Florida Breeder/Owner Ralph Sessa

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Ralph Sessa, a successful Florida breeder/owner, died Oct. 24. He was 75.

Sessa and his late wife, Betty, were pioneers of Calder Race Course, starting in the early 1970s with a string of successful homebred horses that captured numerous stakes at Calder, Gulfstream Park and Hialeah.

The first horse that Ralph Sessabought at public auction turned out to be one of the couple's best. Stage Door Betty, an $8,000 yearling purchase who was named and raced for Betty Sessa, won four stakes, including a division of the 1974 Pageant Handicap (gr. III) at Atlantic City.

The Sessas established their Circle S Farm in Davie, Fla., in 1975, transforming a 60-acre parcel into one of the most highly respected training/breeding facilities in south Florida.

Another of their top runners, homebred Heckofaralph, won six stakes and earned $695,074. Bred by Betty Sessa, he equaled a world record mark of :54.96 for five furlongs on turf in the 1998 Calder Turf Sprint Handicap.

Ralph Sessa raced seven stakes winners in his name, including homebred Stuffy Tune and 2005 juvenile Blazing Rate. He bred eight-time stakes winner Littlebitappleasure, who became a successful producer. Her offspring include grade II winners Built for Pleasure and Littlebitlively, a millionaire.

Sessa is survived by a son, Ralph Jr., and daughters Kathy, Patricia, and Kimberly. Elizabeth Sessa died in 2001. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the American Cancer Society or to Kiwanis Horses and Handicapped, Inc. in Dania Beach, Fla.

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