At first glance, it looks like Union Rags finished up in :30.1..

Video
 

He was actually my pick for the race but when he got pinched on the first turn its usually over with this caliber of horses. I thoght he recovered nicely. Do you think a Flower Alley can get the Derby distance?

Indicative of how times have change:

Union Rags has nearly achieved world-beater status for his romp in the Fountain Of Youth today.

Twenty years ago, 2yo champion Fly So Free was being downgraded for his performance in the same race, despite winning the Fountain Of Youth by 6 lengths. Never mind, he had also easily won the Hutcheson in his 3yo debut previously. In the FOY, Jose Santos had to resort to using the whip aggressively to get the horse in gear, and this was taken as a sign of decline.

Ironically, Fly So Free subsequently won the Florida Derby...and his reputation suffered even more. Winning in a paltry 1:50+ for the 9f, the naysayers pointed to the final time as further proof that he wasn't winning the Kentucky Derby. As ridiculous as that sounds for a champion colt that had won every major stakes at Gulfstream, they were justified in their conviction (Fly So Free ran a modest 5th in the Derby at over 3-1).

It was a tougher crowd back then, probably because there were better horses running...and lots of them.

First, my own leanings say sires deliver speed, dams stamina. But Flower Alley himself won a Travers, so 10f was within his own grasp. Neck 'n Neck is out of Mr. Miles' own homebred Storm Boot mare Bootery who was a $100k earning miler that Wilkes trained. Her dam was by Runaway Groom and further back the female family is loaded with stamina influences including Broad Brush, Roberto and Sea Bird. If Flower Alley has any disposition to get classic distance route-goers, this family should have what he needs to bring it out.

Union Rags 95

Arm Force 79
Politicallycorrect 83

It was actually the 7f Riva Ridge, but he did win easily. However, he was never consistent afterwards, either sprinting or routing. He flopped in the Dwyer in his next start.

Hansel started the year getting crushed in the FOY (5th by 11) and the Florida Derby (3rd by 5). Imagine such performances nowadays...he'd be written off completely.

i've read that thought for years, i thought it was just something that had been a part of breeding beliefs for some time?

speed on top, stamina on the bottom.

I read a few times where it it's supposed to be distance/surface on top, and quality/class on bottom.

There's a whole lot of nonsense associated with pedigree -- and it has been exactly that way in American racing for at least 100 years...I know this because I've read several lengthy columns from 'Salvator' and Vosburgh where they would have fun mocking the theorists of the day.

There is big money in breeding horses. There is also big money in yearling sales...and few things to go on outside of looks, confirmation, and pedigree.

When analyzing pedigree - there are three and a half things I study.

The Sire's offspring, the Dam's racing record, the dam's produce and racing record of her produce, and the up-close tail female family (in that order)

Those are the angles to study and look for preferences and clues.

All of this stuff about males giving some traits and females others seems pretty ridiculous to me.

Remember this though..

Behind every crazy man is a mother.

The usual breeding practice/pedigree sources as Doug mentions like Hervey ("Salvator"), W.H.P. Robertson, Col. Wall, Shipman and Hatton in the American Racing Manuals, more recent writings like Ed Bowen's Matriarchs/Dynasties/Legacies, Edwin Anthony's new The American Thoroughbred, etc..

No doubt.

I have always thought the top sires like Storm Cat and Smart Strike provide the class, while the dam side provides surface and distance preference.

I remember JCGC day at Belmont in 2007.
Smart Strike's off spring won the 3 biggest races that day.

Vosbugh 6f on dirt: Fabulous Strike (Lost Code mare)

Joe Hirsch 10f on turf: English Channel (Theatrical mare)

Jockey Club GC 10f on Dirt: Curlin (Deputy Minister mare)

I believe the thinking now is that terrific horses than can get a distance have larger than average hearts, and that, it's believed, is a genetic trait that is carried on the X chromosome, so male horses can only inherit the larger heart via their mothers. Ergo looking to the dam's side, rather than the sire's for distance indications.

Of course, lots of things go into whether a horse can run a distance, but a large heart is a good advantage to have, and it can only be passed via the X chromosome.

I remember reading somewhere that in female horses, both X chromosomes must carry the gene for the larger heart for the filly to be born with one, so while Lady's Secret likely received the gene from her dad, her mother must also have carried it.

Not to be a pain in the ass...

But...there are a lot of sires who provide surface and distance preferences to their offspring.

The "class" is provided by the horse itself. You could breed the same sire to the same dam and get one top horse, one useful horse, one ok horse, one cheap and slow horse, and one horse who can't outrun a goat.

However, at all realms of ability...the offspring are likely to have leanings and preferences in regard to surface, distance, and development.

The Sire is important for surface, for sure.

I was just providing an example of a versatile Sire that throws high class horses but, because of their Dam side were different types of horses.