Riversdale owner Neil ‘Ginger’ Timms experienced the winning feeling on both sides of the Tasman at the weekend when Bigandme won at Gore and a few hours later Afterdinnerspeaker, which Timms bred, recorded his third win on end at Menangle in a career best time of 1-49.9.
The only down side to the celebration was that Timms had entered a Captaintreacherous filly out of the dam of Afterdinnerspeaker (Luckisaladytonight) in the Christchurch Sales but she had to be withdrawn. The timing of the win at Menangle would have been perfect otherwise.
“The Captaintreacherous got a stone bruise as a foal at the stud and she just flicked a leg out so we’re not going to the sales. You have to go there and be a 100%. She’s a really nice filly. She won’t get on a knee or anything like that and six months down the track that leg will be back to 100%,” said Timms.
Timms also has a two year old filly by Somebeachsomewhere with Malcolm Shinn.
“She’s just had a Rocknroll Hanover filly and she’s in foal to Sweet Lou.”
Luckisaladytonight is a seven win Presidential Ball mare which Timms bought at the 2010 Cullen Breeding Disposal Sales for $30,000. The mare has left a host of winners including Cullen Keefe which won five races for Laurence Hanrahan before heading state side where he’s won another six. The Manipulator is the winner of six while Ladys Are Ideal has won five races in Western Australia.
Afterdinnerspeaker which is by Well Said out of Luckisaladytonight was bought as a weanling by Ken Barron and syndicated. He won four races in New Zealand before his owners decided to try their luck in Australian where he’s now trained by Shane and Lauren Tritton after initially being with Tim Butt.
Meanwhile Gore winner Bigandme is also out of a Presidential Ball mare in Alta Biannco which Timms purchased in 2006 at the Karaka Yearling Sales.
“She was quite small and Bruce Campbell trained her. She was a bit of a daisy clipper.”
Her first live foal, Jimmy Nga, qualified as a six year old at Wyndham. He won two races from the Gordon and Colin Lee Wyndham stable before heading to Australia where he’s won another four races.
“He went shin sore which is unusual for a pacer so I turned him out. Then he got a quarter crack so I turned him back out again. He was in the paddock for a long time,” said Colin Lee when explaining the reason for the horse’s late start. Colin shared in the ownership of Jimmy Nga with Timms.
Timms has had horses with Lee family for close to forty years.
Alta Biancco’s second foal was Bigandme. He also qualified late in life – at Balfour in November 2017 as a six year old.
“When we sold Jimmy Nga, Timmsie picked a young one out of the paddock to replace him. When he was dropping off the young one he tried to talk me into his older horse (Bigandme). I said I wasn’t interested. He was actually in the Macca Lodge Ready To Run Sale and Ben Waldron ended up with him. I told Ginger I didn’t want him if Ben chucked him out. He said that he hadn’t, he was just cutting back. Once I’d started working him I rang Ginger and said to him that this horse would be twice the horse of Jimmy Nga.”
Yesterday’s win was only Bigandme’s sixth start and second win.
“He’s a very hard horse to keep condition on. I mean hard. The hardest I’ve ever had. The trouble was I couldn’t get him eating. You couldn’t work him too hard or give him a hard race because the condition would just drop off him. I killed him that day at Invercargill (10th January) when I was three wide and they went 2-41 (for 2200 metres). That really knocked him but he ate well last night so he might have turned the corner as a seven year old. We’ve tried everything. It’s Hanley Formula that’s kept him going. He’s got a bit of ability.”
And in appreciation of the work Colin has put into the horse especially with feed, Timms has offered him a full stake from the race at Gore.
“I rang him last night and said “that winning stake – you get the whole lot mate. Don’t worry about splitting it in half.”
Timms hasn’t bred from Alta Biannca since 2011.
“The people next door wanted a horse to bring the cows in so I gave her to them (laughter). I can get her back at any time to breed from. That’s what normally happens when you give them away, their foals end up winning races.”
Co-incidentally the young horse that Timms dropped off is a three year old gelding by Net Ten EOM out of One Ali, a half-brother to The Bull Pen. Lee quite likes him.
“I’m disappointed because he keeps going sore on me. We x-rayed the leg and there seems to be nothing wrong so I said to Ginger we might as well just turn him out.” Laughing, he said “He won’t be there for two years.”