Mary & Chester Broman

As happy as he was when his two-year-old New York-bred filly Artemis Agrotera upped her record to two-for-two by winning the Frizette at Belmont Park by a length and a quarter, trainer Mike Hushion was even happier for Chester and Mary Broman, who own and bred the filly. “Any time you win for the Bromans makes it even better,” Hushion said. “Chester and Mary are wonderful people.”

And successful. The Bromans were named Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association New York Breeder of the Year in 2004 and 2005. They were the New York Thoroughbred Breeders’ Breeders of the Year in 2004 and 2012. In 2009, they were the leading owners at the Belmont Park Fall Meet with nine victories, each by a homebred who was foaled and raised at Chestertown Farm, a 300-acre spread in the foothills of the majestic Adirondacks they purchased in 1995. Previously, the property had been known as Assunta Louis Farms, whose owner, the late oral and maxillofacial surgeon Dr. Dominick DeLuke, shepherded the early growth of the New York-bred program in its infancy as president of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc.

Chester was born in Pinelawn, New York, and became the owner, president, and CEO of Clifford Broman & Sons, Inc., a general contracting corporation in West Babylon, New York, established in 1938. The company, which specializes in trucking, now has a staff of 50.

The Bromans have two sons, Chester Jr. and Christopher, and a daughter, Rachel.

Chester was appointed to the New York Racing Association Board of Trustees in 1995 and has served multiple terms on the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Board of Directors.

Artemis Agrotera, named for an ancient Greek temple site in Athens, was not their first Grade 1 winner. In 2004, their New York-bred Friends Lake won the Florida Derby. Artemis Agrotera’s ability was the worst-kept secret of the Saratoga meet. In her debut in a New York-bred maiden race on August 16, she was bet down to 2-5 and won by 11¾ lengths.

Susan Wantz

Susan Wantz rode and trained event horses for much of her life before getting involved with Thoroughbreds in 1997. She and her husband David own ten horses in Maryland. “I just love Thoroughbreds,” she said. “Thoroughbreds run because they love to run.”

Dance to Bristol sure does love to run. Wantz purchased Dance to Bristol for $42,000 as a yearling and has watched her evolve into one of the best filly sprinters in North America. The daughter of Speightstown has won ten of 19 starts, with eight seconds, and is less than $20,000 shy of a million in earnings.

Just three-and-a-half weeks after giving Wantz her first Grade 2 stakes victory, getting up in the final strides to capture the Honorable Miss Handicap at Saratoga Race Course by a neck over Classic Point, Dance to Bristol did even better, holding off Book Review by a head to capture the 35th running of the $500,000 Grade 1 Ballerina Stakes.

When jockey Xavier Perez brought Dance to Bristol back to the Ballerina winner’s circle, Wantz rubbed her filly’s neck, congratulated Perez, and then wiped tears away before pictures were taken. “You don’t find horses with that much heart,” Wantz said. “You can’t breed that.”