Weekly spotlight on breeding

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

Mares Championship to My Superannuation

The $40,000 Vicbred Platinum Mares Sprint Championship Final, for four-year-old and older mares, one of the features at the reopening of Melton, was won by My Superannuation, a six-year-old by Mr Feelgood from Honeyrose.

Mr Feelgood, an Inter Dominion-winning son of Grinfromeartoear, has been one of Queensland’s top sires for many years. He has sired such winners as A Good Chance (1:50.2), Charming Allie (1:53.9), Red Charmer and Bonnie Jujon, all QBred Triad winners, Justalittle Torque (1:51.6), Feel The Faith (1:53.1), Good Feelings, Racy Roxy and others.

Honeyrose (1:59.2), the dam of My Superannuation, was by Partywiththebigdog (son of Artsplace) from Rasano’s Babe, by Armbro Operative from Rasano, a NZ bred mare by Rashad and tracing to the taproot Dusky Morn (by Young Irvington).

This has been a most successful family, as Rasano, a triple Moonee Valley winner, was a half-sister to Faye’s Image (1:57.7), a NZ Winter Cup winner who, in turn, left the Kapunda Cup victor Exposed and the exported Daring Image (1:56.2).

Supreme Dominator is Inter Dominion material

Supreme Dominator, who won the Our Maestro Free-for-all at Melton and is regarded as Inter Dominion material of the highest order, is six-year-old gelding by Bettor’s Delight from Galleon’s Supreme.

He has now won 13 races in Victoria and has increased his stake tally to $310,997.

Supreme Dominator is a member of an old time NZ family, which was represented by this year’s Invercargill Cup winner Alta Wise Guy, the NZ Caduceus Club Southland Classic winner Treacherous Gall and a top flight NSW trotter in Watts Up Majestic.

Galleon’s Supreme, the dam of Supreme Dominator, was a Christian Cullen mare from Galleon’s Cheer (1:57.4), by Albert Albert from Not Again Franco, a mare by OK Bye.

Galleon’s Cheer, a winner of five races, was the dam a top racemare and NZ Oaks winner in Cheer The Lady 1:55.1 ($279,222), who won 11 races, the Albion Park winner Galleon’s Warrior (1:55.4) and also of Galleon’s Honour, a Christian Cullen mare who left several winners including the Melton Plate winner Duke Of Wellington 1:53.6 ($109,360).

The family traces back by top sires such as El Patron, Light Brigade, Quite Sure and Guy Parrish to the noted foundation mare Trilby, the ancestress of Inter Dominions in Cardigan Bay and Bay Johnny.

Supreme Dominator ranks as a brother to the NZ Oaks and Jewels winner Spanish Armada 1:52.1 ($787,470), the WA Listed winner Bettor Be Supreme 1:55.6 ($130,750) and Santa Maria (1:58.3).

Brother and sister

Two of Australia’s star trotters at present, and both recent winners who promise to be a force in forthcoming feature events, are Imamaorijet (by Quaker Jet) and Gus An Maori (by Angus Hall). Imamaorijet took out the Group 3 Lightfoot Laurels at Melton.

Both are out of the Inter Dominion champion Sumthingaboutmaori, a thrice Group 1 winner and who has left other straight-out trotting winners in Central Otago, Justanothermaori and Hallaboutme.

Sumthingaboutmaori was by the Arndon horse Pine Chip (dual winner of the USA Breeders Crown) from the top racemare Maori Princess, by Entrepreneur from Maori Trump, by Overtrick from Maori Miss, dam of the legendary square-gaiter Maori’s Idol.

Imamaorijet was bred by prominent Ballarat trotting identity Pat Driscoll, while Gus And Maori was bred and is part-owned by Bryan Healy, who partnered Maori’s Idol to most of his 40 successes in 46 starts.

San Simeon winner is well bred

Socrates, who won the $50,000 San Simeon at Gloucester Park and has won seven races this season, is a five-year-old expected to graduate far beyond his present rating.

A member of Greg and Skye Bond’s Forrestdale team, he has a good deal more in his favour on the score of blood than most. By Art Major, Socrates is out of the In The Pocket mare Pita Pocket whose dam was a top racemare in Caps Off 1:52.8 ($135,197), who left metropolitan winners in Captian Cullen 1:54.9 ($117,798), Miss Madoff 1:56.9 ($118,308) and Crackabrie (1:55.6) and the exported Unloaded (1:50.4).

Caps Off, a NZ Oaks winner, was a half-sister to the NZ Derby and Great Northern Derby winner Badlands Bute 1:56.6 ($338,365), the exported Falcon’s Bute (1:55.6), Bute Brother (1:56.3), Bute Mach (1:57) and to the OK Bye mare Trans Tasman, dam of the Group 3 NZ winner Hemisphere and the Listed winner Bardot (1:57.4).

Another half-sister in Bute Sister has been bred from successfully in Queensland.

This is the family founded by Little Jane (by Spot) in NZ over 120 years ago. Recent winners from it include the Queensland Derby winner Catcha Lefty, Finvarra (Westbred Classic), Iam Erik (Vic. The O’Keeffe) and Ideal In Dreams (NSW Breeders Challenge True Blue).

Alcippes Delight, a Bettor’s Delight half-sister to Socrates, won at Gloucester Park four nights later.

Group 3 winner from top broodmare

Petes Said So, a Well Said six-year-old and a winner of the Group 3 Alf Phillis Free-for-all at Menangle last Saturday, is out of Kamwood Smarty, a capable racemare with a record of 1:58.2 who is proving a successful broodmare.

Kamwood Smarty is also the dam of Kamwood Laughter 1:52.6 ($506,965), a Listed winner in Perth and who later competed successfully in North America, the Menangle winner Experia (1:51.3) and the Gloucester victors Kamwood Holmes (1:57.5) and Smart By Design (1:57.1), dam of the WA Sales Classic heat winner Jay Elle (1:57).

Kamwood Smarty was an In The Pocket mare from Kamwood Lass, by New York Motoring from the NZ Group 2 winner Kamwood Belle, by Estes Minbar from the U Scott mare Bonny Roto. Kamwood Smarty was a half-sister to the exported Kamwood Warrior 1:51 ($209,946), the Gloucester Park winners Kamwood Girl 1:56.8 ($115,964) and Stellar Kamwood (1:56) and a sister to Kamwood Express, dam of the Perth free-for-all star Hez The Bart Man 1:56.2 ($153,637).

Their dam, Kamwood Lass, was unraced but she left seven winners. She was a sister to the NZ Listed winner Kamwood Charm (dam of NZ 2YO Filly of the Year Kamwood Cully) and a half-sister to the Gammalite and Victoria Navy Cup winner Kamwood Kango 1:58.8 ($268,394) and Kamwood Countess, who became the dam of six winners including Kamwood Tony 1:54.2 ($174,733).

Orchid Stride in top form

A bright future is being predicted for the American Ideal mare Orchid Stride, who success at Menangle last Saturday was her fifth winning run from her last six starts.

Orchid Stride was a Bathurst Gold Crown Yearling Sale purchase in 2019, and is a four-year-old by the Western Ideal horse American Ideal from Modern Day (1:58.3), by Modern Art from Kidabout (1:59.2), by Fake Left from Dreamy Sue, a sister to The Gammalite winner Kid Me Not and a half-sister to the Moonee Valley winners Vic The Kid (1:52.4) and Don’t Kid Me (1:57.6).

Modern Day, a Group winner at two, left earlier winners in The Choreographer 1:52.9 ($100,000 NSW Hunter Region Championship) and Modern Beach. She was a half-sister to the prolific Menangle winner Ideal Situation 1:51.2 ($203,141) and the Albion Park victor American Legend 1:53.4 ($207,997).

Orchid Stride was bred by Dubbo (NSW) couple Jeff and Nea Costello.

Daughter of Baby Bling

Bella Bling, a convincing winner at the Menangle midweek meeting and the winner of six of her 12 starts, is a Bettor’s Delight three-year-old filly out of the Miracle Mile winner Baby Bling.

She is the third foal and second winner of her dam.

Since producing Bella Bling in 2018, Baby Ling has left a two-year-old colt by For A Reason, a yearling colt by Sweet Lou and a weanling colt by him.

Breeding of ‘Hambo’ winner

Cool Papa Bell, the upset winner of the $1 million The Hambletonian, North America’s richest three-year-old trotting classic, is a gelding by the Windsong’s Legacy horse Chapter Seven, a dual Breeders Crown champion who sired the 2018 winner Atlanta.

Chapter Seven, who stands at Blue Chip Farms in New York at a fee of $US30,000, has been the leading sire in his field for the last two years.

Cool Papa Bell is the third foal out of Blk Thai Optional (1:58), who left an earlier winner in Aela Jamieson 1:55.2 ($116,178). She was by the great Muscle Hill, winner of the Hambletonian in 2009 and the sire of three ‘Hambo’ winners, from the unraced Inspired Society, by the 1999 Hambletonian champion Self Possessed.

Cool Papa Bell belongs to the same maternal family as previous ‘Hambo’ winners Captain Corey (2021) and Park Avenue Joe (1989).

A $100,000 yearling sale purchase, Cool Papa Bell has now earned $760,999 from seven wins and seven placings in 17 starts.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink