Over the next three years, Brittany Farms as we know it now will come to an end,
Art Zubrod and Leah Cheverie are retiring. Farm owner George Segal said he hopes to find buyers in the world of standardbreds for harness racing breeding agencies.
Dave Briggs
An exit plan has been mulled over for years, but when it finally came time to put it into action and say it publicly, Art Zubrod suddenly got emotional for the first time. This week, in a call from Kentucky, he and his wife Leah Cheveley are retiring from Brittany Farms and owner George Segal has long been one of the largest institutions in saddlery racing. Zbrod’s voice choked when he announced that he was selling the company.
“It’s been 40 years of our lives, Leah and I. It’s something I’m very proud of. It’s been a dream come true to be able to work with people like I’ve been able to work with.” “I’m sorry, this is the first time I’ve been emotional since this started.”
Cheverie adds:
“There is very little turnover,” said Zubrod, adding that as many as six other people have worked in Brittany for over 20 years.
The good news is that the demise of Brittany Farms, at least under current ownership and leadership, will be over in three years. Zubrod, the farm manager, and Cheverie, his manager in Brittany’s office, will retire after his Lexington Selected Yearling Sale in 2025.
“By the time Art and Leah retire, I’ll be 87 and a half, so it just happens to be a great time,” Segal said. “Every time I think about it, I think I should be smaller. I’ve gotten a lot smaller in the last 10 years. I should be in a position not to drive my wife and kids crazy after I’m gone.” I think my plan is to sell the farm.
“If possible, I would like to sell this farm to someone who is in the Standardbred business. They are great employees and have been here for many years, I think the longest is 35 years.”
Segal still owns a portion of the Red Mile Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky, and serves on the Hambletonian Society’s board of directors. He purchased Bill Shehan’s Clermont farm in 1985, and about 38 years after the Brittany farm was born, Seagull My passion for harness racing remains the same today. But his family is not. That makes handing over the farm to heirs out of the question.
“There are no absolutes in this world, but they are absolutes,” Segal said with a laugh. “They are not interested.
“When my kids were little, in high school or college, [they had some interest], but they are now too many on the plate. They work and have families. My wife enjoys coming to the Hambletonian, but it’s not her taste. “
Segal said it’s a great opportunity for anyone involved in saddlery to purchase one or both of Brittany’s finest Versailles, Kentucky properties and its excellent broodmare herds.
“This is the perfect farm for both or either of those in the harness racing business today. Kentucky is a very attractive place. There are new people getting into the business by the way.It would be great if someone bought this place.I don’t want to sell it to a developer or someone who is a thoroughbred.If it gets intrusive I will but I will sell cheaper to the saddler ‘, said Segal with a laugh. “And they can also keep the name Brittany Farms.”
Brittany’s vast legacy
For nearly 40 years, Brittany has amassed a long list of champions.
A small sample of farm-produced champions include Artsplace, Bettors Wish, Manchego, Continentalvictory, Art Major, Father Patrick, Glidemaster, Mr Muscleman, Six Pack, Mr Feelgood, Life Sign, Perfect Sting, Artspeak, Artiscape, Western included. Ideal, Self-Owned, American He’s a Jewel, He’s Watching, State Treasurer, Reverend Stephen, and many more.
Brittany has produced 45 millionaires and as a breeder has won 30 Breeders’ Crowns on 22 horses. The 30 trophies are tied with Hanover His Shoe His Farm, the most in Crown history.
If anything its success has increased since Brittany moved to a smaller property — 8 miles from the original farm site — 2016.
And this does not include champions such as the Qantab Hall, Western Hanover and the Three Diamonds, whose farms have purchased and raced under the Brittany flag.
On their list of personal favorite moments, Seagal and Zubrod agree that nothing beats winning the Arts Place world record of 1:51.1 as a two-year-old. 1990 Breeders’ Crown at Pompano Park.
“It was a great night,” Segal said.
However, Zubrod said that Life Sign 1993 Little Brown Jug It was “huge, just huge”.
As part of the downsizing, Zubrod wants to preserve much of its history. Many great horses were buried in their original places in Brittany. About a dozen gravestones have since been moved to the new farm.
“One of the things that weighs heavily on my mind is what to do with all the trophies and tombstones here,” Zubrod said. “Some trophies can be moved elsewhere, but there are too many trophies for anyone to accommodate them all.”
It’s another reason Segal wants a standard person or group to come along to buy all the farms in Brittany and carry on the tradition.
“I wish someone would do that. It would solve the tombstone problem,” Segal said. “So it could be ‘Hannover Shoe Farm on Brittany Farm’ or something. I don’t know.”
emotional ending
Segal said the story was just the beginning of the public phase that would put an end to Brittany as we know it today.
“I have not mentioned this or told anyone the idea of anyone buying this farm,” he said.
Zbrod said he, Segal and Chevely had been talking about how to end it for about a year, but plans began to solidify about three months ago. Zubrod turns 74 this year.
“Because of my back injury, I have a hard time physically doing anything outside. [yearling] As for the video, I didn’t feel 100% safe this year. So let’s see. It’s just part of life. I got old a little faster than some people get old,” Zubrod said.
“later [Lexington] With the 2025 sale, Leah and I will retire. I think she’s going to do some work and I’ll definitely help George with whatever he needs, but our grandkids are in Louisville and we’re moving to Louisville at the time. continues the horse business. Both my daughters work for my sister who runs her Zubrod Stables, a stable my mom and I started her in 1967. “
Brittany just keeps going as the process unfolds.
“You never know what the real estate market and the horse business will be in three years.
Outside of Brittany’s first two years, farm manager Dale Logan and his wife Patty were also key members of the team. Zbrod said Logan was sad when he heard the news.
“But it was a relief when we told them it hadn’t happened in three years,” Zubrod said. “I could have walked in and said, ‘Well, tomorrow.'”
In the meantime, Zubrod said: I’m not going to focus on the end of everything.
“Until a few minutes ago there was absolutely no emotion on my part. The shocking part for me is when I realized it was gone forever… One day I woke up and realized I could never go back and it was sad but I wanted to do the rest. I have had as much fun in my life as I have in the last 40, 45 years.”
