El Sol del Mar ♥This mare is amid the goddesses and gods in the Hall of Fame such as Merry Bay King, Bank on Silver, and True Enough. At five years of age her legacy is still being played back two years after her amazing run for Horse of the Year as a three year old. Of 56 starts El Sol del Mar conquered 24 of them. She placed second 7 times and third 12 times in a very electrifying career.
Starting with a not so brilliant two year old season El Sol del Mar showed promise. In her first start she came in fifth, but it was because she was young and very inexperienced, nevertheless she was at the lead of every call except for the first. Her speed was brilliant carrying her from gate to wire sometimes and helping to fight off grueling stretch duels. In her two year old season she made four little, very unspectacular starts. In the two starts she won as a two year old, she won by a neck or even a nose. Her last race that season was in the Breeder's Cup Juvenile Fillies where she finished a dismal fifth. However, from that point on a lightbulb clicked in her smart brain and she started running like a runaway train.
At the start of her three year old year, El Sol del Mar came back in a open company allowance race and won in stunning fashion! 10 lengths separated her from the next horse! After that brilliant victory she really kicked into high gear knocking off two consecutive victories in a row in the Ghost Rider Stakes and the Mermaid Cup, never giving an inch and never looking back. However she faltered a bit finishing five lengths beyond the winner in the Debutante Stakes to finish third. A month later she finished ninth in the Princess Cup. It wasn't that race that nearly crushed Ripley's dreams of getting her best filly to grade one level, it was El Sol del Mar's next race in the Season Series Spring Cup for grade fours and grade fives. Everything seemed to be going fine for El Sol del Mar. She took off like usual, lead for the first three quarters as usual and then disaster struck. She suffered a very distressing bone injury at the top of the stretch, a fracture. After months of practice it appeared the dreams of success went up in smoke, but not in Sunny's mind. Never once in the recuperation did Sunny act up. She seemed to know what all the casts and stall rest were about. After a few months or so, the fracture healed up and the vet came by to take x-rays. His look of astonishment basically tore Ripley into tears of joy. Never before had he seen a more impressive healed bone. He said it wouldn't matter if El Sol del Mar ran in no races or one or even twenty. She was fine and ready to run again.
And run she did. Her list of accomplishments:
1st in BI's Fall Series, grade four
1st Season Series Autumn Cup, grade three
1st Girl's Festival, ungraded
1st in Sunny Days Stakes
1st in Seaspray Cup
1st in Strub Stakes
1st in Red Wine Sprint
1st in The Natural Memorial Sakes
1st in The Everyday Hero Memorial Stakes
2nd in the Kentucky Derby
1st in The Preakness Stakes
1st in the Belmont Stakes
1st in the Breeder's Cup Classic
El Sol del Mar proved she was even more versatile than ever when she won the Sunny Days Stakes and Red Wine Sprint against the classiest sprinters in the entire country. Her next races would be the most challenging yet. The Triple Crown.
In the Kentucky Derby El Sol del Mar quietly accepted defeat beneath GM Execute. She finished 2nd that day, but there was no looking back in either the Preakness or the Belmont Stakes. She took them both while striding out effortlessly, beating the classiest three year old fillies Euphoria and Sweet Stalker!
Not soon after that she took The Natural Memorial Stakes and then the Everyday Hero Memorial Stakes. Her next appearance would be in the Breeder's Cup Classic where once again she reeled out a victory against the toughest horses. Barely A Moment and Sweet Stalker came at her multiple times in that race and she still went on to beat them!
She finished third in the Dubai World Cup and that was her last race as a three year old. Nevertheless she received Horse of the Year awards and best three year old filly of the year. Her achievements helped Battle Brook Stable become the stable of th year! El Sol del Mar returned for her four year old season and took four more graded stakes races. Not soon after she began to show signs of laminitis in her right fore leg. X-rays were taken on all of her legs to find out why the sudden lameness appeared in the chestnut mare. A fracture was found in her other fore-leg ending a racing career that few would ever truly forget.
She was a monster for such a tiny mare, electrifying, gorgeous. El Sol del Mar provided that sudden adrenaline rush at the start of the race when you saw her take the lead and at the end when she grinded out the challengers and took flight in those final important strides. No one will forget the way she lead at every call in the grueling Belmont or the way she stretched to get the Breeder's Cup Classic. Is there anyone that could possibly fill her colassal legacy on the track?
Lately her speed has returned as the vet once again discovered her body was quick to heal. Her fracture is gone and someday soon she may return to the track where she was once a star, just to make a grand show over her speed like she always did. Flying at the front, grinding out, putting away the win halfway down the stretch. When she returns to Green Horse Fields for that standing ovation there will be no doubt who the true champion was. Now she enjoys days at the farm keeping the developing stars under control with her bossy attitude. Even at home she is never questioned. In year nine her first foal will be born, twin cobalt colored fillies by the grade one stallion Night Stalker. Her speeding genes will pass on quickly because she was the champion and her young will be champions as well.
Unanimously Inducted With 11 Votes 
