Hronis Racing and Talla Racing's Rock Your World became a fourth generation stakes winner bred by Hall of Fame trainer Ron McAnally and his wife, Deborah, when he led every step of the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby (G1) April 3 at Santa Anita Park and crossed the finish line 4 1/4 lengths in front. The Candy Ride colt's respective first, second, and third dams—stakes winner, multiple grade 1-placed Charm the Maker, grade 3 winner Charm the Giant, and multiple grade 2 winner, grade 1-placed Olympic Charmer—were all bred, owned, and trained by the McAnallys.
Don Robinson, who stables the McAnallys' breeding stock at his Winter Quarter Farm in Lexington, spoke to BloodHorse MarketWatch about raising Rock Your World and the success the McAnallys have had with this equine family.
MarketWatch: How long have you worked with the McAnallys and what has it been like working with Rock Your World?
Don Robinson: It's been a really long time. We met by way of a mutual friend, a client of mine named Jack Goodwin, that had this exceptional horse, very fast horse named Matty G. Ron took over the training of him and took him to the (Kentucky) Derby (G1). That was 1996. Jack had this great mare that he claimed (Star Gem) that became the dam of Matty G and Star of Cozzene, and another sprinter named J. F. Williams. Just a phenomenal find, it was a Pia Star mare. Through Matty G I got to know Ron McAnally very well. I just knew who he was and we were maybe acquainted, but that was it. I got to know Ron through my acquaintance with Jack and it kind of went from there.
I've had four generations at this point. It's wild. It's just one of those gold mine families and it just keeps on producing. It's a motherload.
I can't think of any of them (Charm the Maker's foals) that have been dismissals. They all sure have some quality about them. And this horse was stunning, Rock Your World . He just was. Interestingly, there was a lot of interest in him at the (Keeneland September Yearling) sale. I had two Candy Rides in that session. It was Book 3, the first day, and I had two absolute stars. One was out of a mare called Always a Princess, who belonged to a client, Arnold Zetcher, who Ron McAnally brought to me to keep his mares.
They both were what you wanted to bring, these lucky lottery, gorgeous horses and had plenty of scope and size. They were unusual Candy Rides, because he can get kind of a small, unimpressive horse. He's an incredible sire, but these things were the size and scope everybody in the sale wants—a quality sale frame horse.
The one horse brought a million dollars and Rock Your World brought $650,000. I've never had a sale like that in my life—two horses that just were stars and they were received that way. That's unusual. Rock Your World, to me, had much more of a classic horse look. He didn't look ready today. He was a developing horse. The other horse was an absolute star; he looked like he was ready to run the day after tomorrow.
It fascinates me how patient (trainer) John Sadler has been with (Rock Your World). It's remarkable. He really took his time, kind of actually hid out with him to give him time—he's a big framed horse—to develop. I knew he'd run well; I had no clue he'd run like that. … He was a talking horse. People knew about him and said this horse is pretty interesting.
MW: How did Rock Your World develop from a young foal to the time you took him to the sale.
DR: He was a big horse. The foalings (with Charm the Maker) are never easy. It was kind of, as I recall, a tricky foaling, but he was one you really liked. He really came to hand. He was a good looking, big, unusual Candy Ride , I would say, with some size and scope, and he was pretty flawless growing up. He came forward, he was a big nice horse, and he was just a horse going up to the sale that if he vetted well, which he did—what do they say? Tick all the damn boxes, which most of them don't—it looked very promising.
It was a heck of a sale that day with those two horses. It was fun. I had two horses up there on the hill and the entire sale was on the ground at Keeneland that day. I don't think anybody didn't not see those two colts. And they sold like it. I've never topped a session and I topped the session. It was a very big rewarding day and everybody was thrilled. And it was for two great clients, the McAnallys and Arnold Zetcher.
You know that David Ingordo bought (Rock Your World), and you may recall that David Ingordo bought Zenyatta from me, picked her out. Now he paid a lot more money for this horse, but he really wanted both. You could tell he was very interested, and I was thrilled. It was interesting. He was standing alone when it was all over. I hope he's half as good as Zenyatta for these people and for the McAnallys, but that was a stunning race on Saturday. That was one of the more exciting races I've seen. For a horse in a third start, first on the dirt, to run like that is extraordinary.
MW: How much of Rock Your World's family have you worked with?
DR: (Rock Your World's fourth dam) Light a Charm came to me and Olympic Charmer came at her side, and we raised Olympic Charmer. Light a Charm I didn't know anything about at all, other than I know that Ron had purchased her or it was through some connection. Clearly, long ago, Ron recognized talent in that family.
Olympic Charmer was just really neat right from the start, just a lovely filly, and performed like it. When Ron and Deborah retired her they sent her to me and it was the season that Giant's Causeway retired (to stud). They asked me, "Who's the best horse? Who would you breed that mare to?" and I said Giant's Causeway. They sent her to Ireland to breed to Giant's Causeway. Charm the Giant was conceived there.
The caterpillars had hit (that caused) the mare reproductive loss (in Kentucky), and the McAnallys said for good reason, "I don't think we should send those mares to Kentucky right this minute." I couldn't argue with that, it made sense to me. That's why they stayed there (in Ireland), that's why there were a couple of (Irish-bred) crops. When things settled down they came home and we bred all these lovely horses.
Liam the Charmer (the John Henry Turf Championship, G2T, winner out of Charm the Giant), he was a knockout horse. For a Smart Strike, he was a really nice one. It's been just a lovely family to have. Even the ones that don't look like much seem to run a little bit. It's been great for them. We've had some of the fillies that didn't pan out that much that we sold, and it's just been a running and commercial family. It's a family that anyone would die to have. They've kept most of the fillies and it's really worked for them.
MW: Rock Your World is only Charm the Maker's second foal and her first one, She's Our Charm, was graded placed.
DR: (Charm the Maker) was a knockout, and is. An Empire Maker, she's very hotheaded, but she could run, and she's just a really neat mare. Empire Maker, to me, was a star. It was a really exciting mating and boom, she's a producer. All her foals are stunning. They're just neat, they're something. Of course the McAnallys are racing She's Our Charm. She's graded stakes placed. I think the best from her hasn't come yet. She's a nice one. They have a full brother that's there now, a 2-year-old.
MW: Charm the Maker's Candy Ride filly that was born this year, what is she like?
DR: Lovely. Big, strong, just what that mare gets. She's very nice.
MW: Charm the Maker has been to Candy Ride several times. What keeps you going back?
DR: Ron trained Candy Ride. We get these incredible horses from the combination so why go anywhere else? That's what we've done. That's why there are a lot of Candy Rides.
With this family, Candy Ride gets size and quality. It's just a different type of Candy Ride, it's quite extraordinary. And she does it every time. It's a non-decision. It's easy to go back to Candy Ride. He's become such an incredible sire, and when you get that kind of quality horse out of this family, I wouldn't do anything else. We ventured around a little bit. The Curlin (yearling) filly's just lovely.
MW: What qualities have you seen this family pass on from generation to generation?
DR: The fillies, they all can run. They all have ability. They run or they produce for the most part, and it's just been quite remarkable. You don't get many families like that. I've seen a few, and certainly have clients that have a few, but it's like hitting the lottery when you do and you better be smart enough if you want to stay in the game to keep one like that and keep the daughters, and (the McAnallys have) always done that. They recognized it fairly early.
They love breeding, they like training their own horses. … They've just been very fortunate to have this family and Ron saw that a long time ago.
MW: Do you have plans for who Charm the Maker will go back to this season?
DR: She'll go to Candy Ride.
MW: Anything else about working with the McAnallys you want to mention?
DR: They're gracious people, they know about horses. … They understand the good with the bad. They're just great people. They're in it for the long haul, they appreciate it, they appreciate what I do. They trust me. Debbie's really interested in it, asks a lot of great questions, and we talk all the time. This latest foal had to be delivered at the clinic (because of dystocia) and that was kind of touch and go. They're really understanding. Everything's great and the foal's doing awesome.
They're really close clients. The McAnallys have kind of become like family.
