Marylou Whitney Stables

Old Friends, the Thoroughbred retirement farm in Georgetown, Kentucky, welcomed last month 2003 GI Kentucky Oaks winner Bird Town (Cape Town) and 2009 Kentucky Oaks runner-up Stone Legacy (Birdstone), the nonprofit via a release on Thursday. Bird Town is the first Kentucky Oaks winner retired to the farm. Both horses were donated to Old Friends thanks to the generosity of Marylou Whitney Stables. "Under any circumstances, Old Friends would be honored to welcome these two accomplished mares," said John Nicholson, Old Friends's president and CEO. "The fact that they come...

Captain Cook (c, 2, Practical Joke--Pow Wow Wow, by Indian Charlie), an eventful sixth on debut for owner/breeder Marylou Whitney Stables and trainer Norm Casse at Churchill Downs Oct. 27, brought $410,000 from bloodstock agent Steve Young on behalf of St Elias Stable at the Keeneland November Horses of Racing Age Sale (second-most expensive lot of the sale) and ran to the money as the 1-2 favorite for his new connections with a 'TDN Rising Star' performance in the slop at the Big A Saturday. Captain Cook chased the early...

8th-Oaklawn, $115,000, Msw, 3-29, 3yo/up, f/m, 6f, 1:10.55, ft, 6 1/4 lengths. TWEETSTER (f, 3, Practical Joke--Tweeterdini, by Bernardini) debuted with Lasix as the heavily backed 3-2 choice here. The homebred started slowly, but with the rail open she was able to lead the second pack up the backstretch. Rolling around the turn, the filly chased longshot Hurricane Fire (Can the Man), who appeared to be getting away. Moving from the rail towards the center of the course at the eighth pole, Tweetster closed like a freight train and won...

Pretty Birdie, the first and only winner thus far from just 22 first-crop foals for his already expatriated sire (by Unbridled's Song), zipped to the front and ran them off their feet to take Thursday's GIII Schuylerville S. at the Spa in the silks of the late Saratoga legend Marylou Whitney. The grey had earned a field's-best 78 Beyer Speed Figure for a clear debut score at Churchill June 18, and was backed as the second choice behind 'TDN Rising Star' Mainstay, the half-sister to last year's champion 2-year-old filly...

Marylou Whitney Stables' homebred Pretty Birdie (Bird Song) became the first winner for her expatriated sire (by Unbridled's Song) with a good-looking box-to-wire tally on Churchill debut Friday afternoon. Taking good pari-mutuel action as a 43-10 chance, the gray filly hit the ground running and clicked off an opening couple of furlongs in :22.16. Traveling well within the grasp of Joe Talamo for the run around the turn, Pretty Birdie was ridden hands and heels into the final eighth of a mile and was kept to her task to score...