When Grateful crossed the line first in the Qatar Prix de Royallieu (FR-G1) on October 5, 2024, memories of another horse galloped with her in her final brilliant charge to the finish line—her dam, Tepin, whose 2023 death was officially confirmed by trainer Aidan O’Brien during the winner’s circle ceremonies. Known as the “Queen of the Turf” during her own racing days, Tepin won six Grade/Group 1 stakes and two titles as American champion turf female, and many experts rank her as the best American-bred turf female thus far in the 21st century.
Sired by the Group 3-winning Storm Cat horse Bernstein (a two-time champion sire in Argentina), Tepin traced her female line to a top regional family founded by the Maryland-based matron Turn Capp. Sired by 1966 Tropical Park Handicap winner Turn to Reason (a son of Hail to Reason) out of the Thinking Cap mare Capped (a half sister to 1962 Leonard Richards Stakes winner Noble Jay), Turn Capp was no champion, but she was a good, honest, hardy performer whose 20 wins from 44 starts included three minor stakes races at ages 4 and 5. Sent to the paddocks as a 6-year-old in 1978, she became a Maryland Broodmare of the Year. As hardy and consistent a broodmare as she had been a racer, she threw 18 foals, 14 of which became winners. Three—Capp It Off (by Double Zeus), Capp the Power (by Lines of Power), and Say Capp (by Oh Say)—became stakes winners, and Turn Cap also produced Queen’s Crown, second dam of 1997 American champion sprinter Smoke Glacken (by Two Punch).
Capp It Off was the best of her dam’s runners. A consistent mare who won half her 18 starts and placed in six more, she won the listed Key Bridge Stakes at Aqueduct and two other stakes events as a 4-year-old in 1986 and the following year ran third in the Interborough Handicap (USA-G3). She produced only three foals, but one of them was multiple graded stakes winner Miss Slewpy (by Slewpy), whose biggest win came in the 1996 Ladies Handicap (USA-G2) as a 5-year-old.
Miss Slewpy left no issue, and it was up to her stakes-placed half sister Round It Off (by Apalachee) to continue the line. Round It Off’s first foal was 2000 Jersey Shore Breeders’ Cup Stakes (USA-G3) winner Disco Rico, who won six other stakes races during his career, but the important foal for the purposes of this discussion was Round It Off’s 2001 filly by 1999 European champion sprinter Stravinsky, Life Happened. Life Happened never made it to the racetrack, but she more than made up for any failings there by producing multiple Grade 2 winner Vyjack (by Into Mischief) as her third foal and Tepin as her fourth.
Possessed of a brilliant turn of foot, Tepin won 11 stakes races during her career, with the highlights including the 2015 Breeders’ Cup Mile (USA-G1), the 2016 Queen Anne Stakes (ENG-G1) at Royal Ascot, and the 2016 Ricoh Woodbine Mile Stakes (CAN-G1). It took 2016 Fourstardave Stakes (USA-G1) winner Tourist throwing a mile at her in 1:31.71—just 0.02 seconds off the Santa Anita course record set by Tepin’s half brother Vyjack four weeks earlier—to prevent her from repeating in the Breeders’ Cup Mile in 2016, and she retired having won US$4,433,358.
Sadly, Tepin produced only four named foals, but Grateful is the only one to have shown much of her dam’s talent, although Tepin’s 2-year-old son Delacroix has a win and two seconds from three starts. Grateful’s retirement was announced immediately following her big win, sending her to join her unraced sisters Siwrl (by Galileo) and Tepin Thru Life (by Curlin) in the paddocks, and it is to be hoped that she can continue the memory of a truly great mare as a broodmare as she did for a fleeting moment at Longchamp.
UPDATE: Delacroix won the Emirates Autumn Stakes (ENG-G3) on October 12.
Sired by the Group 3-winning Storm Cat horse Bernstein (a two-time champion sire in Argentina), Tepin traced her female line to a top regional family founded by the Maryland-based matron Turn Capp. Sired by 1966 Tropical Park Handicap winner Turn to Reason (a son of Hail to Reason) out of the Thinking Cap mare Capped (a half sister to 1962 Leonard Richards Stakes winner Noble Jay), Turn Capp was no champion, but she was a good, honest, hardy performer whose 20 wins from 44 starts included three minor stakes races at ages 4 and 5. Sent to the paddocks as a 6-year-old in 1978, she became a Maryland Broodmare of the Year. As hardy and consistent a broodmare as she had been a racer, she threw 18 foals, 14 of which became winners. Three—Capp It Off (by Double Zeus), Capp the Power (by Lines of Power), and Say Capp (by Oh Say)—became stakes winners, and Turn Cap also produced Queen’s Crown, second dam of 1997 American champion sprinter Smoke Glacken (by Two Punch).
Capp It Off was the best of her dam’s runners. A consistent mare who won half her 18 starts and placed in six more, she won the listed Key Bridge Stakes at Aqueduct and two other stakes events as a 4-year-old in 1986 and the following year ran third in the Interborough Handicap (USA-G3). She produced only three foals, but one of them was multiple graded stakes winner Miss Slewpy (by Slewpy), whose biggest win came in the 1996 Ladies Handicap (USA-G2) as a 5-year-old.
Miss Slewpy left no issue, and it was up to her stakes-placed half sister Round It Off (by Apalachee) to continue the line. Round It Off’s first foal was 2000 Jersey Shore Breeders’ Cup Stakes (USA-G3) winner Disco Rico, who won six other stakes races during his career, but the important foal for the purposes of this discussion was Round It Off’s 2001 filly by 1999 European champion sprinter Stravinsky, Life Happened. Life Happened never made it to the racetrack, but she more than made up for any failings there by producing multiple Grade 2 winner Vyjack (by Into Mischief) as her third foal and Tepin as her fourth.
Possessed of a brilliant turn of foot, Tepin won 11 stakes races during her career, with the highlights including the 2015 Breeders’ Cup Mile (USA-G1), the 2016 Queen Anne Stakes (ENG-G1) at Royal Ascot, and the 2016 Ricoh Woodbine Mile Stakes (CAN-G1). It took 2016 Fourstardave Stakes (USA-G1) winner Tourist throwing a mile at her in 1:31.71—just 0.02 seconds off the Santa Anita course record set by Tepin’s half brother Vyjack four weeks earlier—to prevent her from repeating in the Breeders’ Cup Mile in 2016, and she retired having won US$4,433,358.
Sadly, Tepin produced only four named foals, but Grateful is the only one to have shown much of her dam’s talent, although Tepin’s 2-year-old son Delacroix has a win and two seconds from three starts. Grateful’s retirement was announced immediately following her big win, sending her to join her unraced sisters Siwrl (by Galileo) and Tepin Thru Life (by Curlin) in the paddocks, and it is to be hoped that she can continue the memory of a truly great mare as a broodmare as she did for a fleeting moment at Longchamp.
UPDATE: Delacroix won the Emirates Autumn Stakes (ENG-G3) on October 12.
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