Several members of the Thoroughbred industry were among the 49 people killed
in the crash of a commuter jet Sunday morning near Blue Grass Airport in
Lexington, Kentucky.
Central Kentucky horseman Dan Mallory, trainer Jeff Williams, and George
Brunacini, the breeder of 2005 Travers S. (G1) winner Flower Alley (Distorted
Humor), were among those killed when Comair Delta Connection Flight 5191, a
CRJ-100 regional jet bound for Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International
Airport, crashed shortly after takeoff at 6:07 a.m. (EDT).
Marcie Thomason, the 25-year-old daughter of Mill Ridge Farm executive Bill
Thomason, also died in the crash.
The flight’s lone survivor, first officer James M. Polehinke, was in critical
condition on Sunday at the University of Kentucky Medical Center.
Mallory, 55, a well-known sales consignor who operated Meadow Haven Farm near
Paris, Kentucky, was en route to the Fasig-Tipton Texas Summer Yearling Sale at
Lone Star Park. Horses sold by Mallory at public auction include multiple Grade
1 winner Honor Glide, Grade 3 winner Danthebluegrassman (Pioneering), and 2006
Swale S. (G2) runner-up Noonmark (Unbridled’s Song).
Williams, 49, a longtime trainer on the Ohio/Northern Kentucky circuit, was
based at the Thoroughbred Center training facility in Lexington. He entered the
business through his association with polo ponies and was an assistant to
trainer W.E. “Smiley” Adams in the late 1970s. During the following decade, he
became associated with Woodburn Farm, saddling 10 stakes winners for the Ohio
farm, including the 1985 Ohio two-year-old champion Astrotot.
At River Downs, Williams won 13 stakes races, capturing the Hoover S. for
two-year-olds on four separate occasions. His brother, Kim Williams, is on the
board of directors of the Ohio Thoroughbred Breeders and Owners and operates one
of the state’s most successful breeding operations, Fair Winds Farm near
Waynesville, Ohio.
Horses trained by Williams won 257 races from 1,969 starts and earned more
than $3.1 million.
Brunacini, 60, a native of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was the owner of Bona
Terra Farm near Georgetown, Kentucky. In addition to Flower Alley, he also bred
Grade 2 winner Victory U.S.A.
The cause of the crash is under investigation but preliminary evidence
suggests that the jet took off from the 3,500-foot-long general aviation
runaway, which is too short to get a passenger jet airborne.
Blue Grass Airport is located adjacent to Keeneland.