American Classic Pedigrees
  • Home
  • Books
    • American Classic Pedigrees
    • Dream Derby
    • Gold Rush
    • The Kentucky Oaks
    • The Kingmaker
    • Recommended Reading
  • Blogs
    • Mares on Monday
    • Horse Tales
  • Articles
  • Horse Profiles
    • Horse Profiles A-E
    • Horse Profiles F-K
    • Horse Profiles L-Q
    • Horse Profiles R-Z
  • Links
  • About ACP
    • Author
    • For Contributors >
      • Contact

Mares on Monday: Flying the Flag for a Royal Line from Puerto Rico

7/26/2021

0 Comments

 
On July 25, Royal Flag picked up her second Grade 3 win in the Shuvee Stakes at Saratoga. While she is no champion, the 5-year-old daughter of Candy Ride is admirably consistent. Never out of the money in 10 lifetime starts, she has three Grade 3 placings in addition to her wins at that level and looks like a very nice broodmare prospect when her racing days are done.

Royal Flag comes from a family that parallels her racing career, one that has done good work in the breeding shed without ever quite breaking through to the heights of fashion and success. Her fifth dam is Royal Rafale, a daughter of the good stakes horse Reneged and a descendant of a family developed by August Belmont II at his Nursery Stud in the early 20th century

Royal Rafale was bred along similar lines to 16-time stakes winner My Request, a leading member of the 1945 American foal crop who was by Reneged's sire Revoked out of a half sister to Royal Rafale's dam Questar. As a racer, Royal Rafale was of much lesser ability than My Request; sent to Puerto Rico to race, she won a juvenile stakes, but that was the pinnacle of her racing career.

Royal Rafale fared better in the breeding shed, where she produced two stakes winners, two stakes-placed runners, and the unraced dam of a multiple Grade 3 winner. She was particularly effective with 1961 American co-champion juvenile male Crimson Satan, who sired three black-type daughters from her in three matings.

Of the three, three-time stakes winner Royal Saint became the second dam of Italian Group 3 winner Ellenica, while stakes-placed Buda Lady produced the Grade 2-winning sprinter Salt Dome (by Blushing Groom). But the best of the trio, both on the track and in the breeding shed, was Flama Ardiente, a tough mare who won 15 of her 49 starts, placing another 19 times, and gained graded laurels in the 1975 Falls City Handicap (USA-G3).

Flama Ardiente produced two good racehorses in Magical Wonder (by Storm Bird), who won the 1986 Prix Jean Prat Ecurie Fustok (FR-G1), and Mt. Livermore (by Blushing Groom), a multiple Grade 2-winning sprinter and a good sire whose 70 stakes winners included two-time American champion sprinter Housebuster. The mare also produced unraced Exclusive Moment (by Exclusive Native), who carried on the female line. Exclusive Moment is the second dam of Group 1-placed German Group 3 winner Saugerties and Grade 3 winner Host and, through her listed stakes-winning daughter Exclusive Bird (by Storm Bird), is the third dam of Royal Flag (out of Sea Gull, by Mineshaft) as well as Grade 3-placed stakes winner Private Ryan (a Quiet American half brother to Sea Gull).

Royal Rafale's family does not rank among the great matriarchies of the turf, but it is one that has certainly shown itself as worth persevering with. In Royal Flag, it has come up with its best female representative in four generations, perhaps signaling a return to a higher level. One can hope so, for there are certainly worse combinations of traits to perpetuate than honesty, consistency, and a nice level of talent.



0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    I'm Avalyn Hunter, an author, pedigree researcher and longtime racing fan with a particular interest in Thoroughbred mares and their contributions to the history of the breed.

    Categories

    All
    General News
    General Pedigree Info
    Mares: Canada
    Mares: South America
    Mares: USA
    Racing Commentary
    Special

    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014

    RSS Feed

© 2014-2025 by Avalyn Hunter. All rights reserved. Contributors' materials remain the property of the copyright owners and are used by permission. For information regarding use or licensure of photographs, please contact the copyright holder.

Home     Books     Articles     Horse Profiles    Hoofprints    Contact    Links