Bodemeister (foaled April 28, 2009) is a

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 ...

race horse ''Race Horse'' was an 1850 clipper barque. She set a record of 109 days from New York to San Francisco during the first Clipper Race around the Horn. Construction ''Race Horse'' was similar to a barque built by Samuel Hall a few years earlier, ...

who won the 2012

Arkansas Derby The Arkansas Derby is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. In 2004, t ...

and finished second to I'll Have Another in the 2012 Kentucky Derby and

2012 Preakness Stakes The 2012 Preakness Stakes was the 137th running of the Preakness Stakes thoroughbred horse race. The race took place on May 19, 2012, and was televised in the United States on the NBC television network. The post time was EDT ( UTC). I'll Have ...

s. He went on to become the sire of 2017 Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming.

Background

Bodemeister is a

Bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

horse with a white blaze. He was named after Bode Baffert, the son of his trainer,

Bob Baffert Robert A. Baffert (born January 13, 1953) is an American racehorse trainer. He has trained two Triple Crown winners: American Pharoah in 2015 and Justify in 2018. Baffert's horses have won the Kentucky Derby six times, tying the record with ...

. His pedigree includes notable horses such as his

grandsire Grandsire is one of the standard change ringing methods, which are methods of ringing church bells or handbells using a series of mathematical permutations rather than using a melody. The grandsire method is usually rung on an odd number of bells ...

Unbridled Unbridled (March 5, 1987 – October 18, 2001) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1990 Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup Classic. He retired with a career record of eight wins, six places, and six shows in 24 starts, ...

and his damsire

Storm Cat Storm Cat (February 27, 1983 – April 24, 2013) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and stallion whose breeding fee during the peak of his stud career was $500,000, the highest in North America at the time. He was the leading sire in North A ...

. The colt was sired by the

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 Empire Maker out of the

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equidae, 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 th ...

Untouched Talent. He was sold as a yearling at the

Keeneland Keeneland Association, Inc. is an equine business based in Lexington, Kentucky. It includes two distinct divisions: the Keeneland Race Course, a Thoroughbred racing facility, and Keeneland Sales, a horse auction complex. It is also known for ...

September sales for $260,000.

Racing career

Bodemeister did not race as a 2-year-old, but emerged as a 3-year-old to come in second in the 2012 San Felipe Stakes, then win the Arkansas Derby. Bodemeister was widely considered one of the favorites to win the 2012 Kentucky Derby. Ridden by jockey Mike Smith Bodemeister led the Kentucky Derby from the start until 150 yards remained, when he was overtaken by I'll Have Another, leaving Bodemeister to finish in second place. The race came five weeks after Baffert was hospitalized in Dubai due to a heart attack. Bodemeister was made favorite ahead of I'll Have Another by odds-makers in the

on 19 May. The race developed in similar fashion to the Kentucky Derby, with Bodemeister leading until the final 50 yards, when he was caught by I'll Have Another and finished second by a neck. Baffert announced afterward that Bodemeister would not race in the

2012 Belmont Stakes The 2012 Belmont Stakes was the 144th running of the Belmont Stakes and the race was won by Union Rags ridden by jockey John Velazquez. It was broadcast in the United States by NBC. The post time was scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, ...

. On August 21 it was announced that Bodemeister had been diagnosed with an injury to his left shoulder and would retire to stud.

Stud career

Bodemeister entered stud at

WinStar Farm WinStar Farm is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding and horse racing, racing farm near Versailles, Kentucky, owned by Kenny Troutt. It won the 2010 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Owner and 2016 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder, Outstandi ...

Versailles, Kentucky Versailles is a home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. It lies by road west of Lexington and is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. Versailles has a population of 10,534 according to 2024 ce ...

for the 2013 breeding season. His first foals reached racing age in 2016. Bodemeister saw his first winner on May 11, 2016, when gray filly Bode's Dream won a maiden race at

Gulfstream Park Gulfstream Park is a Thoroughbred racing, Thoroughbred horse race track, casino and outdoor entertainment and shopping destination in Hallandale Beach, Florida, Hallandale Beach, Florida, United States. It is among the most important venues for ...

. Bodemeister made the news when an unusual white-headed colt with

splashed white Splashed white or splash is a horse coat color pattern in the " overo" group of spotting patterns that produces pink-skinned, white markings. Many splashed whites have very modest markings, while others have the distinctive "dipped in white pai ...

markings was born on June 5, 2016, later named Southern Phantom. "In 35 years in the industry I've never seen a Thoroughbred like this," said trainer Eric Guillot. "The mare hasn't thrown anything unusual before, but Bodemeister throws a lot of white. I've got a few by him with stockings and other markings, but this one's unique. It looks like he dunked his head into a five-gallon bucket of white paint." Bodemeister's stud fee for 2017 was originally $25,000, but the fee was removed after Always Dreaming won Kentucky Derby 143. He is the sire of 2017 Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming from his first crop of foals, as well as stakes-placed runners O Dionysus, American Anthem, Bode's Dream, Dharmaster, and the

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States ...

Kenda.

Pedigree

* Bodemeister is

inbred Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders an ...

4 × 4 to the stallion Northern Dancer, meaning that the latter appears twice in the fourth generation of his pedigree.

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links

Bodemeister profile (Kentucky Derby)Bodemeister profile (Preakness Stakes)
2009 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Virginia Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 1-n