Star Shoot (1898 – November 19, 1919) was a Thoroughbred racehorse that was bred in Ireland, raced in the United Kingdom and was eventually imported to the United States to become a five-time leading

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" a ...

in the early 1900s. He was a white stockinged,

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

colt sired by the great British 1893 Triple Crown winner, Isinglass, out of the Hermit bred mare Astrology. He is best remembered for siring the American Classic winning sons

Sir Barton Sir Barton (April 26, 1916 – October 30, 1937) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the first winner of the American Triple Crown. Background Sir Barton was a chestnut colt bred in 1916, in Kentucky, by John E. Madden at ...

and Grey Lag and the 1917

American Oaks The American Oaks is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old fillies over a distance of one and one-quarter miles on the turf held annually in late December Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, USA. The event currently of ...

winning filly Wistful I.

Early years and racing

Star Shoot was bred and foaled in 1898 at Eyrefield Lodge Stud in Caragh, which was owned by Major Eustace Loder. He was a sickly foal but did recover to be a major two-year-old contender in the British racing circuit, finishing second at his debut at the Summer Breeders' Foal Plate in June 1900. Star Shoot won the Hurst Park Foal Plate, British Dominion Two-Year-Old Plate and won the National Breeders' Produce Stakes in a dead heat. However, he soon developed respiratory problems that negatively impacted his racing performance thereafter and consequently he was not entered in any British Classic races.

Years at stud

Due to his respiratory issues and having developed soft feet, Star Shoot was not seen as a good breeding prospect in Britain and was sold in 1901 to an American Thoroughbred importer named John Hanning for a fraction of what other horses of his breeding fetched.Thoroughbred Heritage biography and picture
/ref> He was bought by Runnymede Farm in Paris, Kentucky and stood at stud there until 1912 when he was purchased by John E. Madden. Star Shoot was moved to Hamburg Place Stud, Madden's farm near

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

. Star Shoot died of pneumonia on November 19, 1919 and was buried in the equine cemetery at Hamburg Place Farm.

Progeny

Star Shoot notably sired

, the first winner of the Triple Crown and Grey Lag, winner of the 1921

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over 1.5 miles (2,400 m). Colts and geldings carry a weight of ; fillies carry . The race, nicknamed Th ...

. He also sired the

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 ...

s Christmas Star (dam of Mars), Livonia (dam of

The Finn The Finn (1912–1925) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that is best remembered as the winner of the 1915 Belmont Stakes. He won six other stakes races that year and was retroactively recognized as the American Champion three-year-old colt ...

) and Daylight Saving. He was determined to be the leading

in North America five times (in 1911, 1912, 1916, 1917 and 1919) and was top broodmare sire from 1924-1929.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1898 racehorse births 1919 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom United States Champion Thoroughbred Sires American Champion Thoroughbred broodmare sires Thoroughbred family 9-f Chefs-de-Race