You've got to be careful betting on horses at the track. You can follow
a hunch about a horse that's going to win and examine them in the exercise
ring. Or you can be more thorough about picking a winner. You can research
the horse's racing record and its pedigree.
That's how Les Brinsfield, a pedigree analyst in Kentucky, got introduced
to the work. "I got interested in racing about 35 years ago," he says. "I
was just a $2 better." But as his enthusiasm grew, he became more serious.
"One thing led to another and I began studying pedigrees." The desire to
sift through charts and analyze data came from Brinsfield's day job working
in the computer field. In fact, he wrote some pedigree analysis software.
Computers play a role in sifting through data and looking
for patterns, but it's still the human touch that can find the perfect match
of mare and stallion to produce the best foal. Brinsfield likens the process
to piecing together a puzzle.
He takes particular pride in his work because he specializes in cost-effective
breeding. "I have a history of taking average mares and producing good horses,"
he says. The lower costs of obtaining these mares are attractive to owners
who are interested in the bottom line.
Whatever stock Brinsfield chooses, he says it's a decision that has to
be made carefully. "It's complicated, all the things you have to look for,"
he says. "You have to find the right mare and the right stallion."
Brinsfield has been working at this research for years, but is particularly
excited about a foal that he helped plan. "I think it's a clever pedigree,"
he says.
The foal has already won a prestigious race, and recently ran in a race
with a $500,000 purse. "To have a hand in something like that is pretty fulfilling."
Producing foals like her is what keeps Brinsfield in the business. "It's
fulfilling to plan a mating, watch it get born and become a good horse," he
says. "There's nothing like it."
Kelly Allen is a pedigree analyst. She is also interested in pedigrees
that will produce the perfect foal. But her interests lie outside the track.
In her breeding, tracking and selling business, she finds good-quality equestrian,
dressage, event and hunter jumper horses for clients.
Many customers purchasing her horses want to know their backgrounds. "I'm
selling a lot of horses and it's good for people to know their pedigrees,"
says Allen. "We're researching and looking for the best bloodlines."
Allen explains that certain stallions are responsible for many high-quality
foals. "A certain stallion can be really prominent in certain jumping lines."
In racing circles, Northern Dancer, a thoroughbred, is one such stallion.
"He was the first horse to get into the Sports Hall of Fame," says Allen.
"He's had so many winners over the years."
All thoroughbreds' ancestry can be traced. "It's kind of neat with thoroughbreds
because they're all tattooed, so you can go back generations and generations
to see the horse's bloodlines," she says. "That way, you can get better odds
at knowing which horses are worthy to buy."
Of course, racing isn't the only area where bloodlines count. Cor de la
Bryere is another prominent stallion in the horse world. Many of his foals
went on to succeed in the Olympics and world-class levels in dressage, eventing
and jumper classes.
"Quite often, a name like his can be a rubber stamp for sales," says Allen,
who owns one of Cor de la Bryere's sons, Coeur de Lion. Although a great stallion
doesn't mean a great foal, it can increase the odds of getting a good performer.
"Of course, the dam is just as important," says Allen.
A good match between sire and dam is key. That's why people search far
and wide for the perfect mate for their horse. The Internet has contributed
greatly to this business. "People e-mail me with questions and I can look
up information for them in different search engines," says Allen.
"Things are really progressing, and I'm finding that we make many more
sales and have more opportunities through our Internet site," she says. "It's
because of this that I'm able to work in a field that I've always loved."