Girvin

Last updated
Girvin
MonmouthPark-Haskell2017-Girvin.jpg
Girvin in the walking ring before the 2017 Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park
Breed Thoroughbred
Sire Tale of Ekati
Grandsire Tale of the Cat
DamCatch the Moon
Damsire Malibu Moon
Sexcolt
FoaledMarch 31, 2014
CountryUSA
Color Dark bay or brown
BreederBob Austin & John Witte
OwnerBrad Grady
Trainer Joe Sharp
Record7:4-2-0 [1]
Earnings$1,574,400
Major wins
Risen Star Stakes (2017)
Louisiana Derby (2017)
Haskell Invitational Stakes (2017)

Girvin (foaled March 31, 2014) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse, winner of the 2017 Louisiana Derby and Haskell Invitational. He was the holder of the highest point ranking for the 2017 Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Contents

Background

Girvin is a dark bay or brown colt who was bred in Kentucky by Bob Austin and John Witte. Austin won a free breeding session to the stallion Tale of Ekati, a grandson of both Storm Cat and Sunday Silence, by throwing a dart in a party game hosted by Darby Dan Farm. [2] Tale of Ekati's major wins came in the Wood Memorial and Cigar Mile and he entered stud in 2011 for a fee of $15,000. [3] To take advantage of the breeding session, Austin and Witte purchased an unraced mare named Catch the Moon for $30,000. She was sired by Malibu Moon, [2] who is also the sire of 2013 Kentucky Derby winner Orb. [4] Girvin was Catch the Moon's second foal. Her first, named Cocked and Loaded, was also a stakes winner. [5]

Girvin was purchased as a yearling for $130,000 by Brad Grady's Grand Oaks farm at the 2015 Fasig-Tipton fall sale. [6] Grady, the owner of a company that leases equipment for the oil and gas industry, is a relative newcomer to horse racing. He purchased the 415-acre (168 ha) Grand Oaks farm in 2012. [7] Grady originally intended to re-sell the then-unnamed colt as a two-year-old-in-training but the horse suffered a minor setback that kept him from the sale. Instead, Grady kept the colt, who he named for his hometown in Texas. Girvin is Grady's first stakes-winning horse. [8] [9]

Girvin is trained by Joe Sharp, who began his training career in 2014 after serving as an assistant to Michael Maker. Grady was one of Sharp's first clients. [8]

Racing career

Girvin and his connections after winning the Haskell Invitational MonmouthPark-FinishLine 08.jpg
Girvin and his connections after winning the Haskell Invitational

In his first four races, Girvin ran only at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans, Louisiana. As a two-year-old, Girvin only raced once, winning a maiden special weight race by a neck in December 2016 at The Fair Grounds, defeating a field of 11 with jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. [10] Trainer Joe Sharp next planned to move Girvin up to face graded stakes race horses in the Lecomte Stakes but was unable to ship from the Evangeline Training Center to Fair Grounds because of a quarantine due to equine herpesvirus. [11] Instead, Girvin made his second start in early February 2017 in the Keith Gee Memorial Overnight Stakes, where he switched from dirt to turf, and finished a game second in the one mile race, 3⁄4 of a length behind the winner and fending off the third place finisher by a neck. [12]

Girvin was next entered in the Grade II Risen Star Stakes on February 25. Largely overlooked at odds of 8-1, he was bumped at the start, swapped leads multiple times in the homestretch but still won by two lengths. His time of 1:43.08 for 1+1⁄16 miles was considered respectable, ranking as the third fastest running of the Risen Star in the past 15 years. [11] [13] His win was a surprise to racing pundits, as he defeated the winners of both the Lecomte and Remsen Stakes. Sharp commented, "We believed in this horse all along, but you never know how good they are until you stack them up against the competition... We're in shock." [14]

His final prep race was the $1,000,000 Louisiana Derby on April 1. There he won over a field of nine by 1+1⁄4 lengths while on the outside for much of the race. [15] With 150 points on the 2017 Road to the Kentucky Derby leaderboard, he became the top-ranked contender in the field. [6] "It doesn't feel bad (to have a Kentucky Derby horse)," said Sharp. "He's a talented horse. We're enjoying the ride. It's great connections and a great owner and it has been a real team effort." [8]

Nearing the finish line of the Haskell Invitational, McCraken on the rail had a narrow lead but Girvin closed ground on the outside and won in a photo finish MonmouthPark-Haskell2017-NearFinishLine.jpg
Nearing the finish line of the Haskell Invitational, McCraken on the rail had a narrow lead but Girvin closed ground on the outside and won in a photo finish

Going into the 2017 Kentucky Derby, Hernandez chose a different horse for the race owing to having a longer business relationship with that horse's connections, so Mike Smith was contracted to ride the colt. Smith's agent had contacted Sharp, stating, "I had been following [Girvin] and his consistency is very attractive...Mastery was our Derby horse and as soon as he was injured, Joe was the first person I called." [16] Girvin also was noticed by the pundits because his morning exercise rider was retired jockey and two-time Kentucky Oaks winner Rosie Napravnik, who was also Sharp's wife and assistant trainer. [17] Overall, because the colt has beaten mostly unknown competition at the Fair Grounds, his chances in the race were difficult to assess. [18] The colt's tendency to switch leads more than he needed to was viewed as a potential concern, but he was praised for his long stride and toughness. [19]

In late April, Girvin's training for the Kentucky Derby was disrupted when he developed a quarter crack on his right front hoof. Rather than jogging on the racetrack, Sharp maintained the horse's fitness by using a hyperbaric chamber and equine swimming facilities and remained hopeful that the colt would be able to run. "As long as he's able to breeze and come out of it well, he'll run in the Derby." [20] Girvin entered the race and on a sloppy track, finished 13th. [21]

He returned to the track on June 24 in the Ohio Derby, where he was second by a nose to Irap. Then, on July 30, he entered the Haskell Invitational at odds of 9-1. Sharp had stated to the press that the horse had been training very well. Ridden by another new jockey, Robby Albarado, Girvin trailed by nine lengths before putting in a stretch run and defeating favorite McCracken and Brian Hernandez in a photo finish, also defeating other top 3-year-olds such as Irish War Cry and Practical Joke. [22]

Stud career

After retirement Girvin began his stud career at the O'Farrell family's Ocala Stud for a fee of $7,500.

In 2023 Girvin is to be relocated to Airdrie Stud. [23]

Pedigree

Pedigree of Girvin (USA), bay colt, 2014 [24]
Sire
Tale of Ekati (USA)
2005		Tale of the Cat (USA)
1994		 Storm Cat Storm Bird
Terlingua
Yarn Mr. Prospector
Narrate
Silence Beauty (JPN)
1997		 Sunday Silence Halo
Wishing Well
Maplejinsky Nijinsky II
Gold Beauty
Dam
Catch the Moon (USA)
2009		 Malibu Moon (USA)
1997		 A.P. Indy Seattle Slew
Weekend Surprise
Macoumba Mr Prospector
Maximova
Catch My Fancy (USA)
2003		Yes It's True Is It True
Clever Monique
Walk Away ReneGold Alert
Monique Rene (family A1) [25]

Girvin does not have significant inbreeding until the fourth generation of his pedigree and beyond. He is 4x5x4x5 to Mr. Prospector, 4x5 to Monique Rene, 5x5 each to Northern Dancer, Secretariat, Raise a Native, and Gold Digger.

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References

  1. ↑ "Girvin". Equibase. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  2. 1 2 "The Kentucky Derby colt who came into being thanks to a lucky throw of a dart". Thoroughbred Racing Commentary. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  3. ↑ "First Foals Reported for Tale of Ekati". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  4. ↑ "Orb 5-Cross Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  5. ↑ Russo, Nicole. "Lightning strikes twice for Catch the Moon". Daily Racing Form. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  6. 1 2 Wincze Hughes, Alicia (April 1, 2017). "Girvin Reigns in Louisiana Derby". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  7. ↑ Severni, J.M. "Grand Oaks Looks to Double Up". Thoroughbred Daily News. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  8. 1 2 3 Duncan, Jeff. "Girvin wins Louisiana Derby, sends youthful connections to Kentucky Derby". NOLA.com. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  9. ↑ "Brad Grady". Equibase. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  10. ↑ "Fair Grounds December 16, 2016 - Race 8". Equibase. December 16, 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  11. 1 2 Duncan, Jeff (February 25, 2017). "Girvin roars past field to win Risen Star Stakes". NOLA.com. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  12. ↑ "Fair Grounds - February 4, 2017 - Race 5". Equibase. February 4, 2017. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  13. ↑ "Fair Grounds - February 25, 2017 - Race 11". Equibase. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  14. ↑ Wincze-Hughes (February 25, 2017). "Girvin Upsets Risen Star Stakes". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  15. ↑ "Fair Grounds - April 1, 2017 - Race 11". Equibase. April 1, 2017. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  16. ↑ Adolphson, Michael (April 20, 2017). "Consistency, Talent Lead Smith to Derby Mount Girvin". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
  17. ↑ "Assistant Trainers". Joe Sharp Racing. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
  18. ↑ Haskin, Steve (April 18, 2017). "Derby Dozen - April 18, 2017 - Presented by Shadwell Farm". Blood-Horse. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  19. ↑ Haskin, Steve (April 4, 2017). "Derby Dozen - April 4, 2017 - Presented by Shadwell Farm". Blood-Horse. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  20. ↑ "Girvin Battling Quarter Crack, KY Derby Not Ruled Out". Blood-Horse. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  21. ↑ Angst, Frank. "Always Dreaming True in Kentucky Derby Win". BloodHorse.com. Retrieved May 7, 2017.
  22. ↑ Wincze Hughes, Alicia (July 30, 2017). "Girvin Gets it Done in Haskell Invitational". Blood Horse. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  23. ↑ Mitchell, Eric (6 September 2022). "Girvin Relocated to Airdrie Stud The son of Tale of Ekati is one of four freshman sires with a graded stakes winner". bloodhorse.com. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  24. ↑ "Girvin 5-Cross Pedigree". Equineline. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  25. ↑ "Girvin Horse Pedigree". www.pedigreequery.com. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
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