This is the 12th in a series of notes and impressions about the new stallions in Kentucky for 2009. The horses will be reviewed alphabetically.
J Be K (2005 bay by Silver Deputy out of Major Wager, by Valid Wager)
Stands at Gainesway Farm for $10,000 live foal
A distinguished graduate of the sales for 2yos in training, J Be K sold to Zayat Stables for $350,000 at the Fasig-Tipton February sale at Calder in Miami. The colt brought the highest price of the year for a juvenile by his sire, Silver Deputy.
The latter was a stakes winner at 2 and became an important sire from the advent of his first crop on the tracks of North America. Out of his earlier crops, the stallion has gotten the good young sire Posse and is broodmare sire of El Corredor and Roman Ruler.
J Be K is a very well-balanced horse with the potential to match many mares available to him due to his widely successful mechanical qualities. The bay has a good shoulder and deep girth. He stands over a good deal of ground and has a good, bold eye.
But the most notable of the young stallion’s qualities is his power. He has a gaskin measuring 21 inches, a forearm of 28.5 inches, and massive development in his hindquarters. He translated that physical propulsion into raw power on the track.
The racing aptitude of J Be K corresponded with his physical traits: he was speed. Quick and fluent with his stride, J Be K smothered his opposition for speed and carried it far enough (7 furlongs in the middle of his 3yo season) to make one wonder if he might have gone farther in time.
Mating him to polar opposites would be a low-percentage approach with such a well-designed horse, but there are elements of his pedigree and racing character to suggest that J Be K might have had more stamina than appears from a cursory reading of his record. Therefore, a careful mating, taking into account several factors in his physique and pedigree might yield pleasantly surprising results.