Breeder Spotlight – Juanita Breen and Aaron Brown

If you had your photo taken as a young girl on the back of one of the most famous Australian Pacers of the 20^th Century, you are probably going to find yourself involved in harness racing into the future.

Well the 3 year old girl was Juanita Breen and the pacer was the incomparable Tasmanian horse Halwes (Nephew Hal). In those days Juanita was growing up with her parents on the outskirts of Launceston in northern Tasmania and Halwes and his owner , trainer Aub Wesley were located just 30 kms to the west at Hagley.

In her younger days Juanita loved riding horses and competing at Shows around northern Tasmania but by the time she was fifteen her attention turned to helping her father Bob with the Harness horses. At the time the stable star was a mare named Gregvale Adios, a daughter of the legendary Halwes.

Over the next few years whilst living in Tasmania, Juanita met and married her now husband Aaron Brown.  Aaron had no background in the horse Industry but now plays an important role in assisting in selecting Stallions for the couple’s broodmares and being very hands on around the horses.

In 2000 Juanita and Aaron relocated to Victoria and purchased a rural property in Avenel , becoming neighbours to leading trainer David Aiken.

Foe the next eleven years Juanita continued working in the newspaper industry whilst enjoying their Standardbreds as a hobby.

However since 2011 Juanita has concentrated full time with the broodmares and racing stock whilst Aaron has a lawnmowing and home maintenance business , which he attends to after driving trackwork and assisting with the training in the mornings.

Around 2014 Juanita and Aaron made a wise decision to attend a Reduction sale of the Late Dr Martin Hartnett’s horses at nearby Nagambie.

At that Sale they purchased a young Courage Under Fire filly from Alleluia Lombo. She had only been broken in at that stage and was then put into training by Juanita. However a problem with a knee restricted the filly , named Sayalittleprayer , to just 5 unplaced career starts.

At that same Sale Alleluia Lombo was sold to Stephen Duffy, carrying a foal by Grinfromeartoear.  On the 14^th November that year she foaled a colt to be named Boncel Benjamin.  Of course the rest of that story became history after Boncel Benjamin won the 2021 Inter Dominion Final at Menangle.

So back to Sayalittleprayer, in 2016 she was bred initially to McArdle but after failing to conceive to that stallion she was switched to Four Starzzz Shark, who was located at Empire Stallions just a few kilometers down the road.

The resulting foal, Royal Starzzz, has been a handy performer for Juanita and Aaron winning four races to date including a last start win at Shepparton on 12^th September.

For the second mating of Sayalittleprayer, Aaron took a liking to the son of Betttors Delight in Betterthancheddar.   So on 14^th December 2018  a plain bay colt was that is now providing Juanita and Aaron with enormous pleasure.  Named Roarforroscoe, he won at his first start as a late 2 year old at Cranbourne on 28^th November 2021 and has now put together a really nice resume of 27 starts , 8 wins and $105,130 banked to date [ 20^th Sept 2023 ].

“He is the best horse we have bred and when his career ends he will be the best horse we have raced, “ said Juanita last week.

The mare currently has a weanling filly by Ultimate Sniper , another son of Bettors Delight , which Juanita and Aaron are keeping to race themselves.

Juanita and Aaron do have a weanling filly though by the white hot stallion Sweet Lou that is entered in the APG Melbourne sale next February.

“She is a ripper of a filly,“ said Juanita “and being bred on the same cross as Spirit of St Louis we expect there to be plenty of interest in her“.

The Dam of the filly is the Art Major mare Lets Jazz It Up 1.56.3 , a winner of 3 races in Victoria, whilst her dam Twist N Shout 1.57.7 won 5 races and $138,670 in a distinguished career in New Zealand.

This Sweet Lou filly, the second foal of her Dam is from the richly producing NZ Family of Blackwatch.  The $2 million winning WA pacer Chicago Bull 1.51.6 appears as a relation as does the wonderful Kiwi bred mare Pacific Flight 1.51.2 $562,345.

This season Juanita and Aaron are doing their bit to keep the Breeding Industry buoyant by breeding four mares to the stallions Majestic Son , Captain Crunch , Pebble Beach and Vincent.

By the way – probably the best two horses bred in Tasmania over the past 60 years have been Halwes and Beautide ….. and they were born and trained just 25 kms apart …..  albeit some 48 years between them.

by John Coffey, for Harnesslink