Lady's Secret (USA)
April 8, 1982 – March 4, 2003
Secretariat (USA) x Great Lady M. (USA), by Icecapade (USA)
Family 22-d
April 8, 1982 – March 4, 2003
Secretariat (USA) x Great Lady M. (USA), by Icecapade (USA)
Family 22-d
Lady's Secret was living proof that bigger isn't always better. During her championship season, the little gray filly started 15 times--all in graded stakes races--and won 10, including eight Grade 1 races, while never running out of the money. She retired as the top Oklahoma-bred in history with 10 Grade 1 victories on her record. She was a better racer than broodmare, but several of her daughters have had some success in the paddocks.
Race record
45 starts, 25 wins, 9 seconds, 3 thirds, US$3,021,325
1984:
1985:
1986:
1987:
Honors
Assessments
Lady's Secret was rated #76 among the top 100 American racehorses of the 20th century by a panel of experts assembled by The Blood-Horse (Thoroughbred Champions, Eclipse Press, 7th printing, 2005). She was 14th among the 26 fillies and mares on the list.
Co-highweighted with Mom's Command (the official divisional champion) at 126 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American 3-year-old fillies of 1985.
Highweighted at 129 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American older females of 1986, 7 pounds above second-rated Dontstop the Music.
Rated at 117 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American older females of 1987, 4 pounds below champion North Sider.
As an individual
Lady's Secret stood 15.1 hands. She was feminine but extraordinarily sound and tough. Powerful and energetic for all her small size, she usually preferred to control her races from the front end and had a tough attitude in competition. Hall of Fame jockey Pat Day, who rode her often, said that she was “very headstrong but a fun ride.” She was absolutely genuine as a racehorse and did not need the whip to give her best. She was finally retired after seeming to lose interest in racing as a 5-year-old.
As a producer
Lady's Secret produced 12 named foals, of which 10 were starters and five were winners. Her important foals are as follow:
Connections
Lady's Secret was bred in Oklahoma by Robert H. Spreen. She was owned by Eugene Klein, who purchased Lady's Secret privately for US$200,000 as a yearling. She was trained by D. Wayne Lukas, who had initially purchased the filly from Spreen for himself. After failing to meet her reserves at the 1986 and 1987 Fasig-Tipton November breeding stock sales, she was sold in foal to Alydar to Issam Fares' Fares Farm for US$3.8 million at the 1988 Keeneland November sale. She was resold in foal to Seattle Slew to John and Kim Glenney for US$750,000 at the 1998 Keeneland November sale. She died from complications of foaling a General Meeting colt while at Valley Creek Farm in California.
Pedigree notes
Lady's Secret is inbred 3x5 to Nasrullah and 4x4 to Nasrullah's sire Nearco. She is a half sister to stakes winner Missy Slew (by Seattle Slew; dam of stakes winner Vow) and to Great Lady Sharon (by Alydar), dam of stakes winner Baldy’s Dream (by Green Dancer), second dam of multiple French Group 3 winner Slew the Red, and third dam of 2018 American champion female sprinter Shamrock Rose. Lady’s Secret is also a half sister to Great Christine (by Danzig), dam of 2003 Japanese champion older female Believe (by Sunday Silence) and second dam of 2022 Sprinters Stakes (JPN-G1) winner Gendarme. In addition, Lady’s Secret is a half sister to Mary's Secret (by Mr. Prospector), second dam of multiple Grade 2 winner Leah’s Secret and Canadian Grade 3 winner Bear Tough Guy and third dam of Grade 3 winner Nicodemus. Finally, Lady’s Secret is a half sister to One Great Lady (by Fappiano), third dam of 2019 Gran Premio General San Martín (ARG-G1) winner Glorious Moment, and to Star My Life (by Storm Cat), second dam of Japanese Group 3 winner Trend Hunter and third dam of 2021 Japanese champion 2-year-old filly Circle of Life.
The dam of Lady's Secret, Great Lady M., is a multiple stakes winner and is a half sister to Flip's Little Girl (by Flip Sal), dam of 1991 Ashland Stakes (USA-G1) winner Do It With Style (by Pancho Villa) and stakes winners Rattenburys Bank (by Verbatim), So Unforgettable (by Bucksplasher), and Angelina Capote (by Capote). Great Lady M., in turn, was produced from the winner Sovereign Lady (by 1965 English and Irish champion 2-year-old male Young Emperor), a half sister to stakes winners Favorite Beau (by Beau Brummel), Bridewell (by Roberto), and Queen of Cornwall (by Cornish Prince). The last-named mare is the second dam of Australian Group 2 winner Newquay and Australian Group 3 winner Civil List and the third dam of multiple Australian Group 1 winner Gold Edition and multiple Swiss champion Ma Petite Folie.
Sovereign Lady and her siblings are out of Sweety Kid (by Olympia), whose full sister Londonderry Air is the second dam of Canadian Grade 3 winner Arcadian Stag. Produced from the English-bred My Babu mare Trustworthy II, Sweety Kid is also a half sister to Grade 3 winner Ferly (by Traffic Judge), dam of stakes winners Bally Knockan (by Exclusive Native) and Ecstatic Pride (by J. O. Tobin) and second dam of 1983 Venezuelan champion 2-year-old male The Iron and Grade 3 winner River Traffic.
Books and media
Fun facts
Last updated: January 18, 2023
Race record
45 starts, 25 wins, 9 seconds, 3 thirds, US$3,021,325
1984:
- Won Moccasin Stakes (USA, 6FD, Hollywood)
- Won Wavy Waves Stakes (USA-R, 6FD, Hollywood)
- 3rd Anoakia Stakes (USA-G3, 7FD, Santa Anita)
1985:
- Won Maskette Stakes (USA-G1, 8FD, Belmont)
- Won Ruffian Handicap (USA-G1, 9FD, Belmont)
- Won Test Stakes (USA-G2, 7FD, Saratoga)
- Won Ballerina Stakes (USA-G2, 7FD, Saratoga)
- Won Hail Hilarious Stakes (USA, 6FD, Bay Meadows)
- Won Prima Donna Stakes (USA, 6FD, Oaklawn)
- Won Bowl of Flowers Stakes (USA, 6FD, Belmont)
- Won Regret Handicap (USA, 6FD, Monmouth)
- Won The Rose Stakes (USA, 6FD, Belmont)
- 2nd Breeders' Cup Distaff (USA-G1, 10FD, Belmont)
- 2nd Prioress Stakes (USA-G3, 6FD, Belmont)
- 2nd Determine Stakes (USA, 6FD, Bay Meadows)
- 2nd Vallejo Stakes (USA, 6FD, Golden Gate)
1986:
- Won Whitney Handicap (USA-G1, 9FD, Saratoga)
- Won Maskette Stakes (USA-G1, 8FD, Belmont)
- Won Ruffian Handicap (USA-G1, 9FD, Belmont)
- Won Beldame Stakes (USA-G1, 10FD, Belmont)
- Won Breeders' Cup Distaff (USA-G1, 10FD, Santa Anita)
- Won La Canada Stakes (USA-G1, 9FD, Santa Anita)
- Won Santa Margarita Handicap (USA-G1, 9FD, Santa Anita)
- Won Shuvee Handicap (USA-G1, 8.5FD, Belmont)
- Won Molly Pitcher Handicap (USA-G2, 8.5FD, Monmouth)
- Won El Encino Stakes (USA-G3, 8.5FD, Santa Anita)
- 2nd Apple Blossom Handicap (USA-G1, 8.5FD, Oaklawn)
- 2nd Hempstead Handicap (USA-G1, 9FD, Belmont)
- 2nd Woodward Handicap (USA-G1, 9FD, Belmont)
- 2nd La Brea Stakes (USA-G3, 7FD, Saratoga
- 3rd Iselin Handicap (USA-G1, 9FD, Monmouth)
- 3rd Metropolitan Handicap (USA-G1, 8FD, Belmont)
1987:
- 2nd Molly Pitcher Handicap (USA-G2, 8.5FD, Monmouth)
Honors
- National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame (inducted in 1992)
- Saratoga Hoofprints Walk of Fame (inducted as part of the inaugural class in 2013)
- Arcadia Historical Society's Racing Walk of Champions (inducted as part of the inaugural class in 2014)
- Monmouth Park Hall of Champions
- Eclipse Award, American Horse of the Year (1986)
- Eclipse Award, American champion older female (1986)
Assessments
Lady's Secret was rated #76 among the top 100 American racehorses of the 20th century by a panel of experts assembled by The Blood-Horse (Thoroughbred Champions, Eclipse Press, 7th printing, 2005). She was 14th among the 26 fillies and mares on the list.
Co-highweighted with Mom's Command (the official divisional champion) at 126 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American 3-year-old fillies of 1985.
Highweighted at 129 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American older females of 1986, 7 pounds above second-rated Dontstop the Music.
Rated at 117 pounds on the Daily Racing Form's Free Handicap for American older females of 1987, 4 pounds below champion North Sider.
As an individual
Lady's Secret stood 15.1 hands. She was feminine but extraordinarily sound and tough. Powerful and energetic for all her small size, she usually preferred to control her races from the front end and had a tough attitude in competition. Hall of Fame jockey Pat Day, who rode her often, said that she was “very headstrong but a fun ride.” She was absolutely genuine as a racehorse and did not need the whip to give her best. She was finally retired after seeming to lose interest in racing as a 5-year-old.
As a producer
Lady's Secret produced 12 named foals, of which 10 were starters and five were winners. Her important foals are as follow:
- Good Looks (1992, by Mr. Prospector) won three of her 23 starts. She is the dam of Japanese listed stakes winner Kyowa Happiness (by Oath).
- Lady Danzig (1993, by Danzig) never raced but is the second dam of Japanese Group 3 winner My Style.
- Sleepinginseattle (1995, by Seattle Slew) never raced but is the dam of 2010 Hochi Hai Fillies Revue (JPN-G2) winner Sound Barrier (by Agnes Digital), in turn the dam of Japanese Group 2 winner Sound Chiara (by Deep Impact).
Connections
Lady's Secret was bred in Oklahoma by Robert H. Spreen. She was owned by Eugene Klein, who purchased Lady's Secret privately for US$200,000 as a yearling. She was trained by D. Wayne Lukas, who had initially purchased the filly from Spreen for himself. After failing to meet her reserves at the 1986 and 1987 Fasig-Tipton November breeding stock sales, she was sold in foal to Alydar to Issam Fares' Fares Farm for US$3.8 million at the 1988 Keeneland November sale. She was resold in foal to Seattle Slew to John and Kim Glenney for US$750,000 at the 1998 Keeneland November sale. She died from complications of foaling a General Meeting colt while at Valley Creek Farm in California.
Pedigree notes
Lady's Secret is inbred 3x5 to Nasrullah and 4x4 to Nasrullah's sire Nearco. She is a half sister to stakes winner Missy Slew (by Seattle Slew; dam of stakes winner Vow) and to Great Lady Sharon (by Alydar), dam of stakes winner Baldy’s Dream (by Green Dancer), second dam of multiple French Group 3 winner Slew the Red, and third dam of 2018 American champion female sprinter Shamrock Rose. Lady’s Secret is also a half sister to Great Christine (by Danzig), dam of 2003 Japanese champion older female Believe (by Sunday Silence) and second dam of 2022 Sprinters Stakes (JPN-G1) winner Gendarme. In addition, Lady’s Secret is a half sister to Mary's Secret (by Mr. Prospector), second dam of multiple Grade 2 winner Leah’s Secret and Canadian Grade 3 winner Bear Tough Guy and third dam of Grade 3 winner Nicodemus. Finally, Lady’s Secret is a half sister to One Great Lady (by Fappiano), third dam of 2019 Gran Premio General San Martín (ARG-G1) winner Glorious Moment, and to Star My Life (by Storm Cat), second dam of Japanese Group 3 winner Trend Hunter and third dam of 2021 Japanese champion 2-year-old filly Circle of Life.
The dam of Lady's Secret, Great Lady M., is a multiple stakes winner and is a half sister to Flip's Little Girl (by Flip Sal), dam of 1991 Ashland Stakes (USA-G1) winner Do It With Style (by Pancho Villa) and stakes winners Rattenburys Bank (by Verbatim), So Unforgettable (by Bucksplasher), and Angelina Capote (by Capote). Great Lady M., in turn, was produced from the winner Sovereign Lady (by 1965 English and Irish champion 2-year-old male Young Emperor), a half sister to stakes winners Favorite Beau (by Beau Brummel), Bridewell (by Roberto), and Queen of Cornwall (by Cornish Prince). The last-named mare is the second dam of Australian Group 2 winner Newquay and Australian Group 3 winner Civil List and the third dam of multiple Australian Group 1 winner Gold Edition and multiple Swiss champion Ma Petite Folie.
Sovereign Lady and her siblings are out of Sweety Kid (by Olympia), whose full sister Londonderry Air is the second dam of Canadian Grade 3 winner Arcadian Stag. Produced from the English-bred My Babu mare Trustworthy II, Sweety Kid is also a half sister to Grade 3 winner Ferly (by Traffic Judge), dam of stakes winners Bally Knockan (by Exclusive Native) and Ecstatic Pride (by J. O. Tobin) and second dam of 1983 Venezuelan champion 2-year-old male The Iron and Grade 3 winner River Traffic.
Books and media
- “Lady's Secret” is the ninth chapter in Women of the Year: Ten Fillies Who Achieved Horse Racing's Highest Honor, a Blood-Horse compilation published in 2004 by Eclipse Press. The book was later updated and re-issued in 2011 as Horse Racing Divas: From Azeri to Zenyatta, Twelve Fillies and Mares Who Achieved Horse Racing's Highest Honor.
- News about the ongoing work to create an appropriate memorial for Lady's Secret (see below) can be found at the Facebook page of Celebrities for Lady's Secret (https://www.facebook.com/groups/752660518184923/).
- Footage of Lady's Secret's win in the 1986 Breeders' Cup Distaff can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sO5mSHDrOfo.
Fun facts
- Lady's Secret was popularly known as “The Iron Lady.”
- Lady's Secret was the world's leading money-winning female Thoroughbred at the time of her retirement.
- The Lady's Secret Stakes was run at Santa Anita as a Grade 1 race for fillies and mares aged 3 and up in 1993-2011. It was renamed in honor of another great race mare, Zenyatta, in 2012.
- Monmouth Park hosts a race named for Lady's Secret. It is run as a listed stakes for fillies and mares aged 3 and up over 8½ furlongs on dirt. The track cafe at Monmouth is also named in honor of Lady's Secret.
- Lady's Secret's paddock buddy was the stakes-placed Grey Dawn II mare Superbe Dawn. After Lady's Secret's sudden death, Superbe Dawn became the nurse mare for her General Meeting colt, eventually named Cool Valley Cowboy.
- Following Shirley Kimball's purchase of Valley Creek Farm, work began on the “Lady's Secret Memorial Garden.” The work is being continued by the Friends of the Lady's Secret Memorial Garden, which hopes to restore the garden, provide an appropriate memorial marker for the great mare, and reinstate the Lady's Secret Stakes so that the memory of the “Iron Lady” will not be forgotten.
Last updated: January 18, 2023