February 27 - Shanghai Bobby

Question: who is the best son of Harlan's Holiday?

Well, before you answer that question, maybe we need to decide what is the criteria for "BEST". Shucks, Harlan's Holiday son, Into Mischief, is on the trajectory to being one of the greatest stallions of all time but if we are looking at "BEST" as being their careers on the race track, I would nominate Shanghai Bobby as potentially the best son of Harlan's Holiday. *Bred by my friends at Stonehaven Steadings Jeff & Chiquita Reddoch and Aiden & Leah O'Meara . . .

Let me argue for the defense of this outlandish statement. Shanghai Bobby was the or an Eclipse Award winner as a 2-year-old Champion following his win as the Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita. If we are talking race records . . . well, you see my point.

Where is he now? Japan, and I think it's not just to get a good son of Harlan's Holiday, but I think the Japanese have a soft spot in their hearts for near black horses with a blaze. I think it goes back to the greatest stallion ever in Japan, a horse who has shaped the breed in Japan to this day and his sons, daughters, and following generations dominate racing in Japan for almost the past 40 years, Sunday Silence.

Look at pictures of Sunday Silence and then pictures of Shanghai Bobby and there’s more than a passing resemblance. Oh course, Sunday Silence is by Halo and Harlan's Holiday is a great grandson of a Halo daughter. So, one example . . .

How about when Ken Ramsey was sending two horses to stud duty. One was Kitten's Joy, and the other was Roses In May. Roses In May is a near black horse with a blaze – resembling, yep, Sunday Silence. The Japanese could have possibly had Kitten's Joy who went on to be an outstanding sire, but Japan wanted Roses In May who is by Devil's Bag, another grandson of Halo. See a theme here?

Anyhow, I wonder if given the choice of Shanghai Bobby or Into Mischief in those early years if the Japanese might have chosen differently.

Regardless, I LOVE Shanghai Bobby as a racehorse and as a beautiful near black subject to paint. Just dancing through history playing the "What if?" game.