by Murray Brown

It was shortly before the Lexington Grand Circuit meeting and the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale and in the week following when I spoke with Steve Head, a prominent owner in the Tony Alagna stable.

“There is so much to learn and so much to gain by participating in this great pursuit known as harness racing,” said Head. “I think that maybe the best part of it is the exposure to all the great people in the sport and, of course, the wonderful horses that make the game so gratifying.

“I suppose I’ve dabbled in it most of my adult life.  I was first introduced to the game when my dad took me to the races at nearby Rosecroft Raceway as a child. I became friends with driver/trainer Jimmy Morand — a relationship that still exists today. I gradually became more involved. I then had horses with Les Givens, Eddie Hart and John Berger dabbling with some New York Sires Stakes performers. It was when I called my now dear friend Myron Bell that I first became involved with Grand Circuit horses.”

You just called Myron out of the blue?

“I did. A few days after the Harrisburg sale concluded and I wasn’t able to come home with any of Captain’s first crop. I hadn’t met him before but read about him and his deep knowledge of pedigrees and his race management skills. I really had no idea how deep that initial call would lead me into my participation in the sport. I found Myron to be quite welcoming and we talked and talked. He indicated that if I wanted to come into one or more of his groups, I would be very welcome. Since then, there is rarely a conversation I have with Myron where I haven’t learned something.”

From that first phone call you became a part owner of a group of horses that now numbers in the area of 20.

“Yes. Myron introduced me to Tony Alagna with who I have most of my horses. Captaintreacherous was just getting started then and many of my equine investments were in foals by ‘The Captain.’ We had some very good horses including Rockyroad Hanover, Boudoir Hanover and Bellissima Hanover. We also went back-to-back in the Governor’s Cup with El Rey and Captain Luke. Those investments led to me also to becoming involved in the breeding end of the sport. I was not only racing these great animals, but also involved in breeding and raising them at Hunterton Farms with Steve and Cindy Stewart. I also have a small interest in the stallions Bettor’s Wish and Perfect Sting. Not only have I been involved in some good horses, but I have met some of the best owners in the business and I would be remiss if I hadn’t mentioned them as they have been just as important in our success. Mr. Segal [Brittany Farms], Robert LeBlanc, Brad Grant, Robbie Pryde, Caviart Farms, John Fodera, Daniel Plouffe and obviously Myron and Stephanie Bell. Of course, I can’t say enough about how much I have learned from Tony Alagna and how great he has been to own horses with. Ms. Donna, his mom, is the best and I see where Tony got his work ethic from.”

What is your “day job” that allows you to own horses?

“I grew up wanting to become a professional baseball player dreaming of playing in the Major Leagues and I took it as far as I wanted to go. My dad started a business which specialized in moving military families wherever in the globe their duties might take them. The business has grown and expanded to providing a comprehensive list of services in the commercial real estate industry as well. This includes the military, many other governmental agencies, and private sector. I’m mostly involved in the sales end and business development.”

Last year you switched from placing your eggs in the Captaintreacherous basket to that of Tall Dark Stranger.

“Yes, we did. In retrospect, it perhaps was not the best idea. Not so much the investing in Tall Dark Stranger part, but rather the part where we strayed from Captaintreacherous. After all, we had had nothing but success with him and his offspring. I suppose we rationalized doing so by buying Tall Dark Strangers out of the best mares by Captaintreacherous. We were still in the Captaintreacherous camp, but a generation removed.

“With regard to Tall Dark Stranger, I think the view in the industry is that he has been a huge disappointment. We saw that in the results from the Lexington Sale. I don’t really believe that to be so. Has he been disappointing? I don’t know if I am ready to say that yet. But the expectations were so high that I doubt that any sire other than a super stallion such as Captaintreacherous or Sweet Lou could have met them. When you look at Tall Dark Stranger’s numbers, if he were just an ordinary stallion making his debut, those numbers would have been quite satisfactory. They showed up. They were competitive in stakes races and we sent two who made the Metro final. People go to the select yearling sales expecting superstars. That is especially so when they spend the large amounts of money that we, as well as most of those who bought them did. Nevertheless, he has sired a bunch of very competitive youngsters, who to my eyes keep on improving. I’m far from ready to say that I’m leaving his camp. In fact, I purchased a very nice colt the first night in Lexington by him.”

How is your horse portfolio structured now?

“I presently have about 16 in training of which a few are scheduled to be sold in the mixed sale at Harrisburg. We will be carrying over a few of our 2-year-olds to race at 3. I’m involved in five of the yearlings that were bought in Lexington. I’m guessing that we will probably get a few in Harrisburg. I’ll probably meet Tony in Hanover in the next week or two where we will look at this year’s consignment.”

When shopping, do you have a game plan?

“We actually begin our shopping in June, when Myron, Tony, and anybody else in the stable who is interested in doing so, goes to Kentucky and first gets a look at the forthcoming yearling class. After that Tony periodically visits the farms to keep up with the yearlings with which he has an interest. Then on the week of the sale we once again visit the farms and make our final decisions on which yearlings we are most interested in and how far we are willing to go to acquire them. As with most buyers I guess, we often go beyond our limits. I suppose that is the nature of auctions of any type.”

Lexington is now over. How many did you end up buying there?

“I ended up buying into five yearlings: two Always B Miki colts, a Captaintreacherous colt that I love, a Tall Dark Stranger brother to Strangerinthenight and Hip #34 on opening night, a Perfect Sting colt who is a first foal from a stakes-winning full sister to this year’s sensational colt Fallout. We really stepped out on him. We bought him for $275,000.”

Now on to Harrisburg. What do you anticipate you will be doing with regard to purchases?

“As I said previously, we will be both buyers and sellers at Harrisburg. We have several yearlings earmarked in the Hanover consignment that we will be taking a close look at. I’m sure there will be several others with other consignors. I have pieces of 10 scheduled to be sold in the mixed sale. They include some real good ones which I am certain will make good raceway horses for whoever buys them.”