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.

Speak The Truth is well bred

Speak The Truth, who won at his first start this campaign at Menangle and is regarded as one of the top pacers in NSW, is a five-year-old gelding by Bettor’s Delight from Private Bronski, a useful racemare who took a record of 1:55.

He is a member of an old-time New Zealand family, which was represented by the winner of the QBred Triad for three-year-olds at Albion Park in Bronski Zulu a fortnight before Speak The Truth won.

Private Bronski was an Art Major mare from the dual Group winner Bronski Gorgeous (1:57.3), by Fake Left from Promise, by Land Grant from Blythbank Del, a fine racemare by Armbro Del.

Bronski Gorgeous, a winner of 23 races and $210,622 in stakes, became the dam of Group winners in Admiral Bronski (1:51.6), General Bronski (1:53.7), Bronski Zulu (1:53.1), the exported Brigadier Bronski (1:51) and Bronski Mackenzie (1:51.6) and Major Bronski (1:56.1), who is siring winners in Victoria.

Bronski Gorgeous was a half-sister to the Australian Pacing Gold winners Esprit De Kayjay 1:51.6 ($586,976) and Sir Galvinator 1:56.7 ($516,723) and to Promise Me Robin, dam of the dual NSW Group winner Tin Tin Jo (1:51.5).

This family has been bred from extensively by the well known Queensland horseman Stuart Hunter.

Speak The Truth ranks as a brother to Bronski Delight (1:52.4) and a half-brother to this season’s two-year-old winner Boston Bronski.

Breeding of The Eureka field

The leading sires Captaintreacherous, who has three runners, and Sweet Lou with two have left half the field in the $2 million The TAB Eureka at Menangle.

Captraintreacherous is represented by Sure Thing Captain, High Above and Captain’s Knock, while Sweet Lou’s entrants are Never Ending and Eye Keep Smiling.

Other sires with runners are Somebeachsomewhere (Bay Of Biscay), Art Major (Don Hugo), Bettor’s Delight (Major Delight), Wisper A Secret (Huntsville) and Hurrikane Kingcole (Free Thinker).

Bay Of Biscay and Don Hugo are the first foals of their dams, Sure Thing Captain is the fourth foal, Major Delight, Eye Keep Smiling, Free Thinker and Captain’s Knock are fifth foals, High Above is the seventh foal and Never Ending and Wisper A Secret are eighth foals.

NSW bred horses account for four of the 10-horse field, Victoria has three, Queensland (two) and WA (one).

Callmethebreeze on Dominion handicap trail

The French horse Callmethebreeze (Trixton), who returned to the fray with a decisive win Free-for-all company at Melton last Saturday, may race in the $400,000 Dominion Handicap at the NZ Cup carnival at Addington.

Imported from Europe by Victorian breeder Pat Driscoll’s Haras Des Trotteurs, the six-year-old Trixton stallion has raced only seven times in Australia and NZ for four wins, two seconds and a fourth. He was successful in the Group 1 $300,000 Great Southern Star (beating Just Believe) at Melton and the Group 1 $100,000 Hammerhead Mile at Menangle.

All told, Callmethebreeze has won 16 races and been 15 times placed from 45 starts for $1.7 million.

He is out of the Italian mare Gilly Lb, a dual Group 1 winner by Supergill (son of Super Bowl) from Rasia LB, by Nevele Pride from Caryn Lobell, by Speedy Crown – an unbroken chain of champion sires and broodmare sires. 

Fighter Command top three-year-old

The Always B Miki three-year-old gelding Fighter Command, a tough winner at Melton last Saturday, was scratched on the eve of the $2.1 million Eureka and underwent emergency surgery.

His winning sequence of five three-year-old starts including a track record-breaking success in The Beautide at Hobart and two at Melton makes him one of the best his age this season, and he looked to be leading contender for the Victoria Derby and Breeders Crown.

A strongly built youngster, possessing both speed and stamina, Fighter Command’s three-year-old earnings totalled $75,160 from seven wins and a second in nine starts.

Fighter Command’s dam, Spitfire Rose (1:58.4), was a dual Tasmanian George Johnson winner, being by Jereme’s Jet from Weona Beachley, an unraced mare and by the champion American colt pacer Jenna’s Beach Boy and whose mile in 1:47.6 stood as the world record for some years.

Weona Beachley was out of Weona Miss, by Troublemaker from the grand producer Weona Jewel, dam of the Inter Dominion champion Weona Warrior and final placegetter Weona Chief.

Smart trotter by Majestic Son

Im Bobby, who won twice at Melton last month and has worked his way back to a NR71 mark, is a Majestic Son five-year-old gelding from the same family as that which produced a champion Australian trotter in Maori’s Idol.

Im Bobby, who holds a mile record of 1:55.8, has been a model of consistency throughout his career, and it was a handy field he beat at Melton.

Aldebaran Peggy, the dam of Im Bobby, was unraced mare by the leading colonial bred sire Skyvalley from Maori Lindy, by Lindy Lane from Maori’s Glory, a finer racemare by Red Coach Glory from Maori Mia, by Kentucky from Maori Miss, who founded the greatest family of trotters in this country.

From the Maori’s Glory branch of it and to which Im Bobby belongs, others in the Victoria Derby and Oaks winner Pink Galahs, the Vicbred Final winners Spidergirl, Master Maori, Vincennes and Kinvara Sue and the Breeders Crown champions Illawong Armstrong, Kyvalley Kyrie and Cover Of Darkness are also members.

Carabao in 1:48.4

Carabao (American Ideal) has joined the growing list of Australian bred horses to enter the 1:50 list in America. He recorded 1:48.4 when he was successful in a $17,000 race at Pocono Downs, Pennsylvania recently.

By the Western Ideal horse American Ideal – a top colt pacer himself – Carabao is from Escovedo, by Western Terror from the grand producer Cerebrano, by the Johnny Globe horse Lordship, a dual NZ Cup winner and one of the finest pacers bred in NZ.

Escovedo, who was only lightly raced, ranks as a half-sister to the outstanding racemare and dual Oaks winner Innocent Eyes 1:57.6 ($421,875).

Carabao was bred by former champion Perth footballer and hobby breeder Bryan Cousins.

Award for leading Victorian breeder

Duncan McPherson, the principal of Aldebaran Park stud, has been recognised for his contribution to the sport with induction to the Victorian Harness Racing Hall of Fame.

McPherson bred and raced trotters of the calibre of the five-time Group 1 winner Aldebaran Zeus, the Oaks winners Aldebaran Keepa and Aldebaran Ursula, the Vicbred champion Aldebaran Eve, the Group 1 winners Keayang Ignite and Aldebaran Misty, and many others.

He has stood the award-winning stallions Skyvalley and Aldebaran Eagle at his northern Victorian stud and has been one of the sport’s major benefactors through his sponsorship of important carnivals and races on both sides of the Tasman.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink