Entries Tagged 'Horse Racing' ↓
October 6th, 2016 — Horse Racing, News
In this business selecting successful stallions before their progeny are even conceived is a process that is fraught with danger. You have no idea whether the stallion is going to pass on his desirable genes and even if the first crop foals look just fine there’s no guarantee that they’ll have the temperaments to turn natural ability into results.
Readers of this website will be well aware that I’ve always rated Highly Recommended as an outstanding stallion prospect and today’s events at Tauherenikau, whilst not being in any way conclusive, gives me some hope that I’ve got it right. Highly Recommended’s strapping son, Waldorf, cruised to a facile victory in a 2YO event and will hopefully end up qualifying for the Karaka Million field.
Waldorf jumped on terms with the field, was positioned three-wide on the tight Waiarapa track and soon after straightening was urged to the lead by apprentice Tim Johnson. Under a hands and heels ride Waldorf lengthened stride smoothly for a comprehensive win.
I was especially pleased to note that today’s winner is out of a Pins mare. I had suggested to Berkley Stud that mares by the son of Snippets could well prove to offer an excellent genetic mix as well as being suitable physical types.
As an aside, I should also mention that I bred two mares to Highly Recommended in his first season: Malissimo (Howbaddouwantit) and Tuscany Rose (Tuscany Flyer). Both mares produced colts and although both have thrown to their dams in terms of physical type, they are both outstanding in terms of conformation and temperament. Another of my mares, Pronking, is currently in foal to the son of Fastnet Rock. On a good day Pronking can best be described as an evil-tempered baggage so it will be especially interesting to see how her foal develops.
Finally, wouldn’t it be exciting, if Highly Recommended does succeed, to have another South Island based stallion being keenly sought after? Last season Zacinto hit the headlines and let’s hope Highly Recommended follows in his hoofprints.
September 17th, 2016 — Horse Racing, Winners
Today’s clear winner of the CJC Canterbury Belle Stakes at Riccarton stamped herself very much as a future star. The daughter of So You Think and Group 2 winning mare Star Affair defeated a strong field, finishing off the 1200 metre event as though longer distances would pose no problems.
From a pedigree point of view this was no surprise. Star Affair (a Cloughmore recommended purchase at the 2000 yearling sales) has validated her own pedigree as both a racemare and a producer. Prior to today’s win she had left two stakeswinners, Solid Billing (Rock of Gibraltar) and the more brilliant Thy (O’Reilly), but as pedigree consultant to Star Affair’s owner Terry Archer I must confess that it has been a real challenge to find a stallion to provide size and strength in her progeny. In addition, some of her early foals had been distinctly one-paced – a problem which is always difficult to overcome.
High Chaparral appeared to be worthwhile prospect to achieve this latter goal, especially if Terry were fortunate enough to breed a colt out of the mare, but after one filly by High Chaparral, Coolmore informed Terry that the stallion had a full book. However, they offered him a service to his multiple Group 1 winning son So You Think instead. Keen to access the High Chaparral blood, Terry accepted the offer.
La Diosa will now be aimed at the Group 1 1000 Guineas in November but one would not be at all surprised if she becomes competitive at distances well in excess of 1600 metres. In the shorter term, she appears to be an excellent prospect for the Riccarton classic.
January 16th, 2016 — Horse Racing, News
I strongly suspect that Nashville is significantly responsible for the blood pressure medication I have to take every morning and every evening. He is the sort of horse that every pedigree advisor dreams about and when he won the Haunui Classic for the first time I envisaged a glittering career of Group 1 victories over a range of distances. He did win the Haunui again but his career has been notable for an impressive range of near misses, the Livamol Classic and the Waikato International being the highlights – if that’s the right word.
When he lined up for the Trentham Stakes and I turned on my trusty TV, I was fully prepared for another disappointment. Sure, he was thrown in at the weights but I expected him to find another way of losing a race he really ought to have won.
It’s now history that he surprised not just me but the small army of racegoers who appreciate how good a horse he is when he’s got his mind on the job. His trainers have done brilliantly to outwit him and let’s hope the magic lasts until next week. He’ll find 59kg a challenge but I’m sure that he’ll stay the distance. Rosie Myers has never had much success with Cloughmore runners but today she managed Nashville expertly, keeping him balanced around the turn and then riding him energetically all the way down the Trentham straight. If you look at the replay, you’ll see that he accelerated twice in the last 400, something that only top class thoroughbreds can do.
All In Fun won the Trentham Stakes back in 1994 but since then the race has not been kind to Cloughmore Pedigrees. Nor has the Wellington Cup, with our best results being third placings recorded by both All In Fun and our homebred The Jungle Boy.
Let’s hope that Nashville sets the record straight next weekend.
March 21st, 2015 — Horse Racing, News
As he holds a nomination for the Sydney Cup, it was with more than usual interest that I positioned myself in front of the TV set at 9.15 on Friday to see how Don Doremo would perform in his first race over ground in his current campaign.
The first thing I noticed was that he has grown into a stunning individual. The Robbie Laing stable has clearly done a great job conditioning the gelded son of Don Eduardo; he has a lot more substance than his dam Prangelica (Prized) and he also appears to have a more relaxed temperament.
From the jump Don Doremo cruised to the lead. He over-raced a little in the first few hundred metres but then settled nicely for Vlad Duric. The middle stages of the 2040 event proceeded smoothly and with 600 to go the chasing bunch appeared to be poised to pounce. However, Duric clearly knew the quality of the horse beneath him: a little more rein and daylight appeared between Don Doremo and the opposition. By the finish he was a comfortable four lengths clear and had established himself as one of the most promising stayers in Australia.
Bred by Terry Archer, Don Doremo is bred on the same Don Eduardo – Prized cross as the Hawkes Bay Cup winner All In Black. What attracted me about the cross was that both stallions are bred on the Turn-to – Princequillo cross with several No 16 family lines thrown in. The Turn-to line has a reputation for unsoundness but the other significant influences in the cross certainly haven’t; moreover, one must always remember that the further away a questionable influence is positioned in a pedigree, the less chance it has of having a negative impact.
Let’s hope Don Doremo makes the Sydney Cup field.
February 20th, 2015 — Horse Racing, News
The plan was to select just three youngsters at this year’s Karaka sales to buy into but we’re all guilty of succumbing to temptation at some time or other; as Oscar Wilde once wrote, “The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it”.
Anyway, we started off with the Mastercraftsman – Plain Jill filly which had been one of my top pedigree selections in the Select catalogue. She made $20,000 which I thought was very good value for a nice individual by a proven sire out of a six-win mare which had already left a SW and several other winners. The filly was purchased by Ilone Kelly of New Plymouth.
Next came a lot I hadn’t considered as I had thought a half-brother to a recent Derby winner would command far too high a price for our budget. However, the Echoes of Heaven half-brother to Habibi made just $30,000. Unsurprisingly, she was signed for by Donna Logan; our partnership is looking forward to continuing our association with her successful stable.
The third yearling we were fortunate to become involved with was a Shaune Ritchie purchase, a Darci Brahma – Gabana filly. Foaled in early December, this stunning walking filly won’t come early, but at $16,000 she appears to be something of a steal. Her dam won four and her near relatives include the Group 1 performer, Armstrong.
At this point, our partnership thought that we had achieved pretty much what we wanted to. However, as the sale series moved on to the Festival section, it quickly became apparent that nice fillies were being given away. I noticed that Donna had purchased lot 1065, a Tavistock filly out of a Volksraad mare – the same cross which produced Volkstok’n’barrell. Given that she was also from Empire Rose’s family, this filly looked too good to pass up – especially considering her $16,000 price tag.
So there we are, the proud owners of a minority holding in four promising thoroughbreds. Let’s hope at least one of them is as good as Candle In The Wind.
January 25th, 2015 — Horse Racing, News
Candle In The Wind’s conclusive win in today’s Windsor Park Stud Karaka Stayers’ Cup justified her owners’ opinion that she is a horse of considerable class. However, it’s fair to say that Hugh Bowman’s masterful ride had a significant impact on the result.
We all know that stepping a horse up appreciably in distance is one of the most difficult feats for a trainer to manage successfully and it was a triumph for Team Logan that the transition went so smoothly. Hugh Bowman’s contribution was equally meritorious: he managed to settle the Darci Brahma mare back on the fence, improved her when the pressure went on and urged her to the finish without asking any more of her than was necessary. It was a text book ride and much appreciated by the owners.
Readers of this site will recall that our mare was purchased for a mere $2500 from the Select session of the 2011 Karaka sales. Donna Logan had noticed that Darci Brahma’s progeny were not selling well and asked me to sort out a filly with a strong pedigree from the remaining lots. The one that appealed was out of Prefer Blondes (USA). She had failed to win on the racetrack and her only foal to race had been similarly talented but I knew a little about her sire Gentlemen (ARG). He’d been the champion 3YO of his year in Argentina and had then raced in the USA before going to stud. Even though his stud record was modest he had proved to be a consistent sire of minor winners. Moreover, he had won six Group 1 events and Prefer Blondes’ dam was Let’s Sgor, 1991 Joint Wrightson Filly of the Year and winner of two Group 1 contests. Anyway, a quick visit to the trusty Arion Pedigrees site convinced me that this was the filly to go for.
It’s nice to be right but there’s always a significant dose of sheer blind luck involved in the process of finding a “good one”.
Let’s hope our luck holds at next week’s sales series.
January 5th, 2015 — Horse Racing, News
I was hoping to be able to report on Candle In The Wind’s Rich Hill Mile success, but one of the ongoing truths of the Festive Season is that we don’t always get what we want. The good news was that our Darci Brahma mare did herself proud, finishing more strongly than anything else in the Group 2 event and confirming our thoughts that she has the ability to be competitive at the highest level.
Regular readers of this site will recall that the mare was one of three yearlings the Cloughmore Racing Partnership bought into after the Karaka sales four years ago. A minority share in each horse for a minimal sum and although our Thorn Park – Grace Park colt broke down in his first preparation and our Lucky Unicorn – Durham Walk filly had limited ability, the Darci Brahma – Prefer Blondes filly has proved to have above average ability and provided the five of us with a lot of enjoyment – and a reasonable financial return. The fact that the Lucky Unicorn filly turned out to be a half-sister to top sprinter Durham Town hasn’t been bad news either – she’s currently in foal to Ekraar.
Anyway, now that the Cloughmore Racing concept has worked reasonably well, I feel that the time is right for a second partnership to be put together. The idea is for an initial investment of around $250 per person and the partnership’s holding in each horse selected to be somewhere between 10% and 20%. The original partnership has five members but this could be easily extended if the demand justified it. However, the key aspect of the partnership is that monthly payments be affordable – any arrangement will be structured so that racing does not become a financial strain on us. I should also point out that I charge no fees of any sort for arranging or managing partnerships.
I’ve recently completed my Karaka Yearling Sales Buyers’ Guide which involves analysing the pedigrees of every lot in the Select and Festival session. I’ve identified a number of horses which I rate highly in terms of their genetic potential; if any of these are purchased by trainers I have worked with in the past, they will be the yearlings I will focus on in including in the 2015 Partnership. I’m especially keen on yearlings by stallions which are out of fashion to some extent: Candle In The Wind cost a mere $2500, an outrageous price for a filly by a stallion standing at $20,000 but in 2011 all sorts of baseless rumours about his progeny were floating around. Current stallions which I think are highly likely to be undervalued by yearling buyers are Bachelor Duke, Captain Rio, Falkirk, Mastercraftsman, Postponed and Towkay. (I’ve included Mastercraftsman here because many of his progeny are quite plain).If we get very lucky we might add a stallion like Nadeem to the list. However, whatever the attractions of a yearling’s pedigree any prospective racehorse also has to have good conformation and a decent temperament.
Anyway, please feel free to get in touch if you’d like further information on anything outlined above.
September 27th, 2014 — Horse Racing, News
It’s been a long time since 2 December 2012, the date of our Hawkeye gelding’s Queenstown Cup victory. Since then we’ve had 21 losing starts, punctuated by a bleeding incident and a significant muscle issue. I must admit that I thought Graham Eade’s persistence was optimistic in the extreme but today proved that he was right and I was wrong.
Sure, it was a very small field that he beat in the PGG Wrightson Balclutha Cup and he was cleverly ridden by Lee Callaway, but not only did he settle much better than he generally does, he also accelerated in the straight with a degree of enthusiasm that had been absent for quite some time.
It was especially gratifying that this, his ninth win, took his stakearnings comfortably over the $150,000 mark. I am touching wood as I write this – but long may his change of form continue.
However, one mystery still remains. So far there have been five Cloughmore horses prepared by Graham. Apart from the promising maiden Oriental Bronze, all have been winners and Comanche’s victory today brings the total number of wins to 21. Why the Eade stable isn’t full, I have no idea.
April 12th, 2014 — Horse Racing, News
The CJC Canterbury Gold Cup is a race I’ve always wanted to win and, although it’s not the same as owning or breeding the winner, doing the mating for him has to be the next best thing.
Nashville was clearly in a class of his own in today’s Group 3 WFA event but he did have to combat a heavy track and the 2000 metre distance, two factors that he had been unable to overcome in the past. On the other hand, he was re-united with Jonathan Riddell with whom he has an excellent association. Riddell’s decision to take the longer, but slightly firmer, route around the rest of the field proved to be the winning of the race.
Twenty minutes later another of Darci Brahma’s progeny, the four year old mare Candle In The Wind, romped home in a $25,000 R75 event at Ellerslie. Part-owned by the Cloughmore Racing Partnership, the mare had shown significant promise last autumn and the dead track suited her admirably. Back and wide throughout, the mare unleashed a devastating turn of foot in the straight to win by a widening 2.4 lengths. Long may this sort of form continue!
Incidentally, our only other runner on the day, the Kevin Hughes trained Umshimi Wami, ran a meritorious second in the final race on the Riccarton card. The Pentire gelding is much improved and is well worth following on tracks that are better than today’s heavy conditions.
February 21st, 2014 — Horse Racing, News, Winners
There haven’t been too many runners lately with Cloughmore connections and it’s also fair to say that those which have faced the starter haven’t exactly been overburdened with good fortune.
However, today it all changed. Nashville, confidently ridden by Jonathan Riddell, tracked the leaders in a slowly run Group 1 1600 event, hit the front soon after turning for home and then accelerated away for a comprehensive victory.
Clearly, the change of tactics to have the son of Darci Brahma much closer to the speed paid off significantly. Now that he doesn’t have to tail off in his races, it will no doubt make planning his future racing career an awful lot more straightforward for his owners.
The ease with which he dealt to several Group 1 winners raises the question of how good he is. It’s always somewhat ridiculous to make predictions of this sort but I can say that if you saw today’s race you wouldn’t be at all surprised if more Group 1 victories were in store.
Finally, I know I’ve written about this before but you’d have to be worried about the quality of our stayers. Apart from Mark Oulaghan’s Who Shot Thebarman, the current draft appear to be of very modest quality. Our breeding industry have achieved something which once would have been thought impossible – the destruction of the niche market which underpinned our profitability.
