Taylor Made Stallions has joined Fred Hertrich's All American Harnessbreds and the Standardbred powerhouse Blue Chip Farms in the ownership group of undefeated two-year-old pacer Travel Playlist.
Both Blue Chip's Tom Grossman and Hertrich are heavily involved in Thoroughbred racing as well as harness horses.
Taylor Made has a long history in Standardbred racing, but it had been years since the farm raced a trotter or pacer, said Duncan Taylor. “My dad (Joe Taylor) was in the Standardbred business, as was my granddad, and when we were young we always went to the Harrisburg sale,” said Taylor, who recalled having Kerry Way, a filly bred by John Gaines who won the Hambletonian in 1966, at Taylor Made Farm. Joe Taylor was the longtime farm manager for the Gaines family and raised both Standardbreds and Thoroughbreds.
Duncan Taylor said he was offered a piece of Travel Playlist by agent Ernie Martinez. “He called me about this horse and said if you're interested, Blue Chip will take a piece, as will Fred Hertrich, a customer of ours who is also in the Standardbred business. I asked a childhood friend, Steve Stewart from Hunterton Farms (a Standardbred nursery in Paris, Ky.) what he thought, and he said he didn't see any holes in it.”
The last harness horse the family owned, he said, had been Eilean Donan, who they raced in partnership with Stewart, who was one of the favorites in the 2004 Hambletonian but who broke stride coming away from the gate.
Travel Playlist is scheduled to race Saturday night at Yonkers, said Taylor, “but we won't make it up there. We'll watch it on the red mile or TVG. I'd like to watch the race.”
Hertrich added, “I am excited to be involved with long time friends and business partners Taylor Made and Blue Chip Farms in a horse with the ability of Travel Playlist.” Following Travel Playlist's retirement from the racetrack at the end of 2016, the new team will retain the right to manage his stallion career.
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