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.

Breeding of Inter Dominion Pacing Final winner

I Cast No Shadow, the surprise winner of the $500,000 Inter Dominion Pacing Championship Grand Final at Melton, was bred in New Zealand, owned in Queensland and is trained in NSW.

The six-year-old chestnut entire was bred by the Christchurch-based Bromac Lodge Limited, of the late Bob McArdle, and was their first success in harness racing’s pinnacle event.

Shadow Play, the sire of I Cast No Shadow, was also represented by his first Inter Dominion champion and, just for good measure, he sired the runner-up, Torrid Saint. Both six-year-olds are members of the fifth crop of The Panderosa horse, who has returned to stand stud in Canada.

Ragazza Bromac, dam of I Cast No Shadow, was unraced and she has left two other winners from five foals of racing age in the NZ Southern Supremacy winner Ragazzo Mach 1:54.7 ($124,750), now racing successfully in Perth, and RR Sand Dollar (1:55.5), a winner of seven races in NZ.

By Falcon Seelster, Ragazza Bromac was a half-sister to the crack American pacer SS Sand Dollar 1:49.6 ($632,406), being out of Red Delite, by Fame (son of Albatross) from the Most Happy Fella mare Miles End Dianne 1:56.6 ($109,586), whose seven successes included the prestigious Mistletoe Shalee.

The family traces back to Emma Mills, foaled in North America in 1853, and whose descendants include horses the calibre of P Forty Seven 1:48.4 (Little Brown Jug and sire), Have A Good Life (Bluegrass Stake), Good As Goalie (Adioo Volo and Simpson Memorial) and the 1987 Canadian 2YO Colt of the Year Chatham Light.

Won Inter Dominion Consolation

Jilliby Sylvester, a five-year-old bred and raced by the Craven family, gave a further taste of his class when he took out the $50,000 Inter Dominion Pacing Championship Consolation at Melton.

After working to the front in the first lap, the gelding was able to dictate his own terms and held on gamely in the run home.

By Roll With Joe, a full-brother to Bettor’s Delight, Jilliby Sylvester is out of the unraced Jilliby Opal, dam also of the Melton winner and SA Derby placegetter Jilliby Road Runner.

Jilliby Opal was by Artsplace from a fine racemare in Jilliby Gold 1:59 ($183,394), by What’s Next from Jilliby Diamond, by Koala King from the Royal Dollar mare Jilliby Dollar, who founded a good winning branch of the Whisp family.

Other members of this family have been the exported Jilliby Spirit 1:50.2 ($495,022), the Popular Alm Sprint winner Jilliby Rio 1:55.8 ($214,755), Jilliby Lightning 1:57.2 ($115,324) and Jilliby Master (1:55.4).

Interdom Trotting champ’s breeding background

Just Believe, who made a clean sweep of the Inter Dominion Trotting Championship series, was bred in Victoria but boasts an all-international pedigree and one that has been most successful.

Bred by Ballarat trotting stalwart Pat Driscoll, the six-year-old gelding was got by the French sire Orlando Vici (whose first crops have produced sensational results) from the American-bred mare Heavens Above.

Heavens Above, who was unraced, was also responsible for the cup winning trotters Shared Interest 1:54.6 ($203,996), who was later sold to North America, and Heavenly Sister 1:56.5 ($129,745) and to Namoscar (1:59.4), a winner of 10 races to date.

By the Lindy Lane horse Like A Prayer, Heavens Above was out of Armbro Odalisk, by the top colt trotter Super Pleasure from Armbro Harem, by Joie de Vie from the USA 2YO Trotting Filly of the Year Armbro Blush and tracing eventually to the taproot Sally Sovereign, a thoroughbred mare foaled in the 1860’s.

Just Believe is certainly a splendid advertisement for the crossing of mares boasting Super Bowl and Speedy Crown blood with the strong staying lines of French-bred stallions.

Major Moth measures up

Winner of the Breeders Crown as a two-year-old and a heat of the Victoria Derby last season, Major Moth downed the top four-year-olds in a $30,000 race at Melton on Inter Dominion Grand Final night, including a pair of top ranking four-year-olds in Idyllic and Longfellow.

Major Moth has had an interrupted campaign owing to some niggling injuries, but has proved himself a young pacer of great ability.

A four-year-old entire, Major Moth was got by Art Major from Macy Lila (1:58.6), by Presidential Ball from the Moonee Valley winner Majestic Moth, by Riverlea Jack from Mystic Moth, by Jerry Adios from the Kudos mare Moon Moth, who established a great winning line for Maryborough identity Len Parker. It includes the Vicbred champion and Tatlow Memorial winner Lively Moth and her half-sister Flying Moth, winner of the Youthful Stakes.

QBred Feature winners closely related

The three-year-old filly Racy Roxy and the two-year-old Cheer Leader, who won their respective QBred For Life Features at Albion Park, both belong to the same family.

Both were bred and are raced by Kevin and Kay Seymour.

Racy Roxy, who has won eight races and $134,217 in stakes, is a filly by Mr Feelgood from the dual QBred Triad winner Rani Major 1:55.7 ($246,434), by Art Major from the Group winner Rhapsody In Red 1:56.8 ($167,715), by Fake Left from Charming Reminder, by Vanston Hanover from Call Girl.

Cheer Leader, who has won six of her nine starts, is a two-year-old by the world champion Always B Miki and one of his second crop, out of Cherish The Moment 1:53.1 ($135,595), by Mach Three from the Australian and Victoria Oaks winner Cherry Cheer 1:56.7 ($278,372), a sister to Rhapsody In Red, the grand-dam of Racy Roxy.

This family has produced some useful pacers over the years. Charming Reminder left other winners in Left In The Red and Should Be Red, but neither reached Cherry Cheer’s class.

Gordon Rothacker Championship winner

Stravinsky, who won the Group 3 Gordon Rothacker Memorial Championship, the opening race on Inter Dominion Grand Final night at Melton, is a Sunshine Beach gelding from the same family as that which produced a top three-year-old pacer in Sky Strike.

A four-year-old, Stravinsky showed himself as an above average two and three-year-old, winning heats of the NSW Breeders Challenge and Regional series.

He has now won nine races and $82,924 in stakes.

Miss Toolern Vale, the dam of Stravinsky, took a record of 1:57.2 and was a Bettor’s Delight mare from Armbro Sunshine, an unraced mare by Armbro Operative. Miss Toolern Vale left earlier winners in Rocky Creed 1:52.8 ($127,492) and Ona Merry Dance.

Magnificent Storm star sprinter

Magnificent Storm advanced strong claims to being the best sprint pacer in Western Australia today when he scored an effortless win in the $50,000 Village Kid Sprint at Gloucester Park.

It was his eighth win for the season, of which all bar one have been at Group level. Earlier in the season he disposed of Gambit, Lavra Joe, Jumpingjackmac and others in the Mount Eden Sprint.

Magnificent Storm has not done a great deal of racing, having averaged 12 starts a season. In three seasons of racing Magnificent Storm has won 27 races and has been five times placed from 37 starts for $589,067.

By the Western Ideal horse American Ideal, he is out of the Group winner Splendour 1:56.2 ($142,217), by Bettor’s Delight from Splendid Deal, by In The Pocket from the noted producer Splendid Dreams, a half-sister to the champion racemare Adore Me.

Magnificent Storm is a brother to the good Perth winner Stamford (1:54.9), a winner of 11 races to date.

Siblings win at Menangle

Two of NSW’s star mares at present, and both recent winners at Menangle who promise to be a force in the upcoming mares’ features, are Be My Rose (American Ideal) and Miss Chantilly (Captaintreacherous).

Both bred by Barry and Katrina Purdon are out of Better Rose (1:59.7), a winner herself, and who has also left the 1:59 qualifier Benson Dude.

Better Rose was by Bettor’s Delight from the unraced Milagro, by Dream Away from the prized matron Aberfeldy, by Mark Lobell. The APG Gold Bullion winner and Inter Dominion finalist Beyond Delight is also a member of this family.

Three winners in a day

The Million To One mare Bitta Sweet Lombo left three winners in the space of 24 hours recently.

She notched a double at Mildura with Puopolo (by Santanna Blue Chip) and Woody Nightshade (by Sportswriter), while Whodat Boodat (by Heston Blue Chip) saluted at Port Pirie the following night.

All told, Bitta Sweet Lombo has produced five winners from six foals of racing age.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink