Farish Doubles Down for Travers

William S. Farish has won plenty of big races in his lifetime as a major breeder/owner and owner of Lane's End Farm in Central Kentucky. The Runhappy Travers Stakes (G1) may have eluded him, but he'll take two good shots Aug. 24 at the 150th running with Code of Honor and Highest Honors. He'll also keep an eye on Chess Chief at Saratoga Race Course, a runner owned by the estate of one of his late partners, James Coleman Jr.

Code of Honor is the star here, having won the Xpressbet Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2). He ran a game third on the rail in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), then was elevated to second with the disqualification of Maximum Security.

Following the May 4 Derby, trainer Shug McGaughey backed off the son of Lane's End stallion Noble Mission . The chestnut colt appeared in the July 6 Dwyer Stakes (G3) at Belmont Park and won the one-turn mile race by 3 1/4 lengths. He'll break from post 2 with John Velazquez up and is the 4-1 second choice on the morning line.

"Once a Triple Crown is off the table—it's such a demanding three races—if you want to have a horse later in the year, and hopefully racing on as a 4-year-old as well, it's probably wiser to take a step back," said Farish from his home in Wyoming. "It's a lot just to get to the Derby, and so it just made a lot of sense to step back and come back in a race like the Dwyer.

"We're excited to have him back and going well. Shug couldn't be happier with him."

A lesser-known entity is Highest Honors, a Farish-bred son of Tapit  out of stakes winner Tap Your Feet, by Dixieland Band. Tap Your Feet's first foal, Diamondrella, won the 2009 Just a Game Stakes (G1T), and her fourth foal, the stakes-winning Bonnie Blue Flag, was second in the 2010 Test Stakes (G1). Highest Honors was consigned to The Saratoga Sale in 2017, but Farish brought him home after he was a $750,000 RNA.

While Farish has used McGaughey and trainer Neil Howard for decades, he picked trainer Chad Brown through the leading trainer's involvement in Woodford Racing, an racing entity operated by Farish's son, Bill.

"I thought this horse suited Chad well," Farish said. "He was a pretty good-sized yearling. He was pretty mature, but we knew he needed some time. He actually came to hand pretty quickly for Chad, but then he had a little ankle chip that set him back."

Highest Honors didn't make his debut until April 20 of this year, running second in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden special weight at Keeneland. He returned to break his maiden at 1 1/16 miles June 1 at Belmont, then was an impressive winner of Saratoga's Curlin Stakes July 26 at nine furlongs. At 10-1 on the morning line for the Travers, he'll break from post 3 with Luis Saez in the irons.

"Chad was super high on him even before his first race," Farish said. "We were a little disappointed after his first race because we were expecting a big run, but it didn't happen. He ran a terrific race but ran into a bunch of traffic.

"It delayed the plan when he didn't win first out, but it might have been a blessing because he's come on really well since then. He's so lightly raced, that's the hard part."

Farish's connection through Chess Chief is James Coleman Jr., a client of Farish who died this year at 77. Chess Chief races for Coleman's estate and is trained by Dallas Stewart.

Chess Chief, bred in Virginia by Morgan's Ford Farm, is by Into Mischief  out of the Mineshaft  mare Un Blessed. "Big Money" Mike Smith gets the mount on a runner who is 30-1 on the morning line. Mineshaft, a Farish homebred, was the 2003 Horse of the Year.

Coleman, an attorney from New Orleans, was part of Lane's End Racing, which raced multiple grade 1 winner Honor Code . Among Honor Code's wins was the 2015 Whitney Stakes (G1) at the Spa.

"I don't really know how he wound up with the horse, but we're glad it's in there," Farish said. "He was great friends with Joe Hudson (another prominent partner with Farish). Joe will be at Saratoga to watch the race."

Looks like Hudson and Farish will have more than one horse to follow Saturday.

"We should have a fairly good rooting contingent," Farish said. "We're hopeful."