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

Gold strike in Hobart

Tasmania’s top race for the season, the $150,000 Tasmania Cup, run at Hobart was won by the Somebeachsomewhere gelding Wheres The Gold, who was bred by Auckland horseman Derek Moore.

Wheres The Gold was back in the field early running but raced to the front at the bell and finally won decisively from Stravinsky (by Sunshine Beach) and Rackemup Tigerpie (by Rock N Roll Heaven).

By the Mach Three horse Somebeachsomewhere, Wheres The Gold is out of Gold Elite (1:57.3), a winning daughter of Bettor’s Delight. Gold Elite left others in Commander Cathy 1:53.8 ($161,808) and Woman In Gold 1:53.6 ($134,520), who are both racing successfully in America, and last season’s NZ juvenile winner Charlie Brown (1:57.8).

Gold Elite was out of Hill Of Gold (2:00.2), by In The Pocket from Touch Of Gold, a Soky’s Atom mare from the noted Harold’s Rest family. Gold Elite was a sister to the millionaire NZ pacer Gold Ace (1:52.6), now a successful colonial bred sire, the exported Dark Energy 1:51.5 ($399,701), the NSW Listed winner Strike The Gold 1:51.9 ($180,724) and a half-sister to the Menangle winner Gold Rocks (1:52.5).

Their dam, Hill Of Gold, was a half-sister to the Cambridge Futurity winner Seeking The Gold 1:50.4 ($227,824), Golden Son (1:54.8), winner of the Waikato Guineas, and to Golden Charm (1:59), dam of the exported Coppertone 1:50.8 ($111,279).

The Harold’s Rest family had a terrific influence on NZ breeding through several branches.

Melton Plate to Better Eclipse

The $50,000 City of Melton Plate, for four and five-year-olds, one of the features of the autumn racing at Melton, was won by Better Eclipse, a strongly fancied gelding by Betterthancheddar from Power Of Eclipse.

Betterthancheddar, a son of Bettor’s Delight, has been most successful at the stud in both hemispheres. He has sired such winners as the Fremantle Cup winner Caviar Star, Better Be Donna (1:49.6), Betterzippit, My Sweetchilliphilly (Bathurst Gold Tiara), Jenden Strike and Resurgent Storm.

Power Of Eclipse, the dam of Better Eclipse, was by Northern Luck, a leading sire in WA, from Cammag Girl, a Windshield Wiper mare who left Lucknpower (1:58.3) and the Moonee Valley winner Lucky Eclipse (1:59), who, in turn, became the dam of the VHRC Cup winner The Defiant 1:56.9 )$101,920) and the Melton winner Follow The Eclipse (1:57.5).

Better Eclipse was bred by Joe Bajada.

Abouttime in 1:49.3

Abouttime (Art Major) became the 100th Australian bred 1:50 performer when he was successful in 1:49.3 at Menangle last Saturday, according to classicfamilies.net

By the Artsplace horse Art Major, Abouttime is from Limerick Star NZ (1:59.2), by Christian Cullen (a son of In The Pocket) from Lil’s Dream, by the Most Happy Fella horse Smooth Fella, a leading sire in both NZ and Australia.

Abouttime, who was bred Bill and Anne Anderson’s Lauriston Bloodstock, ranks as a brother to the APG semi-final winner Rosie OReilly (1:56.5), dam of the APG Gold Bullion and Tatlow Memorial winner Irish Black Label 1:55.4 ($121,480), and a half-brother to the millionaire pacer None Bettor (1:48.8), a winner in elite company in North America.

Won NSW Go Girlfriend 

Jo An Jo (Bettor’s Delight), who outfinished a strong field in the Harness Breeders NSW Go Girlfriend Final in 1:51.7 at Menangle, has an interesting and successful family background.

A four-year-old Bettor’s Delight mare, Jo An Jo has a wealth of breeding on her dam’s side, being out of the Somebeachsomewhere mare Jo An Leonie, a member of the prolific Jessie (by Osterley II) tribe.

Jo An Leonie, a Group 2 winner, was a half-sister to the smart Sunraysia pacer Magic In Her Moves (1:57.9). Their dam, Jo Louleonie, was a half-sister to a top pacer in Majestic Cruiser (1:51.9), the winner of six Group races and $892,474 in stakes, the Australian Pacing Gold winner Bus To Harland 1:55.6 ($317,869) and to Harper Grace (1:55.5), dam of the classic-winning WA juveniles Rock On Top 1:55.3 ($135,400) and Just For Love 1:57.5 ($126,894).

The branch of the Jessie family to which Jo An Jo belongs was established in the Bendigo district by the Dale’s Gift mare Laurick’s Pride, who was bred from extensively by Rick Hasty. She left 14 individual winners including the Vicbred champion Her Sparky Self and the cup winners Robric Jonboy, Send Me A Dream and Robyn’s Boy.

Daughters of Laurick’s Pride bred on with distinction and her family included the Vicbred winner Yejele Hammer, Gem Of Reibey (SA Oaks) and Katha Me Girl.

Jo An Jo is the first of the produce of Jo An Leonie, and being by Bettor’s Delight she would have more in her favour than most to extend the record of this noted family.

Charlton Cup to Cant Top This

Cant Top This, who won the Charlton Pacing Cup, after being required to race on the outside for the entire trip, has now won 11 races and $122,620 in stakes and is rated one of the brightest prospects in his class. He rates as a six-year-old half-brother by Rock N Roll Heaven to a brilliant but ill-fated pacer in Ideal For Real (1:54.4).

Ideal For Real, an American Ideal horse, won 13 races in a brief career including the NSW Derby, Breeders Crown and Vicbred Super Series.

Their dam, the American-bred Tamara Hall, a Real Desire mare from Tabloid (1:53.6), by No Nukes from Next Chapter, by Albatross, has proved a most successful broodmare. She is also the dam of The Deal 1:59.2, who won 10 races, Dream The Dream (1:56.5) and Nyota (1:57.1).

Tamara Hall was unraced but she was a half-sister to The Globe 1:50.6 ($772,462), a USA Stakes winner who later did stud duties in Queensland, the US Pacing Championship victor BJ’s Whirlwind 1:49.2 ($954,463) and True Blue Hall (1:49.2). 

Cant Top This was bred and is raced by Ballarat district breeders Bruce and Vicki Edward.

Star four-year-old by Art Major

Major Grace (Art Major), who is undefeated in four starts this season highlighted by the $30,000 George Johnson – Tasmania’s top races for mares – is regarded as one of the best young pacing mares in the country.

Only a four-year-old, Major Grace has a wealth of blood to back up her claims to further promotion, being by Art Major from Zariya, by Bettor’s Delight from the grand producer Pacing Grace (1:57.7), by In The Pocket from the Vance Hanover mare Jessie Grace.

Zariya, who was only lightly raced, was a half-sister to a host of smart performers including a top flight NZ juvenile in Pacing Major 1:52 ($732,656), the Group 3 NZ winner All U Need Is Faith ($597,691), who took his record of 1:49.4 in America, and the Menangle and Gloucester Park winner Amazing Art (1:57.4).

Three of Pacing Grace’s daughters in Pacing Delight, Maddison’s Delight and Grace Way bred on with marked success. Pacing Delight was the dam of the NZ Harness Million and SA Derby winner Aladdin (1:57.5), the Group 2 winner Virgil (1:52.3) and Mason’s Delight (1:51.9); Maddison’s Delight left the Queensland Derby winner American Dealer 1:49.4 ($508,430) and Grace Way left the Victoria Club Cup 3YO winner Three Ways (1:53.8), Make Way (1:51.7), the exported Shanway (1:51.8) and Forgotten Highway (1:55.6).

Bathurst Gold Coronet winner

London To A Brick (Bettor’s Delight), who won the Gold Coronet for three-year-old trotters at the Bathurst Gold Crown carnival, is a member of one of New Zealand’s most successful families of pacers.

London To A Brick could well have distinguished himself as a pacer as he was sired by Bettor’s Delight, leading sire of pacers for some years and his dam, I’m Justforyou (1:55.3), a good winner as a pacer, left the Albion Park winning pacer Sugar For My Honey (1:56.5) and the trotter Unspoken Love.

I’m Justforyou, who won six races, was a Christian Cullen mare from Just An Angel, by Artiscape from Almost An Angel, by In The Pocket from the Alba Byrd mare Alba Belle and tracing to the taproot Harold’s Rest.

Just An Angel was a three-quarter sister to An Angel Divine, dam of the NSW Sapling Stakes and Gold Crown heat winner Divine State, the one-time Australian two-year-old mile record holder at 1:51.6. 

Bettor’s Delight domination

Rather a notable siring feat was put up by Bettor’s Delight at Gloucester Park last weekend when he figured in the pedigrees of seven winners on the 10-race card. 

The champion Woodlands Stud sire left four winners himself in Diego (Governor’s Cup), El Chema, Don’t Bother Me None and Steel The Show. He was also the damsire of the winners Dominus Factum (by American Ideal), Classic Choice (by Sweet Lou) and He’s Never Been Beta (by He’s Watching).

American Ideal, another of the Woodlands team, sired a winning treble – Simply Shaz, Dominus Factum and the two-year-old filly Xceptional Arma.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink