By Alan Porter - A spectacular winner over 6½ furlongs at Churchill Downs on his only start at two, Dialed In proved
himself one of the best of his generation at three taking the Holy Bull Stakes (gr. II) and defeating
Shackleford, To Honor and Serve, Stay Thirsty and Soldat to capture a vintage renewal of the Florida
Derby (gr. I). Dialed In is a son of Mineshaft – the only Horse of the Year by A.P. Indy – out of Miss
Doolittle, a multiple stakes producer and graded stakes performer, who is by Storm Cat out of Champion
Two-Year-Old Filly Eliza.
Mineshaft is out of a mare by Mr Prospector, but has done well when crossed back over mares from
that line, siring a graded stakes winner from a daughter of Smart Strike, a graded stakes winner out a
mare by Rubiano, and a stakes winner out of a mare by that horse’s sire, Fappiano (who looks a very
positive influence here and might also be brought in through such as Unbridled, Unbridled’s Song,
Quiet American, Cryptoclearance, Candy Ride, Grindstone, Birdstone, Broken Vow and Empire Maker),
as well as stakes winners from daughters of Mutakddim and his sire, Seeking the Gold (also sire of
Petitionville and Cape Town), Hansel and his sire, Woodman (with Not For Love, a three-quarters
relative to Woodman also appealing) and Editor’s Note (a son of Forty Niner, who looks particularly
good here, could also be brought in through Distorted Humor, Coronado’s Quest, End Sweep, Gold
Fever, Jules, Roar, Tactical Advantage, Trippi and Twining). Mineshaft is also sire of the 2011 Kentucky
Derby second Nehro out of a mare by Afleet (sire of Northern Afleet; grandsire of Afleet Alex).
Introducing Raise a Native – the sire of Mr. Prospector – through Alydar is also worth considering.
Out of mares from the Northern Dancer line, Mineshaft is sire of a graded stakes winners from
daughters of Deputy Minister and his son Silver Deputy, which also invites mares by such as Dehere
(who has already worked well under A.P. Indy) as well as Touch Gold, Awesome Humor, French
Deputy, Salt Lake and Forest Camp. Mineshaft also has a graded stakes winner out of a mare by Zilzal
(a son of Nureyev, also sire of Theatrical, Stravinsky and Atticus) and a stakes winner out of a mare
by Dixieland Band (sire of Dixie Union). Dialed In is out of a daughter of Storm Cat, but there are
already three stallions out of daughters of Storm Cat, who have sired stakes winners when crossed
back over Storm Cat line mares. We can note that Mineshaft’s outstanding daughter, It’s Tricky, is
out of a mare by Tale of the Cat (sire of Lion Heart) and other Storm Cat sons that appeal here are
Giant’s Causeway, Hennessy (sire of Johannesburg), Tabasco Cat, Cat Thief, Forest Wildcat, Forestry,
Harlan (sire of Harlan’s Holiday and Menifee), High Yield, Sir Cat, Storm Boot, Storm Creek and
Tactical Cat, all of whom have supplied the dams of A.P. Indy line stakes winners. It might also be worth
considering introducing Northern Dancer through Danzig, Lyphard, El Gran Senor, El Prado and Nijinsky
II (particularly via Royal Academy, a close relative to Storm Cat).
Minehaft has already demonstrated a strong affinity for mares from the Roberto branch of the Hail to
Reason/Turn-to line, and he already has two stakes winners, one graded, out of mares by Kris S. (sire of
Arch, You and I and Prized) and a stakes winner out of a mare by Red Ransom. From the Halo branch of
Hail to Reason, Mineshaft is sire of a stakes winner from a daughter of Sunday Silence, and he should
work very well with Halo through More Than Ready. There is also a stakes winner by Mineshaft out
mare by Broad Brush, a horse inbred to Turn-to.
From the Damascus line, Mineshaft is sire of the brilliant sprinter Discreetly Mine out of a mare by
Private Account, and graded stakes winner out of a mare by Fly So Free (by Time For A Change),
suggesting that Gilded Time might also be worth considering.