Longtime Thoroughbred owner and breeder Virginia Kraft Payson died Jan. 9 in Central Kentucky, according to friends and acquaintances. She was 92.
Payson also owned Payson Stud in Kentucky and Payson Park Training Center before placing the latter on the market about 10 years ago. The popular South Florida facility, used by many of the sport's most respected trainers after she refurbished it, is currently owned by Thoroughbred owner Peter Brant.
Trainer Christophe Clement, who trained graded stakes-winning homebreds Rutherienne, Ruthenia, and Scipion for Payson, remembered her as "a very successful lady" who was assertive and "ahead of her time."
"Payson will carry on and that will be her legacy as well," he added.
Prior to her involvement in the equine industry, Payson worked as a journalist for Sports Illustrated magazine for 26 years, beginning with its first issue in 1954. She also authored five books on boating, training dogs, shotgun sports, and tennis.
In recent years, Payson experienced the debilitating effects of Parkinson's disease, which limited her ability to communicate, said Anna Colombo, a former assistant at Payson Stud who remained in contact with her.
"She had a full life," Colombo said.
In an interview with BloodHorse in 2013, Payson, a native of New York City, recalled her introduction to the sport when her second husband, the late Charles Shipman Payson, first bid on a yearling at Fasig-Tipton in the late 1970s.
Virginia Payson would later race such standouts as 1984 Travers Stakes (G1) winner Carr De Naskra and homebred champion St. Jovite, a multiple group 1 winner who was European Horse of the Year in 1992. Other prominent horses bred by Payson included Lac Ouimet, L'Carriere, Milesius, Salem Drive, Strawberry Reason, and Uptown Swell. Her mare Northern Sunset was honored as 1995 Broodmare of the Year.
Payson was honored as 1997 Breeder of the Year by the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association. She became known for a breed-to-race operation before making a shift to breed commercially in 1999.
"People told me, 'Well, you'll never be successful selling horses because people will believe you are just culling," she told BloodHorse in 2013. "My breeding operation has never been very large. I averaged 12 broodmares over all the years, with only about eight foals a year. But in the first crop I sold Farda Amiga (2002 champion 3-year-old filly), and the next year included Vindication (2002 champion 2-year-old male). With those two great successes, that changed people's minds."
Mike Stidham, who trained for Payson for a short period, said that as her health initially declined, she remained excited to talk about her runners.
"She was always enthusiastic about her horses and how they ran," Stidham said. "Just really loved the horses so much. You could tell how much she loved the horses no matter what her condition was.
"Everything she did for racing was pretty similar, I thought, to Josephine Abercrombie, who we just lost (in January 2022)."
This story will be updated with funeral arrangements and additional details when available.
