Thoroughbred Owner Breeder

ÂŁ4.95 APRIL 2018 ISSUE 164

Native warrior

Richard Johnson and River surge to Gold Cup glory

PLUS

Adam Beschizza

US adventure pays dividends

Shooting the breeze

04

Top team of Roger Marley and John Cullinan

Howard Wright

Grand National off-time farce

Apr_164_Cover_v2.indd 1

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23/03/2018 18:21

37520_TheGurkha_TBOB_DPS_Apr18.qxp_Thoroughbred Owner & Breeder 21/03/2018 16:34 Page 1

Filly ex Divine Authority, bred by James Hanly

Colt ex Larceny, bred by Petra Bloodstock

Colt ex Trip To Glory, bred by Wadacre Stud

Filly ex Praskovia, bred by Sebastian and Thea Curran

• AUSTRALIA • CAMELOT • CARAVAGGIO • CHURCHILL • EXCELEBRATION • FASTNET ROCK • FOOTSTEPSINTHESAND • GALILEO • GLENEAGLES • • HIGHLAND REEL • HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR• IVAWOOD • KINGSTON HILL • MASTERCRAFTSMAN • NO NAY NEVER • PRIDE OF DUBAI • REQUINTO • ROCK OF GIBRALTAR • • RULER OF THE WORLD • STARSPANGLEDBANNER • THE GURKHA • WAR COMMAND • ZOFFANY •

37520_TheGurkha_TBOB_DPS_Apr18.qxp_Thoroughbred Owner & Breeder 21/03/2018 16:34 Page 2

Dual Gr.1 winning Champion Miler by GALILEO

11 sons of GALILEO have already sired Gr.1 winners!

Contact: Coolmore Stud, Fethard, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, Ireland. Tel: 353-52-6131298. Fax: 353-52-6131382. Christy Grassick, David O’Loughlin, Eddie Fitzpatrick, Tim Corballis, Maurice Moloney, Gerry Aherne, Mathieu Legars, Jason Walsh, Tom Miller or Neil Magee. Tom Gaffney, David Magnier, Joe Hernon or Cathal Murphy: 353-25-31966/31689. Kevin Buckley (UK Rep.) 44-7827-795156.

E-mail: sales@coolmore.ie Web site: www.coolmore.com All stallions nominated to EBF.

PEACE ENVOY

NEW FOR 2018

Power (GB) ex Hoh My Darling (GB)

• Winner of Jebel Ali Racecourse & Stables Anglesey Stakes (Gr.3) • Winner of Coolmore War Command Rochestown (C & G) Stakes (LR) • Placed 3rd in the Darley Prix Morny (Gr.1) (2yo Colts & Fillies) (Turf) to Lady Aurelia • 2nd in the GAIN Railway Stakes (Gr.2) • Highest RPR 112 OR 105

“He was a very smart juvenile.”

“He reminds me very much of Rock of Gibraltar.”

Ryan Moore

Aidan O’Brien

WORSALL GRANGE FARM

Low Worsall, North Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom Tel: 01642 789800 www.worsallgrange.com NOMINATIONS LUCY HORNER - Main Office: 01642 789800 Mobile: 07581107071 Email: Lucy@worsallgrange.com

Worsall Grange|2017|Peace Envoy|OB|A4|210mm(w) x 297mm.indd 1

08/11/2017 14:51

Welcome

Fair crack of the whip fuels Beschizza’s US dream

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£4.95 APRIL 2018 ISSUE 164

Native warrior

Richard Johnson and River surge to Gold Cup glory

PLUS

Adam Beschizza

US adventure pays dividends

Shooting the breeze

04

Top team of Roger Marley and John Cullinan

Howard Wright

Grand National off-time farce

Apr_164_Cover_v2.indd 1

9 771745 435006

www.ownerbreeder.co.uk

Cover: Colin Tizzard and Richard Johnson are all smiles after Native River wins the Cheltenham Gold Cup in March Photo: Trevor Meeks

Apr_164_Editors.indd 3

Edward Rosenthal Editor

23/03/2018 18:21

ortune favours the brave, they say – Adam Beschizza has literally found that to be the case during his spell riding at Fair Grounds in New Orleans. His terrific run of form is set to see the 25-year-old extend his American adventure to take in Keeneland’s high-profile meeting that begins in early April, and possibly other fixtures beyond that.

At the time of writing and with just over a week of the season to run, Beschizza had ridden 57 winners – and his mounts earned $1.46 million – to occupy second place in the jockeys’ table, three winners behind Shaun Bridgmohan and one place ahead of Florent Geroux, Gun Runner’s pilot, who had claimed the Fair Grounds riding title in the previous two seasons.

Beschizza spent a few months working in the States in 2009 when an apprentice but had never ridden a winner over there before November. Riding primarily for trainer Joe Sharp, his momentum has propelled him up the table ahead of a host of Fair Grounds regulars, who are probably thinking – who is this British guy with the unusual surname winning all these races?

In Britain, Beschizza has enjoyed some notable successes, his Cambridgeshire-Cesarewitch feat of 2015 the high point of a career that has yielded over 200 winners to date. The aforementioned ‘Autumn Double’ earned him plaudits but not, it seems, a high-profile job with a big stable. When the opportunity arose to return to the States, he took it with both hands. How it’s paying off.

Of course, Beschizza is not the first jockey to cross the Atlantic and try his luck. A glance further down the Fair Grounds standings reveals the names of compatriots Jack Gilligan (24 winners) and Sophie Doyle (ten winners). At Golden Gate Fields in California, Tom Queally is giving it a go, while Darryll Holland has based himself at Gulfstream Park in Florida. However none has made the same impact as Adam Beschizza, who must be congratulated for his endeavour in trying something new to improve himself.

So how long will Beschizza’s American tour continue? “In my heart I’d be back in England tomorrow,” the rider tells Tim Richards (Talking To, pages 52-55). “But my mind is telling me that

professionally, this is the best place to be.” The number of winners, as always, will dictate his next move. With a five-year visa in place, he has the opportunity to establish himself as a leading jockey in the USA. Richard Johnson has no need to do anything different in the saddle and in the Colin Tizzardtrained, Brocade Racing-owned Native River, he found the perfect ally to help capture his second Cheltenham Gold Cup in March.

This year’s Blue Riband will live long in the memory, as Native River and Might Bite had the race between themselves from some way out. Might Bite under Nico de Boinville looked to be travelling

“The jockey must be congratulated for his endeavour and success” the better turning for home but his rival would not lie down and after a titanic duel, it was Native River who emerged victorious under a terrific frontrunning ride from Johnson. George Selwyn’s superb photos capture all the drama of this year’s Festival on pages 18-26.

For Nicky Henderson, Might Bite’s defeat was a minor setback in a week that saw the champion trainer take the Champion Hurdle with Buveur D’Air for the second year running and the Queen Mother Champion Chase with Altior.

Buveur D’Air will bid to emulate his owner JP McManus’s brilliant hurdler Istabraq by winning three Champion Hurdles, though the route for the outstanding Altior appears less certain. The way he finished his race, after never looking happy on the testing ground, suggests a step up in trip would suit. Could he be a potential Cheltenham Gold Cup winner? Possibly. Is he the most exciting chaser in training? Definitely.

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23/03/2018 18:59

Contents

April 2018

56

52

34

News & Views

International Scene

ROA Leader

View from Ireland 7

Movement after Brexit

TBA Leader 9

News 11

Changes 14

News in a nutshell

40

Florent Geroux in focus

42

Features The Big Picture

Tony Morris 32

Honouring Humorist

Cheltenham Festival

18

From The Archives

Howard Wright 34

The day Pridwell beat Istabraq

30

Talking To...

Racing Life

Jockey Adam Beschizza

Holidays, dining and fashion

4

Success in the snow

Around The Globe

Gender pay divisions at BHA

From Rome to Mayfair to Cheltenham

37

Continental Tales

Breeding base needs attention

Grand National stop-start

Western Whisper’s last hurrah

44

52

Breeze-up dream alliance Church Farm Stables & Horse Park Stud

56

THOROUGHBRED OWNER & BREEDER INC PACEMAKER

Apr_164_Contents.indd 4

23/03/2018 18:55

42

24

Features

Forum

Castlebridge Consignment One of Europe’s premier outfits

ROA Forum 62

Sales Circuit Cheltenham Festival auction

68

‘Stars of Tomorrow’ Foal Show

86

Breeder of the Month 72

Dr Statz Unbridled’s Song’s success

76

TBA Forum

Caulfield Files Kingmambo male line

Racing staff pay deal

Ivor Valentine for Edwulf

90

Vet Forum 94

Treating equine wounds

92

24 Hours With...

Racing to School’s Ollie McPhail

96

Forum The Thoroughbred Club Performers and producers

Apr_164_Contents.indd 5

74

Did you know?

Our monthly average readership is

20,000 THOROUGHBRED OWNER & BREEDER INC PACEMAKER

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23/03/2018 18:55

Bearstone TOB April 18:Layout 2

12/3/18

14:49

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ROA Leader

Nicholas Cooper President

Horses and their carers inseparable over Brexit W

ith the UK now adopting a ‘hard Brexit’ position, British racing and bloodstock is highly motivated in responding to this enormous challenge to the industry.

Any restriction that inhibits the free movement of thoroughbreds and racing staff throughout Europe would have potentially disastrous results, as Brexit challenges many of the fundamentals in transporting horses from country to country that we have always taken for granted.

You only have to consider the number of Irish horses that travelled here for the Cheltenham Festival to appreciate the complications that would arise if EU law, post Brexit, insisted that strong border controls were imposed. Worse still would be the catastrophic effect on British, Irish and French bloodstock if the easy movement of yearlings, foals and mares to the sales was frustrated by increasing red tape.

The tripartite agreement between the UK, Ireland and France, put together in the 1960s, facilitates the movement of around 25,000 thoroughbreds a year. But it appears that Brussels is currently taking the view that this arrangement will be negated when the UK comes out of the Customs Union.

British racing has had a Brexit Steering Group in operation for some time. Its agenda comprises horse movement and transport, animal health and welfare, movement of people and political communications. The group has been working with our Irish and French counterparts and has the support of two important government departments in Defra and DCMS. Animal health and welfare is crucial to the free movement of thoroughbreds. Any ruling that, for example, causes a horse to remain in its box for so long a period that its health may be affected should not be condoned by any civilised nation, let alone the EU. It may be significant that the EU is proposing to introduce the Animal Health Law in 2021. This law covers identification, premises control and movement. If, as expected, it does much to replicate the terms of the aforementioned tripartite agreement, it could also be adopted by the UK once we are outside of Europe as a way of solving many of the problems.

However, the official date for the UK to leave Europe is March 29, 2019 and, even now that the 21-month transitional period to December 31, 2020 is agreed, it would be dangerous to rely solely on this piece of new legislation coming through in time.

Not only does Brexit raise major concerns with the transport of horses across European borders, but we also have to consider the implications for the staff who travel with them. Smoothing the passage for horses without making similar provisions for their carers would be an obvious nonsense.

Apr_164_ROALeader.indd 7

Racing’s workforce is, of course, high on the Brexit agenda.

Even today, racing has a severe staffing shortage and this could turn into a crisis if exacerbated by our leaving the EU. It is estimated that 11% of racing grooms working in the UK currently come from countries in the European Economic Area, while a further 13% come from non-EEA countries.

It is therefore important that the British government is persuaded to include stable staff on its skilled worker list when it is time to decide on who will be able to work in the UK after we come out of Europe. Such a move might also attract a higher number of workers from non-EEA countries, especially as British racing would then have the ability to convey the attractions of working in the UK to foreign horse people.

“The government must include stable staff on its skilled worker list when we exit Europe” With horses requiring passports and, often, vets’ certificates, much of the infrastructure is in place to help racing with the Brexit problem. Furthermore, the racing world has done a good job in persuading the British government of this industry’s social and economic importance. Even allowing for the vast Brexit workload in which all areas of administration is now immersed, it is reassuring to know that racing’s problems are being addressed.

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23/03/2018 17:01

TBA Leader

Julian Richmond-Watson Chairman

Scheme for British-breds should be considered A

ttending a recent British Racing Industry Roadshow, where a range of topics, from regulation, ownership and promotion of the sport to under-18s, was promoted from the stage, and industry employment and the fixture list were hotly debated from the floor, I realised how complacent Britain has become about the supply of its essential raw material.

Even with the potentially damaging elements of Brexit looming, there appears to be little concern that the horse, the essential ingredient for the future of the sport, will continue to be produced and be available in sufficient numbers and of sufficient quality to populate the fixture list, which ultimately provides the reason for all that employment and racegoer attendance.

Working on the TBA’s policy to base its strategies on evidencebased information, the board has commissioned an Economic Impact Study to examine the state of British breeding. The report will be out by June, and, without wishing to prejudge its findings, I have little doubt it will expose the fragility and poor economics of breeding in Britain.

The TBA is also leading the industry’s Breeders’ Strategy Group, which has looked at how several overseas jurisdictions appreciate the importance of the supply side, how they support their breeders, and what the effect of that support is.

As I have previously mentioned, 10% of France’s total prize fund, which works out at €26 million, is used to support premium schemes for owners and breeders of French-bred horses. The results are clear: the number of thoroughbred foals born in France in 2017, 5,334, has almost returned to the level of 2008, while over the same period the number bred in Britain has fallen from 5,920 to 4,778, a reversal of more than 1,100 foals in the space of ten years.

French breeders are proud of their success, and as more stallions are being located in France, and covering more mares, they now have 306 stallions to choose from, compared with 169 in Britain. Taking up a message from the Caulfield Files in last month’s magazine, it is obvious that the French breeding industry is thriving.

In the US, state-by-state schemes abound, with California just one interesting example, where $30m is provided to support local breeders. There is a particular keenness on attracting stallions and 25% of the awards are based around the progeny of California-based stallions. Races restricted to Cal-bred horses are also staged, but tempting though it might be, that’s not something I would advocate for Britain!

Australia also has a myriad state schemes to encourage local breeders, while the survey revealed that most major racing jurisdictions give substantial support to breeders to ensure the

Apr_164_TBA_Leader.indd 9

supply of horses to fulfil the requirements of racecourses and public alike.

There is one very obvious exception to the general rule – Ireland. And for that situation there is a simple explanation: the British market provides adequate incentive for the Irish.

Commercial history is littered with industries that have relied on relatively cheap imports, produced under – as in this case – more benign fiscal conditions, where home production has been damaged to such extent that it becomes unviable and many home producers disappear.

Ireland does not need to subsidise its breeders. Britain provides a ready market and an enormous fixture list, and even those horses not bought to race here are encouraged to plunder

“Most major racing jurisdictions give support to breeders to ensure the supply of horses” British prize-money, which this country has worked so hard to build up.

With Brexit on the horizon, Britain needs to secure its base of breeders through a prize-money support scheme that positively favours British-bred horses. Reallocating 10% of levy prize-money to support owners and breeders of British-bred horses would strategically affect behaviour among breeders and buyers. It should benefit everyone involved in the sport in Britain.

The saying ‘charity begins at home’ has its origins in the 17th century but still holds good. British racing must be ambitious, and I call on all those involved to support breeders and owners with a meaningful redistribution of prize-money aimed at those who support us and buy or breed British.

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23/03/2018 17:06

News

Stories from the racing world

Executive bonuses exacerbate gender pay gap at BHA T he BHA has revealed a mean gender pay gap of 16%, below the national average of 18.4% but much higher than the Jockey Club’s 3%.

British companies with 250 or more employees are now required by law to reveal their gender pay gap data, the deadline for release being set at the end of last month for public bodies and April 4 for companies.

Racing has performed better than other sports, however, with the Football Association having a pay gap of 23% and the Lawn Tennis Association 31%.

One statistic revealed by the BHA, that of a mean bonus pay gap of 66%, might raise eyebrows, not just because of the gap between men and women but the simple fact bonuses are paid within an organisation perceived, at least, to be a non-profit operation.

In December 2016 it was announced that owners’ fees to the BHA would rise by 7.5% over the next three years, as the regulator sought to eliminate a £645,000 budget deficit that emerged that year, driven in part by a sharp increase in legal costs.

Legal and professional costs surged

more than 25%, costing the BHA £1.285 million in a year in which the regulator was burdened by significant additional spending, due to rehearings associated with cases chaired by former disciplinary panel member Matthew Lohn.

The BHA’s bonus gender pay gap is said to primarily be a result of a performancerelated incentive plan at executive level, which, at the time of the pay-gap survey, had a composition of 70% male and 30% female. The median bonus pay gap is 33%.

BHA Chief Executive Nick Rust has said there is an ongoing effort to attract more women into the organisation at managerial levels.

In the BHA’s report on the subject, Rust said: “The BHA’s gender pay gap is primarily owing to the fact that there are fewer women in senior management positions and senior raceday roles and a relative concentration of women in the lowest pay quartile.

“We must therefore ensure we create the right environment and pathways for men and women to progress within the organisation and that we have a formal succession planning process in place along

Nick Rust: BHA must attract more women

with increased investment in training and development of our staff.

“My executive team and I have recently begun a programme of unconscious bias training that will be undertaken by the BHA’s senior management and those responsible for the recruitment and development of staff at the BHA. “We are committed to attracting more women into the organisation at managerial levels and to traditionally male-dominated roles and teams.”

Rust added that an audit of the BHA’s recruitment process will be undertaken.

He said: “We’re conducting an audit of our recruitment practices to ensure we are advertising and filling job vacancies to best practice and meeting our diversity and inclusion objectives. This will include introducing anonymous application to eliminate unconscious bias at the shortlisting stage.”

Remarkable Racecourses revealed Thoroughbred Owner Breeder contributor Tom Peacock has written a must-have book for any owner or racegoer with any semblance of wanderlust.

Remarkable Racecourses, published

by Pavilion Books, brings together tracks from around the world that help to make horseracing the fascinating sport that it is.

Close to home, we have the likes of Ascot, Cartmel and Goodwood – officials at Exeter and Worcester will be pleased, possibly even surprised, by their inclusion – but it is the author’s travels to farther-flung destinations that are really key to the book’s appeal, along with a fine collection of glossy photographs.

The Haji Muhammad Hassan Gayo Race Grounds (it’s in Indonesia), the

Apr_164_News.indd 11

Royal Turf Club Nuwara Eliya (Sri Lanka) and the Golden Spike Event Center, Ogden (USA) would not be part of many racing fans’ bucket list but Peacock puts them on the map, along with dozens of other intriguing tracks.

It is a good read and reasonably priced given its bulk and hard-to-comeby content.

Even hotter off the press is the Horse Racing Manual, by the same writer.

Haynes Publishing is behind this in-depth guide to ownership, training, racegoing and the sport in general.

This is quite a clever concept, the idea, feel and look of the book somehow akin to yesteryear, the sort of book a young and curious Tony Morris would have enjoyed.

The sense is that it is aimed at the

racing beginner, but there is more to it than that and should it be a gift for a friend or loved one already ensconced in racing, they are still certain to find a section or three they want to read.

Remarkable Racecourses, published

by Pavilion Books, £25.

Horse Racing Manual, published by Haynes Publishing, £22.99.

THOROUGHBRED OWNER & BREEDER INC PACEMAKER

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23/03/2018 18:54

News

Alec Russell remembered Alec Russell, who passed away in February aged 85, was one of the most innovative and popular racing photographers of the past half century. Thoroughbred Owner Breeder’s George Selwyn knew Alec for 45 years and pays his tribute to his former colleague I first met Alec in 1973 at the Grand National meeting in Liverpool. Another colleague, Ed Byrne, was staying with Alec in a hotel in Mount Pleasant near Lime Street station. I mentioned to Ed that I was looking for somewhere to stay and that’s how I first came into contact with Alec.

That hotel became our regular booking for Aintree and had the advantage of being close to the station – handy for visits to Ginger McCain in Southport to photograph Red Rum training on the beach, and for putting black and white prints of the early morning trackwork at Aintree on London-bound trains at Lime Street, to be collected at the other end for publication in The Sporting Life and other newspapers.

The sport was far less regulated in those days and more spontaneous, certainly less bureaucratic. This was the era of Red Rum, Night Nurse and Sea

In the frame: Alec Russell at the Cheltenham Festival in 1976

Pigeon – a great time to be taking photos on the racecourse.

In the 1980s a few of us would stay with Alec and his family, wife Shirley and children Jo, Dave and Alan, just outside Malton for York’s Ebor meeting. At that time, he was combining his horseracing work with theatre photography at York and Scarborough. He photographed many of the Alan Ayckbourn plays that premiered at Scarborough before they transferred to London’s West End. Alec worked mostly in the north but covered some meetings in the south, providing a great opportunity to catch up over a show or concert in the evening.

I recall Alec using a Canon 35mm along with Bronica and Yashika 6x7cm film cameras in the early days, later going digital in about 2003. One of my favourite photographs by Alec is of Jonjo O’Neill when he trained at Penrith,

jumping down on rocks in the middle of a fast-flowing stream. It was used on the front of the Racing Post. He also supplied photographs to some of the nationals, The Sporting Life, Timeform, Horse & Hound and latterly his local paper, Yorkshire Herald (now Gazette & Herald).

During the Ebor meeting last year I met up with Alec. He wanted to show me Jack Berry House and meet his daughter Jo, who previously worked for Clive Cox in Lambourn before being appointed manager of the facility when it opened in 2015, something of which I know he was very proud.

Alec was a proud Yorkshireman and not a fan of the establishment. He was a big influence on me and I have many fond memories of him. He will be dearly missed by his family, his former colleagues, the Malton community and all those who knew him both on and off the track.

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23/03/2018 18:54

TWEENHILLS TIMES AN EYE FOR SUCCESS

APRIL 2018

HAVANA GOLD STAKES TALLY NOW FOUR Havana Gold gained his third and fourth Stakes wins in March courtesy of Headway and Barade, the former showing an electric turn of foot at Lingfield...

Headway, twice Gr. 2-placed as a twoyear-old, was around 10 lengths adrift of the leader when shaken up around two furlongs out yet won the Listed Spring Cup by a cosy length.

Congratulations to his owners The Royal Ascot Racing Club, breeders Whatton Manor, Global Equine and Larry Stratton,

and buyers John and Jake Warren – he was outstanding value at 60,000gns!

Barade showed a fantastic attitude when winning the Listed Prix Maurice Caillault at Chantilly on his French debut (also won in Sweden). He was bred by Haras de la Huderie, bought by Meridian International for €58,000 at Arqana and carries the colours of Finn Blichfeldt.

…AND FOUR CLASSIC ENTRIES Entries have been made for the Newmarket Classics and Havana Gold has three sons in the 2,000 Guineas and a daughter in the 1,000 Guineas.

The genuine Barade wins a Chantilly Listed race

ZOUSTAR FILLY WINS GROUP R ACES

Headway and unbeaten pair Raid and Tabdeed could all represent Havana Gold in the colts’ Classic on Saturday 5 May. Raid is owned by Qatar Racing, as is Havana Gold’s unbeaten 1,000 Guineas contender Worship.

Classic-entered Raid winning on debut

TWEENHILLS GR ADUATE WINS GROUP 1

No second-crop sire has more Newmarket Classic entries than Havana Gold and, with Gr. 1 Commonwealth Cup contender Havana Grey also on his team, he looks set for another big year.

North America — a Gr. 1 winner born at Tweenhills

The future looks very bright for Australian first-season sire Zoustar after his daughter Sunlight won both the Gr. 2 Silver Slipper Stakes and Gr. 3 Magic Night Stakes.

North America was sold as a foal to John Ferguson for 100,000 guineas.

Sunlight beat chief market rival Estijaab after a battle in the Silver Slipper and her winning time was only 0.61 outside the race record. Sunlight completed the five-timer in the Gr. 3 Magic Night and is now favourite for the Gr. 1 Golden Slipper, which takes places as this issue goes to print.

Another Tweenhills homebred, former Royal Ascot runner-up Bletchley, made a winning start to her career in the US on March 15. She is now trained by Mark Casse for a partnership between Keystone Racing and Qatar Racing.

Sunlight has been a superb advertisement for her sire Zoustar, who also recorded his first double when newcomer Lean Mean Machine and Madam Rouge won at Warwick Farm on March 14. Exciting times.

The Qatar Bloodstock-bred North America was a runaway winner of the Gr. 1 Al Maktoum Challenge R3 at Meydan on March 10.

North America was born and raised at Tweenhills until being sold as a foal. After going down by a neck to Thunder Snow in February, he reversed the form in Round 3 of the Al Maktoum Challenge.

North America is out of the Yankee Victor mare Northern Mischief, who was bought

by David Redvers for 120,000 guineas at Tattersalls in 2011 carrying North America.

Sunlight (right) wins the Gr. 2 Silver Slipper

Tweenhills, Hartpury, Gloucestershire, GL19 3BG W: www.tweenhills.com T: + 44 (0) 1452 700177 M: + 44 (0) 7767 436373 E: davidredvers@tweenhills.com

Changes

Racing’s news in a nutshell

People and business Joe Osborne Will return to his former role as head of the Irish operation for Godolphin, with the position of Group Chief Executive being abolished.

The Seafood Restaurant One of racing’s great dining institutions, next door to Yarmouth racecourse and which welcomed the likes of Sir Henry Cecil, closes down.

Serena Brotherton

Successful amateur rider becomes only the second British jockey after Lester Piggott to ride at the Hipodromo de Monterrico in Peru.

Silk Series Female riders’ series won last year by Paul Nicholls’ daughter Megan is expanded for 2018, with total prize-money boosted to £150,000.

32Red Betting firm signs three-year deal with ARC to sponsor the Lincoln Handicap.

Identity checks High-profile ‘wrong horse’ mix-ups lead to BHA introducing enhanced scanning procedures in the form of a race-specific identity check.

Mercy Rimell Late trainer’s house in Upton-upon-Severn, Worcestershire, to be sold at auction this month, with a guide price of £650,000.

Keelan Baker Apprentice, 17, targets return to the saddle later this year after suffering a serious leg injury in a fall at Wolverhampton in February.

Phoenix Thoroughbreds Big-spending partnership parts company with bloodstock agent Kerri Radcliffe. Her successful buys include Grade 1 winner Dream Tree.

York Retains its crown after being voted Racecourse of the Year 2017 by the Racegoers Club, the eighth time it has been awarded the top title.

Fred Winter Name of the legendary trainer is dropped from race title of Cheltenham Festival handicap hurdle with sponsor Boodles wanting a higher profile.

Tony Kelly Former Arena Racing Company Chief Executive moves back to Britain after two and a half years with the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

Ryan Hatch

Cheltenham Festival-winning jump jockey attached to the Nigel Twiston-Davies stable retires on medical advice aged 24.

Uncovered Lambourn band which includes racing staff covers Bill Withers’ 1972 classic Lean On Me to raise money for Racing Welfare.

Dave Brown Is to retire from his role as Ladbrokes Coral Group Trading Director, after 40 years working in the bookmaking sector.

Hereford Track plays host to a new mares’ chase series culminating in a £30,000 final at the course on December 15.

Ladbrokes Coral Will convert three former betting shops in the Midlands into adult gaming centres, also known as arcades.

Fred Done Sells a 25% stake in his Tote operation to a consortium that will result in reduced deductions from pool bets.

Racehorse and stallion

Movements and retirements Redicean Cheveley Park Stud owners David and Patricia Thompson, who sold the horse they bred for 50,000gns, buy him back ahead of the Triumph Hurdle.

Merchant Navy Australian sprinter will be handed the chance to secure a northern hemisphere stallion career in joining Aidan O’Brien’s string to prepare for a tilt at Royal Ascot.

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Serienholde Winner of the Preis der Diana is sold in foal to Kingman to Katsumi Yoshida’s Northern Farm.

Vroum Vroum Mag

Rich Ricci’s outstanding mare, winner of Grade 1s over two and three miles and successful at the 2016 Cheltenham Festival, is retired aged nine.

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Changes

Horse obituaries Trempolino 34 Won the 1987 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe for Andre Fabre, he sired dual Group 1 winner Valixir and Germany, sire of exciting hurdler Samcro.

North Hill Harvey 7 Grade 2-winning chaser from the Dan Skelton yard who was one of six fatalities at last month’s Cheltenham Festival.

Elusive Quality 25 Pensioned champion North American stallion who supplied successful sires such as Elusive City, Evasive, Quality Road, Raven’s Pass and Sepoy.

Samum 21 Former champion German racehorse – he won the German Derby and Grosser Preis von Baden – and sire.

Poet’s Voice 11 Darley’s homebred Queen Elizabeth II Stakes winner who sired no fewer than 29 juvenile winners in 2017.

Thunder Gulch 26 Kentucky Derby winner in 1995 for Michael Tabor and later a successful stallion for Coolmore, his progeny including outstanding colt Point Given.

Dr Devious 29

1992 Derby winner trained by Peter Chapple-Hyam who also landed the Dewhurst and Irish Champion Stakes in a stellar career.

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Le Fou 19 Haras de Sivola stallion who was a halfbrother to Montjeu and formerly stood at Arctic Tack Stud in County Wexford.

The Wow Signal 6 2014 Prix Morny winner who was retired to stud at owner Al Shaqab’s Haras de Bouquetot.

Ubak 10 High-class hurdler owned by Nick Peacock and trained by Gary Moore whose two victories both came at the Grand National meeting.

Pilgrims Bay 8 Beat subsequent King George runnerup Double Shuffle at Kempton last year in the race formerly run as the Racing Post Chase.

People obituaries Alec Russell 85 Popular Malton-based photographer who for 50-plus years supplied pictures to most racing publications, including the Racing Post.

Henry Michael 87 Former bookmaker and racehorse owner whose colours were long associated with Lochranza, who posted 27 career victories.

Lennie Peacock 97 Owner of Manor House Stud in Middleham and breeder of dual Guineas winner Tirol and top-class sprinter Redkirk Warrior among others.

Frank Fox 84 Lived in Spain for 20-plus years but previously had horses in training with Bill Marshall and Jack Holt.

Ronnie Franklin 58 Rode the great Spectacular Bid to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown in 1979.

John Duffy 50 Stable lads boxing champion who worked for Sir Henry Cecil and Michael Bell before becoming a stalls handler; he also drove Frankie Dettori.

Jeanette Broome 81 Respected New Zealand breeder who holds the distinction of having produced winners of the Grand National and Melbourne Cup.

Michael Stroud 86 Renowned Northern Ireland-based talent scout who sourced many topclass jumpers, including Bindaree, Simonsig and Fundamentalist.

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The TBA, with you for the journey We are the voice of British breeding and the Thoroughbred within the sport, with the UK Government and internationally.

We have established and are leading the industry steering group on Brexit, exploring the potential impact and solutions for horse movement, trade and taxation. We are founding members of the Horsemen’s Group, and are actively engaged in British horseracing’s growth and future funding strategies for the post-Brexit environment.

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The Big Picture

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Cheltenham Festival

D’Air to dream Could Buveur D’Air emulate his owner JP McManus’s former hurdling star Istabraq and win three Champion Hurdles?

The brilliant seven-year-old is already two-thirds of the way there, although he had to work hard to take his second title, being pushed all the way to the line by Melon (yellow).

McManus, trainer Nicky Henderson and jockey Barry Geraghty are pictured left with their dual champion Photos Bill Selwyn and George Selwyn

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The Big Picture

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Cheltenham Festival

Awesome Altior He never looked happy on the race-softened going yet Altior (left) showed his class and heart by powering up the Cheltenham hill to take the Queen Mother Champion Chase.

Min (pink) put up a good fight under Paul Townend but was ultimately beaten seven lengths at the line by Altior and Nico de Boinville. Owner Patricia Pugh, trainer Nicky Henderson and groom Hussain Mohammed are pictured left with their superb chaser, unbeaten in eight chase starts Photos George Selwyn

Bottom left: Willie Mullins produced one of the training performances of the week to lift the Stayers’ Hurdle with Penhill (blue) on his seasonal return.

Centre: Michael O’Leary is a happy man after winning the race he sponsors, the Ryanair Chase, for the first time with Gigginstown House Stud’s Balko Des Flos.

Below: The Pat Kelly-trained Presenting Percy was imperious in the RSA Insurance Novices’ Chase under Davy Russell, who ended the Festival as leading rider

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The Big Picture

Ladies’ days The current crop of female riders has never been stronger and this year’s Festival showed why with four victories for the women. Lizzie Kelly (main image) already has two Grade 1 victories to her name, courtesy of Tea For Two, and notched her first triumph at jump racing’s Olympics on Coo Star Sivola in the Ultima Handicap Chase for trainer and stepfather, Nick Williams Photos George Selwyn

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Cheltenham Festival

Above left: Bridget Andrews and Mohaayed (purple) cause a 33-1 upset in the County Hurdle.

Above right: Katie Walsh and Relegate provide a ninth win in the Champion Bumper for Willie Mullins.

Left: Harriet Tucker holds aloft her trophy after defying a shoulder injury to take the Foxhunter Chase on Pacha Du Polder, successful the previous year under Bryony Frost

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The Big Picture

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Cheltenham Festival

River digs deep It takes two horses to make a great race and Might Bite pushed Native River (right) all the way in this year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup. The duo dominted the contest from some way out and though Nico de Boinville delivered Might Bite with a perfectly-timed challenge, Native River and Richard Johnson would not be denied on the testing going, staying on determinedly to score by four and a half lengths.

Johnson, trainer Colin Tizzard and owners Anne and Garth Broom are pictured with their star chaser, below left Photos Trevor Meeks

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The Big Picture

Cheltenham Festival

Gordon so good The influence of Gordon Elliott (below, right) in jump racing continued at this year’s Festival.

He ended the week as leading trainer, his eight winners headed by Gigginstown House Stud’s Samcro, who extended his winning run to seven races in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle under Jack Kennedy Photo George Selwyn

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Race On_Clean_wind_A4_18.qxp_Layout 1 22/03/2018 12:15 Page 1

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NAF, Wonastow Road Ind Est West, Monmouth NP25 5JA UK T +44 (0) 1600 710700 www.naf-equine.eu/uk

Published here is the Final List of European stallions registered in full with the EBF for the 2017 covering season. The progeny of these stallions, CONCEIVED IN 2017 IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE, (the foal crop of 2018) will be eligible to enter the EBF races to be held during the year 2020 and thereafter. They will also be eligible for other relevant benefits under the EBF terms and conditions in force in Great Britain, Ireland, France, Italy, Germany and Switzerland.

A ABDEL (FR) ACCLAMATION (GB) ACHTUNG (GB) ADAAY (IRE) ADELPHOS (FR) ADLERFLUG (GER) AEROPLANE (GB) AFFINISEA (IRE) AGE OF JAPE (POL) AIKEN (GB) AIR CHIEF MARSHAL (IRE) AIZAVOSKI (IRE) AJAYA (GB) AL KAZEEM (GB) AL NAMIX (FR) ALBAASIL (IRE) ALEX THE WINNER (USA) ALHEBAYEB (IRE) ALIANTHUS (GER) ALKAADHEM (GB) ALQAAHIR (USA) ALTRUISTIC (IRE) AMADEUS WOLF (GB) AMARILLO (IRE) AMARON (GB) AMERICAN DEVIL (FR) ANABAA BLUE (GB) AND BEYOND (IRE) ANJAAL (GB) ANODIN (IRE) APPLE TREE (FR) ARAKAN (USA) ARCADIO (GER) ARCANO (IRE) ARCHIPENKO (USA) ARCTIC COSMOS (USA) AREION (GER) ARKAITZ (SPA) ARMY KING (FR) ARRIGO (GER) ARVICO (FR) ASCALON (GB) ASK (GB) ASSERTIVE (GB) AUSTRALIA (GB) AUTHORIZED (IRE) AVONBRIDGE (GB) AWTAAD (IRE) AXXOS (GER) B BALKO (FR) BALLINGARRY (IRE) BANNABY (FR) BARASTRAIGHT (GB) BARELY A MOMENT (AUS) BATED BREATH (GB) BATHYRHON (GER) BATTLE OF MARENGO (IRE) BEAT HOLLOW (GB) BELARDO (IRE) BEST OF ORDER (IRE) BIRAAJ (IRE) BLACK SAM BELLAMY (IRE) BLEK (FR)

EBF OB April 2018 dps.indd 2

BLU AIR FORCE (IRE) BLU CONSTELLATION (ITY) BLUE BRESIL (FR) BLUE CANARI (FR) BLUE CORAL (IRE) BOBBY’S KITTEN (USA) BOLLIN ERIC (GB) BOREAL (GER) BORIS DE DEAUVILLE (IRE) BORN TO SEA (IRE) BOTTEGA (USA) BOW CREEK (IRE) BRAZEN BEAU (AUS) BUNGLE INTHEJUNGLE (GB) BURATINO (IRE) BURMA GOLD (IRE) BURWAAZ (GB) C CABLE BAY (IRE) CALIFET (FR) CAMACHO (GB) CAMELOT (GB) CAMERON HIGHLAND (IRE) CAMILL (IRE) CANFORD CLIFFS (IRE) CANNOCK CHASE (USA) CANYON CREEK (IRE) CAPPELLA SANSEVERO (GB) CAPTAIN CHOP (FR) CAPTAIN GERRARD (IRE) CAPTAIN MARVELOUS (IRE) CARLOTAMIX (FR) CASAMENTO (IRE) CAT JUNIOR (USA) CHAMPS ELYSEES (GB) CHARDONNEY TCHEQUE (FR) CHARM SPIRIT (IRE) CHARMING THOUGHT (GB) CHICHI CREASY (FR) CHOEUR DU NORD (FR) CIMA DE TRIOMPHE (IRE) CITYSCAPE (GB) CLODOVIL (IRE) CLOUDINGS (IRE) CLOVIS DU BERLAIS (FR) COACH HOUSE (IRE) COASTAL PATH (GB) COCKNEY REBEL (IRE) COKORIKO (FR) CONDUIT (IRE) CONTAT (GER) COULSTY (IRE) COURT CAVE (IRE) COURT LIFE (IRE) CREACHADOIR (IRE) CRILLON (FR) CURTAIN TIME (IRE) D DABBERS RIDGE (IRE) DABIRSIM (FR) DAHJEE (USA) DALYAKAN (FR) DANDY MAN (IRE) DANON BALLADE (JPN) DANSANT (GB)

DANSILI (GB) DARIYAN (FR) DARK ANGEL (IRE) DARSI (FR) DARTAGNAN D’AZUR (FR) DAWN APPROACH (IRE) DENON (USA) DIAMOND BOY (FR) DIAMOND GREEN (FR) DICK WHITTINGTON (IRE) DINK (FR) DIOGENES (IRE) DISTANT MUSIC (USA) DIVIN LEON (FR) DOCTOR DINO (FR) DOMESTIC FUND (IRE) DOYEN (IRE) DRAGON DANCER (GB) DRAGON PULSE (IRE) DREAM AHEAD (USA) DREAM EATER (IRE) DUBAWI (IRE) DUE DILIGENCE (USA) DUNADEN (FR) DUNELIGHT (IRE) DUNKERQUE (FR) DURANTE ALIGHIERI (GB) DUTCH ART (GB) DYLAN THOMAS (IRE) E EAGLE TOP (GB) EARL OF TINSDAL (GER) EASTERN ANTHEM (IRE) EGERTON (GER) EL SALVADOR (IRE) ELECTRIC BEAT (GB) ELLIPTIQUE (IRE) ELUSIVE CITY (USA) ELUSIVE PIMPERNEL (USA) ELVSTROEM (AUS) ELZAAM (AUS) EPAULETTE (AUS) EQUIANO (FR) ES QUE LOVE (IRE) ESTIDHKAAR (IRE) EVASIVE (GB) EXCEED AND EXCEL (AUS) EXCELEBRATION (IRE) EXOSPHERE (AUS) F FAIR MIX (IRE) FAIRLY RANSOM (USA) FALCO (USA) FAME AND GLORY (GB) FAMOUS NAME (GB) FARHH (GB) FASCINATING ROCK (IRE) FAST COMPANY (IRE) FASTNET ROCK (AUS) FEEL LIKE DANCING (GB) FEUERBLITZ (GER) FIGHT CLUB (GER) FINJAAN (GB) FINSCEAL FIOR (IRE) FIREBREAK (GB)

FLAMINGO FANTASY (GER) FLEMENSFIRTH (USA) FLY WITH ME (FR) FOOTSTEPSINTHESAND (GB) FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH (IRE) FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS (IRE) FRACAS (IRE) FRAMMASSONE (IRE) FRANKEL (GB) FRANKLINS GARDENS (GB) FREE EAGLE (IRE) FREE PORT LUX (GB) FRENCH FIFTEEN (FR) FRENCH NAVY (GB) FROZEN FIRE (GER) FROZEN POWER (IRE) FRUITS OF LOVE (USA) FUISSE (FR) FULBRIGHT (GB) FULL OF GOLD (FR) G GALE FORCE TEN (GB) GALILEO (IRE) GALIWAY (GB) GAMUT (IRE) GARSWOOD (GB) GATEWOOD (GB) GEMIX (FR) GENTLEWAVE (IRE) GEORDIELAND (FR) GEORGE VANCOUVER (USA) GETAWAY (GER) GIROLAMO (GER) GLADIATORUS (USA) GLENEAGLES (IRE) GLOR NA MARA (IRE) GOKEN (FR) GOLDEN HORN (GB) GOLDEN LARIAT (USA) GOLDEN TORNADO (IRE) GOLDMARK (USA) GOODRICKE (GB) GREAT PRETENDER (IRE) GREEN BELL (FR) GREEN MOON (IRE) GREGORIAN (IRE) GRIS DE GRIS (IRE) GRIS TENDRE (FR) GUILIANI (IRE) GUTAIFAN (IRE) H HAAFHD (GB) HAATEF (USA) HALLOWED CROWN (AUS) HAMOND (GER) HANNOUMA (IRE) HARBOUR WATCH (IRE) HARZAND (IRE) HAVANA GOLD (IRE) HEERAAT (IRE) HELLO SUNDAY (FR) HELLVELYN (GB) HELMET (AUS) HIGH ROCK (IRE) HILLSTAR (GB)

HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR (IRE) HOT STREAK (IRE) HUNTER’S LIGHT (IRE) I IFFRAAJ (GB) IMPERIAL MONARCH (IRE) INDIAN HAVEN (GB) INTELLO (GER) INTENDANT (GER) INTRINSIC (GB) INVINCIBLE SPIRIT (IRE) IRISH WELLS (FR) ISFAHAN (GER) ITO (GER) IT’S GINO (GER) IVAWOOD (IRE) J JAMMAAL (GB) JARN (GB) JET AWAY (GB) JOSHUA TREE (IRE) JUKEBOX JURY (IRE) K KALANISI (IRE) KALLISTO (GER) KAMSIN (GER) KANDAHAR RUN (GB) KAP ROCK (FR) KAPGARDE (FR) KARAKTAR (IRE) KARGALI (IRE) KAYF TARA (GB) KENDARGENT (FR) KHALKEVI (IRE) KHELEYF (USA) KIER PARK (IRE) KINGMAN (GB) KINGSALSA (USA) KINGSTON HILL (GB) KODI BEAR (IRE) KODIAC (GB) KONIG BERNARD (FR) KONIG TURF (GER) KOUROUN (FR) KUTUB (IRE) KYLLACHY (GB) L LAURO (GER) LAVEROCK (IRE) LAWMAN (FR) LE FOU (IRE) LE HAVRE (IRE) LE VIE INFINITE (IRE) LEADING LIGHT (IRE) LETHAL FORCE (IRE) LIBERTARIAN (GB) LIBRANNO (GB) LIFE FORCE (IRE) LIGHTNING MOON (IRE) LINDA’S LAD (GB) LITERATO (FR) LITTLE OZZY (IRE) LIZIO (GB) LOPE DE VEGA (IRE) LORD DU SUD (FR)

LORD OF ENGLAND (GER) LOS CRISTIANOS (FR) LUCARNO (USA) LUCAYAN (FR) LUCKY LION (GB) LUCKY SPEED (IRE) M MACHUCAMBO (FR) MAGADINO (FR) MAHLER (GB) MAIGURI (IRE) MAINSAIL (GB) MAJESTIC MISSILE (IRE) MAKE BELIEVE (GB) MALINAS (GER) MAMOOL (IRE) MANATEE (GB) MANDURO (GER) MARCEL (IRE) MARESCA SORRENTO (FR) MARIYDI (IRE) MARKAZ (IRE) MARSHALL (FR) MARTALINE (GB) MARTILLO (GER) MARTINBOROUGH (JPN) MASKED MARVEL (GB) MASTERCRAFTSMAN (IRE) MASTEROFTHEHORSE (IRE) MASTERSTROKE (USA) MAWATHEEQ (USA) MAXIOS (GB) MAYSON (GB) MAZAMEER (IRE) MEDICEAN (GB) MEHMAS (IRE) MESHAHEER (USA) MHARADONO (GER) MIDSHIPS (USA) MIGHTY (GB) MIKHAIL GLINKA (IRE) MILAN (GB) MILANAIS (FR) MILK IT MICK (GB) MILLENARY (GB) MINASHKI (IRE) MISTER FOTIS (USA) MIZZOU (IRE) MOHANDAS (FR) MONSIEUR BOND (IRE) MONTGOLFIER (GER) MONTMARTRE (FR) MOOHAAJIM (IRE) MOONJAZ (GB) MORANDI (FR) MORES WELLS (GB) MOROZOV (USA) MORPHEUS (GB) MORTGA (FR) MOSS VALE (IRE) MOST IMPROVED (IRE) MOTIVATOR (GB) MOUNT NELSON (GB) MOURAYAN (IRE) MR MEDICI (IRE)

19/03/2018 14:23

The European Breeders’ Fund, Lushington House, 119 High Street, Newmarket, Suffolk, CB8 9AE, UK T: +44 (0) 1638 667960 F: +44 (0) 1638 667270 E: info@ebfhorseracing.co.uk www.ebfstallions.com

MUHAARAR (GB) MUHAYMIN (USA) MUHTATHIR (GB) MUJAHID (USA) MUKHADRAM (GB) MUSIC MASTER (GB) MUSTAJEEB (GB) MUSTAMEET (USA) MY RISK (FR) MYBOYCHARLIE (IRE) N NATHANIEL (IRE) NATIVE RULER (GB) NAYEF (USA) NEATICO (GER) NEW APPROACH (IRE) NEW BAY (GB) NICARON (GER) NIGHT OF THUNDER (IRE) NIGHT WISH (GER) NO NAY NEVER (USA) NO RISK AT ALL (FR) NOROIT (GER) NORSE DANCER (IRE) NOTNOWCATO (GB) NUTAN (IRE) O OASIS DREAM (GB) OCOVANGO (GB) OK CORAL (FR) OL’ MAN RIVER (IRE) OLDEN TIMES (GB) OLYMPIC GLORY (IRE) ON EST BIEN (IRE) ORIENTOR (GB) OUTSTRIP (GB) P PACO BOY (IRE) PALACE EPISODE (USA) PALAMOSS (IRE) PALAVICINI (USA) PANIS (USA) PAOLINI (GER) PAPAL BULL (GB) PARISH HALL (IRE) PASSING GLANCE (GB) PASTORAL PURSUITS (GB) PASTORIUS (GER) PEARL SECRET (GB) PEDRO THE GREAT (USA) PEER GYNT (JPN) PENNY’S PICNIC (IRE) PETHER’S MOON (IRE) PETIT SPECIAL (FR) PHENOMENA (GB) PHOENIX REACH (IRE) PIVON (IRE) PIVOTAL (GB) PLANTEUR (IRE) POET’S VOICE (GB) POLARIX (GB) POLICY MAKER (IRE) POLISH VULCANO (GER) POMELLATO (GER) POSEIDON ADVENTURE (IRE)

EBF OB April 2018 dps.indd 3

POUNCED (USA) POUR MOI (IRE) POUVOIR ABSOLU (GB) POWER (GB) PRESENTING (GB) PRIDE OF DUBAI (AUS) PRINCE FLORI (GER) PRINCE GIBRALTAR (FR) PRINCE OF LIR (IRE) PROCLAMATION (IRE) PROCONSUL (GB) PROTECTIONIST (GER) PUIT D’OR (IRE) PUSHKIN (IRE) Q QUEST FOR PEACE (IRE) QUICK MARTIN (FR) QUINZIEME MONARQUE (USA) R RAIL LINK (GB) RAJJ (IRE) RAJSAMAN (FR) RAMONTI (FR) RAVEN’S PASS (USA) RAY OF LIGHT (IRE) RECHARGE (IRE) RED DUBAWI (IRE) RED JAZZ (USA) RELIABLE MAN (GB) REMUS DE LA TOUR (FR) REPLY (IRE) REQUINTO (IRE) RETIREMENT PLAN (GB) RIO DE LA PLATA (USA) ROB ROY (USA) ROBIN DES CHAMPS (FR) ROBIN DU NORD (FR) ROCK OF GIBRALTAR (IRE) ROSENSTURM (IRE) ROYAL ANTHEM (USA) ROYAL APPLAUSE (GB) ROYAL VIGIL (IRE) RULE OF LAW (USA) RULER OF THE WORLD (IRE) RUSSIAN TANGO (GER) S SABIANGO (GER) SADDEX (GB) SADDLER’S ROCK (IRE) SAGEBURG (IRE) SAINT DES SAINTS (FR) SAKHEE (USA) SAKHEE’S SECRET (GB) SAMUM (GER) SANS FRONTIERES (IRE) SAONOIS (FR) SAYIF (IRE) SCALO (GB) SCHIAPARELLI (GER) SCISSOR KICK (AUS) SCORPION (IRE) SEA MOON (GB) SEA THE MOON (GER) SEA THE STARS (IRE) SEPOY (AUS)

SEPTEMBER STORM (GER) SHALAA (IRE) SHAMALGAN (FR) SHAMARDAL (USA) SHANTARAM (GB) SHANTOU (USA) SHARPOUR (IRE) SHIROCCO (GER) SHOLOKHOV (IRE) SHOWCASING (GB) SHREK (GER) SIDESTEP (AUS) SILAS MARNER (FR) SILVER FROST (IRE) SILVER POND (FR) SINNDAR (IRE) SIR PERCY (GB) SIR PRANCEALOT (IRE) SIXTIES ICON (GB) SIYOUNI (FR) SLADE POWER (IRE) SLEEPING INDIAN (GB) SLICKLY (FR) SLICKLY ROYAL (FR) SNOW SKY (GB) SOLDIER HOLLOW (GB) SOLDIER OF FORTUNE (IRE) SOLITARY STONE (USA) SOLSKJAER (IRE) SOMMERABEND (GB) SORDINO (GER) SOUL CITY (IRE) SPANISH MOON (USA) SPIDER FLIGHT (FR) SRI PUTRA (GB) STARSPANGLEDBANNER (AUS) STEELE TANGO (USA) STIMULATION (IRE) STORM MIST (IRE) STORMY JAIL (IRE) STORMY RIVER (FR) STRATH BURN (GB) STYLE VENDOME (FR) SUN CENTRAL (IRE) SUPERSONIC FLIGHT (GER) SUPPLICANT (GB) SWISS SPIRIT (GB) T TAGULA (IRE) TAI CHI (GER) TAJRAASI (USA) TALE OF TWO CITIES (IRE) TAMAYUZ (GB) TAU CETI (GB) TELESCOPE (IRE) TEOFILO (IRE) TERRITORIES (IRE) TERTULLIAN (USA) THE BOGBERRY (USA) THE CARBON UNIT (USA) THE FRENCH (FR) THE GREAT SPIRIT (FR) THE GURKHA (IRE) THE LAST LION (IRE) THE WOW SIGNAL (IRE)

THEWAYYOUARE (USA) TIBERIUS CAESAR (FR) TIGER CAFE (JPN) TIN HORSE (IRE) TOBOUGG (IRE) TOCCATA (IRE) TOP TRIP (GB) TORONADO (IRE) TOUGH AS NAILS (IRE) TRAJANO (USA) TRES ROCK DANON (FR) TRIPLE THREAT (FR) TULLAMORE (USA) TURGEON (USA) TWILIGHT SON (GB) U UNIVERSAL (IRE) URBAN POET (USA) URSA MAJOR (IRE) V VADAMOS (FR) VALE OF YORK (IRE) VALIRANN (FR) VANISHING CUPID (SWI) VASYWAIT (FR) VATORI (FR) VENDANGEUR (IRE) VERTIGINEUX (FR) VERY NICE NAME (FR) VESPONE (IRE) VIDAYAR (FR) VIF MONSIEUR (GER) VIRTUAL (GB) VISION D’ETAT (FR) VITA VENTURI (IRE) VOCALISED (USA) W WALDPARK (GER) WALK IN THE PARK (IRE) WALZERTAKT (GER) WAR COMMAND (USA) WATAR (IRE) WAY OF LIGHT (USA) WELL CHOSEN (GB) WESTERNER (GB) WHERE OR WHEN (IRE) WHIPPER (USA) WIESENPFAD (FR) WILLYWELL (FR) WOOTTON BASSETT (GB) WORKFORCE (GB) WORTHADD (IRE) X XTENSION (IRE) Y YEATS (IRE) YORGUNNABELUCKY (USA) YOUMZAIN (IRE) Z ZAMBEZI SUN (GB) ZANZIBARI (USA) ZAZOU (GER) ZEBEDEE (GB) ZOFFANY (IRE)

EBF INTERNATIONAL STALLIONS STALLION AMERICAIN (USA) BIG BLUE KITTEN (USA) CANDY RIDE (ARG) DAAHER (CAN) DAIWA MAJOR (JPN) DEEP IMPACT (JPN) DURAMENTE (JPN) ENGLISH CHANNEL (USA) EPIPHANEIA (JPN) FLINTSHIRE (GB) GREY SWALLOW (IRE) HARBINGER (GB) HEART’S CRY (JPN) HONOR CODE (USA) JUST A WAY (JPN) KARAKONTIE (JPN) KING KAMEHAMEHA (JPN) KINSHASA NO KISEKI (AUS) KITTEN’S JOY (USA) KIZUNA (JPN) LEMON DROP KID (USA) LORD KANALOA (JPN) MAURICE (JPN) MIZZEN MAST (USA) MUSKETIER (GER) NATIVE KHAN (FR) NOBLE MISSION (GB) NOVELLIST (IRE) ORFEVRE (JPN) POINT OF ENTRY (USA) QUALITY ROAD (USA) RED ROCKS (IRE) RULERSHIP (JPN) TAMARKUZ (USA) THE FACTOR (USA) TWIRLING CANDY (USA) UNION RAGS (USA) VICTOIRE PISA (JPN)

STANDS USA USA USA USA JPN JPN JPN USA JPN USA USA JPN JPN USA JPN USA JPN JPN USA JPN USA JPN JPN USA USA TUR USA JPN JPN USA USA USA JPN USA USA USA USA JPN

The stallions listed above stood OUTSIDE THE EBF AREA IN 2017 and have been registered as International Stallions for that year by reason of stallion nomination payments. The progeny of these stallions, CONCEIVED IN 2017, (the foal crop of 2018), will be eligible to enter and run in EBF races to be held during 2020, and thereafter, with no further payments. Further details from the Chief Executive, European Breeders’ Fund.

19/03/2018 14:23

From The Archives

Pridwell chins the champ Is it perhaps a measure of the strength in depth at the time that, despite having won his previous ten races and most recently the Champion Hurdle, Istabraq was not a shorter price for the 1998 Aintree Hurdle than the 4-7 he was returned. Chief opponents in a six-runner field were Collier Bay and Pridwell, and it was the latter, with a youthful AP McCoy in the saddle (right), who went hammer and tongs with Istabraq on the run-in, denying him by a head. It was the only Grade 1 victory of Pridwell’s career, while Istabraq already had six by then, and would go on to add another eight Photo George Selwyn

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Pridwell on April 4, 1998

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Tony Morris

Remembering a hero born 100 years ago E

very sport-mad kid needs heroes, and I was no exception to the rule. As soon as I realised – aged nine or ten, I guess – that nothing in life could hold more fascination, it became natural to identify the star performers and learn all about them. It didn’t matter that I was a weedy asthmatic with zero prospects of emulating any of them.

The heroes I ‘collected’ are still heroes to me now – Stan Matthews and Ferenc Puskas in football, Emil Zatopek in athletics, Pancho Gonzales in tennis, Denis Compton and Jim Laker in cricket, Reg Harris in cycling, Geoff Duke in motorcycling, Jim Clark in motor racing.

I actually got to meet some of them for moments of in-person worship, and in Laker’s case I obtained a signed photograph by writing to him and enclosing a stamped addressed envelope. Hard to believe now, perhaps, but his home address was easy enough to find; he was listed in the London phone directory.

When racing came into my orbit I had to find heroes among the horses as well as the humans involved, and the first to make an impression was Brown Jack, thanks to my purchase from a secondhand bookshop of Bob Lyle’s admirable biography of the gelding.

I didn’t need convincing that it was quite an achievement to win at Royal Ascot in seven consecutive seasons. The feat remains unique, of course.

I soon found other heroes as I delved into the history of the sport. Hyperion, from the same era as Brown Jack, was one, and further back in time the achievements of such unbeaten celebrities as Eclipse, Highflyer, Kincsem and Ormonde were there to be marvelled at. Ormonde, by virtue of a Triple Crown and a July Cup, had to rank as my number one, and still does. My home bears his name; a shoe that he wore in the 1886 Derby is my most prized possession.

There was also a hero from the very time when racing was becoming my obsession. Ribot was emphatically the best racehorse of the 1950s, unbeaten in 16 races, including two Arc de Triomphes. He remains no less special now, and I recall that he was the subject of the first article ever to appear under my byline, when I paid homage to him in the Bloodstock Breeders’ Review as the champion sire of 1967. My second byline appeared when I celebrated him as champion again in the next edition of that annual a year later.

I have penned columns galore on all the above horses, along with a host of others who have engaged my attention over the years. But there is one hero I acquired early, for a different reason than all the rest, and he is one of whom I have never written before.

In the month that marks the 100th anniversary of his birth, it is high time to remedy that omission.

Humorist was an impeccably-bred, handsome chesnut colt, foaled on April 11, 1918. Bred by Jack Joel, he was by Polymelus, a multiple champion sire whose stock included Triple Crown victor Pommern, Derby and Oaks heroine Fifinella, and Phalaris, who would become recognised as the most influential sire of the 20th century. And he was the first produce to survive out of Jest, who had won the 1,000 Guineas and Oaks in 1913 and was herself halfsister to Black Jester, winner of the 1914 St Leger. It would have been hard to invent a better pedigree.

Joel sent him to be trained at Wantage by Charles Morton, who had handled Jest and Black Jester, and it was not long

Jack Joel leads Humorist back to the Epsom winner’s enclosure after his victory in the Derby under Steve Donoghue in 1921

before he was receiving good news about the colt’s progress.

Humorist started 11-8 favourite on his debut in the Woodcote Stakes at Epsom, and he duly won by a neck from previous winner Highlander. More than three months passed before he returned for second place in Doncaster’s Champagne Stakes, a length behind the recent Gimcrack runner-up Lemonora.

Humorist had three more starts as a juvenile, all at Newmarket.

First he recorded a six-length victory over a solitary rival in the Buckenham Stakes, then took the Clearwell Stakes by two lengths, conceding a stone to his runner-up. He took on tougher company in the Middle Park Plate, only fifth in the betting at 10-1, but his run exceeded expectations, finishing a neck behind Monarch in second place.

The official handicapper granted the blaze-faced colt respect in his ratings for the season. With 8st 11lb Humorist ranked joint-third, 3lb behind Monarch and unbeaten Leighton, who shared top spot.

Many felt that he had the scope to figure significantly at the top level as a three-year-old.

Leighton was not engaged in the 2,000 Guineas, and encouraging reports of Humorist’s home gallops in the spring of 1921 meant that he became ante-post favourite for the Newmarket Classic, while there was no more than lukewarm support for Monarch.

On the big day – a unique occasion when the 2,000 and 1,000 were contested on the same card – Humorist headed the market at 3-1. He was among the leading group from the start and held a clear advantage on the descent into the Dip, only to shorten stride after seeming to have the race won. On the rising ground he gave way to Craig An Eran and Lemonora to be beaten three-quarters

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The man you can’t ignore of a length and the same. The favourite had supposedly failed for want of stamina.

But Humorist had been Joel’s Derby colt all along, and the public’s favourite in ante-post wagering over the winter. He might not seem the likely winner now, but he had to take his chance. And the fact that Steve Donoghue was keen to take the mount again had to be regarded as positive.

After his Guineas debacle Humorist could be backed at 16-1 for the Derby. But as the Epsom date came closer he was down to 8-1. Rumour had it that some form of physical ailment, rather than lack of stamina, had been responsible for the sudden capitulation on the Rowley Mile. And he now seemed to be in top form again.

When the 23 Derby contenders were sent on their way, Humorist was third favourite at 6-1, and Donoghue soon had him up with the leaders, evidently confident of his stamina. The jockey said later that he knew at Tattenham Corner that he could go to the front whenever he chose. And he chose right, fending off Craig An Eran, who had been his only serious challenger in the closing stages, by a neck at the line.

Humorist was a Derby winner, and one thing I learnt early when I caught the racing bug was that a Derby winner always deserved respect. But I was learning about lots of Derby winners, and there was one every year. It wasn’t the fact that he had won a Derby that made him one of my heroes. It was what happened 18 days after his great triumph.

“Steve Donoghue said later he knew he could go to the front whenever he chose” After the Epsom victory Humorist was scheduled to reappear in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot. He duly arrived at the course, was given a preparatory workout there, and was found to have bled afterwards. It seemed no big deal, but Ascot would have to be off his schedule.

Back home at Wantage there was no hurry to find a new date for Humorist’s return to action. The hiatus actually provided the opportunity for Alfred Munnings to visit the stable and make a start on a portrait of the colt for presentation to Jack Joel.

On Sunday June 19, the Ascot meeting over, Munnings was present at Wantage, and before lunch was happy to sample some of the champagne that Joel had sent to Morton after the Derby.

The first bottle went down well, so Morton found a second to accompany their midday meal.

Seeking fresh air and rest afterwards, Munnings found shade under a yew tree and slept. He was rudely awakened by a shriek from Mrs Morton, announcing: “Humorist is dead.”

It was a fact. A trickle of blood escaping from his box said enough, the profusion of blood all over his box just underlining the tragedy that had occurred. A burst blood vessel in the lungs was eventually given as the cause of death. That verdict seemed to explain how things had gone wrong in some of his races, and made it all the more remarkable that on occasions he could overcome the physical problems that beset him.

I was never going to be able to rank Humorist among the finest of Derby winners. But courage is worthy of celebration as much as class, and Humorist will always be a hero to me.

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23/03/2018 16:04

The Howard Wright Column

And they’re off – but they’re off too late C

an we have our ball back, please, mister? The plaintive cry, as an unguided missile sails over the neighbour’s fence, generally provokes one of two replies: no problem, Sonny Jim, delighted to see you’re out in the fresh air, not lounging in front of a computer screen; or the more curmudgeonly, not likely, and you’ll get it back when I’m good and ready.

Here’s hoping for a favourable response to another plaintive appeal, addressed to the Chairman of Aintree’s race committee: can we have a sensible start time for the Grand National back, please, Mrs Paterson.

For a few hours on Saturday, April 14, Liverpool will be the centre of the sporting universe, and not simply because of the running of the world’s greatest jumps race. Just as the winner is returning to the usual hero’s welcome, five miles away at Anfield, Liverpool FC kick off against Bournemouth.

Neither event should materially affect each other’s attendance.

Liverpool average crowds of 53,000; Aintree, having slipped from a 30-year Saturday high of 74,182 in 1989 to 46,679 in 1998, the year after the bomb-scare abandonment, has averaged six people short of 66,000 since 2008.

The fact the two events should clash at all is the real point. It last happened in 1994, when Liverpool’s 11.30am kick-off had a belowpar crowd of 30,484, and the National, starting as the fourth race at 3.50pm, drew 54,012. Since then scheduled home fixtures for Liverpool have been moved to another day.

The reason for this year’s clash can be summed up in one word, television, and two initials, BT, whose sports division had the choice for the late-Saturday match and picked Liverpool. Once Merseyside Police decided it had “sufficient resources to provide a professional response to both,” that was that.

BT’s intervention has exacerbated the trend established by rival Sky, whereby the demands of television rule and governing bodies, shoveling up billions in media rights’ fees, oblige. Traditional 3pm Saturday and 7.30pm midweek evening kick-off times have been obliterated, ruining the experience for legions of followers and producing a stifling diet of every-day-of-the-week football.

Not that the Grand National has been consistent in this respect.

Over the last 30 years, it has had nine different off-times, ranging from 3pm to 5.15pm, and four different places on the card, from third race to sixth. Some of the changes seem strange at this distance, going from 3.20pm to 4pm in 1992 for one year, and from

3.45pm to 3pm in 1996, again for one year, for instance.

Pushing the start-time back to 4.10pm in 2005 for a year, before settling on 4.15pm for the next ten years, as the executive sought to build up excitement and anticipation through the afternoon, put enormous and eventually crippling pressure on early editions of Sunday newspapers, and created unwinnable competition with media attention on football.

Then, in 2016, came the big leap of faith, with an off-time of 5.15pm as the sixth race on the card, which was intended to boost the TV audience. It did, to some degree, with Channel 4’s last hurrah in 2017 watched by ten million viewers, compared with 10.9m for the BBC’s final show in 2012, but the sun shone last year, people went out and ITV’s initial offering was watched by 8.2m, a

“Over the last 30 years the Grand National has had nine different offtimes, ranging from 3pm to 5.15pm” good effort as a percentage of total viewers but a long way from the 12m that Aintree’s management are hoping to reach on the mainstream channel.

As for the other supposed spin-offs from a late start, they remain tenuous. Worldwide audiences are impressive, but the event goes off far too late for Asia and points farther east, and too early for a US blitz, and betting on a jumps race, even one as famous as this, which takes the best part of ten minutes to complete, is never going to appeal to overseas punters over a Flat race.

Television congestion, media inconvenience, betting confusion, late departure for the on-track crowd, an unnecessarily long day that fuels the risk of drink-related misbehaviour. Great race though it remains, it’s time to ask: can we have our traditional Grand National start time back, please, missus.

The Grand National start time has undergone plenty of revision

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By Jessica Lamb

Once more unto the breach for ace producer Western Whisper

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he dam of three-time Grade 1 winner Outlander, allotted top-weight for this month’s Irish and Aintree Grand Nationals, will give birth to her final foal this year.

At 24, Western Whisper proved Whytemount’s Stud key foundation mare as owner Ronnie O’Neill set out to build a National Hunt Stud that in January earned him the ITBA Lifetime Achievement Award.

But the first foal she produced was considered unworthy of both the Goffs Land Rover Sale and the Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale.

“She’s an amazing mare,” said O’Neill. “I bought her for a couple of thousand at the 1998 November sales in Fairyhouse. She ran twice and then got injured. She was a very awkward mare – a proper handful to do anything with, and her pedigree was very, very weak. We bred her to Stowaway first and that pedigree was considered so weak that they wouldn’t take her foal at the Land Rover Sale.”

He added: “That foal turned out to be Western Leader, subsequently a Grade 2 winner and Grade 1-placed, and she’s now bred four black type winners by Stowaway, including Outlander.”

Western Whisper, a daughter of Supreme Leader, has produced 13 foals, six of them combining for 28 wins, but in recent years age had caught up, causing her to lose last year’s foal.

O’Neill had decided to retire the prolific dam after that ordeal but last spring she came alive again, and could yet prove a lifeline for another new stallion.

“She was just so well in herself we covered her with our new sire, Affinisea,” he said. “She’s in wonderful condition, she’s like a mare ten years of age. You wouldn’t believe the form she’s in. The last foal she had is now a three-year-old, a full-sister to Outlander, so I’m really looking forward to this foal. But we won’t cover her again.”

Affinisea, a Sea The Stars half-brother to Irish Derby and Coronation Cup hero Soldier Of Fortune, has shades of Stowaway’s story already; in his first year he covered 130 mares, making him the busiest first-season National Hunt sire in Britain or Ireland.

In 2011, Stowaway was crowned the busiest stallion in Europe when he covered 320 mares, having only seen 24 just two seasons previously.

Three-time Grade 1 winner Outlander is one of 13 foals by Western Whisper

“Affinisea was sold for €850,000 as a foal – the highest-price ever made for a foal in Ireland at the time,” O’Neill revealed. “He cost me plenty of money too, more than I wanted to give for one, but it’s so hard to come by new material with a real stallion’s pedigree. I had to have him and with the mares we have ourselves to cover, he has to have a serious chance of making it.

“Our first three born were lovely colts – two bays and a black one out of a chestnut mares, so it looks like he’s going to get a very dark colour.”

O’Neill’s Whytemount Stud also stands stamina-laden Group 2 winner Valirann, whose first crop are now two. In three years at stud he has covered more than 300 mares, among them the dam of Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Bobs Worth, and plenty of O’Neill’s band.

“The band of mares we have now would be good enough to get any stallions going,” he said. “We have black type winners like Brogella, plenty of Stowaways, and halfsisters to three Champion Hurdle winners – Hurricane Fly, Sublimity and Annie Power – among them. We also have three full-sisters to Outlander going to stud this year.”

O’Neill’s initial accumulation of mares, bought to try to start earlier stallions, including Stowaway, were decent stock, but it wasn’t until Stowaway started to succeed that the investment took off.

Timing was crucial.

“In Stowaway’s early years, no one wanted to know about him, so we only covered him with our own mares,” he said.

“When he took off, for two or three years we were the only ones with three-year-olds that were good enough to go to the Derby or Land Rover Sales and we got a right price for them.

“We had several horses that made plenty of money, and the good news was we were in the middle of a recession, so I was able to use that to get some lovely mares at the sales because nobody really wanted them. They are a big help to me today. It is essential for you to have your own band if you want to start any stallion in a small stud like ours.”

Sosua, Hurricane Fly’s half-sister, could be the latest star; her first runner Kirwans Lane won a bumper on debut at Roscommon last September, she has a four-year-old Stowaway in training and a three-year-old heading to the store sales.

O’Neill added: “We also have a horse that everyone has forgotten about, Salutino. He’s by Monsun out of a Sadler’s Wells mare and was never out of the first three in ten runs, placing in three Group 1s.

Yet we covered no mare with him last year.

“He was getting winners in Germany before he came to us in 2013. His first Irish crop are now four-year-olds, and off the strength of how they are going in training he’s getting a few mares already this year. I hope he can yet prove a success.”

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Horse Racing Ireland’s innovative new race conditions and schemes, rolled out at the beginning of this jumps season in a bid to spread the wealth and assist struggling lower tier trainers, have had a profound effect.

Though statistics from the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Body showed in 2017 the number of trainers in Ireland to be at its lowest for more than ten years, with jumps licences dropping below 100 to 93 for the first time since 2008, initial results from the new races show they are working.

Trainer Denis Hogan saddled California Soul to win his first race in a maiden hurdle for horses that have been unplaced in three runs, and never won a race under Rules.

Hogan had bought the son of Yeats unraced for €9,000 in 2014, but in ten runs in point-to-points, bumpers and maiden hurdles he had finished no closer than fourth. Tramore’s special maiden hurdle provided a rare chance, and after winning he had the confidence to be a close second in a handicap hudle at Gowran Park, then third in a novice hurdle at Tramore, allowing Hogan to sell the seven-yearold for £10,000.

“I probably wouldn’t have been able to sell him without that win,” said Hogan. “He had been running okay without getting into the frame, which meant he really fitted the bill for that race and it was brilliant to see him win.”

In addition to introducing the maiden hurdles for unplaced horses, HRI increased the value of several 0-116 and 0-109 handicap hurdles and chases from €12,000 to €15,000, created an auction maiden hurdles series restricted to horses costing less than €20,000 at a recognised store sale, and increased the number of beginners’ chases for horses rated 109 or less over hurdles – providing another winning opportunity for Hogan.

“Samson Bill winning that beginners’ chase at Fairyhouse was massive for me and my owners,” he explained. “That race meant I didn’t have to go around in three beginners’ chases, 30-40lb wrong in the weights, to then run in a handicap chase and get his chance.

“Winning that race was like winning at any festival for his owners. That’s kept them in the game for a long time to come now and all these

CAROLINE NORRIS

Basement boys reaping rewards

Denis Hogan is a fan of the new series

“I probably wouldn’t have been able to sell him without that Tramore win” opportunities to compete away from the likes of Gigginstown House Stud, Gordon Elliott and Willie Mullins, I hope will do the same for more owners.”

HRI ran seven races for horses unplaced in three or more runs last year, every race being won by a small trainer and owner, bar Wait Here, who won in JP McManus’s silks at Tramore.

They have run five increased value low-grade handicap chases and hurdles, the first won by eight-year-old maiden Cahirconree at Tipperary last May. Mullinavat won another at Wexford, scoring his first victory, and following up with three more, and Icantsay landed his handicap chase debut in Punchestown’s edition, going on to win at Listowel.

His trainer John Ryan has also saddled €7,500 purchase Cluan Dara to be second in two auction maiden hurdles and had runners across the spectrum of new races.

Ryan said: “Those races are a great initiative, especially for smaller trainers.

It allows a run for decent prize-money for owners with lesser horses, and it gives them a chance to run in their grade.

“The auction maidens are a particularly great help. The fact that you can’t have won a point-to-point is a big plus. Some very good point-topoint horses have vanished in bumpers and popped up impressively in maiden hurdles. But they can’t run here; you can’t have won anything, and there’s a 4lb allowance for horses bought for €10,000 or less.

“You can go to the August National Hunt Sale and buy most of the horses for that price. It’s a great incentive and I think we’d be struggling big time without these races.”

Hogan added: “There are horses winning the unplaced maiden hurdles that would never get a chance of winning a maiden hurdle otherwise; I know my owners, the Hennellys, are probably only still in the game because of the increase in mares’ races and the new mares’ bonus scheme. I think all three of their winners this season have been in bonus races. HRI have done some job.”

Handicappers also trialled a system of allocating chase ratings to lowergrade hurdlers (rated 102 or less) after only one run (standard is two) in a beginners’ or novice chase, this scheme aiming to get horses into their own grade quicker.

It’s an innovative way of reducing costs, but all the initiatives reduce costs in some way, and Ryan has a further suggestion.

“We had started going to England a bit more, particularly to Hexham because they are very friendly to us there, looking after the horses and lads very well,” he said. “Thanks to the new races we have less need to go, but what I’d like to see now are more veterans’ chases – the races for horses aged ten and up. They are great to prolong a horse’s career and they have a good few in England. We will still travel for those.”

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Continental Tales

Confidence in St Moritz safety restored as festival a success SWITZERLAND

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hirteen months on from the horrific accident which brought to an end both the life of the Jamie Osborne-trained Boomerang Bob and the riding career of Classic-winning jockey George Baker, the organising committee of the White Turf Racing Festival has been able to let out a sigh of relief after its 2018 renewal passed off without incident.

Indeed, during the three race days staged upon St Moritz’s snow-covered frozen lake racecourse on the first three Sundays in February, there were no injuries to horses or humans. The only faller came in a skikjoring race (when horses drag a ski-wearing driver), and even then the driver involved was able to ‘remount’ so quickly that he avoided finishing last.

Such jolly japes might give readers the impression that White Turf is a real-life version of the Wacky Races.

Don’t be fooled – a massive amount of thought and planning had gone into ensuring that the event was as riskfree as possible and a number of new safety measures have been put in place to make sure the course is as safe as modern science allows.

Boomerang Bob’s fall came about because there was an undetected crack in the ice less than a furlong from the winning post, as committee member Luigi Sala explains.

“Two days after the accident police divers went underneath the course and found that there had been no structural damage to the ice, it was just a crack which nobody could have known about beforehand,” he says.

“So, in our quest to find ways to spot such imperfections in the ice, we brought on board both a professor of glaciology and the Institute For Snow And Avalanche Research in Davos, tapping into over 25 years of experience in the precise constitution of snow and how best to compress it.

“With their help we devised two new early warning systems for this year’s meeting. The first used radar to detect inconsistencies between the ice and snow layers and see if there was any

Organisers of the White Turf Racing Festival were pleased with their 2018 season

water trapped within those layers.

“The other used a drone and a thermal imaging camera to spot differences in temperature, as water has a slightly higher temperature than ice.

“We implemented these measures before and during all three of our meetings and on the opening day they did spot a slightly suspicious area, so we dolled off a small part of the course as a result.”

Another less scientific change has been to reduce the pressure on the ice by cutting back on the amount of racecourse furniture.

“We didn’t build one of the grandstands this year and reduced the size of another,” Sala continues. “Overall there was a 10% reduction in the weight of the racecourse infrastructure.

“When you also consider that 20 years ago we parked 1,000 vehicles on the ice, whereas now there is no oncourse parking, that’s a big change.”

What possibly made the difference in 2017 was that during February last year St Moritz was experiencing unusual daily temperature swings, from night-time lows of minus 15 to plus six in the afternoon, which may have destabilised the frozen lake.

In 2018, February temperatures were much less volatile, although Sala stresses that the weather was far from perfect. “Unlike the previous year, when the early part of the season was ideal for freezing the lake with low temperatures and not much snow, this time we had quite a lot of snow in December plus one day of rain, which is not good as small holes can develop in the ice,” he says.

“So the success of this year’s meeting was not just because the weather was kinder – I would like to think that all the changes we made had an effect too.”

Does the committee feel that, because of global warming, St Moritz’s unique course may be becoming unsafe?

“No, not for the time being, anyway,” Sala replies.

“What happened in 2017 was not because of negligence, it was more a case of bad luck. On the morning of the accident everyone at the course was happy with its condition, including George Baker himself.

“We have been racing here for over a century and we have at times had to cancel racedays, but apart from

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By James Crispe, IRB a couple of exceptional years, once because of an equine disease outbreak and once because of warm weather, some racing has always taken place.”

And the tragic end to the 2017 meeting does not seem to have affected enthusiasm for this year’s festival. The total attendance over the three days was unchanged at approaching 30,000, while the number of declarations was also roughly the same with the fixture attracting runners from Britain, France, Germany, Holland and Sweden.

But, compared to the glut of British horses making the trip in the recent past, this time around only Kent trainer John Best, a regular visitor for almost a decade, made the journey. He was regally rewarded for his loyalty as his course specialist Berrahri, running on snow for the fourth straight year, finished in the first two at all three meetings, enabling his handler to accumulate prize-money of over £26,500 during the festival.

“From a safety angle the organisers went way beyond what they had done before, and with all the new measures they had put in place I am 99% sure they would have found a problem with the ice if there had been one,” Best asserts.

“I went over there at the end of last summer to hear about all the changes they were making and knew that they were not prepared to take any risks. If they had suffered another accident I think that it would have been curtains for the meeting.

“And it wasn’t just safety that they concentrated on. The whole venue has become much more owner-friendly and they have spent a lot of money refurbishing the stables, which are a big improvement on what was there before when the ventilation wasn’t great.”

Overall, Sala feels that this year’s festival “restored confidence in racing at St Moritz and showed that we are an organisation to be taken seriously.

Our main target this year was to make sure that all the new safety measures worked perfectly and I hope we achieved that.

“I know that our Head Of Racing, Annina Widmer, has been keeping in touch with George Baker during his recovery. And, although the last thing we would want is to be tactless, and this will be a very personal thing for George, should he reach the stage where he is comfortable coming back here as our guest, it would be a great pleasure to have him.”

Tweaks for both codes FRANCE

Longchamp reopens this month having undergone extensive redevelopment

Numerous tweaks to the 2018 French race programme – both Flat and jump – have been announced, provoking a largely positive reaction from within the industry.

Perhaps the biggest structural change comes over the sticks, with the nation’s top hurdle race, the Grande Course de Haies, being brought forward by three weeks, meaning that it takes place at Auteuil on the same day (May 20) as France’s most prestigious chase, the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris.

No longer will it be possible to run in both races, as the mighty Princesse d’Anjou did in 2006 when she won the Grand Steeple before finding just one too good in the Grande Course de Haies.

The Grade 2 Prix La Barka, a valuable two and three-quarter mile hurdle which has been won by a British or Irish raider in each of the last six years, will no longer be a trial for the Grande Course de Haies. Instead, it will be a consolation race, run three weeks after the big event.

The big deal on the Flat side of things is, of course, the reopening of a thoroughly modernised Longchamp racecourse – or ParisLongchamp as it has been rebranded. Though the action will restart there as soon as April 8, the grand opening is not until three weeks later when the Group 1 Prix Ganay enjoys a one-off doubling in its prize-money, to £530,973, to mark the occasion.

Not only does Chantilly hand back the Arc weekend jamboree to Longchamp, it also loses the Prix Jean Prat to Deauville, while Longchamp acquires another Group 1 event, the Criterium International, from Saint-Cloud, and the Prix du Moulin returns to its traditional early September slot there, a week before Arc Trials Day.

ITALY

Woods lands springboard event Sebastian Woods could be an apprentice jockey to follow in Britain this year, judged by his exploits in Italy in the recent running of the Ribot Cup. A competition for jockeys under 25s, the Ribot Cup has been staged in Pisa throughout its 11-year history and has been won by British starlets on three previous occasions – twice by Andrea Atzeni and once by Adam Beschizza, who is the subject of this month’s Talking To (see pages 52-55).

Staged on Sunday, February 25, this time it went the way of Woods, the 19-year-old son of jockey Wendyll who is based with trainer Richard Fahey and partnered 11 winners in Britain in 2017, thanks to a winner and a second from its three races.

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Around The Globe

Life a rollercoaster for Geroux NORTH AMERICA

By Steve Andersen

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PA

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hen Gun Runner won the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar last November, jockey Florent Geroux recorded his eighth seven-figure win.

The ninth occurred in the $16 million Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park on January 27, the final race of Gun Runner’s illustrious career.

Between those races, Geroux’s life changed in the United States and his native France. In late December, his father Dominque, a former jockey and trainer, died as a result of injuries sustained in a fall in France.

“The last time he saw me on a horse, he saw me win the Breeders’ Cup Classic,” Geroux recalled in early March.

Geroux spent more than a week with family before returning to the United States. The day before Gun Runner’s win in the Pegasus World Cup, Geroux took the immigration test to become an American citizen. He did not choose the day. American officials told Geroux that was his allotted time.

Geroux passed and expects to have his induction ceremony this spring.

“It went great,” he said. “I passed the test on Friday and Saturday I won the Pegasus. On Sunday, I went to Houston and won the stakes.”

The Sam Houston Ladies’ Classic at the Texas track is not an internationally well-known race, but it did have a $400,000 purse. Geroux guided the outsider Tiger Moth from last of eight to win by a neck.

The race is emblematic of Geroux’s career path. He is in demand to ride leading races at venues as recognisable as Del Mar, Gulfstream Park and Saratoga and smaller tracks such as Kentucky Downs and Sam Houston Race Park.

Geroux, a 31-year-old native of Argentan, France, won his first race at Longchamp in 2004 and began riding in the United States in 2007, though he struggled initially, overcoming injuries sustained in a spill at Keeneland and visa issues.

Geroux had his first 100-win year in 2011, the year he had 146 victories and led all riders in wins at Hawthorne racecourse in Chicago. Geroux won riding titles at brief meetings at

Florent Geroux: winner of plenty of big-money races, including on Gun Runner

Kentucky Downs in 2015 and 2016, and at the four-month seasons at Fair Grounds in 2015-16 and 2016-17. This year, Geroux ranked fifth in the standings at Fair Grounds through early March. He plans to ride at Keeneland and Churchill Downs in the spring.

“I missed a few days when I had to go back to France,” he said of the Fair Grounds season. “I feel like I’m playing catch up. The last few years I feel like I’ve been on top. I’ve been lucky to have some nice horses.”

Up to March 5, Geroux, who has a permanent residence in Louisville, Kentucky, with his wife and two daughters, had won 1,208 races in the United States. He won a career-best 217 races in 2016 and had 177 winners last year. He follows French racing but considers America home.

“I look at it pretty much every day and keep up with my friends,” he said of French racing.

Geroux, who has won four Breeders’ Cup races, began riding Gun Runner in early 2016 when the colt won the Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes and $1 million Louisiana Derby prior to a third-place finish behind Nyquist in the Kentucky Derby. Geroux was Gun Runner’s regular rider for the remainder of the horse’s

“I think Gun Runner could have been the all-time leading money earner” career, which included 12 wins in 19 starts and earnings of $15,988,500.

“He was better than ever when he went out,” Geroux said.

Gun Runner ranks second on the list of all-time money earners in the United States behind Arrogate at $17,422,600.

“I think he could have been the alltime leading earner,” he said. But a stud career “was the right thing for the horse; everyone can remember Gun Runner as a champion”.

This spring Geroux is ready to repeat the cycle, seeking a prospect for the Triple Crown races.

“I’m trying to find a nice three-yearold,” he said.

With Geroux’s recent success, the opportunities may find him.

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The Worldwide Racing Scene

Spirit of Thatch still booming AUSTRALIA

By Danny Power

CHM PHOTOGRAPHY

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he big boys are circling the most unlikely of stallions to add to their 2018 roster.

The owners of Queensland’s Spirit Of Boom, a stallion who represents a near defunct international sire-line, have been fielding interest and, I believe, at least one hefty offer of close to $A20 million (£11m) from an international stud outfit for the ten-year-old Eureka Stud sire has been put on the table.

At the time of writing that’s where it remains, on the table, opened but back in the envelope.

Spirit Of Boom’s first crop of twoyear-olds have hit the racetrack running and taken Australia by storm. With a little over half the season gone, Spirit Of Boom has sired four stakes winners from ten individual winners. Sitting in his wake on the general two-year-old sires’ list are champion stallions Snitzel, Fastnet Rock, Not A Single Doubt, I Am Invincible and Hinchinbrook.

What Spirit Of Boom has been able to achieve is quite remarkable and unprecedented in modern times from a stallion away from the limelight of the two major breeding states of NSW and Victoria, and off a batch of what is best described as C-grade mares.

Spirit Of Boom retired to Eureka Stud in 2014, aged six, as a warhorse sprinter who had won nine of his 52 starts, including twice at Group 1 level, and $A2.4 million in prize-money. So much for young, lightly raced colts making the best stallions.

His Group 1 strikes came in the twilight of his career in 2014 when he beat Fontelina in the William Reid Stakes at Moonee Valley before winning the Group 1 Doomben 10,000 at Doomben in Queensland, when he beat his halfbrother Temple Of Boom.

In 2014 he was popular and covered a healthy 154 mares – mostly Queenslanders supporting a popular racehorse – at a fee of A$11,000 (inc.

An unlikely star: Spirit Of Boom has achieved remarkable success as a sire

GST). Last spring, on the strength of the quality of his yearlings, that jumped to 191 mares at the same fee.

It has been suggested that Eureka Stud is considering keeping Spirit Of Boom at the same fee in 2018 in support of the local breeders who have backed him in the past four seasons. However, there is no doubt they could fill his book without a flinch if it rose to $55,000, and if a major Hunter Valley stud did secure him you can be assured that’s where his fee would be set.

Eureka Stud’s Scott McAlpine, a thirdgeneration owner of the 86-year-old Darling Downs farm, faces a dilemma, especially after the incredible demand for Spirit Of Boom’s yearlings this year, headed by a colt that sold for $500,000 at the Magic Millions on the Gold Coast in January.

Spirit Of Boom, who comes from generations of Eureka Stud bloodlines, is virtually free of Northern Dancer blood. The great stallion slots in once in the fifth generation through his champion grandson Danehill, who is the sire of Special Dane, the Group 1-winning sire of Spirit Of Boom’s dam Temple Spirit.

Spirit Of Boom represents a sire line that goes back to one of Coolmore Stud’s early success stories, Thatch, the close relation to Nureyev, Sadler’s Wells and Fairy King, who won seven of his nine starts for Vincent O’Brien before retiring

to Coolmore Stud, where he managed to continue the Hyperion sire line for at least another generation in Europe.

The Australian trace to Thatch comes through his fast son Thatching, the sire of the imported speedster Rustic Amber, who stood for many years in Victoria, where he had the reputation of siring quality late-maturing sprinters.

On the track Rustic Amber, trained

by John Oxx, won twice at stakes level in Ireland before he was exported to Australia.

He sired only six stakes winners, but three won at Group 1 level. Two of his best sons were the brilliant pony-sized gelding Brawny Spirit (1996 Newmarket Handicap) and the very handsome entire Sequalo (second behind Brawny Spirit in the Newmarket and five-time Stakes winner), who is the sire of Spirit Of Boom and the reason the ThatchThatching sire-line still has legs today, at least in Australia.

It was the success of Sequalo at stud in Queensland that endeared Spirit Of Boom to local breeders. Sequalo was put down due to laminitis in 2014 at the time his best son was winning his Group 1s. Sequalo sired 645 winners of 2,200 races and more than $A45 million in prize-money.

Spirit Of Boom is the archetypal Sequalo – fast, tough, durable and handsome with a sweet action, and, like his sire, he is passing on those traits to his stock.

Sequalo (b h 1990, Rustic AmberDash Around, by Bending Away) stood at Lyndhurst Stud in Queensland after being bought by studmaster Jeff Kruger, who at the time was looking for a stallion from the Thatching line.

“I worked at studs in Ireland for two years and every time I opened a newspaper I’d see that Thatching would have sired another winner,” Kruger told the Courier Mail after the death of Sequalo.

“Thatching reminded me a lot of Celestial Dancer, who was a prolific sire of winners at Lyndhurst.

“When I came back from Ireland I said we should get a Thatching-line horse because the horse was such a phenomenal winner getter.

“I thought the line would provide a good outcross for the Northern Dancer and Star Kingdom lines.”

I don’t know if Coolmore Stud are in the running for Spirit Of Boom, but it would be an interesting twist that, more than 40 years on, a stallion descendant of Thatch may find his way onto the famous stud’s roster.

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Racing Life

Travel

ROME, if you want to Better yet, says Sarah Rodrigues, experience it at an ultra-luxurious remove

S

et within 15 acres of private parkland atop Monte Mario, the highest of Rome’s seven hills, the Rome Cavalieri – a Waldorf Astoria Resort – lays the city out before you in a beguiling panorama of domes, cupolas, spires and terracotta tiled roofs. The Colosseum is clearly discernible, as is the marble white confection of the Vittorio Emanuele II; even closer, the massive Duomo of St Peter’s prompts the joke that we are looking down on God. Even without the incomparable views that this elevated position affords you, it’s tempting, as a guest here, to stay cocooned in the hotel’s elegant sumptuousness and never actually venture down into the slightly overwhelming pace of The Eternal City - although the hotel does offer a regular shuttle service to this end. Truly though, why does one come to Rome? For the art? The hotel is home to one of Europe’s largest private collections, comprising over 1,000 pieces, from the Beauvais tapestries in the lobby and a triptych from 18th century Italian painter Giovanni Battista Tiepolo in the eponymous lounge, to the original Warhols in the Penthouse. For the wonderful food? Heinz Beck’s La Pergola restaurant is located here and is Rome’s only three Michelin-starred restaurant, an accolade it has retained for 13 consecutive years now.

Elsewhere in the hotel, L’Uliveto serves up fresh, contemporary fare with an emphasis on local and small-batch producers; its Sunday brunch is legendary.

And then there are all of the things that you don’t necessarily expect to find on a trip to Rome: the 2,500 square metres

The hotel features stunning suites and is home to a 1,000-piece art collection

The beautiful Rome Cavalieri has stunning views over the The Eternal City

of spa, sauna and fitness facilities at the Cavalieri Grand Spa Club, for example, where matters of both wellness and aesthetic natures are ministered to. The four swimming pools, both indoor and out, provide a welcome reprieve from Rome’s sometimes unbearable heat, or just from the sweaty sensation of having been surrounded by one too many tourists on your perambulations. Forget having to perch on the side of a fountain with a gelato snaking stickily down your forearm: pool staff, dressed in dazzling white, will bring you homemade ice cream and dangerously refreshing Aperol Spritzes, or more substantial pool snacks if your exertions have worked up an appetite.

Safe to say that we spend most of our long weekend at the Cavalieri: having been to Rome and visited its magnificent sights in the past, we limit our wanderings to early mornings, before the heat and the crowds pick up. Stall holders are setting up in Campo dei Fiori; stunningly casual locals, seemingly unmoved by the immense antiquity of their surroundings, are out walking their pooches in the Piazza Navona. Nobody tries to sell us a rose (or a selfie stick) by the Trevi Fountain and the great hulking mass of the Colosseum is, as yet, uninhabited by a single dress-up Centurion. The city is just waking up, and to see it in this light feels like a privilege, rather than a feat of endurance - especially knowing that we have the luxury and space of the hotel to return to.

Rare and exclusive glimpses of the

city are on offer to suite guests at the Rome Cavalieri, with complimentary, local activities focusing on art, culture and gastronomy available, depending on which suite you are staying in. There is the option of a spring blossom tour, with a private visit to the Vatican Gardens or the Pope’s summer residence, or a luxury park picnic, complete with butler. For the well-shod guest, there’s even the opportunity to take part in a sandal making workshop, where you’ll visit an authentic family shoemaker to be instructed in the leather work required to make your own pair of traditional sandals.

All of these experiences can also be enjoyed, at various prices, to non-suite guests. With eyes that were clearly bigger than our stomachs, we embarked on a culinary journey through one of Rome’s most authentic foodie markets and neighbourhoods with an English-speaking guide, by the end of which we’d sampled our body weight in truffles, homemade pasta, cheese, salami, aged balsamic vinegar, gelati and pizza. Perhaps, after this, we should have made an appearance at the fitness facilities with more than just a massage on our minds - but thank goodness for the pool loungers, from which we barely move for the rest of the day, magically finding room for just a few more Aperol Spritzes before dinner.

Nightly rates at Rome Cavalieri start from €765 (approximately £680) in an Alcove Suite. www.romecavalieri.com

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Property

HOME AND AWAY Australia’s Palm Beach is the location of exclusive travel club THIRDHOME’s 10,000th property – By Sarah Rodrigues

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esearch by thinktank Resolution Foundation revealed last year that the number of multiple property owners in Britain had jumped 30% since 2000, with one in ten adults owning a second home. Reasons, naturally enough, vary - from holidays, to investment, to boosting current income via rental.

Now there’s an additional benefit to revel in: the ability to travel, not only to the well known and loved destination in which your second home is located, but all over the world.

Reciprocal travel club THIRDHOME has recently added its 10,000th property to its books: a threebedroom architectural gem located in Australia’s upmarket Palm Beach, just north of Sydney - and the beachy backdrop to long-running soap Home and Away.

Set up on a hilltop with sweeping ocean views, it’s a steep five-minute walk up from the sand to the house, with its sundeck and plunge pool. Can you see yourself here? With four to 12 keys in your THIRDHOME pocket, you could be watching the east coast sunrise from the property’s floor to ceiling windows.

‘Keys’ are the credits by which THIRDHOME members can gain access to other homes within the portfolio:

THIRDHOME: a reciprocal travel club that offers exclusive properties around the world

by making your own second home available to members, you earn ‘keys’ which can be used to book any other available home in any part of the world. The number of keys awarded - or required - depends on the desirability of the weeks for which the property is available, and because the exchanges don’t need to be simultaneous you have additional freedom when it comes to planning.

The only accommodation cost involved

Membership is by invitation only and the average value of properties is £1.7 million

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is a booking fee, which ranges from £320 to £810 per week.

A bit twitchy about the idea of strangers in your home? Membership is by invitation only, and subject to strict criteria: the property must be within a desirable location, with furnishings, appointments and amenities meeting an exacting standard. With the average value of properties within the club being £1.7 million, there’s the innate sense of trust that comes from the fact of dealing with similarly-minded homeowners but, as an added precaution, all members agree to a comprehensive set of terms and conditions - plus hosts and guest rate each other, post-stay.

It’s not just other members’ second homes to which you can escape: THIRDHOME is endorsed by 80 world class resorts, clubs and developments, including the Ritz Carlton Destination Club. And for those who don’t own a second home with which to apply for membership to the club? THIRDHOME is soon to become available to nonmembers, who will be able to use the portal to list or rent their ideal holiday home. A travel club for those seeking luxury travel adventures is also to be introduced. www.thirdhome.com

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Racing Life

Luxury Goods

Timeless quality Trevor Pickett’s inimitable style and eye for detail takes the brand into its next 30 years

By Sarah Rodrigues

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n an age where goods are increasingly mass produced, ordered online and delivered in fairly unprepossessing packaging, there remains something undeniably special about a retail experience that lures, entices and engages you – doubly so when the goods in question are so exquisitely crafted and covetable.

This is just part of what makes Pickett, with its shops in both Chelsea and Mayfair, so special. It’s not that the luxury leather goods brand doesn’t have an online presence (it does) but the thrilling journey it takes you on when you enter one of its shops is well worth getting away from your laptop for. More emporium than mere retail space, you voyage through a collection of rooms in the Burlington Gardens flagship: spread over three floors, each room is curated to showcase the products alongside an eclectic collection of furniture and art. A seemingly effortless mix of texture, colour and fabric all combine to give the sense of being more feasibly in a luxurious residence than a store.

The location also incorporates an exhibition space; here you’ll find the offerings of synergetic designers, artists, galleries and retailers. Intimate and welcoming, it’s not just about retail:

opportunities for discovery and discussion abound.

“All the elements of our retail experience are focused on identifying with whoever walks through our door, remaining authentic in our service and quality of our product,” Trevor Pickett explains. “Our stores echo the Pickett culture, providing unsurpassable service in an inviting environment, where people are guided through magical rooms of discovery, reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland.”

Pickett began working in luxury retail at a leather company in the Burlington Arcade when he was just 16; within eight years he had bought and renamed the business, branding it, simply, ‘Pickett’. It’s with immense pride that all of Pickett’s leather goods are sourced and crafted in the UK, in small, artisanal ateliers and by individual craftsmen - a celebration of provenance and quality that Pickett himself insists upon. Indeed, his passion for bespoke and British-made goods was likely directly influenced by his father, whose bike shop, at which the teenaged Pickett assisted, focussed almost exclusively on British bikes and parts.

In a brand where the man is so closely connected with the goods - he is

“Our stores echo the Pickett culture, providing unsurpassable service in an inviting environment,” says Trevor Pickett on his brand ethos

Trevor Pickett has worked in the luxury retail sector since he was 16

frequently to be seen fronting his stores, and delights in sharing his passion for the products with visitors and clients it’s worth noting, too, that he himself is entirely the quintessential British man, eccentricities and all. Seeing himself more as an editor than a designer, Pickett’s eye for style and design informs every one of the pieces in the range, as well as the exotic goods - pashminas, Kilim slippers and jewellery - sourced from further afield.

This interaction with the public led him, early on, to discern his customers’ desire for variety and choice. The Bespoke Service, which is now offered at the Leather Library in Burlington Gardens, has become an integral part of the Pickett identity, with clients able to browse a back catalogue of leathers never previously on display, with the final product completely unique to their specifications.

He says: “I am often asked what luxury is. It is having the ability to create something utterly and completely yours that embodies your style and spirit.

“It is not about money or opulence, it is individuality and self-confidence, which no one else can replicate. That is what we strive to give at Pickett, especially in a world where services like this are diminishing.”

This year marks Pickett’s 30-year anniversary; in celebration the Pickett Privé collection has been launched, an exclusive collection of the owner’s personal picks from Paris - including a bejewelled cuff bracelet and ostrich leg card cases - with only one piece of each item available to purchase.

Acknowledging the brand’s birth year, a new bespoke collection will also be released in Burgundy - the strongest selling colour of the mid-eighties - in a variety of luxury leathers, with classic Pickett designs reimagined for our times. www.pickett.co.uk

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Restaurants

MAYFAIR MILESTONE Fifteen years after its opening the iconic and eccentric sketch is celebrating in suitably extravagant style, says Sarah Rodrigues

W

hen it opened its Mayfair doors in December 2002, sketch had to contend with the kind of feedback - equal parts delighted and outraged - that one might expect when a restaurant is hyped, from the outset, as London’s most expensive.

A steady stream of celebrity diners did nothing to diminish its allure, even if critics remained divided in opinion.

“This is generally the sort of food I would run naked to avoid,” wrote the late AA Gill, who rated the Lecture Room and Library at 4/5, and the Gallery a dazzling 5/5. “But on the plate, some of it was innovatively, ululatingly sublime... a bewildering variety of dishes that looked both supremely elegant and as if someone had wiped their bottom on them.” The Independent’s Tracey MacLeod was rather less enthusiastic, wrting: “If you like lots of small dishes of tepid, unidentifiable ingredients, you’re laughing.” The Guardian’s Matthew Fort (who, years later, brought his daughter here for a birthday meal) declared the design concept to be “a lot of bollocks”.

But the owner, Algerian Mourad Mazouz, who had previously opened the wildly successful Momo, stuck to his guns.

“I’m only on the way to making

A special Prestige Menu has been created to celebrate sketch’s 15-year anniversary

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The Lecture Room and Library at sketch is an inconic restaurant venue and has earned two Michelin stars under chef Pierre Gagnaire

sketch great,” he said in 2003. “I’ll fight for it. I want it to be here in ten years’ time.”

Fast forward to 2018 and sketch is not only still here, but its Lecture Room and Library, under chef Pierre Gagnaire, gained its first Michelin star in 2005, and has worn a two-star crown ever since 2012. To celebrate the 15-year anniversary, Gagnaire has created a special Prestige Menu, which is available at £325 per person from March 23 until June 22.

With dishes including homemade tagliolini with Russian Oscietra Caviar, a grilled 25-year-old ‘Pied de Cheval’ Oyster wrapped in Colonnata ham and finished with Black Winter Truffle, a saddle of Pyrenean milk-fed lamb and, to finish, Gagnaire’s ‘Grand Dessert’, diners may need to make an effort to drag their eyes away from the table to take in the recently updated interiors.

The sketch building at 9 Conduit Street dates back to 1779, when it was designed by James Wyatt: his domed ceiling in the Lecture Room has been carefully preserved.

Having previously been the headquarters of the Royal Institute of British Architects and, later, the London Atelier of celebrated designer Christian Dior, it is Grade II listed and

cost £12 million to renovate when Mazouz took it on. Leading interior designer Gahban O’Keeffe created the new Lecture Room and Library interiors, with sorbet shades on the ceiling contrasting with the burnt amber of the soft furnishings; padded wall panelling has also been added to enhance the intimacy of the acoustics.

Come May an exclusive-use eight-seat dining room will be also be revealed.

For the more casual diner, The Glade, The Parlour and The Gallery - all located downstairs - offer wow-factor interiors with very reasonable brunch and tea options, while the futuristic pod toilets are a young person’s Instagrammable dream. As part of sketch’s year of 15th anniversary celebrations, Turner Prize-nominated artist David Shrigley has enhanced The Gallery’s rose-pink appeal with 91 bold new works; these replace the 239 black and white pieces that have occupied the walls since June 2014, in the largest group of individual drawings by the artist ever exhibited. sketch 9 Conduit Street London W1S 2XG Sketch.uk.com T: + 44 (0) 207 659 4500

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Racing Life

Cheltenham

A FANTASTIC FESTIVAL Sarah Rodrigues enjoys Ladies’ Day with feathers, fur, fun… and diamonds

M

anaging Director of Boodles, Michael Wainwright, is such a huge fan of racing that he held his birthday celebration in a private box on the first day of the Cheltenham Festival last month.

There was much to celebrate: 2018 marks the year that Boodles takes its partnership with the Festival to six years, with a new three-year sponsorship announcement leading on from when it first partnered on the Leading Jockey Award back in 2014.

The fine jeweller also developed a three-piece, limited edition, capsule collection exclusively for the Festival.

Named ‘Spirit,’ the collection comprised a horseshoe bracelet, plus an abstract horse motif pendant set in 18 carat white gold with diamonds. Boodles were based in the tented village at the Festival, where the small pendant was retailing for £2,600 and the large at £4,350, while the bracelet was priced at £7,800.

Rebecca Hawkins, Head of Design at Boodles, said: “We are delighted to have created ‘Spirit’ as a Cheltenham exclusive. The horse is a symbol of freedom, and the design employs a minimalist use of lines for maximum impact.”

The new partnership saw Boodles sponsor the Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle, which was held on day two of the Festival. The race was won by 33-1 shot Veneer Of Charm, ridden by Jack Kennedy – and taking trainer Gordon Elliott’s victories for the day to three, after a first day that was disappointingly free of triumph.

“Last night I was trying to get a Ryanair flight home,” the trainer said. “I was in bed by 9.30pm, but it won’t be the same tonight.”

Day two was, of course, also Ladies’ Day at Cheltenham. The sea of tweed, fur, fedoras and pheasant feathers was still very much in evidence, but some went all out with colour, adding fascinators, heels and bare legs, not letting the 11 degree highs stand in the way of their raceday glamour. In the shopping village, upmarket retailers such as Cousins, Joules, Holland Cooper, Timothy Foxx and Montana Country Collection were on hand to up the style ante for those taking a break

This year’s Cheltenham Festival provided somewhat testing conditions for the faithful

from the track – or to provide an extra layer for those whose outfits weren’t best suited to the day’s frequently gusty winds.

Miss England, Stephanie Hill – a keen horse rider – wore an electric blue coat

by Julien Macdonald, topped by an elaborate blue hat in a complementary shade; a bright hue for a day to which the hashtag #Colourmemarch is attached. Elsewhere, other stylish hopefuls competed for ‘best-dressed’ prizes, including a MINI one, a Boodles pendant and a Fairfax and Favour bag.

Expectant mother Zara Tindall looked every inch the royal in cream kneelength boots and striking burgundy coat, which featured statement buttons and a funnel neck, while her fascinator paired the two colours.

The Duchess of Cornwall, in a green checked coat and fur-trimmed hat, was also there to present the prizes for the Queen Mother Champion Chase.

Fittingly, given the theme of the day, female jockey Katie Walsh rode Relegate to victory in the final race of the day, the Weatherbys Champion Bumper.

The Boodles Spirit Pendant – 18 carat white gold with diamonds

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Al Kazeem TOB-April 2018:Oakgrove Stud

16/3/18

11:03

Page 1

Al Kazeem

Won 10 races at 2-7, and £1,573,596 inc: WON Gr.1 Tattersalls Gold Cup, 10.5f, 2015 WON Gr.1 Coral-Eclipse, 10f, 2013 WON Gr.1 Prince Of Wales's Stakes, 10f, 2013 WON Gr.1 Tattersalls Gold Cup, 10.5f, 2013

bay 2008, 16.1hh by Dubawi - Kazeem (Darshaan) Ë European Champion at 10 furlongs

Ë By DUBAWI – sire of 34 Gr.1 winners including Classic sire MAKFI

Ë From the stallion producing family of IN REALITY, KNOWN FACT and RELAUNCH Ë Timeform rated 128 in three consecutive seasons

Ë Two winners from just a few runners so far inc. stakes filly Golden Spell, a winner at 5f and 6f and placed 2nd Legacy Stakes LR (6f) and 3rd Blenheim Stakes LR (6f), and Clairette (class 2 winner).

Ë In 2016 his first crop of yearlings averaged £135,000

Ë His second crop will be yearlings in 2018

STANDING AT OAKGROVE STUD

Fee: £12,000 Oct 1st SLF (Limited Book)

Oakgrove Estate, St Arvans, Chepstow, Monmouthshire, NP16 6EH Tel: 01291 622876 G Fax: 01291 622070 G Email: oakgrovestud@btinternet.com G www.oakgrovestud.com For Nominations Contact: David Hilton: 07595 951248 G Email: david@oakgrovestud.com G Vannessa Swift: 01291 622876

Racing Life

BESPOKE: shirts you will not want to lose

By Christopher Modoo Christopher Modoo is a men’s style expert and has conducted suit fittings in both Buckingham and Beckingham Palace. He is often quoted in the press on matters of etiquette and correct dress, and writes a regular feature for the online edition of The Rake magazine

W

ith the proliferation of cheaper imported clothing in the last decade we have seen the price of cotton shirts decrease. What used to be seen as a luxury has become a commodity and we no longer have collars replaced or cuffs turned to prolong their life. Which is a shame.

But with the current trend of “consuming less but consuming better”, I am pleased to report that there is still an industry in England making handmade shirts and it is thriving.

Having a shirt made to your precise individual requirements requires a pattern to be made. This will involve numerous measurements but the shirtmaker will also take a view on your posture and when you will be wearing your shirt. Is it for business or travel? For a gentleman, one of the main areas is the collar and you will discover that there are limitless options for collar shapes and it is important to select one that flatters your personal style, your physique and how you like to knot your tie.

Advice will be available to help you through the decision-making process but

Sean Connery wore Turnbull & Asser shirts during the early James Bond films

I always prefer a collar that is long enough so that the edge sits under the lapel of your jacket. This is a timeless, elegant look that is beyond fashion so always wear or take a good-fitting jacket or blazer when being fitted for a shirt so that it can be accommodated. A good sleeve length is essential as is the question of wearing cufflinks or not. Do not, ever, have a shirt made with convertible cuffs that have both buttons and holes for links.

For double-cuffs, it is worth taking your favourite pair along for the fitting to make sure the holes are correctly positioned. You should also advise if you wear a particularly thick sports watch. If you are feeling fancy and like the idea of a shirt that can be worn less formally, there is always the Cocktail cuff, as worn by Sean Connery in the early James Bond movies. This style is the speciality of Jermyn Street shirtmaker Turnbull & Asser and has a certain rakish charm.

Of course, the most important aspect is fit and most makers will make a trial shirt for you to wear before completing your order. Just because you are being measured it does not mean that they will produce a second skin. This should be left to the cheaper end of the high street and a classic, comfortable shirt is the most flattering. Any imperfections, such as a low shoulder, will be accommodated and your shirt should fit without drawing attention to itself.

Picking the fabric is one of the pleasures of bespoke and you will have access to fabrics not available ready-made. Pure ‘twofold’ cotton will be your entry-level but Sea Island cotton from the West Indies remains the most luxurious choice. You will also have access to wool and cashmere blended shirting for elegant sports shirts as well as linens and silk blends.

The question of a pocket also needs to be addressed and I am of the opinion that well-dressed Englishmen do not have pockets on their shirts. The exception to this, of course, is on the field or safari shirt

that can be worn as a shirt or as a jacket over knitwear. They are exceptionally useful for travel and you can have as many pockets as you want, including a ‘secret’ pocket inside for cash or your passport.

Most shirtmakers will insist upon a minimum order but will allow single repeat orders.

Budd have been making bespoke shirts since 1910 and are one of the few remaining Jermyn Street brands to have workshops on the premises, where a talented and lively team create individual patterns that are then sent to their own workshops in Andover, Hampshire. The house collar style is conservative and elegant, although they are pleased to accommodate customer’s wishes; they have even made doublebreasted shirts and offer a raglan sleeve

Budd is one of the few Jermyn Street shirt brands to have a workshop on the premises

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Men’s Fashion option. The popularity of their overshirts has even seen them offer them in their readyto-wear collection.

Wil Whiting is a relative newcomer into the world of bespoke but is fast gaining an international reputation with customers who appreciate his almost obsessive attention to detail. As well as serving an apprenticeship with a world-renowned shirtmaker, he looked to the world of Savile Row tailoring and Haut Couture to perfect his methodology and sewing techniques to create beautifully crafted shirts.

New & Lingwood have branches in London and Eton, and offer the traditional bespoke service. They are one of the last outfitters to stock proper starched collars to wear with your morning coat at Royal Ascot so, naturally, are specialist in making the traditional neckband style of shirt. www.turnbullandasser.co.uk www.buddshirts.co.uk www.wilwhiting.com www.newandlingwood.com

Wil Whiting’s customers appreciate his attention to detail as a bespoke shirtmaker

THE BEST CASHMERE THE LOVAT MILL

Situated on the banks of the River Teviot in Hawick in the Scottish borders, The Lovat Mill is upholding a long tradition of weaving.

Visitors are able to view the wide range of estate and regimental tweeds they produce, as well as some beautiful cashmere scarves and gloves that will add a bit of luxury to your winter outfits. They also produce elegant cashmere throws as part of their home furnishing collection. www.lovatmill.com

ANDERSON & SHEPPARD A shopping trip to the West End cannot be considered complete without paying a visit to the haberdashery outpost of Savile Row tailor Anderson & Sheppard.

Situated in Clifford Street, it is a treasure chest of tasteful opulence, stocking everything the well-dressed gentleman requires from silk pocket squares to flannel trousers. They have an incredible selection of cashmere knitwear and a wide-range of scarves that are stocked year-round. www.anderson-sheppard.co.uk

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JOSHUA ELLIS

Joshua Ellis celebrated their 250th anniversary in 2017 and have a heritage stretching back to 1767. They are famous for weaving the finest textiles with the best yarns and supply top designer, couture and international luxury houses.

They also create a fine range of cashmere scarves under their own name that are sold internationally, including their house check. www.joshuaellis.com

JOHNSTONS OF ELGIN

Woven in Scotland, Johnstons of Elgin produce cashmere in an extensive range of colours and styles.

Their stoles are available in both plain and seasonal designs and are perfect for transitional seasonal dressing, when it is too mild to wear a coat but you need the comfort of an additional layer. As well as being soft, cashmere can create warmth without bulk or weight. www.johnstonsofelgin.com

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Talking To...

Adam Beschizza

Fair All the fun of the

Adam Beschizza’s heart is still with British

racing but his head is very much with the Big Easy way of life, the jockey making a name

for himself at Fair Grounds in New Orleans, in contrast to all-weather anonymity back home Interview: Tim Richards Photos: Louis Hodges & George Selwyn

Y

ou have ridden more winners in your spell in America at Fair Grounds in New Orleans – and your mounts have earned significantly more cash – than in any single season in Britain. Could you have dreamed that things would go so well?

Definitely not! I came over on a whim as an apprentice in 2009 to work for Mike Stidham and ever since then I’ve had this desire to ride in America. It’s always been a huge goal for me. Joe Sharp was Stidham’s assistant trainer who took me under his wing and I learnt a lot. I came back to England and rode out my claim, but all the time wanting to return to the States.

I needed to go through the process of acquiring the right US visa in 2014 so I could work horses for Joe in his first season as a trainer.

Coming back to the US this time I am very lucky to have things going so well and I may go on to ride at Keeneland, but that would be much tougher. Ironically, I think I might have appeared in the British press more since I’ve been away. What do they say about absence making the heart grow fonder?

Why is racing at Fair Grounds a better option than riding on the all-weather in an English winter? The ease of travelling and prize-money must be important factors…

Prize-money is obviously a huge factor. It’s a different challenge because back home you only just survive on the all-weather, especially in my case as not many of my trainers have a lot of runners. It made sense to do something more productive and, with my five-year work visa in place, I have now been at Fair Grounds five months. Riding round the same track every day is a far cry from travelling long distances to most meetings in England, which can take its toll. Now I’m more established here I may branch out on the other racetracks within a two or three-hour radius of Fair Grounds. In my heart, I’d be back in England tomorrow, but my mind is telling me that professionally this is the best place to be.

Former leading jockey Rosie Napravnik is married to Joe Sharp and now acts as his assistant. How important is she to the success of the operation?

Rosie is hugely important. She’ll get on eight to nine sets a morning and rides most

of the work. Not every barn or stable has a multiple Group 1-winning jockey working on a regular basis. Rosie is very much involved and gets down to all the nitty gritty. She obviously knows every horse in the yard and is a great help in placing each individual. She has ridden for just about every trainer, not only at Fair Grounds, but all around America. When I started riding for Steve Asmussen, for whom she’d been very successful, Rosie would tell me how he liked things done and the running traits of his horses. She gave me the heads up when I was entering the unknown.

You’ll often have six/seven rides per meet at Fair Grounds. Does this mean you have to employ a different approach or preparation to race-riding than in the UK, where you may only have a ride or two at a meeting?

If you’re riding eight or nine a day at track work there’s not a lot of time to put yourself through extra fitness. The approach is much the same; you’ve got to be on the ball, do your homework, be sharp and you’ve got to know all about the horse you’re riding. It’s not like in England where the racing is much

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Adam Beschizza: the numbers game

57

Winners at Fair Grounds

$1.46 million Prize-money earned by mounts in US

39

Best season tally in UK

46%

Top three finishes in US

$4,752

Average earnings per US start Figures correct up to March 22

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Adam Beschizza Adam Beschizza has swapped the British weighing room for its American cousin – with a huge degree of success

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Talking To...

“In America racing is very much speedbiased; you’ve got to be in the right spot” ›› more widely spread on a daily basis and

you might not have sat on the horse you’re riding in a race.

If things continue as they are will you extend your stay in America?

When I arrived here five months ago I said I’d give it until February to see how everything was going. Things were still going smoothly and I got on Snapper Sinclair for Steve Asmussen and we were beaten a nostril in the Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes – Snapper Sinclair is now a potential Kentucky Derby contender. If I left I’d be passing up a possible ride in one of America’s premier races, even though I can’t be 100% sure I’ll be on him. I’m 95% sure I’ll be going to the Keeneland spring meeting in April and then possibly Churchill Downs.

That’s all part of the carousel, and after that I’ll evaluate my situation.

Adam Beschizza and Mom’s On Strike have won two stakes races at Fair Grounds this season

You are from Newmarket, so were you always destined to work in racing or was there another career plan?

I was fortunate that my aunt Julia Feilden trains in Newmarket. I was born and raised straight into racing, through pony racing, my apprenticeship, and all the time Julia supported me. My mum works for Julia and my dad has worked for Ed Dunlop for 30 years. So we have always been involved. I knew where I was heading from a very early age and used to ride out one lot before going to school each day.

Beschizza and Grumeti after Cesarewitch glory in 2015, the year he also won the Cambridgeshire on Third Time Lucky

54

Were you disappointed that you didn’t get more rides after completing that celebrated Cambridgeshire-Cesarewitch Autumn Double in 2015?

It didn’t go entirely unnoticed but had those two races been in the spring it might have had a different effect. It would have been fresh in people’s minds and provided a launchpad for the season. But I am not saying I was frustrated by the lack of reaction; I am very pleased it happened. It was a great fortnight for me and I’ll never forget it. But am I disappointed? Absolutely not.

Leading handlers such as Mark Casse and Michael Maker have started to give you chances. What is it about your style of riding that suits those left-handed tracks?

This isn’t my first rodeo over here; I came over when I was 18 so I was already familiar with riding the circuit, without actually raceriding. You do have to bed in and adapt. At home a race develops at a slower pace and you can take your time a bit more; it’s all about getting your horse relaxed and into a nice rhythm. You soon realise in America it’s very much speed-biased and you’ve got to be in the right spot within the first eight.

The dirt here has a very solid base to it and rides very tight and fast, and horses that do excel on it are built differently; more robust, muscular in the shoulder and they have a low daisy-cutting action.

In your experience what is the biggest difference between American and British racing? And what one thing would you take from each to improve the other?

They are so different in their own ways.

England has its purse problems. Bring the American prize-money to England. Maybe take some of the variety of the British

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Adam Beschizza England, there are times when the trainer might not come racing and the only contact could be by phone. It’s more face-to-face here. As a young man you have to mature pretty quickly and probably become a better operator as a result.

Would you ever consider racing permanently in the States?

Yes, I would. But let’s see how it all pans out.

Riding at Keeneland would complete half a year in the States and by then I should have more idea of my immediate future.

What would you like to achieve in the next five years?

I’d like to be leading jockey at one of the tracks in America. It’s a bit of a circus over here moving from Fair Grounds to Keeneland then Churchill Downs and during the summer there is Indiana, Ellis Park and tracks around the Kentucky area.

If I am doing well at one track it’s worth persevering, trying to make a name for myself and hopefully becoming more and more in demand. That would be the goal by the end of my five-year visa and so far things are happening for me sooner rather than later; it’s all go, go, go at the moment.

I never think it’s a good idea to set the bar too high, but ultimately winning a Grade 1 over here has to be my overall ambition.

racecourses to America, so many have their own unique character and style, which would be something of a novelty and might go down well over here.

Who has been the biggest influence on your career – and who do you turn to for advice?

My mother and my aunt, Julia Feilden.

Mum has always pushed me for whatever I’ve wanted to do. If I ever changed my mind she would be there to help me out.

Ever since I was pony racing and started race-riding she always encouraged me in the right direction. Mum and Julia are sisters and are equally responsible for where I am now. They provided the foundations and told me if I was doing it the right way. Julia gave me my first ride and my first winner and she continued to support me after I’d ridden out my claim.

Is there the same camaraderie among jockeys in the US weighing room as there is in the UK? Yes, there’s the same camaraderie. The funniest thing I’ve seen was Florent Geroux, Gun Runner’s jockey, getting beat by a

woman rider in a tight finish and all the lads made out he’d been outridden. When he returned to the jockeys’ room the lads had hung up his boots! They were all screaming, ‘That’s the end! You’re finished!’

It was hilarious. We’re all riding together at Fair Grounds for five months and so you become like a team. I live with a guy called Dave Carroll, who trained here and for the past three years has been assistant to Mark Casse, who brought Tepin over to win at Royal Ascot. If I want to know anything about anything here, Dave’s the man to ask.

What do you enjoy about American life, outside racing?

I do like to play a lot of golf in America, or anywhere for that matter. Recently I went to watch the Cirque du Soleil, which was very good and entertaining.

In what way has the American experience improved you as a jockey, and as a person?

When you come over here you have to interact with trainers a lot more than at home. We are here for five months alongside the trainer in the same barn and riding for him every morning. Whereas in

CLOSE UP AND… PERSONAL

Favourite song/artist… Ed Sheeran My pet hate is… doubters Four dinner party guests… Ed Sheeran, James Corden, Jack Whitehall and Robert Tart, a good friend and fellow jockey A perfect day off is… playing golf I couldn’t get through the day without… my phone

CLOSE UP AND… PROFESSIONAL

Favourite racecourse… Chester, with its fantastic atmosphere My ambition is… to be internationally recognised as a jockey Best advice I’ve been given… nothing ever becomes of worrying or feeling sorry for yourself; just keep pushing forward Social media, friend or foe… probably friend, but it can bring out the best and the worst in you I handle defeat by… moving forward

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Church Farm & Horse Park Stud Breezers learning their trade on the uphill gallop at Church Farm Stables. Inset: Roger Marley with terriers in tow

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Dream Alliance A strong partnership between two skilled horsemen in different countries has ensured that the combined draft of Roger Marley’s Church Farm and John Cullinan’s Horse Park Stud has grown into one of the most successful outfits on the breeze-up scene Words and photos: Emma Berry

H

ang around at the breeze-up sales for long enough and you can’t fail to bump into an ex-jump jockey.

Norman Williamson, Malcolm Bastard, Mark Dwyer and Roger Marley have all slipped apparently seamlessly from one of the most dangerous roles within racing to another which also involves nerves of steel, even if they may now be required in the sales ring rather than on the back of a horse.

For Yorkshireman Marley, who through his Church Farm Stables near Malton has forged a successful Anglo-Irish partnership with John Cullinan of Wicklow’s Horse Park Stud, the nerves are tested in both arenas.

Still whippet-thin at 50, Marley spends most mornings riding seven lots of twoyear-olds with his all-female team. A couple of mornings every week he can stand down when work-rider Antonio Fernandes da Silva appears, the Brazilian dividing his time between Marley and his neighbour Dwyer.

On the morning of Thoroughbred Owner

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Breeder’s visit, Marley is on the ground but far from idle. Harrowing his uphill allweather gallop between lots with three vocal terriers in tow, he then tears up and down the same stretch on foot to oversee the progress of the 28 youngsters he and Cullinan will be consigning to the breeze-up sales this season, starting from April 11.

Now that the snow has cleared and Marley can enjoy a sun-dappled view across acres of East Yorkshire, he appears to be content with what he sees.

“I’m happy with all of them at this stage,” he says. “Some are more forward than others, but then the sales season lasts for two months so the horses going to the later sales haven’t been doing as much as the others yet, but by this stage last year we had five who we weren’t happy with.

We spent a lot more money on vetting the yearlings this year and so far, so good.”

As our accompanying panel attests, the breeze-up consignors, most of whom are

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Church Farm & Horse Park Stud ›› based in Ireland, have formed a collective in

a bid to dispel some of the more negative reputations attributed to graduates from that sector. The marketing is doing its bit but anyone with doubts about how these horses are produced to be ready for an early spring sale date would have their minds put at rest by spending a morning in Marley’s company. He is patently an oldschool horseman who has a clear grip on the attributes of each individual in his care and talks a lot of sense. But his horses also speak volumes for him.

There are no fancy heating or lighting systems in the stables at Church Farm but even in the grip of one of the fiercest of winters of recent years, the equine residents have gleaming coats with barely a trace of clip lines and are clearly relaxed and happy in their work. Of course, the work is about to become that much harder, but they appear to be physically and mentally ready to take that next step.

“We work backwards from the sale they are going to,” says Marley. “Ascot, Doncaster and the Craven come very close together so horses going to those sales would be stepped up at the same time. Then the Guineas horses, the French horses and the Goresbridge horses would be about a month behind. I normally aim to get them doing swinging canters about six weeks before the sale. They’ll then start to breeze two weeks later, then they’ll start to go solo and have two days away from the place, to the gallops at Malton, for a bit of experience and a change of scene.”

From this base, the dual Group 2-winning juvenile and twice Group 1– placed Mehmas was produced. His physical and mental attributes were displayed through an eight-race two-year-old season, with a debut win coming within a month of his graduation from the Craven Sale.

“Richard Hannon and Peter and Ross Doyle have bought quite a few from us over

Relaxed horses returning from exercise

the years,” says Cullinan, who in his days as a solo consignor was responsible for the Group 1 winner Music Show, bought for €2,000 as a yearling in 2008 and sold on for €16,000. “When they bought Mehmas, Richard said, ‘I suppose I have to give this fella a break now’, and we said, ‘No, run him’.

“He came out and won his first three on the bounce. There’s a misconception at times that these horses are buzzed up and that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Mehmas was a good servant to us and I have a foal here by him now so I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do.”

While Mehmas was a good example of the now perhaps outdated concept of breeze-ups as ‘ready-to-run’ sales, the consignors are keen to emphasise that’s not the case with all graduates. Recent examples of successful racehorses of the ilk one wouldn’t normally associate with

BREEZE-UP GROUP 1 PERFORMERS Since 2008 breeze-up horses that sold through the ring have won 26 and been placed in 75 Group 1 races Run Year

Winners

Wins

Placed

Places

2009

1

1

4

5

2010

1

1

4

7

2011

2

6

5

5

2012

2

2

7

9

2013

0

0

4

4

2014

2

2

5

7

2015

3

5

6

11 14

2016

3

5

11

2017

4

4

8

13

18

26

54

75

TOTAL

the breeze-ups include Ascot Gold Cup winner and Melbourne Cup-placed Trip To Paris, while the first two home in the 2016 St Leger, Harbour Law and Ventura Storm, graduated from the Goffs London Sale and Tattersalls Craven Sale respectively.

“Some of them here are quite backward and will be lucky to see a racecourse at two, and if they do it will be September or October time,” offers Marley. “It’s not all about this year. The main thing is that they turn out to be good horses, and the longer they go on the better it is for us. If all we’re doing is producing horses whose careers are over by July that’s no good to us.

They’ve got to be sane.”

Along with the seven-time winner Brando, who did his best work last year as a five-year-old when winning the Group 1 Prix Maurice de Gheest, Marley looks back with pride to one of his and Cullinan’s earliest success stories, the David Marnanetrained Elleval, now eight, with 58 runs and £555,890 under his belt.

“I started off very small with a few cheap horses about ten years ago, then I got to know John through the sales and we’ve gradually built it up over the years,” says Marley. “One of the first horses we bought together was Shamarlane, the dam of the

“It’s not all about this year; the main thing is that they turn out to be good horses” Gale Fore Ten colt we’re selling at Ascot.

Then we bought one of the first Kodiacs from Roger O’Callaghan for £15,000 and sold him on for £45,000. He turned out to be Elleval and was the first one we really got excited about. We thought we’d sold well then but things have changed so much.”

Indeed they have. The three horses sold by the duo at last year’s Craven Sale returned an average just shy of 300,000gns, while one withdrawn from that sale and presented later at the Guineas fetched 170,000gns. At the Arqana Breezeup in May, Church Farm & Horse Park Studs was third on the vendors’ table behind Mocklershill and Grove Stud when selling seven juveniles for €1,425,000, including Rastrelli, a son of Siyouni bought for

››

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Dual Group 2 winner Mehmas won within weeks of his sale and is now at Tally-Ho Stud

of buying a horse. You can see their attitude, listen to their wind, assess their soundness.”

The fact that breeze-up buyers collectively spent more than £25 million at the European yearling sales of 2017 – a figure that has risen steadily since 2014 when an outlay of £19m was made – indicates just how important to that particular market tier their presence has become.

As the very selective nature of the first American breeze-up sale of this year in Florida shows (Sales Circuit, page 70), it’s a high-stakes game in which the cheaper horses are propped up by the really big sellers.

In partnership with Roger Marley, Cullinan will be looking to sell 28 horses this season and fears that the ultra-selective nature of the market could continue in Europe.

He says: “There are a lot of horses for sale this spring and I think it could be tricky, especially in terms of the clearance rate. Roger and I

ZUZANNA LUPA/ARQANA

In the last few years breeze-up vendors formalised their tightknit group by coming together under the name of the Breeze-up Consignors’ Association (BUCA) in order to raise the profile of graduates from that specific sector of the market. With breeze-up horses often maligned as being too buzzy or have careers that are too fleeting, the men and women involved in selecting and preparing these horses for sales sought to distance them from the sometimes unhelpful ‘ready to run’ tag and highlight not just the longevity of a number of graduates but also the quality.

The association, which was originally the idea of Mark Dwyer, is run by Brendan Holland of Grove Stud and John Cullinan.

“The reason we started it in the first place was because there was an inaccurate perception about breezeup horses and we felt it was time to do something about it,” says Cullinan.

“Many of the people involved in selling breeze-up horses are also involved in selling yearlings so it wasn’t to try to stop people buying yearlings.

“All we are trying to do is illustrate the fact that breeze-up horses are as good a way of buying a future racehorse as any. There are misconceptions out there, such as the horses don’t last or they’re one-trick ponies as five-furlong two-year-olds.

That’s factually incorrect.

“Our marketing through the association has increased awareness as to the success of breeze-up horses.

It has helped some trainers explain to owners that this is a very viable way

GEORGE SELWYN

Coming together for a mutual cause

Roger Marley, left, with Brendan Holland and John Cullinan, organisers of the BUCA

Apr_164_BreezeUp.indd 59

have been concentrating on quality rather than quantity. Once we got to our optimum level in numbers our purchasing average spend has gone up quite a lot in the last few years.

We’ve found it easier to sell the smart horse than the cheaper horses. We’ve all got the lesser lights, whether by accident or design, and they are becoming harder and harder to sell.”

There’s little doubt that at certain sales the top buyers home in on a small number of two-year-olds, but there’s been an encouraging new wave of purchasers, particularly at the Guineas Sale, which has a tendency towards a more middle-distance individual. Last May at Tattersalls, for example, saw Anthony Bromley sign for eight juveniles, six in partnership with Alan King, while King’s fellow trainers more readily associated with National Hunt – Donald McCain, Richard Phillips, Harry Fry, Lucy Wadham, Noel Williams and Jonjo O’Neill – all featured on the buyers’ list.

“With horses like Trip To Paris, The Grey Gatsby and Harbour Law, people have seen that it’s not just all about two-year-old careers, and thankfully there’s a diversity in the buyers’ minds, otherwise we’d all be trying to buy the same horse,” says Cullinan.

“Plenty of people are looking for something with a bit more scope but it’s such a revealing exercise being able to watch a horse come up on his own and judge his action and attitude.

“It’s also a smaller pool to choose from – there are 4,500 yearlings for sale and less than 1,000 breeze-up horses.

From a buyer’s perspective it should be easier to find a gem.”

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Church Farm & Horse Park Stud high on the list of appealing traits for this section of buyers, the team aspect can have its advantages, especially when buying the right horse is an essential part of selling well the following spring.

“John and I split up the sales and then I look at anything he has left on the list and vice versa,” says Marley.

“Our little circle of friends tries not to take each other on but the lists will be similar of course. We end up looking at about 50% of every yearling sale. There are certain sires we don’t like, or anything out of old dams.

“There are a lot of horses for sale this spring and I think it could be tricky” Members of the 2018 draft will be bidding to emulate Group winners Brando and Mehmas

›› €550,000 by Godolphin who is now a dual

winner. Meanwhile, more modest prices at the Goffs UK Sale in Doncaster included £16,000 for a Harbour Watch half-sister to dual Cheltenham Festival winner Penhill.

Marley continues: “It’s a very positive time for the breeze-up sales – you need only to look at the averages, they’re going up every year. A lot of trainers that were negative about the breeze-ups are coming around to our way of thinking.

“Almost all the work is done for them.

For the precocious ones, the only thing they need to do is to get them home, settle them into their routine and stallstest them. In the last couple of years we’ve sold Mehmas and Denaar to Richard Hannon and they’ve both won within weeks of the sale.”

With Cullinan doing most of the

European Breeze-up Sale dates Tattersalls Ireland Ascot April 5 Goffs UK April 10 Tattersalls Craven April 16-17 Osarus April 25 Tattersalls Guineas Sale May 4 Arqana May 12 Goresbridge May 24-25

breaking-in before sending horses over to Marley for their breeze-up preparation in January, the operation is very much reliant on good team work, and this has become a feature of the breeze-up scene, in which a number of the leading players buy in partnerships, such as Willie Browne and Dwyer. With certain yearling characteristics

“We don’t want middle-distance pedigrees for this job – a lot of them will end up as middle-distance horses but we don’t want to buy middle-distance pedigrees. You have to back your own judgement and you don’t always get it right.”

Time will tell how much Marley and Cullinan have got right this year but if a morning on the gallops with their team is anything to go by, their judgement is pretty sound.

BREEZE-UP STARS Group 1-winning graduates since 2008 Horse

SaleYear

Sale

Music Show

2009

GOR CBU

Passion For Gold

2009

Dream Ahead

2010

DBS

Margot Did

2010

GNS

Fiesolana

2011

GOR

Lucayan

2011

ARQ

Mshawish

2012

ARQ

Contributer

2012

CBU

Rosdhu Queen

2012

CBU

Trip To Paris

2013

CBU

The Grey Gatsby

2013

ARQ

Astaire

2013

KEM

Brando

2014

CBU

The Wow Signal

2014

ASC

Ventura Storm

2015

CBU

Harbour Law

2015

LON

Quiet Reflection

2015

DBS

Robin Of Navan

2015

ARQ

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The Castlebridge Consignment

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Kings of the

CASTLE Having started out with a draft of just 12 horses in 2002, Andrew Mead and Bill Dwan have developed The Castlebridge Consignment into one of Europe’s premier outfits, equally capable of handling a big dispersal sale and selling quality youngsters at the top auctions Words: Julian Muscat

Thetis and her filly foal by Lope De Vega sell for 550,000 guineas at Tattersalls in February, to the delight of The Castlebridge Consignment’s Andrew Mead (top left) and Bill Dwan

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LAURA GREEN/TATTERSALLS

W

hen Thetis and her filly foal by Lope De Vega fetched 550,000 guineas at Tattersalls in February, it marked the conclusion of a tumultuous year for The Castlebridge Consignment.

It was little over a year, in fact, since Thetis was originally part of the 22-strong Ballymacoll dispersal of fillies and mares scheduled to pass through Tattersalls at the December sales. After her belated date with the auctioneer, Castlebridge had reaped just shy of 8 million guineas on behalf of the Weinstock family.

But that was only part of the story. All told, Castlebridge consigned 80 lots on behalf of its clients at those December sales for total receipts of nearly 19 million guineas.

In the process it reasserted its position at Europe’s premier consignor.

“Last year was one of those amazing years when everything came together,” says Andrew Mead, one of The Castlebridge Consignment’s four directors. “The quality of the horses we had was extraordinary, but we never lose sight of the fact that every horse is important.”

As much was evident in the final transaction Castlebridge conducted at a cold and snowbound Deauville in

December. “We negotiated a private sale between a French buyer and one of our German vendors for €500,” Mead recalls.

It has been a rapid ascent for an outfit established in 2002, when Mead and Marion Goodbody, a pair of British-based bloodstock agents, aligned themselves with Bill and Tara Dwan, who have a stud farm near Navan, in Co Meath.

For the first ten years Castlebridge grew the business steadily. Their green and red livery adorned more and more boxes at sales grounds across Europe, in the process highlighting the success story. But the big breakthrough, the one that propelled them to global prominence, came when Paul Makin asked them to conduct a dispersal of his stock in 2013.

The Paulyn dispersal was a big deal. It comprised just 25 lots but there was quality in abundance. Both Fleeting Spirit and Song fetched seven figures, although the jewel was undoubtedly Chicquita, who had won the Irish Oaks two years earlier. Chicquita made €6 million, which established a new benchmark for any horse sold at public auction in Ireland.

“I’ll never forget the atmosphere at Goffs that day,” says Bill Dwan. “Seeing Chicquita

››

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The Castlebridge Consignment

›› walk into the ring and getting an opening

bid of €3 million; I doubt I’ll ever see that again in my lifetime. I think the whole of the bloodstock world stopped in amazement.”

One thing leads to another, of course, and two years later Castlebridge was asked to handle another high-profile dispersal: that of David Wildenstein, whose grandfather, Alec, was the leading owner in France nine times.

“There’s no doubt the Paulyn dispersal put Castlebridge on the map worldwide,” Dwan avers. “It was only when you saw the sale of Chicquita on the Irish news later that night that you become aware what a big story it was. It probably helped us to get the Wildenstein dispersal, which was full of legendary bloodlines that we all followed when we were growing up.”

The Paulyn dispersal was Castlebridge’s first, and it was an experience Mead savoured. “It came along at a very good time for us,” he reflects.

“The main difference between a dispersal and regular sales is that you don’t have to worry about reserves. Setting reserves at a regular auction is a big part of our job: liaising with our clients, advising on how the horse has been showing, what level of interest there has been, and therefore what reserve should be set.

“At a dispersal, that whole element is removed from the process,” Mead

continues. “Dispersals create an atmosphere [reflecting the fact] that everything is there to be sold. The whole batch of an owner’s stock is there and it’s a fantastic feeling to be involved.”

As much as Paulyn enhanced Castlebridge’s reputation, the Wildenstein dispersal was of a different hue. It embraced more than 100 horses spread across dates

“Chicquita had an opening bid of €3 million – I doubt I’ll ever see that again” in September and November at Goffs.

The September commitment included a 40-strong draft of horses in training that was shipped over from France, together with the yearlings. “I dealt with the horses in training while Bill handled the yearling draft,” Mead recalls.

“We hardly saw one another for two days. The yearlings started to go through the ring, culminating in the Dubawi-Beauty

Parlour colt that made €1.4 million, and the horses in training followed them in.”

The Wildenstein mares and weanlings, all 49 of them, followed in November. And this on top of Castlebridge’s burgeoning commitments to its regular clients.

“Logistically it was quite a lot of work,” Mead says. “We had more horses to sell than ever before and we had to cast the net wide to find good staff. But it was incredibly beneficial. We’re still using many of the staff to this day. It did us good in the long term.”

It was all a far cry from Castlebridge’s debut consignment of just 12 horses in 2002. “Our growth has been organic,” says Dwan. “It’s not something that we necessarily set out to do. Only when the sales season is over do you realise how much you have grown each year.”

The sales circuit has always held a particular fascination for Dwan, who spent a decade with Coolmore after starting out at the Irish National Stud. For much of that time he travelled to and from Australia with Coolmore’s shuttle stallions. He also spent one season in Japan with Danehill.

Come the dawn of the new millennium and Dwan considered his future. “I always wanted to do my own thing,” he reflects.

“I had a great grounding and I’d got to the stage where I either stayed at Coolmore or branched out on my own.

“My father bred National Hunt horses, so

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The Castlebridge name is well known at all the big European bloodstock sales

the sales scene has always been part of my life. Sales mystified me and excited me, so that’s the road I wanted to go down. In the beginning I started consigning very small numbers.”

At that time Mead and Goodbody, both based in Newmarket, had made numerous contacts through their bloodstock agency work. A pooling of respective resources saw them join forces with the Dwans and Castlebridge duly came to be.

In Ireland, Dwan and his wife are based at the 100-acre Castlebridge Stud, where they house permanent boarding mares, and where up to 100 yearlings are prepared annually for auction across Europe. Dwan also leases another 80 acres nearby.

Over in England, Mead has Castlebridge East, a farm two miles from Newmarket, which shares a boundary with Cheveley Park Stud.

In winter this facility boards mares who are booked to visit Newmarket stallions, although no pregnant mares are accepted in the interests of disease control. Come the end of the covering season and Castlebridge East is rested for a month

Horses in training a potential future source One of the advantages of The Castlebridge Consignment is that it prepares and consigns horses at every significant sale in Britain, Ireland and France. While this has helped to swell the numbers, there is always room for growth.

There are no current plans to embrace the sales scene in Germany, which remains an intrinsically domestic affair, while the prospect of consigning breeze-up horses makes no appeal.

“Bill [Dwan] and I both have farms to run and are pretty busy in spring as it is,” Mead says. “Breeze-up horses are very time- and labour-intensive, and we think it will stretch us too far. We’re happy to leave that to the experts; they have been going a long time and are very good at it.”

However, Castlebridge has identified the sale of horses in training as a potentially fertile future source of business. Having consigned its first such horse in 2011, the outfit is now responsible for around 50 entries to horses-in-training sales annually.

It is noticeable that trainers who entrust their graduates to Castlebridge are from a younger generation that recognises that

Apr_164_Castlebridge.indd 65

standing around on a sales ground for two or three days is not the best use of their time. “It’s an area that may still see further development for Castlebridge,” Mead suggests.

Is there a chance Castlebridge could become too big? “It is something we are keeping in mind,” Mead says, “but the numbers are self-limiting. If we ever feel that at a single sale we can’t show every horse to the best of its ability, then we will cut back.

“But there isn’t a masterplan to say there has to be a limit on numbers at any one sale. As long as it’s working well, and every client receives the attention they should receive, I think we will be doing a good job.”

As for quality control, Mead says that is largely exercised by sales companies when they decide which sale each horse should be sent to.

“There’s no way we would ever say to a client that we will sell their good horses but not the bad ones,” he says.

“We are here to find buyers at all levels for each horse. Owners with Group 1 winners will also have the cheaper horses to sell. All of them need to be sold and we are here to sell horses.”

before yearling/foal preparation starts in earnest. Consigning horses on behalf of clients has now become a staple of the sales scene in Europe. Long established in the US, it has taken firm root here as smaller breeders in particular acknowledge the consignors’ professional expertise while recognising that the economics make sense.

“You used to see breeders turning up at every sale with two or three horses,” Dwan says. “That has changed; people have got their heads around it now. They can’t afford to send their staff to the sales with horses in the way they used to, especially to sales abroad. That has helped consignors to become more popular in Europe.”

Dwan says that the skills of a diplomat are sometimes required. One of the hardest parts of the job is deploying those skills when sales company representatives make their initial visits to decide which of their sales best suits each horse.

“You might suggest to them which sale you think might fit the horse best,” he says. “I would say that’s our biggest issue, because there’s nothing worse than a horse being over-faced. Another issue is being honest with clients who own the horses; try and advise them as best you can. The good horses sell themselves and make you look good, to be honest. The lesser horses are harder work, and take up your time.”

The key to successful consigning, however, is to recognise that the horse business is actually a people business. “The more you see of it, the more you realise it’s a very small world,” Dwan says. “You have to do right by people no matter where you are.

“It’s a bit like a circus that moves around from town to town. You see the same people at Doncaster as you do at Goffs, Newmarket and Deauville. And you’ll return to those venues a year later. The industry is quite small and parochial.”

No major dispersals have yet been announced for 2018, which suggests it will be back to regular business for Castlebridge after last year’s high of selling the Ballymacoll fillies and mares at Newmarket.

However, images of consigning horses from the famed Co Meath nursery will linger long in the memory.

“I think the whole of the [Tattersalls] December sales benefited from the Ballymacoll stock being there,” Dwan says.

“I’ve never seen such a divergence of buyers at one auction. The whole world pays attention when horses like these come up for sale.”

Mead’s features also display the afterglow of the Ballymacoll involvement.

“There were some very famous older fillies, like Islington, and some lovely young mares,” he reflects. “It was a very attractive draft. We were very lucky to be involved.”

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Pillar Coral OB Apr 2018 f-p_Pillar Coral OB Apr 2018 f-p 23/03/2018 08:51 Page 1

8

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for

1 20

PILLAR CORAL Bay 2014, 16.2hh,

ZAMINDAR – CORALINE (SADLER’S WELLS)

Brother to proven Gr.1 sires MARTALINE, COASTAL PATH (Champion), REEFSCAPE (Champion).

From the family of Gr.1 winners and sires KINGMAN, OASIS DREAM. Sire: ZAMINDAR - Leading Gr.1 Classic Sire and Leading Gr.1 Broodmare Sire, and full-brother to leading sire, ZAFONIC. "PILLAR CORAL has exceptional pedigree credentials and comes from an exceptional Juddmonte Stallions pedigree."

LEO POWELL, THE IRISH FIELD

"Regally bred, pedigree of rare quality featuring 22 Black type horses, 8 Champions & 5 Leading Stallions under the first two dams."

THE EUROPEAN BLOODSTOCK NEWS

Fee: €2,500 CONCESSIONS FOR FILLY FOALS

Travel scheme for visiting overseas mares

ANNSHOON STUD BALLINCLEA, MULLINAVAT, CO KILKENNY, IRELAND Contact: MICHAEL SHEFFLIN Tel: + 353 (0) 87 978 6428 email: annshoon@gmail.com website: www.annshoonstud.com

Breeders’ Digest

Emma Berry Bloodstock Editor

Our bloodstock coverage this month includes: Sales Circuit: New record for British pointer at Cheltenham Festival Sale – pages 68-70 Caulfield Files: Kingmambo’s influence thrives best in Japan – pages 72-73 Dr Statz: More to Unbridled’s Song’s legacy than mere numbers – page 94

Spirited start a help for sires

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GEORGE SELWYN

O

ur Australian correspondent Danny Power this month highlights the extraordinary success of Eureka Stud’s Spirit Of Boom, who is currently dominating the freshman sires’ table in Australia by number of winners. At the time of writing, the son of Sequalo and great grandson of Thatching had ten winners to his name – six ahead of his nearest pursuer, Zoustar, who heads the table by prize-money thanks to his Magic Millions 2YO Classic-winning daughter Sunlight, who is co-owned by Tweenhills Stud’s Hannah Wall.

In a land where so much emphasis is placed on two-year-old racing, it has always seemed odd that there are relatively few juvenile contests. It’s not unusual for a stallion to be leading freshman in Australia without breaking into double figures for winners.

Spirit Of Boom’s racing debutants have made such an impression that the demand for his stock at the recent edition of the Magic Millions Gold Coast March Yearling Sale has seen his average rise to A$167,500 (for 37 sold) from last year’s A$28,767 (for 30).

That’s the kind of explosive start of which every stallion master dreams when their charges’ first offspring hit the track. By the time this issue is published, the first European juvenile contests will have been run. With Doncaster’s Town Moor just about shrugging off the snow in time to embrace the new turf season, the Brocklesby will get the two-year-old ball rolling in Britain, and we can but hope to see a horse of the calibre of the 2016 winner The Last Lion.

Odds for the first-season sires’ championship are now available and it’s encouraging to see two Classic winners – Kingman and Australia – heading the market. With 114 and 123 first-crop foals respectively, each of them should be well represented later this season.

Among their counterparts who also have numbers on their side are

Juddmonte’s outstanding miler Kingman is favourite to be leading first-season sire in 2018

Alhebayeb (128), Toronado (126), War Command (110), Sea The Moon (109), Charm Spirit (107) and Morpheus (106).

It’s not always just about having a numerical advantage, however.

No Nay Never was not one of those with a three-figure first crop (he had 89 foals, still a decent amount) but even so seems likely to make a significant impact as his yearlings last autumn generally created a very good impression. It may well also be worth keeping an eye on Heeraat’s runners.

He had 71 foals in his first crop but they too generally looked like well-made individuals who could be out fairly early. Considering he’s by Dark Angel out of a Green Desert mare, it seems likely that his offspring should favour shorter distances.

The breeze-up sales get under way later this month and provide an extra pointer to the currently unknown quantities among the sire ranks.

Phoenix Thoroughbreds made a splash at last year’s breeze-ups and the outfit’s eyecatching spending,

through agent Kerri Radcliffe, has been rewarded with decent success already.

Dream Tree, selected at at FasigTipton’s Gulfstream Sale for $750,000, is now a Grade 1 winner in the USA for Bob Baffert. Gronkowski, a 300,000gns purchase from the Craven Breeze-up, has won his last three starts, including a ‘win and you’re in’ qualifier for the Kentucky Derby at Kempton.

The third-most expensive lot at the Goffs UK Breeze-up, Gotti, has been runner-up in the UAE 2,000 Guineas, while the €1.4 million Arqana graduate Walk In The Sun is unbeaten in two starts and has Classic entries.

Phoenix Thoroughbreds will be without the services of Radcliffe this season but its representatives have already signed for the $875,000 top lot at the OBS March Sale in Florida.

With more than 100 extra juveniles catalogued for the first three breezeup sales in Britain alone compared to last year, it will be no surprise to find that clearance rates fall in that ultraselective tier of the market.

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Sales Circuit • By Carl Evans

Held after racing on ‘St Patrick’s Thursday’ at the Cheltenham Festival, this auction made further progress on all fronts.

The average broke through the £150,000 barrier, rising 11% to £158,250, the median mark was not far behind, rising 23% to £147,500, while turnover gained 5.5%.

Two horses, both four-year-old, once-raced, winning Irish pointers, made £330,000, a new high for a sale first held in 2014, and there was also an all-time auction record of £220,000 for a British pointer.

The headliners were the Irish duo of Andy Dufresne (Doyen) and Feel My Pulse (Stowaway), of which the first named was a triumph for Gordon Elliott’s travelling head groom Camilla Sharples, a Lancastrian who gained her current position three years ago. She had led up the JLT Novices’ Chase winner Shattered Love – one of eight Festival winners for

TATTERSALLS IRELAND

Tattersalls Ireland Cheltenham Festival Sale

Andy Dufresne returned a handsome profit for the £30,000 outlay by Camilla Sharples

TALKING POINTS • Gordon Elliott was the leading trainer at the Festival with eight winners, one more than Willie Mullins.

• At the Festival Sale, Elliott was involved in the purchase of the joint-top lots for a total spend of £660,000, while Mullins bought the third on the top-ten list, Ontheropes, for £240,000, and the fourth, The Big Getaway, for £230,000, plus the tenth, Elite Charboniere, for £155,000. His spend tallied £625,000, meaning these twin giants of jump racing accounted between them for just over 40% of the catalogue’s turnover.

• Youthful trainers Tim Vaughan and Rose Dobbin (the last-named buying through agent Gerry Hogan) gained six-figure horses, but it was interesting that among very recent additions to the training ranks, Olly Murphy, who has made a rapid start to his career, gained two horses, admittedly from the lower echelon at £60,000 each.

There is more than a hint of Gordon Elliott, his former mentor, about Murphy.

• There were three British pointers on offer, and they all sold. Interconnected headed the trio at £220,000, and while his stablemate, Port Of Mars (sold to Olly Murphy), made little more than his store purchase price, the sale of Kootenay River was a triumph for trainer Fran Nimmo and boyfriend Charlie Poste, who run a yard in Warwickshire. They bought their four-year-old, a winner on debut four days before the sale, for €12,000 last year through former jockey Paul Moloney. Reoffered he made £80,000 to a bid from Tom Malone, and now goes into training for owner Liz Prowting at Alan King’s yard.

• Tattersalls Ireland was thanking the heavens after a five-day forecast for rain – which could have been a real dampener on an outdoor auction – proved well wide of the mark, and a relatively mild, still evening greeted the 24 lots. Thirty-six hours later, Britain – and Gloucestershire in particular – was taking its third bashing from snow this winter, a rarity which would have played havoc with the Festival and its eponymous sale.

• While on the subject of weather, both Tattersalls Ireland and its vendors swerved another nightmare leading up to the event. With ‘fresh form’ being a key theme to such sales, the two weekends before they take place are vital in providing opportunities to race young point-to-pointers before their ring appearance. Pointing on both sides of the Irish Sea was wiped out by snow on the penultimate weekend, but sterling efforts by organisers meant fixtures were hastily rescheduled and trainers had a choice of venues at which to run their horses on the weekend before the Festival kicked off.

Elliott – at the start of the afternoon’s racing, but the sale of her horse, who was trained by her boss, will have far bigger implications relating to bricks and mortar.

Sharples admitted she had “a few savings, but not quite enough to buy a house”, so decided to have “one shot” at buying a horse to pinhook. Taking the advice of agent Mouse Ryan and Elliott, she bought Andy Dufresne privately last year for a reported €30,000, and he paid off spectacularly. She can now buy that house, and it will probably contain at least a couple more bedrooms than the one she initially envisaged.

Frank Berry, racing manager to JP McManus, signed the buyers’ sheet, but the horse returns to Elliott to race under

Gordon Elliott and Mags O’Toole teamed up to buy Feel My Pulse at Cheltenham

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rules in the green and gold colours.

The leading trainer at the Festival, Elliott’s name was also associated with the sale of Feel My Pulse, who was knocked down to agent Mags O’Toole.

One of five horses offered by Monbeg Stables’ Donnchadh Doyle – three sold, all for six-figure sums, two were led out unsold – he had been bought by his vendor for €60,000 as a store, and had clearly looked impressive at that age.

After winning at Lismore five days before his Cheltenham appearance, he had added form to good looks, and the market liked the profile.

There is no guarantee that a jumping foal, yearling or two- or three-year-old store which makes a notable sum will do the same when reoffered, but it is not unusual that they do.

Interconnected, the four-year-old son of Network who set a record price for a British pointer at auction, had cost €37,000 as a foal, which was a pretty good starting position.

The buyer, Tom Lacey, duly put Interconnected through his Herefordshire academy, and while he had fallen when making his debut in a point in January, he atoned with an impressive win at Larkhill the following month.

TATTERSALLS IRELAND

Overview and analysis of the latest events in the ring

Feel My Pulse sold from Monbeg Stables for £330,000 to share top billing on the night

A key to success as a regular vendor is the success others have with the horses you sell, and it grieved Anthony Bromley of Highflyer Bloodstock that he missed the Lacey-consigned Blackbow when he was offered at Aintree last year. The gelding subsequently won two bumpers in Ireland for Willie Mullins, and was a

close fifth in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper at the Festival, 24 hours before this sale. Bromley did not want to let another nice horse from Lacey go elsewhere, and it was his bid, on behalf of owners Mike Grech and Stuart Parkin, which created the new high mark of £220,000.

Tattersalls Ireland Cheltenham Festival Sale Top lots Name/Breeding

Vendor

Feel My Pulse (Stowaway – Zenaide)

Monbeg Stables (Donnchadh Doyle)

330,000

Price (£)

Buyer Margaret O’Toole/Gordon Elliott Racing

Andy Dufresne (Doyen - Daytona Lily)

Camilla Sharples

330,000

Gordon Elliott Racing

Ontheropes (Presenting - Dushion)

Ballyboy Stables (Denis Murphy)

240,000

H Kirk/W Mullins

The Big Getaway (Getaway - Saddlers Dawn)

Monbeg Stables (Donnchadh Doyle)

230,000

H Kirk / W Mullins

The Captains Inn (Flemensfirth – Killeen)

Ballyboy Stables (Denis Murphy)

220,000

Stroud Coleman Bloodstock

Interconnected (Network - R de Rien Sivola)

Cottagefield Stables (Tom Lacey)

220,000

Highflyer Bloodstock

Tippingituptonancy (Stowaway - Dyrick Daybreak)

Skehanagh Stables (Sam Curling)

185,000

Tim Vaughan / Select Racing

Brewers Project (Aizavoski - Shaylee Wilde)

Monbeg Stables (Donnchadh Doyle)

185,000

Tom Malone/Paul Nicholls

Umbrigado (Stowaway - Dame O’Neill)

Cobajay Stables (Aidan Fitzgerald)

160,000

Tom Malone/David Pipe

Elite Charboniere (Gris de Gris - Star Folle Prail)

Patrice Quinton

155,000

H Kirk/W Mullins

Five-year tale Year

Sold

Agg (£)

Avg (£)

Mdn (£)

Top Price (£)

2018

20

3,165,000

158,250

147,500

330,000

2017

21

3,000,000

142,850

120,000

320,000

2016

14

1,447,000

103,357

91,000

225,000

2015

18

1,362,000

75,667

60,000

205,000

2014

16

1,688,000

105,500

70,000

260,000

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Sales Circuit Ocala Breeders’ Sale

Record figures achieved at this two-day breeze-up sale in 2017 were hit by a reduced catalogue and a curious lack of stellar-priced horses.

Seven-figure prices are not uncommon at the event, and no fewer than five breezers had made such a sum last year, headed by a $1,700,000 Diamondsandpearls filly, who was knocked down to Phoenix Thoroughbreds. Twelve months later the top price of $875,000 was gained by a daughter of Scat Daddy, whose

valuation would not have got her onto the top-ten board at the previous year’s auction. Phoenix Thoroughbreds was again the buyer, but this time it used the services of Tom Ludt to do the bidding after its former bloodstock advisor, Kerri Radcliffe, parted company with the organisation earlier in the month.

The Scat Daddy filly had clocked the joint-fastest time when breezing over a furlong, and is a half-sister to the graded stakes winner Sharp Sensation.

Eddie Woods, the leading consignor

with 15 sold for $4,915,000, commented on the top-end bias: “The top horses are always going to sell, but there is nobody here to buy those good, professional horses.”

With 61 fewer horses on offer, turnover took a downturn, falling 25%, yet the reduced number did not help the average price or clearance rate, which nudged back from 72% to 70%, as 254 horses found a buyer.

The average price fell 10%, but the median saved blushes by gaining 15%.

Ocala Breeders’ Sale Top lots Sex/Breeding

Vendor

Price ($)

Buyer

F Scat Daddy – Accusation (Royal Academy)

Hartley/DeRenzo Thoroughbreds

875,000

Phoenix Thoroughbreds III

C Pioneerof The Nile - American Lady (Stormy Atlantic)

Eddie Woods

850,000

OXO Equine

C Strong Mandate - Magestic Stinger (Majestic Warrior)

Wavertree Stables

775,000

Carolyn Wilson

F Uncle Mo - Mama Tia (Carson City)

Eddie Woods

775,000

Solis/Litt

F Quality Road - Love This Kitty (Not For Love)

Eddie Woods

750,000

White Birch Farm

C Bodemeister - Victory Island (Friendly Island)

Woodford Thoroughbreds

725,000

Michael Stinson

C Real Solution - Money Huntress (Mineshaft)

Hoppel’s Horse & Cattle Co

675,000

Mark Casse

C Awesome Again - El Prado Essence (El Prado)

Bobby Dodd

650,000

Live Oak Plantation

F More Than Ready - La Song (Unbridled’s Song)

Ocala Stud

625,000

Phoenix Thoroughbreds III

F Bernardini - Awesome D’Oro (Medaglia d’Oro)

Crupi’s New Castle Farm

575,000

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners/Repole Stable

C Mucho Macho Man - Dusty Rose (Cherokee Run)

Richardson Bloodstock

575,000

OXO Equine

Four-year tale Year

Sold

Agg ($)

Avg ($)

Mdn ($)

Top Price ($)

2018

254

42,592,000

167,685

110,000

875,000

2017

304

56,765,000

186,727

95,000

1,700,000

2016

320

51,288,000

160,275

102,500

1,700,000

2015

325

55,432,000

170,560

105,000

1,400,000

Please contact Andrew Mead (+44 7940 597573 mead@castlebridge.eu) or Bill Dwan (+353 87 648 5587 dwan@castlebridge.eu) to discuss all your 2018 sale requirements

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REMOVE THAT AUCTION PRESSURE ...

www.castlebridge.eu

Caulfield Files

King’s heirs not best in the west The Kingmambo male line is ever diminishing in Europe but remains strong in Japan, where King Kamehameha provides a counterpoint to Sunday Silence’s descendants

LANWADES

F

rom a timing viewpoint, the sad death of Archipenko late last year was unfortunate on several levels.

For a start, this very well-bred horse was still only 13. His demise also came before his 2016 crop – likely to be his best so far – had had a chance to showcase his abilities as a sire, which had been highlighted back in 2014 by Madame Chiang’s success in the Group 1 British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes. And the announcement of his death also coincided with the excellent form being shown by his former Englishtrained son Time Warp in Hong Kong, where he has added a second Group 1, the Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup, to his December victory in the Longines Hong Kong Cup. Another aspect of Archipenko’s death was that it possibly signalled the end of the Kingmambo male line as a major force in Europe, at least on the Flat. All that’s left are a few inexpensive grandsons in France, including George Vancouver and Pedro The Great (who made an eyecatching start with his small first crop in 2017).

This fade-out by Kingmambo’s male line is all the more surprising in view of the depth of Kingmambo’s Classic success as a stallion. There was a time when only Sadler’s Wells made a bigger impact in the European Classics, with Kingmambo siring two winners of the 2,000 Guineas, in King’s Best and Henrythenavigator, two winners of the 1,000 Guineas, in Russian Rhythm and Virginia Waters, and two of the French 1,000 Guineas, in Bluemamba and Divine Proportions. And it wasn’t just at a mile that he made his mark at Classic level. Divine Proportions stayed well enough to take the French Oaks, while Ulysses’ dam Light Shift took the Oaks.

Kingmambo even sired two St Leger winners in Rule Of Law and Encke.

Outside Europe, Kingmambo had two Classic winners over a mile and a

Kingmambo’s well-bred son Archipenko was a sad loss to the European ranks in 2017

half, with Lemon Drop Kid taking the Belmont Stakes and King Kamehameha the Japanese Derby. He was also very ably represented in Europe by the likes of Dubai Destination, Alkaased, Campanologist, Thewayyouare, Okawango and Malhub, as well as Archipenko.

Sons rising in the East

Kingmambo therefore looked to have a better chance than most of establishing a long-lasting male line in Europe but it wasn’t to be. King’s Best was transferred to Japan after the 2012 season, with the move being partly prompted by the success of his son Eishin Flash in the 2010 Japanese Derby. Japan was also the destination for Alkaased and for King’s Best’s Derby and Arc-winning son Workforce.

“King Kamehameha has daughters of Last Tycoon and Blakeney as his first two dams”

Dubai Destination, now a respected sire of broodmares, was deemed a disappointment and was transferred to the jumping sector, before being sold to Saudi Arabia. Henrythenavigator also proved generally disappointing and ended up in Russia. Archipenko wasn’t the only son who died comparatively young, as the Gestut Fahrhof-based Campanologist succumbed to colic as a ten-year-old, before he had even had a runner, while Thewayyouare, sire of Toast Of New York, died at the age of 13 in 2018 (Thewayyouare is currently being ably represented in the US by the former French-trained three-year-old filly Thewayiam). Another who died young was the champion Japanese colt El Condor Pasa, who went close to winning the Arc. Colic claimed him as a seven-year-old, after just three seasons at Shadai.

If the Kingmambo male line is struggling in Europe (and the US, where the 22-year-old Lemon Drop Kid has no obvious heir), the opposite is true in Japan, which is proving something of a stronghold for Kingmambo’s sons and grandsons. El Condor Pasa’s brief innings yielded a high proportion of talented

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performers, headed by a couple of winners of the Group 1 Japan Cup Dirt and a winner of the Japanese St Leger.

However, the credit for keeping the male line very much alive belongs to King Kamehameha, the 2004 winner of the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby).

Now 17, King Kamehameha hasn’t been without his problems in recent years. For example, after siring 182 foals in 2013, he had just 50 born the following year. The story goes that he suffers from genital abscesses and consequently the Shadai team has restricted him to just one or two mares per day. Shadai announced early in 2016 that King Kamehameha would cover a limited book that year. The strategy seems to be working well enough, as King Kamehameha has 96 registered foals in 2017, having had only 71 the previous year.

King Kamehameha was champion sire in 2010 and 2011, since when he has found Deep Impact an immovable object at the head of the stallion list. To his credit, King Kamehameha has finished runner-up to that great stallion every year from 2012 to 2017 and again ranks second to him at an early stage in 2018. In the process he has sired 11 Grade 1 winners, compared to Deep Impact’s dominant total of 33, in a country which stages fewer than 25 Grade 1 races.

Deep Impact’s exploits have placed him in a separate category, as can be seen from his 2018 fee of ¥40 million (equivalent to around £260,000), whereas King Kamehameha’s fee for 2018 is ¥12m.

A good outcross

King Kamehameha was conceived in the US and has daughters of Last Tycoon and Blakeney as his first two dams, so has a pedigree free of Deep Impact’s ubiquitous sire Sunday Silence. This has proved a considerable advantage at his Shadai base and he owes some of his finest winners to mares from the Sunday Silence line. Daughters of Sunday Silence supplied him with Duramente (2015 Japanese 2,000 Guineas and Derby), Rose Kingdom (2010 Japan Cup) and Belshazzar (2013 Japan Cup Dirt).

Mares by sons of Sunday Silence have also worked well, producing such good winners as Let’s Go Donki (2015 Japanese 1,000 Guineas), Lovely Day (2015 Tenno Sho Autumn) and Leontes (2015 Asahi Hai Futurity).

Arguably, it is going to be King Kamehameha’s sons which are themselves free of Sunday Silence which have the most to offer the Japanese industry. Two of them – Lord Kanaloa and Rulership – have already shown plenty of potential.

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HUGH ROUTLEDGE

Bloodstock world views

Lord Kanaloa: free of Sunday Silence blood

Lord Kanaloa ended 2017 as Japan’s leading first-crop sire, having sired 32 winners from 94 starters, and only Deep Impact finished above him among the sires of two-year-olds. His biggest earner, Stelvio, was runner-up to the unbeaten Deep Impact colt Danon Premium in the Grade 1 Asahi Hai Futurity.

Lord Kanaloa retired to Shadai with the proud record of 13 wins and five seconds from 19 starts, taking the title of Japan’s champion older sprinter at the ages of four and five. He was a dual winner of the Grade 1 Sprinters Stakes at Nakayama and of Sha Tin’s Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint.

Lord Kanaloa was so impressive as a five-year-old in 2013 that he ranked joint-fifth on the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings, his rating of 128 placing him just 2lb below Black Caviar and Treve and 1lb below Orfevre and Wise Dan. He no doubt owed his speed partly to his broodmare sire Storm Cat. Breeders have understandably flocked to use Lord Kanaloa, with his first three crops numbering 180, 195 and 158 registered foals. He has covered at least 250 mares in each of his first four seasons and his fee for 2018 is ¥8m, which puts him on a par with Sunday Silence’s very successful son Heart’s Cry. Rulership had taken the first-crop sires’ title a year earlier, ahead of the Kentucky Derby winner I’ll Have Another, and he built on this encouraging start in 2017, when he finished 17th on the general sires’ table despite having fewer starters than all 16 stallions above him. His best win came via his son Kiseki, winner of

the Grade 1 Japanese St Leger. Rulership is up to 11th in the standings in early March 2018, thanks to a Grade 2 success from his first-crop son Danburite and a Grade 3 win by his second-crop daughter Tetradrachm.

He also had a son and daughter in the frame in the trials for the Japanese 2,000 and 1,000 Guineas. He has 181 yearlings in 2018 and covered 240 mares in 2017, so he won’t be short of ammunition in the coming years. He is standing 2018 at ¥4m.

Rulership wasn’t as talented as Lord Kanaloa but he was still good enough to win the Group 1 Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup over ten furlongs at Sha Tin in 2012.

He also has the attraction of having a very strong female line, as his dam Air Groove and second dam Dyna Carle both won the Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks).

A daughter of the Arc winner Tony Bin, Air Groove also defeated the males in the Tenno Sho Autumn over a mile and a quarter and was second in El Condor Pasa’s Japan Cup. Duramente is the latest son of King Kamehameha to be added to the Shadai stallion team and he was asked to cover no fewer than 284 mares in his first season in 2017. In addition to his Classic double, he was second to Postponed in the Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic, and he too has the attraction of coming from an outstanding female line. His first three dams, Admire Groove, Air Groove and Dyna Carle, were all champions in Japan, so he is bred along similar lines to Rulership. He is another plying his trade at a fee of ¥4m.

Another interesting son of King Kamehameha is Rey De Oro, his 2017 winner of the Japanese Derby who has the distinction of having a half-sister to Deep Impact as his second dam. Second in the Japan Cup last November, Rey De Oro stays in training as a four-year-old but will no doubt eventually strengthen the team of King Kamehameha’s sons, in the bid to extend the Kingmambo male line.

It’s hard to imagine, but the Kingmambo male line’s future in Britain and Ireland may well be as a source of good-class jumpers. Workforce returned from Japan to stand his first season at Knockhouse Stud in 2017 and he ought to do well. Another of King’s Best’s sons, Creachadoir, is responsible for the accomplished jumper Footpad and we have seen Kingmambo’s son Kingsalsa sire that smart chaser Captain Conan, while Dubai Destination’s purpose-bred jumpers include the smart young chaser Elegant Escape and the Grade 1-winning hurdler Next Destination.

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Membership Benefits: TTC Horses

A

s part of their subscription to The Thoroughbred Club, members have exclusive access to a number of TTC horses, which give a unique insight into all aspects of the industry - from following the routine of our broodmares as they prepare to foal, to watching our horse in training race in the club’s colours.

Currently the club has one horse in training and follow two broodmares. Our horse in training, Mercian King, has run in 12 races for TTC, winning three times and only being out of the placings twice.

The seven-year-old gelding, who is by Robin Des Pres out of the Grade 1-winning mare Mariah Rollins, is currently in training with TTC committee member and Britain’s youngest trainer, Amy Murphy.

Following a winter break, Mercian King was aimed at the Greatwood Charity Race at Newbury on March 3, where he would have been ridden by Sheik Fahad Al Thani. However, the fixture had to be cancelled due to the snowfall, so he was instead rerouted to Kempton on March 5 for the 32Red Jumpers’ Bumper National Hunt Flat Race.

The race was Mercian King’s first contest without obstacles, proving just how versatile he is. Ridden by his regular jockey Jack Quinlan, he tracked the leaders until being ridden three furlongs out, however he stayed on nicely to finish third behind General Ginger and Peculiar Places.

TTC’s horse in training Mercian King with trainer Amy Murphy and broodmare Blue Geranium

Members also have access to a number of broodmares and their offspring. The first of the club’s broodmares is Sacre Coeur, who was bred by Whitsbury Manor Stud and bought back by the stud after she had finished her racing career. Since retiring to stud, she has gone on to produce multiple Flat winners Stepper Point and Gulland Rock.

Last year her progeny also sold extremely well at the sales, with her 2016 filly by Showcasing selling for 210,000gns at the Tattersalls Book 1 Yearling Sale and her 2017 colt by Muhaarar selling for 290,000gns at Tattersalls’ Foal Sale. This year she is in foal to first-season sire Twilight Son. The club recently added a new mare, Blue Geranium, to its ranks. Blue Geranium is owned by Elkington Stud, who purchased her at the Tattersalls

Dates for your diary Wednesday, April 25 TBA Regional Day at Weatherbys A limited number of places will be available to TTC members. For more information and to book your spot, please visit our website.

Saturday, May 5 - Sunday, May 6 QIPCO Guineas Festival at Newmarket racecourse TTC members will have the chance to win two tickets for both the Saturday and Sunday of the QIPCO Guineas Festival at Newmarket. Applications for the ticket draw can be made via email to melissa.parris@thetba.co.uk.

Tuesday, May 8 TBA Regional Day at David Dennis racing and Throckmorton Stud For more information and to book a place, please visit our website.

Friday, May 11 May Race Night at Ascot TTC members can purchase a King Edward VII ticket, drink and racecard for £10. This offer can be purchased on the day only from ticket office East. Simply show your TTC membership card when purchasing your ticket.

Breeding Stock Sale in December.

She is by the popular broodmare sire Dansili, out of the Selkirk mare Super Sleuth, who was placed six times in her career including second in the Group 3 Fred Darling Stakes at Newbury. Blue Geranium herself won once as a threeyear-old whilst in training with John Gosden before being retired to stud in 2017. Blue Geranium’s first foal is due imminently and is by exciting young sire Gleneagles, who was champion two-year-old and a three-time Classicwinning miler at three.

To keep up to date with the club’s broodmares and horses in training, please follow our social media pages and keep an eye on the TTC website and our emails for updates and badge offers.

New Members The TTC would like to warmly welcome the following new members, and look forward to seeing them at our 2018 events: Cameron Crawford-Smith Christine Sells Octavia de Ferranti Frederica Rowland Emma Sansom Kirsten Smith Roy Healy Saskya Bingei Katie Thurtle Sophie Hall Laura Creighton Dan Thompson Georgina Kivneen Harriet Errington Nancy Haddon

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www.thethoroughbredclub.co.uk •

@TTC_GB

New student membership

Students can join TTC for just £25

The club has recently announced its new student membership tier, which offers greater value to students aged over 16 with a valid student card. For just £25 a year, members will enjoy an exciting range of benefits which include exclusive events, raceday ticket offers and subscription to Thoroughbred Owner Breeder magazine, access to our TTC horses and much more.

First regional day offer is approaching This year TTC members have exclusive access to the popular TBA Regional Days, the first of which will be a behind-thescenes tour of Weatherbys on Wednesday, April 25. For those wishing to work in the industry, the trip will be a great way to learn more about one of the key administrators of the industry.

The day will start with a tour of

the departments, which include the bloodstock, stud and racing services departments. Lunch will then follow in the conference room, after which members will be give an online demonstration of the General Stud Book (GSB).

A limited number of tickets will be available for members at a reduced rate of £5 per person, inclusive of lunch. If you

are interested in attending this popular event, please complete the online booking form on the event page of our website or email melissa.parris@thetba.co.uk for more information.

KOW IMAGES

Chasemore Farm fun for TTC members in March

TTC members enjoying a tour of Chasemore Farm for our first club event of the year, full event report to follow in next month’s issue

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ROA Forum

The special section for ROA members

Further pay increase for racing staff agreed R

acing staff who were awarded a pay increase of 3% across the board last October are to receive a further rise following a successful second round of National Joint Council (NJC) talks between the National Trainers Federation (NTF) and the National Association of Racing Staff (NARS).

The increase applies to racing staff aged 18 and over and will be in two parts. Those on scale 4, 5 and 6 will receive a further 1%, and scale 1, 2 and 3 employees a further 2%, bringing the total increases to 4% and 5% respectively since October 2. The latest increases will be effective from April 2.

George McGrath, the Chief Executive of NARS, said: “We welcome the latest increases. We are a little disappointed not to have made any progress in implementing a reduced working week but view this as a work in progress.

“The NTF has pointed out the difficulties in getting all of its members to agree a ‘one size fits all’ policy on the working week, but we acknowledge that a significant number of trainers, more than 25%, are implementing more flexible working hours and patterns.”

Rupert Arnold, NTF Chief Executive, said: “With these further increases in minimum pay rates to update the

From April 2 racing staff will enjoy a pay rise of up to 2% depending on their scale

interim agreement last October, the NTF is pleased to continue progress through negotiation with NARS. “Although discussions about working patterns are still ongoing, there is a growing understanding between the parties about the options available to trainers.

“In collaboration with their staff,

employers are increasingly evolving their working practices to respond to recruitment and retention challenges.”

ROA Chief Executive Charlie Liverton said: “All horsemen recognise that staff retention and recruitment is vital for a flourishing industry. Ensuring staff are rewarded and incentivised is key to this.”

Renewal of third party liability cover up to £10 million for members

Unpredictable: racehorses

ROA members enjoy automatic third party liability cover up to a limit of liability of £10 million against potential damages if their racehorse causes damage or injury.

This was introduced as a benefit of membership as owners are currently vulnerable to claims.

The law may define a racehorse’s owner as any individual who has a financial interest in that horse, so all members of a partnership or syndicate should be mindful of their potential exposure to that risk.

The ROA scheme, arranged through Weatherbys Hamilton, applies to all horses in training, horses being prepared to go into training and horses who are temporarily out of training.

A summary of cover, some frequently asked questions and full policy wording and terms can be found at roa.co.uk.

Following a suggestion at the Wolverhampton regional meeting we are looking at issuing an annual certificate from 2019.

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First mares-only jump raceday at Cheltenham For the first time ever at a National Hunt racecourse, Cheltenham will host a raceday devoted exclusively to races for fillies and mares.

Taking place on day two of the April meeting on Thursday, April 19, the mares’ raceday offers a seven-race programme, with £190,000 in prizemoney.

The richest races are the £40,000 Listed European Breeders Fund/ TBA Mares’ Novices’ Handicap Chase Finale and the £40,000 Kingston Stud Supporting The IJF 4-Y-O Fillies’ Juvenile Handicap Hurdle.

Stuart Middleton, Racing Operations Manager at the BHA, said: “We have been working for some time towards jump racing’s first all-mares’ card.

“Cheltenham has long since held the same ambition and, having between us expanded their card to include four mares’ races already, it is the obvious venue to give this exciting venture a try.

Cheltenham will stage the first all-female raceday on April 19

“This initiative forms yet another part of our ongoing commitment to bolstering the overall mares’ programme and providing an incentive to own and train Jump mares.

“We hope that the fixture will garner positive publicity and the promise of being part of a unique

event at such an iconic venue will, we hope, be yet another reason to be excited about ownership of mares at all tiers of the sport.”

The April meeting gets under way on Wednesday, April 18, when the highlight is the £60,000 Grade 2 Matt Hampson Foundation & NSIF Silver Trophy Chase.

Lycetts Team Champion Awards Nick Alexander’s Kinneston yard from Fife in Scotland and Warren Greatrex at Uplands in Lambourn, Berkshire, were announced in February as the inaugural winners of the Lycetts Team Champion Award, to celebrate the British racehorse training yards with the highest standards of employee management.

The awards were presented following the National Trainers Federation AGM at the Institute of Directors, Pall Mall, London on February 22.

The winning yards were awarded a £4,000 prize for each yard to benefit and support their teams.

Catch Bissett, Assistant to Alexander, said “It is an honour to accept the prize on behalf of the team at home. They are a credit to the yard and the industry as a whole. The Lycetts

Warren Greatrex’s team with their Lycetts Team Champion Award

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Team Champion Award is a fantastic initiative which really reflects well on the staffing at the heart of the industry.

“The application process gave us an opportunity to look into what we do and think about how we can make improvements for the future.”

Greatrex said: “I am really proud to win the inaugural Lycetts Team Champion Award. We are so lucky to have the staff we do. I feel our team are great ambassadors for the yard and British horseracing.”

The National Trainers Federation (NTF) and Lycetts Insurance Brokers created the Lycetts Team Champion Award to: • Deliver praise and a sense of achievement for the racehorse training yards with the highest standards of employee management • Showcase the positive results of developing a team that works well together • Spread the message about safe working practices • Improve recruitment and retention rates by promoting the most successful management practices and encouraging their wider adoption among racehorse trainers.

The assessment criteria for Lycetts Team Champion Award are based on The Winning Approach, a best practice standard developed for the NTF by consultants Sport and Beyond. It included effective recruitment and induction systems, a safe and positive working environment, developing staff to fulfil their potential, and rewarding achievement.

Development of The Winning Approach and the award was funded with the help of The Racing Foundation.

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ROA Forum

MAGICAL MOMENTS with ROA member Anne Cowley

O

ne of the most media-friendly angles to this year’s QIPCO 2,000 Guineas would be if the Roger Teal-trained Tip Two Win is in the Newmarket mix along with colts from the yards of messrs O’Brien, Gosden and Stoute.

Hopefully all continues to go well until next month, to give his trainer and owner-breeder Anne Cowley potentially the thrill of their racing lives.

Tip Two Win owes them nothing as it is, having won four of his seven starts, the last two being extremely lucrative victories in Doha, Qatar.

Al Rayyan racecourse is not a common springboard to the Classics but Tip Two Win did look pretty awesome when winning the Al Biddah Mile, a local Group 2, in February by two and a quarter lengths to collect the £105,000 first prize.

While an unconventional stepping stone, connections admitted on the day it did look as though they have a 2,000 Guineas candidate on their hands.

Crowley told Racing Post reporter Stuart Riley after David Probert had extricated himself from a pocket to fly home for a convincing triumph: “I was in a Burger King car park in America watching it through a phone being held up to a laptop for his last run and I cried then, so I was always going to cry today. It’s just fantastic.”

Crowley’s love for racing was something of a slow burner, and she admits her interest is a relatively recent phenomena.

“I’ve not always been interested,” she says. “My late husband Fred and I only ever went to the Queen’s Stand enclosure for the Derby, and for a day at Royal Ascot every year. Neither Fred nor I have ever sat on a horse in our lives.

“In 2002 Fred was diagnosed with onset dementia. By 2004 his memory had got worse and he was unable to go into the office any more.

“I decided that I needed something to make me take him out as much

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Anne Cowley and Jay Grandfield with Bow Bells, carrying to American Pharoah

as I could whilst I was then running our group of engineering companies.

I decided to buy two horses so we could go and watch them run.”

Cowley, who was an accountant/ financial director, then Chairman, and her husband, a Chartered Electrical Engineer, owned three horses together, while her individual count is now around 18.

She sold their engineering group in 2016, a few years after the death of her husband, and is a breeder as well as an owner.

She says: “I have an American business partner, Jay Grandfield, and we bought Bow Bells in foal, having been covered by American Pharoah.”

Teal, for whom Tip Two Win is the stable flagbearer in a team of 21 he submitted to this year’s Horses in Training annual, has trained just that one horse for Cowley, whose other trainers, Seamus Durack and David Flood, are likewise able to provide a personal service the owner prefers.

“I tend to go to small yards as I want my horses treated as an individual,” she says. “I feel also that it’s the smaller yards that need the help more than the larger yards.”

Wherever a horse is trained, and by whoever, nothing beats seeing your colours carried to victory on the

››

Tip Two Win could be a Guineas contender

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racetrack, and aside from her Doha delights Cowley has experienced other magical moments.

She says: “The Rectifier winning the first race at the John Smith’s Cup meeting at York in July 2013 would be one, and Tip Two Win winning his first race at Windsor last summer another.”

Like for any owner, there are frustrations, and Cowley says of hers: “For me it’s when you can’t find a maiden race for an unraced/ unplaced two-year-old and have to enter your horse in a nursery, where they are racing against horses who have won races or have had the experience of running several times and earned their handicap mark, which is high. Also, when your horse is drawn in the car park several times consecutively.”

Happy memories from Burger King car parks are one thing; you certainly don’t want your horse drawn in one.

The draw can sometimes play a part even in a race like the 2,000 Guineas, so if Tip Two Win does make it to Newmarket, fingers crossed for a decent stall – though undoubtedly, if he does, just being there will be enough for his proud owner-breeder.

News in Brief Fees for partnership changes The BHA has agreed to make an amendment to the fees around making a change to the make-up of a partnership. This is in response to feedback from owners and trainers who had questioned the necessity of charging to take someone out of a partnership and also for adding a new partner. The fee for taking someone out of a Partnership has been removed from March 21, and the fee for adding someone in will remain, at £92.50 plus VAT. ROA members receive a 20% discount on this fee.

Lingfield Derby Trial ARC has confirmed that Lingfield Park’s Derby Trial on May 12 has been added to the ARC Admission Scheme. The meeting was already a participating fixture on the Racecourse Badge Scheme for Owners.

Six-run restriction for novice Flat races Due to the uncompetitive nature of some of the new novice races for three-year-olds and up, the BHA has altered the definition of novice Flat races for this age group, effective from the beginning of the Flat season, March 24.

From that date, horses aged three and upwards which have won a race and have run more than six times are no longer eligible for novice Flat races (or as otherwise specified in the race conditions); maiden horses will continue to be eligible regardless of the number of previous runs they have had.

Rule change in France France Galop has introduced a new rule stipulating that any dispensation on horses mounting on the track, parading late or being taken down to the start by a handler have to be granted by the stewards 48 hours before declarations.

Reasons have to be given by connections and if the dispensation is granted, it will be valid for one year. The only exceptions will be made for supplemented horses. No dispensations will be granted on raceday.

for Anne Cowley and trainer Roger Teal

Racing Breaks Racing Breaks will be hosting a

preview night in advance of the Randox Health Grand National Festival at Aintree on the evening of April 11.

The preview night will include a virtual tour of the Grand National with insight and tips for the three days with the guidance of an expert panel comprising Ruby Walsh, Andrew Thornton, Oliver Sherwood and Katie Walsh and hosted by presenter Gordon Brown.

The preview night is limited to 500 people. Tickets are £15 per person. Racing Breaks are offering free entry to the evening with any Wednesday overnight packages which start from £99 including bed and breakfast, course walk, entry and free drink. See racingbreaks.com/events/ grand-national Ayr joins PASS System Ayr will be joining the Racecourse PASS scheme from April 30, bringing the number of racecourses using PASS to 53. Since implementation in November 2016 over 328,000 people have now used the system to gain complimentary access to racecourses on racedays.

The PASS system offers a concierge service enabling owners to manage their complimentary badge allocation on days when they have a runner, including being able to allocate badges to guests who may be arriving independently. To log in to the online concierge (www.rcapass.com), owners should have automatically received a registration email with the account they have registered with Weatherbys. If this is not the case, please contact the PASS helpdesk at Weatherbys – pass@weatherbys.co.uk – and they will assist you in creating an account.

Just seven courses are now not yet signed up to the PASS system: Cartmel, Cheltenham, Hexham, Kelso, Leicester, Plumpton and Towcester.

Auction cap in Median Auction races During 2018, the auction cap (£20,000 above the median price) in median auction races will apply only to races restricted to juveniles and will be expanded to include all other median auction races in 2019.

The revised wording can be found in the online Rules of Racing at Rule (F)4.6.4.

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ROA Forum UPCOMING EVENTS...UPCOMING EVENTS...UPCOMING

Royal Ascot dining offers

Balmoral Restaurant • Private tables • Champagne reception • Four-course lunch menu to choose from • Complimentary bar throughout the day including champagne and cocktails • Afternoon tea with rosé champagne Carriages Restaurant • Private balcony • Shared tables • Champagne reception • Four-course luncheon • Complimentary bar throughout the day

More Ascot offers

Ascot is kindly repeating its offer to ROA members of a 10% discount on Queen Anne Enclosure admission and hospitality packages for all fixtures this year. The discount applies to all of Ascot’s fixtures, with the exception of Royal Ascot (see above).

Members who wish to purchase King Edward Enclosure badges will receive a complimentary drinks voucher. To book admission call 0844 346 3000, or book online at www.ascot.co.uk quoting the discount code in the ROA members area at www.roa.co.uk.

The discounted hospitality offer provides a saving of 10% on fine dining packages in the On5 and Parade Ring Restaurants for all fixtures outside of the Royal meeting. Details can be found at

Price per person including admission

GEORGE SELWYN

The ROA is pleased to repeat a collaboration with Ascot racecourse to offer members an exclusive discount for the five days of the Royal meeting (June 19-23) at a choice of three restaurants located in the Queen Anne Enclosure.

The three venues are Balmoral, Carriages and The Furlong restaurants.

Balmoral occupies the ground floor of the double-decker Royal Ascot marquee and this year will be open to Royal Enclosure badge holders only. Royal Enclosure admission can be arranged for members who book this offer. Carriages is on the first floor of the Royal Ascot marquee. The Furlong Restaurant is brand new for 2018, located at the east end of the Grandstand, before the Winning Post.

The highlight of the summer looms large

including champagne • Afternoon tea The Furlong restaurant • Split-level private terrace • Private tables • Champagne and canapés reception • Four-course menu to choose from • Complimentary bar throughout the day including champagne and cocktails • Afternoon tea with rosé champagne All packages include car parking label per two places booked, racecards and racing papers, and Queen Anne Enclosure admission can be arranged for The Furlong and Carriages if required.

www.roa.co.uk. Bookings can be made directly through Luke Leverett on 01344 878034 or luke.leverett@ascot.co.uk

Other member events…

The ROA diary includes a choice of over 50 days of events that members and their guests can enjoy throughout this year.

To follow are our events in April and early May. A full listing can be found at roa. co.uk/events

HEROS visit, April 10

Free to attend member visit to HEROS, the racehorse retraining centre, in Wantage, Oxfordshire, with tour, demo and chance to meet the horses.

Randox Health Grand National April 12-13

Day Carriages Balmoral The Furlong Restaurant Tuesday June 19 £575 £760 £640 Wednesday June 20 SOLD OUT £760 £640 Thursday June 21 SOLD OUT £930 SOLD OUT Friday June 22 SOLD OUT £825 SOLD OUT Saturday June 23 £515 £670 £585

Price per person, without admission Day Carriages Balmoral

Tuesday June 19 £505 £655 Wednesday June 20 SOLD OUT £655 Thursday June 21 SOLD OUT £830 Friday June 22 SOLD OUT £765 Saturday June 23 £440 £570

The Furlong Restaurant £570 £570 SOLD OUT SOLD OUT £505

Places are subject to availability and can be booked online at roa.co.uk/events or by calling the ROA on 020 7152 0200.

Members can enjoy free admission on Thursday and Friday to Aintree’s Festival Zone on production of their Horseracing Privilege Card or PASScard. Members can purchase a ticket at face value for accompanying guests on the day, subject to availability. To reserve a car parking label email info@roa.co.uk.

April 12 only: Members can book into the ROA Hospitality Pavilion, a doubledecker facility overlooking the racecourse.

The package includes lunch, a cash bar, TV feed and Tote facility. Places for members are £85 per person and for guests £100 per person.

Punchestown Festival April 24-28

Members can enjoy access to the AIRO Marquee located in the Reserved

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EVENTS...

Enclosure on production of an ROA membership card/PASScard.

Complimentary refreshments available.

There will be a cash bar for the purchase of drinks. Members may bring up to three guests. Racecourse admission will be payable (Reserved Enclosure).

Owners Jackpot+ at Market Rasen, May 11

The next quarterly Owners Jackpot+ event. Travel expenses of £250 will be paid to every qualifying ROA-owned runner in the day’s Jackpot race.

ROA hospitality is for members with or without a runner in a racecourse facility, with a complimentary drink and light refreshments. Places are bookable in advance.

If the trainer of a qualifying winning horse in the Jackpot+ race is an ROA member, the winning yard will also benefit with a payment of £500.

Newton Abbot regional meeting, June 4

One of eight regional meetings being held this year to provide members with an opportunity to be updated on and discuss racing and ownership matters with the ROA team. These are always popular networking events and our members are invited to lunch and to enjoy the use of the facility during racing afterwards.

Early booking event offers

The ROA AGM will take place on the morning of Tuesday, July 3 at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower Hotel, Knightsbridge, London.

Members are encouraged to attend the AGM, which features key industry speeches and stimulating debate. The AGM is followed by a popular members’ and guests’ lunch.

The AGM is free to attend. Places for the lunch need to be booked in advance.

Members can take advantage of an early booking rate of £108 per person until April 9. Tables of ten are available for £1,080.

An early booking rate also applies for the ROA Horseracing Awards, taking place at the InterContinental Hotel, London, on December 6. Tickets and tables can be booked at last year’s rates until April 9 - £185 per person or £1,700 for a table of ten. For further details and to book any of the above visit roa.co.uk or call the ROA on 020 7152 0200.

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Diary dates and reminders APRIL 10 Free member visit to HEROS racehorse retraining centre in Wantage APRIL 12-13 Free admission to Aintree’s Festival Zone on the opening Thursday and Friday of the Randox Health Grand National Festival. Lunch offer in a private facility on the opening day

Book by April 9 and enjoy last year’s prices for the AGM lunch and/or Horseracing Awards dinner on Thursday, December 6 JULY 5 ROA regional meeting at Perth JULY 13 Chester Owners Jackpot+

APRIL 24-28 Access to AIRO marquee over five days of Punchestown’s NH Festival

JULY 30-AUGUST 1 Galway Festival – access to AIRO marquee

APRIL 26 ROA regional meeting at Beverley racecourse

JULY 31-AUGUST 4 Glorious Goodwood package and service for Richmond Enclosure badges

MAY 11 Owners Jackpot+ at Market Rasen

AUGUST Deauville Festival – selected dates Access to exclusive owner dining facility

MAY 22 Breakfast with the Stars facility for members at Epsom JUNE 4 ROA regional meeting at Newton Abbot JUNE 5 Ownership Matters event at Harrogate JUNE 19-23 Discounted ROA hospitality package for Royal Ascot over the five days of the Royal meeting, across a choice of three restaurants. Full details can be found online

JULY 1 Curragh and AIRO member offer

JULY 3 ROA AGM and Members’ & Guests’ Lunch, London

AUGUST 22 Juddmonte International Stakes at York – private box and bespoke dining package SEPTEMBER 19 ROA regional meeting at Sandown SEPTEMBER 21 Member visit to Cheveley Park and Banstead Manor Studs, Newmarket, with lunch OCTOBER 20 Private box at Ascot for British Champions Day OCTOBER 24 Owners Jackpot+ at Fontwell OCTOBER 30 ROA regional meeting at Chepstow

Extra badges at Leicester The Flat Turf season has arrived, bringing with it some welcome updates for owners from racecourses.

Leicester has announced that all owners with a runner will receive six complimentary admission badges, regardless of their ownership set-up.

These badges will each come with a £15 money-off voucher for the Nelson Suite restaurant, where pre-booking

is encouraged as space is limited.

Gold Standard Award holder Chester racecourse has unveiled plans for a potential £100 million redevelopment, which includes two new grandstands.

Chester has also confirmed that its popular Appearance Money scheme will continue into 2018, whereby an owner will receive £500 per horse running, as last year.

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MY DAY AT THE RACES With Tony and Ann Gale at Taunton on February 4 Tony and Ann Gale have been passionate followers of racing for most of their lives, and have owned horses in syndicates and also solely since the late 1990s.

They have been lucky enough to own a Midlands National and Eider Chase winner in Philson Run, who was also fourth in the 2007 Grand National. More recently they owned Morello Royale, who they bought as a foal in Ireland in 2010 and who went on to win a Listed mares’ race. They have now retired her to stud and she is shortly to be covered by Blue Bresil, thereby ensuring many more years in ownership to come.

Did you receive any welcome information as an owner in advance of the raceday?

A day or so after the entry was made for our horse at Taunton I received a letter through the post from Taunton thanking me for the entry. This letter also gave full information about the facilities that were available to us.

Accompanying the letter were two car park tickets displaying our names and the name of our horse.

How was the experience of arrival at the racecourse and collecting your owners’ badges?

Taunton is well known to me. There is marked parking for owners and trainers and generally the underfoot conditions for parking your car are good. There is a short walk across the road to the main entrance and the different entry points are well signposted. The staff working at

Tony and Ann Gale are successful racehorse owners who have moved into breeding

the owners’ and trainers’ desk are organised. I was able to produce my PASScard and collect the badges, racecard and meal vouchers without any problem.

Did you use the owners’ and trainers’ facility on the day?

The Owners’ & Trainers’ facility at Taunton is immediately adjacent to the owners’ and trainers’ desk. We were therefore able to immediately go into the room that was available for our use.

What were your thoughts on the location, comfort and provision in the facility?

The O&T facility at Taunton is spacious compared with those offered at many racecourses. There were sufficient tables and chairs available. There were varied hot drinks available, as well as biscuits and additionally hot and cold light meals on offer. My wife enjoyed

a bowl of chicken curry which she informed me was both hot and tasty!

I decided upon a hot cheese pasty, which was also enjoyable. There were six meal vouchers available to us as a result of our horse running that day. The voucher could also be used towards a meal within the racecourse restaurant.

How was the pre-parade ring/ paddock experience?

Everything at Taunton is very close by.

It is only a short walk from the O&T facility to the pre-parade ring and into the paddock. The jockeys have only a short walk from the weighing room to the paddock. Both the pre-parade ring and the paddock are grassed but the underfoot conditions were good.

There was no squelching in mud!

How did you find the facilities for owners’ viewing?

There is a designated viewing area

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on offer at Taunton. I didn’t use it as I remained in the paddock where I was able to watch the race on the big screen, which is located immediately across the course from the paddock. If I had chosen to use the dedicated viewing area it is only a short walk away.

Were you able to review a replay of your race easily on course?

After the race I was able to review the race on the big screen.

How were you treated as an owner on the day?

Our horse did not win his race but earlier during the afternoon I was kindly invited by one of my racing friends whose horse had won to join him for a celebratory drink.

The winning connections’ facility is adequate and we were offered sandwiches and either a glass of champagne or a soft drink. During the period we were within the room we were able to watch the race once again. The winning owner was provided with a DVD of the race as well as a framed photograph of his horse in the winners’ enclosure.

What was your overall lasting feeling of the day, based on your racecourse experience?

Taunton is a friendly intimate course that is well supported by National Hunt followers in the West County.

It is an independent racecourse that does very well at looking after its owners. The prize-money on offer is generally better than racecourses which are part of a larger group.

The going report provided by the Clerk of the Course is accurate and is always available at an early time on the Racing Admin site. I would have no hesitation in having a horse run at Taunton again and hope to do so in the near future.

Change to the Standard Conditions of Race Entry Owners should note that a change has been made to the Standard Conditions of Race Entry. This reflects that horse ambulance providers are not able to secure insurance for further injury during transport of an already injured horse, thereby creating an uninsurable risk.

The following additional wording was added from February 12 as paragraph 2(e) of the Standard Conditions published in the Racing Calendar: “Without prejudice or limitation to the provisions of Condition 2(b) above, the Owner acknowledges and agrees that the horse ambulance providers acting as independent contractors to the Racecourse do not hold and are unable to obtain insurance in relation to transportation of already injured racehorses as such insurance is not available in the market.

The Owner shall satisfy themselves as to the sufficiency of their insurance cover in

relation to their racehorses and any loss, injury, damage or delay of whatsoever kind which they may suffer if transported by such horse ambulance providers. The limitation of liability and agreement not to sue contained with Condition 2(b) shall apply in relation to the Racecourse Authority, Racecourse Employees or Officials in respect of any such loss, injury, damage or delay of whatsoever kind which the Owner may suffer if racehorses are transported by such horse ambulance providers. The Owner agrees that this is a reasonable allocation of risk having considered the relevant circumstances.”

This change was proposed by the RCA, and agreed by the ROA, NTF and BHA, and was developed with legal advice. It is to alert racehorse owners so that they are suitably prepared to deal with any issues which arise, particularly in relation to the insurance cover for their horses.

Racing Admin website Registered owners who haven’t yet signed up to use the Racing Admin website, launched last August, are missing out on a number of useful features.

The site enables ownerships to be maintained online; from setting up a new ownership to registering sponsorships, authority to act and colours. It also provides up-to-date information on the horses owned and who is involved, as well as free and easy access to the race programme, allowing you to search for future races.

To register to use the new site, go to www2.racingadmin.co.uk, where there is a login area with an option to request access underneath.

Existing owners can use an access token sent to them prior to the launch last summer. If you do not have a token, select the no token option.

For assistance with registering to the site please contact the Web Support team on 01933 304828 or email websupport@weatherbys.co.uk.

The site has excellent Help & Support, Frequently Asked Questions, User Guides and How To Videos to help owners make the most of using it.

HOW IT RATED Entry ★★★★★ Viewing ★★★★★ Atmosphere ★★★★★ Owners’ facilities ★★★★★ Food ★★★★★ Overall score 23

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ROA Forum

ROA/Racing Post Owners Jackpot races

Simon Haydon and Luke Morris at an ROA/Racing Post Owners Jackpot raceday

There are five chances for members to win a £2,000 Owners Jackpot bonus during April.

As usual, each week a race will carry a £2,000 bonus. If the winning horse belongs to an ROA member, the extra payment is made on top of prizemoney. In the case of a horse owned in a partnership, the horse will qualify for the bonus if at least 51% is in the ownership of ROA members.

For syndicate- and club-owned horses, the majority of club/syndicate managers need to be members of the ROA to qualify. Full details can be

found at roa.co.uk/jackpot

This month’s Jackpot races

April 3, Pontefract 1m Class 5 Handicap 4yo+ 61-75 April 10, Southwell 3m Class 4 Handicap Chase 5yo+ 0-110 April 17, Carlisle 2m 1f Class 4 Handicap Hurdle 4yo+ 0-105 April 24, Huntingdon 2m 4f Class 4 Handicap Chase 5yo+ 0-115 April 26, Beverley 1m 1/2f Class 4 Handicap 4yo+ 71-85

Raceday Curtailment payments As part of our insurance arrangements with Weatherbys Hamilton LLP, members are provided with compensation when they are due to have a runner and racing is abandoned after the first race.

A payment of £100 is made to members who own at least 51% of a horse that had been due to run at a meeting that is abandoned after the

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first race has taken place.

Over the past five years the Raceday Curtailment Scheme has seen collective payments to members of £46,000, with an average of over £8,000 paid out each year.

We are grateful to Weatherbys Hamilton for its support in handling the scheme and payments to owners affected in these situations.

Trainer Pack update

The ROA understands that trainers are key in providing an enjoyable experience for owners and guiding them through the ownership journey.

Last April the ROA circulated a Trainer Pack to racing yards, designed as an information pack covering the various administrative elements that come with buying a racehorse, and answering frequently asked questions relating to ownership registration.

This has been updated to reflect various changes in racing administration processes last year and updated sections have been mailed to trainers via the NTF. The revised Trainer Pack can also be downloaded as a pdf from the ROA website at roa.co.uk and copies are available on request via the ROA office.

We want your feedback Members are encouraged to complete our online Racecourse Feedback form at roa.co.uk/ feedback after going racing with a runner. This provides the Raceday Committee with valuble feedback and is vital in helping to further improve the raceday experience for owners. One form per month is selected at random to win the member who left it a £50 John Lewis giftcard. This month’s winner is Wendy Wesley, who owns three horses in partnerships, all trained

by Nick Kent.

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LE BRIVIDO

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TBA Forum

The special section for TBA members

STEPHEN DAVIES

TBA NH ‘Stars of Tomorrow’ Foal Show

Last year’s show champion was a colt foal by Kayf Tara out of Lifestyle, bred by the Ford family in Cheshire and later sold for £52,000

T

he TBA’s National Hunt ‘Stars of Tomorrow’ Foal Show, will take place once more at Bangor-onDee racecourse on Sunday, July 29. The show, now in its sixth year, provides a unique opportunity for breeders to showcase their youngstock in front of a panel of industry judges.

All TBA members are invited to attend the event, in which there will be four separate classes, split according to sex and age of the foals. The winners and runners-up from each of the

classes will then go forward for judging of the overall champion and reserve champion of the show.

Previous winners of the show, include David and Kate Ford’s Kayf Tara colt out of Lifestyle, who went on to sell for £52,000 at the recent Goffs UK January Sale.

To take part in the show foals must be born in Great Britain and bred with the intention of being run under National Hunt rules. The mare and foal must also be owned by a TBA member.

Breeders Badge Offer TBA members can gain free entry to Cheltenham on Thursday, April 19. The TBA will be sponsoring two races on the day, the EBF/TBA Mares’ Novices’ Chase Finale and the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association Mares’ Chase.

Tickets will be issued for the Club/Tattersalls enclosure upon

presentation of a valid membership card at the owners’ and trainers’ entrance.

No pre-booking is required. Please note that only one ticket will be issued per membership. For more information please contact the TBA office on 01638 661321.

Further details of the show and entry forms will be sent out to members in the coming months. However, in the meantime, for any queries please contact Joseph De Souza at the TBA on joseph.desouza@thetba.co.uk.

30-day Foal Notification Reminder TBA members are reminded that from the start of 2018 breeders are now required to notify the General Stud Book (GSB) of the birth of all foals within 30 days of their birth date. Notifications can be managed through the Weatherbys GSB online system.

For more information on the new system and help on submitting a notification please visit www. weatherbys.co.uk/30day.

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In Other Industry News…

Godolphin Awards

The Godolphin Stud and Stable Staff Awards took place in London in February. The prestigious awards celebrate and reward the outstanding skills, commitment and contribution of stud and stable staff from across the country. This year saw a record number of stud staff nominated with representatives making the short list in four out of six of the categories. On the night, the Stud Staff Award went to Sarah Taylor from Mickley Stud, for which she won £5,000, with an additional £5,000 also being awarded to the stud. The TBA would like to congratulate the winners of all the awards.

ADAM SMYTH

Cheltenham racecourse has announced that it will host the first raceday devoted exclusively to fillies and mares. Taking place on Thursday, April 19, the day will offer a seven-race programme worth £190,000, including the £40,000 Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association/EBF Mares’ Novices’ Handicap Chase Finale and the TBA Mares’ Handicap Chase.

Stuart Middleton, Racing Operations Manager at the BHA, commented: “The initiative forms yet another part of our ongoing commitment to bolstering the overall mares’ programme and providing an incentive to own and train jump mares.”

Ten awards will be up for grabs as breeders gather to celebrate the best of British jumping

National Hunt Breeders’ Celebration Dinner This year’s TBA National Hunt Breeders’ Celebration Dinner will take place on Monday, May 21 at the Mount Pleasant Hotel near Doncaster.

Held on the eve of the Goffs UK Spring Store Sale, the annual event attracts owners, breeders and trainers, who join to celebrate the achievements of British breeders in the 2017-2018 National Hunt season.

The evening commences at 7pm

with a drinks reception, followed by dinner and the presentation of ten awards.

The TBA would like to thank Goffs UK for its continued generous support of the event.

Further information on the evening and an application form for tickets will be available on the TBA website and sent to all members in the April membership mailing.

EBF/TBA Mares’ Novices’ Chase Series – February Bangor-on-Dee, Kelso and Wetherby racecourses all hosted races that formed part of the EBF/TBA Mares’ Novices’ Chase Series in February.

On February 9, the joint-sponsored EBF/TBA Mares’ Novices’ Chase at Bangor-on-Dee was won by the Kerry Lee-trained Happy Diva. The mare, who was bred by M Harris and P McKeon, made all under Richard Patrick to win by a length and a half, with Rons Dream

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finishing second. Happy Diva has become a familiar face in the TBA/EBF Mares’ Novices’ Chase series, with two wins in the series so far this year.

Six days later, Rons Dream got her head in front to win the EBF/TBA Mares’ Novices’ Chase at Kelso by an impressive 13 lengths. The consistent mare, who was bred by Peter Clinton and is trained and ridden by the father-and-son duo of Peter and Sean Bowen, previously

finished fourth behind The New One and Sire De Grugy in last year’s Ladbrokes Welsh Champion Hurdle.

Wetherby also hosted the EBF/TBA Mares’ Novices’ Handicap Chase on February 20, which was won comfortably

by Massini’s Lady. The seven-year-old, who is owned Mark Fleming and bred by him in partnership with Jane Cameron, made all to win by 11 lengths for trainer and jockey Nick and Lucy Alexander.

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TBA Forum

Diary Dates

ADAM SMYTH

Thursday, April 19 The Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association Mares’ Handicap Chase and EBF/TBA Mares’ Novices’ Handicap Chase Finale (Listed) at Cheltenham racecourse.

TBA members will receive free entry to the racecourse upon presentation of a valid membership card. For more information please contact the TBA office on 01638 661321.

Breeders and vets will gather in Newmarket for an international symposium on July 28

Breeders’ Seminar This year the TBA will team up with the International Symposium on Equine Reproduction (ISER) to offer members a one-day seminar discussing all aspects of modern broodmare and stallion management. The seminar has secured speakers with international reputations in their specific fields. This is a rare coming together of expertise which coincides with the international gathering of veterinary researchers (ISER XII Cambridge 2018), which is held in the week before this meeting.

A full day of lectures and presentations for breeders and

Friday, April 27 The TBA Fair Maid of Perth Steeplechase (Listed) at Perth racecourse Tuesday, May 8 Wales and West Midlands Regional Day David Dennis Racing and Throckmorton Stud Monday, May 21 National Hunt Celebration Dinner at Mount Pleasant Hotel, Doncaster

veterinary practitioners will take place at Tattersalls in Newmarket on Saturday, July 28. The opening session features world-renowned experts Dixon Varner and Sue McDonnell speaking on stallion management. Breeders and vets will then divide for their separate sessions.

The full programme is available on the TBA website. The day is sponsored by the TBA and will be free for members. For further information contact Caroline Turnbull at the TBA. To book a place visit www.iserxii.com/ product/horse-breeders-day.

Wednesday, May 30 West Regional Day at Hillwood Stud, near Marlborough Wednesday, July 18 TBA Annual Awards Dinner Location to be confirmed Thursday, July 19 TBA Annual General Meeting at The Jockey Club Rooms Saturday, July 28 Breeders’ Seminar at Tattersalls, Newmarket

ADAM SMYTH

Sunday, July 29 TBA ‘Stars of Tomorrow’ Foal Show at Bangor-on-Dee racecourse New Members Kenneth Alexander Esq, London Rosemary Dickens, Gloucestershire George Moore Esq, Vale of Glamorgan Emma Buchanan, Oxon Ian Duncan Esq, Ayrshire Grech & Parkin, Cheshire Ms Mary-Ann Sandercock, Berkshire Mr Ciaran Paterson BVSc MRCVS, Herefordshire Mr Guillaume Sarda, France Katarina Jacobson, Sweden Jack Conroy Esq, Surrey

Full details of the seminar, which is free to members, can be found on our website

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Investing in breeding and racing: facing up to Brexit The TBA’s taxation advisers have long been active on behalf of members. On June 23, 2016, their workload suddenly increased. The reason? In a word: Brexit, which immediately cast the British breeding and horseracing industries into a maelstrom of uncertainty.

One year from exit day, many questions remain unanswered, but both industries have been busy preparing for a seamless transition to change, with the TBA taking a leading role alongside stakeholders and partners, and chairman Julian Richmond-Watson occupying a similar position on the industry’s steering group.

Within the TBA itself, three subcommittees have been formed, and the newly-named Taxation, Trade and Tariff group, led by Peter Mendham, a pioneer in previous tax negotiations, provides a clue to the breadth of detail and commitment that Brexit has rendered necessary.

The two main strands – veterinary, through health certification, and financial, which may mean customs duty and tariffs – effectively come together when horses cross borders.

Dual committee member Kevin Needham is directly involved with both as Managing Director of BBA Shipping & Transport.

“We’ve had the tripartite agreement between Britain, Ireland and France since the 1960s,” he reflects, “and we’ve not really needed health certification between Britain and the Republic of Ireland for ever, because our horses are a common herd and we have the same diseases.

“Now we want the simplest possible system for the movement of horses between the UK, Ireland and France.

We’ll need some form of travel document, but it appears unlikely that the domesday scenario of building border inspection points will happen.

It’s more likely that our existing border controls will be maintained to the same standards as in the EU.” Needham adds: “We’ve been here before, and everybody coped with paying VAT, which started in an era before computers, when everything had to be done on bits of paper. It’s

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If Britain is outside the single market VAT will be applicable on racehorses from the EU

highly unlikely people will have to stand at a customs counter and get forms stamped and write cheques; it will all be done electronically. Systems are in place elsewhere, such as the one between the US and Canada, which are like paying at the Dartford Crossing or French motorway tolls.”

With wider implications still to be determined, Needham asks: “Are we going to be within the single market, in which case there won’t be tariffs, or are we going to be outside, in which case there’ll be VAT and, particularly with National Hunt geldings from Ireland, duty applicable on arrival?

“If we’re in the single market all we’ve got to worry about is the health status. If we’re going to full border control we’ll have to look at declaring goods for VAT through a computer system.”

Tattersalls’ Finance Director Rob Skeggs, a member of the TTT group, takes up the ‘deal or no deal’ question, saying: “It’s more about scenario planning at the moment, and how that would impact on our current operation. For example, if we fell back on to World Trade Organisation tariffs, thoroughbreds for breeding are allowed to move tariff-free, but non-breeding thoroughbreds attract a charge and, for instance, tariffs for geldings in the

National Hunt market could never be recovered.

“To give an example of the uncertainties we as an organisation face, depending on our post-Brexit relationship with the rest of Europe, theoretically every member of the EU would be termed a ‘third country’.

Suddenly we would go from a handful of horses coming into Britain through a fairly antiquated mechanism of paperwork called the docket system to thousands.”

Nevertheless, both Needham and Skeggs remain “guardedly optimistic” that massive disasters can be averted, and a seamless transition will be possible.

Needham says: “I hope there will be a degree of reasonableness. If there are obstacles it will be because someone is being absolutely bloody-minded about a minor point, which is not in the interest of the industry or the horses.”

And Skeggs points out: “It’s worth remembering that we had all these problems pre-1973 and before the common market came into being, and the world didn’t end, so there are ways around them.”

Meanwhile, the TBA groups examining solutions to the problems have a simple message: we’re on the case.

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Breeder of the Month Words Hyperion Promotions Ltd

BREEDER OF THE MONTH – FEBRUARY

IVOR VALENTINE The inaugural Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown received a rather lukewarm response from British trainers, but that did not prevent a very successful meeting for British-bred horses, which won three Grade 1 races. The highlight was Edwulf’s success in the Irish Gold Cup, a second successive win in the race for a Britishbred chaser. Sizing John, last year’s winner, was bred near Whitby in Yorkshire, and Edwulf was born less than 20 miles away at Guisborough in Cleveland.

Edwulf is a nine-year-old gelding

by Kayf Tara out of the Zaffaran mare Valentines Lady. Ivor Valentine, a farrier based in Cleveland, bred him.

The Valentine family hail from near Punchestown racecourse in Ireland, and have a long and successful association with the home of Ireland’s National Hunt Festival. In 1991, their homebred Mandalus gelding, Cool It A Bit, achieved a unique double by winning on the first two days of the meeting. On Tuesday, he won the Bishopscourt Cup Chase over the banks course, and the next day took the Champion Hunters Chase.

The Reveley family were clients of Valentine’s farriery business, and it was at their stables near Saltburn that Valentine spotted Jessica One, the grandam of Edwulf.

The late Mary Reveley trained the daughter of Supreme Leader to win a bumper and five hurdle races around the northern circuit.

“She had her two front feet on the horsebox to go to Doncaster Sales

90

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when I did the deal with Mary,” recalls Valentine.

Jessica One produced ten foals, all by Irish-based sires. Her first was Valentines Lady, who went into training with the now-retired Keith Reveley and won a bumper and two hurdle races.

She also gained valuable black type by finishing third to subsequent Lancashire Oaks heroine Turbo Linn in a Listed mares’ bumper at Aintree.

“We were offered £70,000 for her after Aintree but Christine, my wife, didn’t want to sell,” continues Valentine.

“The horse had already become her pet. Nowadays, when Christine goes out of the house to feed her, the mare will try to jump the fence to meet her. I’m just the boy in the background!”

Now 17, Valentines Lady has been difficult to keep in foal over the years and has only two progeny. The first of these was Edwulf.

He went to Doncaster Sales as a foal, where the Jamestown Consignment bought him for £24,000. Two years later he went through the ring again at the Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale, this time fetching €30,000 from Monbeg Stables, subsequently going into training with Vincent Halley. After finishing runnerup in his second point-to-point, he raced under Rules for Ben Pauling and Ballydoyle Stables, before joining Aidan O’Brien’s son Joseph in November 2016.

His story almost came to an unhappy end at last year’s Cheltenham Festival when he collapsed near the finish of the National Hunt Chase, suffering from severe oxygen deprivation. Happily, the horse’s own constitution and the

Edwulf is the second generation of his family to be bred by farrier Ivor Valentine

dedication of those who cared for him brought about a remarkable recovery.

Valentines Lady herself had almost died a few years earlier during a difficult foaling that required a caesarean.

With help and advice from Troytown Veterinary Clinic, she is holding in foal this year to Soldier Of Fortune, but, understandably, Valentine remains cautious about her imminent foaling, due in late March.

Her only other foal, a gelding by Midnight Legend, was born in 2012. He was sold twice at Doncaster, firstl as a foal for £10,000 and then as a three-yearold for £68,000.

Now called Grand Morning, he also races in the colours of JP McManus for Tayside trainer Lucinda Russell, and has won two hurdle races at Ayr this season.

Edwulf is by far the best runner in the first three generations of his family, his branch now firmly National Huntorientated. One has to go back to the fifth dam, Peggy West, to find the next stakes winner. She is the third dam of two Group 1-winning sprinters in Royal Applause and Lyric Fantasy.

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Vet Forum: The Expert View

Applying first aid to equine wounds

ROSSDALES

M

ost wounds seen by the veterinary surgeon are caused by trauma. It can be a very stressful time for owners when dealing with wounds before the veterinary surgeon arrives. This article highlights some key aspects of wound first aid that owners can do to facilitate further treatment by the veterinary surgeon.

Having a basic understanding of wound healing and the type of wounds that can occur can be beneficial, not only when treating the wound itself but to help describe the aetiology of the wound to the veterinary surgeon on the telephone.

The surgeon can therefore prepare equipment and consumables needed to treat the wound effectively on arrival.

There are many ways in which horses can cause themselves trauma, the most common are: Puncture wounds: minimal tissue loss but contamination may penetrate deeper than can be seen.

Lacerations: tissue loss is usually small, but they can be very deep and long. These wounds can contain a considerable number of contaminants and necrotic tissue.

Shearing: extensive tissue loss with a large amount of contamination.

The photo included here (Image 1) is an example of a laceration wound on a cannon bone.

All wounds will follow the same overlapping and continuous process of healing. There are four phases of wound healing (as seen in Figure 1): Inflammatory phase: this is the phase in which the skin and other tissues have received trauma and will haemorrhage. Vasodilation occurs, increasing vascular permeability, transporting inflammatory and clotting factors to the wound site.

Debridement phase: white blood cells migrate to the wound, removing debris and bacteria by phagocytosis.

Granulation phase: also known as the repair phase. At this point fibroblasts synthesise collagen and angiogenesis (formation of blood vessels) occurs. Granulation tissue forms filling the wound deficit.

Remodelling phase: epithelialisation and wound contracture occurs.

Image 1: Laceration wound on a cannon

Managing open wounds:

There are five basic steps for the management of open wounds (as seen in Figure 2, overleaf). First, the horse should be taken to a clean and dry environment for the wound to be properly assessed. A clean stable or the stable yard would be suitable. Ideally the area would deliver shelter, good lighting and water. External dirt from surrounding areas can be removed with a brush or a wet towel. The dirt in the wound should be removed using clean cotton wool and sterile water. Sterile water can be prepared by boiling water and letting it cool. If there are clippers available and the horse allows, hair can be clipped away from the area, but this must be done after the wound has been filled either by some wound gel or a wet swab or cotton wool, to prevent dirt and hair from entering the wound.

Early irrigation has been shown to reduce bacterial colonisation. Ideally a sterile preparation such as 0.9% saline should be used, but any form of lavage, even tap water is satisfactory. A saline preparation can be made at home by adding a teaspoon of salt to 500ml of cooled boiled water. The solution can then be syringed onto the wound to lavage it. Alternatively, with bigger wounds, hosing the area for a short period might be more effective. It is

advised to lavage a wound with 100ml of solution per 1cm of wounded area.

Once the wound has been cleaned, it can then be bandaged. There are several advantages to bandaging a wounded area; it can prevent desiccation (drying out), the area will be stabilised, and the bandage will help reduce swelling. On the lower leg a standard bandage should be applied. This bandage consists of three layers (as seen in Image 2). First, an appropriate wound dressing needs to be chosen. Applying wound gel to the area will stop the wound from desiccating. The gel should be held in place with an absorbent sterile dressing. The choice of dressing depends on the type of wound that is being treated and the amount of wound exudate that is being produced.

Alternatively, as a temporary measure, a swab or cotton wool soaked in sterile water can be used. This is held in place by either a soft lightweight orthopaedic padding such as Soffban™

Figure 1: The four phases of wound healing

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By Veronica Brandel, BSc (Hons), RVN

Figure 2: Five steps for the management of open wounds

body parts is more difficult and therefore the swab or dressing might need to be held in place until the veterinary surgeon arrives.

If the wound is bleeding profusely or ‘pumping’ (arterial bleeding) immediate compression is required. Applying a normal compression bandage such as the one described above should be suitable. If the blood strikes through the bandage, as seen in Image 3, it is advised to apply another layer rather than changing the bandage completely as the extra compression is needed. The veterinary surgeon should be informed

ROSSDALES

or cotton wool. A secondary layer of cotton wool or gamgee, compressed by an open-weave conforming bandage is then applied for padding, support and to absorb any further wound exudate. Open-weave bandages should be applied starting distally, spiralling proximally (upwards) and overlapping by at least half. The tertiary layer consists of an adhesive bandage designed to protect from external contaminants and to secure the bandage to the area, Elastoplast™ or Vetrap™ are commonly used.

Bandaging upper limbs or other

Image 3: Strike through from a hock bandage

immediately, and the horse kept calm and in a quiet environment.

ROSSDALES

Conclusion

Image 2: Applying a routine single layer bandage

It is a stressful time for owners when a horse is injured and there are several first aid actions that can be taken before the veterinary surgeon arrives.

First of all, assess the wound: is the wound bleeding profusely? Does the area need immediate stabilisation?

Call the veterinary surgeon. Describe the wound to the veterinary surgeon.

Explain what might have happened.

Clean the wound and lavage it if possible. Prevent desiccation by applying wound gel or a sterile wet swab to the area, and, finally, stabilise by using a routine bandaging technique. Further treatment will then be continued by the veterinary surgeon.

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Dr Statz

John Boyce cracks the code

Sire to make song and dance about

T

apit’s three-year reign as champion sire in North America came to an end in 2017, but he was replaced by another grey stallion in Unbridled’s Song, who was winning his first title four years after his death in 2013. It took the earning power of the great Arrogate to get the son of Unbridled across the line. Moreover, it was Arrogate’s victory in the Dubai World Cup that proved crucial in deciding where the title went. Counting earnings for North American racing only, Unbridled’s Song would have finished runner-up to Candy Ride in 2017.

It is an opportune time to evaluate Unbridled’s Song’s overall contribution to the breed, particularly as he featured in the pedigrees of some of the best thoroughbreds in 2017. A $200,000 yearling who was pinhooked for a world record $1.4 million, only to be returned to his owner because of a bone chip, the 17-hand Unbridled’s Song won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and started favourite for the following year’s Kentucky Derby after victories in the Florida Derby and Wood Memorial. Unfortunately, a quarter crack sustained winning the Wood Memorial dented his bid for Classic glory at Churchill Downs and although he returned to winning ways in lesser races later that year, and again at four, he was never again to reach the pinnacle on the track.

But the fact that Unbridled’s Song commanded a fee of $100,000 in 2010 tells us pretty much all we need to know about his success at stud. His 106 stakes winners so far account for 6.8% of his foals and 9.1% of his runners. The corresponding ratios for the siblings of all foals by Unbridled’s Song are 7.9% and 12%. In the light of his own injury it’s also interesting to note that his 1,171 runners competed on average four times each year, whilst their siblings managed six races a year. Whilst these numbers don’t place him among the very best sires, his ratio of stakes winners is nevertheless formidable in this day and age when mare book sizes are far bigger than in the recent past.

What makes the son of Kentucky Derby winner Unbridled stand out is the sheer quality of his top runners. Arrogate, rated 139 by Timeform, is one of the very best thoroughbreds the racing world has ever seen. His seven-race winning streak, culminating with the Travers, Breeders’

94

mentioned above, we can also reference Whitney hero Cross Traffic and triple Grade 1-winning sprinter Zensational.

However, most of us will have noticed Unbridled’s Song’s great record with his fillies. Nine daughters have scored at Grade 1 level and they feature some of the iconic fillies and mares in recent racing history. The Timeform 124-rated Unbridled Elaine won the Breeders’ Cup Distaff while Unbridled Belle was successful in the Ladies’ Classic in 2010. Last season Forever Unbridled also won the Distaff. Another daughter to capture the imagination was the magnificent but ill-fated Eight Belles, who chased home Big Brown in the 2008 Kentucky Derby after breaking both front ankles in the closing stages of the race.

Unbridled’s Song’s daughters are also doing very well as broodmares. So far they have produced 144 stakes winners in both hemispheres, including 14 at Grade 1 level.

Among the 12 stallions that have become champion sire in North America since the turn of the century, only two – Elusive Quality and Thunder Gulch – have lower ratios of stakes winners. AP Indy (12.7%) and Storm Cat (12.1%) set the standard, whilst all except Unbridled’s Song have ratios of stakes winners superior to their runners’ siblings. But none can claim to have sired a horse as good as Arrogate. And it is horses that are remembered in racing folklore. Not numbers.

Cup Classic, Pegasus World Cup and Dubai World Cup, was breathtaking. Another Breeders’ Cup winner, Liam’s Map, was also out of the top drawer, earning a 130 rating from Timeform after taking the Woodward and Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. Then there’s the Timeform 129-rated Will Take Charge who, like Arrogate, won the Travers at Saratoga.

Unbridled’s Song has sired 75 horses who have run a Beyer Speed Figure of 100 or more, with five recording figures of 110 or higher. In addition to the three colts

Unbridled’s Song’s son Arrogate in action

GRADE 1 WINNERS BY UNBRIDLED’S SONG TFR

Name

Born

Sex

Dam

Broodmare Sire

139

ARROGATE

2013

C

Bubbler

Distorted Humor

130

LIAM'S MAP

2011

C

Miss Macy Sue

Trippi

129

WILL TAKE CHARGE

2010

C

Take Charge Lady

Dehere

126

CROSS TRAFFIC

2009

C

Stop Traffic

Cure The Blues

124

EMCEE

2008

C

Surf Club

Ocean Crest

124

MIDSHIPMAN

2006

C

Fleet Lady

Avenue Of Flags

124

UNBRIDLED ELAINE

1998

F

Carols Folly

Taylor's Falls

124

ZENSATIONAL

2006

C

Joke

Phone Trick

122

BUDDHA

1999

C

Cahooters

Storm Cat

122

GRAYDAR

2009

C

Sweetest Smile

Dehere

121

UNRIVALED BELLE

2006

F

Queenie Belle

Bertrando

120

SPLENDID BLENDED

2002

F

Valid Blend

Valid Appeal

120

THORN SONG

2003

C

Festal

Storm Bird

119

FIRST DEFENCE

2004

C

Honest Lady

Seattle Slew

119

MAGNIFICENT SONG

2003

F

Song To Remember

Storm Cat

119

OCTAVE

2004

F

Belle Nuit

Dr. Carter

118

POLITICAL FORCE

2003

C

Glitter Woman

Glitterman

118

SONGANDAPRAYER

1998

C

Alizea

Premiership

117

TARA'S TANGO

2012

F

Scarlet Tango

French Deputy

117

UNBRIDLED FOREVER

2011

F

Lemons Forever

Lemon Drop Kid

113

FOREVER UNBRIDLED

2012

F

Lemons Forever

Lemon Drop Kid

112

MARYLEBONE

2001

F

Desert Queen

Wavering Monarch

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24 hours with... OLLIE MCPHAIL The former jump jockey is now a key member of the charity Racing to School, which uses the racecourse as a classroom to teach around 14,000 children every year Interview: Tim Richards

I

’m out of bed at about 5.30am, leap into the shower and sneak out of the house, leaving my wife Gemma and daughters Samara, 13, and one-year-old Poppy in bed. I am in the car listening to Radio 2 by 6am on the way from our home near Stow-on-the-Wold. The timing depends on whether I’m heading across country to Yarmouth or down the road to Cheltenham.

We aim to be at the track by 8am because the children arrive between 9-9.30am. On the way I pick up one of my freelance team, Rob Bellamy, another former jockey and Clerk of the Course at Towcester, who works with me two or three days a week. I cover the southern racecourses as Programme Manager for Racing To School, while Carrie Ford heads the team in the midlands and north.

Some racecourses provide us with a private box to use as our base for the day.

We have a class of around 30 children, generally aged between nine and 13, and set up the room with the necessary work books and place all the silks on the back of the chairs before they arrive. Then it’s breakfast in the stable staff canteen before meeting the kids off the bus.

We explain to the children that they are at the racecourse for an educational maths activity day, and also to learn about horseracing. Many of them will not have seen a horse in the flesh before.

The first port of call is the weighing room, where we point out the different types of races followed by a quick overview of the stewards’ room, which is like the head teacher’s office. We have a project on the scales, explaining metric and imperial weights, jockeys’ weights and handicapping so they can see how racing works.

At the stables they see the horses arriving and learn the roles of the stable and travelling staff as well as the security officers, the vets and horse welfare. They move on to the paddock, where they have to measure and work out on a risk assessment basis how many horses can fit into the parade ring.

Out on the track, we talk about the different distances in furlongs and miles.

At a jumps meeting we take them to measure the fences and hurdles and try to work out how far the horses are jumping.

Then at the finishing line we explain how the photo finish works and point out how the judge operates. By the end of all these activities the children have done plenty of maths and should have a pretty good idea of the procedures of a raceday.

The kids retire to base with their packed lunches and afterwards we go through the racecard, explaining the weights in stones and pounds. They are talked through the prize-money, working out percentages and how much the jockeys earn. All the time we are throwing maths at them. But they do enjoy listening to the story of when I had 72 metal staples inserted in my head and suffered double vision after a fall at The Chair at Aintree 20 years ago. My face is still a bit lopsided, but the kids seem to like seeing it and hearing how it ended up like that!

I rode over 120 winners as a jump jockey, including two Grade 2 hurdles on Mondul. The Jockeys Employment Training Scheme (JETS) provided my initial link with Racing to School and I combined working for them whilst continuing racing for a couple of years. I retired from riding in 2008 and joined the Racing to School team full time.

Just before the first race, we take the

children to the paddock and then they watch a race from the box or by the last fence. About 70% of the feedback we receive suggests that the highlight of the day is watching the actual racing.

After the first two or three races we meet up before departing and issue the children and teachers with information that might be of interest: the nearest pony club centre with membership discount, careers in racing and details of the racing schools. For us, the most satisfying part is seeing the children benefit both socially and academically.

This year we are aiming to get 14,000 pupils engaged with racing, most of them at the racecourse, but also at studs and the racing schools. The majority of racecourses offer parents of participating children two free tickets for a future raceday. Unfortunately we don’t yet have enough data stating who has come into racing as a result of a learning day with Racing to School. But while we focus on the career opportunities, it’s not all about encouraging kids to work in racing; sparking a lifelong interest in the sport would be a great start.

We are on the road by 3pm and my colleague will drive while I try to catch up with emails and social media. I am home about 5.30pm, in time for an early tea with Gemma and Poppy. I help with the cooking when I can – a nice ribeye steak is quick and easy.

Once Poppy is asleep around 8pm it’s TV and wind-down time with a glass of wine. I don’t watch much sport but I do enjoy playing golf. Most evenings I look at the Racing Post website to catch up with any news before going to bed at 10pm.

See racingtoschool.co.uk for more information on the education charity

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DAR14682 OB OBC-SladePower-26MAR18.qxp 19/03/2018 16:45 Page 1

‘‘

See what’s being said about the Slade Power juveniles – and who’s saying it...

‘‘

Powerful words

Richard Fahey:

Smashing filly. Looking forward to seeing her on the track.

Gordon Elliott:

A gorgeous horse. He’ll be out in May or June.

Richard Spencer:

Really excited about him for the summer.

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