| 
Kenny grew up in Lexington and played football at Tates
Creek High School. After graduating from the University of
Kentucky, his roommate asked him what he loved.
“ It was easy,” he said. “The answer was horse racing.”
Although he went to New York to interview for a position
as a stockbroker, he instead took a job as a hotwalker for
trainer Shug McGaughey. He took out his trainer’s license
in Kentucky in 1985. His father was his first client. He
got his first break from Roy Monroe, who’s son Brian
had played high school football with Ken. Through Monroe,
McPeek was able to get some better quality horses.
First big horse was Tejano Run, who ran third in the Breeders’ Cup
Juvenile in 1994 and was second in the 1995 Kentucky Derby.
Purchased for just $20,000 for Monroe, Tejano Run earned
in excess of $1.1 million on the racetrack.
“The most rewarding aspect of being a trainer is the
challenge of working with an owner to discover a diamond
in the rough,” said McPeek.
He picked out Repent and Take
Charge Lady for $230,000 and $175,000, respectively,
at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky July Yearling Sale. Repent
was a solid second in the 2001 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile
and Take Charge Lady was sixth in the 2001 Breeders’ Cup
Juvenile Fillies and sixth in the 2002 Breeders’ Cup
Distaff. In referring to his ability to spot yearlings
and make them into graded stakes winners, he said,
“I’ve trained enough bad horses to know what
they look like and enough good ones to know it when I see
one.”
Another astute purchase was She’s A Devil Due. Bought
for $30,000, she finished third in the Breeders’ Cup
Juvenile Fillies in 2000.
Ken conditioned the now-retired Harlan’s Holiday to
win both the Florida Derby and the Blue Grass Stakes before
starting as the favorite for the Kentucky Derby in 2002.
McPeek won the Belmont Stakes that same year with Sarava,
the longest shot on the board at 70-1.
“It was awesome,” he said. “But I still
want to win the Kentucky Derby one day.”
McPeek has won 67 stakes in his career, 28 of them graded.
Through September 29th, McPeek had started 306 horses with
51 wins, 47 seconds, 43 thirds and $2,626,221 in earnings
for 2003.
www.mcpeekracing.com |
