Breeders of Old Town Road scaling down

After decades of breeding, racing and buying pacers and trotters, Southlanders Ben and Karen Calder are dialing down their harness racing operation.

Having bred from up to twelve mares, they have been significant players in the market but this season they’ll be breeding from just one – Harbour Queen (Love You – Sunning).

“We’re going to put her in foal and bring her back to race,” Ben said.

Sunning, who was a half sister to Sundon, was a very good trotting mare for the Calders and trainer Kevin Townley, winning eight races including the 1999 Group One Victoria Trotting Oaks. 

As a broodmare Sunning left Burano (10), Santorini Sunset (6), Sunny Vacation (5), No Potato (5), Medora (3), Agnes Brown (2), Breaking Bad (1) and Harbour Queen (1).

Ben and Karen have also had success breeding pacers, which began when they bought with Karen’s parents, a Soky’s Atom colt called Grinaldi at the 1994 Yearling Sales. 

Calder said Grinaldi broke in so well that he went back and bought his mother Tanisa (Smooth Fella) at a mixed sale.

That proved to be the beginning of a great run.

“I liked the Smooth Fella – Soky’s Atom cross. The Smooth Fellas had a lot of speed but no guts and crossing them with Soky’s Atom added some toughness. We had a lot of success breeding to that cross.”

Grinaldi went on to win ten races and was the Calder’s first New Zealand Cup runner in 1996. It was trainer Geoff Small’s first runner as well. The Calders who reside between Ryal Bush in Southland and Wanaka, named their Southland property Grinaldi Lodge.

Grinaldi came from a very good family. His fourth dam Desilu was the mother of the great pacing mare Delightful Lady. She won forty seven races including two Auckland Cups, and five consecutive North Island Breeders Stakes.

From Tanisa the Calders also bred The Oyster Man, which won five races, and Bremner Bay which was by Holmes Hanover.

“Bremner Bay had a chequered start to life because the Mum got cancer and she just struggled to do the right thing for the foal, and we just kept her for breeding. My old friend Mike Brown (Vet) said we had nothing to prove in racing her and that she’d be a great broodmare for Grinaldi Lodge.”

Bremner Bay never raced but her first two fillies Wanaka Bay and Lucy’s Way as predicted by Brown, proved to be excellent broodmares.

“We sent Bremner Bay north to get her in foal to In The Pocket whose semen didn’t travel at that stage. Her first two foals were Lucy’s Way and Wanaka Bay. They weren’t very nice fillies to handle but they both won a race. Beckie (Allan Beck) had Lucy’s Way. She actually won a saddle pace, but she used to lie on the track and do that sort of nonsense.”

As a broodmare Lucy’s Way left Foo Fighter (18 wins), Coruba Run (11) and Old Town Road (Bettor’s Delight) who’s won seven of his ten starts and carries a nomination for this year’s New Zealand Cup.

“From buying Grinaldi and his mother the family has been good to us. We’re being rewarded now when we’re no longer breeding (laugher).” 

Old Town Road got his name after a visit the Calders made to Portugal. 

“We were in this small wine tour bus. The crazy driver who was also a test car drive for Mercedes, put some music on including Born to be Wild and Old Town Road so that’s how the horse got his name. Funnily enough Old Town Road’s stable name is Allan after Allan Beck who broke him in.”

The Bettor’s Delight gelding is trained at Clevedon by John Dickie who also has a share in the horse with son Josh.

“He’s got big raps on him but until you take the step against the town hallers (better company) you don’t really know. We still feel it’s a year too soon for him. To breed one that can take us to the next level will be a great thrill. To have a horse starting in the New Zealand Cup from the family would finish things off nicely.”

Wanaka Bay has left three good horses, Foveaux Strait the winner of one from seven, Mr Kiwi, nine wins and Mr Mojito thirteen wins.

Mr Mojito won eight of his fourteen starts in New Zealand including six in a row. He broke a New Zealand Record for 2600 metres at Addington on Show Day in 2016 running the distance in 3-06.3 and sat parked for the last lap.

The Calder family have been in the fishing industry all of their lives. Ben and Karen owned the oyster boat Lucy Star before she was replaced by the Torea. They still have fishing quota but are not involved with the fish processing business these days although they still have a bit to do with the Barnes Group who sell the Wild Bluff Oysters out of Invercargill. The Calders lease most of their quota to various fishing companies.

Ben’s brother Willie and sister-in-law Karen are heavily into thoroughbreds. They bred $2 million earner Avantage, so the brothers have done well in the horse industry.

Ben doesn’t have too many regrets about scaling down, but he did express disappointment about the way HRNZ handled the change around the New Zealand Messenger – a time honoured event which has gone from a four year old race to an open class race.

“With the Messenger and Taylor Mile, the decision was taken out of our hands. We weren’t consulted in this region.”

With the New Zealand Cup just a few weeks away, lets hope Old Town Road can give them their second Cup runner and perhaps go one better. 

Regardless, Old Town Road is going to be top of their playlist for the ride home.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink