Stallion Spotlight No 1 - VAMPIRICAL

As the breeding season is fast approaching, I have been visiting some of the stallions that stand in the game and this has taken me all over the world and I have seen some of the best horseflesh the game has to offer (not to say some of the owners arent worth a second glance too!).

To start this weekly article, I have chosen my visit to Spartan Racing Stables, owned by Ryan Okerstrom and home to Vampirical.

So Ryan, tell me about your farm and what made you build here - Well Nancy, SPR began with a dream, a plan and 100 acres of undeveloped land in 2004. Today it incorporates approximately 1,000 acres in six divisions, four of which are devoted to mares and foals, one to yearlings and one is home to the world class stallion, Vampirical. The Spartan Racing Stables Stallion division was built in 2006 and the first stallion to stand there is the subject stallion, Vampirical. Spartan Racing Stables has discussed acquiring the KRF Stallions: Revenge, Congenial and Supreme Court. This is still in the works for 2010.

Very interesting Ryan. Is there anything else that makes SPR stand out from the rest of the pack? Very definately yes, as from the beginning, we have taken the unusual approach of limiting the farm's stallion population and establishing a niche for the farm as a boutique, where "Quality is Never Second Guessed." Our philosophy for stallions is to provide a special place for a stallion -- a place that limits its equine population in order to ensure personal management and promotion of each stallion. For instance, every morning, our stallion enjoys exercise with a morning gallop. It takes more time and expense, but what it does for their health and happiness is invaluable.

Lets talk more about your stud, Vampirical. For example, his breeding and stud fee? In a nutshell Vampircal is by Dancing Phantom by Rejuvenate (Ils de Bourbon). He stands for $40,000 LFG

And the horse himself, can you describe him to our readers - does he have any quirks etc that we may not know about? Funny you should ask Nancy, yes! He is a dark brown or dark bay stallion that stands 17.0 HH. See picture at http://www.freewebs.com/spartanracingstables/stallions.htm . He has a bit of an attitude in the morning. He wants to be fed first, before any other horse on the farm. He has been known to remove his water buckets and toss them in his stall when he gets ignored. He has to have a jolly ball in his stall to play with because he gets very frustrated when people don't pay attention to him. He will pick up his jolly ball and squash it against his chest. I think he likes the sound it makes. He is a well mannered horse in the breeding shed. He always asks the mare before mounting and, although he has a tendency to grab the mare by the back of the neck and/or ears, he does so gently. When turned out, Vampirical always patrols the exterior of his pasture to ensure that no other horse has been inside. He's very particular about making sure his territory is in tact. He then will typically gallop across the middle of the pasture to stretch out before settling down and grazing for hours at a time.

Sounds like a bit of a character then! If you had to choose the type of mare that would suit Vampirical best. Obviously, any stallion owner's goal is to attract the highest quality mares available. I don't know that it makes a difference in PF as Retribution's dam never won a race and he's a 3 time TR holder and has earned over $2M already. Vampirical's first crop can be viewed at http://www.freewebs.com/spartanracingstables/stallions.htm. He covered 11 mares last season which isnt bad for a 1st season.

If you had to recommend a specific type of mare for him, what would it be? (ie dirt miler, turf distance etc).From the looks of the 11 foal ARs I don’t think this is going to matter much. He has thrown foals that favour sprints, miles, classics and distance races. Has thrown foals that prefer hard dirt, soft dirt, hard turf and/or soft turf. When you talk about versatility – you must talk about Vampirical. Vampirical's AR suggested that he could handle both surfaces and his past performances proved it (turf record is obvious, but he also was 5^th in the Belmont as a 3yo and set a TR at Santa Anita as a 3yo across the dirt). His range was 10F-16F with 12F as his best distance. His stamina was never in question so he can bring that facet to any mare owner looking to stretch out a foal.

Is there a horse that ran in the Real World (apparently there is life away from PF?!), who would you say he is most like? This is really a tough question. The 1st horse that comes to mind is High Chaparral (IRE) based on his ability to win at the 12F distance. I would also consider a horse like Sakhee who proved to be versatile on both surfaces with his 2nd in the BC Classic and his stamina from 10F-12F on turf.

And finally, where do you see your stud and farm's future? The original plan was to merge with KRF Stables and have one farm for stallions and mares and one farm for racing crop. I don’t think we are going to go that route right now, so Vampirical will be staying at Spartan Racing Stables. As for the rest of my team, I will most likely sell Stardom ($1,599,550 44-5-7-7) at the end of the season and the other older horses will all return to racing next season before I make a decision on their status. With that said, Vampirical will remain the lone stallion standing at Spartan Racing Stables for at least this season and next.

Thank you Ryan - your hospitality and kindness in showing me around this beautiful farm and allowing me to see Vampirical myself is most appreciated. I hope our readers enjoy reading this as much as I have enjoyed writing it!