Kumin's Homebred Fluffy Socks Takes Sands Point
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Photo: Coglianese Photos/Janet Garaguso
Fluffy Socks wins the Sands Point Stakes at Belmont Park
If your knowledge of Sol Kumin as a Thoroughbred racehorse owner involves only his purchases of shares of experienced runners, then you do not know the whole story.
Since entering the sport about eight years ago, Kumin bought eventual champions Lady Eli and Monomoy Girl at auctions, the latter in partnership, long before they ever broke from the starting gate in a race.
He also bred a stakes winner, Fluffy Socks , who added to the black-type in her credentials Oct. 16 at Belmont Park.
Already a grade 3 winner, the daughter of Slumber climbed up the ladder to grade 2 winner by rallying from fifth to capture the $200,000 Sands Points Stakes (G2T) for 3-year-old fillies and post her fourth win 10 starts for trainer Chad Brown.
"It's awesome," said Kumin, who owns and bred Fluffy Socks through his Head of Plains Partners group. "You feel way more attached to the horse when you breed her. My son Sam named her, and she's his favorite horse. He also loves Slumber, the dad. She's a family favorite. It's great to be involved in a different part of the game. We're still young and learning and we're enjoying it. This was fun."
Sam Kumin with Fluffy Socks
Kumin owned a share of Slumber, a $1.4 million earner in his racing career, and recently acquired him from Calumet Farm, where his career as a stallion began. Slumber is now standing at Rockridge Stud in New York.
"We bred 12 of our horses to him and he's bred 20 overall," Kumin said. "We'll support him and see if we can pop out a few more Fluffy Socks. He hasn't been bred a lot, but we'll give a chance and hope to get some good New York State-bred turf horses from him."
Brown, who trained Slumber, has another daughter of the grade 1 winner who has already reached the winner's circle. Named Marvelous Maude , the New York-bred captured ar maiden race at Saratoga Race Course Aug. 19 and was second by a head in a Sept. 26 allowance race.
"Sol believes in Slumber, and I'll tell you, I've only had two horses by him and they are both runners," Brown said. "I don't want it to sound like an ad, but you can do far worse than breed to him. He comes from a Juddmonte family and he did his best running on firm turf."
Out of the Kitten's Joy mare Breakfast Time , who raced for Kumin and Brown, Fluffy Socks is her second foal to race and lone winner. She has also produced a 2-year-old filly by Exaggerator named Ojeleye, a Creative Cause yearling filly, and an Exaggerator weanling colt.
Fluffy Socks is welcomed by her crew upon her return to the winner's circle
Brown also sent out Higher Truth , the 6-5 favorite in the Sands Point, who set the early fractions of :25.34 and :50.15 while under pressure from Our Flash Drive and led by a half-length at the eighth pole. But with a tough campaign under her belt, which included finishing second or third in all three legs of the New York Racing Association's Turf Triple for 3-year-old fillies, the daughter of Galileo owned by Mike Ryan, Jeff Drown, and Team Hanley weakened late to finish third.
Rallying four wide in the stretch, Fluffy Socks and jockey Joel Rosario closed quickly from fifth and battled with Runaway Rumour in the final yards before crossing the wire first by a neck in 1:48.48 for the 1 1/8 miles over firm turf.
Sent off as the 4-1 third choice ($10.20), Fluffy Socks posted her first win in five 2021 starts and notched her initial victory since taking the 2020 Jimmy Durante Stakes (G3T) at Del Mar in late November as a 2-year-old. The victory lifted her earnings to $430,880.
"Last time when I rode her at Del Mar (when third in the Del Mar Oaks (G1T)) she kept coming and coming and just missed," Rosario said. "It looks like she's getting better."
Lawrence Goichman's Runaway Rumour, a Flintshire filly trained by Jorge Abreu, was a half-length ahead of Higher Truth in second.
Brown, who recorded his third straight Sands Point win and fifth overall, said Fluffy Socks would likely return to California for the Dec. 26 American Oaks (G1T) at Santa Anita Park in a bid to add grade 1 laurels.
"She's a homebred of Slumber from very modest beginnings, but she's really a great racehorse and a beautiful filly that just keeps getting better," Brown said. "I'm real happy for Sol Kumin and all his partners and a shout out to his son, Sam, who named the horse."