Kentucky Derby winner’s bloodline flows through Manitoba By: George Williams Posted: 5:18 PM CDT Friday, May. 10, 2024

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/05/2024 (516 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba-bred horses figured prominently in the pedigree of the Kentucky Derby winner for the second time in three years — and the timing couldn’t be any better.

Live horse racing begins at Assiniboia Downs on Monday, May 20, and the annual HBPA/CTHS Awards Dinner celebrating the 2023 accomplishments of the horses, owners, trainers, jockeys, and in particular, breeders, takes place on Saturday, May 18.

Manitoba breeders got a huge morale boost last Saturday when Mystik Dan, an 18-1 shot loaded with Manitoba-bred blood, won a nail-biting three-horse photo finish in the 150th running of the $5 million Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.

In 2022, 80-1 shot Rich Strike became the first horse in history out of a Manitoba-bred mare to win the Kentucky Derby. Rich Strike was out of the mare Gold Strike, who was bred by Winnipegger Dick Bonnycastle of Harlequin Romance fame.

This year’s Kentucky Derby winner also has a pedigree filled with a full line of Manitoba-bred mares thanks to the late Phil Kives, founder of K-tel and widely acknowledged as the father of the modern infomercial. Kives died April 27, 2016, after a hugely successful business career, and four decades of being Manitoba’s most successful thoroughbred breeder.

One of the first racehorses Kives bought was a mare named Kinto, who was stakes-placed for trainer Don Gray at Assiniboia Downs in 1984. After her racing career, Kives bred Kinto to Canada’s top sire at the time, Bold Ruckus, and the result was multiple Manitoba-bred champion and stakes winner Body Works.

From 1991 to 1995, Body Works was a major force in Manitoba racing, winning 13 stakes races, compiling a record of 18-11-6 for earnings of $252,755, and earning multiple championships.

“What a nice mare she was,” said trainer Lorna Gray, who conditioned Body Works for a year and won stakes with her. “When they tried to go after her in the races she was just gone. She made a lot of money when the purses were lower.”

Kives was ahead of his time in business and horse racing, and whatever he saw in Kinto came to fruition through Body Works.

“Phil was always good at seeing what was coming next in business, he was always a step ahead, but horse racing was a little trickier,” said Ellie Kives, who was married to Phil for 45 years. “I’m sure he’s glad he did something right. He’s probably up there watching all this and saying ‘Hello’ to everyone at Assiniboia Downs. We really miss him.”

When Body Works finished her racing career, Kives bred her to top stallions including 1994 Kentucky Derby winner Go For Gin, 1992 Hollywood Gold Cup winner Marquetry, and 1997 Peter Pan Stakes winner Banker’s Gold, among others. Body Works’ life as a broodmare was cut short by a freak accident when a helicopter flew over her paddock in Kentucky and she collided with another horse.

Body Works produced four winners from six foals before she died, including two-time Assiniboia Downs winner Golden Works, a daughter of Banker’s Gold. Leona Stahl looked after Golden Works when she was growing up at Kives’ farm north of Winnipeg.

“She was big and gangly,” said Stahl. “And she used to stall walk horribly and weave.”

Former Assiniboia Downs leading trainer Tanya Lindsay, who won two minor claiming races with Golden Works at the Downs, echoed Stahl’s comments about the filly’s nervousness. “She was the reason I bought my goat,” said Lindsay, who did so to calm her charge down.

Golden Works was retired after two seasons at the track, and Kives bred her, but after difficulty foaling, she was sold. Golden Works went on to have four foals after being sold. Two were minor winners, but her 2010 foal by top sire Into Mischief, was the astonishing Goldencents, who won the 2013 Santa Anita Derby, and the Breeders’ Cup Mile in back-to-back years (2013-14), against the best milers in the world.

Goldencents went on to become a very successful sire, and last Saturday, he became the sire of a Kentucky Derby winner, Mystik Dan.

Famed breeder Federico Tesio, who bred undefeated champions Ribot, Braque, Cavaliere D’Arpino and Nearco (who went on to sire Nearctic, the sire of Northern Dancer), attributed nervous energy as the source of will power and determination in superior horses. He also said mares with non-existent or limited racing careers could pass this nervous energy on to their foals, just as Golden Works did with Goldencents.

“Phil always said that Golden Works was very well bred,” said Ellie. “He knew there was something special in her pedigree. I’m just thrilled. This is so exciting.”

World class. And it all began in Manitoba. 50 years ago.