By Liane Crossley
Special to NKyTribune
Describing Ken Ramsey as a positive thinker would be an understatement. Calling him an eternal optimist is more accurate.
“I’m always trying to overreach and do more than what people thought I could do,” said Ramsey. “I like being No. 1 in anything I am doing.”
Ramsey and his wife, Sarah, are accustomed to being in that No. 1 spot. They routinely top the leader board at Churchill Downs, Keeneland and other tracks to close many seasons as the nation’s leading Thoroughbred owners and breeders. Their stallion Kitten’s Joy was a champion at the track and a No. 1 sire as he passes his superior genes to future generations.
And now the Ramseys are in the No. 1 spot on the Kentucky Derby points list with International Star, which guarantees the colt a spot in the starting gate on May 2 at Churchill Downs. (Horses earn points in designated prep races leading to the first Saturday in May.) International Star will be the Ramseys’ seventh starter in the Derby, but they have yet to finish better than eighth.
With his customary exuberance, Ramsey reasons that 2015 could be his year to be No. 1 in the Run for the Roses despite International Star’s likely longshot status. An astute handicapper, Ramsey envisions speedy frontrunners wearing each other out and International Star passing those tiring leaders in the stretch.
“From the way the race profile is setting up, it looks like there will be ample speed in the race to set it up for a closer,” he said. “Whether my horse is good enough, that remains to be seen.”
Many of the Ramsey racers were born and raised on their vast farm on Harrodsburg Road near the Fayette-Jessamine County line and are descendants of Kitten’s Joy, but not International Star. He was purchased for $85,000 as a yearling at auction. As is his style, Ramsey christened him with a catchy moniker that carries lofty expectations. The son of Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus already has fulfilled those expectations by winning prestigious races in Canada and the United States including three important Derby prep victories at Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans.
International Star has not raced since his hard fought triumph in the Louisiana Derby on March 28 but Ramsey considers him a prime contender if he is lucky enough to draw a favorable spot in the starting gate. Post positions for as many as 20 entrants will be drawn randomly on April 29.
“This time I am in with a very versatile horse,” Ramsey said. “He will probably be 15-1; he won’t be one of the favorites. He is seasoned, he is battle hardened and he is fearless. In other words, he will go through a tight hole, and I think he might have a little bit of an advantage if some of these speedballs (quit on the front end).”
From Artemus to UK and Keeneland
Ramsey grew up in tiny Artemus in southeastern Kentucky, where an uncle’s mules were the closest he came to horses. For whatever reason, he had a keen interest in Churchill Downs and convinced an aunt to take him to the storied track during a Christmas shopping outing in Louisville.
“When I was 5 years old, I looked through the gate at the Twin Spires for the first time,” he said.
His first taste of an actual race came during his Navy years near San Francisco. Ramsey left unimpressed but his attitude changed when he returned to his home state. During his years at the University of Kentucky, he began going to Keeneland and became intrigued by Thoroughbred racing.
After making what he terms “a little bit of money” in real estate, Ramsey decided to buy a racehorse. That initial purchase was a dismal failure but Ramsey viewed the experience with his trademark exuberance.
“When you are on the bottom, the only way to go is up,” he said.
To learn more about the racing business, Ramsey worked hands-on with horses at the Thoroughbred Center training facility on Paris Pike in Lexington.
“It was a good experience. I was out there everyday before daylight,” he said.
As better horses came his way, the Ramseys expanded their stable. They purchased a portion of the historic Almahurst Farm on Harrodsburg Road in 1994 and rebranded the acreage with their own breeding dynasty anchored by Kitten’s Joy. In his quest to be No. 1, Ramsey has collected oodles of honors including championship Eclipse Awards for both the couple and their horses. The Ramseys also have collected trophies for victories as far away as the United Arab Emirates and the Caribbean. However, the most asked about trophy is one that has eluded them.
“I have been all over this country and down to Barbados and over to England to race my horses,” Ramsey said. “The person on the street will always ask ‘have you ever won the Derby?’ and I always have to say ‘I’ve been in it six times and the best I have ever finished is eighth so all I got was hot and dirty.’ ”
If Ramsey wins the Kentucky Derby, he vows to have the accomplishment engraved on his tombstone. The notation will replace previous ideas that reflect his infectious humor including “I made a lot of good deals but I went in the hole on this one.”
Liane Crossley is a Lexington-based freelance writer.