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.

Western Gateway Pace winner

The $50,000 Western Gateway Pace, one of the major three-year-old classics of the season at Gloucester Park, was won by Christopher Dance, a colt by Sweet Lou from Just Dance.

CHRISTOPHER DANCE REPLAY

Christopher Dance, who has won four races and more than $90,000 in stakes, belongs to one of NZ’s most successful pacing families, being out of Just Dance (1:56.8), by Bettor’s Delight from We Love To Party, by Fake Left from the Butler B G mare Bee Gee’s Dream, the 2003 NZ Broodmare of the Year.

Just Dance was a sister to the Albion Park winners The Boys GNP (1:53.1) and Montana Lad (1:56) and a half-sister to the exported Democracy 1:50 ($435,760) and Coachella 1:49.2 ($359,480).

Their dam, We Love To Party, was a half-sister to the A. G. Hunter Cup winner Another Party 1:56.3 ($888,678), the NZ 2YO Filly of the Year Party Party 1:53.2 ($251,236) and the Victoria Queen of the Pacific winner Champagne Party (1:56.3).

This is the family which produced the Hannon Memorial winner Republican Party, Cowgirls N Indians (Harness Jewels), LL Cool J (Redcliffe Cup), Sherlock, Waylade (WA Mount Eden Sprint), American Boy ($840,929) and others.

Bred by Woodlands Stud, Christopher Dance is the first foal of his dam.

Jilliby Willow is well bred

Jilliby Willow, an impressive winner at Melton last Saturday and before that a close third in the $150,000 Queen of the Pacific, continues to prove herself in the top bracket among the female pacers.

She holds a record of 1:53.6 and a $134,010 bankroll, and is five-year-old mare by Captaintreacherous out of Miss Dream Star, by Four Starzzz Shark from Listen To The Rhythm (1:57.9), one of the best racemares in the Moonee Valley era and by In The Pocket from Cosmic Rain, by Soky’s Atom from the Franklin Cup victor Rain Girl.

Listen To The Rhythm, who won 15 races, became the dam of six winners including the NZ Sires’ Stakes champion Willow 1:51.4 ($304,416), who, in turn, left the Oamaru Cup winner Wild Willow (1:57.7), a winner of four of his six starts to date.

Another top pacer in Atitaagain 1:55.1 ($787,945), a multiple Group 1 winner and Australian Horse of the Year, belongs to this family which has produced others in the WA Diamond Classic winners Tricky Styx ($460,548) and Zephyra ($319,208), Rain Again (NZ Messenger), Go West U Terror (WA Pearl) and Reign Of Terror (QLD Premier’s Cup).

NSW Breeders Challenge winning line

The NSW Breeders Challenge semi-final winner Oliver Dan is a son of Bettor’s Delight out of a maternal family that produced two Breeders Challenge champions in Louvre and Renaissance Man.

Oliver Dan’s semi-final success was his eighth from 19 starts and lifted his stake tally to $147,259. He won six races as a three-year-old and qualified for the finals of the Victoria Derby, Breeders Crown and Breeders Challenge and this season he has won twice including the $100,000 Stockade.

Oliver Dan is out of the grand Presidential Ball mare Miss Hazel (1:57), a winner of 15 races and $310,063 in stakes and the dam of 10 individual winners including the Listed winner Christian Sloy (1:53.8), Hazelnuts (1:52.7), Duggee Sloy (1:53.9) and Roll With Me (1:56.2).

Miss Hazel, a dual Group 1 winner, was a half-sister to Louvre 1:54.5 ($402,665), the dual Group winner My General Lee 1:52.2 ($261,897) and the Derby winner Renaissance Man 1:53.1 ($297,904), being out of My Ami Lee, by Safely Kept from Cosmophylla, who established a great winning line for the Xerri family.

Captain’s Knock in 1:49.7

Captain’s Knock has joined the growing list of horses to enter the 1:50 list at Menangle. He recorded 1:49.7 when he was successful in a NSW Breeders Challenge semi-final for four-year-old entires and geldings.

By the Somebeachsomewhere horse Captaintreacherous – a champion pacer himself – Captain’s Knock is from Scarlett Finn, by In The Pocket from Went Motoring, by New York Motoring.

Captain’s Knock was bred by NSW breeder Joh Rutter.

Leading sire’s absence a loss

The spring racing at Melton further demonstrated the loss of the Muscle Hill horse Aldebaran Eagle to breeders.

With only four crops racing, he sired Rockinwithattitude, who finished second in the Vicbred Super Series and was a winner on Victoria Cup night, Gatesy’s Gem, who won the Tatlow Stakes and looks one of the best young trotters in the country, Aldebaran Boyd and Dichotomy.

In all, Aldebaran Eagle progeny have won 40 races this season for $440,000.

And in New Zealand, Aldebaran Eagle, who is still available to breeders through frozen semen, has sired four winners from only five foals including Eagle Hanover, a winner of four races to date.

Tenth winner from broodmare

When the Art Major two-year-old filly Shirley Not won a heat of the SA Golden Nursery, she credited her dam Saved A Corka with her tenth individual winner.

Shirley Not, bred in Victoria by Ted Caruana, had been placed in the SA Sapling Stakes. Others from Saved A Corka to win have been Aspiring Artist (1:52.7), who won the Golden Nursery in 2012, the Derby winner Major Exclusive (1:55), Sunshinenrainbows (1:56.6), Rap Artist (1:57.1), Ultimate Exclusive (1:57.5), Our Little Artist (1:58.1), Exclusive Maria (1:58.6), The Final Frontier (1:58.8), Binno Major (1:59.2) and now Shirley Not.  

Saved A Corka, who is now in her 21st year, has since produced a yearling filly by Art Major and a weanling colt by him.

Saved A Corka, a SA Oaks winner, was an Armbro Operative mare from the smart racemare Uncork, by Tuapeka Knight from Tales Of Tabella, a half-sister to the Group 1 winner Armchair Ride.

Volstead double

The Cantab Hall horse Volstead, who broke all siring records with his three-year-old crop this season, left the winners of both Victoria Trotters Derby heats in Keayang Zahara and Pinnie.

Both fillies are out of mares from the Muscles Yankee line, Keayang Zahara, who is unbeaten in 10 starts being from Keayang Yankee (by Muscles Yankee) and Pinnie, a winner of four races, out of Needle, by Muscle Mass (son of Muscles Yankee).

Volstead will be represented by five runners in the 12-horse field for the $75,000 Derby Final at Maryborough on Sunday. Besides Keayang Zahara and Pinnie, he has qualified Violet Stanford, Remus Phoenix and Argyle Rocks.

Lost 50 metres – and won!

One of the highlights of the feature racing at Globe Derby Park was turned on by the Betting Line youngster Lambro Mach, who broke soon after the start and gave the leaders 50 metres start.

With 1000 metres to run he was still 30 metres from the leaders, and his chance could have been written off. But Lambro Mach gained a nice trail into the race, moved into second position rounding the home turn and finally won by over a length. 

LAMBRO MACH REPLAY

Lambro Mach’s performance was an amazing one in every respect. He will be one of the leading fancies for the $25,000 Golden Nursery on Saturday night.

He is a son of the Bettor’s Delight horse Betting Line, a world champion who stood in Victoria for several seasons before returning to Canada.

Machabella, the dam of Lambro Mach, was a Mach Three mare from a good producer in Tender Reign, who left seven winners including the Group 2 winner Unique Icon 1:56.4 ($230,850).

Lambro Mach ranks as a half-brother to a top flight pacer in Emain Macha 1:53.5 ($298,519), a winner of 35 races including the 2016 Golden Nursery.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink