If you thought John McCririck looked like he’d forgotten to change his clothes between days 1 and 2 of Royal Ascot, then he probably did forget.
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Someone wise me up: what’s the story behind the expression “early doors” that’s creeping into commentaries everywhere like an infectious disease? I’ve heard it used repeatedly in Australia this year, particularly by some Queensland callers, and it cropped up again during Royal Ascot this morning. I’m not so silly that I don’t know what it means but why all of a sudden has it gained such currency? I swear I never heard it more than twice in the previous couple of decades. Next thing you know we’ll be saying “close home” like the Poms.
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Aqlaam, winner of the Gr 3 Jersey Stakes, is by the pure sprinter Oasis Dream (Green Desert) but out of a half-sister to the pure stayer and an old favourite of the Melbourne crowds, Persian Punch. Persian Punch’s shortest win was over 2000m and his longest over 3600m. He won 20 of his 66 starts between the ages of three and 11, 13 of them Group wins – but never a Gr 1 – and three listed races. His seven Gr 1 placings included twice third in the Melbourne Cup which he should have won on at least one occasion. Sadly, he collapsed and died on the racecourse and there is now a lifesize bronze statue in his honour at Newmarket.
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Notice how often horses fighting out the finish lose their compass at the end of their races at Ascot, particularly if they’ve competed on the straight track. It’s a slight uphill climb to the post and clearly the horses are tired but there doesn’t seem to be much emphasis on finding the rail over there (except Haradasun and Equiano!), which usually keeps horses on the straight and narrow. Fields tend to clump rather than string out. One seldom sees horses wandering up the middle of Flemington or swerving home like drunken sailors, uphill, at Sandown. Riding style might have something to do with it?
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Once again Coolmore used a pacemaker to make the play for their heavily-favoured Duke Of Marmalade in the Gr 1 Prince Of Wales’s Stakes over 10 furlongs. Poor Red Rock Canyon, winless in 12 starts but twice Irish Gr 1 placed, just a pacemaker but maybe the best-bred pacemaker in history – by Rock Of Gibraltar out of the Sadler’s Wells Oaks and Guineas winner Imagine, dam earlier of the ill-fated Gr 1 hero Horatio Nelson, and a daughter of Generous’s blue hen dam Doff The Derby. Don’t think we’ll see Red Rock Canyon on the shuttle. But put the ring around Duke Of Marmalade, now a triple Gr 1 winner over a middle distance and not dissimilar to current shuttler Oratorio (Ire) though he lacks that one’s two-year-old record. By Danehill from a Kingmambo mare (those names again), The Duke is from one of the world’s premier families, his third dam being Lassie Dear from whom descend the likes of Weekend Surprise, A.P. Indy, Summer Squall, Wolfhound, Lemon Drop Kid and the good South African stallion Al Mufti. Duke Of Marmalade is named after a peerage created in Haiti in 1804 after the colonial powers were overthrown by a slave insurrection, Haiti then becoming the world’s first independent black state. He was not related to the Prince Of Orange or the Viscount Vegemite. I knew you were dying to know that.
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Where are the boys in Blue? I suppose the week’s young yet.
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Most valuable information gleaned from day two's TV coverage: the size of the weather girl's derriere, as divulged by style guru John McCririck. Just doing his form study.
Execute Had The Killer Instinct
In the post below I mentioned a horse named Execute which raced in NZ in the '70s. He was by Head Hunter (GB)-Queen Arma, by Blueskin II (GB). Subsequent to Execute's foaling, IRT's Quentin Wallace part-owned the mare Queen Arma.
Execute was a swimmer. He loved the track when only his ears were above water, as you used to get occasionally in NZ. He won 23 races including a Founders' Plate, which was weight-for-age 1400m, a black-type handicap at Ellerslie as well as a Great Northern Hurdle which was 4200m. Bill Sanders trained him. His son Graeme is tending to Seachange in England right now and chief Queensland steward Reid Sanders is of similar pedigree.
I'm not sure anyone in the 'modern' era races their horses as often, as hard and as well as Bill Sanders did, but by golly he had a lot of good horses, most of them el-cheapos. Probably the horses aren't up to it today, the guts has been bred out of them. Horses, especially those out of the South Island like Eiffel Tower, Kumai and Loch Linnhe, did unbelievable things by today's standards. I'm sure there have been Australian equivalents but my knowledge of Australian racing is much shallower.
Perhaps Toulouse Lautrec is headed in that direction. The erstwhile Derby winner has resuscitated his waning career as a jumper, though those farcical yellow toothbrushes which masquerade as fences in Victoria are more a risk to a horse than a help. Somehow skipping over a dozen or two of them doesn't seem the same as going 6,400m in the deepest bog, three times up the Ellerslie hill, jumping two at the top then having to negotiate a stone wall on the way down each time (don't worry folks, they got rid of the stone wall some years back), not to mention the live stand double, the water jump and several other energy-sappers.
I know - we didn't have satellite TV back then or mobile phones or computers so we needed something to occupy our time. Like crocheting, macrame or watching a long race. Today all we're interested in is the last 600m sectional.
Recent events in the USA spotlighting Big Brown, Eight Belles and Barbaro are causing a lot of teeth-gnashing about just where the breed is going. Americans in general only care about racing for no more than five minutes per year and to be confronted with these calamities one after the other has unleashed an unbelievable fury of anti-racing sentiment. Like John McCririck's diatribe against excessive use of the whip from Royal Ascot this morning (which I agree with; there are shocking examples to be seen every day on Australian TV but nothing's said) - these issues lie simmering just beneath the surface everywhere and if we become too obsessed with win-at-all-costs they will eventually engulf us and destroy us. Mark my words.
Apparently, man can do whatever the hell he likes to his fellow man - and lamentably does, often - but his dignity is measured by how he behaves towards animals subservient to himself.
Execute was a swimmer. He loved the track when only his ears were above water, as you used to get occasionally in NZ. He won 23 races including a Founders' Plate, which was weight-for-age 1400m, a black-type handicap at Ellerslie as well as a Great Northern Hurdle which was 4200m. Bill Sanders trained him. His son Graeme is tending to Seachange in England right now and chief Queensland steward Reid Sanders is of similar pedigree.
I'm not sure anyone in the 'modern' era races their horses as often, as hard and as well as Bill Sanders did, but by golly he had a lot of good horses, most of them el-cheapos. Probably the horses aren't up to it today, the guts has been bred out of them. Horses, especially those out of the South Island like Eiffel Tower, Kumai and Loch Linnhe, did unbelievable things by today's standards. I'm sure there have been Australian equivalents but my knowledge of Australian racing is much shallower.
Perhaps Toulouse Lautrec is headed in that direction. The erstwhile Derby winner has resuscitated his waning career as a jumper, though those farcical yellow toothbrushes which masquerade as fences in Victoria are more a risk to a horse than a help. Somehow skipping over a dozen or two of them doesn't seem the same as going 6,400m in the deepest bog, three times up the Ellerslie hill, jumping two at the top then having to negotiate a stone wall on the way down each time (don't worry folks, they got rid of the stone wall some years back), not to mention the live stand double, the water jump and several other energy-sappers.
I know - we didn't have satellite TV back then or mobile phones or computers so we needed something to occupy our time. Like crocheting, macrame or watching a long race. Today all we're interested in is the last 600m sectional.
Recent events in the USA spotlighting Big Brown, Eight Belles and Barbaro are causing a lot of teeth-gnashing about just where the breed is going. Americans in general only care about racing for no more than five minutes per year and to be confronted with these calamities one after the other has unleashed an unbelievable fury of anti-racing sentiment. Like John McCririck's diatribe against excessive use of the whip from Royal Ascot this morning (which I agree with; there are shocking examples to be seen every day on Australian TV but nothing's said) - these issues lie simmering just beneath the surface everywhere and if we become too obsessed with win-at-all-costs they will eventually engulf us and destroy us. Mark my words.
Apparently, man can do whatever the hell he likes to his fellow man - and lamentably does, often - but his dignity is measured by how he behaves towards animals subservient to himself.
One Down, Four To Go
Royal Ascot began in near-perfect fashion for the southern hemisphere this morning with Haradasun’s epic victory in the Gr 1 Queen Anne Stakes and Takeover Target’s game second in the Gr 1 King’s Stand.
And Exceed And Excel got in the act with a longshot (but impressive) Listed two-year-old winner in the form of Flashmans Papers.
Congratulations to the Coolmore/Arch of Gold team. They took the big gamble to expose Haradasun on the international stage when so much was at stake, that being his huge purchase price and the reputation that goes with it. Their management and skill have now established the ultimate breeding platform for Haradasun who, though he is the shining light sired by the mentally fragile Fusaichi Pegasus, is a great cut of a horse out of clearly one of the broodmares of our times, Circles Of Gold, a Eulogy-line Oaks winning daughter of Marscay who raced on 43 occasions and who was probably better at five than she was at three.
Haradasun has come a long way from 10 June 2006 when Tony Vasil took him to Swan Hill to win the Super Vobis 2YO Handicap by 10 lengths on debut.
Aidan O’Brien won with Haradasun and, two races later, with the outstanding three-year-old Henrythenavigator in the St James’s Palace Stakes. On both occasions he employed pacemakers to ensure these megadollar studs got their races run to suit. Nothing left to chance when $100 million rests on the results.
The pacemakers, longshots Honoured Guest in Haradasun’s race and Minneapolis in the other, were tried to their limits but of course were found wanting. When Honoured Guest, who had been breaking the wind for Haradasun camped behind him on the rail, moved over to give the big colt racing room, jockey David McCabe gave a look over his shoulder which was straight out of the Shane Dye box of tricks, identical to RSD’s effort on Imprimatur when inviting Myocard to come through in the AJC Derby all those years ago. (I remember, I had a racing interest in Imprimatur!).
Years ago I was in charge of a stallion, Diagramatic (USA), who was a good middle distance racehorse on his day but his greatest usefulness in life was as pacemaker for the champion Exceller (USA). Diagramatic was by Sir Wiggle (a son of the brilliant Australian mare Wiggle) out of a Chilean-bred mare. As his breeding might have foretold, he was a sire of little account though he got a freak little filly in Tidal Light (NZ).
There is nothing new to be said about Takeover Target who lines up again on Saturday night. Cynics might say that anyone can train a champion but that’s a load of crap. I’ve never met Joe Janiak but I also know I’ve never met any trainer who could have done a better job with the horse than the low-brow cabbie from Queanbeyan. Horses don’t train themselves, they don’t feed themselves, they don’t travel themselves. Someone has to do it for them. Joe rules.
Spare a thought for Magnus who, like Haradasun, is meant to have run his last race. He didn’t figure in the finish of this morning’s event but he wasn’t disgraced; he’s not won many races but he’s competed honourably in a vintage era of sprinters and he’ll be a valued addition to Victorian stallion ranks. Sir Tristram only won two races!
If the Aussies were proud of the way their horses ran, think how the Spanish (the Spanish??) must have felt when one of their own, Equiano, won the Gr 1 King’s Stand. Actually, Equiano is French-bred and has raced in La Belle France over the last 12 months, trained by his Spanish trainer. A remote relative of Equiano is the plodding Danehill stayer Roanoke which Anthony Cummings cajoled to win a poor Listed Handicap at Randwick one day.
I know jack about Spanish racing but I do recall a marathon runner named Royal Gait (by Gunner B) which hailed from there in the mid-80s. He was remarkable. He had a total of 14 starts in Spain, winning seven of them, but became famous when he crossed the Pyrennees to win some of Paris’s great staying tests. He raced from three years until 10, had 99 starts and his last win was in none other than the Champion Hurdle at the famous Cheltenham National Hunt Festival. There was an unforgettable horse not unlike him in New Zealand in the '70s named Execute, but that story's for another day.
Art Connoisseur’s turn of foot to win the Gr 2 Coventry Stakes was unbelievable. He came from last, straight past a supposedly hot field, to win in a jog. He is by a sire named Lucky Story, a non-Gr 1 winner who is a brother to Dr Fong who stood in Australia almost without trace a few years ago. Art Connoisseur and the second horse in the Coventry, Intense Focus (by the despised-in-Australia Giant’s Causeway), are out of Danehill mares.
Henrythenavigator, on form, had a lot on his rivals in the St James’s Palace, and though he was run close enough at the end by Elusive Quality’s son Raven’s Pass, his win was fairly contemptuous. He and Dolphin Street share some common ancestry; he’s a magnificently-bred son of Kingmambo and when he shuttles (will he shuttle?) will be a natural beau for Danehill mares. Though he’s just 18 years old with still plenty of time to right the picture, Kingmambo has been rather despairing as a sire of sires. Lemon Drop Kid is possibly his best to date. King’s Best was worse than bad in Australia and now we are waiting to see if Dubai Destination will amount to anything. (I hope so, I have 20% of one of his fillies!).
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I spent most of the morning flicking between TVN and Sky to see what sort of coverage they were providing. Both took the same feed from the UK, that of the specialist UK racing channel, AtTheRaces. The British coverage was liberally interspersed with ad breaks which naturally become ad breaks here also. In the case of TVN the breaks were insufferable, filled with those interminable house ads, hour after hour, ad infinitum, promoting themselves, their programmes and their publications. We’re already watching and are committed, nitwits, that’s why we’re up at 2.30 in the morning. Obviously they can’t sell ad time on TVN. I’ve never got up and made so many cups of tea in three hours. You just can’t watch it. On the other hand, Sky used a continuity voice-over, Andrew le Jeune, to fill in most of the gaps. Visually it wasn’t exciting television with static betting markets displayed on screen, but this man is impressively right on top of his subject and what he says is well worth listening to. It’s Sky for me for the rest of the week, no race.
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Apart from some memorable performances on the turf, three images stick in my mind from Day One’s coverage.
Firstly, watching class mare Finsceal Beo going to post in the Queen Anne. If she was walking away from you at the yearling sales with the knees and action she looked to possess in last night’s shots, you’d be putting the line straight through her. I’m constantly reminded that legs are only wheels, not motors, but I’d have to say her wheels looked square. I’d be interested if anyone’s seen her in the flesh and could comment on her conformation. Timeform describe her as an “excellent walker”.
Secondly, Jay Ford won the prize for the worst haircut (apart from John McCririck's of course).
Thirdly, what was that thing on Mrs Magnier’s head?
And Exceed And Excel got in the act with a longshot (but impressive) Listed two-year-old winner in the form of Flashmans Papers.
Congratulations to the Coolmore/Arch of Gold team. They took the big gamble to expose Haradasun on the international stage when so much was at stake, that being his huge purchase price and the reputation that goes with it. Their management and skill have now established the ultimate breeding platform for Haradasun who, though he is the shining light sired by the mentally fragile Fusaichi Pegasus, is a great cut of a horse out of clearly one of the broodmares of our times, Circles Of Gold, a Eulogy-line Oaks winning daughter of Marscay who raced on 43 occasions and who was probably better at five than she was at three.
Haradasun has come a long way from 10 June 2006 when Tony Vasil took him to Swan Hill to win the Super Vobis 2YO Handicap by 10 lengths on debut.
Aidan O’Brien won with Haradasun and, two races later, with the outstanding three-year-old Henrythenavigator in the St James’s Palace Stakes. On both occasions he employed pacemakers to ensure these megadollar studs got their races run to suit. Nothing left to chance when $100 million rests on the results.
The pacemakers, longshots Honoured Guest in Haradasun’s race and Minneapolis in the other, were tried to their limits but of course were found wanting. When Honoured Guest, who had been breaking the wind for Haradasun camped behind him on the rail, moved over to give the big colt racing room, jockey David McCabe gave a look over his shoulder which was straight out of the Shane Dye box of tricks, identical to RSD’s effort on Imprimatur when inviting Myocard to come through in the AJC Derby all those years ago. (I remember, I had a racing interest in Imprimatur!).
Years ago I was in charge of a stallion, Diagramatic (USA), who was a good middle distance racehorse on his day but his greatest usefulness in life was as pacemaker for the champion Exceller (USA). Diagramatic was by Sir Wiggle (a son of the brilliant Australian mare Wiggle) out of a Chilean-bred mare. As his breeding might have foretold, he was a sire of little account though he got a freak little filly in Tidal Light (NZ).
There is nothing new to be said about Takeover Target who lines up again on Saturday night. Cynics might say that anyone can train a champion but that’s a load of crap. I’ve never met Joe Janiak but I also know I’ve never met any trainer who could have done a better job with the horse than the low-brow cabbie from Queanbeyan. Horses don’t train themselves, they don’t feed themselves, they don’t travel themselves. Someone has to do it for them. Joe rules.
Spare a thought for Magnus who, like Haradasun, is meant to have run his last race. He didn’t figure in the finish of this morning’s event but he wasn’t disgraced; he’s not won many races but he’s competed honourably in a vintage era of sprinters and he’ll be a valued addition to Victorian stallion ranks. Sir Tristram only won two races!
If the Aussies were proud of the way their horses ran, think how the Spanish (the Spanish??) must have felt when one of their own, Equiano, won the Gr 1 King’s Stand. Actually, Equiano is French-bred and has raced in La Belle France over the last 12 months, trained by his Spanish trainer. A remote relative of Equiano is the plodding Danehill stayer Roanoke which Anthony Cummings cajoled to win a poor Listed Handicap at Randwick one day.
I know jack about Spanish racing but I do recall a marathon runner named Royal Gait (by Gunner B) which hailed from there in the mid-80s. He was remarkable. He had a total of 14 starts in Spain, winning seven of them, but became famous when he crossed the Pyrennees to win some of Paris’s great staying tests. He raced from three years until 10, had 99 starts and his last win was in none other than the Champion Hurdle at the famous Cheltenham National Hunt Festival. There was an unforgettable horse not unlike him in New Zealand in the '70s named Execute, but that story's for another day.
Art Connoisseur’s turn of foot to win the Gr 2 Coventry Stakes was unbelievable. He came from last, straight past a supposedly hot field, to win in a jog. He is by a sire named Lucky Story, a non-Gr 1 winner who is a brother to Dr Fong who stood in Australia almost without trace a few years ago. Art Connoisseur and the second horse in the Coventry, Intense Focus (by the despised-in-Australia Giant’s Causeway), are out of Danehill mares.
Henrythenavigator, on form, had a lot on his rivals in the St James’s Palace, and though he was run close enough at the end by Elusive Quality’s son Raven’s Pass, his win was fairly contemptuous. He and Dolphin Street share some common ancestry; he’s a magnificently-bred son of Kingmambo and when he shuttles (will he shuttle?) will be a natural beau for Danehill mares. Though he’s just 18 years old with still plenty of time to right the picture, Kingmambo has been rather despairing as a sire of sires. Lemon Drop Kid is possibly his best to date. King’s Best was worse than bad in Australia and now we are waiting to see if Dubai Destination will amount to anything. (I hope so, I have 20% of one of his fillies!).
----------------------------------------
I spent most of the morning flicking between TVN and Sky to see what sort of coverage they were providing. Both took the same feed from the UK, that of the specialist UK racing channel, AtTheRaces. The British coverage was liberally interspersed with ad breaks which naturally become ad breaks here also. In the case of TVN the breaks were insufferable, filled with those interminable house ads, hour after hour, ad infinitum, promoting themselves, their programmes and their publications. We’re already watching and are committed, nitwits, that’s why we’re up at 2.30 in the morning. Obviously they can’t sell ad time on TVN. I’ve never got up and made so many cups of tea in three hours. You just can’t watch it. On the other hand, Sky used a continuity voice-over, Andrew le Jeune, to fill in most of the gaps. Visually it wasn’t exciting television with static betting markets displayed on screen, but this man is impressively right on top of his subject and what he says is well worth listening to. It’s Sky for me for the rest of the week, no race.
---------------------------------------
Apart from some memorable performances on the turf, three images stick in my mind from Day One’s coverage.
Firstly, watching class mare Finsceal Beo going to post in the Queen Anne. If she was walking away from you at the yearling sales with the knees and action she looked to possess in last night’s shots, you’d be putting the line straight through her. I’m constantly reminded that legs are only wheels, not motors, but I’d have to say her wheels looked square. I’d be interested if anyone’s seen her in the flesh and could comment on her conformation. Timeform describe her as an “excellent walker”.
Secondly, Jay Ford won the prize for the worst haircut (apart from John McCririck's of course).
Thirdly, what was that thing on Mrs Magnier’s head?
No Pictures? Listen on the Net.
If there's anyone who doesn't have SKY/TVN and wants an alternative to 2KY/3UZ etc to listen to Royal Ascot races, crank up your internet, go to http://www.sportinglife.com/racing/news/, click on Racing Radio then click Play. This is what to log on to if you ever want to hear an English race commentary (or an occasional Irish one).
What? A Week Without Sales?
I feel a blog coming on. I might put pen to paper during the week as it seems we have a hiatus between sales. I am thinking of making access to the blog subscription only. That would sort out all of you who complain I haven't written anything for weeks and would also mean I wouldn't need to bother.
Sebring Finds His Home; Vale Woodlands.
Sebring will go to Widden. Shoot me down if I'm wrong. They like Slipper winners there. The deal will be something similar to the Stratum deal and the colt will race on (what else can you do with a rising 3YO?). Valuation: somewhere in the $25 - $28 million range.
As news of the Darley acquisition of Woodlands becomes official, a personal thank you to the Inghams and all those terrific people involved over the decades with the stud and the Crown Lodge enterprise ... you raced in the proper traditions of racing: for fun, for sport, for prizemoney and for profit. You thoroughly testing your breeds and did not molly-coddle or protect them. The game was a heck of a lot better off for having you. When Crown Lodge had a good day we all had a good day.
Here's an observation and prediction: maroon is not cerise. We will never again see colts of the ilk of Octagonal or Lonhro grind out Group 1 glory season after season rather than being bundled off to stud at first defeat. Australian racing, and Australian horses, are in the process of changing to a much less exciting commodity.
Particularly in NSW, racing resembles more and more a showcase for selling stallion noms. Long-term, nothing is likely to alienate the public more than that.
As news of the Darley acquisition of Woodlands becomes official, a personal thank you to the Inghams and all those terrific people involved over the decades with the stud and the Crown Lodge enterprise ... you raced in the proper traditions of racing: for fun, for sport, for prizemoney and for profit. You thoroughly testing your breeds and did not molly-coddle or protect them. The game was a heck of a lot better off for having you. When Crown Lodge had a good day we all had a good day.
Here's an observation and prediction: maroon is not cerise. We will never again see colts of the ilk of Octagonal or Lonhro grind out Group 1 glory season after season rather than being bundled off to stud at first defeat. Australian racing, and Australian horses, are in the process of changing to a much less exciting commodity.
Particularly in NSW, racing resembles more and more a showcase for selling stallion noms. Long-term, nothing is likely to alienate the public more than that.
The Ayes Have It
My Living Spirit poll drew the biggest response of any poll I've run. 31 voted that she was the most over-valued mare they'd ever seen sold, 19 voted that it was a sure sign the world's gone mad, and 7 Darley employees voted that she was cheap at twice the price.
As Judith Durham Once Said, The Carnival Is Over
The sales, the carnival - they're over. The Sydney ones at any rate. So much to reflect on, so little time to do it.
Stallion owners have gone berserk with some of the most unjustified, avaricious service fee increases ever foisted on their customers. Part of the rationale must be that they want the lion's share of future yearling markets just for themselves (the Easter Sale is getting more like the defunct Keeneland July as each year goes by). Or the belief that what is going up will never come down. Or that they can devise no other way of coping with the laws of supply and demand. Or that greed is good. Australia is now the dearest place on the planet to breed a horse if you ask me. Even though it might take 10 weeks to ship your mare to New Zealand, just do it! You'll get NZ$1.20 for your buck. Dozens of breeders, many of whom had 'made' the self-same stallions in their now forgotten lean years, were running around Newmarket panicking about how on earth they were going to breed their mares this year. At one stage I thought we might have a Jonestown on our hands.
I thought Grant Pritchard-Hyphen-Gordon spoke a lot of sense in his post-sale comments reported in ANZ Bloodstock News.
Upstart cheap and unfashionably-bred horses won a truckload of feature races throughout the autumn carnival. What a bloody cheek they had. Who gave them permission? Makes you wonder why people are so keen to pay so much for yearlings, broodmares and service fees.
The Melbourne Cup is now $5.5 million. What a joke. The race no owner of a colt ever wants to win. The race no commercial breeder in Australia ever wants to breed the winner of, nor, I might add, is ever likely to again. Is, say, $4 million not enough? It's a bit like being in the men's loo ... "mine is as big as yours".
Sebring wins the Slipper for 10 Aussie battlers (several of whom just happen to be multi-millionaires anyway). How do you get 10 people to agree to sell The Next Big Thing, for how much and when? (by the way, I have not been asked nor volunteered to facilitate). As each day slips by he probably assumes a different value. It's a mystery how this cheapie eluded Gai's surgeon's knife. When syndicator Denise Martin succumbed to a virus due to the pressure of it all in the days immediately after Sebring's triumph, I diagnosed her malady as a bad case of Sebring Non-Castration Syndrome. Denise well and truly earned and deserved her moment of glory and her handling of the occasion with the media was a model for all her imitators.
Patinack Farm continued on its merry way through the yearling and broodmare sales. Anthony Cummings had a checklist in his catalogue just like you and I take to the supermarket, only longer. Why doesn't Patinack want its name on the sales results sheets any more, preferring to shelter behind its agents' and surrogates'? It wasn't like that earlier in the year. Its buying is an open secret to any informed observer but perhaps Patinack feels it doesn't want to appear omnipresent and frighten the natives too much when it's just about to formally announce its clutch of stallions and their fees.
(Omnipresent reminds me of uberstallion, the term I coined in an earlier post. A lot of people commented to me on that. Seems they like it. It may be my one lasting legacy to the industry.)
We are yet to hear if the FIRB has approved the Darley buy-out of Woodlands. The decision is due 14 May. Are they having the jitters? Has there been some fierce behind-the-scenes opposition and a stack of anti-submissions which closed on 5 May? Surely not. Anyone who saw the memorable Bob Ingham interview on TVN would think it's a done deal. The two people assigned as project staff by the ACCC on Review 31710 as it's known, are a Ms Bull - appropriate given the number of stallions Darley will have under control - and a Ms Wood !
Don't be surprised if I climb on a few more hobby horses in the next couple of weeks. I'll probably reminisce over many irrelevant and now dated tidbits from the carnival. You guys haven't sent in any comments during my hiatus so I'll write whatever takes my fancy, it's therapy. I should have time - the upcoming Karaka and Melbourne catalogues are woeful, breeders bailing out in all directions, so they're not going to be distractions for me.
Meantime, I have a couple of months' bills to sort out. They're about to shut down my phone, gas and electric and evict me from my digs. I've even got some accounts of my own to send out, mercifully, and some food to buy in, some domestics to do and a car to clean - I've been on the road since January and don't have a maidservant - so the blog will have to wait.
Stallion owners have gone berserk with some of the most unjustified, avaricious service fee increases ever foisted on their customers. Part of the rationale must be that they want the lion's share of future yearling markets just for themselves (the Easter Sale is getting more like the defunct Keeneland July as each year goes by). Or the belief that what is going up will never come down. Or that they can devise no other way of coping with the laws of supply and demand. Or that greed is good. Australia is now the dearest place on the planet to breed a horse if you ask me. Even though it might take 10 weeks to ship your mare to New Zealand, just do it! You'll get NZ$1.20 for your buck. Dozens of breeders, many of whom had 'made' the self-same stallions in their now forgotten lean years, were running around Newmarket panicking about how on earth they were going to breed their mares this year. At one stage I thought we might have a Jonestown on our hands.
I thought Grant Pritchard-Hyphen-Gordon spoke a lot of sense in his post-sale comments reported in ANZ Bloodstock News.
Upstart cheap and unfashionably-bred horses won a truckload of feature races throughout the autumn carnival. What a bloody cheek they had. Who gave them permission? Makes you wonder why people are so keen to pay so much for yearlings, broodmares and service fees.
The Melbourne Cup is now $5.5 million. What a joke. The race no owner of a colt ever wants to win. The race no commercial breeder in Australia ever wants to breed the winner of, nor, I might add, is ever likely to again. Is, say, $4 million not enough? It's a bit like being in the men's loo ... "mine is as big as yours".
Sebring wins the Slipper for 10 Aussie battlers (several of whom just happen to be multi-millionaires anyway). How do you get 10 people to agree to sell The Next Big Thing, for how much and when? (by the way, I have not been asked nor volunteered to facilitate). As each day slips by he probably assumes a different value. It's a mystery how this cheapie eluded Gai's surgeon's knife. When syndicator Denise Martin succumbed to a virus due to the pressure of it all in the days immediately after Sebring's triumph, I diagnosed her malady as a bad case of Sebring Non-Castration Syndrome. Denise well and truly earned and deserved her moment of glory and her handling of the occasion with the media was a model for all her imitators.
Patinack Farm continued on its merry way through the yearling and broodmare sales. Anthony Cummings had a checklist in his catalogue just like you and I take to the supermarket, only longer. Why doesn't Patinack want its name on the sales results sheets any more, preferring to shelter behind its agents' and surrogates'? It wasn't like that earlier in the year. Its buying is an open secret to any informed observer but perhaps Patinack feels it doesn't want to appear omnipresent and frighten the natives too much when it's just about to formally announce its clutch of stallions and their fees.
(Omnipresent reminds me of uberstallion, the term I coined in an earlier post. A lot of people commented to me on that. Seems they like it. It may be my one lasting legacy to the industry.)
We are yet to hear if the FIRB has approved the Darley buy-out of Woodlands. The decision is due 14 May. Are they having the jitters? Has there been some fierce behind-the-scenes opposition and a stack of anti-submissions which closed on 5 May? Surely not. Anyone who saw the memorable Bob Ingham interview on TVN would think it's a done deal. The two people assigned as project staff by the ACCC on Review 31710 as it's known, are a Ms Bull - appropriate given the number of stallions Darley will have under control - and a Ms Wood !
Don't be surprised if I climb on a few more hobby horses in the next couple of weeks. I'll probably reminisce over many irrelevant and now dated tidbits from the carnival. You guys haven't sent in any comments during my hiatus so I'll write whatever takes my fancy, it's therapy. I should have time - the upcoming Karaka and Melbourne catalogues are woeful, breeders bailing out in all directions, so they're not going to be distractions for me.
Meantime, I have a couple of months' bills to sort out. They're about to shut down my phone, gas and electric and evict me from my digs. I've even got some accounts of my own to send out, mercifully, and some food to buy in, some domestics to do and a car to clean - I've been on the road since January and don't have a maidservant - so the blog will have to wait.
Bring On The 36-hour Day
Contrary to rumour (or wish), I'm not deceased, just saled out. For those demented souls who still check out this blog to see if I've put up any new ravings, I promise I'll get around to something ... soon. Read This Month's Quotation, immediate right.
Frank You Very Much
To prove no one really takes any notice of what I think, who recalled what I wrote about Falbrav way back on April 6, as follows:
Amongst his first crop, however, were a handful of impressive individuals, in my book none moreso than the colt out of Angelic Smile bred by Ron Gilbert and sold last Easter to Woodlands for $550,000, Falbrav’s top price. He was as a good a type as you’d ever see. He’s named Fravashi and presumably he’ll be one of the new Darley tidal wave. I saw him trial in January; he’ll be worth waiting for.
Out popped Fravashi at Canterbury today and he brained them at $7.50. Thanks for coming.
Amongst his first crop, however, were a handful of impressive individuals, in my book none moreso than the colt out of Angelic Smile bred by Ron Gilbert and sold last Easter to Woodlands for $550,000, Falbrav’s top price. He was as a good a type as you’d ever see. He’s named Fravashi and presumably he’ll be one of the new Darley tidal wave. I saw him trial in January; he’ll be worth waiting for.
Out popped Fravashi at Canterbury today and he brained them at $7.50. Thanks for coming.
I Can't Do Two Things At Once - I'm A Man
OK all you blogaholics - you doubtless understand that there's nothing new on the blog because I'm bogged (not blogged) down with the Sydney "Easter" Yearling Sale at present. Probably won't get my name on the sheets. All hell is going to let loose on some horses, believe me. Hopefully when it's all over I'll be able to put something up which might either entertain, inform or scandalise you - take your pick.
But two things before I sign off:
(1) This coming week's most important event: my first grandchild's first birthday on the 21st - lovely Mathilda (Tilly) Elliot Brem, born in London, now resident of Auckland. I'll see if I can organise a pic for the blog. She's prettier than any filly at Newmarket.
(2) Rumour of the week: a Magic Millions proprietor is selling his stakeholding to Tinkler's Patinack Farm.
Good bidding if you're going to the sales.
But two things before I sign off:
(1) This coming week's most important event: my first grandchild's first birthday on the 21st - lovely Mathilda (Tilly) Elliot Brem, born in London, now resident of Auckland. I'll see if I can organise a pic for the blog. She's prettier than any filly at Newmarket.
(2) Rumour of the week: a Magic Millions proprietor is selling his stakeholding to Tinkler's Patinack Farm.
Good bidding if you're going to the sales.
The Making Of Dance Hero
My piece on Dance Hero’s retirement (see below, April 1), has been a popular read, I’ve been surprised how many have mentioned that they’ve read and enjoyed it. Which is great – I dashed it off quickly and don’t regard it as Pulitzer Prize material!
There’s no doubt these superior horses develop an ardent fan base. No matter how we dress up racing, horses have always been and always will be the stars of the show. Behind every horse – fast or slow – there is a story. Melburnian Danny Power read my blog and got in touch to recount his personal involvement in Dance Hero’s genesis. Danny’s background is not unlike mine in several respects with stints in the media, in racing management and agency work. I asked Danny if I could run his yarn on the blog and he’s agreed. Read and enjoy ….
I immensely enjoyed your piece on Dance Hero – not only for the insight into this wonderful and underrated horse but also for the fact I have a personal involvement.
I bought Dance Hero’s mother Gypsy Dancer as a yearling in 1997 at the Karaka Select Sale. It was my first foray into yearling buying after leaving the Freedmans’ employ as Racing Manager the year before. I decided to try my luck in the bloodstock game rather than return to journalism.
I bought three yearlings at that sale. Gypsy Dancer for $15,000, a colt by Oregon (later named Millswyn, and a very smart multiple city winner before he broke down) for $35,000 and a colt by Stylish Century (for $18,000) from a couple of fledgling vendors in the backblocks of the complex, Bruce and Maureen Harvey. That colt, named Runaway, went on to be beaten a nose by Mossman in the AAMI Vase and finish fifth to Arena in the Victoria Derby. Unfortunately, a shoulder injury restricted his career, but Bart Cummings rated him very highly.
I went to the sale with a plan. I couldn’t afford to buy a Sir Tristram, so I sought out all the yearlings in the Select Sale that possessed an influence of Sir T through their female line. The three I bought were the only ones I bid on.
Runaway looked nothing like Stylish Century but threw to his tough five-times winning dam Lady Tristana (by Sir Tristram). Millswyn was a cracking sort from the Sir Tristram mare Windrift, while Gypsy Dancer was a sister to a smart Melbourne horse at the time ,Racy Dancer, but also she had the influence of her grandam Tristabelle, one of the few Australian stakeswinning two-year-olds by Sir Tristram. She was also out of the Belle family, which appealed to me.
Gypsy Dancer was smallish, lightly framed, immature, but athletic and a good walker. A time job.
I remember Barrie Griffiths wondering at this thin-boned, insignificant filly when she arrived at his Northwood Park property, Nagambie – her home for the next 12 months.
A close friend of mine, Terry Dickson from Adelaide, bought the filly and I stayed in the ownership. David Hall gave her a try as a late two-year-old. He assessed her as having some ability but suggested she be better served trained out of an Adelaide stable. So off to Adelaide she went. Her first trainer was Jeremy Gask, who was just starting out, but he had trouble keeping condition on her so we moved her to Ray Taylor, on the beach at Goolwa. The outdoor lifestyle suited Gypsy. She trained out of a sandy yard and rarely went to the track. Taylor transformed her – along with a helpful dose of maturity.
She only won twice but her record should have been better. She certainly, with any luck, should have won the Oakbank Country Cup. She retired a winner at Victoria Park and Balaklava.
Terry was just starting out in the breeding game. He had bought a couple of off-the-track fillies, and his quota was full. It was decided Gypsy Dancer might have to go to the sales. Around the same time, another friend/client of mine, Tony Akkari, sought my advice to replace a mare who had died at stud while in the early stages of carrying a Danzero foal (his first dabble into breeding). I offered him Gypsy Dancer. He studied her videos and photos, and agreed to buy her. Arrowfield offered him a return to Danzero, so that is where Gypsy went.
Tony kept me informed about his Danzero colt and I still have those photos of him as a foal and weanling. He was an upstanding, strong, independent fellow from the start. An incredible first foal, even with his roman nose (Lee Freedman says that comes from Danzero’s maternal grandsire, Kaoru Star). Danzero had a significant roman nose as a yearling but his head improved as his body grew into itself.
Like you and George, I was in awe of him when he paraded as a yearling for me at Goodwood Farm. I remember going to Arrowfield after that for a parade and telling (fellow agent) Kieran Moore that he should take the time to go to Goodwood to see the Danzero colt because Arrowfield had nothing to match him. I think he thought I was just an upstart!
Terry and I have often pondered what made a mare like Gypsy Dancer leave a horse like Dance Hero.
Certainly family has something to do with it. The Belle family consistently leaves great horses: Belle du Jour, Grand Armee, Absolute Champion in recent years. Obviously Danzero has something to do with it. The mating produced a wonderful athlete (but two subsequent matings to Danzero for Gypsy Dancer have been unsuccessful. A filly didn’t make it to the races while a colt [small and compact] has won a minor race at Moe). I believe Bart Cummings has a two-year-old full sister named Batroun that is much more like Dance Hero in type than the others – and I believe he has an opinion of her.
Another point worth making is that Gypsy Dancer had natural talent. She may not have had a great desire to be competitive, but there was hardly a race in her 28 starts that at one stage approaching the home turn she didn’t look the winner. She had a cruising speed that allowed her to be “traveling” no matter what the tempo, but she lacked the will to exploit it under pressure. I see some of that come out in Dance Hero when he didn’t get his own way in front.
I hope this hasn’t bored you. It’s a story I haven’t told before.
Danny Power
Senior editor, racing
Geoff Slattery Publishing Pty Ltd
There’s no doubt these superior horses develop an ardent fan base. No matter how we dress up racing, horses have always been and always will be the stars of the show. Behind every horse – fast or slow – there is a story. Melburnian Danny Power read my blog and got in touch to recount his personal involvement in Dance Hero’s genesis. Danny’s background is not unlike mine in several respects with stints in the media, in racing management and agency work. I asked Danny if I could run his yarn on the blog and he’s agreed. Read and enjoy ….
I immensely enjoyed your piece on Dance Hero – not only for the insight into this wonderful and underrated horse but also for the fact I have a personal involvement.
I bought Dance Hero’s mother Gypsy Dancer as a yearling in 1997 at the Karaka Select Sale. It was my first foray into yearling buying after leaving the Freedmans’ employ as Racing Manager the year before. I decided to try my luck in the bloodstock game rather than return to journalism.
I bought three yearlings at that sale. Gypsy Dancer for $15,000, a colt by Oregon (later named Millswyn, and a very smart multiple city winner before he broke down) for $35,000 and a colt by Stylish Century (for $18,000) from a couple of fledgling vendors in the backblocks of the complex, Bruce and Maureen Harvey. That colt, named Runaway, went on to be beaten a nose by Mossman in the AAMI Vase and finish fifth to Arena in the Victoria Derby. Unfortunately, a shoulder injury restricted his career, but Bart Cummings rated him very highly.
I went to the sale with a plan. I couldn’t afford to buy a Sir Tristram, so I sought out all the yearlings in the Select Sale that possessed an influence of Sir T through their female line. The three I bought were the only ones I bid on.
Runaway looked nothing like Stylish Century but threw to his tough five-times winning dam Lady Tristana (by Sir Tristram). Millswyn was a cracking sort from the Sir Tristram mare Windrift, while Gypsy Dancer was a sister to a smart Melbourne horse at the time ,Racy Dancer, but also she had the influence of her grandam Tristabelle, one of the few Australian stakeswinning two-year-olds by Sir Tristram. She was also out of the Belle family, which appealed to me.
Gypsy Dancer was smallish, lightly framed, immature, but athletic and a good walker. A time job.
I remember Barrie Griffiths wondering at this thin-boned, insignificant filly when she arrived at his Northwood Park property, Nagambie – her home for the next 12 months.
A close friend of mine, Terry Dickson from Adelaide, bought the filly and I stayed in the ownership. David Hall gave her a try as a late two-year-old. He assessed her as having some ability but suggested she be better served trained out of an Adelaide stable. So off to Adelaide she went. Her first trainer was Jeremy Gask, who was just starting out, but he had trouble keeping condition on her so we moved her to Ray Taylor, on the beach at Goolwa. The outdoor lifestyle suited Gypsy. She trained out of a sandy yard and rarely went to the track. Taylor transformed her – along with a helpful dose of maturity.
She only won twice but her record should have been better. She certainly, with any luck, should have won the Oakbank Country Cup. She retired a winner at Victoria Park and Balaklava.
Terry was just starting out in the breeding game. He had bought a couple of off-the-track fillies, and his quota was full. It was decided Gypsy Dancer might have to go to the sales. Around the same time, another friend/client of mine, Tony Akkari, sought my advice to replace a mare who had died at stud while in the early stages of carrying a Danzero foal (his first dabble into breeding). I offered him Gypsy Dancer. He studied her videos and photos, and agreed to buy her. Arrowfield offered him a return to Danzero, so that is where Gypsy went.
Tony kept me informed about his Danzero colt and I still have those photos of him as a foal and weanling. He was an upstanding, strong, independent fellow from the start. An incredible first foal, even with his roman nose (Lee Freedman says that comes from Danzero’s maternal grandsire, Kaoru Star). Danzero had a significant roman nose as a yearling but his head improved as his body grew into itself.
Like you and George, I was in awe of him when he paraded as a yearling for me at Goodwood Farm. I remember going to Arrowfield after that for a parade and telling (fellow agent) Kieran Moore that he should take the time to go to Goodwood to see the Danzero colt because Arrowfield had nothing to match him. I think he thought I was just an upstart!
Terry and I have often pondered what made a mare like Gypsy Dancer leave a horse like Dance Hero.
Certainly family has something to do with it. The Belle family consistently leaves great horses: Belle du Jour, Grand Armee, Absolute Champion in recent years. Obviously Danzero has something to do with it. The mating produced a wonderful athlete (but two subsequent matings to Danzero for Gypsy Dancer have been unsuccessful. A filly didn’t make it to the races while a colt [small and compact] has won a minor race at Moe). I believe Bart Cummings has a two-year-old full sister named Batroun that is much more like Dance Hero in type than the others – and I believe he has an opinion of her.
Another point worth making is that Gypsy Dancer had natural talent. She may not have had a great desire to be competitive, but there was hardly a race in her 28 starts that at one stage approaching the home turn she didn’t look the winner. She had a cruising speed that allowed her to be “traveling” no matter what the tempo, but she lacked the will to exploit it under pressure. I see some of that come out in Dance Hero when he didn’t get his own way in front.
I hope this hasn’t bored you. It’s a story I haven’t told before.
Danny Power
Senior editor, racing
Geoff Slattery Publishing Pty Ltd
The Long Distance Curse
Perth’s Karrakatta Plate (Gr 2) is not exactly the Golden Slipper but Sunday’s result was significant inasmuch as it provided ex-Arrowfield sire Falbrav (Ire) with his first black-type success per courtesy of the filly Brava Fortune. She’s the second first-crop winner from seven to run by the sire, a near-champion middle distance performer in anyone’s language.
Breeders were very lukewarm over Falbrav and in three seasons at Arrowfield he covered only 215 mares – about as many as his paternal half-brother Encosta de Lago serves in one season – and understandably he remained in Japan last year rather than return to severely test the formidable Arrowfield marketing skills once again.
Poor Falbrav committed the mortal commercial sin of winning over 2400m. In fact all his 13 wins were 1600m or longer, in exotic places like Italy, Hong Kong and Japan as well as England and France. Yet he gets a Karrakatta Plate winner.
When his first yearlings came to the market in 2007 (Brava Fortune was a buy-back at $80,000 in Perth) the reception was also mixed. Fifty-four averaged $110,435 with the median price less than $100,000. Breeders were obviously keen to quit them: only three were passed in, breeders taking as little as $5,000 for them.
Falbrav regularly passes on a fault, long and sloping pasterns, deemed pretty undesirable in a country of predominantly firm-track racing (how will the artificial tracks affect the paradigm?).
Amongst his first crop, however, were a handful of impressive individuals, in my book none moreso than the colt out of Angelic Smile bred by Ron Gilbert and sold last Easter to Woodlands for $550,000, Falbrav’s top price. He was as a good a type as you’d ever see. He’s named Fravashi and presumably he’ll be one of the new Darley tidal wave. I saw him trial in January; he’ll be worth waiting for.
I was involved with the original importation of Carnegie (Ire) to New Zealand in 1997. This guy won all his races at 2000m and 2400m and there was great scepticism amongst Kiwi breeders that he would be too stout for Australian buyers to stomach so we really struggled to get mares to him, only 59 in the first season. It was a battle again in the second season then financially unviable to bring him back for his third season so he was absent in 1999. In the event, the scepticism was unfounded; Carnegie was easily the leading first-season sire on averages at Karaka in 2000. From his 37 New Zealand-born first crop foals he got four stakeswinners including Carnegie Express and VRC Derby winner Amalfi. While Carnegie’s pedigree screams stamina – Sadler's Wells ex same taproot as Zabeel and Le Filou (Fr) - my appraisal of his racing convinced me he was not a dour stayer. If you ever see his Arc de Triomphe run, he has the softest passage in history; he only has to exert himself for the last 200m, and he only just gets home.
Few stallions which make their name initially in New Zealand subsequently live up to expectations when transferred to Australia. One of the few who did was Success Express (USA). From his first two Australian-conceived crops (now 4YO and 3YO) Carnegie has sired three stakeswinners. One of these, Tuesday Joy, is officially New Zealand-bred as Joie Denise foaled her there whilst visiting Zabeel. These three stakeswinners are from a two-crop output of 179 live foals, compared with 229 live foals and seven stakeswinners produced from Carnegie’s four New Zealand seasons.
I saw Tuesday Joy at Tulloch Lodge on Sunday, the day after her Canterbury Gr 1 Ranvet score. She is a queen, a big mare, narrow in the chest but with a huge depth of girth. Her neck appears a bit weak and she wears the shadow roll to reduce its angle whilst racing. There is nothing butch about her at all and she has the most beautiful big eye. She may not be a champion but this is one very precious individual.
Another result out of Western Australia on Sunday was also significant for Arrowfield – what’s going on here, am I writing their press releases? – as Grand Journey’s success in the Gr 1 W.A. Derby credited uberstallion Flying Spur with his first Gr 1 winner as a broodmare sire. He’s also broodmare sire of Sebring.
Victorian-trained Grand Journey took six races to clear maidens then another six before she won again but she has found Perth’s Mediterranean climate and lack of stayers most agreeable, completing the Natasha/Oaks/Derby triple and taking her earnings to more than $600,000. She is out of an unplaced sister to the good mare Joy Of Flight.
Grand Journey has three lines of Northern Dancer and her third and fourth dams are by the English St Leger winner Boucher and the excellent source of stamina Busted, respectively.
How good a sire Good Journey (USA) might have been we’ll never know but the early evidence suggests this Best In Show descendant was an inspired importation. Pity he was locked up in the weird Written Bloodstock scenario. Good Journey has a maximum 23 three-year-olds; 13 have raced, nine have won and in addition to Gr 1 winner Grand Journey there’s the super-smart Gr 2 winning colt Sound Journey.
It’s a record Good Journey’s much-vaunted Mr Prospector half-brother Aldebaran would covet. He’s proving one of the more stellar failures in Kentucky at the present time. Interestingly, both horses were late bloomers. Good Journey did all his winning from four to six years (and put US$1.7 million in the bank) while Aldebaran won five of his six stakes races as a five-year-old in which year he was the Eclipse Award winning sprinter.
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I was pleased to see Raise (Arena-Boisterous Lady, by Rivotious) race so well and earn black-type in Sunday’s Keith F Nolan Classic at Kembla Grange. She was a filly I recommended to the Kelly family at the 2006 Inglis Classic Sale and they purchased her for $72,500. A couple of months later her then-unheralded sister Rena’s Lady won the Gr 1 AJC Oaks.
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Just to prove I’m not a black-type snob, I got a great kick reading Sunday’s results from Coonamble where the old warrior Velsontas (11yo by Star Way-Merry Maiden, by Crested Wave) bobbed up again, win number 23.
This old guy began his racing life at Tulloch Lodge and looked a serious horse, winning five races fairly quickly. I recall he had feet trouble. After 16 starts he changed hands cheaply and was taken over by the one and only Malcolm Ayoub and appeared in Perth where the best he could do was one distant fourth from six starts.
Malcolm must have shares in a horse transport company because he sacked Velsontas from Perth and trekked him all the way to Baradine in outback NSW to be trained by his cousin Philip who first produced him at the Tamworth races 64 weeks after his last Perth race.
Philip has coddled the one-time Randwick rising star for a further 70 starts resulting in 18 wins. Velsontas has won more cups than you’ll find in Dolly Parton’s bra collection. He has saluted in Binnaway, Carinda, Collarenibri, Come-By-Chance, Coonabarabran, Coonamble, Gilgandra, Gulargambone, Lightning Ridge, Moree, Narrabri, Narromine, Scone and Warren. There's no romance like that of the Australian turf.
They’ve tried retiring him but the horse doesn’t like it. Even if Patinack wanted to buy him they wouldn’t let him go.
Breeders were very lukewarm over Falbrav and in three seasons at Arrowfield he covered only 215 mares – about as many as his paternal half-brother Encosta de Lago serves in one season – and understandably he remained in Japan last year rather than return to severely test the formidable Arrowfield marketing skills once again.
Poor Falbrav committed the mortal commercial sin of winning over 2400m. In fact all his 13 wins were 1600m or longer, in exotic places like Italy, Hong Kong and Japan as well as England and France. Yet he gets a Karrakatta Plate winner.
When his first yearlings came to the market in 2007 (Brava Fortune was a buy-back at $80,000 in Perth) the reception was also mixed. Fifty-four averaged $110,435 with the median price less than $100,000. Breeders were obviously keen to quit them: only three were passed in, breeders taking as little as $5,000 for them.
Falbrav regularly passes on a fault, long and sloping pasterns, deemed pretty undesirable in a country of predominantly firm-track racing (how will the artificial tracks affect the paradigm?).
Amongst his first crop, however, were a handful of impressive individuals, in my book none moreso than the colt out of Angelic Smile bred by Ron Gilbert and sold last Easter to Woodlands for $550,000, Falbrav’s top price. He was as a good a type as you’d ever see. He’s named Fravashi and presumably he’ll be one of the new Darley tidal wave. I saw him trial in January; he’ll be worth waiting for.
I was involved with the original importation of Carnegie (Ire) to New Zealand in 1997. This guy won all his races at 2000m and 2400m and there was great scepticism amongst Kiwi breeders that he would be too stout for Australian buyers to stomach so we really struggled to get mares to him, only 59 in the first season. It was a battle again in the second season then financially unviable to bring him back for his third season so he was absent in 1999. In the event, the scepticism was unfounded; Carnegie was easily the leading first-season sire on averages at Karaka in 2000. From his 37 New Zealand-born first crop foals he got four stakeswinners including Carnegie Express and VRC Derby winner Amalfi. While Carnegie’s pedigree screams stamina – Sadler's Wells ex same taproot as Zabeel and Le Filou (Fr) - my appraisal of his racing convinced me he was not a dour stayer. If you ever see his Arc de Triomphe run, he has the softest passage in history; he only has to exert himself for the last 200m, and he only just gets home.
Few stallions which make their name initially in New Zealand subsequently live up to expectations when transferred to Australia. One of the few who did was Success Express (USA). From his first two Australian-conceived crops (now 4YO and 3YO) Carnegie has sired three stakeswinners. One of these, Tuesday Joy, is officially New Zealand-bred as Joie Denise foaled her there whilst visiting Zabeel. These three stakeswinners are from a two-crop output of 179 live foals, compared with 229 live foals and seven stakeswinners produced from Carnegie’s four New Zealand seasons.
I saw Tuesday Joy at Tulloch Lodge on Sunday, the day after her Canterbury Gr 1 Ranvet score. She is a queen, a big mare, narrow in the chest but with a huge depth of girth. Her neck appears a bit weak and she wears the shadow roll to reduce its angle whilst racing. There is nothing butch about her at all and she has the most beautiful big eye. She may not be a champion but this is one very precious individual.
Another result out of Western Australia on Sunday was also significant for Arrowfield – what’s going on here, am I writing their press releases? – as Grand Journey’s success in the Gr 1 W.A. Derby credited uberstallion Flying Spur with his first Gr 1 winner as a broodmare sire. He’s also broodmare sire of Sebring.
Victorian-trained Grand Journey took six races to clear maidens then another six before she won again but she has found Perth’s Mediterranean climate and lack of stayers most agreeable, completing the Natasha/Oaks/Derby triple and taking her earnings to more than $600,000. She is out of an unplaced sister to the good mare Joy Of Flight.
Grand Journey has three lines of Northern Dancer and her third and fourth dams are by the English St Leger winner Boucher and the excellent source of stamina Busted, respectively.
How good a sire Good Journey (USA) might have been we’ll never know but the early evidence suggests this Best In Show descendant was an inspired importation. Pity he was locked up in the weird Written Bloodstock scenario. Good Journey has a maximum 23 three-year-olds; 13 have raced, nine have won and in addition to Gr 1 winner Grand Journey there’s the super-smart Gr 2 winning colt Sound Journey.
It’s a record Good Journey’s much-vaunted Mr Prospector half-brother Aldebaran would covet. He’s proving one of the more stellar failures in Kentucky at the present time. Interestingly, both horses were late bloomers. Good Journey did all his winning from four to six years (and put US$1.7 million in the bank) while Aldebaran won five of his six stakes races as a five-year-old in which year he was the Eclipse Award winning sprinter.
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I was pleased to see Raise (Arena-Boisterous Lady, by Rivotious) race so well and earn black-type in Sunday’s Keith F Nolan Classic at Kembla Grange. She was a filly I recommended to the Kelly family at the 2006 Inglis Classic Sale and they purchased her for $72,500. A couple of months later her then-unheralded sister Rena’s Lady won the Gr 1 AJC Oaks.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just to prove I’m not a black-type snob, I got a great kick reading Sunday’s results from Coonamble where the old warrior Velsontas (11yo by Star Way-Merry Maiden, by Crested Wave) bobbed up again, win number 23.
This old guy began his racing life at Tulloch Lodge and looked a serious horse, winning five races fairly quickly. I recall he had feet trouble. After 16 starts he changed hands cheaply and was taken over by the one and only Malcolm Ayoub and appeared in Perth where the best he could do was one distant fourth from six starts.
Malcolm must have shares in a horse transport company because he sacked Velsontas from Perth and trekked him all the way to Baradine in outback NSW to be trained by his cousin Philip who first produced him at the Tamworth races 64 weeks after his last Perth race.
Philip has coddled the one-time Randwick rising star for a further 70 starts resulting in 18 wins. Velsontas has won more cups than you’ll find in Dolly Parton’s bra collection. He has saluted in Binnaway, Carinda, Collarenibri, Come-By-Chance, Coonabarabran, Coonamble, Gilgandra, Gulargambone, Lightning Ridge, Moree, Narrabri, Narromine, Scone and Warren. There's no romance like that of the Australian turf.
They’ve tried retiring him but the horse doesn’t like it. Even if Patinack wanted to buy him they wouldn’t let him go.
Musings From a Glorious Day At Canterbury
Hard to see any colt which ran in Saturday’s Todman Stakes, other than Related, having much chance in the Golden Slipper unless the race falls away unexpectedly. Related (Elusive Quality-Cousins, by Danehill) should have won by three lengths. If he had, he would have become only the second stakeswinner in his family in four generations. He’s the eighth foal of his dam and the fifth to earn minor black-type – but on this debut performance it’ll be capital letters for him soon.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Todman winner Krupt has an interesting pedigree. He is 3f x 3f Grand Luxe. A former smart two-year-old, the tiny filly French Braids, was 4f x 3f to Grand Luxe’s dam Fanfreluche. With the crossing of Encosta de Lago and Flying Spur common enough now, we'll see what strike rate this pattern comes up with. Almost all the Fanfreluche family must be in the southern hemisphere by now.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beadman is a freak.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Am I right in thinking Hips Don’t Lie (Stravinsky-Procure, by Centaine) is the first New Zealand-bred winner of the Reisling Stakes in 36 years? I remember her full-sister going through Sydney Easter in 2004, in the Trelawney draft. She was a 'talking horse' and made what seemed a staggering sum, $625,000. Named Luna Belle, she never got to the races and was sent to the USA as a three-year-old. James Bester picked up the younger, faster, version for $200,000.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you knock two zeros off the amount paid for Hips Don’t Lie you get the amount paid for Acey Ducey as a yearling at the Magic Millions Winter Sale in 2006. Goodwood Farm’s Kerrie Tibbey, who reared Dance Hero and who consigned Acey Ducey (Xaar-Deduce, by Known Fact), couldn’t get a bid for him so she and her partner stumped up the two grand. Moral of the story: don’t let Patinack, Darley, Inghams et al throw you off your game.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Krupt, Mentality and Acey Ducey, three of the first four winners at Canterbury, are all out of USA-bred mares.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gelding Hoystar last year has made a racehorse out of him. He and Hips Don’t Lie are out of Centaine mares. How good are they! With four stakeswinners by four different sires, Professionelle (NZ) may be the best of them. She did the impossible – she left a triple Gr 2 winner to Supremo. Centaine, yet another non-Group 1 winner to make a decent sire.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fuzz was a horse I quoted to two leading Sydney trainers, supposedly on the lookout for a good potential stayer from New Zealand, when he had raced just four times over there in 2006. They didn’t bite so he ended up at Lindsay Park where they are having a lot of fun with him with now more than half a million in earnings. He should pay his way in Sydney. His NZ breeder/owners are still in him. I won't dob in the two Sydney trainers but Gai and Anthony are clues.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the next few weeks we are going to see some ridiculously over-valued mares go through sales rings in Sydney, the Gold Coast and Melbourne. Pull the pedigree out and have a think what Tuesday Joy or her half-sister Sunday Joy might be worth. Including themselves, 10 Group 1 winners in the first two dams.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forensics’ finishing speed is awesome. At track record pace, she put that field away in a matter of strides at Canterbury, continuing a banner day for her sire Flying Spur – where has he been all these years? – and Arrowfield sires in general. The more I think about it, the more I’m inclined to believe that Darley have got an absolute bargain in Woodlands and all it embraces. Selling it off lock-stock-and-Lonhro averted the Ingham family from having to confront inevitable future issues but when the Forensics presentation was taking place, the poignancy of the moment was palpable. I’ll be able to tell my grand-daughter that I was there when the cerise legend was dismantled, like when Jack Kennedy was shot. It’ll take a while to feel the same way about the maroon. One person whose stature has grown a thousandfold is Peter Snowden, a class act.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forensics (bred by Vinery) is out of the Dehere mare Prove It, from the family of Snippets. Sean Buckley got a rare bargain when he bought Prove It in 2005, in foal to Flying Spur, for $380,000. But after producing a colt that October she died six weeks later. The colt was earmarked for the yearling sales – he would have been offered at Easter last year, just a couple of weeks after Forensics had won the Slipper – but he had an injury on the near side rump and hock early on and never underwent a sales prep. Now named Anton Pillar, the colt has been over with David Hayes but is yet to race. The colt’s name is apt. According to Wikipedia, in British and British-derived legal systems, an Anton Piller order (frequently misspelt Anton Pillar order) is a court order which provides for the right to search premises and seize evidence without prior warning. This is used in order to prevent the destruction of incriminating evidence, particularly in cases of alleged trademark, copyright or patent infringements. Sean’s latest South African recruit, the four-year-old mare Dane Julia (by Caesour, the same sire as his other South African Gr 1 winner Perfect Promise), was unleashed at Caulfield yesterday and was a mightily impressive first-up third. If we think the Dubai World Cup meeting is all it’s cracked up to be, then recent results suggest the standard of the better South African horses is very high indeed. They have been knocking off good races internationally for a few years now.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Zealand’s only Gr 1 race for fillies and mares, the New Zealand Bloodstock Breeders Stakes, 1600m, was won Saturday by three-year-old filly Special Mission, a 16-to-1 shot. Previously a dual Listed winner, Special Mission is by Tracy’s Element’s brother (and Danasinga’s half-brother) Towkay. She’s the third Gr 1 winner for the sire who started off in 1999 as an el-cheapo at $3,000 fee, inching his way up to $10,000 in 2007. He currently has 5.4% stakeswinners-to-runners. He’s only had 18 career runners in Australia and 11 of them have won. Special Mission is from the family of Chris Waller’s durable gelding Double Dare.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A couple of horses whose names are kind of familiar went around at meetings on Saturday. Lloyd Williams has a colt named Meld whose earlier incarnation was a filly of 1952 by Alycidon from Daily Double and regarded as one of the best fillies ever to race in England. Unbeaten at three, she won the Thousand Guineas, Oaks, St Leger and Coronation Stakes. Five of her sons were imported to Australia and New Zealand with one standout: Mellay (by Never Say Die) a marvelous sire based in the deep south of the South Island of New Zealand. I recall some years after Mellay’s death visiting the Anderton home at White Robe Lodge, Mosgiel, only to find that Mellay was still there – his head was mounted on the living room wall!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The other name to catch my eye was Mainbrace, a three-year-old colt by Principality who sneaked into third place at Ararat on Saturday. His earlier incarnation is rated one of the greatest New Zealand thoroughbreds in history. A 1947 chestnut colt by Admiral’s Luck-Maneroo, the earlier Mainbrace wiped the board in 23 of his 25 starts including 15 of 16 as a three-year-old. He never set hoof in Australia. Just as well, as he belonged in the league of Carbine, Phar Lap, Desert Gold, Kindergarten and Tulloch and it would have needed arsenic to stop him. (Apollo Eleven?). Legendary American jockey John Longden came out to New Zealand to test drive the colt pending his sale to the USA but the sale fell through. Put to stud, Mainbrace was a failure though it’s fair to say ‘colonial’ horses even as great as Mainbrace weren’t joyfully embraced by breeders in those days. He had a sod of a temperament and hated the starting gates. In all but one of his starts he was positioned actually outside the widest gate – being ‘sent to the outer’ was a common enough practice with rogues until the seventies – or in a special double-space gate within the structure. It’s fortunate he lived when he did – a horse like him would be on the scrap heap today in the name of fair play for the punter.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Though I only listened with one ear, I thought I heard at least two of the three finalists in the Myer Fashions On The Field at Canterbury say their winning outfits were inspired by the '40s look. I must admit they looked a whole lot snazzier than the usual gargoyles paraded on these occasions. Here's a thought: if the '40s are back in fashion, is there a chance for me?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Todman winner Krupt has an interesting pedigree. He is 3f x 3f Grand Luxe. A former smart two-year-old, the tiny filly French Braids, was 4f x 3f to Grand Luxe’s dam Fanfreluche. With the crossing of Encosta de Lago and Flying Spur common enough now, we'll see what strike rate this pattern comes up with. Almost all the Fanfreluche family must be in the southern hemisphere by now.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beadman is a freak.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Am I right in thinking Hips Don’t Lie (Stravinsky-Procure, by Centaine) is the first New Zealand-bred winner of the Reisling Stakes in 36 years? I remember her full-sister going through Sydney Easter in 2004, in the Trelawney draft. She was a 'talking horse' and made what seemed a staggering sum, $625,000. Named Luna Belle, she never got to the races and was sent to the USA as a three-year-old. James Bester picked up the younger, faster, version for $200,000.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you knock two zeros off the amount paid for Hips Don’t Lie you get the amount paid for Acey Ducey as a yearling at the Magic Millions Winter Sale in 2006. Goodwood Farm’s Kerrie Tibbey, who reared Dance Hero and who consigned Acey Ducey (Xaar-Deduce, by Known Fact), couldn’t get a bid for him so she and her partner stumped up the two grand. Moral of the story: don’t let Patinack, Darley, Inghams et al throw you off your game.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Krupt, Mentality and Acey Ducey, three of the first four winners at Canterbury, are all out of USA-bred mares.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gelding Hoystar last year has made a racehorse out of him. He and Hips Don’t Lie are out of Centaine mares. How good are they! With four stakeswinners by four different sires, Professionelle (NZ) may be the best of them. She did the impossible – she left a triple Gr 2 winner to Supremo. Centaine, yet another non-Group 1 winner to make a decent sire.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fuzz was a horse I quoted to two leading Sydney trainers, supposedly on the lookout for a good potential stayer from New Zealand, when he had raced just four times over there in 2006. They didn’t bite so he ended up at Lindsay Park where they are having a lot of fun with him with now more than half a million in earnings. He should pay his way in Sydney. His NZ breeder/owners are still in him. I won't dob in the two Sydney trainers but Gai and Anthony are clues.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the next few weeks we are going to see some ridiculously over-valued mares go through sales rings in Sydney, the Gold Coast and Melbourne. Pull the pedigree out and have a think what Tuesday Joy or her half-sister Sunday Joy might be worth. Including themselves, 10 Group 1 winners in the first two dams.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forensics’ finishing speed is awesome. At track record pace, she put that field away in a matter of strides at Canterbury, continuing a banner day for her sire Flying Spur – where has he been all these years? – and Arrowfield sires in general. The more I think about it, the more I’m inclined to believe that Darley have got an absolute bargain in Woodlands and all it embraces. Selling it off lock-stock-and-Lonhro averted the Ingham family from having to confront inevitable future issues but when the Forensics presentation was taking place, the poignancy of the moment was palpable. I’ll be able to tell my grand-daughter that I was there when the cerise legend was dismantled, like when Jack Kennedy was shot. It’ll take a while to feel the same way about the maroon. One person whose stature has grown a thousandfold is Peter Snowden, a class act.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forensics (bred by Vinery) is out of the Dehere mare Prove It, from the family of Snippets. Sean Buckley got a rare bargain when he bought Prove It in 2005, in foal to Flying Spur, for $380,000. But after producing a colt that October she died six weeks later. The colt was earmarked for the yearling sales – he would have been offered at Easter last year, just a couple of weeks after Forensics had won the Slipper – but he had an injury on the near side rump and hock early on and never underwent a sales prep. Now named Anton Pillar, the colt has been over with David Hayes but is yet to race. The colt’s name is apt. According to Wikipedia, in British and British-derived legal systems, an Anton Piller order (frequently misspelt Anton Pillar order) is a court order which provides for the right to search premises and seize evidence without prior warning. This is used in order to prevent the destruction of incriminating evidence, particularly in cases of alleged trademark, copyright or patent infringements. Sean’s latest South African recruit, the four-year-old mare Dane Julia (by Caesour, the same sire as his other South African Gr 1 winner Perfect Promise), was unleashed at Caulfield yesterday and was a mightily impressive first-up third. If we think the Dubai World Cup meeting is all it’s cracked up to be, then recent results suggest the standard of the better South African horses is very high indeed. They have been knocking off good races internationally for a few years now.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Zealand’s only Gr 1 race for fillies and mares, the New Zealand Bloodstock Breeders Stakes, 1600m, was won Saturday by three-year-old filly Special Mission, a 16-to-1 shot. Previously a dual Listed winner, Special Mission is by Tracy’s Element’s brother (and Danasinga’s half-brother) Towkay. She’s the third Gr 1 winner for the sire who started off in 1999 as an el-cheapo at $3,000 fee, inching his way up to $10,000 in 2007. He currently has 5.4% stakeswinners-to-runners. He’s only had 18 career runners in Australia and 11 of them have won. Special Mission is from the family of Chris Waller’s durable gelding Double Dare.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A couple of horses whose names are kind of familiar went around at meetings on Saturday. Lloyd Williams has a colt named Meld whose earlier incarnation was a filly of 1952 by Alycidon from Daily Double and regarded as one of the best fillies ever to race in England. Unbeaten at three, she won the Thousand Guineas, Oaks, St Leger and Coronation Stakes. Five of her sons were imported to Australia and New Zealand with one standout: Mellay (by Never Say Die) a marvelous sire based in the deep south of the South Island of New Zealand. I recall some years after Mellay’s death visiting the Anderton home at White Robe Lodge, Mosgiel, only to find that Mellay was still there – his head was mounted on the living room wall!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The other name to catch my eye was Mainbrace, a three-year-old colt by Principality who sneaked into third place at Ararat on Saturday. His earlier incarnation is rated one of the greatest New Zealand thoroughbreds in history. A 1947 chestnut colt by Admiral’s Luck-Maneroo, the earlier Mainbrace wiped the board in 23 of his 25 starts including 15 of 16 as a three-year-old. He never set hoof in Australia. Just as well, as he belonged in the league of Carbine, Phar Lap, Desert Gold, Kindergarten and Tulloch and it would have needed arsenic to stop him. (Apollo Eleven?). Legendary American jockey John Longden came out to New Zealand to test drive the colt pending his sale to the USA but the sale fell through. Put to stud, Mainbrace was a failure though it’s fair to say ‘colonial’ horses even as great as Mainbrace weren’t joyfully embraced by breeders in those days. He had a sod of a temperament and hated the starting gates. In all but one of his starts he was positioned actually outside the widest gate – being ‘sent to the outer’ was a common enough practice with rogues until the seventies – or in a special double-space gate within the structure. It’s fortunate he lived when he did – a horse like him would be on the scrap heap today in the name of fair play for the punter.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Though I only listened with one ear, I thought I heard at least two of the three finalists in the Myer Fashions On The Field at Canterbury say their winning outfits were inspired by the '40s look. I must admit they looked a whole lot snazzier than the usual gargoyles paraded on these occasions. Here's a thought: if the '40s are back in fashion, is there a chance for me?
The Last Great Magic Millions Winner
Dance Hero has been retired. Fantastic news.
It’s possible that this horse’s patchy record over the last couple of seasons has taken the shine off his overall achievements, which is a pity if it has. I think he’s entitled to be regarded as the best Australian two-year-old of the past 15 years.
He raced seven times at that age. His only defeat came at his first start, in the AJC Breeders’ Plate in which he started $2.10 favourite. Under Len Beasley, he blundered badly at the start, didn’t get the lead and finished third behind Charge Forward, the colt who was to run second to him in the Golden Slipper six months later. Splitting this fine pair was Wenceslas Square who finished up winning only three little races from 38 career starts. Use that one at your next trivia night.
Dance Hero’s six-race picket fence included the Magic Millions in race record time, the Golden Slipper in race record time, the AJC Champagne Stakes in race record time and the AJC Sires’ Produce Stakes.
It’ll be a long while till we see that feat equaled. Perhaps never. And Dance Hero raced in a vintage year, a class headed by the likes of Charge Forward, Alinghi, Fastnet Rock, Wager and Genius And Evil, the horse who became known in Hong Kong as Absolute Champion.
Dance Hero never won a race he didn’t totally dominate with his crazy brand of speed. Basically, he was never headed in any of the 10 races he won. If he couldn’t get the lead then you could rip up your tickets. No point in laying into him with the whip - he was always going full speed, that's why he'd swish his tail when he received a smack, he was already in overdrive. He coped with a dead track but nothing worse.
He was a fantastic sight in full cry. He got straight into the bridle and his legs seemed barely to touch the ground. It sent a chill up my spine.
A horse which has dragged its guts through such a grueling two-year-old campaign could be forgiven for not turning up later in his career. But Dance Hero had his moments: the Gr 2 Royal Sovereign Stakes (beating Eremein), the Gr 2 Canterbury Stakes (from Falkirk and Ike’s Dream), the Gr 3 Missile Stakes (over Snippetson and Spark Of Life) and his crowning glory as an older horse, the 2006 Gr 1 Salinger Stakes down the Flemington straight six, with Miss Andretti third and last year’s winner Swick fourth. I saw him in the mounting yard that day; he had never looked better. I'm sure his win went down like a lead balloon with the Victorians who've never forgiven him for beating their darling Alinghi in the Slipper.
Forget Dance Hero's inevitable defeats; that’s a marvelous CV for any horse.
I was fortunate enough to have played a part in the purchase of Dance Hero, a $90,000 colt who went on to win $3,940,440. On face value dollars, he is the highest-earning pure sprinter to have raced exclusively in Australia.
In those days I was one of the team helping Gai Waterhouse with the massive task of sorting through all the sale yearlings. George Smith, the renowned selector from Melbourne, and I were inspecting Magic Millions yearlings in the Hunter Valley during December. At the time I think Gai was overseas on her annual northern winter holiday.
We saw the colt at Kerrie Tibbey’s Goodwood Farm, Murrurundi. George and I hardly ever spoke while we looked at the yearlings. We’d each make our own notes – George didn’t even bring the catalogue – and give them a rating which, eventually, would be put into the database from which Gai would work the sale. Thirty seconds is a long time for George to look at a yearling, he has a sensational eye.
This big colt was brought out. I’m not even sure he had a bit in his mouth, just controlled by a rope head collar.
George was standing about 5 metres opposite me and the Danzero colt was stood up between us. He then walked away, walked back and was stood up again. Fatefully, George and I looked up at the same time, caught each other’s eye across the horse’s back and gave a knowing wink, as much as to say, “This one’s all right!”.
Of the colt with a head only its mother could love (we all came to love it later), I wrote in my book: “Good/big size, plain head, good rein and hindquarters, tracks well, powerful type”. I rated him ‘Nice’, in those days the terminology we used to describe our top raters.
The rest is history. We were all in agreement; Gai specked him and took him home from the sale.
Do you think we could sell him! He sat partially unsold for three months. At one point I even considered taking half of him with one of my mates in Auckland, just so I could erase the amount owing on the whiteboard in my office which served as the motivational centrepiece for selling down the yearlings - and get Gai off my back. I had missed out on Choisir, then a three-year-old, two years previously and was probably still gunshy.
I sent out a mass of faxes and emails prospecting the colt to potential clients. I know a couple of them still have those faxes, a distant reminder of one that got away. In my sales pitch I mentioned, naturally, what a grouse type we thought he was. Because the early expectation level amongst owners in the Waterhouse stable can be rather high, especially since Gai found the clue to training her two-year-olds, I felt I should cover my backside and included words to the effect that whilst the Danzero colt was a super type I couldn’t be confident he’d make a two-year-old. I was never more wrong.
About April the ownership was finally put to bed. Several of the new owners had raced some very good horses from the Waterhouse yard and they were about to be spoilt again.
Dance Hero was broken in by Darryl Leigh in Rouchel in the Upper Hunter. Gai and I saw him on the morning of the Scone Cup that year as Darryl was putting the finishing touches on him. Darryl declared the horse at that point.
The now gelded Dance Hero had his first barrier trial at Canterbury on 5 September, 2003. In attendance that morning was Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum and his retinue, there to watch their expensive Danehill colts strut their stuff. This far down the track I’m not sure if any of the Sheikh’s sooky, soft colts were in the same heat as Dance Hero but I vividly remember the Sheikh’s reaction when Dance Hero whizzed by like a comet, streeting the opposition.
Able to tell in an instant that his Danehills would be eating Dance Hero’s dust all their lives, the Sheikh exclaimed: “How come you didn’t show me this horse!?”
The answer simply was that you couldn’t get the Sheikh and his people to even consider a colt which had the type of catalogue page Dance Hero possessed at the time – just two city winners in the first two dams – so it wouldn’t have mattered if we’d hit him over the head with Dance Hero, his people would never have entertained him, they were headhunting potential stallions. You had to go back to the third dam, Tristabelle, bred and raced by my New Zealand near-neighbours, Don and Rochelle McLaren, to find the first horse of consequence. She was a hulking great Sir Tristram filly who won four races as a two-year-old. I had seen a lot of this family in my New Zealand years as the core “Belle Family” mares lived at Haunui Farm and I sold their yearlings each year. I wouldn’t say that Dance Hero reminded me of any in particular but it is a tribe which can throw up a very serious animal. It’s an amazing fact but the three best older horses racing at one time in the Waterhouse stable in the early 2000s were all Belle family members: Grand Armee, Dance Hero and Winning Belle.
As we know, Dance Hero will never sire a foal; it’s left principally to Charge Forward and Fastnet Rock to carry the flame of that generation.
Impossible as it is to see into the future, Dance Hero might be the last great winner of the Magic Millions 2YO Classic which has had a fairly illustrious roll call down the years.
He stands as the only horse to win the Magic Millions-Golden Slipper double. He’s a gelding. I detect a trend whereby owners of serious colts might continue to give the race a wide berth as they concentrate on trying to win the Golden Slipper. Fillies might give it a crack as they still enjoy a weight advantage in the Slipper.
With the change of date this year owing to EI the chances of a colt doing the double were less as their autumn programmes would have been set some time back. Sebring, for example, a colt for which I believe $7 million was offered, was not about to go north, the stable electing to send their good filly She’s Meaner. All American could have been there but wasn't.
Last year I recall Murtajill, (raced by the Sheikh), after his crushing win the Breeders’ Plate, was set specifically for the Golden Slipper with the Magic Millions factored out.
With the greater intrusion of foreign owners and powerful breeding blocs into the upper echelons of horse ownership in Australia, it seems they are happy to take the big gamble that their colts are up to winning the Slipper rather than chase the Millions cash for which their horse would be required to peak mid-season.
The stallion-making difference between the two races is graphically illustrated if you take the cases of Bradbury’s Luck and Stratum, two-year-olds of 2004-05.
Both colts were stunning individuals by Redoute’s Choice. Bradbury’s Luck is out of a brilliant racemare, Skating, who has become a blue hen. Stratum is out of the unraced Bourgeois.
In an early season barrier trial, there was nothing between these two colts, a head in Bradbury’s Luck’s favour to be precise.
Stratum won the Golden Slipper at his fourth start, not the greatest win you’ve ever seen as Fashions Afield might have beaten him if she hadn’t missed the jump. Stratum couldn’t win a race in any of his remaining 14 starts and in the majority of them he was comprehensively beaten.
Bradbury’s Luck won the Magic Millions at his third start per courtesy of his own ability and some poor rides in the race. Snitzel dead-heated for third. Bradbury’s Luck couldn’t win any of his remaining three starts.
These very good-looking colts by the supersire were consigned to stud when they turned four. Bradbury’s Luck stood his first season in Queensland for $12,500, Stratum in the Hunter Valley for $27,500. Is there that much difference between them, or is it the race that makes the difference?
Dance Hero cost $90,000. He was cared for like a king throughout his career by his devoted handlers who, I'm sure, will miss him terribly.
I wonder if his three-quarter brother who cost $2,200,000, can be any better?
It’s possible that this horse’s patchy record over the last couple of seasons has taken the shine off his overall achievements, which is a pity if it has. I think he’s entitled to be regarded as the best Australian two-year-old of the past 15 years.
He raced seven times at that age. His only defeat came at his first start, in the AJC Breeders’ Plate in which he started $2.10 favourite. Under Len Beasley, he blundered badly at the start, didn’t get the lead and finished third behind Charge Forward, the colt who was to run second to him in the Golden Slipper six months later. Splitting this fine pair was Wenceslas Square who finished up winning only three little races from 38 career starts. Use that one at your next trivia night.
Dance Hero’s six-race picket fence included the Magic Millions in race record time, the Golden Slipper in race record time, the AJC Champagne Stakes in race record time and the AJC Sires’ Produce Stakes.
It’ll be a long while till we see that feat equaled. Perhaps never. And Dance Hero raced in a vintage year, a class headed by the likes of Charge Forward, Alinghi, Fastnet Rock, Wager and Genius And Evil, the horse who became known in Hong Kong as Absolute Champion.
Dance Hero never won a race he didn’t totally dominate with his crazy brand of speed. Basically, he was never headed in any of the 10 races he won. If he couldn’t get the lead then you could rip up your tickets. No point in laying into him with the whip - he was always going full speed, that's why he'd swish his tail when he received a smack, he was already in overdrive. He coped with a dead track but nothing worse.
He was a fantastic sight in full cry. He got straight into the bridle and his legs seemed barely to touch the ground. It sent a chill up my spine.
A horse which has dragged its guts through such a grueling two-year-old campaign could be forgiven for not turning up later in his career. But Dance Hero had his moments: the Gr 2 Royal Sovereign Stakes (beating Eremein), the Gr 2 Canterbury Stakes (from Falkirk and Ike’s Dream), the Gr 3 Missile Stakes (over Snippetson and Spark Of Life) and his crowning glory as an older horse, the 2006 Gr 1 Salinger Stakes down the Flemington straight six, with Miss Andretti third and last year’s winner Swick fourth. I saw him in the mounting yard that day; he had never looked better. I'm sure his win went down like a lead balloon with the Victorians who've never forgiven him for beating their darling Alinghi in the Slipper.
Forget Dance Hero's inevitable defeats; that’s a marvelous CV for any horse.
I was fortunate enough to have played a part in the purchase of Dance Hero, a $90,000 colt who went on to win $3,940,440. On face value dollars, he is the highest-earning pure sprinter to have raced exclusively in Australia.
In those days I was one of the team helping Gai Waterhouse with the massive task of sorting through all the sale yearlings. George Smith, the renowned selector from Melbourne, and I were inspecting Magic Millions yearlings in the Hunter Valley during December. At the time I think Gai was overseas on her annual northern winter holiday.
We saw the colt at Kerrie Tibbey’s Goodwood Farm, Murrurundi. George and I hardly ever spoke while we looked at the yearlings. We’d each make our own notes – George didn’t even bring the catalogue – and give them a rating which, eventually, would be put into the database from which Gai would work the sale. Thirty seconds is a long time for George to look at a yearling, he has a sensational eye.
This big colt was brought out. I’m not even sure he had a bit in his mouth, just controlled by a rope head collar.
George was standing about 5 metres opposite me and the Danzero colt was stood up between us. He then walked away, walked back and was stood up again. Fatefully, George and I looked up at the same time, caught each other’s eye across the horse’s back and gave a knowing wink, as much as to say, “This one’s all right!”.
Of the colt with a head only its mother could love (we all came to love it later), I wrote in my book: “Good/big size, plain head, good rein and hindquarters, tracks well, powerful type”. I rated him ‘Nice’, in those days the terminology we used to describe our top raters.
The rest is history. We were all in agreement; Gai specked him and took him home from the sale.
Do you think we could sell him! He sat partially unsold for three months. At one point I even considered taking half of him with one of my mates in Auckland, just so I could erase the amount owing on the whiteboard in my office which served as the motivational centrepiece for selling down the yearlings - and get Gai off my back. I had missed out on Choisir, then a three-year-old, two years previously and was probably still gunshy.
I sent out a mass of faxes and emails prospecting the colt to potential clients. I know a couple of them still have those faxes, a distant reminder of one that got away. In my sales pitch I mentioned, naturally, what a grouse type we thought he was. Because the early expectation level amongst owners in the Waterhouse stable can be rather high, especially since Gai found the clue to training her two-year-olds, I felt I should cover my backside and included words to the effect that whilst the Danzero colt was a super type I couldn’t be confident he’d make a two-year-old. I was never more wrong.
About April the ownership was finally put to bed. Several of the new owners had raced some very good horses from the Waterhouse yard and they were about to be spoilt again.
Dance Hero was broken in by Darryl Leigh in Rouchel in the Upper Hunter. Gai and I saw him on the morning of the Scone Cup that year as Darryl was putting the finishing touches on him. Darryl declared the horse at that point.
The now gelded Dance Hero had his first barrier trial at Canterbury on 5 September, 2003. In attendance that morning was Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum and his retinue, there to watch their expensive Danehill colts strut their stuff. This far down the track I’m not sure if any of the Sheikh’s sooky, soft colts were in the same heat as Dance Hero but I vividly remember the Sheikh’s reaction when Dance Hero whizzed by like a comet, streeting the opposition.
Able to tell in an instant that his Danehills would be eating Dance Hero’s dust all their lives, the Sheikh exclaimed: “How come you didn’t show me this horse!?”
The answer simply was that you couldn’t get the Sheikh and his people to even consider a colt which had the type of catalogue page Dance Hero possessed at the time – just two city winners in the first two dams – so it wouldn’t have mattered if we’d hit him over the head with Dance Hero, his people would never have entertained him, they were headhunting potential stallions. You had to go back to the third dam, Tristabelle, bred and raced by my New Zealand near-neighbours, Don and Rochelle McLaren, to find the first horse of consequence. She was a hulking great Sir Tristram filly who won four races as a two-year-old. I had seen a lot of this family in my New Zealand years as the core “Belle Family” mares lived at Haunui Farm and I sold their yearlings each year. I wouldn’t say that Dance Hero reminded me of any in particular but it is a tribe which can throw up a very serious animal. It’s an amazing fact but the three best older horses racing at one time in the Waterhouse stable in the early 2000s were all Belle family members: Grand Armee, Dance Hero and Winning Belle.
As we know, Dance Hero will never sire a foal; it’s left principally to Charge Forward and Fastnet Rock to carry the flame of that generation.
Impossible as it is to see into the future, Dance Hero might be the last great winner of the Magic Millions 2YO Classic which has had a fairly illustrious roll call down the years.
He stands as the only horse to win the Magic Millions-Golden Slipper double. He’s a gelding. I detect a trend whereby owners of serious colts might continue to give the race a wide berth as they concentrate on trying to win the Golden Slipper. Fillies might give it a crack as they still enjoy a weight advantage in the Slipper.
With the change of date this year owing to EI the chances of a colt doing the double were less as their autumn programmes would have been set some time back. Sebring, for example, a colt for which I believe $7 million was offered, was not about to go north, the stable electing to send their good filly She’s Meaner. All American could have been there but wasn't.
Last year I recall Murtajill, (raced by the Sheikh), after his crushing win the Breeders’ Plate, was set specifically for the Golden Slipper with the Magic Millions factored out.
With the greater intrusion of foreign owners and powerful breeding blocs into the upper echelons of horse ownership in Australia, it seems they are happy to take the big gamble that their colts are up to winning the Slipper rather than chase the Millions cash for which their horse would be required to peak mid-season.
The stallion-making difference between the two races is graphically illustrated if you take the cases of Bradbury’s Luck and Stratum, two-year-olds of 2004-05.
Both colts were stunning individuals by Redoute’s Choice. Bradbury’s Luck is out of a brilliant racemare, Skating, who has become a blue hen. Stratum is out of the unraced Bourgeois.
In an early season barrier trial, there was nothing between these two colts, a head in Bradbury’s Luck’s favour to be precise.
Stratum won the Golden Slipper at his fourth start, not the greatest win you’ve ever seen as Fashions Afield might have beaten him if she hadn’t missed the jump. Stratum couldn’t win a race in any of his remaining 14 starts and in the majority of them he was comprehensively beaten.
Bradbury’s Luck won the Magic Millions at his third start per courtesy of his own ability and some poor rides in the race. Snitzel dead-heated for third. Bradbury’s Luck couldn’t win any of his remaining three starts.
These very good-looking colts by the supersire were consigned to stud when they turned four. Bradbury’s Luck stood his first season in Queensland for $12,500, Stratum in the Hunter Valley for $27,500. Is there that much difference between them, or is it the race that makes the difference?
Dance Hero cost $90,000. He was cared for like a king throughout his career by his devoted handlers who, I'm sure, will miss him terribly.
I wonder if his three-quarter brother who cost $2,200,000, can be any better?
My Magic Millions Is Over
I decamped from Magic Millions after the first four days and am back in Sydney for a couple of days before heading up to the Hunter Valley to look at some Sydney-bound yearlings.
In the circumstances, the Gold Coast sale could hardly have been better. Without Patinack it might have been down 15%, but the fact is that Patinack was there. With the EI uncertainty late last year, MM lost some attractive horses to the Sydney catalogue. But the most significant one-off factor this year was the sale’s proximity to Sydney which made many buyers think twice about how deep to go in at the Coast, with all that Sydney quality just three weeks away. With this timeframe, unlike in all other years, there’s no time to buy up big at MM, sell down then re-group for another bash at Sydney. Overall, it was a good result for sellers at MM. There were some huge prices (not just the obvious seven-figure ones) and many breeders would have been pinching themselves, but the unfashionable/unsound combination was punished fairly severely. There were too many fat yearlings and there are still a very small number of consignors who clearly farm theirs and fall well short of a decent standard of presentation.
MM were only kidding that there was any prospect of giving up their January timespot. One thing I ask – could they kindly take March’s weather and less frenetic traffic back with them?
Funniest moment: inspecting Gerry Harvey’s Hussonet filly with the locked patella. Gerry standing over my shoulder telling me the vets say it'll fix itself with time. Me telling Gerry that may be correct but how was he going to get this rigidly immobile horse into the ring to sell it to anyone in the first place? Wisdom prevailed and the filly was withdrawn next day.
Prettiest sight: the raven-haired 30-something-perhaps-40 buxom beauty with the obligatory short black dress in the ground floor members’ bar at the Gold Coast Turf Club all day Saturday. Not one of those flimsy, anorexic clothes horses. I’m in love. Regrettably, the Corona-swigging bloke with the obligatory hairy chest, who was with her, most likely is too, unless she was $300 an hour.
Discomfort Award: the new ringside dining configuration. Sardines. Just emphasizes the inadequacy of the venue.
Bookbinder’s Prize: to the scores of people who ripped the first four days out of their catalogues and made a separate, smaller, book out of them. We shouldn’t have to do that, MM. Next year, please: Book 1 with the top 500, Book 2 with the next 500, Book 3 or Book 4 with the rest. Thank you.
Disregard of Customers’ Opinions Award: David Chester, quoted as saying we should use the catalogue as a door stopper. I agree. BEFORE the sale.
Most practical improvement that can be made prior to next sale: build a shelf above the urinal in the mens’ loos. Somewhere to rest the door stopper while we use two hands thanks.
I’m jealous: In the business centre, above the Xray repository, there’s press clippings from 20 years ago including photos of David Chester. He hasn’t changed.
They have arrived: Chris and Stephanie Waller. The new Gai and Robbie.
Boredom Award: the Gold Coast Bulletin. Take my advice, next year ask your hotel to slip The Australian or the Courier Mail under your door each morning instead. Day after day, the GCB regaled us with picture-spread after picture-spread of MM socialites and party-goers in various states of dress/undress. I didn’t see one of Tom and Kate, which must be a first. Each day they headlined basically the same boring story about how MM threaten to take the sale away (not even Adelaide was ruled out – excuse me while I die laughing) unless the Turf Club reinvents itself out at Palm Meadows. Looks like MM are trying to cash up the site and get a new one for nothing. One day they ran a back page photo with the screamer headline: “Look Who’s Come To Town – Gai (Waterhouse)!!” Surely it would have been news only if Gai HADN’T come to town! If I read one more reference to the Gold Coast as “the glitter strip” I’ll puke. Is that ‘glitter’ as in Gary?? They are trying too hard to be taken seriously by the rest of the world.
New name for the Gold Coast: Silicon City. Supposedly, one third of the population is Brazilian, though I may have misunderstood what I thought I heard.
Ripoff Award: to the hotels. I stayed at a mid-range joint on the ‘glitter strip’. Room service toasted sandwich $24, including weekend surcharge. Previously, I thought $4.20 for a small bucket of scungy chips at the Moonee Valley night races during Melbourne sale time took the prize. Petrol price gouging and Robert Mugabe have nothing on these guys.
Greatest contrast: the silhouettes of two Patinack trainers, Anthony Cummings and Paddy Payne.
Greatest similarity (you complete the sentence): the silhouettes of Nathan Tinkler and ……….
Star of the Show: the white Zabeel filly, Spook. Had more lookers than the Mona Lisa. People even took it upon themselves to go into her box unannounced and unsupervised so as to get up close and personal. She seemed to take it in her stride. She doesn't know she's different, she just thinks she's popular. Her dam Carmina Burana was an absolute snail but this filly is probably her best foal (she’s had five older foals who have won a total of one race). If you didn’t know who Craig Anderson and Amarina Farm were before this sale, you know now. Bet Craig's thrilled to see the back of the filly. She’d be a management nightmare. National Bank in New Zealand have long used a black thoroughbred as their logo and have promoted themselves as ‘the thoroughbred of banks’ (and have had a free ride in so doing); at least Singo has paid decent appearance money to get this actress.
A growing trend: horsemen and women who can’t bear to attend Magic Millions Raceday.
Biggest waste of money: I’m beginning to think it is Magic Millions Raceday. I will give this year the benefit of the doubt inasmuch as the time slot, bang in the middle of the Sydney carnival, probably deprived the meeting of several good horses. To chuck that much money at such ordinary horses as lined up in several of the undercard races is unworthy.
Blessed relief: Tara Reid didn’t attend. For pictures of this class act, see http://images.google.com/images?q=tara+reid&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7GGLR&um=1
Seeing is believing: Shane Keating as 'minder' of Miss Australia Kimberley Busteed throughout her duties as Face of MM. Last I heard Shane was heading for Mumbai - possibly the only place on earth Darley doesn't have a stud farm - to find the Maharishi, but I can understand why he deferred the trip.
Rumour but unbelievable: David Hayes had Patinack in his clutches but let him slip.
Most predictable outcome: Gai came away from the sale with a Patinack horse to train.
Biggest certainty: Sydney will be BIG.
Biggest irony: Patrick Sexton, long-time foreman at Tulloch Lodge, loses his best horse, Dirty, back to Tulloch Lodge. Pat was given his marching orders from Tulloch Lodge in 2006 because of his association with Eddie Hayson who has supported him strongly since Pat’s relocation back to the family stables at Oakey, northwest of Toowoomba. I went to Oakey on Friday to check out the 3YO Hussonet filly on behalf of the intending purchaser, a client. Pat is very philosophical and understanding about Eddie’s desire to sell and there is no bad blood. He kicked back in the best possible way with a winner at Doomben on Saturday, Sneaky Long. In a perfect world Pat would rather be back in Sydney but he’s producing the goods at sleepy little Oakey where he's king of the roost with a team of about 25. At 40 bucks a day he gets my vote as the best value trainer in Australia.
Radio fraud: I’m tootling back from the Gold Coast on Sunday, desperately searching the car radio dial for something to listen to. Suddenly it locks on to Power FM (98.1), a station based in Muswellbrook. I’m listening to the contemporary content which is punctuated by a juvenile announcer with really bad diction raving on about the long holiday weekend, going back to work on Tuesday, the lousy weather (it was brilliantly fine as I traveled through the Hunter)….. Then it dawned on me – what we were being fed on this radio station was a wall-to-wall RECORDING of LAST SUNDAY's radio (23 March)! Most of us know that few of these radio stations broadcast live, it’s pre-recorded, formulaic, zero-cost, high-profit, synthetic stuff. Have a listen, they never mention the real time except at the news break. But to recycle last week's programme?! Ye gods, no wonder radio whales John Singleton and Tim Hughes can enjoy themselves at the horse sales! Which brings me to Vega 95.3 FM, a Sydney station whose invention robbed us of Angela Catterns from the ABC. This station is easy on the ear but for the last three months, at least, it has been playing the same two songs every hour of every day of every week: Hey There Delilah (Plain White T’s) and Straight Lines (Silverchair). I calculate that’s 2,184 renditions EACH of these ditties since Christmas. Who said playola was dead? One thing I pray for under Labor is an end to the emasculation of the ABC. Irrespective of its cost, which in global terms is bugger all, it’s a wonderful institution in all its ramifications and anyone caught trying to drag it down to the lowest common denominator should be charged with a crime against humanity.
Who's embarrassed?: A few days after I made a substantial offer in writing, to the trainer, for a well-known race filly, it was said to me by the overseas owner's agent/friend that "I must be embarrassed to have made such a (low) offer". That's his opinion, though I disagree. However, as I have yet to this day to receive any acknowledgement of my offer or response I suspect it has never been presented to the owner. That's embarrassing.
Get Well Greeting: To a German yearling groom/leader I know only as Christoph (spelling guess). One of the most personable and knowledgeable of all sales workers, Christoph was working at MM for Reavill Farm. Another consignor's yearling got cast and Christoph went in to untangle it but caught a flying hoof and had his cheekbone crushed for his trouble. A general word about grooms and leaders: one sees many outstanding young people plying their trade at the sales. I take my hat off to them (I always wear a hat). What is it with those buyers so full of their own self-importance that they are rude and abrupt to these hard workers who have very demanding responsibilities? Get a grip.
Personal highlights: A filly I bought inexpensively in Melbourne last year won her debut impressively at Bendigo on Saturday and looks like she belongs in town. Ortensia (Testa Rossa-Aerate’s Pick, by Picnicker) cost $50,000. From the Eau d’Etoile family. Another I signed for, Latest Flame (Encosta de Lago-After Beune), won her debut at Gosford on Thursday and paid over $100 on the TAB. Astonishing, considering she’s in the Guy Walter stable. Anything that’s 100-to-1 is usually sent home!
A frightening thought: I discovered, walking around MM, that a lot of people read this blog, though no one admits to sending in their views except Jamie. Somebody said I'm the Richard Zachariah of cyberspace.
In the circumstances, the Gold Coast sale could hardly have been better. Without Patinack it might have been down 15%, but the fact is that Patinack was there. With the EI uncertainty late last year, MM lost some attractive horses to the Sydney catalogue. But the most significant one-off factor this year was the sale’s proximity to Sydney which made many buyers think twice about how deep to go in at the Coast, with all that Sydney quality just three weeks away. With this timeframe, unlike in all other years, there’s no time to buy up big at MM, sell down then re-group for another bash at Sydney. Overall, it was a good result for sellers at MM. There were some huge prices (not just the obvious seven-figure ones) and many breeders would have been pinching themselves, but the unfashionable/unsound combination was punished fairly severely. There were too many fat yearlings and there are still a very small number of consignors who clearly farm theirs and fall well short of a decent standard of presentation.
MM were only kidding that there was any prospect of giving up their January timespot. One thing I ask – could they kindly take March’s weather and less frenetic traffic back with them?
Funniest moment: inspecting Gerry Harvey’s Hussonet filly with the locked patella. Gerry standing over my shoulder telling me the vets say it'll fix itself with time. Me telling Gerry that may be correct but how was he going to get this rigidly immobile horse into the ring to sell it to anyone in the first place? Wisdom prevailed and the filly was withdrawn next day.
Prettiest sight: the raven-haired 30-something-perhaps-40 buxom beauty with the obligatory short black dress in the ground floor members’ bar at the Gold Coast Turf Club all day Saturday. Not one of those flimsy, anorexic clothes horses. I’m in love. Regrettably, the Corona-swigging bloke with the obligatory hairy chest, who was with her, most likely is too, unless she was $300 an hour.
Discomfort Award: the new ringside dining configuration. Sardines. Just emphasizes the inadequacy of the venue.
Bookbinder’s Prize: to the scores of people who ripped the first four days out of their catalogues and made a separate, smaller, book out of them. We shouldn’t have to do that, MM. Next year, please: Book 1 with the top 500, Book 2 with the next 500, Book 3 or Book 4 with the rest. Thank you.
Disregard of Customers’ Opinions Award: David Chester, quoted as saying we should use the catalogue as a door stopper. I agree. BEFORE the sale.
Most practical improvement that can be made prior to next sale: build a shelf above the urinal in the mens’ loos. Somewhere to rest the door stopper while we use two hands thanks.
I’m jealous: In the business centre, above the Xray repository, there’s press clippings from 20 years ago including photos of David Chester. He hasn’t changed.
They have arrived: Chris and Stephanie Waller. The new Gai and Robbie.
Boredom Award: the Gold Coast Bulletin. Take my advice, next year ask your hotel to slip The Australian or the Courier Mail under your door each morning instead. Day after day, the GCB regaled us with picture-spread after picture-spread of MM socialites and party-goers in various states of dress/undress. I didn’t see one of Tom and Kate, which must be a first. Each day they headlined basically the same boring story about how MM threaten to take the sale away (not even Adelaide was ruled out – excuse me while I die laughing) unless the Turf Club reinvents itself out at Palm Meadows. Looks like MM are trying to cash up the site and get a new one for nothing. One day they ran a back page photo with the screamer headline: “Look Who’s Come To Town – Gai (Waterhouse)!!” Surely it would have been news only if Gai HADN’T come to town! If I read one more reference to the Gold Coast as “the glitter strip” I’ll puke. Is that ‘glitter’ as in Gary?? They are trying too hard to be taken seriously by the rest of the world.
New name for the Gold Coast: Silicon City. Supposedly, one third of the population is Brazilian, though I may have misunderstood what I thought I heard.
Ripoff Award: to the hotels. I stayed at a mid-range joint on the ‘glitter strip’. Room service toasted sandwich $24, including weekend surcharge. Previously, I thought $4.20 for a small bucket of scungy chips at the Moonee Valley night races during Melbourne sale time took the prize. Petrol price gouging and Robert Mugabe have nothing on these guys.
Greatest contrast: the silhouettes of two Patinack trainers, Anthony Cummings and Paddy Payne.
Greatest similarity (you complete the sentence): the silhouettes of Nathan Tinkler and ……….
Star of the Show: the white Zabeel filly, Spook. Had more lookers than the Mona Lisa. People even took it upon themselves to go into her box unannounced and unsupervised so as to get up close and personal. She seemed to take it in her stride. She doesn't know she's different, she just thinks she's popular. Her dam Carmina Burana was an absolute snail but this filly is probably her best foal (she’s had five older foals who have won a total of one race). If you didn’t know who Craig Anderson and Amarina Farm were before this sale, you know now. Bet Craig's thrilled to see the back of the filly. She’d be a management nightmare. National Bank in New Zealand have long used a black thoroughbred as their logo and have promoted themselves as ‘the thoroughbred of banks’ (and have had a free ride in so doing); at least Singo has paid decent appearance money to get this actress.
A growing trend: horsemen and women who can’t bear to attend Magic Millions Raceday.
Biggest waste of money: I’m beginning to think it is Magic Millions Raceday. I will give this year the benefit of the doubt inasmuch as the time slot, bang in the middle of the Sydney carnival, probably deprived the meeting of several good horses. To chuck that much money at such ordinary horses as lined up in several of the undercard races is unworthy.
Blessed relief: Tara Reid didn’t attend. For pictures of this class act, see http://images.google.com/images?q=tara+reid&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7GGLR&um=1
Seeing is believing: Shane Keating as 'minder' of Miss Australia Kimberley Busteed throughout her duties as Face of MM. Last I heard Shane was heading for Mumbai - possibly the only place on earth Darley doesn't have a stud farm - to find the Maharishi, but I can understand why he deferred the trip.
Rumour but unbelievable: David Hayes had Patinack in his clutches but let him slip.
Most predictable outcome: Gai came away from the sale with a Patinack horse to train.
Biggest certainty: Sydney will be BIG.
Biggest irony: Patrick Sexton, long-time foreman at Tulloch Lodge, loses his best horse, Dirty, back to Tulloch Lodge. Pat was given his marching orders from Tulloch Lodge in 2006 because of his association with Eddie Hayson who has supported him strongly since Pat’s relocation back to the family stables at Oakey, northwest of Toowoomba. I went to Oakey on Friday to check out the 3YO Hussonet filly on behalf of the intending purchaser, a client. Pat is very philosophical and understanding about Eddie’s desire to sell and there is no bad blood. He kicked back in the best possible way with a winner at Doomben on Saturday, Sneaky Long. In a perfect world Pat would rather be back in Sydney but he’s producing the goods at sleepy little Oakey where he's king of the roost with a team of about 25. At 40 bucks a day he gets my vote as the best value trainer in Australia.
Radio fraud: I’m tootling back from the Gold Coast on Sunday, desperately searching the car radio dial for something to listen to. Suddenly it locks on to Power FM (98.1), a station based in Muswellbrook. I’m listening to the contemporary content which is punctuated by a juvenile announcer with really bad diction raving on about the long holiday weekend, going back to work on Tuesday, the lousy weather (it was brilliantly fine as I traveled through the Hunter)….. Then it dawned on me – what we were being fed on this radio station was a wall-to-wall RECORDING of LAST SUNDAY's radio (23 March)! Most of us know that few of these radio stations broadcast live, it’s pre-recorded, formulaic, zero-cost, high-profit, synthetic stuff. Have a listen, they never mention the real time except at the news break. But to recycle last week's programme?! Ye gods, no wonder radio whales John Singleton and Tim Hughes can enjoy themselves at the horse sales! Which brings me to Vega 95.3 FM, a Sydney station whose invention robbed us of Angela Catterns from the ABC. This station is easy on the ear but for the last three months, at least, it has been playing the same two songs every hour of every day of every week: Hey There Delilah (Plain White T’s) and Straight Lines (Silverchair). I calculate that’s 2,184 renditions EACH of these ditties since Christmas. Who said playola was dead? One thing I pray for under Labor is an end to the emasculation of the ABC. Irrespective of its cost, which in global terms is bugger all, it’s a wonderful institution in all its ramifications and anyone caught trying to drag it down to the lowest common denominator should be charged with a crime against humanity.
Who's embarrassed?: A few days after I made a substantial offer in writing, to the trainer, for a well-known race filly, it was said to me by the overseas owner's agent/friend that "I must be embarrassed to have made such a (low) offer". That's his opinion, though I disagree. However, as I have yet to this day to receive any acknowledgement of my offer or response I suspect it has never been presented to the owner. That's embarrassing.
Get Well Greeting: To a German yearling groom/leader I know only as Christoph (spelling guess). One of the most personable and knowledgeable of all sales workers, Christoph was working at MM for Reavill Farm. Another consignor's yearling got cast and Christoph went in to untangle it but caught a flying hoof and had his cheekbone crushed for his trouble. A general word about grooms and leaders: one sees many outstanding young people plying their trade at the sales. I take my hat off to them (I always wear a hat). What is it with those buyers so full of their own self-importance that they are rude and abrupt to these hard workers who have very demanding responsibilities? Get a grip.
Personal highlights: A filly I bought inexpensively in Melbourne last year won her debut impressively at Bendigo on Saturday and looks like she belongs in town. Ortensia (Testa Rossa-Aerate’s Pick, by Picnicker) cost $50,000. From the Eau d’Etoile family. Another I signed for, Latest Flame (Encosta de Lago-After Beune), won her debut at Gosford on Thursday and paid over $100 on the TAB. Astonishing, considering she’s in the Guy Walter stable. Anything that’s 100-to-1 is usually sent home!
A frightening thought: I discovered, walking around MM, that a lot of people read this blog, though no one admits to sending in their views except Jamie. Somebody said I'm the Richard Zachariah of cyberspace.
Today's Rumour - Some Will Hope It's Not True!
Darley has bought Woodlands, lock, stock and barrel. $400m.
The Non-Starting Gates
Has anyone got any figures on the rate of late scratchings owing to mishaps in the barrier?
I’m getting sick of them. After Maldivian in the Caulfield Cup we today had the example of Mimi Le Brock going off prior to the Golden Rose, another highly anticipated runner left lamenting behind the gates. Because they’re high profile we remember these ones, but there are dozens/hundreds more every year.
I watch a lot of races and think there’s an epidemic of barrier incidents in Australia.
Theoretically, Australia should have the second-highest number of scratched-at-the-barrier incidents because the second-highest number of thoroughbreds in the world compete here. But I wonder if Australia’s rate of defections is greater than some other countries?
Adrenalin-laden thoroughbreds aren’t always predictable or controllable so some level of incident is inevitable. Some breeds even seem to have a wired-in disposition towards throwing a wobbly in the gates. For instance, the Nijinsky line can have short fuses.
Are the horses solely at fault, or is there a claustrophobia/clatter factor associated with the type of starting gates used in Australia which help send them off and inflict injuries on themselves?
As someone brought up in New Zealand, I thought the open-top gates used there functioned well. They seemed to fulfil the purpose of the exercise which is to get all the horses standing safely in a line and release them all at the same time. If they have a shortcoming, it’s a lack of somewhere for the sponsor to hang his big sign, or somewhere for the TV soundman to stick his microphone boom. Big deal. Or maybe they just don’t look imposing enough?
Not that every set of gates in New Zealand is of the open-top variety; there are a few places where closed-top, like Australia’s, are used. I wonder if anyone can rustle up any comparative scratching figures between the two types over there?
But it’s my impression that the frequency of barrier scratchings in New Zealand is low. I have no figures, it’s just a feeling in my water.
Someone out at Hawkesbury or in Druitt Street might like to tell us what really killed the trials with the New Zealand gates a few years ago?
Naturally, the chances of an Australian administration embracing holus-bolus a New Zealand model/idea were next to nil. So they tinkered around, made some “safety” modifications then, I think, declared the contraption unsuitable. As they’ve used those gates, or similar, for 50 years in New Zealand, without an epidemic of horses throwing themselves on the ground or going over backwards, I hope someone wised up the Kiwis.
Presumably the reasons for the brief flirtation with the New Zealand-style gates were concerns about the safety of the closed-top variety. What were the problems encountered with the New Zealand gates which rendered them unsuitable and/or what modifications were made to the local variety to allay the concerns?
This scratched-at-the-barrier business is a right pain. I’m not talking through my pocket but I feel for the owners, jockeys, trainers and staff involved and I doubt it’s any good for turnover or makes the racegoing public happy. Plus horses are depriving themselves of winning or placing in important races which indirectly impacts on their place in the breed.
I’m getting sick of them. After Maldivian in the Caulfield Cup we today had the example of Mimi Le Brock going off prior to the Golden Rose, another highly anticipated runner left lamenting behind the gates. Because they’re high profile we remember these ones, but there are dozens/hundreds more every year.
I watch a lot of races and think there’s an epidemic of barrier incidents in Australia.
Theoretically, Australia should have the second-highest number of scratched-at-the-barrier incidents because the second-highest number of thoroughbreds in the world compete here. But I wonder if Australia’s rate of defections is greater than some other countries?
Adrenalin-laden thoroughbreds aren’t always predictable or controllable so some level of incident is inevitable. Some breeds even seem to have a wired-in disposition towards throwing a wobbly in the gates. For instance, the Nijinsky line can have short fuses.
Are the horses solely at fault, or is there a claustrophobia/clatter factor associated with the type of starting gates used in Australia which help send them off and inflict injuries on themselves?
As someone brought up in New Zealand, I thought the open-top gates used there functioned well. They seemed to fulfil the purpose of the exercise which is to get all the horses standing safely in a line and release them all at the same time. If they have a shortcoming, it’s a lack of somewhere for the sponsor to hang his big sign, or somewhere for the TV soundman to stick his microphone boom. Big deal. Or maybe they just don’t look imposing enough?
Not that every set of gates in New Zealand is of the open-top variety; there are a few places where closed-top, like Australia’s, are used. I wonder if anyone can rustle up any comparative scratching figures between the two types over there?
But it’s my impression that the frequency of barrier scratchings in New Zealand is low. I have no figures, it’s just a feeling in my water.
Someone out at Hawkesbury or in Druitt Street might like to tell us what really killed the trials with the New Zealand gates a few years ago?
Naturally, the chances of an Australian administration embracing holus-bolus a New Zealand model/idea were next to nil. So they tinkered around, made some “safety” modifications then, I think, declared the contraption unsuitable. As they’ve used those gates, or similar, for 50 years in New Zealand, without an epidemic of horses throwing themselves on the ground or going over backwards, I hope someone wised up the Kiwis.
Presumably the reasons for the brief flirtation with the New Zealand-style gates were concerns about the safety of the closed-top variety. What were the problems encountered with the New Zealand gates which rendered them unsuitable and/or what modifications were made to the local variety to allay the concerns?
This scratched-at-the-barrier business is a right pain. I’m not talking through my pocket but I feel for the owners, jockeys, trainers and staff involved and I doubt it’s any good for turnover or makes the racegoing public happy. Plus horses are depriving themselves of winning or placing in important races which indirectly impacts on their place in the breed.
It's Got A Fractured Sesamoid, But Don't Worry, It's Nothing
I wonder how many buyers at Magic Millions and Sydney ‘Easter’ will give x-rays the flick in light of the findings of the University of Melbourne’s study into yearling x-rays announced at last week’s International Breeders’ Meeting?
Not me, for one. My clients usually insist that the due diligence be done and I’m not about to start dissuading them.
The study, said to be the world’s largest, is reported to conclude that the most common bone abnormalities revealed in x-rays have no effect on subsequent racing performance as two- and three-year-olds. (Does this mean they also know the contributing reasons for horses’ non-performance or career-limiting problems?)
If one accepts this finding, then the value of x-ray scrutiny, surely, is to check for yearlings which have uncommon bone abnormalities, rather than leaving it to chance?
It’s all very well for the researchers to reach their conclusion, but they don’t have to come up with the readies to buy these things. Their conclusions are based on a broad sample and are not specific to the horse you’re just about to spend half a million on.
It's a long bow to suggest that cot-cases don't come to the sales any more. Unless the vendor disliked me (a possibility I admit) then why did one tell me outright in Melbourne last week that his horse had a serious problem on x-ray and that I should save myself the bother? (The yearling sold for a price consistent with its paper value).
With the major sales upon us, I can understand Aushorse jumping at the opportunity to echo these findings though I find it somewhat disingenuous. It sounds like Aushorse is giving good advice to would-be buyers but to my way of thinking its stance serves the interests of its constituents more than the buyers. I don’t see what it stands to gain by subtly devaluing the worth of x-rays.
The way I read the press release, the study’s conclusions were equivocal. There were caveats attached to most of them and it seems to me the only way to know if those caveats apply is to actually look at the x-rays, especially if they reveal conditions for which “time” is the prescribed remedy – a commodity so many owners and trainers are unwilling to invest in. Many young horses are ruined by bad management and if x-ray analyses can prevent that happening then they are worth every cent we pay for them.
In my experience, most buyers get their vets to do both a clinical examination and an x-ray review prior to bidding on a horse likely to cost a substantial sum of money.
The key is how the information is dealt with, relying on the skill, experience and judgment of the practitioner together with the opinion of the intended trainer or experienced advisor.
Since x-rays became routinely available, we may have become over-sensitive to the effect of certain conditions; this study alerts us to that. Time and patience cure many things, and we are familiar with famous examples of x-ray-rejected yearlings, e.g. Elvstroem, Unbridled’s Song etc. But on the other hand would you prefer to buy a horse not knowing if there was a major skeletal problem? Experienced interpretation of x-rays at least gives you the choice. The vendor won’t always tell you.
It’s not a black-and-white matter. There are swings and roundabouts.
From recent personal experience, an adverse veterinary opinion led to my client and I not bidding on All American last year. By the same token I know of a buyer who won’t look at x-rays who paid a very substantial six-figure sum for a filly with a fractured joint, and that filly never raced. Perhaps it was just slow.
Veterinary opinion is subjective. A colt I selected at Sydney Easter last year was vetted by Vet A and ‘failed’ categorically. Because we were keen on the horse, I sought a second opinion from Vet B, without telling him that anyone else had looked at the colt. He reported back that the horse was a low risk pass. Then I asked, “would you be surprised if I told you that another vet had failed him?”. Vet B, one of Australia's best-known, said in his opinion there were no possible grounds for reaching that conclusion. So we had to make the call primarily on the basis of the relationship/history we had with each of the vets. We bought the colt. Time will tell. I’m heartened by the study’s findings!
The report on Breednet quoted researcher Dr Chris Whitton as saying, “There were 8 types of lesions that had no effect on performance including….sesamoid fractures”. It’ll be a great comfort to my client when I tell him I’ve bought a magnificent yearling “but, oh, by the way, it’s got a fractured sesamoid but don’t worry, it’s nothing.” Not every client is a university researcher who understands these things! Most would immediately think of a plaster cast, crutches or wheel-chair for the horse, and a contract killer for me!
For many who would like to know what the x-rays contain, vet fees are proving a disincentive. Often it's the add-on costs which people resent incurring and therefore they cut corners.
It's quite expensive to obtain a professional opinion and there are buyers who feel they are contributing, in effect, to a slush fund for vets.
At Karaka in January/February, I used two Australian vets to evaluate horses. One charged $125 per horse for clinical examination and x-ray review (and later provided a written report) whereas to use the services of a much larger practice cost me or, more correctly, my clients, $225 per horse. The larger practice had one vet doing the clinical and another in the repository reading the plates, so they had double the manpower but presumably they had double the demand on their services. If they've read the plates for Client #1, then get subsequent requests for an opinion on the same horse from several other clients, am I right in thinking they charge full freight each time when all they have to do is refer to their notes? Someone please tell me.
I'd like to see some discussion on standardisation of costs and services.
Not me, for one. My clients usually insist that the due diligence be done and I’m not about to start dissuading them.
The study, said to be the world’s largest, is reported to conclude that the most common bone abnormalities revealed in x-rays have no effect on subsequent racing performance as two- and three-year-olds. (Does this mean they also know the contributing reasons for horses’ non-performance or career-limiting problems?)
If one accepts this finding, then the value of x-ray scrutiny, surely, is to check for yearlings which have uncommon bone abnormalities, rather than leaving it to chance?
It’s all very well for the researchers to reach their conclusion, but they don’t have to come up with the readies to buy these things. Their conclusions are based on a broad sample and are not specific to the horse you’re just about to spend half a million on.
It's a long bow to suggest that cot-cases don't come to the sales any more. Unless the vendor disliked me (a possibility I admit) then why did one tell me outright in Melbourne last week that his horse had a serious problem on x-ray and that I should save myself the bother? (The yearling sold for a price consistent with its paper value).
With the major sales upon us, I can understand Aushorse jumping at the opportunity to echo these findings though I find it somewhat disingenuous. It sounds like Aushorse is giving good advice to would-be buyers but to my way of thinking its stance serves the interests of its constituents more than the buyers. I don’t see what it stands to gain by subtly devaluing the worth of x-rays.
The way I read the press release, the study’s conclusions were equivocal. There were caveats attached to most of them and it seems to me the only way to know if those caveats apply is to actually look at the x-rays, especially if they reveal conditions for which “time” is the prescribed remedy – a commodity so many owners and trainers are unwilling to invest in. Many young horses are ruined by bad management and if x-ray analyses can prevent that happening then they are worth every cent we pay for them.
In my experience, most buyers get their vets to do both a clinical examination and an x-ray review prior to bidding on a horse likely to cost a substantial sum of money.
The key is how the information is dealt with, relying on the skill, experience and judgment of the practitioner together with the opinion of the intended trainer or experienced advisor.
Since x-rays became routinely available, we may have become over-sensitive to the effect of certain conditions; this study alerts us to that. Time and patience cure many things, and we are familiar with famous examples of x-ray-rejected yearlings, e.g. Elvstroem, Unbridled’s Song etc. But on the other hand would you prefer to buy a horse not knowing if there was a major skeletal problem? Experienced interpretation of x-rays at least gives you the choice. The vendor won’t always tell you.
It’s not a black-and-white matter. There are swings and roundabouts.
From recent personal experience, an adverse veterinary opinion led to my client and I not bidding on All American last year. By the same token I know of a buyer who won’t look at x-rays who paid a very substantial six-figure sum for a filly with a fractured joint, and that filly never raced. Perhaps it was just slow.
Veterinary opinion is subjective. A colt I selected at Sydney Easter last year was vetted by Vet A and ‘failed’ categorically. Because we were keen on the horse, I sought a second opinion from Vet B, without telling him that anyone else had looked at the colt. He reported back that the horse was a low risk pass. Then I asked, “would you be surprised if I told you that another vet had failed him?”. Vet B, one of Australia's best-known, said in his opinion there were no possible grounds for reaching that conclusion. So we had to make the call primarily on the basis of the relationship/history we had with each of the vets. We bought the colt. Time will tell. I’m heartened by the study’s findings!
The report on Breednet quoted researcher Dr Chris Whitton as saying, “There were 8 types of lesions that had no effect on performance including….sesamoid fractures”. It’ll be a great comfort to my client when I tell him I’ve bought a magnificent yearling “but, oh, by the way, it’s got a fractured sesamoid but don’t worry, it’s nothing.” Not every client is a university researcher who understands these things! Most would immediately think of a plaster cast, crutches or wheel-chair for the horse, and a contract killer for me!
For many who would like to know what the x-rays contain, vet fees are proving a disincentive. Often it's the add-on costs which people resent incurring and therefore they cut corners.
It's quite expensive to obtain a professional opinion and there are buyers who feel they are contributing, in effect, to a slush fund for vets.
At Karaka in January/February, I used two Australian vets to evaluate horses. One charged $125 per horse for clinical examination and x-ray review (and later provided a written report) whereas to use the services of a much larger practice cost me or, more correctly, my clients, $225 per horse. The larger practice had one vet doing the clinical and another in the repository reading the plates, so they had double the manpower but presumably they had double the demand on their services. If they've read the plates for Client #1, then get subsequent requests for an opinion on the same horse from several other clients, am I right in thinking they charge full freight each time when all they have to do is refer to their notes? Someone please tell me.
I'd like to see some discussion on standardisation of costs and services.
This Hurts Me As Much As It Hurts You
The blog is going to have to take a back seat for the next couple of weeks while I stick my head down at the Magic Millions. I have to do some real work, occasionally. Might manage a couple of snippets along the way (or short snippets, otherwise known as snippetsons) but I don't promise. For the first time since being solo at the sales I have a female assistant to help me with data entry, so my attention may be diverted.
I'm not sure anyone reads this any more in any case - three 'anys' in one short sentence, good stuff! - judging by the appalling lack of interest in my poll. Perhaps it's just a stupid question?! We know the NSW horses will kick ass.
If you've got some amusing stories, scandals, theories, questions or even facts you wish to share with us, send them in. I can always put them up on the site as long as they won't develop into libel suits.
I'm not sure anyone reads this any more in any case - three 'anys' in one short sentence, good stuff! - judging by the appalling lack of interest in my poll. Perhaps it's just a stupid question?! We know the NSW horses will kick ass.
If you've got some amusing stories, scandals, theories, questions or even facts you wish to share with us, send them in. I can always put them up on the site as long as they won't develop into libel suits.
Today's Rumour Mill
Russell Cameron, in self-imposed exile in New Zealand for several years training for Westbury Stud, will soon return to Melbourne and set up at a private training facility on the fringe of the city. And the incumbent trainer?
Merlene's Magic From The Millions
News that Merlene’s two-year-old daughter Merlene de Lago (by guess???) has won a stakes race on debut in South Africa comes as no surprise to me.
She was a crackerjack yearling ($775,000) at last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast. On my scale of ratings she was an 8.5, which was the highest rating band I gave for any filly at that sale. To give a yearling 8.5 I have to see it walk on water.
Like her dam, Merlene de Lago wasn’t big but she had an engine room like a tank and my summary was,“she looks like what she’s bred to be”. I noted that her near fore knee wasn’t perfect whereas her Golden Slipper-winning mother had a matching imperfect pair.
There were eight other fillies I rated 8.5. Three others have already raced, these being:
Sugar Babe (NZ) (Exceed And Excel-On Type) – stakeswinner of two of her three starts, trainer Lee Freedman. $500,000.
Kimillsy (Danehill Dancer-Lady Fidelia) – 2nd at her only start, to She’s Meaner, trainer Kim Waugh. $235,000. Regrettably, I was underbidder.
Blue’s Queen (Rhythm-The Baggy Green) – unplaced at her only start, trainer Tony Vasil. $145,000, again underbidder.
Just for the record, those yet to race are:
Zuhoor (Lonhro-Nesnas), trainer Gai Waterhouse, $200,000 (an Emirates Park buy-back).
Saranah Gold (Encosta de Lago-Plaisir d’Amour), trainer Peter Moody, $450,000.
Sweet Inspirations (Flying Spur-Baresque), trainer Gary Portelli, $100,000.
Miss Baker (Reset-Broadway Dance), trainer Bart Cummings, $140,000.
Cavities (Lonhro-De Lollies), trainer John O’Shea, $250,000.
You needed merely a cool $2,795,000 to buy these nine. A bit beyond me but apparently no problem to some people. However, they did range from $100,000 to Merlene de Lago’s $775,000.
I haven’t seen a single Magic Millions yearling yet (not one of the 1,811) but am scheduled to lob there next Sunday and am getting emotionally prepared for the experience.
Last year I stayed until the final Day Eight, only to get knocked off by Kevin O’Brien and Ron Maund on the filly I stayed back for. I’ve done the sensible thing this year and booked out after day four. If I can’t find a good horse in the first 900 I don’t want to know. I'm sure there will be good horses amongst the remaining 911, but how can a mere mortal get to see them all? There are another 1,230 to come in Sydney!
Magic Millions have very kindly sent me two interleaved catalogues. The first contains the first five days’ selling, the second contains the next three. The first book is 7.5 cms thick and weighs more than my kitchen scales can handle.
I can’t wait to see Gai’s version once she’s stuck in all her data labels.
She was a crackerjack yearling ($775,000) at last year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast. On my scale of ratings she was an 8.5, which was the highest rating band I gave for any filly at that sale. To give a yearling 8.5 I have to see it walk on water.
Like her dam, Merlene de Lago wasn’t big but she had an engine room like a tank and my summary was,“she looks like what she’s bred to be”. I noted that her near fore knee wasn’t perfect whereas her Golden Slipper-winning mother had a matching imperfect pair.
There were eight other fillies I rated 8.5. Three others have already raced, these being:
Sugar Babe (NZ) (Exceed And Excel-On Type) – stakeswinner of two of her three starts, trainer Lee Freedman. $500,000.
Kimillsy (Danehill Dancer-Lady Fidelia) – 2nd at her only start, to She’s Meaner, trainer Kim Waugh. $235,000. Regrettably, I was underbidder.
Blue’s Queen (Rhythm-The Baggy Green) – unplaced at her only start, trainer Tony Vasil. $145,000, again underbidder.
Just for the record, those yet to race are:
Zuhoor (Lonhro-Nesnas), trainer Gai Waterhouse, $200,000 (an Emirates Park buy-back).
Saranah Gold (Encosta de Lago-Plaisir d’Amour), trainer Peter Moody, $450,000.
Sweet Inspirations (Flying Spur-Baresque), trainer Gary Portelli, $100,000.
Miss Baker (Reset-Broadway Dance), trainer Bart Cummings, $140,000.
Cavities (Lonhro-De Lollies), trainer John O’Shea, $250,000.
You needed merely a cool $2,795,000 to buy these nine. A bit beyond me but apparently no problem to some people. However, they did range from $100,000 to Merlene de Lago’s $775,000.
I haven’t seen a single Magic Millions yearling yet (not one of the 1,811) but am scheduled to lob there next Sunday and am getting emotionally prepared for the experience.
Last year I stayed until the final Day Eight, only to get knocked off by Kevin O’Brien and Ron Maund on the filly I stayed back for. I’ve done the sensible thing this year and booked out after day four. If I can’t find a good horse in the first 900 I don’t want to know. I'm sure there will be good horses amongst the remaining 911, but how can a mere mortal get to see them all? There are another 1,230 to come in Sydney!
Magic Millions have very kindly sent me two interleaved catalogues. The first contains the first five days’ selling, the second contains the next three. The first book is 7.5 cms thick and weighs more than my kitchen scales can handle.
I can’t wait to see Gai’s version once she’s stuck in all her data labels.
Not Only Rains, It Pours
Bob Scarborough, breeder-owner of G1 Cadbury Australian Guineas winner Light Fantastic (see Super Saturday! post, below), struck a blow on the other side of the world within hours of his Flemington triumph.
Mauralakana, a five-year-old mare he bought through Badgers Bloodstock for a cool US$900,000 at last November's Keeneland Breeding Stock Sale, won her first start in his colours in the G3 Very One Handicap, US$100,000, at Gulfstream Park, Florida.
The French-bred, by Muhtathir-Jimkana, by Double Bed (won't be anyone in the Hunter Valley ever heard of that) was a G3 winner in both France and the USA, as well as multiple G1 placed, at time of purchase. Bob placed the mare with trainer Christophe Clement, bred in the same country as the mare. She has won seven of her 21 career outings for earnings close to US$600,000.
Mauralakana's dam Jimkana is a sister to the amazing globetrotter Jim And Tonic. Jimkana raced 41 times for just one win.
Muhtathir is by Elmaamul, by Diesis. Mauralakana's first three dams are by Double Bed, Jim French and Kashmir II. Bob won't have to worry about too much close inbreeding when he puts this baby to stud.
Mauralakana, a five-year-old mare he bought through Badgers Bloodstock for a cool US$900,000 at last November's Keeneland Breeding Stock Sale, won her first start in his colours in the G3 Very One Handicap, US$100,000, at Gulfstream Park, Florida.
The French-bred, by Muhtathir-Jimkana, by Double Bed (won't be anyone in the Hunter Valley ever heard of that) was a G3 winner in both France and the USA, as well as multiple G1 placed, at time of purchase. Bob placed the mare with trainer Christophe Clement, bred in the same country as the mare. She has won seven of her 21 career outings for earnings close to US$600,000.
Mauralakana's dam Jimkana is a sister to the amazing globetrotter Jim And Tonic. Jimkana raced 41 times for just one win.
Muhtathir is by Elmaamul, by Diesis. Mauralakana's first three dams are by Double Bed, Jim French and Kashmir II. Bob won't have to worry about too much close inbreeding when he puts this baby to stud.
The Man Who Came For Breakfast
I’m late getting around to it, but I can’t let the passing of English bloodstock agent Richard Galpin go without mention. If personalities can be colourful, he was a veritable kaleidoscope.
He was an eccentric savant around horses, one of the great agents of the latter part of the 20th century, nearly always mired in some form of controversy, ill-starred venture or speculation. For a time he lived in Sydney. During his career, it was either fashionable to say you knew him or, conversely, it was fashionable to deny it vehemently.
My (former) wife banned him from our home in New Zealand after an invitation to breakfast one morning during a pre-sale yearling inspection. Stuffing a napkin into the top of his shirt, he slurped and belched his way through the repast with as much food ending up on the tablecloth as went down his throat. It was not the suave, quasi-aristocratic Englishman who got up that morning. My wife adopted the view that the yearlings were good enough to sell themselves without having to put up with that in future. (Now is not the time to say my former wife also ended up banning me!).
I had just a few direct dealings with Richard, all of them satisfactory. The first I can recall was when he sold me (Waikato Stud) a stallion by the name of Kirmann (Ire).
I had been negotiating through Richard to buy Gold and Ivory (USA) but was haggling with the owner over $100,000 – imagine the futility/stupidity of haggling with the late Paul Mellon – but (Sir) Patrick Hogan snapped him up meantime, for whom he became one of the less-memorable chapters in the Cambridge Stud saga. At least I had paddocks full of Zephyr Bay mares which might have suited Gold and Ivory! Perhaps. A dud’s usually a dud.
So Kirmann (Ire) came into the picture. He was a Group-class stayer by Top Ville owned by the Aga Khan. The deal was that Robert Sangster would buy half with us and the horse would be transferred from Fulke Johnston Houghton to Michael Dickinson who had just taken up residency at Sangster’s Manton training centre, where he was short on older horses.
Dickinson, a great trainer of jumpers in concert with his mother, declared to me somewhat arrogantly in a phone call that he would “improve the horse seven pounds”. Kirmann (Ire) had one start for him, at Royal Ascot, being described by interested New Zealand witnesses as “bull fat”, and he ran accordingly. The colt was shipped to John Gosden in Los Angeles to be prepared for their turf marathons but a hock problem limited him to one unsuccessful start after which he was shipped to New Zealand.
My successors at Waikato justifiably didn’t want a bar of him. He was banished to as far south as a horse can go in the South Island without falling into the sea, siring 127 foals in seven seasons for 37 winners and a solitary stakeswinner. He might have done OK as a National Hunt sire.
Another Richard Galpin transaction was the purchase of the racemare Attempting (Ire) in Italy. I had seen a magnificent Sir Tristram (Ire) filly sold through Widden Stud at the 1988 Magic Millions. Our yearlings were stabled in the same block and I watched her at length. Noting she was out of an imported mare I determined to buy a relative as I was convinced this Sir Tristram filly was something special.
Richard tracked down the filly’s half-sister to a stable in Italy. She had won twice at two, at Folkestone and Bath, and was Group and Listed placed, earning a 97 Timeform, but had been banished to the land of Tesio's birth. In partnership with Whakanui Stud, the filly was bought for 40,000 guineas.
The Sir Tristram filly turned out to be Tristanagh. Attempting (Ire) had her 13th and final foal sold at Karaka Premier last month. Her nine foals to race have all won, two are stakeswinners and two are stakes-placed. Which is a heck of a lot more than can be said for Tristanagh who left everything she possessed on the racetrack! Attempting (Ire) has seven fillies to carry on her line.
Richard Galpin was a larger-than-life character, hard to describe unless you knew him. Amongst the people with whom I've had contact, I've always regarded the late Doug Mackenzie in New Zealand as the most adroit operator, armed with an amazing understanding of human psychology. On his good days, Richard Galpin wasn’t too far behind him.
He was an eccentric savant around horses, one of the great agents of the latter part of the 20th century, nearly always mired in some form of controversy, ill-starred venture or speculation. For a time he lived in Sydney. During his career, it was either fashionable to say you knew him or, conversely, it was fashionable to deny it vehemently.
My (former) wife banned him from our home in New Zealand after an invitation to breakfast one morning during a pre-sale yearling inspection. Stuffing a napkin into the top of his shirt, he slurped and belched his way through the repast with as much food ending up on the tablecloth as went down his throat. It was not the suave, quasi-aristocratic Englishman who got up that morning. My wife adopted the view that the yearlings were good enough to sell themselves without having to put up with that in future. (Now is not the time to say my former wife also ended up banning me!).
I had just a few direct dealings with Richard, all of them satisfactory. The first I can recall was when he sold me (Waikato Stud) a stallion by the name of Kirmann (Ire).
I had been negotiating through Richard to buy Gold and Ivory (USA) but was haggling with the owner over $100,000 – imagine the futility/stupidity of haggling with the late Paul Mellon – but (Sir) Patrick Hogan snapped him up meantime, for whom he became one of the less-memorable chapters in the Cambridge Stud saga. At least I had paddocks full of Zephyr Bay mares which might have suited Gold and Ivory! Perhaps. A dud’s usually a dud.
So Kirmann (Ire) came into the picture. He was a Group-class stayer by Top Ville owned by the Aga Khan. The deal was that Robert Sangster would buy half with us and the horse would be transferred from Fulke Johnston Houghton to Michael Dickinson who had just taken up residency at Sangster’s Manton training centre, where he was short on older horses.
Dickinson, a great trainer of jumpers in concert with his mother, declared to me somewhat arrogantly in a phone call that he would “improve the horse seven pounds”. Kirmann (Ire) had one start for him, at Royal Ascot, being described by interested New Zealand witnesses as “bull fat”, and he ran accordingly. The colt was shipped to John Gosden in Los Angeles to be prepared for their turf marathons but a hock problem limited him to one unsuccessful start after which he was shipped to New Zealand.
My successors at Waikato justifiably didn’t want a bar of him. He was banished to as far south as a horse can go in the South Island without falling into the sea, siring 127 foals in seven seasons for 37 winners and a solitary stakeswinner. He might have done OK as a National Hunt sire.
Another Richard Galpin transaction was the purchase of the racemare Attempting (Ire) in Italy. I had seen a magnificent Sir Tristram (Ire) filly sold through Widden Stud at the 1988 Magic Millions. Our yearlings were stabled in the same block and I watched her at length. Noting she was out of an imported mare I determined to buy a relative as I was convinced this Sir Tristram filly was something special.
Richard tracked down the filly’s half-sister to a stable in Italy. She had won twice at two, at Folkestone and Bath, and was Group and Listed placed, earning a 97 Timeform, but had been banished to the land of Tesio's birth. In partnership with Whakanui Stud, the filly was bought for 40,000 guineas.
The Sir Tristram filly turned out to be Tristanagh. Attempting (Ire) had her 13th and final foal sold at Karaka Premier last month. Her nine foals to race have all won, two are stakeswinners and two are stakes-placed. Which is a heck of a lot more than can be said for Tristanagh who left everything she possessed on the racetrack! Attempting (Ire) has seven fillies to carry on her line.
Richard Galpin was a larger-than-life character, hard to describe unless you knew him. Amongst the people with whom I've had contact, I've always regarded the late Doug Mackenzie in New Zealand as the most adroit operator, armed with an amazing understanding of human psychology. On his good days, Richard Galpin wasn’t too far behind him.
Super Saturday!
Light Fantastic’s rise has been meteoric. His ability to race on the speed won him the day in the G1 Cadbury Guineas at Flemington. It’s an overdue result for his sire Danehill Dancer (Ire) who, despite a whopping great service fee, has been living off the deeds of his second-crop champions Choisir and Private Steer for the past seven years.
In four crops of 349 live foals produced from 2000 to 2003, Danehill Dancer did not produce a single G1 winner. The first to get him back up there officially was Arapaho Miss in last spring’s VRC Oaks, but that was a very shallow race indeed, as it has been frequently in the past. In contrast, Light Fantastic looks more like the real deal. (And if you hold his name up to a mirror you get the sire of the Guineas third placegetter, Playwright).
Light Fantastic was bred by Bob and Rosemary Scarborough’s Wood Nook Stud, Nagambie, who experienced a difficult yearling sale in Melbourne, being able to sell only two of their five lots. I wonder if they, as prominent owners, suffer from the suspicion that “the best ones are at home”? Light Fantastic was not offered at auction. His outstanding third dam Leica Show was second in the G1 Newmarket Handicap on this day in 1976.
Danehill Dancer’s barnmate at Coolmore, Encosta de Lago, has been the best all-round sire in Australia for some seasons and Saturday’s racing reminded us why: the quinella in an admittedly substandard G1 Australian Cup, the emergence of Von Costa de Hero in the G2 Sires’ Produce Stakes and the welcome return of his best racehorse, Racing To Win, in the Apollo Stakes at Rosehill.
Encosta de Lago’s black-type stats are much better than Danehill Dancer’s and he deserves to stand for double the fee although given the unremitting number of mares pumped into Encosta de Lago each year – an average of 213 over the last six seasons – he’s over the odds.
Right at the other end of the scale is Greig (NZ) whose six-year-old mare Coniston Gem is now a dual G3 winner with an impressive eight victories in 12 starts. At the turn of the century, Greig got a very good horse, Landsighting, who won a Stradbroke and a George Ryder.
Greig (by Grosvenor) was sold as a yearling at Karaka on behalf of the Moore family during my time at Haunui Farm. I recall him well, he was a good sort and I was disappointed he sold for only about NZ$50,000 to Trevor McKee. Trevor had trained his dam for the Moores, the triple G1 winner Solveig, and I always believed there was an assumption by buyers that he would buy everything related to her, so Trevor was seldom taken on. In his pre-Sunline days, Trevor sneaked Greig across to Sydney as a spring three-year-old and won the G3 Stan Fox Stakes with him at 50-to-1.
The Moores have developed this family, descended from the Gabador mare Gabardine, into one of Australasia’s most consistent sources of good winners. Another good one we sold on behalf of the Moores, to the Inghams, was Sydney Cup winner Cross Swords, a three-quarter brother to Greig. The Moores have nurtured the family for the best part of 50 years – how many young breeders today will be so determined and single-minded? Precious few, I'm picking, in this ‘now’ era of SMS, email and Internet.
But back to Greig at stud. He served 80 mares in his first season, 1994, then it was a rapid downhill slide from there, 48 being the most he ever saw in a single season thereafter. In the eight seasons since 2000, he has covered a total of 99 mares. He was actually sold for $5,000 in a Melbourne sale in 2004.
Another stallion beating the odds is King Of Roses (Fairy King-Stellar Spirit), sire of Saturday’s G3 two-year-old winner Oval Affair.
Another of his daughters, Rose Ceremony, won the same race last year before running creditably in the Golden Slipper.
Oval Affair comes from King Of Roses’s fourth ‘crop’ – the four ‘crops’ totaling no more than 48 live foals! He’s had 20 to the races, 11 have won, two are Group winners, Amerryking won a quarter of a million and is stakes-placed, and Mr Scribble was threatening black-type company until his sale overseas.
King Of Roses was used as a private act of faith by his breeder David Hains at his Kingston Park Stud. On the back of these encouraging early results, from such a miniscule sample, the one-time winner (beat Fields Of Omagh by six lengths in a maiden) transferred last season to Independent Stallion Station where he covered 76 mares – two thirds as many as he had covered in the previous six years combined.
In four crops of 349 live foals produced from 2000 to 2003, Danehill Dancer did not produce a single G1 winner. The first to get him back up there officially was Arapaho Miss in last spring’s VRC Oaks, but that was a very shallow race indeed, as it has been frequently in the past. In contrast, Light Fantastic looks more like the real deal. (And if you hold his name up to a mirror you get the sire of the Guineas third placegetter, Playwright).
Light Fantastic was bred by Bob and Rosemary Scarborough’s Wood Nook Stud, Nagambie, who experienced a difficult yearling sale in Melbourne, being able to sell only two of their five lots. I wonder if they, as prominent owners, suffer from the suspicion that “the best ones are at home”? Light Fantastic was not offered at auction. His outstanding third dam Leica Show was second in the G1 Newmarket Handicap on this day in 1976.
Danehill Dancer’s barnmate at Coolmore, Encosta de Lago, has been the best all-round sire in Australia for some seasons and Saturday’s racing reminded us why: the quinella in an admittedly substandard G1 Australian Cup, the emergence of Von Costa de Hero in the G2 Sires’ Produce Stakes and the welcome return of his best racehorse, Racing To Win, in the Apollo Stakes at Rosehill.
Encosta de Lago’s black-type stats are much better than Danehill Dancer’s and he deserves to stand for double the fee although given the unremitting number of mares pumped into Encosta de Lago each year – an average of 213 over the last six seasons – he’s over the odds.
Right at the other end of the scale is Greig (NZ) whose six-year-old mare Coniston Gem is now a dual G3 winner with an impressive eight victories in 12 starts. At the turn of the century, Greig got a very good horse, Landsighting, who won a Stradbroke and a George Ryder.
Greig (by Grosvenor) was sold as a yearling at Karaka on behalf of the Moore family during my time at Haunui Farm. I recall him well, he was a good sort and I was disappointed he sold for only about NZ$50,000 to Trevor McKee. Trevor had trained his dam for the Moores, the triple G1 winner Solveig, and I always believed there was an assumption by buyers that he would buy everything related to her, so Trevor was seldom taken on. In his pre-Sunline days, Trevor sneaked Greig across to Sydney as a spring three-year-old and won the G3 Stan Fox Stakes with him at 50-to-1.
The Moores have developed this family, descended from the Gabador mare Gabardine, into one of Australasia’s most consistent sources of good winners. Another good one we sold on behalf of the Moores, to the Inghams, was Sydney Cup winner Cross Swords, a three-quarter brother to Greig. The Moores have nurtured the family for the best part of 50 years – how many young breeders today will be so determined and single-minded? Precious few, I'm picking, in this ‘now’ era of SMS, email and Internet.
But back to Greig at stud. He served 80 mares in his first season, 1994, then it was a rapid downhill slide from there, 48 being the most he ever saw in a single season thereafter. In the eight seasons since 2000, he has covered a total of 99 mares. He was actually sold for $5,000 in a Melbourne sale in 2004.
Another stallion beating the odds is King Of Roses (Fairy King-Stellar Spirit), sire of Saturday’s G3 two-year-old winner Oval Affair.
Another of his daughters, Rose Ceremony, won the same race last year before running creditably in the Golden Slipper.
Oval Affair comes from King Of Roses’s fourth ‘crop’ – the four ‘crops’ totaling no more than 48 live foals! He’s had 20 to the races, 11 have won, two are Group winners, Amerryking won a quarter of a million and is stakes-placed, and Mr Scribble was threatening black-type company until his sale overseas.
King Of Roses was used as a private act of faith by his breeder David Hains at his Kingston Park Stud. On the back of these encouraging early results, from such a miniscule sample, the one-time winner (beat Fields Of Omagh by six lengths in a maiden) transferred last season to Independent Stallion Station where he covered 76 mares – two thirds as many as he had covered in the previous six years combined.
When You're Hot, You're Hot
It surprised no one to see a yearling by Exceed And Excel make the top price at the Melbourne Premier Sale despite the whitewash of his juveniles in the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes eight days previously. Temporary setback only – Sugar Babe took up the slack at Rosehill today.
His only serious opposition at the sale was Hussonet (USA) who sired the G1 Blue Diamond/Oakleigh Plate double and he did indeed come up with the second top priced lot. The three Redoute’s Choices in the sale were designed by a committee – unworthy of a place in a ‘select’ sale – I doubt there was a live bid on either of his colts.
What was surprising, however, was the value - $750,000 paid by Darley – placed on the top lot, the colt out of Gentle Call (NZ), sold by Peter and Pauline Liston’s Three Bridges Thoroughbreds.
It’s been well documented that the Listons bought the colt alongside his dam, who was in foal to Choisir, paying $140,000 for the 3-in-1 package at last year’s Sydney Easter Broodmare Sale. You’d have to say, with 20-20 hindsight, that John Muir’s Neapean Stud Farm moved them on one year too early. Moral of the story – never sell a weanling from a sire’s second crop.
The $750,000 price tag more than doubled the amount paid for any yearling member of this family, the next closest being $360,000 for the colt’s three-quarter sister Unfinishedbusiness (by Redoute’s Choice) at Easter 2005. Before that, $150,000 was the best paid, for a Postponed (USA)-Tough Call (NZ) colt at Melbourne 2005, and before that $135,000 for a Zabeel (NZ)-Aggressive (NZ) colt at Easter 2004. To date, these three horses have won a total of two races.
Despite a superficially impressive catalogue page, the reason why this family has been a modest seller is because virtually all of them have been dedicated wet trackers, racing almost exclusively in New Zealand. This family eats mud.
Of the 51 New Zealand wins clocked up by the horses mentioned on the catalogue page, 33 have been on tracks registered as ‘slow’ or ‘heavy’. Bear in mind that’s New Zealand slow and heavy – New Zealand ‘heavy’ often means ‘abandoned’ in Australia.
Gentle Call and her two Listed winning half-siblings Call Spades and Tough Call won 15 races, 12 of them in a bog. The sting has also been out of the ground when Gentle Call’s two winning progeny have scored. (One of them is named Tough Call, the same name as its auntie - go figure).
Classic Fame (USA), the sire of the dam of the top priced yearling, was a disappointing sire in New Zealand, getting just five stakeswinners of handicapping quality (1.5% of his foals). As a broodmare sire, he hasn’t yet produced a stakeswinner. The best of his daughters’ progeny so far, Venus Serena, was herself a swimmer, winning three of her four races on slow.
All of which goes to show the commercial pulling power of a sire like Exceed And Excel. When you’re hot, you’re hot. My bet is the colt stays in Melbourne where they produce wet tracks to order.
His only serious opposition at the sale was Hussonet (USA) who sired the G1 Blue Diamond/Oakleigh Plate double and he did indeed come up with the second top priced lot. The three Redoute’s Choices in the sale were designed by a committee – unworthy of a place in a ‘select’ sale – I doubt there was a live bid on either of his colts.
What was surprising, however, was the value - $750,000 paid by Darley – placed on the top lot, the colt out of Gentle Call (NZ), sold by Peter and Pauline Liston’s Three Bridges Thoroughbreds.
It’s been well documented that the Listons bought the colt alongside his dam, who was in foal to Choisir, paying $140,000 for the 3-in-1 package at last year’s Sydney Easter Broodmare Sale. You’d have to say, with 20-20 hindsight, that John Muir’s Neapean Stud Farm moved them on one year too early. Moral of the story – never sell a weanling from a sire’s second crop.
The $750,000 price tag more than doubled the amount paid for any yearling member of this family, the next closest being $360,000 for the colt’s three-quarter sister Unfinishedbusiness (by Redoute’s Choice) at Easter 2005. Before that, $150,000 was the best paid, for a Postponed (USA)-Tough Call (NZ) colt at Melbourne 2005, and before that $135,000 for a Zabeel (NZ)-Aggressive (NZ) colt at Easter 2004. To date, these three horses have won a total of two races.
Despite a superficially impressive catalogue page, the reason why this family has been a modest seller is because virtually all of them have been dedicated wet trackers, racing almost exclusively in New Zealand. This family eats mud.
Of the 51 New Zealand wins clocked up by the horses mentioned on the catalogue page, 33 have been on tracks registered as ‘slow’ or ‘heavy’. Bear in mind that’s New Zealand slow and heavy – New Zealand ‘heavy’ often means ‘abandoned’ in Australia.
Gentle Call and her two Listed winning half-siblings Call Spades and Tough Call won 15 races, 12 of them in a bog. The sting has also been out of the ground when Gentle Call’s two winning progeny have scored. (One of them is named Tough Call, the same name as its auntie - go figure).
Classic Fame (USA), the sire of the dam of the top priced yearling, was a disappointing sire in New Zealand, getting just five stakeswinners of handicapping quality (1.5% of his foals). As a broodmare sire, he hasn’t yet produced a stakeswinner. The best of his daughters’ progeny so far, Venus Serena, was herself a swimmer, winning three of her four races on slow.
All of which goes to show the commercial pulling power of a sire like Exceed And Excel. When you’re hot, you’re hot. My bet is the colt stays in Melbourne where they produce wet tracks to order.
Redistribution Of Wealth In Its Purest Form
Alfred Grant’s ghost is not amused.
He didn’t think he’d see the day when his reputation as the last of the Queensland big spenders would be usurped.
Well, it’s been left in tatters by Nathan Tinkler’s Patinack Farm which spent about $11 million at Karaka and Melbourne yearling sales (mere practice runs for the real thing coming up) plus racing stables and studs, plus a raft of potential stallions - each delighted to find a home - plus broodmares and untold private purchases … if the bloke’s got any change out of $45 million so far he and his advisers are not really trying.
I raised my eyebrows when I noticed Patinack bought the top-priced mare at Deauville late last year (for about A$1.25m), by a sire which has never sired a stakeswinner (oldest progeny are now five) out of a dam which was 22 when she produced it, and the mare in question raced twice, finishing out of sight both times. Here is a serious player. Mr Tinkler is cashed up and obviously in a hurry.
The forthcoming MM/Sydney yearling and breeding stock sales might be great spectator sport.
Patinack’s also stolen the thunder of the originally Queensland-based Wadham Park, the 2003 lovechild of former Toll Holdings chairman Peter Rowsthorn. Wadham Park has spent well over $20 million on yearlings as well as entering the stud business with Econsul and Grey Swallow (after the Cox Plate debacle) and setting up a number of elaborate complexes, some of which are now on the market. I’d only be guessing but the total spend must be in the order of $60- $70 million. Most of Wadham Park’s serious purchases are just three- and two-year-olds of the current season so plenty can still happen, but the outfit’s a black hole up to this point. Standing Ovation ($1.3 million worth of Sadler’s Wells-Ha Ha colt), judged by his fifth of eight at Bendigo on Thursday, has a way to go.
At every gathering of racing/breeding types these days, I hear them tut-tutting under their breath, wondering out loud how come the likes of Tinkler and Rowsthorn don’t realise they are wood ducks. Despite my reservations about the Deauville mare (above), I’m definitely not one of those people. I hold the view that anyone smart enough to have made as much money as Tinkler and Rowsthorn are nobody’s wood ducks. Not even in racing, where rich men and their money are so easily parted. To the contrary, these guys will be as they were in their other business: in control, aided by trusted advisors, calling the shots and buying only what they want and happy with the prices, irrespective of how it might look to the casual observer. They will be fully aware they are a mark.
Tinkler and Rowsthorn are the best thing to have happened to breeding/racing in the last five years. They are spreading their largesse and enriching a helluva lot of people on the way through. It’s redistribution of wealth in its purest form. They should be on everyone’s Christmas card list.
He didn’t think he’d see the day when his reputation as the last of the Queensland big spenders would be usurped.
Well, it’s been left in tatters by Nathan Tinkler’s Patinack Farm which spent about $11 million at Karaka and Melbourne yearling sales (mere practice runs for the real thing coming up) plus racing stables and studs, plus a raft of potential stallions - each delighted to find a home - plus broodmares and untold private purchases … if the bloke’s got any change out of $45 million so far he and his advisers are not really trying.
I raised my eyebrows when I noticed Patinack bought the top-priced mare at Deauville late last year (for about A$1.25m), by a sire which has never sired a stakeswinner (oldest progeny are now five) out of a dam which was 22 when she produced it, and the mare in question raced twice, finishing out of sight both times. Here is a serious player. Mr Tinkler is cashed up and obviously in a hurry.
The forthcoming MM/Sydney yearling and breeding stock sales might be great spectator sport.
Patinack’s also stolen the thunder of the originally Queensland-based Wadham Park, the 2003 lovechild of former Toll Holdings chairman Peter Rowsthorn. Wadham Park has spent well over $20 million on yearlings as well as entering the stud business with Econsul and Grey Swallow (after the Cox Plate debacle) and setting up a number of elaborate complexes, some of which are now on the market. I’d only be guessing but the total spend must be in the order of $60- $70 million. Most of Wadham Park’s serious purchases are just three- and two-year-olds of the current season so plenty can still happen, but the outfit’s a black hole up to this point. Standing Ovation ($1.3 million worth of Sadler’s Wells-Ha Ha colt), judged by his fifth of eight at Bendigo on Thursday, has a way to go.
At every gathering of racing/breeding types these days, I hear them tut-tutting under their breath, wondering out loud how come the likes of Tinkler and Rowsthorn don’t realise they are wood ducks. Despite my reservations about the Deauville mare (above), I’m definitely not one of those people. I hold the view that anyone smart enough to have made as much money as Tinkler and Rowsthorn are nobody’s wood ducks. Not even in racing, where rich men and their money are so easily parted. To the contrary, these guys will be as they were in their other business: in control, aided by trusted advisors, calling the shots and buying only what they want and happy with the prices, irrespective of how it might look to the casual observer. They will be fully aware they are a mark.
Tinkler and Rowsthorn are the best thing to have happened to breeding/racing in the last five years. They are spreading their largesse and enriching a helluva lot of people on the way through. It’s redistribution of wealth in its purest form. They should be on everyone’s Christmas card list.
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