David Cassidy on the Web
Come on get happy: Cassidy buys colt
August 24, 2001
By Karen M. Johnson
www.drf.com
Dr. Jerry Bilinski of Waldorf Farm hit a home run with a New York-bred colt he co-bred with Martin Zaretsky and Marc Roberts and sold at the preferred sale.
The End Sweep colt was one of the auction toppers, bringing $117,000, with Highclere Sales acting as agent on the sale. The buyer was singer David Cassidy, who said he has a 50 percent partner in the yearling but declined to reveal the person's name.
Bilinski bought the colt's dam, Dress, a half-sister to a Grade 1 producer, for $27,000 at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company fall mixed sale in 1999, while she was in foal to End Sweep. The broodmare currently has a Personal Flag foal by her side and was bred back to Mighty Magee, who stands for $2,000 at Bilinski's Waldorf Farm in North Chatham, N.Y.
Cassidy, who has been buying, breeding, and racing horses for a couple of years, said he always has been a fan of End Sweep, a former Florida-based stallion now standing in Japan.
"This colt was an outstanding horse - I thought he was the best horse in the sale," said Cassidy, who looked at 50 horses at the sale.
Belong to Me tops the list of sires of New York-breds by earnings this year, according to Bloodstock Research Information Services statistics. Belong to Me, who formerly stood in New York and now stands at Lane's End Farm in Kentucky, has $1,851,573 in progeny earnings from his New York-bred runners this year. Belong to Me is followed by New York sire Distinctive Pro, the late Cure the Blues, and Personal Flag, who also stands in the Empire State.
Fans can now vote online for who they think will win New York-bred stakes races at www.nybreds.com.
