BY BROCK SHERIDAN
SEPTEMBER 13, 2003—Smok’n Frolic and jockey Edgar Prado joined Country Romance and So Much More after a half mile, took over in the turn then kicked clear in the stretch to win the $175,000 Turfway Breeders’ Cup (Grade 3) by three-and-a-half lengths at Turfway Park.
Trained by Todd Pletcher throughout her career for Cot Campbell’s Dogwood Stable partnership, the 4-year-old Smok’n Frolic won her second graded stakes in 2003 and her first in seven starts since taking the Grade 3 Next Move Handicap at Aqueduct six months earlier. That victory in the Next Move pushed Smok’n Frolic into millionaire status with earnings of $1,016,294.
Smok’n Frolic earned $108,500 in winning the mile-and-one-sixteenth Turfway Breeders’ Cup, increased her career earnings at that point to $1,225,500 from eight wins, seven of which had come in stakes, with five seconds and a third in 23 career starts.
She was the 9-5 post time favorite and carried the top weight of 122 pounds among the nine fillies and mares in the Turfway Breeders’ Cup.
She paid $5.60 to win.
Although she would win only one of the remaining 10 starts in her career, it came in her second victory in the Next Move Handicap on March 14, 2004. Among those last 10 races of her career were three seconds, all in stakes including in the Grade 3 Bed o’ Roses Handicap as the 119 highweight when two-and-a-quarter lengths behind winner Passing Shot on April 17, 2004 at Aqueduct. In her next race, she was second to Bear Fan in the Grade 2 Vagrancy Handicap at Belmont Park on June 5.
Her last start came on Aug. 9, 2004 when fifth in Lady Tak’s Grade 1 Ballerina Handicap at Saratoga Race Course.
Smok’n Frolic retired with nine wins, eight seconds and two thirds in 33 starts with earnings of $1,534,720. Among her nine wins, eight were in stakes, six of which came in graded stakes. All eight of her seconds were in stakes, six in graded stakes; and both of her thirds came in graded stakes.
In November of 2004, she sold for $1.25 million to Adena Springs Farm out of the Three Chimneys Sales as agent consignment at the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
She was an exceptional broodmare, with eight winners—including a multiple graded stakes-winning champion, a black-type winner and a graded black-type placer—from eight starters and nine foals.
Her first foal, winner A.P. Cardinal, by A.P. Indy, sold for $380,000 to Ol Memorial Stables at the 2008 Adena Springs Sale of 2-year-olds in training and her second foal was multiple graded stakes-winner Hunters Bay, by Ghostzapper, the Canadian champion older horse of 2012. Her third foal, winner Grip Hands, by Giant’s Causeway, was purchased by All the Rage Partners at the 2009 Keeneland September Yearling Sale for $260,000 then was pinhooked by McKathan Bros., as agent to the Fasig-Tipton Florida Select Sale of 2-year-olds in training where West Point Thoroughbreds bought him for $500,000.
Adena Springs sold Smok’n Frolic in foal to Ghostzapper for $750,000 to Shadai Farm at the 2008 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale and the resulting foal was Japanese multiple stakes-winner Wild Flapper (Jpn), and earner of US$1,981,029. Smok’n Frolic also produced graded stakes-placed Big Smoky (Jpn), by King Kamehameha (Jpn), an earner of US$969,958.
Smok’n Frolic was by Smoke Glacken out of Cherokyfrolicflash, by Green Dancer and was bred in Florida by Cherokee Farms owned by Norman and Carol Thaw of Westin, Fla., and Steve and Ann Friedfertig and Aventura, Fla.
She was named by the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association as the champion Florida-bred 2-year-old filly of 2001 and the Florida-bred champion older female in 2003.
Return to the September 13 issue of Wire to Wire
