Harness racing breeders are not a very patient lot at the best of times as most stallion owners will know from experience.
Any new stallion is expected to preform miracles with their first crop and if they don't they are quickly written off and discarded by most breeders.
In today's world of shuttle stallions where the best sires in the world are available to New Zealand breeders, there is no where for a promising sire to hide any more.
To make an impact you have to face the Bettor's Delights and Art Majors of the world front on.
The biggest problem that most of the newer stallions face is getting access to quality mares.
It doesn't happen in most instances so the playing field is always heavily tilted in favour of the established sires.
Therefore when the progeny of a new sire do show up on the track and compete with the big boys, one has to take note.
One of the newer sires we think is doing a good job off limited numbers is the son of The Panderosa in Panspacificflight 1:50.6 ($442,953).
Available via frozen semen through Brent and Sheree McIntyre's stud, Macca Lodge, Panspacificflight looked a topliner in the making before injury curtailed his career.
His maternal family is as good as it gets with his dam You Can Fly also producing Thereandpanlines 1:49.4 ($944,349).
You Can Fly is also a half sister to the top sire Real Artist who has left the winners of over $78,000,00 to date including six millionaires and 24 in 1:50 and she is also a half sister to the dam of leading sire Art Major so it is a sire laden pedigree.
His North American statistics are encouraging with him finishing sixteenth last year on the North American two year old sires list just behind Mach Three and ahead of McArdle and Jeremes Jet.
He is just about to crack ten million in North American earnings so he does look a stallion on the up.
In New Zealand his oldest crop are three year olds and number just 23 live foals.
Of those twenty three, eighteen have qualified with five having won to date which is a great start
The best of these is probably Little Rascal who was impressive winning from the Robert Dunn barn recently at Alexandra Park.
Panspacificflight has 33 two year olds this season and again he has some promising performers.
As of today seven have qualified and two have shown up on raceday to good effect.
Arden's Choice looks a high class filly after a top second on debut at Timaru in a $25,000 Sires Stakes heat run just a touch outside the New Zealand record for the distance.
She lines up again tonight at Auckland in a fillies heat of the Young Guns series and is a leading contender.
Arden's Legacy ran third in last weekends $25,000 Kindergarten Stakes at Wyndham and looks a very promising colt.
Another colt to have made an impression this season was First Class Arden who qualified in 1:58.5 recently at Ashburton.
All in all it is a very good start for a sire who hasn't had a lot of "blue blood" mares and has struggled for numbers as well.
He is showing all the signs of being a successful sire and in our view deserves a bigger shot at really making it as a sire than breeders are currently giving him.
Harnesslink Media