Every year around this time – after the World Cup Finals in Dressage and Jumping and after Rolex and Badminton – I write bloodline articles. I write about the pedigrees of the top horses and point out patterns.

While doing the research I also notice whether the pedigrees of horses I have selected or recommended over the years have gotten stronger due to the success of their relatives. It is a great way to test one’s accuracy. This year I was pleased to see that earlier predictions are either coming true or are holding true.

About 15 years ago I recommended the purchase of a Donnerhall son as a stallion, and I am pleased to see that there is still a strong Donnerhall presence in dressage, primarily through his sons and grandsons.

Rolex and Badminton provided excellent feedback regarding the Thoroughbreds I have selected for sport breeding programs, and I am particularly thrilled with how strong the pedigree of Hero’s Tribute is in regards to current horses. I’m also glad that several of the mares he has in his harem also carry strong sport influences.

Aside from the bloodlines, I quite like how Hero stamps his offspring – Thoroughbred and Warmblood – adding lightness of the forehand, refinement and an excellent work ethic.

The only sad part is that I suspect he will be gone by the time he becomes popular based on the results of his offspring in sport.

The last few weeks have seen me busy writing articles in pedigree mode.

First there were the World Cup Finals in Dressage and then Jumping. Then there was the Rolex Kentucky 3-day event. Then there was the Kentucky Derby. And then there was another 4* event: Badminton.

Yes, I went from dressage to jumping to eventing to racing and back to eventing in very short order.
(Note that some of the links below may ask for a log-in to Sporthorse-Data. It is free!)

The jumping finals saw Simon (Mr. Blue/Polydox) emerge victorious and his pedigree analysis will appear in Gaitpost under my column, Bold Bloodlines. I was surprised to find that our stallion, Hero’s Tribute, was related to a couple of the jumpers in the finals (Monterrey EJC and Flexible) since the Thoroughbred influence is usually European and further removed in jumpers.

Damon Hill (Donnerhall/Rubinstein I) won the finals in dressage and his pedigree analysis will also appear under Bold Bloodlines. As a son of Donnerhall, he was one of five horses in the top 10 descending from that powerhouse stallion. That is good news on a personal level as we are breeding a Hero’s Tribute daughter to a Donnerhall son this year.

Rolex once again proved that the Thoroughbred influence is still strong in the sport even though the winner did not have any close Thoroughbred ancestry. Again, on a personal note, it was great to see the horses related to our stallion: Calico Joe (3rd), Ballynoe Castle RM (4th), Donner (5th), Gin & Juice (7th), Pirate (12th), Ringwood Mississippi (13th), Parker (14th), The Deputy (18th), Daily Edition (19th), Syd Kent (20th), Houston (21st), Park Trader (22nd), Jumbo’s Jake (23rd), Ballylaffin Bracken (25th), Sal Dali (26th), No Boundaries (28th) and the final finisher, Irish Diamonds (29th). All relationships are within six generations, but some are fairly close up.

Even though he was a longshot, Falling Sky (Lion Heart/Sea Hero) earned his way into the Kentucky Derby field. And, although the sloppy conditions did not suit his front-running style, it was gratifying to see a relative of Hero’s Tribute (Sea Hero/Damascus) run in the big race, especially since Sea Hero actually won the 1993 Derby.

And then, while I was writing the Bold Bloodlines piece after Badminton, I was thrilled to find that the winner, Clifton Promise (Engagement/Cautious Style), was also related to our stallion. The sire of Cautious Style is a full brother to Hero’s Tribute’s second dam, Euryanthe. The siblings are by Nijinsky II and out of Quill by Princequillo. Clifton Promise and Hero’s Tribute are also related on other lines within their six-generation pedigrees.

And who said pedigree research was dull?

Hero’s Tribute