Safely Kept, Champion Sprinter Remembered

It was announced this week that 1989 Champion Sprinter Safely Kept had succumbed to the infirmities of old age, evoking memories of her stellar career and especially of her encounter with Dayjur in the 1990 Breeders' Cup Sprint.

The two rivals entered the starting gate that day at Belmont Park with divergent backgrounds. A $1.65-million Keeneland July Yearling Sale graduate, Dayjur was by Danzig, who was commanding $250,000 or more on the open market (on the rare occasion a season became available) while his dam, Gold Beauty, had been a champion sprinter and was already the dam of G1 winner Maplejinsky.

A Maryland-bred, Safely Kept was by Horatius, a son of Proudest Roman who had won 18 of 54 starts. Horatius was standing for the decidedly lesser fee of $3,000. Her dam, Safely Home, had made the last 51 starts of a 73-race career in claiming races before being acquired by David and JoAnn Hayden and retired to their Dark Hollow Farm north of Baltimore. The Haydens' faith in her paid off when they sold her daughter Safely Kept for a reported $300,000 after her third start at two. Safely Home later produced another graded winner in Partner's Hero and a daughter is the granddam of 2014 G3 winner Vinceremos.

Safely Kept, who eventually would retire with $2.1-million in earnings and 24 wins from 31 starts, had picked up an Eclipse Award as champion sprinter in 1989 at three and was coming into the 1990 Sprint with seven wins from nine starts as a four year old. Three year old Dayjur had been busy conquering England and France and he brought to Belmont a five-race win streak that included victories in the Nunthorpe at York and the Prix de l'Abbaye at Longchamp.  His American debut would also be his first race over a dirt track.

When the gates opened for the 1990 Breeders' Cup Sprint, Safely Kept rushed out to an early lead while Dayjur had to hustle to get around horses from his post position near the outside. He got to her as the field went into the turn, and they entered the homestretch in tandem, each battling gamely for the lead. Just a few yards from the finish line, Dayjur inched ahead and looked like he'd sealed the win but he jumped over a shadow on the track and for a split-second, lost his action. That was all Safely Kept needed to get her lead back. She won by a head.

Though Safely Kept might have benefited from her rival's mistake that day, she richly deserved her championship awards for a brilliant career which saw her win stakes at ten different tracks before her final start on October 4, 1991. The two-time Maryland-bred Horse of the Year proved her talent was no fluke by producing eight winners, including stakes winners Peace Chant and Contrast.

Safely Kept was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame at Saratoga Springs in May of 2011.