Beautiful Pleasure (March 31, 1995 – August 11, 2011) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world champi ...

racehorse who won the 1999

Breeders' Cup Distaff The Breeders' Cup Distaff is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, three years old and up. Known as the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic between 2008 and 2012, it is held annually at a different racetrack in the United Stat ...

and was voted that year's

American Champion Older Female Horse The Eclipse Award for Champion Older Dirt Female Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a filly or mare, four years old and up, for performances on dirt and main track racing surfaces. In 1971, it became part of the ...

. Bred in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

by Farnsworth Farms, winner of the 1996

Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor for breeders. Created in 1971, it is part of the Eclipse Awards program and is awarded annually. Its Canadian counterpart is the Sovereign Award for Outstanding Br ...

, Beautiful Pleasure was sired by multiple stakes winner Maudlin, a son of 1975

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

winner and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee,

Foolish Pleasure Foolish Pleasure (March 23, 1972 – November 17, 1994) was an American bay Thoroughbred race horse who won the 1975 Kentucky Derby. Background Foolish Pleasure was a bay horse bred at Williston, Florida by Waldemar Farms, Inc. He was owned by ...

. She was and out of the mare Beautiful Bid, a daughter of Baldski who was a son of the 1970 English Triple Crown winner,

Nijinsky Vaslav or Vatslav Nijinsky (12 March 1889/18908 April 1950) was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer of Polish ancestry. He is regarded as the greatest male dancer of the early 20th century. Nijinsky was celebrated for his virtuosity and f ...

. She was a full sister to the speedy Mecke, a multiple Grade 1 stakes winner in track/course record times on both dirt and turf racing surfaces. Beautiful Pleasure was sold to

John Oxley John Joseph William Molesworth Oxley (1784 – 25 May 1828) was an English List of explorers, explorer and surveyor of Australia in the early period of British colonisation. He served as Surveyor General of New South Wales and is perhaps bes ...

for $480,000 by Farnsworth Farms through the April 1997 Keeneland sale for two-year-olds in training.

Racing career

Trained by John Ward Jr., she was a winner of six

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

races at age two, four, and five, three of which came during her 1999, Championship season.

Broodmare

When her racing career was over, Beautiful Pleasure served as a

broodmare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...

for owner John Oxley's Fawn Leap Farm near

Midway, Kentucky Midway is a Home rule, home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, Woodford County, Kentucky, in the United States. Its population was 1,741 at the time of the year 2020 U.S. census. It is part of the Lexington-Fayette, KY Metropolitan St ...

. The most successful of her foals to race was Dr. Pleasure, sired by the 1995

and

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over the worldwide classic distance of . Colt (horseracing), Colt ...

winner,

Thunder Gulch Thunder Gulch (May 23, 1992 – March 19, 2018) was a Eclipse Award, Champion United States, American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for his wins in the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes in 1995, which earned him the title of Eclipse Awar ...

. Suffering from chronic

laminitis Laminitis is a disease of the feet of ungulates, found mostly in horses and cattle involving inflammation of the laminae. Clinical signs include foot tenderness progressing to inability to walk, increased digital pulses, and increased temperatur ...

, Beautiful Pleasure was humanely

euthanized Animal euthanasia (euthanasia from ; "good death") is the act of killing an animal humanely, most commonly with injectable drugs. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditions or diseases, lack of resources to con ...

on August 11, 2011. Thoroughbred Times - September 1, 2011
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References

{{reflist 1995 racehorse births 2011 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Florida Racehorses trained in the United States Eclipse Award winners Thoroughbred family 19-b Breeders' Cup Distaff winners