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.

Captain Hammerhead on Eureka trail

The Captaintreacherous entire Captain Hammerhead, who looks a possible contender for the $2.1 million The Eureka, further underlined his potential with a runaway win against a top field at Melton last Saturday.

It was the four-year-old’s fifth success from his last seven outings and his mile rating of 1:52.6 for 2240 metres was put up when he had nothing in his favour, drawing the outside of the front row and being forced to sit parked without cover most of the way. He is a very smart young pacer.

Captain Hammerhead has won $245,914 in stakes, a worthwhile return for the $90,000 paid for him at the Nutrien Equine sale at Oaklands Junction in 2021. 

By the Somebeachsomewhere horse Captaintreacherous, Captain Hammerhead is out of the handy Art Major mare Roger’s Passion 1:56.6 ($136,446), and is her first produce to race.

Roger’s Passion was out of the grand matron Intrude, by Fake Left (by Cam Fella) from the Toliver Hanover mare Avonali and tracing eventually to the noted family founder Bucklands Mare (by Vancleve).

Roger’s Passion was a half-sister to the outstanding racemare Make Mine Cullen 1:53 ($874,178), the Victoria Sapling winner Bella Joy (1:55.8) and Billy Badlands (1:55.7). Their dam, Intrude, was a half-sister to the Listed winner Trudee (1:58), Modern Attitude (1:53.7), Suncove (1:58.7) and others.

This is the family which produced horses the calibre of the NZ Jewels winner Supersonic Miss, Leonidas 1:48 ($1.3 million), Sicario (1:50.4), Make Mine Memphis, College Chapel (Bathurst Gold Crown) and Obahma Joy.

Melton winner from good broodmare

High Above, a Captaintreacherous four-year-old and a most impressive winner at Melton, is out of All The Magic, a lightly raced mare who is proving a successful broodmare.

All The Magic is also the dam of the speed merchant Ride High 1:49 ($289,427), now standing at Alabar Bloodstock, the 3YO Filly of the Year Rocknroll Magic 1:54.5 ($466,183), the Group 2 winner Always Fast (1:52.8) and All A Breeze (1:55.2).

All The Magic was a Live Or Die mare from Celebrity Ball, by Presidential Ball from Larrakeyah Lady, by Windshield Wiper from the Mark Lobell mare Hot Foot, who established a great winning line for Victorian breeders Peter Gleeson and Bruce and Craig Cameron.

It includes the A. G. Hunter Cup hero Safe And Sound, the Derby winners Petracca and Major Secret, the Oaks winners Very Pretty and Beauty Secret, Out To Play, The Good Times, Lovelist and numerous others.

Aardbytheseaside is top WA mare

The Downbytheseaside mare Aardiebytheseaside advanced strong claims to being the best racemare in WA today when she scored an effortless win in the $50,000 August Cup at Gloucester Park.

It was her sixth win from as many starts on Australian soil. Earlier in the season she disposed of Acharne Girl and others in the WASBA Breeders Stakes and before that she downed a class field in the $75,000 Empress Stakes.

Aardiebytheseaside has not done a great deal of racing, having averaged nine starts a season. In three seasons of racing Aaardiebytheseaside has won 14 races and has been eight times placed from 27 starts for $364,226.

By the Somebeachsomewhere horse Downbytheseaside, she is out of Divine, by Christian Cullen (an In The Pocket horse from the Pride of Lincoln family) from the grand producer Soky’s Sunday, by Soky’s Atom from the Able Bye Bye mare Tabella Beth, dam of the NZ Sires Stakes champion Spirit Of Zeus and the third dam of the Kiwi superstar Lazarus.

Bred by Woodlands Stud, Aardiebytheseaside is a half-sister to the Timaru Winter Cup winner Easy Rider (1:58.9) and Kingseat (1:59.2). She is the eleventh foal of her dam.

Derek The Jet unbeaten three-year-old trotter

The $30,000 The Holmfield, one of Victoria’s major three-year-old trotting classics of the season, was won by Derek The Jet, a gelding by the Cantab Hall horse Volstead who is unbeaten in five attempts to date.

Derek The Jet belongs to one of NZ’s top families of trotters, being out of the dual Group 3 winner Cyclone Jeter (1:58.4), by Majestic Son from the broodmare gem Cyclone Vance, by Safely Kept.       

Cyclone Jeter, a winner of 10 races, ranked as a sister to the Great Southern Star and Maori Mile victor Glenferrie Typhoon (1:53.5), the winner of 36 races and $561,169, and Cyclone Lucky Seven (1:56.3) and a half-sister to the double Jewels winner Cyclone U Bolt (1:54.5) and cup class trotters in Cyclone Jake (1:55.6), Cyclone Dream (1:58) and Cyclone S Adams.

Derek The Jet was one of three trotting winners on the night bred by Pat Driscoll’s Yabby Dam Farms, the others being Im Ready Jet and Keayang Chucky.

Broodmare treble

The Washington VC mare Washington Lass left three winners in two countries in the space of 24 hours.

Awaywego, a five-year-old gelding by Sunshine Beach, started the ball rolling when he hoisted a fresh lifetime mark on 1:49.2 winning at Hoosier Park, Indiana on Friday.

The following day Blacksadance (by A Rocknroll Dance) and the three-year-old Attachment (by Sunshine Beach) scored in 1:52.5 and 1:52.7 respectively.

The trio were bred by Taree (NSW) dairy farmer and hobby breeder John Polson.

Blue blooded filly

Tenaciously, a very impressive winner on debut at Bendigo recently, is a two-year-old filly who can claim some worthwhile blood.

By the champion sire Art Major, she is the first foal out of the grand Rocknroll Hanover mare Miss Graceland, whose dam, Amarillen, ranked as a sister to the Tasmanian Oaks winner Tenirama and a half-sister to the Group 1 winner Terryrama (1:54.2), their dam, Nellirama, being from the dual Oaks winner Nellie Robins.

Miss Graceland, the dam of Tenaciously, had a record of 1:54 and was the winner of 16 races including the Victoria Oaks and $244,658 in stakes. 

Tenaciously was bred and is part-owned by Benstud Standardbreds.

Siring treble by Lazarus

Former NZ champion Lazarus took the siring honours in the heats of the NSW Breeders Challenge Blue Series at Menangle on Monday when he sired three winners.

His winners were the two-year-old Soho Darknstormy (ex Grinfromeartoear mare), the two-year-old filly Violet Hanover (ex Trump Casino mare) and the three-year-old gelding Kick The Switch (ex Flightpath mare).

Maori Time’s first foal wins in USA

Generally Speaking, a three-year-old Swedish born son of the Australasian trotting mile record holder Maori Time (1:51.5), won in a slick 1:54.6 at The Red Mile, Kentucky last Monday.

The gelding is a product of the dual Swedish Horse of the Year Readly Express and was bred and is part-owned by Aldebaran Park principal Duncan McPherson.

Maori Time, who was shipped back to Australiia in June, has since produced a two-year-old colt by Readly Express which will race in Sweden and a weanling colt by Fourth Dimension, who is now in Victoria.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink