Entries Tagged 'Horse Racing' ↓
June 18th, 2012 — Horse Racing, News, Winners
Cloughmore’s golden June run continued on Saturday with a double at Ellerslie. Only the day before the much improved Miss El Bee Dee had completed a double of her own at Timaru’s Phar Lap Raceway.
We all knew that The Jungle Boy was a more than handy horse but even his most enthusiastic admirers were expecting no more than a strong finishing run in the $25,000 Chevalier Produce Mile. The track conditions were in his favour and he was aided by a clever ride from top jockey Matthew Cameron but what was really impressive was his determination not to be headed by the very good winter milers Matost and Taking the Mickey.
It appears that the son of Jungle Pocket and the good producer Ballina Wave will be heading to Melbourne next month with the express aim of winning some nice handicaps over ground. Given Saturday’s performance, one would not want to bet against this happening.
Just one race earlier on the Ellerslie card, the Terry Archer- bred Splitfire broke through for her maiden win. Her previous form had not indicated that she was capable of winning a good race at any level on a major track but her determined finish over 1400 showed how wrong I – for one – was. The Keeper mare is out of the speedy SP Mi Signora, a very challenging mare to provide mating advice on. She had previously left nonentities by Zabeel and Stravinsky (2) but did leave the very good Malaysian Group 1 winner Professional Man to Royal Academy. Her last foal, a now 2YO filly by Any Suggestion, has recently been named Mi Idea.
Nothing’s ever perfect in racing and it was disappointing that The Jungle Boy’s half-brother Rising Tide could do no better than fourth in the open stayers’ event at Awapuni. Still, we did learn that running him close to the pace isn’t the way to go – so it wasn’t all bad news.
June 8th, 2012 — Horse Racing, News
Yes, it’s been a while since something headline – worthy occurred but today Pamina, Miss El Bee Dee and Browne Sugar combined to do just that at Phar Lap Raceway
Pamina was a recommended purchase last year at the Karaka sales, as Browne Sugar was three years previously. Both were purchased by Riccarton trainer Kevin Hughes. Miss El Bee Dee was a recommended mating for Cloughmore client Donald Tait.
Apart from today’s success, things have ticking over well enough with 24 individual winners doing us proud prior to today. However, it’s the near misses in black-type races that have been my personal highlights since my last article appeared. Our homebred Comanche Gold ran a strong second in the CJC Easter Cup (Group 3) and O’Reilly filly Thy (recommended mating) did even better with her Group 1 third in the Randwick ATC Oaks. Comanche Gold will be aimed at the Riccarton winter carnival; Thy is apparently being reserved for Melbourne spring events.
As always at this time of the year, new stallions have been announced and the crystal ball dusted off. I’ve never been a great fan of recomending first-season horses, preferring to wait until at least the first crop of foals have hit the weanling sales but this year has seen the retirement of one of our best Kiwi-bred stallion prospects for some time – Jimmy Choux. I was contracted by Rich Hill to give my opinion on what bloodlines would especially suit the five-time Group 1 winner and one point I do want to pass on is that he could well develop an affinity with descendants of supersire Sir Tristram. My rationale, together with my other thoughts on the subject, can be found on the Rich Hill website.
On the topic of websites, in the next few weeks I hope to develop a new page on this site. Clearly, times are hard and money is tight so it seemed a good time to focus on stallions standing at $3000 or less. Two horses I intend to feature are Mettre En Jeu and Tobique.
March 3rd, 2012 — Horse Racing, News
It’s been a steady start to 2012 but Ellerslie provided a spectacular boost to the Cloughmore fortunes today with both The Jungle Boy and Durham Town recording impressive victories.
Homebred The Jungle Boy trialled encouragingly for Wednesday’s Group 1 Auckland Cup, showing impressive acceleration from the back to the field to narrowly defeat a game Titch and the favourite Shez Sinsational in the Nathans Memorial Handicap. The Cup field will also feature Single Minded and Blood Brotha, to name but two well-credentialled rivals, so it will be anything but a walk in the park next week for the Jungle Pocket 6YO. Nevertheless, there’s certainly cause for hope.
The absence of Nash Rawiller indicated that Durham Town had every chance of success in the Group 3 Darley Plate over 1200 metres – and so it proved. This horse is one serious sprinter: he’s got good gate speed, the ability to relax and a devastating turn of foot, even on tracks that don’t really suit him. In my opinion, he still has room for improvement and you wouldn’t be surprised if ultimately he was competitive in Australia.
As readers are well aware, the Falkirk gelding was bought by Donna Logan out of the Festival Sale of 2009, Cloughmore providing pedigree advice in support of the purchase. This year’s sales resulted in six lots ending up in the ownership of Cloughmore clients: fillies by Sir Percy – Devant (Zabeel), Elvstroem – Evana (Entrepreneur), Keeper – Giuliana (Zabeel), Sakhee’s Secret – Louders (Danasinga), Thorn Park – Lyric (Grosvenor) and a colt by Any Suggestion – Diaga (Kinjite). Although Premier Sale vendors found the going difficult, it was not easy to buy a quality individual at either the Select or Festival levels.
Talking of quality individuals, I was much impressed by the stock of Mettre En Jeu in the Festival Sale. The colts I saw all looked very much the same and, as Mettre En Jeu looks very much like Montjeu, this has to be good news. On following up my observations with studmaster Nigel Auret, he commented that Letham has some yearling fillies available at a reasonable price. Given the increased advantages enjoyed by fillies through the revamped handicapping system, buying a nice filly is becoming an interesting investment option.
December 12th, 2011 — Horse Racing, Winners
There are certainly some differences between a Group 2 at Ellerslie, an open handicap at Traralgon and a Rating 65 event at Ascot Park, but what they do have in common are some very promising performances by the Cloughmore team.
Durham Town was a yearling selection after trainer Donna Logan phoned me to say that she’d seen an outstanding Falkirk colt. What did I think of the pedigree? It didn’t take too long to figure out that, putting aside the mare’s lack of racecourse performance, there weren’t any danger sigals in the pedigree. Even better, the Tale of the Cat – Sir Tristam cross plus some more Round Table and My Babu via Marju provided a highly arractive pedigree mix. The Group 1 Railway Handicap will be a significant step up from the Group 2 Concorde, but Durham Town does appear to have a touch of class about him.
Firejet was also asked to step up yesterday: in his case it was from a Moe R68 race to an open handicap, the $50,000 Traralgon Cup. This is not an event which traditionally stops the nation, but the favourite was a Group 2 winning son of Rock of Gibraltar and the Group 1 mare La Bella Dama so one could argue that there was some substance to the small field. Firejet scored a tough win, coming from well off the pace to narrowly defeat the public elect. As mentioned in my last article, Firejet is another successful example of the Tale of the Cat – Sir Tristram cross; he also appears to have scope for further improvement.
On the theme of improvement, our homebred Amigo’s performance at Ascot Park on Saturday represented just that. For the first time he handled a firm track and showed the ability to accelerate off a strong pace. He’s still a work in progress in terms of his racing manners but Daniel Bothamley rode him expertly to score a convincing win. Hopefully, the son of Mr Nancho and Antonella, a Bassenthwaite mare from the family of Scenic Shot, will develop into a handy stayer.
Best wishes for the Festive Season to all subscribers, casual readers and anyone who finds this site by accident. I’m off to read 1400 – odd pages of yearling catalogues; let’s hope I can find another Durham Town!
November 22nd, 2011 — Horse Racing, News, Winners
It might have been only a modest R68 event at provincial Moe but Firejet’s impressive win today was a real milestone for Cloughmore.
The product of a recommended mating, the Tale of the Cat gelding showed impressive acceleration over the final 150m to score a facile victory. He’s a son of SW Superjet and, although he has the challenging temperament typical of the mare’s progeny, he clearly has the ability to win races in much better company.
I’ve always liked the Tale of the Cat – Sir Tristram cross and it’s encouraging to see that other examples of the cross are also showing considerable ability. A case in point is the highly promising sprinter Durham Town (Falkirk – Durham Walk by Marju out of a Sir Tristram mare). On the subject of Falkirk, isn’t he doing well? He’s got three really good ones in Hong Kong – plus some progressive types at home.
Getting back to the headline, it’s always pleasing to surpass previous achievements. October was a record month, producing ten winners, but narrowly missing a couple of black-type victories has served to keep the feet on the ground. Rising Tide finished a game second in his first start in open company, the listed Feilding Cup, and his half-brother The Jungle Boy almost won the race that, as a breeder, I’d like to win more than anything else – the Group 3 New Zealand Cup. This was just three days after Comanche Gold’s chapter of accidents in the Coupland’s Mile (Group 2). Let’s hope he used up all his bad luck in the process!
On the subject of hope, the recent results of the Horses In Training Sale are a great confidence booster. It’s particularly encouraging that the sale is producing more consistent results across the whole catalogue; it’s a significant boost to breeders to be presented with another viable means of marketing their stock.
October 9th, 2011 — Horse Racing, News
Four wins in the last four days have brought our total of 2011 winners to 48, equalling last year’s record. However, of more significance than mere numbers has been the degree of promise shown by Comanche Gold, Rising Tide, The Jungle Boy and Showcause.
Certainly, Showcause – last season’s Mercedes Stayer of the Year – is a proven galloper but his run in The Bart Cummings last weekend held real promise for his Australian campaign. He appears to have been thrown into the Melbourne Cup with just 50.5 kg, but the downside of that is that he’s going to have to win something significant between now and the first Tuesday in November. If he can get a firm track he must have a serious chance of a win and that vital re-handicap.
Comanche Gold’s win at Riccarton on Saturday raises the question of just how good he is. One never wants to get too far ahead of oneself in racing but I was thrilled with his win. Until now he had appeared to be a little one-dimensional, all his wins having been from the front, but his finishing burst to beat a good field of sprinters was encouraging to say the least.
The previous day, Rising Tide clearly appreciated his return to Trentham and the distance of 2100m to score a tough win against an admittedly weak field of Rating 90 gallopers. This was his third win this preparation and it’s great to see our syndicate members enjoying the ride. He will be aimed at a R90 2200 event at Trentham’s Labour Weekend meeting.
Not to be outdone, our Shinko King gelding’s older half-brother The Jungle Boy scored a strong win at Whangarei last month. I note that he is a late nomination for the New Zealand Cup; he’s certainly got the pedigree to run a strong 3200.
On the subject of pedigrees, our mares are booked to Any Suggestion (Tuscany Rose) and Duelled (Sakura Cluden). Another mare may also be bred from but this does seem to be a season to go cautiously. Some studs are really meeting the market and deserve to be supported by breeders; if you know of any good deals that can be publicised, do let me know and I’ll put together another article in a few days.
July 9th, 2011 — Horse Racing, News
In some sense Tinseltown’s facile win in today’s Queensland Cup raised more questions than it answered.
Several previous attempts at 3200 metres for no result had understandably produced the impression that the game Pentire gelding (a Cloughmore recommended mating) would always find the maximum distance just 800 metres too far. Moreover, he had previously struggled to cope with weights in excess of 56kg over any distance. Today’s field was by no means a strong one, but having to sprint twice under the impost of 58kg – and giving 5kg to the proven 3200 performer Smoking Chimneys – might just suggest that Tinseltown may still have some chance of adding a more prestigious two mile event to his record.
Whilst on the subject of stayers, I’ve been just as thrilled with the recent form shown by our homebred The Jungle Boy (Jungle Pocket – Ballina Wave). His second placing in the Kiwifruit Cup (LR) a couple of weeks ago was especially notable as the track was certainly too heavy for him to show what he is really capable of. Incidentally, his younger half-brother Rising Tide is also showing staying promise.
One mare that appears to have obvious potential as a producer of stamina- oriented offspring is Sakura Cluden (Yamanin Vital). This three-win sister to Wellington Cup winner Cluden Creek is part-owned by Cloughmore. She has a weanling filly by Bachelor Duke and is currently in foal to Guillotine. This season, my partners and I would like to send her to Thorn Park with a view to selling the resulting foal as a yearling. We are keen to spread the cost somewhat and would like to invite readers of this article to join a breeding partnership to produce and market the foal. There will be no charge for the use of the mare.
May 8th, 2011 — Horse Racing, News
There’s nothing quite like the thrill of winning a good race but most wins are accompanied by an acknowledgement that sheer good fortune counts for an awful lot in this business.
After his tough win in a $10,000 maiden at Riverton on Anzac Day, I had hopes that my homebred Comanche Gold would be competitive at Riccarton yesterday. Some of his opposition were multiple winners but he again led all the way under a heady ride by Jamie Bates to record an emphatic victory. In spite of his uncommercial bloodlines (Hawkeye – Treadgold by Festal), he seems to have inherited the best aspects of both sides of his pedigree. He’s from the family of Dignity Dancer and Miss Bailey so he does boast some handy relatives.
Good fortune was also evident in Kakapuka’s victory in the time – honoured Great Western Steeples ($25,000). Another homebred, the 7g by Kilimanjaro – Antonella (Bassenthwaite) had shown little form until today and was a clear seventh favourite in the seven horse field. His win was certainly aided by the misfortunes experienced by some of the favoured runners; on the other hand, he did jump cleanly and showed commendable determination in the closing stages of the 105th renewal of the event.
On the theme of surprises of one sort or another, the results of last week’s National Weanling and Broodmare Sale at Karaka fit nicely. Having gone through the catalogue thoroughly, I thought that there were three nice, young, middle of the road mares on offer. All multiple winners, they brought a total of $1100 – and two of them had positive tests to stallions whose combined service fees total $14,000! Sure, the market was patchy but this was ridiculous. Let’s hope the purchasers do well with their bargain buys.
November 21st, 2010 — Horse Racing
Last week it was Showcause flying the flag for Cloughmore in the Group 3 New Zealand Cup; this week brought another Group victory with a Cloughmore connection thanks to Tinseltown – also the product of one of our recommended matings – scoring an easy victory in yesterday’s Group 2 Counties Cup at Pukekohe.
The Pentire – Tinsel (by Jetball) gelding is one of New Zealand’s leading stayers, having previously won both the Avondale Cup (G2) and Rotorua Cup (G3). Tinseltown is a typical Pentire in that he is capable of a real turn of foot in his best performances; 57 kg. did not slow him down in the final stages of Saturday’s event, but one wonders how much more weight he can successfully manage in Group company. At the Cup presentation, an Australian campaign was mentioned as a possibility – following an attempt at next month’s Waikato Cup
Another parallel with last week was that another Cloughmore representative ran promisingly without winning. At Riccarton our homebred The Jungle Boy ran a meritorious second in the last race of the day; at Counties the smart 3YO filly Shamabelle – a recommended purchase as a Select yearling – finished impressively to place third in a strong Rating 70 1400 event which also concluded the day’s racing. She is a filly to keep an eye on as the filly semi-classics unfold.
June 12th, 2008 — Horse Racing
From the 1 May 2004 edition of Cloughmore News
It’s an emotional business, racing. You know that there are ups and downs and optimists like yours truly would even argue that the inevitable downs make those moments of success even sweeter.
However, it occurred to me recently that one thing our industry could do much better is to educate newcomers to racing about the realities: there’s nothing more exciting on the planet than to win a race with a horse you own or have bred, but you’ve got to be aware of the downside.
How often are people lost to racing after one unsuccessful experience? It’s not getting people into racing that’s the problem, the difficulty lies in keeping them involved.
We need our PR people to focus on this: to generate stories about people who have stuck at it, without costing them a fortune, and eventually gain the thrills of success.
Those of us who have been around for a while know that the thrills outweigh the disappointments. Maybe we could all do our best to get this across to friends, relatives, and colleagues.
