Midnight Lute Retired

[Pedigree Ann]

Originally Posted by slotdirt

How "commerical" is his pedigree really? That's my question.

Real Quiet was never the darling of the Bluegrass in the first place; he wasn't big and impressive enough. He was the tall, slender, lean distance runner (think Frank Shorter, Olympic marathoner) rather than the big-framed, muscle-bound bruiser that is in fashion these days. He never won a sprint, and didn't win a stakes at less than 1 3/16 after his 2yo year. His first couple of crops didn't have any impressive 2yos in them, so off to PA for him.

Damsire Dehere was champion 2yo but didn't train on after Florida at 3; by Deputy Minister from a Secretariat mare, not a standout sire. There is quality back in the female family - second dam a distance G3 turf SW, half-sister to a G2 Irish SW at 10f, who was second in the Irish Oaks; third dam was a listed SW in Italy who was a full sister to Gyr, who was a 12 G1 winner in France (and was second to Nijinsky in the Derby). When you look at it closely, Midnight Lute was bred to be a stayer.

Midnight Lute's well-chronicled soundness problems - of wind and limb - ought to make breeders very wary of using him. His size, which so impresses many people, is one of the things can contribute to limb unsoundness, because skinny TB legs can't take the impact of that much weight on them for long without injury.

Commerically, he doesn't look as desirable as some others in the field, like Street Boss (Street Cry is Hot, Hot, Hot!).