Southern States Affirmed
Winning Triple Crown jockey Steve Cauthen feeds his horses only the best--Legends and Triple Crown.

Steve Cauthen stands with Southern States field sales associate Red Shryrock (center) and Southern States equine specialist Robert Stepp (right) at Cauthen's thoroughbred farm in Walton, Ky. Dreamfields training center manager Louis Oliva scoops Southern States Triple Crown 14 for his athletes. Healthy horses graze nutritious pastures that Cauthen thanks Southern States for. Steve Cauthen

They say the third time's a charm, but for Steve Cauthen it was a jewel.

In 1978 Cauthen blazed down the racetrack hunched over the infamous thoroughbred Affirmed to claim the highest prize in the racing world—the Triple Crown. Comprised of victories in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes, the Triple Crown has eluded all other contenders for 27 years since.

At age 18 Cauthen became the youngest to win the Triple Crown, affirming his 1977 honor of Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year. Over the next 18 years the jockey surmounted accomplishments many only dream of, including induction into the National Jockey Hall of Fame and winning the Epsom Derby in England.

Today, the only evidence of such achievements is a gleam in Cauthen's eyes as the modest horseman looks over lush pastures dotted with mares and yearlings on his horse farm, Dreamfields.

His focus now is on selecting top stallions to breed his brood mares in hopes of producing the next big winner. With Southern States' line of quality equine feeds, mares stay in peak condition and foals grow strong. Who knows, Cauthen might even produce the horse that will break his own record.

"The harder you work, the luckier you get," Cauthen grins. "When people think about the racing industry they think of these really big, fancy farms. The reality is an average farm of 200 to 250 acres, seven to eight employees and a $50,000 profit margin each year."

Dreamfields is that average farm. Cauthen owns and manages 300 acres in Walton, Ky., where he breeds his 14 brood mares to the best stallions he can afford. With stud fees so high, the racehorse industry can be a gamble before it even reaches the racetrack. This past September Cauthen sold 10 yearlings in Keeneland, Ky., for prices ranging from $50,000 to $62,000 each.

Cauthen opened a 127-acre center down the road. He trains about 25 horses for himself and clients, with his right-hand man, Louis Oliva. The facility has a dirt and a turf track, an indoor arena, a hydraulic walker, paddocks and deluxe horse stalls for 35 horses. To make his land more economical, Cauthen also runs a small cow herd on his pastureland. He produces approximately 1,200 hay bales from the inside of his tracks and other areas of his operation.

"You do whatever you can to save money and still do it right," Cauthen states. "This is all I've got. This is a working, producing farm." Horses have run in his blood from the very beginning. His father was a blacksmith, and his mother and grandfather trained racehorses.

"By the time I was 6 years old I was mucking out stalls as part of my house chores. In 4-H I rode a pony, and by the sixth grade I realized I wasn't going to play basketball, so I started thinking about being a jockey," Cauthen says. He pursued this career with his family's help, winning his first race at 16. After 18 years of racing horses around the world, Cauthen retired in 1993 to manage his own breeding farm.

"I worked with a lot of good trainers over the years. I kept my eyes open to all kinds of different training methods," Cauthen says. "At the end of the day you have to get the confidence of the horse. They're willing because they have faith in you."

Cauthen admits there was a lot to learn when it came to operating a horse farm. Although he had fed Southern States equine feeds from day one of his operation, he turned to Southern States field sales associate Red Shryrock and Southern States equine specialist Robert Stepp for expertise.

"There are so many facets to this industry. It's not just training; it's how you feed the horses and manage the pastures you have them in," says Cauthen. "That's where Red and Robert come in."

A 21-year Southern States veteran, Shryrock began helping Cauthen to improve his grass and made sure he had the necessary supplies for his horses.

"I try to keep Steve informed on the technology," Shryrock explains. "I mostly work with him on the agronomy end of his operation."

Robert Stepp is another part of the Southern States team that ensures Cauthen's horses are growing strong. "We're just a small piece of Steve's business pie in making him succeed," says Stepp of Shryrock and himself. "When you see a farm that has success, it gives you a sense of pride."

Cauthen feeds his brood mares Legends 14 Nuggets, a half-inch pellet that gives him the best value for his money, Stepp says. The medium-fat feed fits Cauthen's program and is high in the copper the land is deficient in. At his training center, the horses fuel up with Triple Crown 14--a fitting feed for the Triple Crown horse as well.

"The horses are under a lot of stress at the racetrack. Triple Crown enables them to do a better job of digesting their feed," Stepp explains. "You don't mix a lot of different feeds to get the horses the nutrients they need."

Affirmed by Cauthen, Southern States service and products are a sure bet of quality. Who would know better than a Triple Crown winner?

--Story & Photos by Ginger Larson