Private Terms (April 6, 1985 – January 22, 2010) was a millionaire 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 c ...

racehorse and successful stallion. He was the son of Private Account, who in turn was the son of the great

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

. Bred in

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

by Stuart Janney, Jr., he finished racing with a record of 13-0-0 in 17 starts with career earnings of $1,243,947. Private Terms was best known for his wins in the grade one

Wood Memorial Stakes The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. It is run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. The Wood Memori ...

and the grade two

General George Handicap The General George Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually on Presidents' Day in mid February at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland. A Grade III event, it is open to horses age three and older. Raced on dirt over a dis ...

.Pedigree Online, Thoroughbred Databas

Three-year-old season

At age three, Private Terms began to show great promise as he won one race after another. In his fifth start, he won the grade two

Gotham Stakes The Gotham Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses run in early March at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. A Grade III event with a current purse of US$300,000, it is set at a distance of 1 mile on the dirt ...

at 1 1/16 miles at

Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone Park and Jamaica, Queens, Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack locate ...

, beating

Seeking the Gold Seeking The Gold (April 7, 1985 – July 28, 2016) was an American thoroughbred racehorse and a successful sire. Background and Family Seeking The Gold, a bay colt, was bred in Kentucky by Ogden Phipps, who also owned him. One of numerous t ...

and Perfect Spy under jockey

Chris Antley Christopher Wiley Antley (January 6, 1966 – December 2, 2000) was an American National Champion and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockey. Biography He was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and grew up in Elloree, South Carolina. He left school at ...

. Then he won the $500,000 grade one

, where he defeated Seeking the Gold again and began a heated rivalry with his foe that lasted two years. He went into the gate in the 1988

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

unbeaten in seven starts and the second favorite in the race behind Winning Colors. Private Terms finished ninth behind Winning Colors, Forty Niner and Risen Star, beaten just under six lengths. He returned in the $500,000 grade one

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () on ...

as a 3-1 third choice in a field of ten graded stakes winners. In the "Run for the Black-Eyed Susan," he stalked the pace and moved from seventh to fourth at the top of the stretch. Lacking a strong close, Private Terms finished fourth, four lengths behind

Risen Star Risen Star (March 25, 1985 – March 13, 1998) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes in 1988. Background The dark bay colt was the son of the great Triple Crown winner Secretariat and out of the m ...

Brian's Time Brian's Time (1985 – April 4, 2013) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He was sired by Roberto by breeder Joan Phillips. Brian's Time was a grade one stakes-winning millionaire who is probably most remembered for his win in the Florida ...

and Winning Colors. He did not contest the Belmont, which Risen Star won, but won the listed Governor’s Handicap at

Pimlico Race Course Pimlico Race Course is a thoroughbred horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of Ol ...

. He then ran fourth behind Forty Niner and Seeking the Gold in the grade one

Haskell Invitational Handicap The Haskell Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run over a distance of miles on the dirt held annually in July at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey. The event is a signature event at Monmouth P ...

. Later that year, it looked like Private Term might be a threat in the grade one

Super Derby The Super Derby is an American thoroughbred horse race held annually in September at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City, Louisiana. Inaugurated in 1980, the Super Derby is open to three-year-olds and the distance is miles on the dirt. Currently a Gr ...

when after he won the preparatory Prelude Stakes, but he ran fourth behind

, Happyasalark Tomas and Lively One. That event marked the end of his sophomore year as finished with a record of 9-0-0 in 13 starts. Reines-de-Course

Four-year-old season

Private Terms ran successfully at age four, winning three of four starts. One of those wins was the grade two

Massachusetts Handicap The Massachusetts Handicap, frequently referred to as the "MassCap", was a flat thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds and up held annually at Suffolk Downs in East Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was an ungraded stakes race run o ...

at Suffolk Downs. His other two wins came in listed stakes: the Damascus Handicap at

Laurel Park Racecourse Laurel Park, formerly Laurel Race Course, is an American thoroughbred racetrack located just outside Laurel, Maryland which opened in 1911. The track is miles in circumference. Its name was changed to "Laurel Race Course" for several decades unt ...

named after his grandsire and set a new track record the

Never Bend Handicap The William Donald Schaefer Memorial Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the third week of May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. A Grade III event open to three-year-old horses and up, it is contested o ...

for nine furlongs at Pimlico, 1:47.10. The almost black colt retired with 13 wins in 17 starts and earnings of $1,243,947. He was only off the board two times in his career (Kentucky Derby and 4 year-old debut).

Retirement

Private Terms produced 16 crops containing a total of 623 foals for an average of 39 foals per year. Of those crops, he had 75% starters, 54% winners and 14% stakes winners. He has also sired 3% graded stakes placed horses.

Soul of the Matter In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

and

Afternoon Deelites Afternoon Deelites (February 28, 1992 – February 14, 2023) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Background Afternoon Deelites was bred and raced by pianist, composer and music producer, Burt Bacharach (1928–2023) and trained by Hall of Fa ...

were his two best runners. Soul of the Matter avenged his sire’s loss in the Super Derby of 1994 and won or placed in eight other graded races, including a second in the Dubai World Cup. He was exported to Japan where he did not do well at stud, and then went California. Afternoon Deelites is now at stud in Louisiana. He previously stood at Airdrie Stud in the Bluegrass State. He has sired 4% stakes winners and has consistently led the sire list in his new home state. La Reine’s Terms has done most of his racing in Maryland-bred events, where he has won 16 of 40 starts and $804,591. Private Lap, out of the Dynaformer mare Just Like Jill, has won almost $700,000 and is a listed stakes winner.

References

{{reflist 1985 racehorse births 2010 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 8-c