Escena
15.2hh Bay Mare
Strawberry Road - Claxton's Slew, by Seattle Slew
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Formerly owned by n/a
We move on from Rain Dancer's impressive legacy to another mare whose family and influence are possibly just as powerful, if not in quieter, subtler fashion. Just as with Rain Dancer, the tale of this mare and her family must be broken up into chapters. The end product of a single article would resemble more of a novel than anything else.
Escena was a real life import, one of the true "founding mothers" of the SIM. She raced five times in the game, finishing second to Serena's Song in both the Vanity and Beldame Handicaps (both G1) and third in the Manistique and Beldame Handicaps (both G1), ironically behind Manistique herself. In real life, she won the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1), among other races, and was named Eclipse Champion Older Female.
The daughter of Strawberry Road easily translated that success into the SIM world.
Escena's first daughter, Miss Concerto, was a rather plain chestnut filly. The stripe on her face was the only thing to really distinguish her from the rest, and the daughter of Concerto never did anything to stand out on the track. She won three of 13 races and just over $140,000, finishing third in the Serena's Song Handicap late in her career. In the breeding shed, she had marginally more success, getting four six figure winners. However, it is the influence of her daughters that finally distinguished Miss Concerto.
Miss Concerto's third daughter was a similarly plain, tiny chestnut filly by Priceless Forever named Miss You Love. Miss You Love won twice in five starts and earned $72,360. There are several reasons, however, that Miss You Love is a name that should never be forgotten.
Her first daughter was a nice runner by the name of Facebehindascreen. The bay daughter of Sunday Silence had among her three victories the Foreigner Stakes (G3), and placed second in the Golden Rod Stakes (G2), Manistique Handicap (G2) and Maryland Racing Handicap. She is the second dam of such runners as multiple stakes winner Hidden Glory (Majesty), and third dam of young stakes winner End of Innocence (Regalis).
The true glory of Miss You Love's female family, however, begins with a little blaze-faced filly named Was It Worth It. The daughter of Fighting With Wit won only once on the track, and retired very early in her three-year-old season. There was little hype about her entering the breeding shed, but that all changed very quickly.
Worth the Effort was her second foal. A son of A.P. Indy, the dark bay colt became a very good older horse. As a youngster, he won the Super Derby (G1), was third in the Long Island Classic (G1) and second in the Pennsylvania Derby (G2), Illinois Derby (G3) and El Camino Real Stakes (G3). Midway through his four-year-old season, things began to really look up. He won the Royal Minister Stakes, then was second in the Peace Maker Stakes (G2). On a gamble, Scott Eiland entered his charge in the Steward's Cup Marathon (G1), in the hopes that he would appreciate the two miles. He did. Worth the Effort charged to a 2 1/2 length victory over Tremendous Machine and Democracy. He then defeated those same two rivals in his debut at five before getting off track in two straight starts. He was back in the winner's circle in the New York Marathon Stakes (G3), then won the Coyote Lakes Handicap (G3). He was retired after a third place finish in a bid to win his second Steward's Cup Marathon (G1).
At stud, Worth the Effort was a useful, if not stellar, sire. He got 76 winners and 3 stakes winners from 207 runners.
A couple of years later, Was It Worth It was bred to Loki Dynasty. The resulting filly was almost an exquisite miniature, standing at only fifteen hands. The tiny bay filly had a perfect star between her eyes, as if a sign of things to come. High Flyer was undefeated at the age of two, winning the Steward's Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) over Shining On, Long Island Matron Stakes (G1), and Henderson Debutante (G3), all by open lengths.
At three, High Flyer was incomparable. She ran against males for the first time in the Sunshine Park Derby, taking Gabriel right down to the wire and running a speed figure of 91 for her second place finish. There was no bounce in this filly, as she came back three weeks later and soundly defeated a full field in the Louisville Derby (G1) over a sloppy track. She was second in both subsequent Triple Crown races, both times by narrow margins, to Gabriel in the Baltimore Crown (G1) and King Of The Desert in the Long Island Classic (G1). Staying against fillies, she won the Loki Reflection Stakes (G1) five weeks later and entered what would be her final race. In a thrilling renewal of the Steward's Cup Distaff, the one-two finishers from the previous year's Steward's Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) hooked up with More, Checkered Past, Stands With A Fist and End of the Stars to put on a show likely never to be equaled. The six fillies came down to the wire in a blanket finish in 1:49 flat. It was Shining On that had her nose in front with High Flyer a nose further ahead of More. Both of the top two ran speed figures of 91, and the top six were separated by little more than half a length from first to sixth position. During her career, High Flyer was named North American Champion Two- and Three-Year-Old Filly, Horse of the Year, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
To date, High Flyer is the dam of ten foals, including the year 28 Steward's Cup Marathon (G1) winner Archangel (Fighter Jet), multiple grade one winner Heavenly Heights (Then) and multiple graded stakes winner Savoy (Throne). She has two sons that are extremely promising young sires in the multiple graded stakes winner Delpeni (Something Better) and grade one winner His Highness (Throne). In addition, her two-year-old son, Raised High, by Sun Raider could potentially be a freak and her best yet.
Was It Worth It's third millionaire blatantly bucked the family trend of stamina. Worth the Prize, a son of Hammer, broke his maiden at a mile and was then third twice in graded stakes at a mile before finishing off the board in the Steward's Cup. It took him four more starts to win again, but he went on a hot streak afterwards, winning four straight, including the San German Cup (G1) and Out of Kindness Stakes (G3). The trail went immediately cold, however, as he went winless for his next nine starts, including four second place finishes and a third, all in graded company. Midway through his six-year-old year, however, he got blinkers for the first time and won the Denver Downs Classic and Minneapolis Stakes. He entered that year's Steward's Cup Dirt Mile (G1) as a big longshot. He broke nicely and settled in midpack, but was squeezed back along the line to almost last at the head of the stretch. That didn't deter him, however, as he threaded his way through the field of 14 to get up to win going away by a quarter of a length.
As a sire, Worth the Prize hasn't set the world on fire yet, but he does have a couple of nice stakes winners in At All Cost and Caldecott, as well as the very nice two-year-old graded stakes winner Love Is the Prize.
Was It Worth It also produced the multiple grade one winner Go Back In Time (a son of Change the Past who had enormous but unrealized potential as a sire), Long Island Acorn winner Worth Millions (East), and multiple graded stakes winners Worth It It Was (Something Better), The Way That I Am (Awake As I Am), and Shared Memory (Kiddo). Her daughters and granddaughters have gone on to produce such horses as multiple graded stakes winners Rememberthethrone (Throne) and Most Wonderful (Prophet) and graded stakes winner Trophy Winner (White Shadows). Worth Millions also has a wickedly fast yearling son of Flames named Ball of Fire that is lighting up the workouts list.
Was It Worth It also had a millionaire half brother by Oak Park named Been Worthwhile that was a pretty tidy racehorse, himself. At two, he was a multiple graded stakes winner at a flat mile, defeating such horses as Popa Wheely and Desert Crusader. At three, he won the Battle Cry Stakes in his Louisville Derby prep, but fell short in Kentucky. He took down Majesty in the Queen's Derby (G1) four weeks later but went off track thereafter. At the age of six, he got his final two career victories in the Empire Classic Stakes and an allowance. He was also second in the Baltimore Special (G1), Tokai TV Hai Tokai Stakes (G3) and Gran Premio Piratininga (G3) during his career. He retired with seven wins in 19 starts and $1,247,000. Not bad for a $1,100 two-year-old purchase. Been Worthwhile was pensioned from stud duty a few years ago, but he produced over 54% winners and several stakes winners, including Chinese Burn.
Besides the phenomenally prevalent and talented branch of Miss You Love, Miss Concerto also founded another great dirt routing line through her daughter Goodbyenotforever, a big chestnut mare by Priceless Forever.
Goodbyenotforever won four times on the track in seven starts, including the Soldier Girl Stakes (G3) and was second in the Louisville Oaks (G1) and third in the Long Island Classic (G1) against boys.
Her first daughter of real note as far as her impact on the breed is concerned was actually her third foal, Goodnitejustfornow. The daughter of Battle Cry won three times and was multiple graded stakes placed in nine starts, earning $288,360 on the track. She was the dam of Steward's Cup Dirt Mile (G1) winner Layyourarmourdown, a very cool son of Samurai that also won the Remsen Stakes (G1) and Seattle Mile (G1), among others. Rather unfortunately, Layyourarmourdown did not make it as a sire, possibly due to the fact that, while he preferred a mile on the track, his dam's family was more stamina oriented. In fact, his grade one winning winning half brother, Writing History, was best beyond ten furlongs, winning stakes all the way up to two miles.
Multiple stakes winner Stole Me Away (Fading Dreams), graded stakes winner Ghostly Twilight (Ghostzapper), and graded stakes winner Moment in the Dark (Broken Hearted) also resulted from this offshoot of the Miss You Love female line.
A year later, Goodbyenotforever produced Don'tcrywhenitends, a very talented daughter of Sunday Silence. Don'tcrywhenitends was named Champion Two-Year-Old Filly at two after going undefeated for the year and was second in the Louisville Oaks (G1) at three, retiring with six wins and two seconds in nine starts and $1,266,000 in earnings. The champion Dance on Moonbeams (Tremendous), grade one winner Dance On Starlight (Saga), and multiple graded stakes winner Dance On Firelight (End Result) were among her foals.
Dance on Sunbeams, a Loki Dynasty half sister to the above mentioned, has risen to prominence this year, especially, as the second dam of Louisville Derby winner San Diego Padre (Father's Day) through her champion daughter San Diego Madre (California). His older half brother, East Coast Special (East), was also a serious Triple Crown contender early last year. She also produced the multiple graded stakes winner Broken Road (Pillar of Strength).
The Fighting With Wit/Saga trend also continues with Told By Firelight, a multiple graded stakes winning son of Saga, and the stakes winner Dance in Spotlight by Radee.
Farewellinthedark was the last major daughter of Goodbyenotforever, and she was possibly the best. The pretty, chocolate-colored daughter of Worth Fighting For not only won the Steward's Cup Distaff (G1), defeating Wonder and Laughterintherain (among others) in the process, but also the Louisville Oaks (G1), Beldame Stakes (G1), Woodbine Oaks (G1), Spinaway Stakes (G1) Santa Margarita Handicap (G2), and Maryland Juvenile Fillies Championship (G3). All told, she won eight times in her 15 starts and banked $2,876,000.
Her first daughter has also produced a major Triple Crown contender for this season. The millionaire and multiple grade one winner Favorite Girl, by Chesapeake Bay, is the dam of Night Fury. The son of Boise was last year's Champion Two-Year-Old Male after winning the Steward's Cup Juvenile, and has this year won the Buccaneer Derby (G2) and finished second in the Baltimore Crown (G1). His half brother, Linkin Park, by Oak Park, won the Steward's Cup Marathon (G1), among other races, and retired a millionaire. Favorite Girl also produced the multiple graded stakes winner Distaff, by California, who in turn has a multiple graded stakes winner in Slew O' Roses, by Thriller.
California seems to be a particularly good choice for this part of the family, in fact, with grade one winner California Girl, graded stakes winner Ride Into the Sun, and a potentially very fast two-year-old named Fall Asleep (Father Ralph), as well.
Beyond this, Miss Concerto's female family has continued to produce solid racehorses, with quite a few other stakes winners and performers that are too many for this writer to record. With such current representatives as Night Fury, San Diego Padre, and High Flyer, as well as up-and-comers like Ball of Fire, it is easy to see that the profound impact this female family had and is still having on the breed cannot be ignored.