they work and the physiologic machine that allows them to perform at peak levels.

Catastrophic breakdowns and efforts to decrease them are nothing new to the sport . We have traditionally looked at multiple racing surfaces by trying to find the culprit in the infrastructure, and content of the surface on which we run.

However, we have not discussed PROPRIOCEPTION…. what it is and how it works in both the human body and equine athlete. Proprioception permits horses to sense pressures, discomforts, tension and location of their bodies and limbs. It is an automatic feedback mechanism through sophisticated neurological pathways generated by bone and sinew all the while telling the animal where its body parts are in relation to the environment.

Equine sport places unusually steep demands on both horse and rider. Proprioception allows the horse to sense joint angles, muscle length, tendon tension and postural balance. These proprioceptors are nerves that can pick up .002 percent of muscle length and send that information to the horse's brain allowing him or her to make adjustments for gait and ultimately, survival.

Enter the crop. The crop is an age-old tool that has many purposes in equine sport and has been modified on several occasions. But let's face it, it is primarily used as an accelerator. Granted, it causes very little harm to the horse and on most occasions just strikes the saddlecloth. But it is an accelerator for all to see coming down the stretch.

Now consider the physiologic framework of proprioception and the horse's natural competitiveness combined with the concomitant use of the accelerator. Could the accelerator (crop) be a participant in the horse surpassing and overriding his natural proprioceptors, thus causing him/her to extend themselves past the point of bone and sinew? If so, wouldn't it be prudent to omit this piece of equipment to protect the horse from over extending and instead winning the race with his own heart, determination, conditioning, and riders urging, all the while demonstrating to the public that thoroughbred racing takes action, thus easing the ever present threatening public relations issue. Now may be the time to” Drop the Crop.”

David W Ranson, MD, Principle of Equivest Racing LLC

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Solomini Stamps Himself as Sire to Watch in Saratoga

Just a few miles from where her freshman sire stands at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds, Soloshot had an auspicious start to her career when the daughter of Solomini wired the field to break her maiden by 7 3/4 lengths on Aug. 27 at Saratoga. Trained by George Weaver, the filly was a $290,000 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic purchase for Bregman Family Racing, Jackpot Farm and Swinbank Stables.

Fast and Frisky, another daughter of Solomini, completed the exact with Soloshot in the New York-bred juvenile contest and later on the same card, another filly by the first-crop sire made a strong showing when My Shea D Lady ran third in the Seeking the Ante S. The Carlos David trainee was Solomini's first winner back at Gulfstream on July 1.

With the support Solomini received from breeders that led to a first book of 123 mares in 2020, the team at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds believes that their son of Curlin has much more to show as the year continues and beyond.

“Solomini has had a really great start to his career based upon mares bred,” said the farm's John McMahon. “We're very enthusiastic about his success. I think the initial attraction was the Curlin, at the rate that he pumps out Classic-style horses, and his Grade I, 2-year-old form.”

Initially campaigned by Zayat Stables and Bob Baffert, Solomini was a debut winner at two and he went on to run second to MGISW Bolt d'Oro in the GI Frontrunner S. and was runner-up behind champion Good Magic in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile. He was third via disqualification in the GI Cash Call Futurity to close out his 2-year-old season and as a sophomore, placed in three graded contests including the GI Arkansas Derby.

The only son of Curlin in New York, Solomini also boasts a pedigree the includes active sires Midshipman and Frosted under his second dam.

When Solomini's first foals arrived, McMahon said the farm was thrilled to see that their sire was stamping his progeny.

“The stallion tends to throw very consistent,” he explained. “They're good-sized individuals and he puts a lot of chrome on a foal.”

In the sales ring last year, the stallion's yearlings averaged just under $30,000 from 29 sold, making him the leading first-crop yearling sire outside of Kentucky.

This year his progeny fared even better at auction. His $99,000 average from a $6,500 initial stud placed him in the top 10 leading first-crop stallions. A colt out of Timberlea (Flatter) now named Wynstock brought $700,000 at the OBS April Sale, selling to agent Donato Lanni for Dr. Edward Allred and Jack Liebau. Bumped at the start, he finished fourth on debut on Aug. 25. Also at OBS April, a colt out of Miss Bonnie (Officer) brought $290,000 and at OBS March, a filly out of Passeporta (Rockport Harbor) brought $200,000.

Solomini has three winners on the year thus far. Along with Soloshot and My Shea D Lady, the Rob Falcone-conditioned Nicky Jolene showed an affinity for turf when she broke her maiden at second asking on July 9 at Belmont.

Labor Day could be another important day of racing for Solomini as he has two juveniles entered for closing day of Saratoga. Solo Rye'd will try turf for David Donk in Race 1 and Solo's Fury is the morning-line favorite in his debut for Jeremiah Englehart in Race 6.

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The Week In Review: The Year In Which Saratoga Lost Its Mojo

At the conclusion of racing on Monday, Saratoga will have handled about $800 million for the meet, the third highest handle figure ever for the track. On-track attendance was at 1,055,543 after Saturday's GI Jockey Club Gold Cup Day card, setting an all-time record with two racing days to go.

Yet, by just about any measure, it was not a good meet. Saratoga came into 2023 with the wind at its back. Every year the racing seemed to get bigger, the handle would grow and more and more fans would pile into the historic racecourse. Taking out the covid year, handle had risen at Saratoga for five straight years.

Would Saratoga ever lose its momentum or would it keep growing exponentially?

It turned this year. The 12 fatalities, including two particularly gruesome ones that occurred in full view of packed grandstand and before a national TV audience, were as bad as it gets. How many racing fans were turned into ex-racing fans on those days? NYRA has always taken the safety of the horses and jockeys very seriously and will no doubt continue to put in place measures to keep both safe.

They have some control over horse safety, but none over the weather, which was a huge problem at the meet. During the 2022 meet, only 15 races came off the grass. Through Sunday of the 2023 meet, 65 races had come off the grass. There had been 189 grass races run in 2022 versus 129 this year. That always leads to the same problems. When races come off the turf there are always a number of scratches, typically creating off-the-turf races with four or five-horse fields. On Aug. 10, an off-the-turf race actually turned into a match race. This is stuff no one wants to bet on.

NYRA is ready to do what it can to address that problem. NYRA President and CEO Dave O'Rourke has said that there is serious interest in installing a synthetic track at Saratoga by the 2025 meet. It wouldn't replace either the dirt main track or the two turf courses but would give NYRA a third option when it comes to racing surfaces and the synthetic track would largely be put to use when the rains washed races off of the turf.

The weather has been a problem, but if you dig a bit further you can find some signs that Saratoga handle was affected by more than the rain. On GI Travers Day 2023, when two races came off the turf, the handle was $50,183,71. In 2022, the handle was $55,559,315 when one race came off the grass. This past Saturday, on GI Jockey Club Gold Cup Day, they bet $27,400,509 on a day not impacted by weather. The year before the handle was $32,505,600.

“I think what happened is with all the earlier rain we lost some momentum and when that happened it's hard to get it back,” O'Rourke said.

Field size fell by 2.5 percent, from 7.75 to 7.56. A more telling number was the average handle per betting interest. It was $255,773 this year and $272,599 last year, for a drop of 6.2%.

What's done is done and there's nothing to do now but turn the page and hope Saratoga 2024 is one of the safest meets in history and the weather is gorgeous from opening day to closing day. The place is still magical and popular, but everything peaks at some point. Maybe that's happened to Saratoga.

European Dominance On The Turf

This is getting a bit ridiculous. U.S. racing is used to second-flight European horses coming over and winning some of our biggest grass race, but the year European shippers are having this year shows that our grass horses are vastly inferior. Take Saturday's GIII $2 million Mint Millions at Kentucky Downs. There was only one European shipper in the field, Ancient Rome (War Front), who is trained by Charlie Hills and was ridden by Jamie Spencer. Facing the likes of GI winner Annapolis (War Front), he came into it off a win in a handicap race. Before that you had to go all the way back to 2021 for his last graded win, a victory in the GIII Prix des Chenes in France. He won that by a half-length. He won the Mint Millions by a half-length.

A week earlier, it was Bolshoi Ballet (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). He came into the GI Sword Dancer after losing by 21 1/2 lengths in the GI King George VI and Queen Elizabeth I Stakes, where he went off at 125-1. Yet, that was good enough to win the Sword Dancer by 4 1/2 lengths. The win broke a nine-race losing streak, going back to the 2021 GI Belmont Derby where he also took advantage of a weak group of U.S. turf horses.

Then there's Aspen Grove (Ire) (Justify). She was sent off at 50-1 in the GI Irish 1,000 Guineas and finished last beaten 14 1/2 lengths. But that was good enough for her to take home first prize of $500,000 in the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational in her next outing.

Good luck to our horses in the Breeders' Cup turf races.

Surprise, Surprise, Still No News Out Of Saudi Arabia

Back in 2020, Maximum Security (New Year's Day) crossed the line in front in the 2020 $20 million Saudi Cup. Just a few days later, his trainer, Jason Servis, was arrested and charged with using performance-enhancing drugs on most of the horses in his barn. When that news broke, the Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia said it was withholding the purses until it could investigate the situation

It's been 29 months since Servis was indicted, he has pled guilty and in November will begin a four-year prison sentence. The case is over, but the Saudis still haven't paid out the purse. Presumably, the winner's share of $10 million will eventually go to Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute). But no one has been paid as the Saudis, who should have all the evidence they'll ever need, do nothing and don't seem to be in any hurry to write a check. We tried to get an update on the situation this week, but the answer we got didn't really answer anything.

“Due to the extended nature of the judicial process in the USA, the JCSA has been unable to fully conduct its own investigation into the awarding of the winner's prize for The Saudi Cup 2020,” wrote the JCSA's Sarah Tregoning in response to an email sent by the TDN. “Now that the legal process in the USA has finished, the JCSA expects to swiftly conclude its own investigation and make an announcement in the coming weeks.”

I wouldn't hold your breath.

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