Page 26 - June 2018 Speedhorse

Co-Broodmaresof the
Year
When it comes to bloodlines, stallions gener- ally make the headlines. Will a young prospect develop into a proven sire? Can a popu- lar freshman sire sustain an entire career? Will a proven stallion continue to throw runners? With hundreds of offspring representing a stallion each year, it can be easy to overlook the bottom side of the breeding equation – the broodmare. But broodmares represent 50 percent of a foal’s genotype, and some will argue even more of a foal’s phenotype and personality, making them valuable commodities in the breeding industry.
Each year, Speedhorse honors a Broodmare of the Year – a mare that has proven herself as a p p r r o o d d u u c c e e r r o o f f f f a a s s t t a a n n d d d d u u r r a a b b l l e e r r u u n n n n e e r r s s . . T T h h i i s s y y e e a a r r, , two mares share the honor of 2017 Speedhorse B B r r o o o o d d m m a a r r e e o o f f t t h h e e Y Ye e a a r r : : J J e e s s s s A A C C l l a a s s s s y y L L a a s s s s y y a a n n d d This Boogie Fires.
The two mares share a title, but they also share more than that. Both are owned by their breeders, and in each case, they represent years of dedication to maternal lines that continue to per- form in the breeding shed and on the racetrack.
JESS A CLASSY LASSY
Ted Abrams has owned a lot of good race- horses since he got his start in Quarter Horse rac- ing in the mid-1970s, but maybe none as good as 2-time World Champion Jessies First Down. The 2011 gelding is from the third crop out of Jess A Classy Lassy, whom Abrams bred and still owns.
Jess A Classy Lassy was represented by three foals on the track in 2017: Girl Done Gone, Shiny Boy A and Jessies First Down. Girl Done Gone, by Jess Zoomin, broke her maiden at
the end of 2016 and raced just once in 2017, finishing sixth in allowance company. Shiny Boy A broke his maiden in his 2017 two-year- old debut before turning in two non-qualifying futurity trial efforts in Texas. It was Jessies First Down who did his dam proud.
Jessies First Down first gained national attention in 2016, when he won three Grade 1 races in his final three starts of the year en route to being named the 2016 World Champion. Racing as a 5 year old in 2016, Jessies First Down won eight of 11 starts including five stakes races. He earned $420,042 that year, and was named World Champion, Champion Aged
Jess A Classy Lassy wins her trial to the 2007 Rainbow Futurity-G1 at Ruidoso Downs by 2 3/4-lengths to qualify to the finals.
Nancy and Ted Abrams, breeder/owner
Jess A Classy Lassy
24 SPEEDHORSE, June 2018
Horse and Champion Aged Gelding. Returning as a 6 year old in 2017, Jessies First Down started the season the same way
he ended the last – in the winner’s circle. For trainer Judd Kearl, he won his trial and the finals of the Sam Houston Championship Challenge-G2 in Texas. Traveling to Oklahoma, he finished second to arch rival Zoomin Effortlessly in the Remington Park Invitational Championship-G1 before shipping to New Mexico for the remainder of the season.
At Ruidoso Downs, Jessies First Down won the All American Gold Cup-G1, then
followed that up with wins in the Downs at Albuquerque Fall Championship and
in the Zia Park Championship Stakes-G1. In his final start of the season in the Championship at Sunland Park-G1, Jessies First Down crossed the wire third and was placed second after the disqualification of TF Im That Guy.
All in all, Jessies First Down won five of seven starts in 2017, never finishing lower than second, and banked $493,257. His phenom- enal season led to more championship titles, including 2017 World Champion, Champion