old horses

New Years Eve (Night Conqueror), believed to be the second-oldest American Thoroughbred on record, has passed away in Pennsylvania. He was 39 and reported to be the oldest living Thoroughbred at the time of his death. We shared his story in March, shortly after his official birthday. Called 'Axl' by those closest to him, the beloved dark bay was foaled the same year as Sunday Silence and Easy Goer. History's oldest-known American Thoroughbred, a gelding named Dead Solid Perfect, died in 2022 at 39 years and 188 days. New Years...

Those of us fortunate to have been in the Thoroughbred industry for any length of time--whether with hands on horses daily or from behind a desk or from somewhere in between--have seen hundreds, and more likely thousands, of horses in this sport. It can be easy to pass one up at the sales if they don't have perfect conformation or drop one in for a claim if they haven't measured up on the track. But what we may sometimes forget is that we are all here because of a love...