Weekly spotlight on breeding

Breeding authority Peter Wharton presents harness racing news on breeding from Australia, New Zealand and North America brought to you by Yabby Dam Farms & Racing!

Yabby Dam Racing, principal Pat Driscoll’s dream to breed and race world class trotters was born after seeing a billboard on the Champs Elysees in Paris advertising the famous trotting race the Prix d’Amerique. Driscoll attended the Prix d’Amerique and immediately a love affair with the trotter was formed.

Driscoll spent the next five years visiting world class trotting establishments in Europe before embarking on his own venture here in Australia where he has lead the charge in the significant advancement of Southern Hemisphere trotting.

Along the way Driscoll formed friendships with many of Europe’s leading owners and breeder.

Cool And Classy is top Queensland filly

When she won the $125,000 Sunshine Stars Yearling Sale Classic Final at Albion Park, Cool And Classy scored her fourth feature race success, and she entitled to be rated as this season’s top two-year-old filly in Queensland.

COOL AND CLASSY REPLAY

Earlier in the season the Captaintreacherous filly won the $150,000 QBred Triad, QBred Breeders Classic and the Changeover 2YO Classic and from eight starts she has won seven for $232,648 in stakes.

Cool And Classy ranks as a sister to a capable pacer in Captain’s Pick 1:53.8 ($167,371) and a half-sister to the Listed winner Call To Order (1:54.5), being a filly by Captaintreacherous from the dual Triad victor Charming Allie 1:53.9 ($266,329), by Mr Feelgood from the grand producer Charm Personified, by Perfect Art from Charming Reminder, by Vanston Hanover from Call Girl, who established a great winning line for leading Brisbane breeders and owners Kevin and Kaye Seymour.

From the Charming Reminder branch of it and to which Cool And Classy belongs, others in the million dollar earner Colt Thirty One, the Australian and Victoria Oaks winner Cherry Cheer, the Triad winners Rani Major, Racy Roxy and Red Charmer and Cheer Leader (QBred For Life) are also members.

Classic winner a bargain

Bought for $15,000 and now a winner of $75,196, Toro Loco became the latest graduate of the Nutrien Equine sales to taste feature race success when he won the $125,000 Sunshine Star Yearling Sale Classic at Albion Park.

By the Artsplace horse Sportswriter, Toro Loco is out of the good racemare Wandary Splash 1:52.7 ($158,393), by the American bred Blissfull Hall. Wandary Splash left others in the Albion Park winner Splashndash (1:55.6) and Wandary Delight (1:59.4).

Wandary Splash was out of Wandary Lane, by John Street North (by Precious Bunny) from King’s Countess, a Koala King mare tracing to a noted family founder in Harold’s Rest.

Toro Loco was bred off Burwood Stud, one of Queensland’s leading standardbred nurseries.

Miss Crunchy bred to be good

Miss Crunchy, who won the $50,000 Sunshine Stars Yearling Sale 2YO Classic at Albion Park, is a Captain Crunch filly from the same family as that which produced a top WA filly in Water Lou.

Miss Crunchy, who won twice earlier this season at ‘The Creek’, has shown up as a very useful pacer, and it was a tidy field she beat in the Yearling Sale Classic.

A two-year-old by Captain Crunch, Miss Crunchy has a wealth of breeding on her dam’s side, being out of the Mr Feelgood mare Misstori, a member of the prolific Moor Chimes family.

Misstori, who was unraced, was a half-sister to Okinawa Beach 1:52.6 ($214,862), now racing in America, and Today’s Hero (1:53.9). Their dam, Tori Maguire (1:57) was a sister to a top racemare in Lizzie Maguire (1:55.1), the winner of 12 races in the NZ Great Northern Oaks and Harness Jewels and $465,579 in stakes, being out of Unrehearsed (1:58.3), who won three, and was also the dam of Thomas Maguire 1:56.2 ($121,725) and the grand-dam of the exported Fabrizio (1:49.6) and Kimani (1:52.4).

This has been one of NZ’s most successful families over a long period. Among others from the Moor Chimes family have been the Australian Derby winner Yosemite Sam, Franco Trubrooke (NZ Kindergarten), Mongolian Hero (1:49.6), Hunger Strike (APG Brisbane Graduate 2YO), Jaccka Taurus (Bathurst Gold Crown), Burnham Boy 1:49 (NZ Southern Supremacy) and the current top WA pacer Pinny Tiger.

Miss Crunchy was bred and is raced by Kevin and Kaye Seymour.

Inter Dominion trotting prospect

One of the stronger Inter Dominion trotting candidates, particularly among the youthful brigade will be Aldebaran Vera, who has proved herself in the top flight and has won her way back to cup class with two recent Melton successes.

Her latest winning run over 1720 metres from a wide barrier was a smart performance. She settled down midfield, looped the field at the bell and finally won decisively at a 1:55.2 rate.

A tough customer, Aldebaran Vera is a five-year-old, being by Trixton from Kyvalley Aldebaran, dam also of useful winners in Imahe Man (2:00) and Aldebaran Knox. Kyvalley Aldebaran was sired by Sundon (the leading sire of trotters in NZ and Australia for many years) from the Victoria Trotters Oaks winner Chiola’s Lass ($157,779), by Chiola Hanover from Game Nelli, by Game Pride.

Chiola’s Lass, a NZ Broodmare Excellence Award winner, left a string of winners including a pair of outstanding trotters in Allegro Agitato and Skyvalley, both multiple Group 1 winners with the latter becoming a leading colonial bred sire of square-gaiters in Australia.

Aldebaran Vera was bred by Duncan McPherson, principal of Aldebaran Park stud, near Shepparton.

Miki Pins in 1:49.7

Miki Pins has joined the growing list of sub 1:50 winning performers at Menangle. The four-year-old gelding recorded 1:49.7 when he was successful in a $20,000 race last Saturday.

By the Always A Virgin horse Always B Miki – a world champion – Miki Pins is from Pretty Pins, by American Ideal from the USA bred mare Andress Blue Chip, by Artsplace, a double Breeders Crown winner and one of the finest pacers ever bred in America.

Pretty Pins, who was unraced, also left the good Melton winner Captain Pins (1:55.1) and Sweet Pins (1:56.5), a three-year-old winner in WA.

Breeding feat to Queenslander

Rather a notable breeding feat was credited to the Queensland breeder Anthony Perkins at Albion Park, when he bred the winners of both Sunshine Stars Yearling Sale Classic 2YO Trotting Finals in Monterey Lass and Roman Soldier.

Monterey Lass, who has won four of her seven starts and is rated the best of her age, gait and sex in Queensland this season, was sired the French bred horse Up And Quick, and is one of the second crop of the Prix D’Amerique winner and five-time Group 1 star.

Black Mamba Cheval, the dam of Monterey Lass, was only lightly raced but she left earlier winners in Agent Black ($106,371), winner of the Australian Pacing Gold Trotters Classic, and the Canberra Trotters Cup winner Critter Boy (Tr 1:57.6).

Black Mamba Cheval ranked as a half-sister to the cups winner Cold Sister Tr TT1:57.2 ($262,321), being by Fling It (grandson of Valley Victory) from the American-bred mare Aspenglow, by Conway Hall.

Roman Soldier, who notched his first success, has more in his favour than most on the score of blood, being by the brilliant, young American trotter Centurion ATM (whose first frozen semen crops have enjoyed great success) from Heart Of Glass, by Yentl’s Image from the grand producer Howdoudo.

Heart Of Glass was a sister to the Vicbred champion Split Image ($163,463) and a half-sister to the NSW Oaks winner Good Thanks and the Victorian country cups winner Theywannacallmesue.

Siblings shine at Melton

Two of Victoria’s star trotters at present, and both winners at Melton last Saturday who promise to be a force in the Country Cups carnival, are the siblings Destrier (by Bacardi Lindy) and Berriesandcherrries (by Crazed).

Both are out of the handy pacing mare Meredith Castle, a winner of seven races, and who has left other smart straightout trotting winners in Iona Grinner, Garland Greene and Dream Inception and the pacing winners Man Of Art and It’s Girl Power.

Meredith Castle was by the Jate Lobell horse Village Jasper from Poetry, by Kentucky from Morley Doll, by Royal Dollar and thus a member of the same family as the champion trotting mares La Coocaracha and Dance Craze.

Wagga sets records

A piece of history was created at Riverina Paceway, Wagga last Friday when all eight races were won in under 1:55 – a first for an Australian country track.

The fastest time of the day was put up by the Art Major gelding Mighty Flying Art, who led throughout in a 1:51.3 rating over 1740 metres. Bred by Otago breeders Lex and the late Heather Williams, Mighty Flying Art is out of the prolific In The Pocket mare Fleets Pocket, the dam of 14 winners with 12 inside 2:00 and five $100,000 earners.

Mighty Flying Art is her 12th foal.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink