Where Are They Now: Sunny Ridge & Mr. Buff

[Wandering Eyes]

   In this TDN series, Christie DeBernardis will tell the stories of accomplished and/or popular former racehorses who are now enjoying second careers as show horses, track ponies, etc.

New Jersey native Sunny Ridge (Holy Bull) may have made his last start in March of 2021, but he is still a familiar face on the racetrack at Belmont. A seven-time stakes winner in New York and New Jersey, the hulking gray now serves as a stable pony for trainer John Kimmel.

“He made the transition to ponying pretty quickly,” Kimmel said. “He is really a nice pony. He is comfortable. He does everything. He ponies horses, breaks horses off that are breezing. He still has a little bit of an attitude, but he has been a pretty good pony. Plus, he is big. He is just a tick under 17 hands.”

Bred and raced by Monmouth Park's Dennis Drazin, Sunny Ridge's long list of accomplishments was topped by wins in Aqueduct's GIII Withers S. and the GIII Salvator Mile at his hometrack in Oceanport, New Jersey. He spent most of his career under the tutelage of Jason Servis and was laid up for a year after that conditioner's arrest, after which he was sent to Kimmel to an attempt an 8-year-old campaign. Sunny Ridge made three unsuccessful starts in 2021 before Kimmel and Drazin decided it was time to retire him.

“I got him after Jason was done training,” Kimmel said. “Dennis was a lifelong friend of mine and he asked me to try him out a few times. He would train okay in the morning, but the afternoon was a different story. I said, 'Dennis, he is really not into it. We aren't going to drop in for claiming price, so let's make a pony out of it.' He was willing to allow me to do it. He likes doing his job.”

The trainer continued, “He was nice and sound, but the effort wasn't there. I think he decided he was done racing and would rather go home and have his dinner. He didn't want to extend himself, I think, because he was worried about taking care of himself.”

When asked what the veteran gelding is like around the barn, Kimmel said, “When you walk up to him in the stall, he will pin his ears like he wants to be a little bit mean. But once you get near him, he is fine. He loves his mints. The biggest thing is, it is a long drop down to the ground when we get off him in the morning!”

Kimmel's barn was also the longtime home of another hard-knocking gelding, this one a native New Yorker and 11-time stakes winner, Mr. Buff (Friend or Foe).

“A woman wanted to make Mr. Buff's father, Friend or Foe, a jumper,” Kimmel said. “[Owner/breeder] Mr. [Chester] Broman said, 'Okay, I'll sell him to you for $1, but you have to register him as a Thoroughbred stallion. I will send three or four mares a year for a few years to see what we get.' Mr. Buff was in the first group of them. He became a winner of 17 races and won over $1 million. He was a fun horse to be around.”

Mr. Buff opened 2021 with a pair of stakes wins at Aqueduct and finished third in the GIII Westchester S., but was unplaced in three subsequent starts, after which his connections decided it was time to retire him.

“I told Mr. Broman, 'If you want, we can give him the winter off and I'd be more than happy to make a pony out of him,'” Kimmel said. “He said he had a guy who wanted to try him as a show horse. He is in Florida and they will see if he has any ability to do that. He is certainly big enough that he can walk over most of the jumps. He is over 17 hands.”

The massive chestnut was a barn favorite during the six years he spent with Kimmel and his team.

“He has a great personality,” Kimmel said. “He is like a gentle giant. That's why I thought he'd make a nice pony. As a matter of fact, when we brought in the 2-year-olds, we usually used him as a guide horse. He'd be like, 'Listen little fella, follow me. This is how we do it around here.' I think he would have been a natural at it. He was a pretty kind horse to train. When he raced, he could be a little tough. That's why he showed so much early speed, but in the mornings, he was pretty manageable.”

   This edition of “Where Are They Now” is dedicated to the memory of my good friend and TDN colleague Ben Massam, whose passion for New Jersey-breds was unmatched and who loved nothing more than seeing one succeed in open stakes company.

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