 His success in the Triple Crown was seen as arising from the generally poor quality of his rivals and the enforced absence of Zinfandel an impression reinforced by his defeat by Zinfandel in 1904.In their book "A Century of Champions", John Randall and Tony Morris rated Rock Sand an "average" Derby winner.Rock Sand retired to stud in England, but when James Miller died in 1906 he was put up for sale.