01/21/12 Southeast: Blockbuster

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By Bill Giauque

Ocala Stud roars back among top breeders.

Ocala Stud is the setting for the longest-running Thoroughbred epic in Florida, which features tragedy and triumph, struggle and success. The story began in 1956 with the founding of the farm by Joe O' Farrell, followed quickly by the hosting of the world’s first 2-year-old in training sale, and the emergence of Rough’n Tumble as a leading sire and the sire of champions My Dear Girl and Dr. Fager.

Next came the Ocala Stud-bred Horse of the Year Roman Brother. Eventually, though, Florida’s keystone farm fell on hard times and bankruptcy in the 1970s, followed by the long struggle to return to national
prominence.

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