By Elaine Belval

Blame earned his first G1 victory in the Stephen Foster H. at Churchill Downs Saturday on the same day that Rachel Alexandra gained her first win of the year. Most of the attention was on the filly Horse of the Year, but Blame actually won the main event of the day. Owned by breeders Adele B. Dilschneider and Claiborne Farm, the 4yo colt is now one of the top handicap horses in the country, and he’ll likely have a say in some of the races that will determine the championship this year. Trainer Albert Stall is pointing towards a couple of races at Saratoga where his colt may meet early Eclipse favorite Quality Road.

Blame is by the Claiborne stallion Arch. Perhaps no stallion has had it so lucky as Arch. This son of leading sire Kris S. is out of the stakes winning Danzig mare Aurora. She has produced another three SWs including 2009 GSW Acoma, by Empire Maker. His second dam is champion Althea and his third dam is the elite mare Courtly Dee.

Arch proved immensely talented, with 5 victories in 7 starts. However, his great pedigree and race record didn’t help his first crop run that first year at age 2. At the end of 2002, he had six winners and less than $150,000 in progeny earnings. In fact, Arch didn’t even hit the top 50 on the 2002 freshman sire list. And, the stallion market is generally unforgiving to stallions that don’t hit it big with their first crops. By some standards, Arch could have been sold overseas or could be standing for a moderate fee in a regional market today.

Luckily, Arch stands at Claiborne Farm, celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2010. A long-time stallion nursery, the horsemen at the farm recognized potential in Arch’s first crop of 40 foals. Despite that first crop’s lack of precocity, 5SWs eventually emerged, including champion Les Arcs, winner of the Golden Jubilee at Royal Ascot in 2006. Other SWs from that crop include South African champion sprinter Overarching and GSW Chilly Rooster. And Arch hasn’t slowed down since that first quiet year. He sires 77% starters and over 50% winners. He has 26 SWs.

One thing that defines Arch as a sire is his versatility. He has 72YO SWs, and 15 SWs on turf (5on artificial including Blame). Over half of his SWs are Graded stakes winners. Two of his SWs won at 5 and 6 furlongs and four won at 10 and 11 furlongs. Of his three champions, two are sprinters but Canadian champion Arravale won the 10f (on the turf) E. P. Taylor Stakes. His average earnings per starter is more than $70,000. And he is one of the few stallions that “improves” his mares, with an average earnings index of 1.78 and a comparable index of 1.66. Arch continues to stand at Claiborne Farm and his 2010 stud fee was $25,000.

(Elaine Belval is senior pedigree analyst at WTC.)