When Tornado Valley NZ and Sky Petite crossed the line first in the harness racing Inter Dominion Trotting Final at Tabcorp Park Melton on Saturday night it gave their sire Skyvalley a well needed huge boost for the Australasian breeding Industry.
Well under patronized at stud by breeders in New Zealand and Australia this sensationally bred stallion Skyvalley gave notice that he has all the credentials to become a top end commercial sire.
With only 135 foals of racing age from his first five crops in Australia and 53 foals of racing age in New Zealand Skyvalley is the sire of 65 winners to date with $2,859,599 in progeny earnings total for both Countries.
Tornado Valley became Skyvalley's richest earner to date with the Inter Dominion Final giving him lifetime earnings of $412,887. The Inter Dominion Final also catapulted Sky Petite to become his second richest earner to date with $237,785 in the bank. These two earners are followed by Aldebaron Eve with $158,508 and then Blue Sky Commander NZ with $136,913.
Tornado Valley NZ and Sky Petite
Skyvalley NZ is unquestionably one of the best bred and best performed harness racing trotters ever to stand at stud in Australia
From 47 starts he won 24 and was 13 times placed for $322,675 in stakes. He won six races at Group level and was placed a further three times and established three national records.
A dual winner as a two-year-old, Skyvalley announced himself as the next big thing in Australian trotting when he trounced his rivals by 15 metres in the final of the $102,000 Breeders Crown for three-year-olds at Bendigo, rating a brilliant 1:59 for the 2150 metres – an all age Australian record.
Skyvalley NZ really came into his own as a four-year-old winning 14 races, the most by any standardbred in Australia that season. His wins included the 4YO Breeders Crown (by 32 metres), demolishing his opposition with Dan Mielicki describing it as the best win by any horse that season, drawing comparisons to the great Maori's Idol by many who witnessed his thrashing of his rivals that day.
He won the Melton Trotters Cup on Tabcorp Park opening day beating the best open age free-for-all horses over the 2760 metre journey, running his last mile in 2:01. He also won the Cobram Trotters Cup and several metropolitan free-for-alls.
One of his memorable wins as a five-year-old was the Bill Collins Sprint over 1720 metres at Grand Curcuit level in a track record 1:56.4, beating Sundons Gift NZ, and wearing no shoes, such was his impeccable gait and manners. At the same age he won the Scotch Notch Memorial at Tabcorp Park and the Freestone Trotters Cup at Moonee Valley. He also finished third in the Inter Dominion Grand Final after an injury interrupted campaign.
Skyvalley winning The Breeders Crown for Four-year-olds
Skyvalley NZ is a rare individual who took your breath away with some of his feats on the racetrack. Champion horseman Chris Lang, who trained him throughout his career, said: "Having the privilege of training some of the best trotters of our generation, there is no doubt he was the one who could leave you breathless. To sit behind him was like sitting in a sled, such was the fluency of his gait. His stride was like no other horse I have ever seen. He never needed shoes and only ever wore aluminiums when he did."
"He was ahead of his time and I believe represents the future of breeding in this part of the world," Lang stated. Skyvalley is a son of the world No.1 sire in Muscles Yankee 1:52.4, leading living sire of juvenile and all aged trotters in North America. Muscles Yankee has sired the winners of over $100 million in stakes and at this stage is credited with 139 on the 1:55 list. In the Southern Hemisphere Muscles Yankee USA is best represented by 2011 and 2012 Inter Dominion Champion I Can Doosit NZ.
Muscles Yankee is also credited with producing the worlds best current trotting stallion Muscle Hill who is completely dominating the breeding scene throughout the world today.
On his distaff side he can claim equal distinctions. He is a half-brother to a champion trotting mare in Allegro Agitato NZ Tr 1:57.8 ($529,854), a multiple winner at Group 1 level in New Zealand and Australia and herself being sired by Sundon USA, proving that crossing with Sundon USA mares will undoubtedly work.
Their dam, Chiola's Lass NZ Tr 2:04 ($157,779), was two-year-old and three-year-old trotter of the year in New Zealand and is one of the leading daughters of a champion trotting sire in Chiola Hanover USA. She won 10 of her 17 starts including the Victoria Oaks, NZ Great Northern Derby and The Holmfield and was voted the NZ Trotter of the Year at 2 and 3.
Harnesslink Media