Breeding authority Peter Wharton presents all the harness racing news on breeding from Australia, New Zealand and North America every Friday brought to you by Garrard’s Horse & Hound
Close relatives win
The talented three-year-old Yianni and Myzarmi, who won consecutive races at Bendigo recently, both belong to the same family.
Yianni, who has won five of his seven starts this season and looks a genuine classics candidate, is a Changeover gelding out of the Jereme’s Jet mare Jodila (1:57.7), a daughter of Trudee (1:58), the Albert Albert dam of Myzarmi.
Besides Jodila, Trudee, who won 21 races and $167,757, is also the dam of the Melton winner Jodan 1:52.9 ($147,129), Walkabout Creek (1:52.7), a winner at Menangle and Gloucester Park, and recent Redcliffe winner Gojoe (1:57.1).
Trudee was out of the prolific broodmare Avonali, by Toliver Hanover from the NSW Golden Easter Egg winner Stormy Helen, by Stormyway from Helen’s Wish, by Blue Gamble.
This is one of the fastest moving families in Australia today and recent winners from it include Goodtime Heaven 1:52 (247,487), Make Mine Heaven 1:53.2 ($130,690), Leonidas 1:51.1 ($156,485) and the Victoria Premiere Stakes winner Soho Lanikai (1:54), now standing at Goodtime Lodge, near Colac.
Yianni ranks as a half-brother to the Victoria Sapling Stakes and Bathurst Gold Crown heat winner Ideal Dan (1:55.1).
Brother and sister
Two smart performers at present, and both winners last weekend who promise to make further progress through the grades, are Justasec and Britney Jane.
Justasec, a four-year-old gelding by Big Jim, posted his 10th win from only 15 starts at Gloucester Park, while Britney Jane (by Betterthancheddar) made it five wins from her past seven attempts at Newcastle.
Both bred by Ross Simpson are out of Triple Sec, an unraced mare who left other winners in Our Triple Play 1:51 ($227,494), a winner of 15 races including the Queensland 4YO Championship, and Trijet (1:55).
Triple Sec was by the Matt’s Scooter horse Mach Three from the Falcon Seelster mare Sagrantino, a half-sister to the former NZ 2YO of the Year and Auckland Cup winner Gotta Go Cullen 1:58.3 ($1.1 million) and the exported McGuigan 1:52.2 ($131,342)
Their dam, Sparkling Burgundy (by Butler BG), who was also unraced, was a half-sister to the dual NZ Cup and triple Derby winner Il Vicolo 1:56.7 ($1.5 million) and a close relative of the top pacers Stunin Cullen ($1.3 million), Coburg (NZ 4YO Mare of the Year), Code Bailey (Bendigo Cup), Veste (NZ Caduceus Club 2YO Classic) and so on.
Alice Kay in top form
Alice Kay is proving herself a three-year-old of some worth in Victoria and over the regionalised racing period has won twice and been twice placed at Melton. She showed ability as a two-year-old last season when she won the Youthful Stakes.
Alice Kay –Stuart McCormick photo
Bred, owned and trained by Adam Kelly, she is a filly by the Artsplace horse Art Major from Sandy Kay (1:56.2), by Courage Under Fire from My Prerogative (2:02.5), a classics placegetter by Soky’s Atom from the top racemare Mindpower TT1:58.9 ($137,410).
Sandy Kay, the dam of Alice Kay, won seven races and was placed in the Vicbred 2YO Final and Tasmanian Oaks and was a talented filly in own right. She ranked as a half-sister to the Group 2 APG Consolation winner Soho Lexington (1:56.4), the dual Menangle winner Jerseylicious (1:56) and recent Victorian winner Gotonebettor.
My Prerogative was a half-sister to the Listed winner Mindaman (1:57.6) and the Albion Park winner Mindseye (1:58.5), who, in turn, left Neverhaveiever (1:58.3) and Captainturbulence (1:58.8), both Brisbane winners.
Lost 100 metres – and won!
The highlight of the Stawell meeting last weekend was turned on by the trotter Fremarkspoetry, who broke in the score-up and again in the first lap and gave the leaders 100 metres start.
With 1200 metres to run she was still 50 metres from the leaders, and her chance could have been written off. But Fremarkspoetry joined the field at the 1000 metre mark, reached the front on the home turn and finally held off all comers.
Freemarkpoetry’s performance was an amazing one in every respect. She is a daughter of the Angus Hall horse Majestic Son, a top trotter himself and who has been the leading sire in both NZ and Australia for the past five years.
A Poem Kept, the dam of Fremarkspoetry, was a Safely Kept mare from the noted producer Easy Find, by Speed Supreme from Boorcan, by Killarney Scott from the Good Report mare Daw Den Dor. A Poem Kept was a half-sister to the cup class trotters Con’s Poem, Poet’s Corner and Poetic Device and to the dams of Savannah Way and Downunder Barkers, both Melton winners.
Brother to Tiger Tara
Stingray Tara, a most impressive winner at the Bendigo midweek meeting, when making his first appearance on Australian soil, has now won four races and is rated one of the brightest prospects in his class. He ranks as a four-year-old brother by Bettor’s Delight to the former champion pacer Tiger Tara (1:49.8), now standing his first public season at Medowie Lodge, near Newcastle.
Stingray Tara winning a race at Gore in NZ –Bruce Stewart photo
Tiger Tara, who won 21 Group races and $2.3 million in stakes, had previously stood two light seasons at stud during a break from competition and his oldest stock are rising two-year-olds.
Their dam, Tara Gold, a Dream Away mare from Atomic Gold, by Soky’s Atom from Vita Gold, has proved a most successful broodmare. She is also the dam of the good NZ winners Tara Tutaia (1:58.3), Turbo Tara, Rock Of Tara, Yankee Tara, and in all, has left six winners from six live foals.
Tara Gold did not race but she was a half-sister to the high class pacers Power Of Tara 1:50.6 ($846,608), winner of 31 races including the Fremantle Cup, and A G’s White Socks 1:52.7 ($519,941), whose 12 successes include the Ballarat Cup, NZ Easter Cup and two heats of the Inter Dominion.
This has been one of the most successful branches of the Dolly (by Young Irvington) family, Atomic Gold being a half-sister to the NZ Easter Cup and Victoria Italian Cup winner Matthew Lee ($218,850) and the top South Australian pacer Home For Gold ($158,643) and to Mystic Gold (1:59.3), a capable racemare who has produced an outstanding family of winners in NZ including the Bendigo Cup winner Sammy Maguire (1:57), Lachie Maguire 1:50.4 ($443,957), Mikey Maguire 1:56 (Rangiora Winter Cup) and JB Maguire (1:54.5).
Addington winner bred in Victoria
The four-year-old Jawbreaker, who broke maiden ranks at Addington last Friday, was bred in Victoria by Glenn Taylor and is a member of one of Australia’s most successful families.
Jawbreaker was an Australian Pacing Gold purchase in 2018 at Melbourne, and is a colt by the Artsplace horse Art Major out of the Presidential Ball mare Eye Like Candy (1:55.8), whose dam was a smart pacer in Arivee (1:59.3, the winner of 13 races), was a Safely Kept mare who left four winners including the Vicbred finalist Im Very Willing (1:59).
Arivee was out of the prolific producer Willing Greek, who ranked as a half-sister to the Hondo Grattan Sprint winner Zaneden 1:56.6 ($123,500), the NSW Princess Mile winner Sanctum (1:58.7) and the multiple Group placegetter Heezgotattitude 1:56.8 ($157,987). This was the family founded by McPaul’s Huon B mare in NSW in the early 1900’s.
From the Willing Greek branch of it and to which Jawbreaker belongs, others in Caribbean Blaster 1:52.6 (Victoria Cup and Chariots of Fire winner), Grand Stride 1:52.4 (NSW Breeders Challenge 3YO Final), Copper Coast (Paleface Adios Classic), Katasopos (Tatlow Memorial), Protikori ($212,109) and other fine pacers belong.
Sonny Weaver shows promise
A top colt in Victoria this season – he has won four and been six times placed in 14 starts – is Sonny Weaver, a close relative of the former top Kiwi juvenile Kotare Mach.
Bred in NZ by Kevin James, Sonny Weaver is a three-year-old colt by Sunshine Beach from the Falcon Seelster mare Kotare Yedo, dam of an earlier winner in Kotare Cullen (1:55), whose six successes included the NZ Sires Stakes 3YO Graduette.
Kotare Yedo, who was unraced, is a half-sister to the exported Kotare Yarra 1:51 ($186,327) and the Melton and Albion Park winner Kotare York 1:54.6 ($130,534), being out of Kotare Yoyo, by Presidential Ball from Extra B G, by Butler B G from Tanisa Vance, a Vance Hanover mare who traces back to Desilu, the dam of the NZ glamour mare of the 1980’s, Delightful Lady.
Kotare Yoyo, the second dam of Sonny Weaver, was a half-sister to the Welcome Stakes winner Kotare Mach 1:53 ($268,138) and Kotare Yael, a winner of seven in NZ and who later took a mark of 1:50.2 in America, and to the Camtastic mare Kotare Yalta, who became the dam of the Victorian cups winner Kotare Roland 1:54.7 ($239,935).
First Aussie winner
The Somebeachsomewhere horse, Net Ten EOM, a 1:49 winner in America and now at the stud in New Zealand, was represented by his first winner in Australia when the three-year-old The Big Yin was successful recently at Kilmore.
The Big Yin had been placed in his only two starts since being imported from NZ’s deep south
Bred by Macca Lodge, who stand Net Ten EOM at their stud, The Big Yin is out of the Falcon Seelster mare, C J Galleon, whose dam, Nice Touch was by OK Bye from the El Patron mare No Regrets, who left several useful winners including a top class pacer in No Equal, a Victoria Cup Consolation winner.
Up-and-coming trotter
One of the most promising trotters racing in Victoria is Rules Dont Apply, trained by Bendigo horseman Anthony Crossland. A three-year-old, Rules Dont Apply is in his second season of racing, but from 10 starts he has won four – including his last three on end – and been once placed.
Rules Dont Apply has a background of trotting blood second to none. His sire, Muscle Hill, has left the great Australian trotting mare Dance Craze and top trotters in America in Marion Marauder, Resolve, Ariana G, Manchego, Mission Brief and Southwind Frank.
His dam, Abandoned Annie, is by Continentalman, a leading sire of trotters in NZ.
Rules Dont Apply ranks as a half-brother to a promising trotter in Bro Creed, who has won four races this season.
Abandoned Annie, who won the Redwood Consolation, is a half-sister to the Vicbred champion and Lyn McPherson Memorial winner I Am Pegasus Tr 1:55.8 ($125,160).
Their dam, Ginger Gem, was by Keystone Salute from the R C’s Dee Jay mare Styx, the dam of a champion trotting filly in Zesta (Tr 2:01.6), who won 13 races and at one stage won 12 on end including the Victoria Derby and Oaks, and other good square-gaiters in River Red, who won 28 races, Nica Macdonon (1:58.9) and the Oaks winner Adhesive, and the unraced Zooma, a useful sire of trotters.