It’s certainly taken longer than I expected but it’s happened. On Friday at the Riccarton polytrack, the imposing 3YO filly Mumbo Jumbo gave her sire his first victory.
And what a win it was. The filly, jumped, drifted, refused to settle, fought her rider and showed every sign of greenness. The upside was that, whereas this sort of equine behaviour usually results in a horse becoming an also ran, Mumbo Jumbo overcame her waywardness to storm home to claim an impressive victory over the 1200 trip. The video is well worth a look.
I’ll admit that this article is partly motivated by a feeling of relief. I have the Savabeel mare Desiree currently in foal to Mongolian Falcon and I also bred and still own a powerfully built rising 2YO filly by the sire. I confess that I still like the stallion, although sending a slow-maturing mare to him might not be the smartest move ever.
My rising 2YO is out of the Rip Van Winkle mare To Love You. She won three races but suffered a tendon injury when the NZ Cup seemed a realistic target. She then died of a twisted bowel eight days after foaling. The filly is 3×3 Galileo, so I’m looking forward to her racing career with some anticipation.
