Here come the 2-year-olds. Baby races are being scheduled just about everywhere accompanied by the anxiety of, “Is this colt or filly as good as it has looked thus far in training?”
Actually, most of the anxiety focuses on the first crop sires as by now we all have a pretty good idea where the established or “proven” sires stand in terms of performance levels.
However, for those who stand and those who have purchased sons and daughters of first crop stallions, there’s always a level of uncertainty until the baby races begin. Thus it’s crunch time for the first croppers.
This year, the leading first crop sires include pacers Rock N Roll Heaven, Sportswriter, Rockin Image and Riggins, plus trotters Lucky Chucky, Muscle Massive and Holiday Road. Of those, pacers Rock N Roll Heaven, Sportswriter, Rockin Image and Riggins have started well both in volume number of starts and winners, while trotters Muscle Massive and Holiday Road have starters and winners. Lucky Chucky has starters but as of this writing nary a winner.
Rock N Roll Heaven (Rocknroll Hanover-Artistic Vision) would be considered the most prominent of the first crop stallion candidates off his spectacular Horse of the Year season in 2010 when he won just about every major stake on the calendar for 3-year-old pacers. Moreover, he was part of a spectacular inaugural siring season for his own now deceased sire Rocknroll Hanover in a crop that also included the champion filly Put On A Show.
Actually early success has been a byword for this sire line as Rock N Roll Heaven’s sire, grandsire Western Ideal, great-grandsire Western Hanover, and great-great-grandsire No Nukes were all sensational in their initial crops. Whether Rock N Roll Heaven will maintain this tradition remains to be seen. However, the impressive early showings of daughters suggest we’re watching a major sire in the making.
So far, 15 of the 103 listed Rock N Roll Heaven 2-year-olds have started, resulting in five winners including Divine Caroline (Loving Caroline), an impressive 1:56 4/5 winner at The Meadowlands on Saturday June 7.
Rock N Roll Heaven stands at Blue Chip Farms in New York.