Terlingua, who made a name for herself as one of the fastest fillies of her generation and as the dam of leading sire Storm Cat, was euthanized April 29 because of complications from the infirmities of old age at the Young family’s Overbrook Farm near Lexington. The 32-year-old mare was from the second crop of Secretariat.
Bred in Kentucky by Tom Gentry, Terlingua didn’t waste any time showing how fast she was under the care of trainer D. Wayne Lukas. She won the Nursery Stakes at 5 ½ furlongs in 1:03 3/5 at Hollywood Park at 2 in her first start, and then won the Hollywood Lassie Stakes (gr. II) and the Hollywood Juvenile Championship Stakes (gr. II) over males, both at six furlongs and both in 1:08 4/5. She made it four straight with a score in the Del Mar Debutante Stakes (gr. II) at a mile.
Terlingua also proved fast the next two years. She captured the Las Flores Handicap in 1:08 2/5 and the Santa Ynez Stakes at seven furlongs in 1:21 1/5 at 3. The next year, she took the La Brea Stakes in 1:20 4/5.
Terlingua raced throughout her career for Barry Beal and L.R. French Jr. She retired with seven wins and four runner-up efforts from 17 races and earnings of $423,896.
Although Terlingua was a successful race filly, her greatest fame came as the dam of Storm Cat. Bred by Overbrook founder William T. Young in the name W. T. Young Storage, Storm Cat developed into a grade I winner and one of the best sires in recent memory. The son of Storm Bird twice has topped the year-end leading sires list and is represented by dozens of sons at stud. His former fee, $500,000, was the highest for years. His current fee at Overbrook is $300,000.
Terlingua produced 11 foals, including additional graded stakes winner Chapel of Dreams. Another of her offspring, Pioneering, stands at stud at Overbrook. Terlingua’s last foal, 8-year-old Final Legacy, is a broodmare at Overbrook.
Terlingua, out of the Crimson Satan mare Crimson Saint, will be buried at Overbrook.
Watch HRTV Inside Information feature on Terlingua