[Anne FS]

Does anyone know anything about this horse and what he's produced? Anyone have a photo of him? He's in PA.

Thanks a lot.

[DickHertz]

He's owned by trainer Flint Stites I believe and there are a couple decent claimers and allowance PA breds who have popped up recently. I believe Stites also trains many of them and I belive one of them was stakes placed at PID last year.

[LindaDee]

Aisle is actually a pretty decent sire considering his stud fee is free. He started his career standing at Godstone Farm in Pine Grove, Pa., now Flint Stites has moved him to a farm in Grantville, near Penn National. He does have a lot of decent runners and is partly owned by someone from Claiborne Farm, as well as Stites.

[Las Olas]

He does have a lot of decent runners and is partly owned by someone from Claiborne Farm, as well as Stites.

Claiborne bred the horse, but as far as I know (I worked there) they don't own him anymore, unless they bought back in recently.

Personally, I wouldn't do any business with Flint Stites. I bought a horse back from him that I bred, and she came back with a fractured pastern that he had been running her on. My vet at the time almost called and cussed him out. She was skinny, her hair was falling out and she had been physically abused. This filly was an in-your-pocket filly when I sold her. Thankfully, she is back in my pocket, but it's taken a couple of years for her to get over the anxiety. I was shocked because a girl I know said he was the Godfather of her children and a nice guy. Apparently, he has another side to him, or he has really crappy help and doesn't pay attention to what's happening in his barn.

[LindaDee]

Las Olas, Aisle is not owned outright by Stites, he is indeed partly owned by someone from Claiborne. I am not at my home computer now but I do know there was a story written about Aisle that I saved which has that info.

Also - Stites himself is a veterinarian, so it is hard for me to believe that he ran your horse with such an injury.

[Las Olas]

Las Olas, Aisle is not owned outright by Stites, he is indeed partly owned by someone from Claiborne. I am not at my home computer now but I do know there was a story written about Aisle that I saved which has that info.

Also - Stites himself is a veterinarian, so it is hard for me to believe that he ran your horse with such an injury.

Interesting, as someone else told me that Claiborne still owned the horse. Claiborne sold Aisle for $1 in 2002 when I worked there, and Stites isn't the person they sold him too. Out of curiosity, I called over there today to confirm that they have no interest in him, and they don't. They are very careful about who they do business with. Were you able to find the article?

As for my mare, I know that Stiles is a Vet, which is why my Vet was so pissed. Whether it's hard for you to believe or not, I have the proof that he ran the horse that way. I have her race record with the date of her last start, and the radiographs that were taken right after her last start. The fracture was old with displaced fragments. Basically, she fractured her pastern, he ran her on it to the point that the fractured piece completely separated, then shattered into fragments. I have the films and would be happy to share them. After doing some investigating, I heard that the stewards warned him about running her (don't have concrete proof on this point, it was third person). He wouldn't sell me the horse back (probably because he knew I'd go up there and beat the crap out of him when I saw her condition), so I had to buy her back on the sly. This all happened a few years ago.

Needless to say, I would never do business with him.

[DickHertz]

Claiborne bred the horse, but as far as I know (I worked there) they don't own him anymore, unless they bought back in recently.

Personally, I wouldn't do any business with Flint Stites. I bought a horse back from him that I bred, and she came back with a fractured pastern that he had been running her on. My vet at the time almost called and cussed him out. She was skinny, her hair was falling out and she had been physically abused. This filly was an in-your-pocket filly when I sold her. Thankfully, she is back in my pocket, but it's taken a couple of years for her to get over the anxiety. I was shocked because a girl I know said he was the Godfather of her children and a nice guy. Apparently, he has another side to him, or he has really crappy help and doesn't pay attention to what's happening in his barn.

He has a lot of horse, probably 60, she probably slipped through the cracks. In general, Stites has a pretty good reputation.

[LindaDee]

Here's the retirement announcement from 2003, in the Blood-Horse:

Aisle to Ellsmere in Pennsylvania
Updated: Wednesday, January 15, 2003 3:03 PM
Posted: Wednesday, January 15, 2003 3:03 PM

Aisle, a 4-year-old son of Pulpit and half-brother to stakes winners Hitch and Thread, will enter stud at Chris Modlin and Dr. Flint Stites' Ellsmere Farm near Grantville, Pa. Aisle, who placed in one of four starts, will stand for a private fee for a syndicate managed by Modlin. His first two dams, Knot (by Majestic Light) and Loop, are stakes winners.

I am still looking for that article where Stites states someone from Claiborne - the stallion manager, I'm thinking - kept a part-ownership in him. Methinks that since you have called and no one at Claiborne says they own part of him anymore, that they don't.

[Anne Tucker]

The other partners in Aisle are Jim Friess and Mike Jarvis. I have five Aisle babies if anyone wants to see them. I am near Richmond, so convenient if you are coming to the track or to Deep Run. I have a very athletic yearling filly, a very sweet and laid back gelding (don't see this one ever going very fast, but you never know), and three foals. One of the foals, a filly out of a Fred Astaire mare, is quite impressive. She is big and strong, put together very nicely and has a great temperment.

[Las Olas]

I don't know who Mike Jarvis is, but Jim Freiss does some of the accounting/business management work for Claiborne. That must be where LindaDee is getting the Claiborne connection from. He usually has a few side deals going, and probably never mentioned it to the folks there.

Anne, I wouldn't discount your gelding. Like you said, you never know. Sometimes those laid back ones do pretty well, as they are more professional and don't waste their energy elsewhere. I have a gelding here that a child could ride and he earned over $300,000 and won a BC stakes race.

[LindaDee]

Yes, Jim Freiss, that's who Stites mentioned. Just did a quick update on Aisle, here's where he's standing now, and note that his stud fee is listed as $1,000. He really has a beautiful female family:

AISLE, 1999 **
$1,000 Stud Fee
[email protected]
Whirlwind Stables
614 Manadagap Rd.
Grantville, PA 17028
(717) 576-6798

[DickHertz]

The other partners in Aisle are Jim Friess and Mike Jarvis. I have five Aisle babies if anyone wants to see them. I am near Richmond, so convenient if you are coming to the track or to Deep Run. I have a very athletic yearling filly, a very sweet and laid back gelding (don't see this one ever going very fast, but you never know), and three foals. One of the foals, a filly out of a Fred Astaire mare, is quite impressive. She is big and strong, put together very nicely and has a great temperment.

Fred Astaire threw some nice looking horses

[hollynanne]

To dig this back up... I have a Fred Astaire mare. She didn't race for crap, but wow is she beautiful! Built like a warmblood, with a good mind, too. She is by Fred Astaire, out of Dragon Miss (yeah, she's a 99 model )...

As far as the "will not work with Flint Stites" is concerned. He retired Bella out after 8 races (only one win). She strained a tendon. If he was so concerned about the money, he could've kept her racing claiming races. She probably would've eventually bowed that tendon. He apparently did something right by my mare, as she is 11 and schools 3'3". We've never had a lameness issue.

Anyway, thought I'd dust off this oldy-moldy thread and throw in my 2 cents. I think the Stites are great people.

fwiw- I did not get my mare from them directly. I've never met them in person, I just know that they did okay with my girl.