Hinsdale, IL – Nowadays it’s a near certainty when it comes to the naming of the Illinois Trotting Sire of the Year. For the fifth year in a row and the sixth in the last seven, the Flacco Family Farm’s pride and joy stallion Lou’s Legacy came away with the honor.

And why not?

An offspring of the prominent Flacco Family Farms stallion Lou’s Legacy, named the Illinois Stallion of the Year for the fifth consecutive time last month. Flacco Family Farms Photo.

Lou’s Legacy’s daughter Funky Wiggle (1:51.4, $131,235) deservingly captured the 2022 Illinois Harness Horse of the Year award, to go along with the ICF 3-year-old filly trotting prize for her trainer and co-owner Curt Grummel.

Plus, the Grummel stable’s Marvelous Mystery (1:57.2, $129,722), another Lou’s Legacy youngster, was selected as the prairie state’s top 2-year-old filly trotter. Likewise, the Steve Searle trained Lousdobb (1:54.1, $117,235) made it back-to-back years for the son of Lou’s Legacy to be honored, this time in the state-bred th3-year-old colt trotting category.

Lous Legacy, a son of Windsong’s Legacy, out of the Meadow Road broodmare Lady Love mare, was attained by Flacco Family Farms in early 2013. The productive stallion’s sons and daughters have earned over $7 million and countless ICF awards since, not too shabby for a horse that was a bit of a gamble to be an effective money-maker as a stallion because of a low fertility rate.

“I thought I could do a few things that might help Lou’s Legacy and he’s turned out to be just unbelievable for us,” said Dr. Richard Flacco, who heads-up the Alexis, IL family’s enterprise. “His fertility rate is like 10 times better than it was when we got him,”

In his family practice as a doctor, Flacco has been involved in the fertility of humans and has used that knowledge in the horse breeding business.

Among Lou’s Legacy’s successful Illinois bred foals over the past several years include Funky Wiggle, Louzotic, Lougazi, Lousdobb, Lousraptor, Loulita, Encantado, Lous Abigail, Lousciper, and Marvelous Mystery.

Another plum for the Flacco farm came about when their mare Olives And Caviar (SJ’s Caviar – Winbak Olive) was named the Illinois Trotting Broodmare of the Year for a second straight time.

A Wise Decision: Turning to the prairie state’s pacing category, John and Joan’s homebred Gimmeazzzmooch (Four Starzzz Shark – Fox Valley Moochie) landed the 2022 Illinois Pacing Broodmare of the Year award.

Gimmeazzmooch’s first foal He’zzz A Wise Sky once again repeated as the top ICF aged pacer of the year. The Yankee Skyscraper offspring hauled in over $202,000 as a 5-year-old, winning 14 of 28 starts against some of the best in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky, and lowered his mark to 1:48.3.

He’zzz A Wise Sky’s 3-year-old sister Kizzzmelikeumissme (1:53.3) banked $44,689 in her first year of competition, while half-brother Rollinwithdaponyzzz (1:51.2) earned over $66,000. The Time To Roll gelding was claimed off the Triple ZZZ stable for $8,000 last year and has raced out of four different barns since.

Kizzzmelikeumissme’s first season was cut short when the filly suffered a bone chip after her race in the Downstate Classic on Aug. 3 at the Altamont fair track. The filly was on the mend when the fall’s important Plum Peachy stake on Hawthorne’s Night of Champions was contested in mid-September.

“She’s a big filly and the race at Altamont was her first time on half-miler,” said trainer John Filomeno. “I was happy with her effort. She finished second to a track record performance (1:58.3). It was her last race of the season. We took care of her injury and she’ll be ready when the Illinois racing season gets under way at Springfield.”

Kizzzmelikeyoumissme posted four wins in an even dozen starts including victories at Hawthorne in a $30,000 ICF sophomore filly pace and the summer’s Plum Peachy stake elimination.

Filomeno has another full brother and full sister to He’zzz A Wise Sky and Kizzmelikeumissme on the way. The 2-year-old colt Who’zzz This Sky is being prepared for the upcoming Illinois racing season and Filomeno also has his younger sister Minithezzzmoocher. (You gotta love those names).