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.

Albion Park track record

A fresh track record rating for 1660 metres was established by the Sweet Lou gelding Duke Of Scotland of 1:49.1 – bettering the previous record of 1:49.2 held by stablemate Blacksadance by one-tenth of a second – when he won at Albion Park last Saturday.

Duke Of Scotland, who has now won seven of his 11 starts in Brisbane – he was placed in two others – is a member of the same family as Cardigan Bay.

Duke Of Scotland ranks as a brother to the exported Duke Of Cornwall (1:49.4) and a half-brother to the dual Group 2 winner Duke Of Wellington (1:53.6), being by Sweet Lou from the Christian Cullen mare Galleon’s Honour, whose dam Galleon’s Cheer (1:57.4), was by Albert Albert from Not Again Franco, by OK Bye from No Regrets, by El Patron from Baylight, by Light Brigade.

Galleon’s Honour was a half-sister to the NZ Oaks and Breeders Crown champion Cheer The Lady 1:55.1 ($314,625) and Galleon’s Warrior (1:55.4). 

Other members of this family, which was founded by the King Quail (thor.) mare Trilby, were the NZ Cup winner Globe Bay, Spanish Armada (NZ 2YO and 3YO Filly of the Year),  Franco Nelson, Montana Chief (1:49), Glenferrie Hood and the top trotters Red Hot Tooth and West Texas Crude.

Our Rocker unbeaten three-year-old

Our Rocker is proving himself a three-year-old of some worth in Victoria and over the holiday period he numbered the Vicbred Platinum Homegrown Classic at Melton among his successes, beating a very nice three-year-old in Ata Rangi (by Art Major).

The gelding is undefeated in three lifetime starts and will be well in line for next season’s four-year-old classics.

Bred by Peter Gleeson, who part-owns him, Our Rocker is a gelding by the Rocknroll Hanover horse Rock N Roll Heaven from Our Celebrity (1:55.1), a Group 2 winner by Mach Three from Celebrity Ball, by Presidential Ball from Larrakeyah Lady, a Vicbred champion who has established one of the most successful winning lines in the country.

Our Rocker ranks as a half-brother to this year’s Vicbred Super Series 2YO winner Always Hot (1:53.2), who is unbeaten in four attempts, and the 2023 Tasmanian Derby victor Celebrity Royal (1:53.1).

Inter City Pace winner

The most important race on the Maitland calendar, the $30,600 Inter City Pace, was won by the Sweet Lou mare Shez Sweet Louise, who stretched her unbeaten winning sequence to five.

Shez Sweet Louise was sent straight to the front and was never in danger of defeat, winning by more than a length from stablemate Fashion Icon.

Bred by Sheldon Murtha, Shez Sweet Louise is a four-year-old mare by Sweet Lou, a Yankee Cruiser horse who is a leading sire in both NZ and Australia, from the unraced Blaze Of Glory, by American Ideal from the Presidential Ball mare Jackie Onassis, a winning half-sister to the exported Atom Love 1:49.8 ($542,786).

Shez Sweet Louise is the third foal of Blaze Of Glory, who is also the dam of the good Menangle winners Unfazed (1:51.3) and Faze Of Glory (1:51.6)

Hexham Heartbeat’s daughter wins Homegrown

The Vicbred Platinum Homegrown Classic for three-year-old fillies, run at Melton, was won easily by Beat Sweet, a filly by Sweet Lou from the top racemare Hexham Heartbeat (by Artesian), who took a mile record of 1:57.6.

Hexham Heartbeat, the dam of three winners, was a half-sister to a top juvenile in Royal Verdict 1:53.5 ($537,522), a thrice Group 1 winner, and the Victoria Sapling Stakes winner Modern Girl (1:58.2), dam of the dual Vicbred finalist Magical Delight (1:56.2).

Beat Sweet, who was bred in NSW by Phil and Denise Thurston, looks a promising filly.

Leeton Breeders Plate winning line

The $30,600 Leeton Breeders Plate winner Business In Heaven is a son of Rock N Roll Heaven, who sired an earlier Plate winner in Blazing Home, and out of She’s All Business, a sister to the 2013 winner Business In Motion.

Business In Heaven’s Plate win was his fifth success and the third for his breeder-owner-trainer Colin Thomas, of Leeton.

Business In Heaven is out of the Courage Under Fire mare She’s All Business (1:56.8), a half-sister to five winners including the Listed winner Run Business Run (1:55.6) and Miss Busy Business, dam of the Listed winner Metal Rock (1:53.5).

Their dam, Unfinishedbusiness, was gotten by Troublemaker from the unraced Tibby, by Windshield Wiper from the crack WA racemare Burrows, who, at one stage, held the Australian mares’ mile record of 1:57.1 in a time trial at Gloucester Park.    

Leading sire’s absence a loss

The convincing win of Winnies Dream in the Haras Des Trotteurs Vicbred Platinum Homegrown Classic for three-year-old trotting fillies further demonstrated the loss of the Muscle Hill horse Aldebaran Eagle to breeders.

With only four crops racing, Aldebaran Eagle has sired a top flight racemare in Rockinwithattitude, the multiple Group 1 placegetter Dichotomy, Aldebaran Jensen (APG Sales Classic 3YO), the Vicbred Silver winner Aldebaran Boyd, Gatesy’s Gem, who won six races and looks one of the bets young horses in the country, Aldebaran Demi and Aldebaran Dexta.

In all, Aldebaran Eagle’s progeny have won $1.4 million at an average of $33,090 per starter. He has sired 29 winners from 43 starters.

The Homegrown Classic was a triumph for the Aldebaran Park stud as the runner-up, Kyvalley Misty, is a daughter of resident stallion Skyvalley.

Classic winner by Kvintet Avenger

Kvintet Hill, who won the Haras Des Trotteurs Vicbred Homegrown Classic for three-year-old trotters, is a product of the Love You horse Kvintet Avenger, who was bred in Finland and later raced successfully in Sweden, New Zealand and Australia.

Kvintet Avenger is now at the Truscott Lodge stud, Muckleford, Victoria, of Chris Angove, whose son Brad bred, owns and trains Kvintet Hill. From restricted stud chances Kvintet Avenger has sired the Vicbred champion Ebony’s Avenger and the metropolitan winners Stingofawasp, Koda Da Moda and Atego Dawn.                                                                                                                                                                                              

Yankee Truscott, the dam of Kvintet Hill, was by Yankee Paco, a successful sire of trotters, from Southern Truscott, a pacing bred mare who left a talented young trotter in Truscott Steel and the dual Derby winner Bad Boy Truscott, who later sired winners in Victoria.

This has been a most successful family, as Truscott Law, a half-sister to Kvintet Hill, won 10 races and finished runner-up in the Homegrown Classic.

by Peter Wharton, for Harnesslink