It takes huge belief and confidence from an individual to support a horse when he goes to stud, regardless of his credentials. And, as anyone with even a passing interest in the American market knows, the mountain is even greater for those with a turf profile.
There was plenty to like about Slumber when he retired to Calumet Farm in Kentucky for the 2017 season. After all, he was a G1 winner and the earner of close to $1.5 million. He was also an exceptionally tough horse who packed in 27 starts over seven seasons. And not only is he a grandson of Danehill but he is also supported by one of Juddmonte Farm’s most successful families.
But this is a market driven by dirt speed and a turf runner who didn’t enjoy his greatest success until the age of seven is not going to sit well within it. Added to that, American breeders wouldn’t have necessarily been familiar with his sire, the successful Newmarket-based Cacique.
Defy expectations
One of the great beauties of this business, however, is how a good horse can come out of anywhere and defy expectations. Slumber has done just that as the sire of G2 winner Fluffy Socks out of his first crop and stakes-winning 2yo Sy Dog out of his second - all from a group of just 21 foals of racing age.
His success pays tribute to the faith shown in him by one man, Sol Kumin (pictured).
Under the Sheep Pond Partners banner, Kumin was a co-owner in Slumber during the latter part of his career with Chad Brown and, having supported the horse while he was under a different ownership at Calumet, is now reaping the rewards as the owner-breeder of both Fluffy Socks and Sy Dog.
In fact, Kumin, who is one of the most successful owners in North America via various ownership groups, is today fully invested in Slumber. Ahead of the 2021 season, he struck a deal to purchase the horse and relocated him to stand at Lere Visagie’s Rockridge Stud in New York, where he is standing for $7,500.
“It’s a lot of fun,” says Kumin. “He was one of our favourite horses when he was a racehorse. We love turf racing and we love racing in New York, so all of that together is exciting.”
Slumber was bred in Britain by the Juddmonte-affiliated Millsec Ltd out of Sound Asleep, a Woodman relation to multiple G1 winners Aptitude and Slew O’Gold. He is from the first small crop of Cacique, a G1-winning brother to Dansili. Despite his serious fertility problems, an issue that resulted in just 145 live foals in seven crops, Cacique left behind three G1 winners - Dominant and Mutual Trust as well as Slumber.
British readers may remember Slumber from his time in Lambourn with Barry Hills and son Charlie, for whom he won the listed James Seymour Stakes at Newmarket and was placed in the G3 Tercentenary Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Following his 3yo season, he was sent to the US to be trained by Bill Mott, who saddled him to win a pair of Saratoga allowances and run G2-placed.
At the end of his 6yo career, Slumber was catalogued to the Keeneland November Sale, where he sold for $200,000 to agent Steve Young. Thus it was in the colours of Michael Dubb, Sheep Pond Partners and Bethlehem Stables LLC and under the care of Chad Brown that he reappeared.
“We bought him at public auction with Chad Brown,” says Kumin. “Chad loved him and thought he could win a Grade 1 with him.”
Those hopes were duly met. Over the next two years, Slumber won the G1 Manhattan Stakes at Belmont Park and ran second or third in the G1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic, Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap, United Nations Stakes and Woodford Reserve Turf Classic, the latter at the grand age of eight.
He retired to stud in 2017 at a moderate fee of $5,000 but, despite the depth of his G1 record and evident durability, failed to catch the imagination.
“After he retired, he went to stud, but never really had a chance,” says Kumin. “It’s already very difficult to make a turf stallion in the US, and his books were very small.
“We bred a few mares to him to support him, but, after a few years, his numbers were so small that the farm was going to give up on him. They let Chad know he was going to be gelded and I asked if I could buy him.
“I bought him and moved him to New York, and really made him a stallion for us.”
Slumber’s move to New York coincided with an end-of-year flourish from his talented daughter Fluffy Socks.
One of just 17 foals in his first crop, Fluffy Socks was bred out of the Kitten’s Joy mare Breakfast Time at a time when Kumin’s breeding programme consisted of a handful of horses. Trained by Chad Brown, she won second time out at Kentucky Downs at 2 before striking in the listed Selima Stakes at Pimlico. She ended her juvenile campaign by taking the G3 Jimmy Durante Stakes at Del Mar and, following several strong placed efforts in top company last year at 3, notably a third in the G1 Del Mar Oaks, returned to winning ways in the G2 Sand Point Stakes. She was last seen running third in the G1 American Oaks at Santa Anita.
Such a valuable flag-bearer can work wonders for a stallion, but the connection between the filly and the Kumin family runs a lot deeper.
“Our breeding programme is very small,” explains Kumin. “When we bred Fluffy Socks, we might have bred four to five horses total. It’s gotten bigger now, we’re up to 20 to 25, but that’s about the max for us.
“Fluffy was our first homebred stakes winner and she's my son Sam’s favourite horse. He named her and he claims her mom, Breakfast Time, is his horse. Breakfast Time was our first mare. We raced her, and we still own her today.”
Exciting year ahead?
Any idea that Fluffy Socks might be a one-hit wonder for Slumber has been firmly quashed by the emergence of Sy Dog. Marvelous Maude, who belongs to the same first crop as Fluffy Socks, is also a 2-time winner for Chad Brown.
Remarkably, Sy Dog is one of only three newly-turned 3yos in Slumber’s second crop. Bred out of the winning Scat Daddy mare My Love Venezuela, he is unbeaten in two starts for Graham Motion, crowned by a victory in the listed Central Park Stakes at Aqueduct.
“Sy Dog is named after my son Sam’s best friend Sy,” says Kumin. “They named him together. Both him and Fluffy Socks are getting short breaks now and both have exciting years ahead if they can move forward.”
So what does the future hold for Slumber? The sire of seven winners overall, his move to New York has marked something of a restart for his stud career, and Rockridge Stud’s Erin Robinson reports that his success has not gone unnoticed by New York breeders. Turf racing is growing in popularity in New York while interest in the regional market itself is flourishing with the support of the lucrative New York-bred incentive programme.
‘Sleeper’ stallion
“I think breeders are excited about him - I’m getting a lot of inquiries,” says Robinson. “Turf racing is becoming more prominent in New York and breeders are taking notice of this ‘sleeper’ stallion.
“I think I’m more excited watching his runners than I’ve ever been before! And they win in fantastic fashion, making it more exciting. Sy Dog’s come-from-behind win in the Central Park Stakes was exhilarating. I must have watched the replay a dozen times. I’m excited to see his first New York crop this year.”
It will be interesting to see how Slumber fares with outside support, and also if any European interests latch on to him. Regardless, however, he will always have Sol Kumin and his family in his corner, something that will undoubtedly continue to work well for both partners.
“This year, we will breed 15 to 20 mares to Slumber and we will race all of them,” says Kumin. “We are happy to have others breed to him but, truthfully, we don’t really care. We want him to live a good life and we will breed 15 to 20 horses to him a year ourselves to race.”