Hail to Reason (April 18, 1958 – February 24, 1976) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are co ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

and an influential

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" ...

. In a racing career cut short by injury, he was named the

American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt The American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when the ''Daily Racing Fo ...

of 1960 after winning seven stakes races including the Hopeful Stakes. He later became a leading sire whose offspring included

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey on ...

winner Roberto and leading sire

Halo Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to: * Halo (optical phenomenon) * Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Video games * ''Halo'' (franch ...

, who in turn sired the great

Sunday Silence Sunday Silence (March 25, 1986 – August 19, 2002) was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In 1989, he won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes but failed to complete the Triple Crown when he was defeated in the Belmon ...

Background

Hail to Reason was bred in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to ...

by the Bieber-Jacobs Stable, a partnership of prominent horsemen, Isadore Bieber and Hirsch Jacobs. He was sired by the English stakes winner

Turn-To Turn-To (1951–1973) was a British-born, American-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Background He was sired by the British stallion Royal Charger, out of the French mare Source Sucree, whose sire, Admiral Drake, was third on the Frenc ...

, a grandson of the very influential sire

Nearco Nearco (January 24, 1935 – June 27, 1957) was an Italian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse described by '' Thoroughbred Heritage'' as "one of the greatest racehorses of the Twentieth Century" and "one of the most important sires of the century." H ...

. Hail to Reason was out of the mare Nothirdchance, a stakes winning daughter of

Blue Swords Blue Swords (german: Pokal der Blauen Schwerter) is an international figure skating competition organized by the Deutsche Eislauf-Union. It is usually held in Chemnitz, Saxony, Germany. Medals are awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladi ...

. She was named by Jacobs as a warning to the Allies to not allow Germany to start another war. Hail to Reason was named in response to his fulfilled hopes.

Racing career

Starting in January 1958, Hail to Reason raced 18 times as a two-year-old in nine months, winning nine times. He set a track record of :58 for 5 furlongs is his debut at Aqueduct, followed up by wins in the Youthful, Great American and Tremont at the same track. He also won the Sapling Stakes at Monmouth, the World's Playground Stakes at Atlantic City and the Sanford Stakes at Saratoga. The highlight of his campaign was winning the prestigious Hopeful Stakes at Saratoga while setting a new track record of 1:16 for furlongs. During a morning workout in September, he lost a

shoe A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. They are often worn with a sock. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration and fashion. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture to ...

and broke both

sesamoid bones In anatomy, a sesamoid bone () is a bone embedded within a tendon or a muscle. Its name is derived from the Arabic word for 'sesame seed', indicating the small size of most sesamoids. Often, these bones form in response to strain, or can be pres ...

in his near front leg, ending his career. However, he was still named 1960

Stud record

Retired to

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay b ...

at Hagyard Farm near

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

, Hail to Reason was an outstanding stallion and earned

Leading sire in North America The list below shows the leading sire of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America for each year since 1830. This is determined by the amount of prize money won by the sire's progeny during the year. It is restricted to stallions which are based in N ...

honors for 1970. His progeny includes: Hail to Reason was also a very successful broodmare sire whose daughters have produced more than one hundred stakes winners, including Allez France and

Triptych A triptych ( ; from the Greek adjective ''τρίπτυχον'' "''triptukhon''" ("three-fold"), from ''tri'', i.e., "three" and ''ptysso'', i.e., "to fold" or ''ptyx'', i.e., "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) that is divided ...

. Another daughter, Reason to Earn, is the dam of

Bold Reasoning Bold Reasoning (April 29, 1968 – April 24, 1975) was an American thoroughbred racehorse. He is best known as being the sire of the 1977 Triple Crown winner, Seattle Slew. Background Bold Reasoning was foaled in Florida. He was out of the Hai ...

, sire of 1977 U.S. Triple Crown Champion Seattle Slew. At 18, Hail to Reason was humanely put down on February 24, 1976, and is buried at Hagyard Farm.Thoroughbred Heritage.com Hagyard Farm
/ref>

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1958 racehorse births 1976 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States American Champion racehorses United States Champion Thoroughbred Sires Horse monuments Thoroughbred family 4-n Chefs-de-Race