Roses in May
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Roses in May, born on February 9, 2000, is a thoroughbred racehorse bred by Margaux Farm. and owned during his racing career by Ken and Sarah Ramsey.
He made 13 starts and won 8 of them, placing in four. This means he was out of the money only once. He retired with career earnings of $5,490,187, much of this money coming from his win in the 2005 Dubai World Cup.
When he was four, he won the Grade I Whitney Handicap, the Grade II Kentucky Cup Classic Handicap, and the Grade III Cornhusker Breeders' Cup Handicap. He came second in that year's (2004) Grade I Breeders' Cup Classic to Horse of the Year Ghostzapper.
At five years of age, he won the Dubau after placing in the Grade I Donn Handicap, won by Megalia D'Oro.
The Dubai Cup is the world's richest horse race, offering (US$6,000,000) as a purse, and run at Nad Al Sheba Racecourse, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Roses in May was favoured to win in the 2,000 metre race. Trained by Dale Romans and ridden by jockey John Velazquez, Roses in May took the lead at the straight and won by three lengths.
The horse was the forty-third international winner at the 2005 Dubai International Racing Carnival. The carnival began on January 20, 2005 and concluded with the race for the Cup. In all, 200 horses and their trainers from twenty countries came to Dubai to compete for a total of US$25,000,000 in prize-money.
Roses in May was retired on August 19, 2005 when a tendon tear was discovered in his left foreleg. He now stands at Big Red Farm in Niikappu, Hokkaido, Japan at a stud fee pf approximately $35,000.
[edit] The Ferdinand Fee
When Roses in May went to Japan, there was a clause in his contract called a "buy-back clause." Ever since the tragic death of the great racehorse, Ferdinand, who was sent to a slaughterhouse in Japan when his breeding days were done, the New York Owners and Breeder's Association, based in Saratoga Springs, New York, has begun asking for a small voluntary per-race charge (collected from owners of New York Breds) called the "Ferdinand Fee." These monies are intended for the Bluegrass Charities and the Thoroughbred Charities of America to help them fund race horse rescue and retirement groups. Some owners are now including buy-back clauses within their stallion contracts. Roses in May is one of those fortunate stallions, as is Silver Charm.
