Bartons Look to Consolidate with Magali Farms Purchase

Kate Barton

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Richard Barton, a longtime racehorse owner in California who has seen his bloodstock holdings rise exponentially over the last several years, has found a centralized base for his operation with the recent purchase of Magali Farms in Santa Ynez.

“We expect it to close July 31, so we're in the process,” confirmed Barton's daughter and racing manager Kate. “Our operation has gotten pretty big over the years and I think it was just about time that we have a place of our own and we can really manage our operation from the time the mare foals out until they get to be a yearling and we're sales prepping or getting ready to break the babies. It's nice to centralize our operation and have everything in one spot.”

The Bartons have been standing Champ Pegasus at Legacy Ranch and the freshman sire, winner of the 2010 GI Clement L. Hirsch Memorial Turf Championship, will relocate to the renamed Barton Thoroughbreds for the 2018 breeding season.

“Champ Pegasus's first crop is 2-year-olds and they are running right now,” Barton said. “There are a few precocious ones. So hopefully next year will be great with him at his new home.”

From five starters, Champ Pegasus had his first winner when the Barton homebred Schulace captured his debut at Santa Anita June 2.

Champ Pegasus will join the existing stallion roster at Magali: Decarchy, Richard's Kid, Coil, Roi Charmant, Atticus, Tom's Tribute and Mr. Broad Blade.

“So far, all the stallions that are there are going to be staying there,” Barton said. “And we are looking for some new exciting additions to add to our stallion roster. There is nothing that I can announce yet, but I am hoping that we will have a few new ones to add to the farm.”

The Bartons' broodmare band currently numbers about 225 mares.

“We both race and sell,” Barton said. “We follow a yearling evaluation plan that we do every year. A few times we look at babies, I have some people who help me evaluate and we kind of decide what path would be best for them. We try to put them in some different select sales–we want to look good in the market with Champ Pegasus or with some of our Kentucky-sired Cal-breds. But we also want to keep some to race. I think this last year, we kept 16 2-year-olds to race. So we do end up selling quite a bit and moving them around, but we do love to be at the track and racing.”

Many of the family's broodmares have been acquired at the Keeneland November Breeding Stock, where the Bartons have been very active in the last few years. In 2016, they purchased 51 horses for $303,300 for an average of $5,947.

“Last year, we did buy quite a few mares,” said Barton, whose father is founder of the cardboard packaging company California Packaging. “This year I hope to buy less. I always have my eye on a few hot sires that I would like to get a mare who is in foal to, but we kind of just have to see where the market goes and what we're able to afford when we go back there. We'll just do our homework when we get the catalogues and books and go back and see what we can get. But I would definitely like to buy not as many and buy better quality mares.”

The Bartons have enjoyed success bringing moderately priced mares bought in Kentucky to California. They purchased the mare Grant Marty a Wish (Beautiful Crown) (hip 3478), in foal to English Channel, for $17,000 at the 2014 Keeneland November sale. Her English Channel foal, now named Drizzy, won his debut against state-bred foes by 5 1/2 lengths May 20 for trainer Mike Machowsky, earning $32,400. The mare has produced foals by Champ Pegasus the last two years.

Also at the 2014 November sale, the Bartons purchased Appealing Bride (Unbridled's Song) in foal to Midas Touch (GB) for $3,700. Following the acquisition, the mare's Appealing Tale (Tale of the Cat) went on to win the 2015 GII Kelso H. and GII Pat O'Brien S. Returned to Keeneland in 2015, while not in foal, Appealing Bride (hip 2910) sold for $150,000.

“We tend to buy on the last week of the November sale when the prices have definitely gone down,” Barton said. “The majority of our broodmares are between $3,000 and $10,000 in foal back there–I usually prefer to buy mares in foal so we have a baby on the ground the following year. But we bring those mares out and lots of times what happens is we have really good luck with the babies. Drizzy won his 2-year-old debut at Santa Anita in a straight Cal-bred madien special weight. So it's nice that we're the owner, the breeders and we got the Cal-bred bonus. That's what we're trying to do.”

As the family continues to expand its investments in the state, Barton sees plenty of upside in the California breeding and racing program.

“It is important that we continue to invest in the California industry and that we continue to breed here,” she said. “I have faith in the program. I love racing Cal-breds. I love the bonus program and I love being able to race against Cal-breds before you go to open company. And we've also found success in buying mares back at Keeneland in foal to Kentucky sires and bringing them out here and foaling them and having them be Cal-breds. It adds a little bit of diversity to the market. So far, it's what we like to do and it's working for us. We love being in California, so it seems perfect to be into the California-bred program.”

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