Breeding for Excellence

Located at the foothills of the Cascades, near Buckley, Washington, Griffin Place is a picturesque and modern Thoroughbred breeding farm. We are actively involved in breeding and marketing racehorses, and we are committed to the Washington Thoroughbred industry.

We have a strong history of breeding, raising and selling top class horses. We were Washington’s Leading Breeder by money won in 2000. That year, two of our homebreds, RINGS A CHIME and BEST JUDGEMENT, were named Washington Champions. RINGS A CHIME became our first G1 stakes winner and she in turn produced G1 SW COUNTRY STAR, and her dam, OUTOFTHEBLUEBELL was voted Broodmare of the Year.

In 2002 we had incredibly good fortune when our mare, Cozzene’s Angel, whose first foal produced TOCCET became the second leading two-year-old in the nation by money won and a multiple G1 stakes winner. TOCCET won the G1 Champagne at Belmont, the G1 Hollywood Futurity at Hollywood Park, the G2 Remsen at Aqueduct, the G3 Laurel Futurity and set a new record for graded stakes wins by a two-year old.

Excellence starts with good mares. and through the years we have assembled an outstanding broodmare band starting with SW OUTOFTHEBLUEBELL. Over the years we added Sp Cozzene’s Angel, the dam of multiple G1 SW TOCCET; SW BOLD MAGESTRATE, dam of Washington Champion BEST JUDGEMENT who would produce Sp Impeached; Sp Lady Beverly dam of Washington Champion LADY GOLIGHTLY, $184,86 SW BLONDAWAY; Campanita, dam of three stakes-placed horses: Sp Rain Shadow, Sp Bell Adieu and Sp Bella Campana, dam of 2017 Washington Champion BELLA MIA, Prado’s Joy dam of Washington Champion SPANISH HIGHWAY and SW ASHBY HILL; Mia F Eighteen, dam of triple G3 SW SUMMER HIT ($575,299) and Emerald Downs champion STARBIRD ROAD; Sp Briar de La Rose, dam of Washington Champion MULCAHY; Sp ATOYAC, dam of Turf Paradise Derby winner KEAGAN, and Courtroom Charmer (owned in partnership), dam of Sp Cariboo Road.

Recent additions to our broodmare band are Dixie Dreamin, by Dixieland Band, our homebred Impeached, by Northern Afleet, Matching Skies, by Henny Hughes, Tizarae, by Tiznow, and Racy Rascal by Into Mischief.

Our sales program remains strong. 2005 hallmarked a defining year for us in the sale ring. We topped the Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale when we sold Cozzene’s Angel sold for $1,350,000. Then we topped both Washington sales as our Tribunal filly out of BOLD MAGSTRATE (owned in partnership) brought $100,000 in the WTBOA Summer Yearling Sale, and we were the agent for the sale topper at the WTBOA Winter Mixed Sale. This was an unprecedented achievement. We have since topped the WTBOA yearling sale several other times with homebreds or for client horses.

We are proud to have sold Horse of the Year G1 SW RINGS A CHIME, Champions LADY GOLIGHTLY, BEST JUDGEMENT, MULCAHY, Derby winner KEAGAN, and additional SWs NEWFOUND MAN, EBONY N ICE, SILVER SCREEN GIRL, WILD CYCLE, CUDDABINTHEWHISKEY, and MIDNIGHT MARTINI, plus Sp Bella Campana, Rain Shadow, Cariboo Road, Mashiko, Bell Adieu, Blameitontherain, Café Tortoni, Formal Plan and Weepinbell.

We were honored in 2012 to have Rings a Chime inducted into the Washington Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame.

In 2016 we were awarded the prestigious S.J.Agnew Achievement Award.

We continue to be active supporters of the Washington Thoroughbred industry. Mary Lou is a member of the WTBOA Board of Trustees, as well as the WTBOA Finance and Sales Committees, and the Northwest Race Series Committee.

William T. “Terry” and Mary Lou Griffin