Member Profile Nick Cafarchia - California Thoroughbred Breeders ...

Nickby DEBRA GINSBURGNick Cafarchia likeshomemade things, be itstakes-winning Thoroughbredhorses or scrumptiouspastries in his family-run bakery.He likes things done withhis own personal touch.“The way I feel,” he said, “ifpeople have something to sellyou, they’re trying to get rid of it.If you have something that’s really,really good, you don’t want tosell.”Cafarchia emigrated to Californiafrom Italy in 1959. Like so manymembers of his family did before him, hewent to work in the bakery business as apastry man. He started at a little bakeryin the Pasadena suburb of Eagle Rockand took over the business when theowners retired. Nick moved the bakeryacross the street to its present locationon Colorado Boulevard and put his wife,Gemma, and two sons, Vito and Anthony,to work. These days, Eagle RockBakery is a thrivingbusiness that not onlyprovides a living forhis entire family,but also supportshis 32 Thoroughbreds.Lately,though,homebredstakes winnersRoadto Slew andRare Charmer havebeen paying their own bills.His involvement with Thoroughbredsbegan about 20 years ago whenhe joined up with three other guys ina partnership on a racehorse. This firsthorse soon led to another and to yetanother. Before he realized it,Cafarchia was up to his elbows inhorses.“I’ve never been to a racetrack orknew anything about horses until Ibecame a part owner,” he said. “Atthe time I couldn’t tell one end of ahorse from the other. I still have noidea how I wound up with so manyhorses.”Fortunately, Cafarchia was a quicklearner because he soon invested insome horses with trainer Sandy Shulman.None of them amounted to anythingon the racetrack, but he did windup with a pretty good broodmarenamed Cheap Score. The 1984 daughterof Score Twenty Four was unraced,but her first live foal was the 1991Kennedy Road filly Scoring Road,who won or placed in 16 of 27 startsfor earnings of $159,450. Nick nowhas a 4-year-old Slewpy gelding outof Cheap Score named ScoringSlew. He broke his maiden at SantaAnita on March 1 and then won astarter allowance at Bay Meadows onApril 14.Nick’s dabbling in broodmares eventuallyled him to buying the unracedBold Tropic (SAf) matron Plumeria Lei,his foundation mare. She became thedam of Road to Slew and the granddamof Rare Charmer. The latter is out ofDancing Road, a Kennedy Road half-sisterto Road to Slew. Unfortunately, NickCTBAMEMBERPROFILENick Cafarchia flanked by his sonsVito (left) and Anthony at their Eagle Rock bakery.lost Plumeria Lei four years ago.“We were breeding her to In Excess(Ire),” he recalled. “She walked out ofthe breeding shed and just droppeddead. It must have been a heart attack.”Road to Slew and Rare Charmer areboth striking-looking 6-year-old offspringof Slewpy, bearing bright chestnutcoats and flaxen manes and tails.“They must have inherited the colorfrom the dam’s side,” he said, “becauseyou don’t see many Slewpys that looklike that. Plumeria Lei was a chestnut,and so is Dancing Road. When thesetwo foals were born, they were veryblond—much lighter than they arenow.”The two homebreds have manyother things in common than justtheir coat color, however. Both wereunraced at two and have posted theirbest campaigns since being turnedover to trainer Craig Dollase last year.Debra Ginsburg photo50 California Thoroughbred

Benoit photosRoad to Slew—Grade II Frank E. Kilroe Mile Handicap—March 3, 2001Rare Charmer—Grade II Buena Vista Handicap—Feb. 19, 2001Road to Slew is the stable star withnearly $800,000 in the bank. Heentered the spotlight when he defeatedCal-breds in last year’s Crystal WaterHandicap at odds of 63-1. Since Dollasehad taken over his training, he ransecond to subsequent Breeders’ CupMile winner War Chant in the OakTree Breeders’ Cup Mile and thenadded the Cal Cup Mile two weekslater. Then the gelding captured thegrade II Frank Kilroe Mile in his 2001debut and also successfullydefended his win in theCrystal Water Handicap.Rare Charmer scoredher first stakes win in thegrade II Buena VistaHandicap at Santa Anitaon Feb. 19. She won hersecond in the $175,000Fran’s Valentine Stakeson Gold Rush Day (seepage 24), and sandwicheda very respectable fifth inthe grade II Santa AnaHandicap in between.She now has eight winsand nine other placingsfrom 23 starts for earningsof $540,216.As successful as Road to Slew andRare Charmer have been, they alsopoint out the fragility of the Thoroughbred.Road to Slew came out of his winin the Crystal Water with a minorCelebrating Rare Charmer’s win in the Fran’s Valentine Stakes atHollywood Park’s California Gold Rush II on Saturday, April 28.injury and is currently convalescing atPrince Ahmed bin Salman’s ranch inBradbury. Rare Charmer has hadsurgery to repair an ulcer in her throat.“She’s had problems with her throat,that’s why she throws in a bad race nowand then,” Nick explained. “But youdon’t see many horses come back theway she did and become graded stakeswinners. They’re doing good nowbecause I didn’t rush them when theywere younger. Slewpys are not early runners;they need lots of time to mature.”Nick also has a 4-year-old Slewpyfilly named My Bouquet who broke hermaiden at Santa Anita on St. Patrick’sDay. In addition to the horses he has intraining, he keeps nine broodmares atAlex Trebek’s Creston Farm near PasoRobles. Most of them, including RareCharmer’s dam and Princess Morana, afull sister to Road to Slew, are carryingfoals by resident stallion Anziyan.Cafarchia plans on sending DancingRoad to a Kentucky stallion next year,possibly Pulpit.“I felt it was time to take that stepupwards,” he said. “She’s a half-sisterto Road to Slew, after all, and everyonefrom that family canrun. She has earned theright to prove herself inKentucky.”These days, Cafarchiachannels as much energyinto his horses as he doeshis bakery. He leaves hisPasadena home at about 6a.m. and puts in a solidmorning at the bakery.Then, he heads backacross town to see to thehorses in the afternoon.‘I go visit Road toSlew, give him some carrots,”he said. ‘Then, Igo to the track if I havesomething running. Wehad nine winners since Santa Anitaopened in December. Most guyswould feel lucky if they got one winner,but we had nine—and two gradedstakes winners, too!”June 2001 51