From a business standpoint, the racehorse West Seattle Boy is a profitable venture - he's won over $84,000 in stakes at Emerald Downs, which is a lot more than his purchase price.

The horse's owner, Lisa Baze of Eatonville, paid $5,000 for West Seattle Boy a couple of years ago after a claiming race, in which people get a chance to buy the winning horse for a set price.

West Seattle Boy is a 7-year-old thoroughbred, the breed that runs in the Kentucky Derby and the other races of the Triple Crown. Thoroughbreds are the offspring of Arabian or Turkish stallions crossed with English mares.

West Seattle Boy "campaigns" at Emerald Downs where he's won, placed or showed in more than half of the races he's run. Of 50 races entered, West Seattle Boy took first place 13 times, second place seven times and third place eight times.

Baze described West Seattle Boy as a stalker. Often he lags behind the rest of the field for much of the race but is a strong finisher.

"He can come from way out of it," Baze said.

She fell for West Seattle Boy after seeing him at a farm in Enumclaw.

"It was his personality," she said. "He had a beautiful sparkle in his eye. He became my favorite horse in the barn.

"He's kind of hard to handle," Baze said. "He's very spirited. Most trainers want horses that are calm and quiet."

Baze has partners in the racing business but none of them wanted to invest in the purchase of West Seattle Boy. She became his sole owner two years ago.

"Everybody else gave up on him but I saw potential," she said.

Baze comes from a family steeped in horse racing. Her cousin Russell Baze is the second-most successful jockey in U.S. thoroughbred racing history. He's won more races than the legendary Willie Shoemaker and still races in San Francisco. He was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 1999.

West Seattle Boy's sire was Majesterian, a horse that won $262,000 in stakes. His mother was Poncho's Girl. West Seattle Boy's "aunt" was Belle of Rainier, a star at the old Longacres racetrack.

Baze tried unsuccessfully to buy West Seattle Boy from its breeder, Al Benton, a 96-year-old real estate developer who lives in Fauntleroy. Benton owns a realty company in White Center and still keeps a half dozen racehorses at Emerald Downs. Benton bred about 50 racehorses over the last half century.

Benton doesn't remember why he selected the name West Seattle Boy. That was just one of three possible names he submitted to The Jockey Club in Lexington, Ky. and New York City in 1994. The club keeps the North American registry of thoroughbred pedigrees. Multiple names are submitted because the names are crosschecked to make sure other owners haven't already used them. If one name is already in use, they select another name submitted by the owner.

Interestingly The Jockey Club registry lists other West Seattle-related thoroughbreds too. In 1994, there was a racehorse named simply West Seattle. A mare named West Seattle Girl was registered in 1997, and West Seattle Slew came along in 2002.

West Seattle Boy was born and raised on a farm in Enumclaw, Benton said. He stayed there until he was 2 and ready for the track.

At Emerald Downs, West Seattle Boy races once every two to three weeks. Other days, trainer Jesse Valasquez might get the thoroughbred out to jog a mile or two, go for an easy gallop, or walk on a mechanized walker. The horse is spirited and needs to keep busy, Baze said.

West Seattle Boy's favorite foods are carrots and apples. His usual diet is cooked oatmeal with bran, corn and molasses with some salt and vitamins mixed in. He also likes the hay net in his stall to have a handful of alfalfa rolled up inside an outer layer of timothy grass, Baze said.

Come October, West Seattle Boy will be taken to Eatonville for four months of rest before starting training again Feb. 1.

Tim St. Clair can be reached at tstclair@robinsonnews.com or call 932-0300.