Oaklawn Park report

LITTLE ROCK — Retiring reality for horse

The 1988 Arkansas Derby winner has a new home.

Proper Reality, 24, now resides at Old Friends, a famed retirement facility for horses in Georgetown, Ky.

Trainer Bob Holthus donated Proper Reality to Old Friends after recently selling Kilkerry Farm, Holthus' breeding and training facility just west of Hot Springs in Royal.

Proper Reality, a multiple Grade I winner of $1.7 million for owners James and Juanita Winn of Hot Springs, had been a stallion for many years at Kilkerry before advancing age ended his stud career.

"He's living his life in luxury," said Connie Crow, who helped haul Proper Reality from Hot Springs to Kentucky for his Aug. 15 arrival at Old Friends. "When we left, he was grazing and put a big green spot on my shirt where he licked me."

Crow said she became attached to Proper Reality because her farm was adjacent to Kilkerry.

"I grew up knowing Proper Reality and used to visit him every day," Crow said. "He was an old friend."

Crow said the new owners of what was Kilkerry, Richard and Frances Hessee, offered to keep Proper Reality for the remainder of his life, but Old Friends had been actively seeking a 50th Grade I winner for its farm.

Among the retired horses at Old Friends, which is sustained through donations, are 2002 Oaklawn Handicap winner Kudos and Clever Allemont, one of Oaklawn's top 3-yearolds in 1985 for owner Cal Partee of Magnolia.

Proper Reality gave Holthus his most prestigious careervictory to date in the Grade I Met Mile in 1989 at Belmont Park in New York.

"This farm wanted him bad," Crow said. "It worked out real well for everybody, mostly for Proper Reality."

Wiggins to retire

Trainer Hal Wiggins, an Oaklawn Park regular, said he will retire after the Churchill Downs fall meeting ends in late November.

Wiggins, 66, said his windfall from the May sale of superstar 3-year-old filly Rachel Alexandra was the exclamation point on the decision to end a 35-year career.

"Really before Rachel camealong, we were talking about it, discussing it," Wiggins said. "She made it financially possible for us.

We thought we would just take advantage of it."

Wiggins said his expects a"good number" of his 19 horses now at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., will go to his son, trainer Lon Wiggins, who will continue to winter at Oaklawn.

Those will include a handful owned by Dolphus Morrison, who bred Rachel Alexandra and campaigned her before a multimillion-dollar sale fivedays after a record 20 1 /4-length victory in the $500,000 Grade I Kentucky Oaks on May 1 at Churchill Downs.

Hal Wiggins said he will recommend trainers for other owners who wish to race during the winter at Fair Grounds in New Orleans.

Wiggins said he isn't sure who will train for longtime clients Betty and Leon Millsap of Hot Springs.

The Millsaps own Brassy Boy, a promising Arkansas-bred 2-year-old who may be the early favorite for next year's Rainbow Stakes at Oaklawn.

"That's probably the toughest part about getting out," Wiggins said. "It's close associations we've had with people like Dolph and Leon. You get to not only develop a client relationship with them, but it's a friendship, also."

Wiggins has lived in Louisville for about 15 years, but said he and wife Renee probably will relocate to the Houston area to be closer to their grandchildren.

Hal Wiggins said he attended stewards' school two years ago at the University of Louisville and would like to remain in the industry as a racing official for a few months each year.

"I think I would really enjoy it," Wiggins said. "It would keep me connected with the game.

I'll pursue that a little bit."

In addition to Rachel Alexandra, Wiggins' top horses included millionaire Chorwon, who was owned by the late Thomas Mueller of Fort Smith, and multiple stakes winner Morris Code, owned by Morrison.

"I feel fortunate that I could make a living at doing something I really like doing," Wiggins said. "I tell Renee all the time I never get up in the morning thinking I'm going to work or going to a job. I'm thankful for that." Telling update

Telling, the upset winner of last Saturday's $500,000 Grade I Sword Dancer Invitational atSaratoga in upstate New York, is scheduled to make his next start in the $600,000 Grade I Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational on Oct. 3 at Belmont Park in New York, co-owner Alex Lieblong of Conway said.

Telling gave Lieblong and trainer Steve Hobby of Hot Springs their first Grade I victory when he beat Better Talk Now by 2 lengths in the 1 1 /2-mile Sword Dancer, the same distance as the Joe Hirsch.

Telling, who went off at odds of 33-1 in the Sword Dancer, is a candidate for the Breeders' Cup Turf on Nov. 7 at Santa Anita in suburban Los Angeles, Lieblong said.

"A man can always dream," Lieblong said. "He's a good horse at a mile and a quarter.

He's a very good horse at a mile and a half."

Lieblong said it was his idea to run in the Sword Dancer, even though Telling had lost 10 consecutive starts.

But the 5-year-old son of A.P. Indy had been competitive in almost every race. He was ridden for the first time in the Sword Dancer by Javier Castellano, a top New York jockey.

"I was getting so frustrated with the rides he was getting elsewhere," Lieblong said. "He was just a lot better horse than he had gotten credit for."

The Sword Dancer boosted Telling's value as a stallion prospect, Lieblong said, but no decision has been made aboutretirement at the end of the year.

Lieblong said one thing is certain, though. Telling won't race again on dirt.

Telling hasn't started on dirt since finishing eighth in the $100,000 Essex Handicap on Feb. 7 at Oaklawn Park inHot Springs.

"He's become a lawn mower," Lieblong said.

Lieblong and his wife, JoAnn, privately purchased Telling and Live From Appollo from Darley Stable in the fall of 2007.

Telling has earned $484,406.

The Lieblongs also own controlling interest of Duke of Mischief, who could make his next start in the $1 million Grade II Pennsylvania Derby on Sept. 7 at Philadelphia Park or the $750,000 Grade II Super Derby on Sept. 19 at Louisiana Downs.

Stakes buffet

Oaklawn will release its 2010 stakes schedule this week, said David Longinotti, assistant general manager/racing.

General Manager Eric Jackson has already said Oaklawn's purse account will be fattened by at least $1 million next year because of the expansion of electronic games in May.

Jackson said the minimum purse for the 2010 meeting should rise to $15,000, maiden allowance races to $36,000 and open allowance events to $47,000 or $48,000.

Live racing resumes at Oaklawn on Jan. 15.