by Mike Curry

Roy and Gretchen Jackson have yet to decide on a final resting place for the cremated remains of their homebred Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) winner Barbaro, and they do not expect to reach a decision in the immediate future.

“We haven’t decided anything,” Roy Jackson said. “It will probably be a little while; we’re still trying to weigh our options. We’re just going to take our time and try to do what is best.”

Barbaro was euthanized on January 29 at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center after he developed laminitis in both front feet because he could not bear weight on either of his hind limbs.

Roy Jackson said he and his wife remain intrigued by the possibility of opening a small museum-type facility to honor horses from the Delaware-Maryland-Pennsylvania area.

The Jacksons have spoken with the connections of champion dual classic winners Afleet Alex and Smarty Jones about the idea. Roy Jackson said there is a good deal of memorabilia that the connections of the three classic winners could contribute, but the museum concept remains in the planning stages.

Condolence letters continue to pour in to the couple’s Lael Farm in West Grove, Pennsylvania, farm.

“We got thirty letters [on February 7],” Roy Jackson said. “It’s amazing, they are from all over the place, and many of them were very well thought out. People took the time to sit down and write something, there are generally very uplifting. They just address them to West Grove, and somehow it gets to us.

“It’s time to get on with our lives. It’s sad, but we did the best we could and wouldn’t change anything. It just wasn’t meant to be. It was a great experience, really. I’m just sorry he didn’t make it.”

Mike Curry is a Thoroughbred Times daily news editor