K A CZUBUTHAN

K A CZUBUTHAN was an outstanding race horse.

In 7 years of racing, he accumulated three Darley nominations and a record of 64(25-16-3)6-9, $109,152.

He held the US track record for 1 1/16 miles for 9 years. He ran it in 1:54.2 at Bandera Downs in 1993. (The current record is 1:54.1 set by Boeagle at Fresno in 2001.)

He has an outstanding Pure Polish pedigree.

He is by the leading *ORZEL son, Brusally Orzelost, unraced. Sire of 43 other starters, 25 winners, 4 stakes winners, FLASH MAGIC (60(9-5-11)1-7, $70,713), BRUTUS ORZELOST (18(6-2-3)2-3, $36,544), KRISTI LYN (21(2-2-1)1-1), and KEZORAM (38(8-13-8)4-5).

His dam is the granddam of TF Shenanigans. His fourth dam is *Ba-Ida (11(3-4-1) in Poland) who was undefeated at 1 1/8 miles and one of the five fastest mares in Poland at that distance.

Want to learn more? Click here for detailed pedigree information.

K A CZUBUTHAN is proving to be a first-class sire.

Sire of 30 race winners from 40 starters.

Sire of 35% stakes horses from starters.

Sire of a number of accomplished endurance horses.

For more on K A CZUBUTHAN's offspring, check out the Racing and Endurance sections.

K A CZUBUTHAN currently stands at Mandolynn Hill Farm in Aubrey, Texas.

$1,500 LFG

Transported semen available.

Arabian Cup and Texas Accredited
Stallion.

Foals resulting from a breeding to
K A CZUBUTHAN are eligible for Mandolynn Hill Farm Futurities. For more information on these races, visit Mandolynn Hill Farm.

"K A Czubuthan is a very outstanding stallion."

-Kevin and Nancy Phillips

Beating the Odds - A Profile of KA Czubuthan

originally published in Arabian Racing Illustrated

Early in life, KA Czubuthan was dealt bad luck. If he was to develop into the big, bold stud that was his potential, he would have to beat that hand. Plagued by a seemingly never ending series of problems and set backs, even those who so devotedly believed in his potential wondered if this horse would deliver.

Czubuthan showed them, though. From a pudgy, clumsy, unimpressive colt, he transformed himself into a powerful and agile athlete. Under the determined care of those who would not give up on him, he overcame his mishandling as a young horse and developed the focus and attitude of a fighter. Deliver he did. In 7 years of racing, KA Czubuthan accumulated a race record of 64(25-16-3)6-9, having won $109,000 in purses. He also earned the admiration and respect of all those who watched him compete.

Even before Czubuthan was born, the odds were staking up against him. His dam was a problem broodmare and breeder Dan Drewry did not expect her to produce a foal. She did, however, in 1984, give birth to a chestnut colt with four white socks.

In 1986, champion race trainer Robert Knight and now KA Czubuthan syndicate manager Michael Economopoulos traveled to Florida to buy the colt. Economopoulos had always thought that the big, strong, pure Polish Chambray would nick well with his stallion, Brusally Orzelost, a many times Top 10 race sire and producer of 25 race winners. The two men went to find out.

The horse's pedigree alone was enough to inspire the trip. The cross related the colt to racing greats. his sire line was through national champion race horse, *Orzel. His bottom side featured some of Poland's finest runners. He was line bred to *Czubuthan and *Ba-Ida who was undefeated at a mile and a furlong and one of the five fastest mares in Poland at that distance.

But the result of the cross did not impress the two men. "My first impression of Czubuthan was terrible," said Knight. "He was confined to a sandy pen in the hot sun and didn't have room to run. He was pot bellied, thick necked and awkward." Added to his poor condition, Knight and Economopoulos were concerned about his temperament. The owner had become afraid of the unruly colt and had quit handling him. The two men made an offer, but it was rejected and they left without the horse.

In 1987, race trainer Charlotte Houston of Lecanto, Florida, took a chance and leased KA Czubuthan. "He was such a treacherous horse," said Houston with a touch of affection. "I rode him in the paddocks, not in the woods or on the track. You just couldn't get him quiet enough. He had been neglected for three years and hadn't had anything done with him except food thrown at him. The owner moved the horses around by shaking a milk carton filled with pebbles. So he would go nuts at any noise."

One morning Houston found the colt in his paddock, clearly in great discomfort. Twelve hours and $3,000 later he was in colic surgery. The veterinarians pulled five gallons of sand out of his gut, likely picked up from eating in the round pen in which he lived for so long. Despite the veterinarians poor prognosis for survival, much less for a racing future, Czubuthan refused to give up. He recovered.

"Even after the surgery, he was dangerous and my husband didn't want me to finish breaking him." Nonetheless, Houston remembers thinking what a fine race horse he would make. "I loved his conformation: very good, stout legs, blocky build, nice hip, just well put together. Pretty too." Regretfully, Houston sent him back to the owner.

Race trainer Debra Foti had tried to buy Czubuthan as a weanling and had never given up the idea that this horse could be great. In 1988 she bought half ownership only to have veterinarians at Louisiana State University tell her that because of a cantaloupe-size hernia he had developed from colic surgery, he would never be useful as a riding or breeding horse. An operation to correct it would endanger his life. Despite their bleak forecast, Foti was resolved to prove them wrong.

By now the four-year-old stallion was unmanageable. When Foti brought the horse home the trailer was shaking so bad that her husband wouldn't let her go in and get him out. "Czubuthan was so wild. He was snapping lead ropes like they were made of string and had no respect for anything or anyone. he dumped every jockey who tried to ride him and put me in the emergency room."

It became a battle of wills, but Foti wasn't ready to give up. "I said to him, 'it's you or me, you rotten horse.'" With the aid of a few tricks taught to her by a cowboy and sheer perseverance, Foti gained ground. Finally, she felt that she and the colt had made such progress that she could chance riding him. When no one was around, she got on. "My hands were shaking. He could have dumped me, but he didn't. It was the best ride I've ever had."

Still Czubuthan was far from being tame and docile. He suffered a trailer accident that set him back for a time and was always nursing a bump or a bruise. When he finally ran his first race, he acted up in the gates and injured his leg. Czubuthan finished fifth and was laid up for 11 months.

When finally the horse was healed, Foti trailered him from Louisiana to Paducah, Kentucky for his first true test. He won by 17 lengths and broke the track record. "That was one of the best moments of my life," she remembers.

"Legs" as he was nicknamed, had learned to trust Foti and she felt he would do anything she asked of him and then some. "He had more heart than any horse I've ever seen," she recalls. In the next 2 months, he had 2 more firsts and a second.

At last Czubuthan was approaching his possibilities. It was the right moment to send him to the big time. Foti shipped him to Robert Knight at Delaware Park who took over the next stage of Czubuthan's career.

Knight was shocked. "When he came to me, he was a big and beautiful horse. It surprised me so much that I had to check the markings on the pedigree to make sure it was him." Though Czubuthan may have looked different, he was still a handful. "He was high and nervous," describes Knight. "For the first race it took two grooms to lead him to the saddling paddock. But I took my time with him. I went nice and easy and would not force myself on him. Before long he was gentle and calm and you could work around him and under him. He was just a lovable horse. I could practically lead him with a string. I'd talk to him and he'd just respond to the movement of a hand or arm."

With this kind of program, the real Czubuthan was emerging. In 1990, Knight won 5 of his first 8 starts with him. But in a messy situation with the original owner, Foti lost the horse. "It broke my heart," she tells.

When Economopoulos heard that the horse was once again for sale, he make another offer to buy the horse. This time he was successful. Shortly after, Czubuthan had another set back, just a few days before the Armand Hammer Classic where he was to face a tough field that starred Sam Tiki, NF Proof+\, Flash Magic, Tikisflaming Jet and Magna Terra Smoky.

Although the big horse was no longer wild, he remained frisky and playful. Knight remembers, "the gallop boys thought they were good hands, but Czubuthan was real smart. He would work his head, and the rider would get a little forward and off balance, and he would put his head between his legs and pop the rider right off, just for the fun of it."

After these little episodes, Czubuthan would stand there, waiting to be remounted and continue his work. This time, though, he ran off, galloping over two miles to the barn. Later he tied up and coliced. Knight and Economopoulos debated about scratching the horse, but determined he was healthy enough to let him give the race a shot.

In a courageous battle, Czubuthan traded leads three times down the stretch with Horse of the Year NF Proof+\. "He wasn't 100 percent, but he only missed winning by a head," says Knight. "He was tough. He had hard times, some which he created himself, but he always came through. He was a great competitor."

Economopoulos still replays the video of that race. "It always gives me a thrill and really shows what the horse is made of. He always had a little problem or another, but on race day he only had winning on his mind. He had great respect on the back side. A jockey told me he was the most honest horse he'd ever ridden. The horse never cheated in his life."

It was not just Czubuthan's heart that got him through. Conformation played its part. "He's one of the strongest Arabian horses I've ever seen," says Economopoulos. "When he was in his prime he looked like a body builder. There is such power in his physique. He can take your breath away."

His nickname of "Legs" reflects another point that kept him out front. "He's got short, flat cannon bones, a long arm, and good straight legs in back," describes Knight. "also he's well balanced, has a good shoulder slope, a neck fit that's good, a good croup, a lot of well defined muscle, a good jaw for breathing capacity, a good girth and big chest. He's a big, beautiful horse. He moves good. He's a proud looking horse."

KA Czubuthan proved to be a durable runner, having his best year as a 9-year-old. In 14 races, he had 8 wins, 4 seconds and a third, including 2 stakes victories. After 7 years on the track, two Darley nominations and 25 victories, Czubuthan was retired to stud in 1994.

Morris Woods of Austin, Texas, helped establish the syndicate in 1996 because of his admiration for the horse's conformation, pedigree and race record. "He ran like a thoroughbred, like a race horse. Not all Arabians do. He had great length of stride, and he'd put his head out, stretch his neck, and use his whole body to run."

Though none of the horse's babies have hit the track yet, Woods is very optimistic about their future. In 1997, KA Czubuthan bred 30 mares including Dr. Susan Bollinger's stakes producing mare, LM Carrie, and Paul and Kathy Smoke's race winning *Sambor daughter Samorra. Also on his list of matings are daughters of *Mellon, Ibn Kontiki, Pierrot PASB, Tiki Sahiber Ku, Tiki Tessar, *Orzel, *El Paso, *Wiking and Bandera Ka.

Economopoulos sees in the Czubuthan offspring their sire's conformation and attitude. "He's producing big, strong babies. They have also inherited his cockiness, confidence, and toughness. You can see it in their eyes. He's only produced a few foal crops, but in that group are some truly exceptional prospects. I built my program around his daddy, Brusally Orzelost, but I am convinced that Czubuthan will surpass him."

1988 Trainer of the Year Knight also believes in Czubuthan as a sire. "I've trained nine world champions, but believe only a few will prove to be truly great sires: Sam Tiki, Flaming Tron Ku, *Wiking, and KA Czubuthan. When a stallion marks his foals, that's a good sire. I have a two-year-old Czubuthan colt I bought as a weanling. Everyone that visits the farm picks him out of the group because he favors his sire. He's got that something special that sets him apart. I'll bet my reputation that they'll be hearing from his offspring," Knight says.

Just imagine if Czubuthan had had a trouble free life.

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