Whereas writing, recording, and performing an extended string of high nation music hits for the reason that flip of the century took up most of his hours, Toby Keith additionally made the time to take pleasure in his massive Thoroughbred racing steady.

Upon the information of Keith’s Feb. 5 demise at age 62, the nation music singer and songwriter’s different ardour was on the thoughts of coach Bret Calhoun, who conditioned 2003 Arlington-Washington Futurity winner Cactus Ridge for Keith’s Dream Walkin’ Farms. Calhoun famous that as an proprietor and breeder Keith oversaw a big steady.

“In the event you have a look at his operation as a complete, I feel he simply wished to take pleasure in them as a lot as he may,” Calhoun mentioned. “He had huge numbers. He had them in any respect completely different ranges. All people all the time desires good horses and I feel that mattered to him. However I simply suppose he loved having motion. He preferred numbers and motion.”

Keith loved researching potential matings and it was common to see him at gross sales. However the pleasure of the observe captured Keith’s creativeness.

“He would attempt to work his schedule the place he may very well be at a few of the races whether or not he was taking part in live shows and get to fly in,” Calhoun mentioned. “He would all the time attempt to make it to a few of the larger races.”

The musician, who was born Toby Keith Covel, started shopping for horses to race within the late Nineties and breeding shortly thereafter. He later grew to become a Breeders’ Cup ambassador.

“We had been extraordinarily saddened to study of the passing of Toby Keith in the present day,” Breeders’ Cup mentioned in a launch. “Along with his large accomplishments within the music and leisure world, Toby was a longtime Breeders’ Cup ambassador and an enthusiastic Thoroughbred proprietor, breeder, and fan who enormously loved attending the Breeders’ Cup World Championships. Alongside along with his legion of followers, we are going to miss him very a lot and categorical our deepest condolences to his family members.”

His first horse, Jack Department, gained on first asking in a Dec. 13, 1997, maiden particular weight at Remington Park. Moreover Cactus Ridge, a son of Hennessy who would stand in Kentucky after which Oklahoma, Keith additionally campaigned 2016 Grade 3 winner Smack Smack, who was educated by Don Von Hemel.

At his peak, Keith had a number of hundred horses he was racing, breeding, or promoting below his Dream Walkin’ Farms banner. Not counting partnerships, Dream Walkin’ Farms gained 848 races from 6,587 starters with $18,648,853 in earnings in Equibase statistics that date again to 2001. In 2016, his operation ranked twelfth in proprietor wins. Dream Walkin’ Farms had two different top-15 finishes for wins (2015 and 2021) and since 2012 has persistently ranked within the high 100 by earnings and/or wins.

“Music is one thing that may last more than a sports activities profession in the event you can keep profitable,” Keith informed BloodHorse in 2015, “but when a man ever does determine to hold it up, he actually has to search out one thing else that thrills him. And the horse racing enterprise has all the time thrilled me that a lot.”

Regardless of a bobble at first, Cactus Ridge stored his good report intact with a three-length victory within the Grade 3, $150,000 Arlington-Washington Futurity on the closing day card on the suburban Chicago racetrack. With Eddie Martin Jr. within the irons, the Bret Calhoun-trained colt established a stakes report time of 1:35.44 for the mile on a quick observe, eclipsing the 1:35 4/5 normal set by Secret Good day in 1989.

“It was it was plenty of enjoyable, it actually was,” mentioned Calhoun of working with quite a few horses for Keith. “He was a man that basically, actually beloved the enterprise. He was actually concerned in it, he beloved attempting to determine breeding and crosses, and nicks; he beloved that form of stuff. He beloved going to the races. He beloved watching his horses. He preferred all aspects — he beloved the shopping for, promoting, racing, breeding.”

Smack Smack would end as his high earner at $986,419. By 2005 Kentucky Derby runner-up Closing Argument, Smack Smack posted 10 wins, seven seconds, and 9 thirds from 37 begins, together with a victory within the Grade 3 Cornhusker Handicap in 2016. Different notable runners included Three Chords, Ghost Locket, and In search of Ms Shelley.

Calhoun mentioned he had not spent a lot time with Keith not too long ago however fondly remembers the time they did spend collectively at Remington Park shortly earlier than Keith was identified with most cancers in June 2022.

“Clearly, the music business [Keith’s death] is a giant loss for them. It’s a giant loss for the horse racing business as a result of he was a giant promoter for the horse racing business. He simply actually beloved it,” Calhoun mentioned.