St Patrick's Day, an 11-year-old son of Pioneerof the Nile and a graded-placed full brother to 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, has started a new phase of his stud career as a private farm stallion for Summer Wind Farm, where he was born and raised.
The farm near Georgetown, Ky., disclosed appropriately on Facebook March 17 that St Patrick's Day had already covered a mare and is scheduled to be mated to the Brethren daughter Lailoni, who has already produced a grade 3 stakes winner by St Patrick's Day named Mythical. Arindel Farm in Florida bred and race Mythical, who won the Any Limit Stakes March 14.
Summer Wind Farm owner Jane Lyon brought St Patrick's Day back home last year after visiting Brent and Crystal Fernung's Journeyman Stud near Ocala, Fla., where the stallion entered stud in 2020. The Fernungs were closing their stallion operation and asked Lyon if she wanted the horse back at Summer Wind.
"They were so nice. We realized that we all cared very much about our animals," Lyon said about the visit to Journeyman. "Rather than not know where he would end up, I said I was interested."
A private arrangement was made and St Patrick's Day returned to the farm where he was born only a few months before American Pharoah became the first horse to sweep the Triple Crown in 37 years. The full brothers are out of the Yankee Gentleman daughter Littleprincessemma, who has also produced a grade 1-placed full sister named American Cleopatra and a grade 1-winning half sister named Chasing Yesterday (Tapit ).
Lyon said on the recent Facebook post that she has a lot of choices among young, attractive mares that are well suited to St Patrick's Day.
"I decided to do a little home cooking," Lyon said. "Not only will I be having corned beef and cabbage in my kitchen today, but I'll also be having a little home cooking with my mares and breeding. I decided, since I have so many homebreds, to do a few experiments with my own mares."
To date, St Patrick's Day has sired 42 winners that include 2024 Davona Dale Stakes (G2) winner Fiona's Magic and stakes-placed winners Drewmania, Jive, and You Need Me. St Patrick's Day led Florida's freshman sire standings in 2023 and was a top-15 sire nationally. He went on to be Florida's leading second-crop sire the following year.
Another Summer Wind-bred and -owned half brother to St Patrick's Day named Triple Tap (Tapit) is on the farm and expected to cover a few mares as well. The 8-year-old stakes-placed, two-time winner raced primarily for trainer Bob Baffert. He won a 6-furlong allowance race Nov. 5, 2021, at Del Mar in 1:08.44, which was faster than the final time (1:08.49) in the Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) won by Aloha West the following day on the same track.
