Distinguished Neigh-bour

Looking over the boundary fence at the moment is O'Leary brother's Who Shot theBarman, with all the bearing and circumspection of a character who's been somewhere/done something, coming up to the fence to check out having his photo taken.

All with some justification, as he's recently returned and spelling, after a trip to Randwick chasing the Sydney Cup. Not to be this trip, but his dozen or so lifetime starts to date having yielded the G1 Avondale and Auckland Cups. Plenty of time for more, he's only four.

Along with my father's Ruato win in the Auckland Cup in 1961, some mileage has been got out of a second one coming to this little part of the Whangaehu valley, but in fact there's a third slightly tenuous connection in the winning of that race by Neil Connor's Bodie in 2003, ridden by ace Noel Harris.

Neil moved from the valley some years ago, but the Connors family name is synonomous with racing in these parts, as our generation stem from a quadratic of racing fathers, Stan and Bill Connors, Humphrey O'Leary, and my father Don.

There's a bit of a mention in Noel Harris' book, "Harry, The Ride of My Life", which I've just finished.

For anyone involved in racing over a number of years, its a sometimes hilarious walk down memory lane, racing folk being the comedians they are.

But there's also a good examination of the life of dedicated racing people, and in Noel's case the demands on a jockey to keep peace with family, trainer, and owner connections, not to mention making correct weight and all the other self-management that comes with the game.

He laments the loss from the scene of the farmer/owner with 2 or 3 horses in work, loyal supporters of their chosen trainer and jockey.

Me too......

For some reason the economics of sheep and beef farming have switched over the years to being a benefit for the rest of NZ rather than one for us owners of farms, and small communities and their trainers have suffered decline as a result, as Noel refers, Woodville, Marton, Waverley, Feilding, Levin, Otaki.

Sigh...., those were the days!

Dad and I mostly had 2-3 in work at one time with Don Grubb at Feilding, Malcolm Smith also trained there.

The track's gone now, and I can hardly afford one in work.

New Arrival

Just one foal this season, born 11th Oct, by Helmsman, from Danske mare, Local Knowledge.
Back in the 2011 breeding season I'd invited Peter Hall to come along to Dalacine Farm taking a look at Indy King, who I was considering putting my own mare to.
I was taken with Helmsman's disposition as we passed his paddock, and with his conformation cover off, and then with his resemblance to Buckpasser, his paternal grandam's sire.
He was a fair performed Group winning horse himself too, over a million in stakes from 6f to a mile and a quarter, started his stud career in USA in 1998, and his US progeny have won over $18m.
Seriously, thats a lot better credential than many of the high priced stallions standing round the country these days. Its a rich pedigree to boot, not a bum line in the 5th remove, Northern Dancer on the top-line, with a 5x5 of War Admiral, and a 4x5 of Princequillo, giving Round Table in the dam's sire-line.
The dam had 9 foals to race for 8 winners, one other group winner beside Helmsman.
Knowing Peter and partners were in a hiatus with Local Knowledge I made an offer on the spot to go 50/50.
So, all year I've nursed this expectation of a mahogany bay Buckpasser look-alike, and was a bit dumbfounded when a little bay filly popped out instead, star, white hind fetlock, which set a memory bank scan in motion....... Danedream....
Back inside after the foal had got its first drink, she did that in short order too, I did a Google on last year's Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe, and bingo, little bay filly, star, white hind fetlock, only we got ours on the side opposite to Danedream's.
Main similarity is the Northern Dancer on top and bottom line, Danedream gets hers by Nijinsky over Danehill mare, our foal gets hers by El Gran Senor over Danehill mare, quite close on the Northern Dancer double.
Frankly, I think ours is a better pedigree with Sound Reason and Sir Tristram chucked in, yielding a double of Round Table 5x7, plus a 4x6 of Buckpasser, and the Northern Dancer 3x5x6.
Here we go...... dream number... whatever, lol

Aiyana finally gets a maiden win

With a nice run at the 26 April Blenheim meeting, she got a stylish length and a bit win in a maiden 1950m.
I can appreciate trainer Myers placing her in this race, one she could win, even if a short back-up from last Mondays start at Wanganui, where she was 9.5 lengths off the winner.
Looks like Aiyana's not a fast horse, she runs about 4 sec off the pace of higher rating fields over the 2000m odd distance. So far anyway, on G3 tracks.
How she'll go on easier ground comparative to the opposition, yet to find out. The team at Sandhaven Stables have done a great job getting her past the mind problems we thought she was carrying from her 3yo injuries, and it was pretty big of Peter McKenzie to suggest the change of stable as a possible solution.
At least now I have more data to add to her future breeding decisions, which are, stronger front lower limbs, and some speed blood, without sacrifice of marginal stamina and professional dosage.
I installed Tesio Power recently, interested to see it has a dosage analysis. Have to comment I disagree with the dosage analysis only going as far back as 5 generations. Knowing what I do about breeding both sheep and cattle, and more latterly how DNA is involved in the process, I'd agree with the original dosage architect, Franco Varola, that the compounding effect of Chefs de Race as far back as year dot gives the truer picture.
I've also enrolled for TAB's Race Tracker and am settling back to the task of nutting out what Kevin's up to with my horse, after the fact. It beats me how the newspapers can be picking her to win, when I dont even know she's going to the races.
On gripes yet to be settled, is the banning of owners from following their horses into the saddling/stall/stable enclosure. I guess plenty of trainers would like owners kept out of their hair, irrespective of any stated desire of NZ Racing to comply with OSH safety concerns.
But.... like many owner/breeders, handling horses of all levels of tractability is part of my daily work. Further, I'm not a "social" owner, I dont go to the races to ponce around, and have little use for the social one drink on the stewards after a race. Observation on all facets of my horses' performance however, is important to me, both on track and off, and to and from, so I can make the sort of breeding decisions that involve character and type as much as running performance.
I've spent something like $50k outside of breeding costs, getting this horse prepped to this 5yo stage, her earnings at the races so far will hardly cover 3 months training fees.
You'd think the industry would be a little less inclined to getting people like me pissed off.
Still, should comment what a picturesque course Blenheim's Waterlea is, and the camera work there for Aiyana's race rates among the best I've seen.
The gift pack presented by the club to winning owners is definitely a nice touch too.

Aiyana

Out in front first lap

This mare's earning her right to a post mention, running a nice maidener's 3rd in a 2100m at Tauherenikau yesterday.
Now 5yo, she had a couple of starts at 3yo for 4th's both times, but since then and the current campaign, had chips removed from her fetlocks.
Touch wood, there's been no recurrence this time, but thought in the camp was she might have been harbouring associated trauma memories, and to his credit, then trainer, Peter McKenzie, suggested a change in work regime might be the next consideration to work a mental change, dropping her off at Kevin Myer's Sandhaven facility for me.
Fingers crossed, it might be working.
Peter's magnanimity on this issue keeps him at No1 in my book.

Pursuant to my Nth American Indian naming theme, Aiyana means endless blossom, or always in flower.
She's a daughter of His Royal Highness, which is why I sought training with Peter in the first instance, out of Pompeii Rose, which makes her a half-sister of the Rayner trained stakes horse Valhalla, also bred here at Waione.
Pompeii Rose descends through Prairie Rose and Waione Girl, the family of our good gallopers Chief Joseph, Always Summer, Never Winter, stallion Siege Perilous, back to 22 family matron, Eulogy.

NewPlymouth 11/11

Fallenleaf

Fallenleaf

Naming horses is a bit of fun.
Since the days of breeding mares to War Hawk II I've taken to searching out good sounding North American Indian names.
Here's the latest, Fallenleaf, (Maltese Century - Ravenquiver), to join the racing team, a rising 5yo full sister of Four Swords.
She's only been doing pre-training work up at Dean Cunningham's so far, with a view to getting serious for winter 2012.

Understandably, the Indians dont like ancestor's names being taken in vain any more than Maori do, but I use the anglicised versions, with all due respect accorded. Big attraction for me is, in their language, they have a beautifully unique and descriptive way of putting words together.
Fallenleaf was a member of the Lakota Sioux nation who ranged west of the Missouri into Dakota.
Living around the late 1800's, she was described as "...... one of those individuals found in all lands, at all places, among all people...... misplaced", apparently not in harmony with her own people.
This may have been partly a result of her father, Spotted Tail, not being in synch with his fellow chief peers in seeing futility in warring with the encroaching whites, instead preferring to parley.
He was well rewarded by whites for this stance, even said this went to his head, and was eventually murdered by his own people.
Fallenleaf was thought to have had a long standing love affair with a long-knife officer, and on her death asked to be buried on a hill overlooking Fort Laramie.
Nice story, and in the naming, engenders a mindfulness in the way you look at and treat your horses.

The mare herself, by Maltese Century, a son of the excellent racehorse Century, (5 wins at 2 incl VRC Sires Produce S. and chart topping sire in Aus), and out of Love a Kiss, who was rated 2nd on the 2yo free handicap of her year. Century was also the sire of one of NZ's greats, Centaine.
Her dam Ravenquiver, a daughter of home-bred sire Siege Perilous, (Sir Tristram - Waione Girl), out of stakes placed Never Winter, (War Hawk - Prairie Flower), therefore double-bred with the studs own 22 family blood, with Sir Tristram and War Hawk chucked in.

Book: Waterhouse and Smith - John Ellicott

"The rise to power of two racing dynasties."
Took a while to read, not exactly gripping, but a lot of interesting stuff about the Sydney bookmakers and the Smith training empire, moreso when you know of the characters involved.
There's little doubt these families are part of the aristocracy of racing, the book gives you some appreciation of how they got there, not without a lot of hard work, blood, sweat and tears. As you see time and again in business, if family combinations work, stay, and play together, establishment, success, and growth can be phenomenal, if not steady.
From first mention of the Waterhouse name with the arrival of the First Fleet in Sydney Cove, (officer class, not cattle), through the Fine Cotton affair, to Tommy Smith's humble rural origins and Gai's eventual rise to Tulloch Lodge first lady, a fine sweep of aussie history.
Of particular interest to me, Midshipman Henry Waterhouse on first fleet ship Sirius took up taxidermy while in Sydney Cove, his growing collection being lost when the Sirius went down at Norfolk Island, another early penal establishment. Henry made rank of captain and in this capacity introduced a broodmare and some merino sheep sourced from Capetown. Grazier John Macarthur bought some of the sheep, to found a notable segment of the Australian wool industry, while Samuel Marsden bought some of the others, presumably they might have found their way to NZ.
My Old Man sent his good stayer Ruato over to Tommy Smith, where the horse got 2nd in the Queen Elizabeth Plate and a placing in the Tancred prior to running 7th in the Sydney Cup, but was sent home shortly after, ailing, it was subsequently diagnosed, from rickets. The horse had gone from having the daily run of a Wanganui grass yard to a 24/7 Sydney stable, the only green feed available was lucerne hay, and the ONE thing he wouldnt eat was....... lucerne hay.
Not all lost though, in those days you needed overseas funds to buy a new car, and the Old Man lent me enough to acquire my first car!
And the mighty horse, Kingston Town, who I saw win both the Derby and the Sydney Cup as a 3yo at the Easter meeting.
Final comment, one on Gai's pathway to assuming the Smith training crown. Well versed in the horse business of her father as a youngster, trackwork riding etc, she made the break to London to pursue an acting career, had parts in Dr Who, various plays, and on returning to Australia, Young Doctors, then her own show Track Time on Channel 7, the personal skills so acquired and honed standing her in good stead for her subsequent role at Tulloch Lodge.
Always good for dynastical aspirants to learn an outside trade, new skills introduced can take the family business places its never been.
Good read, 3 out of 5.