Page 42 - January 2021

program together, let’s look at some of the pedigree materials and the combinations that are found in the pedigree of Jet Deck.
Moon Deck was bred in Texas by J. B. Ferguson and is by Top Deck. Ferguson was very interested in racing Quarter Horses, so he went to Louisiana to buy Cajun-Bred runners for his broodmare band. He purchased mares like Lightfoot Sis, the dam of 3-time World Champion Go Man Go; Skippy F, dam of
the AAA Skipdeck F; and Rosedale, the dam of the AAA stallion Mackay Boy. All three of these runners were by Top Deck.
Top Deck, who was unraced and bred by the King Ranch, was given to Earnest Lane,
a trainer for the King Ranch. Lane sold Top Deck to Ferguson. He stood for a time in Texas and then was sent to Oklahoma to stand with A. B. Green. Top Deck died in 1965 and his sire record shows 341 starters with 219 ROM, 25 stakes winners and 33 stakes placed runners. The 25 stakes winners won 77 stakes races. His runners earned $1,681,877 and his leading money earner is Top Ladybug, winner of the seven stakes races including the 1966 Rainbow Futurity, which is now a Grade 1 event. Top Ladybug was named the 1966 Champion 2-Year-Old Filly.
Top Deck is by Equestrian by Equipoise, a grandson of Peter Pan by Domino. The dam of Top Deck is River Boat by Chicaro by Chicle. The dam of Chicaro is Wendy
by Peter Pan by Domino. The dam of River Boat is Last Boat by Sir Gallahad III.
The history of Moonlight Night was profiled in the book Cajun-Bred Running Horses by F. S. LeBlanc. The author reported that Moonlight Night was bred by David Colligan of Church Point, Louisiana. She
was sent to the legendary Cajun trainer Cobb Strauss for conditioning. Strauss and his family became well known throughout Quarter Horse racing and they were associated with horses like Top Deck and Go Man Go. He was also the jockey for Della Moore, the dam of Joe Reed P-3. He was reportedly there when Della Moore was bred to Joe Blair, the mating that produced Joe Reed P-3. It was Strauss’ daughter Mercedes who took care of Moonlight Night.
Moonlight Night became a legend in Cajun racing early in her career. She was matched with a horse owned by Babe Petre of Grand Prairie. As the story goes, she was injured in a stall accident when she got her leg caught under the door of her stall. The morning of the race, she was seen limping, but by race time, the limp went away. The bettors still didn’t trust her soundness and so they bet against her. That was the wrong thing to do as she won the race in a time of :12.5 and went on to remain undefeated.
Jet Too was the third stakes winner sired by Moon Deck out of Miss Night Bar. He was the winner of the 1966 Sunland Park Fall Futurity.
Jet Too was the third stakes winner sired by Moon Deck out of Miss Night Bar. He had 18 starts with six wins, two seconds and one third with earnings of $24,369. He was the winner of the 1966 Sunland Park Fall Futurity. Jet Moon followed Jet Too, and he was ROM earner with eight starts, two wins and three thirds. He earned $1,449. The next Moon Deck/Miss Night Bar foal was Miss Prissy Jet, who was AAA/ROM from 18 starts with one win, five seconds and three thirds earning $4,307. The last Miss Night Bar foal by Moon Deck was Queen For A Day and she was also an ROM earner with eleven starts, one win and three seconds.
She had a speed index of 81 and she earned $1,832. The last two foals out of Miss Night Bar were both by Double Bid. Night Bid in 1968, the winner of six of his 23 starts with four seconds and one third earning $3,147; and Double Night, born in 1969 and the winner of three of his 20 starts with one second and three thirds with earnings of $899 and an 88 speed index.
Now that we have seen the backstory on how James V. A. Carter put his breeding
SPEEDLINES
Top Deck, who was unraced and bred by the King Ranch, was given to Earnest Lane, a trainer for the King Ranch. Lane sold Top Deck to Ferguson. The stallion stood for a time in Texas and then was sent to Oklahoma to stand with A. B. Green (shown).
40 SPEEDHORSE January 2021