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SUNNYBANK MEMORIAL Owner/Trainer: sunnybank Record: 53-25-9-7; $10,848,889
Win: Breeders’ Bowl Turf-G1, Derby De English-G1, Adelaide Derby-G1, Sydney Derby-G1, Aslan Memorial Stakes-G1 (3x), Man o’War Stakes-G1 (2x), United Countries Handicap-G1, Little Guppy Classic-G1, Classic Turf Stakes-G1, Sword Swallower Stakes-G1, The Fort Marcy Turf Memorial Classic-G1, San Francisco Capitan Handicap-G1, John Scott Appreciation Stakes-G1, Owner’s Stakes-G1, The Dubai Millennium Memorial-G1, Seventh King Eddie Stakes-G2, Ray’s Sword Stakes, Lt. Daring Stakes, Royalty Coming Special, Young’s End Stakes. Place: John Scott Appreciation Stakes-G1 (2x), DelPenn Allied Assault Handicap-G1, Pennsylvania Marathon-G1, Sand Castle Golden Turf Classic-G1, Japan Classic-G1, Royally Modest Cup-G1, NY Island Cap-G1, Lots of Luck-G1. Show: Ark De Triumph-G1, Penn Marathon-G1, Japan Classic-G1, Lester Piggott-G1, Aslan Memorial Turf Classic-G1, Big Turf Race-G1, Dynatango Field Handicap. For those not familiar with the famed Sunnybank collies who achieved both fame in the showring, and immortality in Albert Payson Terhune’s novels about his beloved collies, sunnybank, and the many horses that have resided within its 10 stalls, have been named in tribute to those books. As a young girl, I fell in love with Lad, A Dog, and persuaded my parents to take me to the ruins of the Terhune estate. It was mostly run down and sort of lonely and sad, the main house gone, but the sweeping lawn overlooking Pompano Lakes was as glorious as it must have been in the heyday of the 1920s and 30s, and you could almost feel the ghosts of collies racing along it. Today, the site has been greatly cleaned up, in no small part to the efforts of the Sunnybank Memorial. While none of Terhune’s collies sported that official handle, it is somehow fitting that the entity most responsible for honoring the memory of Terhune and his beloved collies, has a namesake who achieved his own championship fame and immortality, most recently with this induction into the Hall of Fame: Sunnybank Memorial. Sunnybank Memorial was as regally bred as any of Terhune’s blueblooded collies, sired by A.P. Indy, out of a Sadler’s Wells mare, with the bloodlines of the powerful Buckpasser running through his veins. As a juvenile, the handsome colt was first tried on the dirt, and showed enough talent to pull out a come from behind win going 5 ½ furlongs on the dirt. After closing for a distant fourth in the Vermont BB Juvenile-G2, and a pair of off the board finishes against allowance competition, the decision was made to switch the colt to the lawn. Memo, as he was affectionately known, never looked back, rocketing away to a 2 ¼ length win, and posting a remarkable 91 SF, heady time for a juvenile. He bounced in the G2 Manofjunk Stakes four weeks later, but closed out his inaugural campaign with a pair of stakes wins, at 6 ½ and 7 furlongs on the turf, with plenty of time between starts. At the end of the season, the colt had shown talent, possibly enough to warrant consideration as a Guineas candidate, but little did racing fans know what heights he would hit the following year. The beginning of Memo’s sophomore season did not quite go according to plan. While he showed a tremendous late kick in each of his first two starts, both at 7 ½ furlongs, all he had to show for it was a third and a fourth. Memo had flopped in his first two routing attempts, but with the colt clearly crying out for more ground, sunnybank decided to stretch his colt out. It was a momentous decision. Sent off the heavy favorite against a so-so field, the son of A.P. Indy strolled home the easiest of winners, dismissing his competition with a 7 ½ length score in the 9 furlong Lt. Daring Stakes, earning an eyecatching 106 SF. The race took so little out of him, that he reappeared two weeks later in the Ray’s Sword Stakes, with much the same result. Now it was time to move on to the big time. In a field that included last year’s champion juvenile turf colt, European Royalty, and Group 1 winner Danfor, Memo was very much the "now" horse, a lukewarm favorite in the G1 Sydney Derby. While the distance was a question mark for all of the contestants, Memo’s dramatic wins in his two prior races, and his pedigree, made him the fan favorite. He didn’t disappoint, showing an explosive kick to move from seventh, 10 lengths behind the early leaders, to win in a canter, ears pricked, leaving the second place finisher 10 ¾ lengths in his wake. The final time for the classic 1 ½ mile distance was 2:30 4/5 for a 107 SF. A star was born, and his name was Sunnybank Memorial. The popular colt only continued to add to his growing legend. Two weeks later, he returned to the racing wars in search of another derby, this time the G1 Adelaide Derby. The up and comer Neal Daniher was a new challenger, along with the improving Beat Freedom. Once again, the colt did as he pleased, winning by 8 ¾ lengths, with his two new rivals having to settle for minor awards. Memo was moving from strength to strength, showing no ill effects from his remarkable Sydney performance. In fact, the Adelaide was run 3/5th of a second faster, with a 111 SF. For his next start, sunnybank and his prize charge were on to Epsom, and a date with destiny, in the highly prized and much coveted Derby de English_G1. This time, the new face was Rain God, a rising star (who would face Memo many more times over the course of their respective careers, with both colts, somewhat fittingly, being inducted into the Hall of Fame in the same year). Rain God would provide Memo with his stiffest challenge to date, getting the jump on the favorite at the top of the stretch, with Memo unleashing a desperate late kick to get to the wire a bare ¾ length ahead of the "new kid." The final time for the "Darby" was 2:29 4/5, shattering the old stakes record and good for a 114 SF. After collecting a hattrick of Derbies, the only stakes on the horizon was the Seventh King Eddie Stakes-G2 at Royal Ascot. Fans flocked in their Ascot best to pay tribute to racing’s newest idol, and sent Memo off as the heavy favorite, much to the bookmakers’ chagrin. Memo did not disappoint, having scared away most of his competition, and once again made a late kick to saunter past his rivals, winning by 5 ¾ lengths. Next came the Dubai Millennium Memorial-G1, and on paper, it seemed to be a Derby de English redux. Rain God once again was waiting in the wings, having scored a smashing win in his prep race for this event, and everyone was back at Epsom. It didn’t take long, though, to figure out that things weren’t exactly the same the second time around. While the final result was the same, with Memo beating Rain God for the second time, it wasn’t even close. This time, Memo stormed home first by an emphatic 6 ¾ lengths, in a time just shy of his Derby mark. By this time, everyone was on the Memo bandwagon. After that sensational performance, it was across the river to contest the G1 Owners Stakes. Memo would once again earn the victory, but received a stiff, determined challenge from the filly Isle de Farrons, who turned in a career-best effort, who briefly edged ahead before the colt rerallied to prevail by a half-length. His owner would later describe this as his favorite Memo performance. Once again, the colt shaded 2:30 for the distance. His next start would be the Aslan Memorial, where he would face Bluegrass Derby winner Granhee, although on the lawn, the edge clearly belonged to memo, and a new rival, Hey Zeus, who entered this event with a three race win streak, two of them in graded stakes. It did not matter. Once again, Memo would show that he was head and shoulders above the rest of his generation at 1 ½ miles on the turf, this time winning by 4 ½ lengths over Hey Zeus, and turning in a career best effort, smashing the clock with a sensational time of 2:28 1/5 for a 125 SF, particularly remarkable considering this was more akin to a marathon than a sprint. At this point, Memo had danced every dance among his age group, compiling a seven race win streak against graded competition, a record that would stand until Elsinore’s remarkable feat the following year. It was time to tackle his elders. And so, Memo continued his dance with destiny, challenging his elders in the G1 Ark De Triumph. As it turned out, the Aslan may have taken more out of the handsome colt than anticipated, as he could only manage third behind the talented Ebro in that event, with a (for Memo) for performance with a speed figure of "only" 106. But, he was back four weeks later to face a tremendous field in the Breeders’ Bowl Turf, a field that included the amazing Allied Assault, back to defend his title in this event, Ebro, and Bristol Rovers, who had also compiled a sensational season and also stood on the verge of laying claim to the title of champion turf horse. It all depended upon the outcome of this one race. The performance here would make or break the championship title. And it would be Memo, who lagged as much as 10 lengths back in the early going, who would make the most impressive move in the stretch, his jockey starting the colt’s run just before Allied Assault would make his late rally, and that made all the difference, Memo two lengths clear of the defending champ at the wire, carrying his green white and red silks yet again to victory. Bristol Rovers never fired, suffering an injury in the early going. Memo had already made a strong case for divisional honors, now he laid siege to Horse of the Year honors. He would start one more time that year, in the Pennsylvania Marathon, where Allied Assault would turn the tables on him, catching his younger rival at the top of the stretch to win by three, but the loss proved to be a relatively minor thing, given the year end accolades that fell upon him. In a record setting season, Sunnybank Memorial would be named Champion 3yo colt, over both his turf and dirt counterparts, and Horse of the Year. In 10 starts at 1 ½ miles, nine of them in G1 events, Sunnybank Memorial had compiled a record of 10-8-1-1. The bar was set high for the following year. Could sunnybank keep his championship colt at the top of his game? Faced with an off-track for the first time, the champ returned in the Aslan Memorial Turf Stakes. The popular favorite showed that he didn’t need to hear his feet rattle on a firm turf course in order to deliver the win, coming home first by 3 ½ lengths. Four weeks later, he faced Allied Assault in the G1 John Scott Appreciation Stakes for the best of three in what was proving to be a fascinating rivalry. Once again, Memo moved first in the stretch, and that tactical advantage proved decisive, as he would find the wire first, beating Allied Assault by 1 ½ lengths. The next dance on Memo’s card was the rich Sand Castle Golden Turf Classic-G1, and another familiar rival: Rain God. However, this time, Rain God and his early turn of foot would not be denied. Memo was flying furiously at the finish, gobbling up ground with every stride, but he could only make up a little more than half of the 11 length deficit by the time his rival hit the wire. Back in the States, Memo quickly made amends. He faced a quality field in the G1 San Francisco Capitan, including BB Turf Distaff winner Turning Japanese, and Ebro. But, Sunnybank Memorial was set on getting back on the winning track and was not about to be denied, regardless of who showed up. The result was a four length score, followed quickly by a 5 ½ length "win as he pleased" performance in the G1 Fort Marcy Memorial Turf Classic. Memo’s next start was in the G1 Lots of Luck, with familiar faces such as Rain God and Hey Zeus awaiting him in the starting gate. Similar to Dubai, however, Rain God skipped out to an uncontested seven length lead, and Memo simply could not reel him in before the shadow of the wire, falling 2 ¾ lengths short after being eight lengths behind in the early going. The next start was no easier, as Allied Assault waited in the wings. This time, it was Memo who got the jump on his older rival, opening up a 4 ¼ length lead at the top of the stretch, and while Allied Assault whittled it down to 2 ½ lengths at the line, the reigning champ was never seriously threatened. The son of A.P. Indy defeated another quality field in the G1 Man o’War Stakes, leaving Preferred Power, Arkansas Traveller and Jupiter’s Moons in his wake. His next start, the Classic Turf Stakes-G1, may have been one of Memo’s most impressive races of his four year old campaign, in a season filled with remarkable performances. Dancin in Seattle was performing his best imitation of Rain God, coasting along on a long and uncontested lead, with Memo left with the grim task of trying to reel a relatively fresh rival in during the long New York stretch. Not only did he make up the more than six length deficit, he roared by his rival like Dancin was standing still, and swooped past that horse to storm home first by almost seven lengths. It was vintage Memo, and it took your breath away. With that impressive win under his belt, it was on to the Breeders’ Bowl. Just like last season, to call the race star studded was an understatement. Horseshoe Bay, who dominated his division the way Memo had dominated it the year before, was in the field, as was Allied Assault, returning for another tilt at the Turf, and if he had lost a step, it wasn’t much of one, and on his best day, he was still lethal. Bristol Rovers was back at a shot of redemption after being injured during the previous year’s running, as was Rain God, who was a star in his own right. It was a clash of the titans. Rain God once again opened up a four length lead, but in a case of "youth will be served", much as it had been the year before, when Memo defeated Allied Assault, it was Horseshoe Bay who reeled the gallant pacesetter in for the victory. Rain God was second, with Memo having to settle for a distant fourth. Bristol Rovers was fifth, and Allied Assault sixth. The rest of the season continued on a slightly sour note, with Memo winning the battle, turning the tables on Horseshoe Bay, but losing the war in the Japan Classic, finishing third behind Jupiter’s Moons and Rain God. In his season finale, Memo would again finish third, with Allied Assault turning in a memorable swan song to his career, completing the incredible accomplishment of winning the Penn Marathon for the third straight year. When the dust settled though, it had still been a remarkable year, with a 12-7-2-2 record, and while perhaps the last three starts were a bit disappointing, the campaign as a whole was good enough to earn Memo the title of Champion Turf Horse. While one rivalry, with Allied Assault, was at an end, other rivalries would continue. It was a somewhat wet winter, which compromised Memo’s training to a certain extent, and so he would have to settle for the bronze medal in the Lester Piggott, behind one of the best, if not the best, wet turf specialists the game has ever seen, in Bristol Rovers, with reigning Horse of the Year Horseshoe Bay gaining the silver. Memo’s next start would also come over a yielding surface, and once again, the five year old would finish behind Horseshoe Bay, this time in the runner up position. The grey skies and continual damp continued, and in the Little Guppy, over a course rated good, Sunnybank Memorial finally earned his first win of the season. A bit jarred by the return to firm going, Memo flattened out to finish fourth, failing to break the 100 SF mark for the first time since early in his 3yo season, behind Rapid Grey and Rain God. Given a five week break, Memo returned in the G1 John Henry Classic, and looked every inch the champion he was – only no one gave Run Wahbit Run the memo. In a career best effort, which was mysteriously cut short two starts later, the Sadler’s Wells colt defeated the champ by almost three lengths. Memo’s next three races featured familiar rival Rain God, with the pair going at each other like a hammer and tongs. In the first race of the series, the United Countries Handicap-G1, Memo put his patented kick on display, moving from almost 10 lengths back to score by 4 ¼ lengths, with Rain God in third. The tables were turned in the Royally Modest Cup-G1, when Rain God got the first jump on Memo, holding Memo safe by 2 1/3 lengths. In the rubber match, the G1 Aslan Memorial. There was added pressure on sunnybank, as he was seeking to win this race for a third consecutive year with his star colt. With all that was riding on this race, Memo did not disappoint, winning by 2 ¾ lengths in what was perhaps his best race of the year, earning a 112 SF, as he covered the distance in a flat 2:29. Two weeks later, he would go on to defeat Horseshoe Bay in the Man o’War Stakes-G1. However, all good things must come to an end, and so it did. Sunnybank Memorial went to the post in the G1 Classic Turf Stakes, hoping to repeat his win of the year before in this event. Instead, the youngster Cortez, who had won the Irish, Adelaide and Sydney Derbies earlier in the year, pulled off the upset, and Memo was just flat, a rather puzzling fifth in an effort that seemed reminiscent of his disappointing performance in the John Henry. It may have been that his two sensational scores leading him up to this event left him just a bit flat. In any event, it was on to a third tilt at the Breeders’ Bowl Turf. Horseshoe Bay was back, along with 3yo sensations Cortez and Lex Luthor. Horseshoe Bay ended up with a remarkable repeat in the event, but the other buzz in the race was what had happened to Memo? The champ had barely lifted a hoof in the event, running evenly far back in ninth, ending up beaten 21 ½ lengths. In a career filled with highs, this was definitely a low point. Memo would make some amends, as he would bounce back to finish second in the Japan Classic-G1 behind Lex Luthor, and second in the Pennsylvania Marathon (now named the Allied Assault)-G1, just a half-length behind the improving Confederacy, with Horseshoe Bay back in the show spot. While Memo was nominated for the Cartier for Champion Older Turf Horse, it was Horseshoe Bay who would walk away with the title. Even though his five year old season perhaps did not live up to the highs of his three and four year old campaigns, Memo had still compiled an impressive record for the year: 13-4-5-1, with all of his starts coming against Grade 1 competition. Over three years of competing at the highest levels, Memo had earned 18 Grade 1 victories, a record that still stands to date, although Horseshoe Bay, with 16 Grade 1 victories at the time of this writing, was doing his best to chip away at this total. While Sunnybank Memorial would return to the racing wars at six for an abbreviated campaign, the wear and tear of three brilliant seasons, where he ducked no one and took on all challengers, had clearly begun to take his toll. While he finished second in the John Scott Appreciation Stakes-G1, and third in a gallant attempt to land the Aslan Memorial Stakes-G1 for a remarkable fourth year in a row, the champ was signaling it was time. And so, he headed off, with much praise and accolades from his adoring fans, to the breeding shed, where his daughter, aptly named Sunnybank Memories (by High Chaparral), was born. A record total of Grade 1 wins, a former holder of the graded stakes win streak, an almost incomparable season at three that was almost a dazzling at four, his induction into the Hall of Fame was never in doubt. A fitting memorial to the sunnybank legacy indeed. |
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