Bel Sheba xx

Bel Sheba (January 29, 1970 – 1995) was an American thoroughbred racehorse. She was sired by the middle-distance stallion Lt. Stevens, out of Belthazar, daughter of the great War Admiral. Bel Sheba raced 22 times and was trained by Hall of Fame jockey and trainer A. P. (Paddy) Smithwick. Her most notable race result was a third in the 1972 Adirondack Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. As a broodmare, however, she was more productive. Retired to Hamburg Place Farm, she is best known as the dam of Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner Alysheba. || Alysheba was bred by Preston Madden, the heir to Hamburg Place, a historic nursery in Lexington, Ky. Madden's grandfather, John E. Madden, bred five Derby winners there in the first quarter of the century, including Sir Barton, who became the first Triple Crown winner in 1919. The farm's most famous occupant in later years was War Admiral, the son of Man o' War who won the 1937 Triple Crown. In 1955, Preston Madden bred a mare named Blinking Owl to War Admiral, who had been moved to Hamburg in his waning years. The resulting filly, Belthazar, was the last foal sired by War Admiral. Belthazar never made it to the races but produced 10 foals. Eight of them raced and won but none amounted to much on the track. One of these was Bel Sheba. She was sired by Lt. Stevens, a quick middle-distance horse and a grandson of Nasrullah, the sire of Bold Ruler. Bel Sheba raced in 1971 and 1972, winning five of 22 starts and earning $34,031. Her sole mention in the record books, until now, was for finishing third to Faithful Girl in the 1972 Adirondack Stakes at Saratoga. Retired to Hamburg Place, she was a steady producer. Her second foal, Port Master, won 11 races and more than $175,000. That made her subsequent foals more marketable, especially amid the breeding boom of the early 1980's. In 1982, a Graustark-Bel Sheba filly sold for $250,000. In 1983, an Alydar-Bel Sheba colt fetched $200,000, and in 1985, a second Alydar-Bel Sheba colt sold for $500,000. The first Alydar-Bel Sheba colt was named Titanic and ran like his namesake, winning just two of 11 starts in an injury-plagued career. The second Alydar-Bel Sheba colt, purchased by the Clarence Scharbauer family at the 1985 Keeneland select summer yearling sales, was Alysheba. ||