Kentuckiana Farms is extremely excited to announce that Shark Gesture will stand the 2011 breeding season at Kentuckiana Farms of Pennsylvania
, located at Walnridge Farm of Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania. Kentuckiana Farms will serve as Stallion Manager and, along with Dr. Rich Meirs, will manage his breeding career.
Shark Gesture returns to stud duty after a spectacular racing career as the richest son of the great Cams Card Shark.
“We are very excited about Shark Gesture’s return to stud duty. This opportunity is unique for breeders because of not only his tremendous accomplishments on the track, but because he has shown that he can sire spectacular individuals that have high commercial appeal. His first crop of yearlings, which sold this year, were excellent individuals and highly athletic. We had two great colts bring $72,000 and $84,000 in Canada and Lexington. It makes breeding to Shark Gesture an easy call when you know the type of yearling he can produce and that the market will reward you for a good athlete. After these results, rest assured there will be many more Kentuckiana-bred Shark Gestures in the future,” says Bob Brady, owner and General Manager of Kentuckiana Farms.
Shark Gesture retires from racing with career earnings in excess of $2.8 million and a career mark of 1:48.1. In doing so, Shark Gesture posted 31 sub - 1:50 miles, 16 1:49 or better miles and a remarkable four 1:48 or better miles. Shark Gesture retires as a two-time Haughton Memorial Champion, two-time Graduate Champion, Three-Year-Old Breeders Crown Champion, and winner of the Dan Patch, Canadian Pacing Derby, Tattersalls, and Bluegrass, among many others. In doing so, he defeated some of the sports all-time greats in Mister Big ($4,008,257), Boulder Creek ($3,425,857), Artistic Fella ($2,604,855), Art Official ($2,082,885), Holborn Hanover ($2,070,648), Shadow Play ($1,549,881), Total Truth ($2,022,433), Vintage Master ($1,846,233), Maltese Artist ($2,322,671) and 2009 Dan Patch Aged Pacer of the Year Won The West ($3,390,204) – defeating Won The West 12 times in the past two seasons.
At 2, Shark Gesture established a two-year-old record of 1:51.3 while winning the Bluegrass Stakes in Lexington, an Elimination of the Breeders Crown and the Simpson Stakes. At 3, Shark Gesture posted a mark of 1:49.1 and won the Simpson, Bluegrass, Tattersalls, and Elimination of the Progress. More significantly, Shark Gesture showed tremendous courage winning the Breeders Crown at Woodbine after going down in the elimination race a week before in a horrible on-track accident.
“Shark Gesture showed the guts of a true champion winning the Breeders Crown after such a tragic accident the week before”, says trainer Erv Miller. At 4, Shark Gesture won the $120,000 New Hampshire Sweepstakes at Rockingham in 1:49.2 over Artistic Fella, was second in the $200,000 Dan Patch and second in the $285,000 Graduate before retiring because of a racing injury.
After a brief stallion career, Shark Gesture returned to racing as a true champion and winner of over $1.85 million in 2009 and 2010. In 2009 Shark Gesture won more than $963,000 posting victories in The Graduate, Haughton and Canadian Pacing Derby – defeating a field of greats that included Mister Big, Won The West, Art Official, Bettor Sweet, Silent Swing, Eagle Luck, and Bigtime Ball. In 2010, Shark Gesture won $918,875 and finished 1st or 2nd in his first 10 starts of the season. Injury-related breaks in his last two career starts proved to be the only blemish on his final season of a remarkable racing career. 2010 stakes wins included The Graduate, Bettors Delight, Dan Patch and William Haughton.
“Throughout his racing career, Shark Gesture showed tremendous speed and toughness. He could leave in :25 and finish in sub :26. Shark Gesture possessed tactical speed and guts like no other horse I have driven,“ says career pilot George Brennan. Canadian and United States Hall of Fame Trainer Ray Remmen confidently says, “Shark is bar none the best horse I have ever been around.”
Shark Gesture retired to stud duty initially in 2008 after a racing injury that only temporarily sidelined one of the sport’s gutsiest all-time performers. After breeding a limited book in his first season at stud, Shark Gesture’s owners had the vision to return him to the track for what proved to be a great decision for the sport of harness racing.
“When we initially retired him to stud because of injury, we had always in the back of our mind hoped that he could return to racing. At the end of his first breeding season, it was clear that he had fully recovered from his racing injury and he was ready to return to the track. He was in great physical condition and mentally showed that he was ready to compete. He clearly proved us right by going on to win an additional $1.85 million. He gave us a great run over the past two years,“ says owner Norm Smiley.
Shark Gesture, a striking $110,000 yearling purchase, is a regally bred son of the great Cams Card Shark out of Simple Gesture, a Western Hanover daughter of multiple stakes winning Empty Feeling (1:53.1, $354,657) and three-quarter sister to the multiple stakes winning PPonder (1:48.1, $1,522,936). Norman Smiley, Gerald Smiley, and the TLP Stable own Shark Gesture.
The 2011 service fee for Shark Gesture will be $7,000.00.
(Kentuckiana)