Awesome Feather impresses in Sunshine Distaff

Awesome Feather runs away in the Sunshine Millions Distaff
Photo:  Adam Coglianese, Gulfstream Park

Making the first start of her four-year-old campaign, 2010 Champion Two-Year-Old Filly Awesome Feather easily outclassed five Florida-bred fillies and mares to capture the nine-furlong Sunshine Millions Distaff at Gulfstream today.  With her victory in the $300,000 contest, Awesome Feather remained perfect in nine career starts, and increased her bankroll to $1,861,746.

Awesome Feather made headlines as a two-year-old, capping an undefeated six-race season with a sparkling win in the Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies at Churchill Downs in November, 2010.  Led through the auction ring at the Fasig-Tipton November sale two days later, she was purchased by racing magnate and 2011 Eclipse Award-winning Breeder Frank Stronach of Adena Springs for $2.3 million, an amazing price for a homebred by the unheralded Awesome Again stallion, Awesome of Course, who was then standing for a mere $1,750 in Oklahoma.

Within a matter of weeks, though, Stronach got some bad news:  Awesome Feather was found to have a tendon injury that put her future racing career in doubt.  Undaunted, Stronach told trainer Chad Brown to give the filly as much time as she needed, hoping for the best but knowing that Awesome Feather might end up being retired to the Adena Springs broodmare band without ever racing in his colors.

Exactly 11 months after her Breeders’ Cup victory, on October 5th, 2011, Awesome Feather made her comeback, in the seven-furlong Le Slew Stakes at Belmont, where, as the prohibitive favorite, she didn’t disappoint, prevailing by two lengths against minor stakes fillies.  The effort set her up perfectly for the mile-and-an-eighth Gazelle-G1 at Aqueduct on Thanksgiving weekend, where she vanquished a field of eight, including today’s Affectionately winner, Love And Pride.   The long months of patience had paid big dividends.  Awesome Feather was back, with a vengeance.

And today, after a two-month layoff, Awesome Feather did it again, signaling that we may not have seen the best of her yet.  After his filly’s triumph, Chad Brown was noncommittal about her future plans, but wherever she goes next, she’s sure to elicit excitement.   

As a result of Awesome Feather’s exploits, Awesome of Course is now attracting a decidedly better book of mares at Journeyman Stud in Ocala, where his stud fee is listed as $5000.  He’s sired four other stakes winners, mostly in Florida-bred company, and all bred, like Awesome Feather, by Jacks or Better Farm.   Awesome of Course has only sired 40 named foals of racing age, but has gotten a phenomenal 13% stakes winners from those few opportunities, greatly improving the mares with whom he’s been matched. That compares favorably with his sire, Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Awesome Again, who sired 11% stakes winners in his first crop, including Champion Ghostzapper and Grade I winner Toccet.

Out of the stakes-winning Gone West mare, Precious Feather, Awesome Feather is a half-sister to four winners, including stakes-placed Brooks ‘N Down (by Montbrook), who is now at stud in Oklahoma.  Her third dam is the Champion Two-Year-Old Filly and great racemare Quill, dam of the three-quarter brothers Caucasus (Nijinsky) and One For All (Northern Dancer), and ancestress of Champion and Chef-de-Race Run The Gantlet.  This is also the family of Champion Afleet Alex.