Big first year for JK Endofanera in Indiana

The leading equines and individuals from Indiana’s 2024 campaign were honored Saturday evening (Jan. 25) at the Embassy Suites Conference Center in Noblesville. The Indiana Standardbred Awards Banquet, sponsored by the Indiana Standardbred Association, Standardbred Advisory Board and Harrah’s Hoosier Park Racing and Casino, recognized winners on both the pari-mutuel and fair circuits last season. JK Endofanera was selected as Indiana Pacing Sire of the Year after his offspring turned in a strong 2024 campaign. Led by the aforementioned Lets Go Endofaera, the sire was represented by 225 starters that collectively tallied 517 wins and purse earnings topping $7.2 million. Standing at Victory Hill Farm, JK Endofanera sired Super Final winners Can’ttouchthese ($255,370) and Noblesville ($269,396) as well as Indiana Sires Stakes Point Champions Brookview Fancy ($151,105) and Hopeyaliketheshow ($137,843). JK Endofanera was previously recognized as the state’s top pacing sire in 2022

Hung Over makes his eighth trip to the winners circle

Hung Over (Marvin Luna) notched a front-stepping win in the 3-Year-Old Colt & Gelding Trot final with a 1:54 mile. Luna swooped to the point past a :27.3 first quarter and cruised through middle sectionals of :57.4 and 1:25.4 while Mister Dad (Dexter Dunn) climbed first over from third to try and cut into the loose leader’s margin. Mister Dad eventually leveled off from his bid through the final turn, leaving Hung Over to coast in a two-length winner over Mister Dad with International Law (Marcus Miller) closing for third and Crown Monarch (Andy McCarthy) finishing fourth. Bob Stewart trains Hung Over, a colt by Creatine out of the Yankee Glide mare Drunkard’s Dream. He’s now won seven times from 15 starts and earned $232,493 for owner and breeder Bluestone Farms LLC and Lynda Stewart. He paid $7.76 to win.

A filly by JK Endofanera out of the Bettor’s Delight mare Crucial Moment, Defining Moment collected her fifth win from 16 starts and has now earned $122,009 for owners Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi, Frank Baldachino and Larry Karr. She paid $11.02 to win and was the second of trainer Ron Burke’s three wins in KYSS finals. Bluestone Farms LLC, Three Brothers Stable and Northwood Bloodstock stand JK Endofanera at Victory Hill Farm in Indiana 

Hung Over showed no ill-effects of Pre-Jug partying and cruised to a 1 ½ length victory in the $131,906 Ohio Breeders Championship freshman colt trot in Tuesday (September 19) action at the Delaware County Fair. When the field of nine was sent on their way, Royal Precedent (Aaron Merriman) grabbed the early lead and parked Commander Tom (Chris Page) through the first half of the mile in :28.1 and :57.4. Dan Noble and the eventual winner found himself well back in the field in seventh at the half-mile station. Hung Over was sent three-wide past the three-quarter station in 1:27.3 and was able to get by Rose Run Zoom (Don Irvine, Jr.) to score a 1 ½ length win in 1:57.1. The pacesetting Royal Precedent held on for third. The winner is owned by the Bluestone Farms and Lynda Stewart and trained by Bob Stewart. The homebred son of Creatine won for the fifth time in nine seasonal starts. With the $65,953 first place check, he now has $145,433 in career earnings. Hung Over has won three straight here in the Buckeye State. Later on in the 16-race card in the third and final division of the $20,000 Buckeye Stallion Series event for freshman totting fillies, Maxine’s Hill (Chris Page) and Hot Tea (Tyler Smith) swapped the lead a couple of times in the final quarter of the race and hit the finish line together in a 1:58.2 dead-heat. Maxine Hill is co-owner by trainer Chris Beaver, Donald Robinson, VIP Internet Stable and Mark Schwartz. Hot Tea is owned by Joyce McClelland and conditioned by Virgil Morgan, Jr. The 22-race Wednesday card will go postward at 12:00 PM. Photo: The connections of Hot Tea (#7) and Maxine’s Hill (#6) fill the winners circle after their dead-heat in a division of the $20,000 Buckeye Stallion Series two-year-old filly trot. (Brad Conrad Photo) 

Hopewell, NJ — It is with sadness that Bluestone Farms reports the death of Neverhaveneverwill (Big Towner-Keystone Wallis-Albatross). She was euthanized after many months of treatment for a navicular cyst and a calcified tendon. She was 28 years old. NeverhaveneverwIll (named Willy at Bluestone Farms where she was retired in 2016) was the dam of 13 foals. Her most accomplished son is Always A Virgin p,3,1:48.4 ($1,135,559) who stood stud duty in Indiana. His sons and daughters have thus far earned $67,332,149. Always A Virgin would go on to sire Always B Miki p,1:46 ($2,715,368) who reigned as the fastest Standardbred of all time from 2016 through 2021. Bluestone was a partner in Always A Virgin along with Bob Boni, Joe Hurley (the breeder of Always A Virgin), Lynn Jones, Marty Granoff and Elaine and Stuart Hankin. Bluestone, along with many of the partners named above, also owned Always B Miki . Bluestone Farms purchased Willy in 2016. In an article dated Nov. 10, 2016, Ellen Harvey (writing for Harness Racing Communications) relates how the employees of Bluestone Farms insisted that Willy be purchased, retired, and cared-for “for all she had given us.” True to their desire, Willy was never bred again, and had been well cared for these past seven years. Willy’s son, Always A Virgin, removed from stud duty this year, presently remains in retirement, at Bluestone Farms. He, too, is being well cared for.

Silky Satin was humanely euthanized on Tuesday, December 13th due to advanced osteoarthritic changes to the distal inter-carpal and carpal metacarpal joints. Silky was born in 1995 and had been owned by Bluestone Farms since November 2001. Bred by Perretti Farms, Silky earned $54,958 and took a lifetime mark of 1:53 at Woodbine Racetrack. While her racing career may not have been illustrious, her offspring have proven otherwise. Her nine foals have earned a total of $3,032,184 with standouts like Art Director p,3 :49.3 $1,123,734, Speed Demon p,4 1:48.4, $717,533, and Sweet Talkin Satin p,4 1:49.1 $673,662. Bluestone Farms retained Silky’s daughter Sorcha Bluestone who produced a few standouts on her own including Simple Kinda Man p, 1:50.4h $372,253. Unfortunately, Sorcha died this year from foaling complications. The foal was lost as well. Bluestone does have one last surviving direct descendant of Silky – She’s A Silver Sun by JK Endofanera from Sorcha Bluestone, currently booked to Always B Miki. We expect that her offspring will go on to honor their great grandam. Silky was one of, if not the most loved mares at Bluestone. In her last days, previous employees of the farm came to visit and say goodbye to her. No matter how many times a beloved horse dies – it never gets easier to accept the loss. Silky will be missed

The owners of Muscle Hill’s fastest son, Rebuff 2,1:52.2; 3,1:49.4 ($962,490), are excited to announce that he will stand his first season at stud in 2023 in Indiana at Victory Hill Farm. The fastest 3-year-old trotter to ever stand in Indiana, his fee has been set at $7,500. At 2, he won the Breeders Crown (elimination and final) and International Stallion Stake, taking his 2-year-old record of 1:52.2. He concluded his freshman season with earnings of $444,095. He was the fastest 3-year-old trotter in 2022 with his 1:49.4 career record taken in the Stanley Dancer Memorial at The Meadowlands that was also a stakes and track record. His other victories included the $430,000 Kentucky Futurity, Hambletonian elimination, Reynolds Memorial and a Kentucky Championship Series leg. He added $518,395 in 3-year-old earnings for a career bankroll of $962,490. In making the announcement, Mitchel Skolnick said standing Rebuff in Indiana will further strengthen the state’s already strong breeding program. “Cane Run Farm, Northwood Bloodstock and Bluestone Farms’ successful negotiations with the owners of Rebuff brings to Indiana a stallion that will position Indiana’s Standardbred breeding program to be among the finest in North America and internationally.” Rebuff’s trainer throughout his racing career, Lucas Wallin, said he fell in love with him the first time he saw him as a yearling. “From day one he was a natural, with a powerful gait, great acceleration and an ambitious attitude. From the beginning in our sets he was always a very competitive colt that simply wanted to race, and now I can’t wait for the day when I will train his colts and fillies.” Driver Tim Tetrick agrees with that assessment. “Rebuff was a super talented colt at two and three with an effortless gait and scary speed. He was super to drive with a great attitude — the complete package.” Jeff King, owner of Victory Hill Farm with his wife Maria, awaits Rebuff’s arrival with much anticipation. “As the fastest son of the incomparable Muscle Hill and with all his great accomplishments, Rebuff will be positioned to significantly advance the Indiana breeding industry and beyond, something Victory Hill Farms remains committed to. “With the rumor mill working overtime we have already had considerable interest and I can’t tell you how much I anticipate his arrival.” Principle owner Kjell Andersen said he is looking forward to Rebuff’s career as a stallion. “Rebuff has been a joy to watch and his winning the Breeders Crown at The Meadowlands was more exciting than I ever could have imagined. Now we are just as excited as he enters the stud and what he will bring to the Indiana program. “I think the sky is the limit.” For more information or to secure a booking, contact Victory Hill Farm at 260.463.2442. Frozen semen will be available to European breeders.

La Grange, IN — Always A Virgin , the all-time leading money-winning sire in Indiana with more than $61 million, most notably his champion son Always B Miki p,1:46 ($2,715,368), has been retired from stud duty at Victory Hill Farm in Indiana, where he stood for 13 years. Now 18-years-old, Always A Virgin will spend the rest of his days in leisure at Bluestone Farm in Hopewell, N.J. Always A Virgin ’s son Always B Miki reigned as the sport’s fastest horse with his record-setting 1:46 mile in 2016 at the Red Mile. Always B Miki is now the leading active pacing sire of Breeders Crown wins. Always A Virgin sired three Breeders Crown winners — Always B Miki , Color’s A Virgin p,4,1:49.2s ($1,070,533) and Beckhams Z Tam p,4,1:49s ($854,048) — in addition to numerous Indiana Sires Stakes champions. Following a successful racing career in which he narrowly missed sweeping pacing’s Triple Crown for owners Bluewood Stable, Val D’Or Farms, and breeder Joe Hurley’s Roll The Dice Stable, Always A Virgin was retired to Victory Hill Farm, which is owned and operated by the husband and wife team of Dr. Jeff King and Dr. Maria King. As a son of Western Ideal out of the Big Towner mare Neverhadneverwill, he offered Hoosier State breeders one of the most successful male sire lines in Standardbred breeding. “ Always A Virgin was always a pleasure to work with and he brought the important Western Hanover blood to Indiana,” noted Dr. Jeff King. “In addition to siring Breeders Crown champions, his offspring always showed up in Indiana Sires Stakes competition.” Always A Virgin ’s ownership has remained the same as during his racing days. “ Always A Virgin was a truly great champion for his ownership group, both on the track for trainer Joe Holloway, and during his career as a sire at Victory Hill Farm,” said Mitchel Skolnick of the Bluewood Stable and Bluestone Farms. “It is time for us to give something back to him.”