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.

Australian Pacing Gold double

Rather a notable breeding feat was credited to Brisbane benefactors Kevin and Kaye Seymour at the Constellations Carnival at Albion Park, when they bred and raced the winners of both $100,000 Australian Pacing Gold Sale Graduate Finals for two-year-olds in Fire And Passion (by Always B Miki) and Amylee (by American Ideal) and the $216,000 The Hayden winner Call To Order (by American Ideal).

Fire And Passion, the runaway winner of the colts and geldings’ decider, is a colt by Always B Miki from the good Albion Park winner Fire One (1:53.7), who produced earlier winners in Fire Raiser (1:52.5), winner of last year’s QBred Trial 2YO Final, the QBred For Life victor Firebolt (1:55.3) and Feistynfearless (1:59.7).

Fire One, the winner of eight races, was a Mach Three sister to the exported Burning 1:53.2 ($201,717) and a half-sister to the Melton and Menangle victor Major Fire (1:51.6) and the NZ Northland South Cup winner Ears Burning (1:56.2).

Their dam, the Fake Left mare Sparks Under Fire, was a half-sister to the NSW Oaks and NZ DB Fillies Series winner Sparks A Flyin 1:52 ($510,133), who, in turn, left the Inter Dominion heat winner and millionaire Bettor’s Fire (1:50.2), Alpha Rock (1:49.5), the Southland Oaks winner Safedra (1:56.3) and the Victoria Derby heat winner Art Union (1:55.6).

Others from this fine family include Bettor Rock On (1:50), the Victoria Oaks winner Dr Susan, La Rosa (NZ Harness Million), the Group 2 WA winner Miss Boudica and the NZ country cups winners JD Fortune and Sam’s Town.

The American Ideal filly Amylee, who notched her first success in the Listed classic, is out of the QBred Triad 3YO and Victoria Oaks heat winner Aqua Miss (1:52.1) and is her first produce to race.

Aqua Miss, a winner of 14 races and $159,390), was by Bettor’s Delight from Aqua Blue Girl (1:58.9), a half-sister by Jenna’s Beach Boy to the Paleface Adios Classic winner Major Buddy (1:50.2) and to others in Everydays A Sunday (1:56.1) and Aquaflight (1:56.6).

This is a long established Queensland family and an earlier top juvenile belonging to it was Aquagold, who made a clean sweep of the Triad classics. The dual Oaks winner All Promises, the Triad winners Bettor Promise and Eternal Promise and the Derby winning trotter Not As Promised are also members of this family.

Call To Order, the winner the Group 2 The Hayden on protest, is a four-year-old American Ideal gelding who has a wealth of breeding on his dam’s side, being out of the Mr Feelgood mare Charming Ellie 1:53.9 ($266,329), a member of the prolific Browngate Girl family.

Charming Allie, a dual Triad winner, also ranks as the dam of this season’s outstanding filly Cool And Classy (1:53.7), the winner of nine races including the NSW Oaks and $372,852 in stakes, and Captain’s Pick (1:53.8), a winner of 22 races and $184,436.

The next dam, Charm Personified (by Perfect Art), was only lightly raced but she became the dam of eight winners including the Victoria Derby and Blacks A Fake winner Colt Thirty One 1:51.2 ($1 million), now at the stud in Queensland, the APG Gold Bullion winner Class To The Max (1:54.7) and Charms On A Roll (1:53.5).

Charm Personified was out of the grand producer Charming Reminder, by Vanston Hanover from the Tempest Hanover mare Call Girl, who established a very successful branch of the Call Girl family. Among others from this family have been the dual Oaks winner Cherry Cheer, Good Lookin Girl (NSW Ladyship Mile), Goldrush  Girl (QLD Oaks), Cheer Leader (QBred For Life 2YO), Rhapsody In Red, the Triad  winners Rani Major, Racy Roxy, Girl From Ipanema and Red Charmer and last year’s The Hayden victor Free Thinker.

NSW Foundation Trot winner by Classic Connection

The Foundation Trot Final, for two-year-old trotters, one of the features at Menangle last Saturday, was won by Cee Cee In Paris, a filly by the French horse Classic Connection and one of his first crop.

Classic Connection, a son of Love You, was a multiple Group winner in France and Germany before being imported by prominent Victorian breeder Pat Driscoll, the principal of Haras Des Trotteurs stud, near Ballarat. He is the also the sire of the recent Victorian winner Franco Americano.

Glenferrie Conquer, the unraced dam of Cee Cee In Paris, was by Muscles Yankee, the leading USA trotting sire for many years, from the Victoria Oaks winner Adella’s Dash, a mare of all-American blood who left the top flight trotters Glenferrie Dreamer (1:52.8) and Glenferrie Burn (1:55.5).

This has been a most successful family, as Della’s Speed, as half-sister to Adella’s Dash, was the dam of the nine-time NZ Group 1 winner and millionaire trotter Speeding Spur (1:52.8).

The latest NSW Foundation Trot winner Cee Cee In Paris has certainly a wealth of successful trotting blood on both sides of her pedigree.

She was bred and is raced by Lisa Fitzpatrick, who also trains her. 

Star three-year-old from American family

Keayang Hollywood, who won his fourth race on end at Melton, after drawing the outside gate and being forced deep in the last lap, has now won five races and is rated as one of the most promising three-year-olds in Victoria.

He ranks as a half-brother by Art Major to the NSW Derby and Breeders Crown and Vicbred champion Ideal For Real 1:54.4 ($324,600).

The American-bred Tamara Hall, the dam of Keayang Hollywood and Ideal For Real, was a Real Desire mare from Tabloid, by No Nukes from Next Chapter, and has proved a most successful broodmare. She is also the dam of the Victorian country cups winner Can’t Top This (1:53), Dream The Dream (1:56.5), Nyota (1:57.1) and The Deal (1:59.2) and the Rocknroll Hanover mare Rockin Tammy, dam of the SA Oaks and Southern Cross winner Delightful Tammy (1:54).

Tamara Hall, who was unraced, was a half-sister to a pair of high class North American pacers in BJ’s Whirlwind 1:49.2 ($954,463) and The Globe 1:50.6 ($772,462), being out of the Canadian 2YO Filly of the Year Tabloid 1:53.6 ($321,604).

Keayang Hollywood was one of two winners bred by Ballarat breeders Bruce and Vicki Edward, the other being Sir Jimmy (by Art Major).

London To A Brick top NSW trotter

There was never much doubt that London To A Brick was the season’s top rating NSW four and five-year older trotter as he was the previous two seasons, and he duly confirmed his class by winning the $50,000 NSW Foundation Final at Menangle. 

Actually he was a class above his rivals, and was not seriously tested in running out the mile in 1:55.7.

In 38 starts London To A Brick has now won 16 and been 11 times placed for $409,017 in stakes.

The gelding is bred along pure pacing bloodlines, being by Bettor’s Delight from the Christian Cullen mare I’m Justforyou (1:55.3), a NZ bred mare who left the pacing winners Sugar Pie Honey (1:51.5), winner of last year’s NSW Breeders Challenge 2YO Series, and Sugar For My Honey (1:54.2) and the trotter Unspoken Love.

Eleventh winner from broodmare

When the Roll With Joe four-year-old Oravoir won at the Launceston twilight meeting, he credited his dam the 2015 Australian Broodmare of the Year Gorse Bush with her eleventh individual winner.

Oravoir, one of the last crop by Roll With Joe, had showed good placed form previously. Others from Gorse Bush to win have been the dual Inter Dominion champion Beautide 1:50.2 ($2.1 million), the Group 3 winners Death And Taxes (1:58.1) and Ashkalini, Kabibi (1:55.3), Chalondra (1:56.6), Acutabovethrest (1:57.1), Ashura (1:59.5), Fuscienne (1:59.5), I Pity The Fool and Delmi.

Gorse Bush, a cups winner, was a Ticket To Heaven mare from the grand producer Barrington Lass (dam of 15 winners), by Holly Sand from Ann Byrd, the dam of nine winners.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink