By Bill Finley
When it became clear that his broodmare Andrea Gail (Storm Bird) would deliver twins in 2017, Florida horseman Craig Wheeler was understandably upset. Having already produced a Grade III winner, Andrea Gail was among the more valuable mares on Wheeler's farm in Ocala and would be delivering two horses who would have little commercial value. No one wants a twin. They are often too small and frequently have physical problems. Most don't even survive. Experts say that in cases where broodmares have twin pregnancies, two healthy foals are delivered only 1% of the time. A horse's uterus is generally not big enough for two fetuses to remain healthy all the way to birth.
But Wheeler had no choice other than to persevere with the pair and take whatever he could get for them at the sales or through a private purchase. It's good that he did. Twins Catch Ya Later Bro (Fury Kapcori) and Twin Turbo may never become stars, but they have already exceeded what virtually everyone expects from twins, which is not much. On Oct. 31 at Hawthorne, Twin Turbo won a $25,000 maiden claimer. Fifty-seven days later, Catch Ya Later Bro won a $40,000 maiden claimer at Tampa Bay Downs on Dec. 27.
“I'm very much surprised how they have turned out,” Wheeler said. “I have to give my wife, Elizabeth, credit. She fed the heck out of them.”
Andrea Gail had produced the Grade III winner Areyoutalkintome (Smokester) and had another foal sell for $500,000, so when she was sent to sire Fury Kapcori, Wheeler had high expectations for how the mating would work out. Instead, he ran into one problem after another. Catch Ya Later Bro was a normal-sized horse, but had serious conformation issues. Twin Turbo was correct, but small enough that Wheeler knew no one would pay a lot of money for him.
“One was always called big twin and the other little twin,” Wheeler said. “We moved Twin Turbo to a nurse mare so they would both get sufficient nutrients. They kept coming along. Even though being cared for by different mares, they were in the same paddock and were best friends growing up. With the bigger one, his legs were pretty crooked and we had to put some screws in them to straighten them up. He was a work in progress the whole way. At the beginning, the little one had to go to the clinic. He was pretty weak and it took a lot nurturing to bring him along.”
By the time the horses were two, Wheeler had them ready to be put up for sale. When trainer Bill Sienkewicz, who winters in Tampa, first saw Catch Ya Later Bro, he wasn't worried about the twin factor.
“When I saw him I wasn't concerned at all that he was a twin,” Sienkewicz said. “In my experience, I've seen that twins are usually weedy individuals and this one wasn't like that. He was a nice looking colt and there was a lot of substance to him. I felt real comfortable buying him.”
Owner Josie Gump said all she needed was one look before deciding to buy Catch Ya Later Bro.
“Why wasn't I worried that he was a twin? Because I saw him,” she said. “He wasn't a spindly, little, gnarly kid. He's a really good-looking horse.”
Catch You Later Bro made his debut at Tampa, finishing second in a $25,000 maiden claimer. Sienkewicz said he won't risk running him back in another claiming race next out.
“I think this horse has some quality to him,” he said. “I'll probably move him up to an allowance race or even try the Pasco S. He's been training great. His first race really woke him up. He is the nicest damn horse. I imagine as a twin he got a lot of attention when being raised. He's just a wonderful horses and I'm so glad we got him.”
About the time See Ya Later Bro was sold, trainer Ingrid Mason was looking for some inexpensive prospects for owner Mike Waters. Retaining an ownership interest in the horse, she helped pick out Twin Turbo at the OBS June 2-Year-Old Sale, where he went for $25,000.
“He's small, but I don't mind small horses,” Mason said. “He was a good-looking individual and was correct. I liked him. Absolutely, I was discouraged that he was a twin, but I'm sure he would have sold for a lot more if not a twin.”
Twin Turbo needed four starts to break his maiden, but when he did it was an encouraging effort. He drew off to win by 5 1/2 lengths.
It looks like the two have fairly comparable ability, but don't expect them to meet any time soon. Mason races in Chicago and at Oaklawn. After Tampa closes, Sienkewicz goes to Delaware Park. A win in the Pasco S. by Catch You Later Bro could put him on the route to the GII Tampa Bay Derby, but that seems like a reach. But there's nothing wrong with being a solid horse who earns enough to pay the bills. With the way they have been running, that's not too much to ask of Catch You Later Bro and Twin Turbo–even if they are twins.
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