Rock Hard Ten (April 5, 2001 – November 12, 2021) 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 c ...

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 pr ...

and

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" a ...

. Co-owned and bred by Madeleine Paulson, widow of

Allen E. Paulson Allen Eugene Paulson (April 22, 1922 – July 19, 2000) was an American businessman. Business career in aviation Born in Clinton, Iowa, Clinton, Iowa, Allen E. Paulson was on his own at age 13, supporting himself selling newspapers and doing ...

, the dark bay horse stood over 17

hands A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each " ...

. He was sired by

Kris S. Kris S. (foaled April 25, 1977 – May 7, 2002) was an American Thoroughbred race horse who is best known as a highly successful sire. Background Kris S. was a son of the 1972 Epsom Derby winner Roberto who was a sire of international influence ...

, out of the

Mr. Prospector Mr. Prospector (January 28, 1970 – June 1, 1999) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who became an outstanding breeding stallion and notable sire of sires. A sprinter whose career was cut short by repeated injuries, he won seven of his 14 starts, i ...

mare Tersa.

Three-year-old season

Rock Hard Ten was a late bloomer and did not race at age two due to shin splints. At age three, he started late in relation to other three-year-olds. Rock Hard Ten stepped up in class four weeks before the

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 ...

in the GI Santa Anita Derby and finished second to Castledale but was disqualified and placed third for interference. Due to the late start in the season and his disqualification, Rock Hard Ten did not have enough

graded stakes race A graded stakes race is a thoroughbred horse race in the United States that meets the criteria of the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA). A specific grade level (I, II, III or listed) is then ...

earnings to qualify for the

. The owners of Rock Hard Ten waited two weeks later until the Preakness Stakes. In that race, the colt faced the top four finishers from the Derby, including the eventual champion and dual classic winner,

Smarty Jones Smarty Jones (February 28, 2001) is a champion Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and came second in the Belmont Stakes. Background Born at Fairthorne Farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania, the horse was ...

. In the 2004

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 ...

, Rock Hard Ten was fractious behind the gate and difficult to load. When the gates opened, he broke alertly and jockey Gary Stevens placed him fourth in a field of ten runners. On

Pimlico Pimlico () is an area of Central London in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by London V ...

's club house turn, jockey Mike Smith aboard Derby runner-up Lion Heart floated Smarty Jones out wide and in turn pushed the others horses even further outside. Rock Hard Ten was the most affected, pushed out to the six path on the turn and fading to seventh. Stevens wrestled with Rock Hard Ten, fighting to hold him back and conserve ground. On the second turn, he and Eddington made a charge at the leaders. The two moved up to challenge Lion Heart at the top of the lane. Rock Hard Ten then passed Lion Heart for the place spot, holding on to earn $200,000 as the Preakness runner-up. Smarty Jones won the race by the widest margin in 130 years at 11-1/2 lengths. Following the Preakness, Rock Hard Ten won the GII

Swaps Stakes The Los Alamitos Derby (formerly the Swaps Stakes) is a race for Thoroughbred horses run annually at Los Alamitos Race Course in Los Alamitos, California. The race is open to three-year-old horses and is contested at one and one-eighth miles on th ...

in July at

Hollywood Park Hollywood Park may refer to: Places United States * Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California * Hollywood Park, Chicago, a neighborhood in North Park, Chicago, Illinois * Hollywood Park, Inglewood, an entertainment complex and m ...

and the GI Malibu Stakes in December at Santa Anita Park. Rock Hard Ten ran in the Belmont.

Four-year-old season

At age four, Rock Hard Ten developed physically into one of the largest colts to hit the track in history, standing 17.3 hands. That season, he won the grade two Charles H. Strub Stakes, then one of the biggest prizes for an older horse in the grade one Santa Anita Handicap, and then the grade two

Goodwood Breeders' Cup Handicap The Awesome Again Stakes is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race for horses aged three years old or older over the distance of one and one-eighth miles on the dirt scheduled annually in September at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. T ...

. He finished his career with an in-the-money percentage of 82%. Out of eleven starts, he won seven, placed once, and came in third once.

Retirement

Rock Hard Ten stood at stud at

Lane's End Farm Lane's End Farm is a Thoroughbred horse breeding farm in Versailles, Kentucky established in 1979. The original land was part of Bosque Bonita Farm and was originally owned by Abraham Buford, a Confederate Army General. The land was later bought ...

Versailles, Kentucky Versailles () is a home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. It lies by road west of Lexington and is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. Versailles has a population of 9,316 according to 2017 cen ...

from 2006 until 2012. He was then sold to the

Korea Racing Authority Korea Racing Authority (, KRA) is a public company established to manage the racehorse breeding industry in South Korea. It was founded in 1922 as the Chosun Horse Racing Club (), and was later renamed. Facilities * LetsRun Park (racecourse and ...

(KRA) in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

and stood at their Jeju Stud Farm starting with the 2013 breeding season. Rock Hard Ten died in South Korea on November 12, 2021. According to the KRA, he was moved to an equine hospital after being unable to stand in his paddock and died within 24 hours. The death was reported several days later once it was listed in official KRA records. At the time of his death, Rock Hard Ten had sired 330 winners with his offspring earning more than $27 million in purse money.

Pedigree

References

{{reflist Racehorses trained in the United States Racehorses bred in Kentucky 2001 racehorse births 2021 racehorse deaths American Grade 1 Stakes winners Thoroughbred family A1