Weekly spotlight on breeding

Breeding authority Peter Wharton presents all the harness racing news on breeding from Australia, New Zealand and North America every Friday brought to you by Garrard’s Horse & Hound.

Breeding of Inter Dominion champion

Boncel Benjamin, the longshot winner of the $500,000 Inter Dominion Pacing Championship Final at Menangle, is a six-year-old gelding bred in Victoria by Kaye and the late Martin Hartnett and is the second winner of harness racing’s holy grail sired by Grinfromeartoear.

The Artsplace horse, who died in 2019 aged 23, also sired the 2009 Interdom champion Mr Feelgood, now a leading sire in Queensland.

Alleluia Lombo, Boncel Benjamin’s dam, was sold at auction in 2014 for a modest $1750 to Shepparton horseman Steven Duffy. She was winless in six starts and her first two foals were both non-winners. As she was carrying Boncel Benjamin at the time, the transaction must rate as one of the greatest bargains in the history of trotting.

A brilliant sprinter, Boncel Benjamin has won 17 races and been 25 times placed for $475,000 in stakes and has a mile mark of 1:52.

He is the fourth foal of Alleluia Lombo, a Christian Cullen mare who produced others in the Melton winner Illawong Maestro 1:53.1 ($137,089), Ubetcha (1:56.7) and Sayalittleprayer (dam of two winners).

Alleluia Lombo was a half-sister to the Vicbred 2YO champion Kinda Arty Lombo 2:00.8 ($120,305) and the Melton winner Lombo Flashlight 1:56.9 ($118,257), being out of Lombo Light Speed (2:01.3), by Troublemaker from a fine racemare in Lombo La Paree 2:01.4 ($112,085), by Classic Garry from the Windshield Wiper mare Paris Player (TT1:58.5), and tracing to the Rey de Oro mare Parisienne, winner of the 1938 Inter Dominion at Addington.

Kaye Hartnett, the breeder of Boncel Benjamin, also bred and races Illawong Stardust, who ran a creditable fifth in the Interdom Trotting Final on the same night.

From Maori’s Idol family

Maori Law, who won the $150,000 Inter Dominion Trotting Championship Grand Final at Menangle and a week earlier a heat at Newcastle, belongs to the same family as Sumthingaboutmaori, winner of the 2004 Interdom at Moonee Valley.

One of the third crop sired by the deceased Lawman (1:51.6 son of Malabar Man), Maori Law ranks as a half-brother to Australasia’s fastest ever trotter Maori Time 1:51.5 ($322,494), now being bred from in Swedenn, Happy Maori (1:59.6), Hammers Pegasus (1:59.9), Lady Bellanique (11 wins) and Mangonique, dam of five winners including Meadow Valley Road (1:56.3).

Their dam, Sundonna, was unraced but she left five winners including four in 2:00. She was by Sundon from Maori Acacia, by Smooth Fella from the Overtrick mare Maori Trump, dam of an outstanding juvenile trotter in Noopy Kiosk 2:00.6 ($320,999), the Vicbred champions Tennotrump 2:03.5 ($179,972) and Maori Princess.

Maori Trump is the ancestress of trotters the calibre of Skye Rocket, Aldebaran Crescent, Kyvalley Clichy, Needabacardi, Maorisfavouritesun, Powderkeg, Agent Maori and many others.

A champion trotter in Maori’s Idol is a member of this family. At one stage Maori’s Idol almost rewrote the record book, holding six national records. He had a mile mark of 1:59.3, and in all 40 of his 46 starts including 24 on end, and $98,821 in stakes.

Sundonna, the dam of Maori Law, slipped her foal to Skyvalley recently, but her daughter Aldebaran Shakira (by Muscle Hill) produced a filly foal by the Swedish sensation Readly Express.

Maori Law was bred and is raced by Melbourne enthusiast Fred Crews.

Consolation for Pocket Of Terror

Pocket Of Terror, who won the Inter Dominion Pacing Championship Consolation, after overcoming a difficult barrier draw and a wide passage, has now won 25 races and is rated one of the top pacers in the country. He ranks as a six-year-old half-brother by Western Terror to a talented pacer in Sam’s The Master 1:52.4 ($233,918),

Sam’s A Master, a Tell All gelding, won 24 races and was placed in several Group races including the NSW Breeders Challenge, Simpson Memorial and Bathurst Gold Crown.

Onedin’s Pocketgirl (1:56), the dam of Pocket Of Terror, is an In The Pocket mare from Onedin Spur, by Jaguar Spur from Miss Shona, and has proved a most successful broodmare. She is also the dam the Group placegetter It’s All Bliss (1:57), the Albion Park victor This One’s For You (1:55.1) and Norm’s Desire (1:54.7).

A Menangle winner herself, Onedin’s Pocketgirl is a half-sister to the multiple Group winner Iam Mr Brightside 1:50.6 ($592,707), now racing successfully in America, the prolific Globe Derby Park winner Just Read My Mind (1:55.4), Bundjalung Beauty (1:56.3) and the Harold Park winner The Spurs A Flyin 1:56.5 ($113,296), dam of Colombian Gold (1:53.9), the winner of 16 races to date.

This has been one of the most successful branches of the Quaker Girl family, Onedin Spur being a half-sister to a cup class pacer in Onedin Pick Pocket 1:52.2 ($235,582), the exported Onedin Commander (1:55.8) and to Onedin Miss, the dam of the dual Gloucester Park winner Washington Seattle and Miss McIvor (1:55.6).

City of Perth Cup winner

Balcatherine, who won the $50,000 City of Perth Cup, a Group 2 race at Gloucester Park last Friday, is a five-year-old American Ideal mare from the same family as that which produced a top American pacer and sire in Life Sign.

Balcatherine, winner of the WA Mares Classic and The Pure Steel last year, has only been sparingly raced to date but she has shown up as a very useful pacer, and it was a strong field she beat at Gloucester Park.

Bred by Macca Lodge, in NZ’s Southland district, Balcatherine has an all-American breeding background and one which has been most successful. By American Ideal (1:47.8 son Western Ideal), she is out of the Holmes Hanover mare Touche Franco, who produced others in Glenisla (1:54.8), Levi Jade (1:55) and Tyler Bromac, all metropolitan winners.

Touche Franco, bred in Christchurch by the late Wayne Francis, was out of Trilogy Franco USA, by Jate Lobell from the Storm Damage mare Tropez Lobell, a half-sister to the Little Brown Jug winner Life Sign 1:50.6 ($1.9 million), Threefold 1:51.2 (sire) and Lifetime Success, the dam of Balcatherine’s sire American Ideal.

By Betterthancheddar

A bright future is being predicted for the Betterthancheddar three-year-old Better Eclipse, whose success in the $50,000 Carousel on the final night of the Inter Dominion carnival at Menangle was his sixth winning run from 19 starts. He won again at Shepparton in a Vicbred heat.

Better Eclipse has a background of blood to back up his claims to further promotion, being out of Power Of Eclipse, by Northern Luck from the Windshield Wiper mare Cammag Girl (dam of the Moonee Valley winner Lucky Eclipse) and tracing to Miss Tommy, whose family today is one of the best in the Australian stud book.

It includes the Inter Dominion and Miracle Mile winner Lennytheshark, the champion racemare Frith, the Derby winners Greg Kelly, Albert Kelly and Classic Garry, Penny Veejay, Mother Courage, Lady Waratah, Nolarama, Provocative and so on.

Well related three-year-old

Spring In His Step, who won the Group 3 Gordon Rothacker Memorial Championship at Melton, showed ability as a two-year-old last season when he finished third to Idyllic in the Vicbred semi-final.

The Somebeachsomewhere colt has proved himself to some purpose in his three-year-old racing, and in winning the Rothacker he beat older, more seasoned rivals in a 1:55.2 rate after being trapped wide in the early stages.

It was Spring In His Step’s fifth success for the season and his fourth on end. He is a very good youngster.

He is a colt by the Mach Three horse Somebeachsomewhere from Summa Of Dreams (1:57.5), the best of whose several progeny has been the Vicbred Home Grown 2YO Classic winner Three Summas 1:53.8 ($123,580).

Summa Of Dreams ranks as a half-sister to the Globe Derby Park winner Big Shot Bob (1:57.2), being by Live Or Die from Touch Of Silk, by Son Of Afella from Satin And Silk, by Silk Legacy.

Spring In His Step was bred and is raced by Todd and Wendy Rivett.

Golden Apple winner from good broodmare

Gotta Good Reason, a For A Reason seven-year-old and the winner of the $30,000 Tassie Golden Apple at Launceston, is out of My Jane’s Cullen, a capable racemare with a record of 1:57.6 who is proving a successful broodmare.

My Jane’s Cullen is also the dam of the Albion Park winners Hadley (1:54.7) and Whatta Good Reason (1:55.7) and the recent Victorian placegetter Cee Cee Norman (1:58.3). She is a Christian Cullen mare from Highview Jane, by Talk About Class from Hello Stranger, by Lordship from the trotting mare Chances Are, by Light Brigade.

My Jane’s Cullen is a half-sister to the Gloucester Park winners Paddy O’Brien 1:57.4 ($110,851) and Sir Willy’s Boy (1:58.8), Red River View (1:59.5) and to Ballymenna, dam of the dual-gaited Scarrymcleary 1:52.3 ($230,780).

Other members of this family, which was founded in NZ by Violet M (by Wildwood), were the Cambridge Cup winner Sly Chance, Sir Galahad 1:55.3 ($102,365), Ona Happy Note 1:54.2 ($116,711), Highview Ruler (1:53.9) and Joe Tyler (Wanganui Cup).

American Dealer to US

American Dealer, who won the NZ Sires Stakes 2YO Championship and Queensland Derby, is to do his future racing in America.

A three-year-old colt by American Ideal from Maddison’s Delight, American Dealer won 10 of his 35 starts and $328,061 and took a mile record of 1:53.3.

He is a half-brother to a smart WA pacer in Sweet Maddison (1:57) and the two-year-old Sugar Apple (1:53.9), who is unbeaten in two starts in NSW. Maddison’s Delight, who was unraced, was by Bettor’s Delight from the In The Pocket mare Pacing Grace (1:57.7), dam of two high class pacers in All U Need Is Faith 1:49.8 ($480,847) and Pacing Major 1:52 ($669,596) and to the dam of the Derby winner Aladdin 1:57.5 ($193,931) and the Group 2 winner Virgil 1:52.3 ($182,934).

By Peter Wharton for Harnesslink