Champion Connections: Street Sense
Kentucky is known as the Horse Capital of the World for a number of reasons – we raise, race and care for some of the best horses here in the Bluegrass.
These experiences are a recommendation of ways to dive deeper into the life cycle of some of the fan favorites that call the Bluegrass home. Suggested tours might visit a place where a horse was raised, sold, raced or currently resides, along with other suggestions involving their racing rivals or family members.
Please note that all tours have to be booked separately, and we cannot guarantee any particular horse on any particular tour. All showings are made based upon the health and daily schedule of the equine residents
Horse Country Champion Connections: Street Sense
Bred in Kentucky by James B. Tafel, champion stallion Street Sense earned over $4.3 million in 13 starts during his racing career. Street Sense gained popularity with his impressive win as the first horse to win the Kentucky Derby and Breeders Cup Juvenile, which only one other horse has accomplished (fellow Darley stallion + Jonabell Farm resident, Nyquist!)
Learn more about Street Sense’s journey from foaling, to the finish line, and beyond.
Kentucky Derby Victory
Street Sense entered the Kentucky Derby off of a second place finish in the G1 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland. The colt was the post time favorite, and spent a majority of the race at the back of the pack under jockey Calvin Borel. Street Sense began to pass horses on the far turn, and took over the lead from pace-setting Hard Spun in the stretch to win by 2 ¼ lengths. The Derby win was the second time his trainer Carl Nafzger trained a winner of the run for the roses, and the first and only Derby winner for his owner and breeder Jim Tafel.
Jonabell Farm – Sired by Street Cry
Street Sense’s connection to Jonabell Farm began very early on, thanks to his sire Street Cry, who stood at Jonabell Farm.
Street Cry was a champion racehorse, winning United Arab Emirates Horse of the Year (2002) and United Arab Emirates Champion Older Male (2002). He passed those champion genes down to his progeny, as he sired 1,109 winners and 133 stakes winners. While he stood at Jonabell Farm, Street Cry’s stud fee was as high as $150,000. Though Street Cry passed away in 2014, his legacy continues, specifically at Jonabell Farm with Street Sense and his sons.
Keeneland – Racing Career
Out of the many tracks Street Sense raced at, one that is particularly tied to Horse Country is Keeneland. Street Sense ran at Keeneland twice, finishing top three each time. He finished 3rd at the Lane’s End Futurity in 2006 and finished 2nd at the Toyota Bluegrass Stakes in 2007.
Learn more about training, racing, and sales that take place at Keeneland on one of their tours, which can be booked here!
Jonabell Farm – Stallion Duty
After a successful racing career, Street Sense retired to stud at Jonabell Farm in 2008 and has a fee of $75,000. There, he stands alongside two of his progeny, Maxfield, a two-time Grade 1 winner and Speaker’s Corner, a Grade 1 winner new to Darley in 2023.
One of Street Sense’s biggest racing rivals Hard Spun also stands at Jonabell Farm! Hard Spun and Street Sense competed against each other four times, with both horses placing ahead of the other in two starts each. These two now spend their days turned out in neighboring paddocks, probably reliving their racetrack days!
For a chance to see Street Sense and learn more about the Thoroughbred breeding process, check out the Stallion Complex Walking Tour at Jonabell Farm!
