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C O N S T E L L A T I O N C O N S T E L L A T I O N WinStarFarm.com Shareholder Profile: Sandra Sexton 116 When you own the horse, it is an exciting feeling. You get just as excited when you win an allowance race or even a claiming race or a stakes race. Sandra Sexton " " Sexton's uncle, Rex Ellsworth (standing behind trainer "Mesh" Tenney), owned and bred 1955 Kentucky Derby winner Swaps. Photo courtesy of California Thoroughbred Breeders Association Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. "The family has always been into racehorses," said Sexton. "In 1955, we won the Kentucky Derby with Swaps. I went to work for my uncle in 1978, and he sent me here to Kentucky to manage the mares. We had Olden Times and a couple other stallions. That's when I met Hargus—we leased one of his farms." Hargus Sexton and Sandra were married in 1987. Together they bred or co-bred the likes of Grade 1 winners Corinthian, Crustaceo, Gayego, and Capo Bastone as well as numerous other graded stakes winners. One of Hargus Sexton's business partners and friends was Julian Walden, and that relationship is one that has now spanned generations. "For years, Hargus had been friends and business partners with Julian, who was the grandpa of the two boys, Ben and Elliott," Sexton said. "We bred horses to Ben's first stallion that he got, Bionic Light. Hargus supported him throughout the years. We always bought shares in Ben's stallions out at Vinery. When he wasn't involved in stallions anymore and moved the rest of them over to WinStar, we started buying shares in Elliott's horses." Among others the Sextons routinely worked with were bloodstock agent Tom Bozarth and Kitty Taylor of Warrendale Sales. The connection with Taylor is tied into the latest success story for Sexton. Last year, a Tiznow filly named Red Ruby made headlines by becoming a multiple graded stakes winner. Her victories include the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes (G2) and Delaware Oaks (G3), and after a layoff, she is being pointed toward a 2019 campaign. Red Ruby, who was bred by the Sextons and their partners Steven and Brandi Nicholson of Silver Fern Farm, races as a homebred. Brandi previously worked for Warrendale, and Steven worked for Adena Springs, which is how they came to know the Sextons. "Steven studies the pedigrees and makes the initial matings list," said Sexton. "Then we discuss it and go with what physicals work best. He works very hard on that list. We have all the shares, and then we also plug in some of the other stallions and decide to breed one mare to this one and one to that one." The partners normally sell what they breed, but the decision had been made early on that the Tiznow filly would be kept as a future member of the broodmare band due to the success of her dam. "Kitty, who sells our horses, called Hargus and wanted him to buy this mare, Caroni, so we did," said Sexton. "That was Red Ruby's mother. She was getting older, and I told Steven and Brandi that we should keep a filly out of her. "We've always liked Tiznow, and Red Ruby is the one we kept. We were going to keep her whether she ever raced or not. Fortunately, she is a multiple graded stakes winner, and we are having a lot of fun. We don't very often keep them. We sell everything, but we really wanted to keep a filly out of the mare." That decision is understandable. Caroni, whose first big runner was the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) runner-up Beautician, has produced four more six-figure earners since joining the Sexton/Nicholson herd, including additional graded stakes winner and Kentucky Derby runner Mo Tom and, of course, Red Ruby. "Caroni has been so good to us," said Brandi Nicholson. "Her offspring, whether they have been racehorses or not, have gone on to sell well. We really wanted to keep something out of her. "I'm not in a rush to get Red Ruby back, but I can't help but imagine what kind of broodmare she's going to be. She's a big, long, tall girl, and she's gray, really pretty, and has an attractive head. I am excited to have her back on the farm as a broodmare when the time comes." Happily, Caroni remains in good health and continues to be a productive member of the broodmare band. She had a colt by Honor Code in 2018 and was bred back to Tiznow this spring.