With JoAnn Guidry
 
Question: What statistics do you consider when choosing  a stallion.
 
Brent: Almost all proven stallions were successful racehorses. Here are the statistics that bear that out:

 94% of the Top 100 stallions in North America in 2008 were stakes winners.
 
So using those amazing statistics, if you breed your

mare to a non-stakes winning unproven stallion, you have

6 chances out of 100 that the stallion will be successful enough at stud to make the list. Why not just buy lottery tickets with your money?
 
Crystal: Those are statistics that you financially can't afford to ignore. They support the fact that a stallion with a successful race record has a much better chance of producing racehorses that will perform well than a stallion who was a non stakes winner.
 
Question: What kind of statistics do you have for stallions on the 2008 Leading Freshman sire list?
                  
Brent: The Freshman sires list is contaminated by the nature of 2 year old racing. First of all, the racing year for 2 year olds is only about 9 months long. Secondly, the distance they race is dominated by sprints, particularly early in the year. All the same, this list is certainly valid as an indicator of sires of precocious 2 year olds. Even with that bias working,only one non stake winning stallion even cracked the top 20 leading freshman sires list.
 
Crystal: And isn't the desired end result for us all to breed and or buy a successful racehorse?  Even if you sell as a weanling or yearling, you are selling to people looking for a racehorse. Again, don't get caught trying to "figure out what people are going to want". They all want a racehorse.
 
Question: And how do Florida stallions fare?
 
Brent: Of the 126 stallions advertised in the 2008 Florida Stallion Register, 41 (nearly 33 %) never won a stakes race. Those numbers suggest that 1/3 of these Florida stallions have only a 6 % chance to even make the Top 100 money won sires list someday and only a 5% chance of cracking the top 20 freshmen sires list, neither of which in itself is necessarily a great accomplishment.
 
Crystal: So the statistics clearly bear out that you should breed to a stallion with a successful racing record.  It's important to do your research and breed to the best stallion you can afford because it will pay off in the future in the marketplace and on the racetrack.
 
Brent: Look the statistics up for yourself, the information I quote was taken right out of the Blood Horse web site. You always hear people say that some horse was injured, or in bad hands, etc. Truth is, the good ones overcome there problems and the others don't. My advice is that if a stallion prospect never raced successfully be very leery of him!
 
If you have a question for Brent or Crystal, send it to brent@journeymanstud.com or crystal@journeymanstud.com    

Sincerely,

Brent and Crystal Fernung
Journeyman Bloodstock Services, Inc.