We've had the usual July week comings and goings, and I've made it through to Friday evening, tired - very tired - but feeling good. A winner always helps and, while we couldn't send one out, our antipodean friends came to the rescue as dear old Joolzy, the Kingston Rule mare in Victoria in whom we have a small interest, saluted the judge at Wangaratta at 6.50 this morning, with us very excitedly catching the tail-end of the call on the TAB radio on the internet. And what made this special occasion even more special was that we had one of our co-owners present, as Cameron Plant has fitted in a very well-timed two-day visit to the UK. We spent Victoria Derby Day at Flemington in Cameron's company last November, and today was the second leg of the double-header, as he joined us to watch Sakhee's Secret win the July Cup.
Cameron arrived here yesterday morning, enjoying a UK stop-over between Moscow and Sydney, and in the 32 hours since then we've had him at Tattersalls Sales, spent two afternoons at the July Course with him, had him riding out on Long Hill on Lady Suffragette and, treat of treats and courtesy of Darley, been guests at the stallion parade at Dalham Hall Stud where we saw all the wonderful stallions and enjoyed a superb lunch, where he and Francesca Cumani enjoyed some sushi while I opted for oysters. He's now on the train back to catch the late flight out of Heathrow, and I think and hope that he's enjoyed the past two days as much as we have.
Cameron was one of two Aussies with whom we've spent some time this week because Tim Breadmore, proprietor of Paringa Park Stud in Victoria (where he made us most welcome when Joff took us up there when we visited the day before last year's Melbourne Cup) has been in town and he's been good company too. It's been a very enjoyable week socially, with Cameron staying here for one night, Will Lambe (who conducted important BHB business from his bed) for two, Julian Muscat for two, and John and Terre McNamara, our usual July week visitors, for four. Anyone who knows Julian and/or John and Terre will understand why it's been a tiring week - although we've actually seen very little of the people whom Richard Sims would no doubt call the Golden Vale Stud handlers. As their Co.Tipperary nursery was the birthplace of Lady Suffragette, John and Terre were delighted to catch up with her to congratulate her on her recent win, but other than that they have been pretty busy at the sales.
As have I, and I'm pleased to say that I think it's been time well spent. We had one to sell and one to buy and I hope that I'm justified in saying that both tasks were achieved satisfactorily. By Storm looked great up there as Martha led her around the ring, glowing with health and fitness and, most importantly, sound (and how many horses could one say that about up there this week?), and it was pleasing to see her go to a good home (Jo Foster's stable) for a fair price (4,000 gns). Our new arrival is Ex-Con (Extreme Conviction), a three-year-old colt formerly trained by Jeremy Noseda, pictured here on his arrival at the yard with Cameron and Will. I don't think that Jeremy has subjected him to the same rigorous training regime that the likes of Sander Camillo and Sixties Icon, not to mention this week's excellent Falmouth Stakes heroine Simply Perfect, have undergone over the past couple of seasons, so I hope that there is still some unexplored potential there. Certainly he seems to have arrived in good condition and doesn't appear to have suffered any long-term injuries so far in his career, so fingers crossed he can maintain the 100% winners:horses ratio we have so far had with second-hand horses from that stable (Jack Dawson and Natural). It would probably be asking too much to hope that he will prove to have been as good a buy as Jack, but he's a lovely big horse with some nice names in his pedigree (he's a son of Danehill Dancer, while his dam, who is by Be My Guest ex Narwala, is a half-sister to those two excellent former multiple winners Noukari and Noufari) who seems to have a kind nature, and it's a pleasure to be welcoming him to the stable for his newly-formed syndicate of friends of Jason and Fiona Hathorn. We won't be in a hurry with him, but I hope that he might have a future under National Hunt rules. The bloodstock market remains extremely buoyant for horses that people might covet, so I was pleased to be able to buy what I think is a very nice horse: I saw a lot of what were, to my eyes, less desirable horses change hands this week for considerably more than the 8,000 gns which he cost.
So what of the other horses we have seen this week? We've seen a bit of Light Shift on the Heath and she looks in great shape as she bids to add Sunday's Irish Oaks to her victory at Epsom. Emma and Tim Breadmore enjoyed a good look at Authorized (pictured) this morning, and he seems none the worse for his tough run in the Eclipse. At the stallion parade, Refuse To Bend (as befits a stallion to whom Joolzy's half-sister I Want You Back is in foal) looked great, as did Doyen, Diktat, Exceed And Excel, Singspiel, Tiger Hill, Cape Cross ... And at the races, Sakhee's Secret was superb - and it was a pleasure to see the excellent Steve Drowne ride him to big-race victory. Three-year-olds were first and second, and it was a great effort by Sakhee's Secret to win the July Cup on his first start in a Group race. He didn't actually look the most imposing of them beforehand, but little Dutch Art looked great and so strong. Red Clubs, whose venerable father we'd admired a few hours earlier, looked really well and ran accordingly, as usual. Of the Aussies, Bentley Biscuit once again has missed out on finding his preferred wet surface - which is remarkable as the race for which Brief Goodbye was entered at Ascot today was abandoned because of waterlogging on the track! - while Mutawaajid, a tremendous horse, still looked rather light. He's only young and has come a long way, so I'd hope we'll see him in his full majesty in time. Quito looked tremendous, but Asset, another relatively insubstantial horse, didn't. And of the younger horses on show today, the one I'll be following is the Mark Johnston-trained Tudor Court, who ran in the juvenile fillies' maiden. She'd already had a run, but she still didn't look fully fit, and it showed as her good run tapered out in the final furlong. She's a lovely filly - as she should be, bearing in mind that she's by Cape Cross ex Rise And Fall, and therefore a half-sister to the beautiful Fly To The Stars and to the late, great Warring Kingdom - and should be a moral in a maiden next time.
We've had the usual July week comings and goings, and I've made it through to Friday evening, tired - very tired - but feeling good. A winner always helps and, while we couldn't send one out, our antipodean friends came to the rescue as dear old Joolzy, the Kingston Rule mare in Victoria in whom we have a small interest, saluted the judge at Wangaratta at 6.50 this morning, with us very excitedly catching the tail-end of the call on the TAB radio on the internet. And what made this special occasion even more special was that we had one of our co-owners present, as Cameron Plant has fitted in a very well-timed two-day visit to the UK. We spent Victoria Derby Day at Flemington in Cameron's company last November, and today was the second leg of the double-header, as he joined us to watch Sakhee's Secret win the July Cup. 
Cameron arrived here yesterday morning, enjoying a UK stop-over between Moscow and Sydney, and in the 32 hours since then we've had him at Tattersalls Sales, spent two afternoons at the July Course with him, had him riding out on Long Hill on Lady Suffragette and, treat of treats and courtesy of Darley, been guests at the stallion parade at Dalham Hall Stud where we saw all the wonderful stallions and enjoyed a superb lunch, where he and Francesca Cumani enjoyed some sushi while I opted for oysters. He's now on the train back to catch the late flight out of Heathrow, and I think and hope that he's enjoyed the past two days as much as we have.
Cameron was one of two Aussies with whom we've spent some time this week because Tim Breadmore, proprietor of Paringa Park Stud in Victoria (where he made us most welcome when Joff took us up there when we visited the day before last year's Melbourne Cup) has been in town and he's been good company too. It's been a very enjoyable week socially, with Cameron staying here for one night, Will Lambe (who conducted important BHB business from his bed) for two, Julian Muscat for two, and John and Terre McNamara, our usual July week visitors, for four. Anyone who knows Julian and/or John and Terre will understand why it's been a tiring week - although we've actually seen very little of the people whom Richard Sims would no doubt call the Golden Vale Stud handlers. As their Co.Tipperary nursery was the birthplace of Lady Suffragette, John and Terre were delighted to catch up with her to congratulate her on her recent win, but other than that they have been pretty busy at the sales.
As have I, and I'm pleased to say that I think it's been time well spent. We had one to sell and one to buy and I hope that I'm justified in saying that both tasks were achieved satisfactorily. By Storm looked great up there as Martha led her around the ring, glowing with health and fitness and, most importantly, sound (and how many horses could one say that about up there this week?), and it was pleasing to see her go to a good home (Jo Foster's stable) for a fair price (4,000 gns). Our new arrival is Ex-Con (Extreme Conviction), a three-year-old colt formerly trained by Jeremy Noseda, pictured here on his arrival at the yard with Cameron and Will. I don't think that Jeremy has subjected him to the same rigorous training regime that the likes of Sander Camillo and Sixties Icon, not to mention this week's excellent Falmouth Stakes heroine Simply Perfect, have undergone over the past couple of seasons, so I hope that there is still some unexplored potential there. Certainly he seems to have arrived in good condition and doesn't appear to have suffered any long-term injuries so far in his career, so fingers crossed he can maintain the 100% winners:horses ratio we have so far had with second-hand horses from that stable (Jack Dawson and Natural). It would probably be asking too much to hope that he will prove to have been as good a buy as Jack, but he's a lovely big horse with some nice names in his pedigree (he's a son of Danehill Dancer, while his dam, who is by Be My Guest ex Narwala, is a half-sister to those two excellent former multiple winners Noukari and Noufari) who seems to have a kind nature, and it's a pleasure to be welcoming him to the stable for his newly-formed syndicate of friends of Jason and Fiona Hathorn. We won't be in a hurry with him, but I hope that he might have a future under National Hunt rules. The bloodstock market remains extremely buoyant for horses that people might covet, so I was pleased to be able to buy what I think is a very nice horse: I saw a lot of what were, to my eyes, less desirable horses change hands this week for considerably more than the 8,000 gns which he cost.
So what of the other horses we have seen this week? We've seen a bit of Light Shift on the Heath and she looks in great shape as she bids to add Sunday's Irish Oaks to her victory at Epsom. Emma and Tim Breadmore enjoyed a good look at Authorized (pictured) this morning, and he seems none the worse for his tough run in the Eclipse. At the stallion parade, Refuse To Bend (as befits a stallion to whom Joolzy's half-sister I Want You Back is in foal) looked great, as did Doyen, Diktat, Exceed And Excel, Singspiel, Tiger Hill, Cape Cross ... And at the races, Sakhee's Secret was superb - and it was a pleasure to see the excellent Steve Drowne ride him to big-race victory. Three-year-olds were first and second, and it was a great effort by Sakhee's Secret to win the July Cup on his first start in a Group race. He didn't actually look the most imposing of them beforehand, but little Dutch Art looked great and so strong. Red Clubs, whose venerable father we'd admired a few hours earlier, looked really well and ran accordingly, as usual. Of the Aussies, Bentley Biscuit once again has missed out on finding his preferred wet surface - which is remarkable as the race for which Brief Goodbye was entered at Ascot today was abandoned because of waterlogging on the track! - while Mutawaajid, a tremendous horse, still looked rather light. He's only young and has come a long way, so I'd hope we'll see him in his full majesty in time. Quito looked tremendous, but Asset, another relatively insubstantial horse, didn't. And of the younger horses on show today, the one I'll be following is the Mark Johnston-trained Tudor Court, who ran in the juvenile fillies' maiden. She'd already had a run, but she still didn't look fully fit, and it showed as her good run tapered out in the final furlong. She's a lovely filly - as she should be, bearing in mind that she's by Cape Cross ex Rise And Fall, and therefore a half-sister to the beautiful Fly To The Stars and to the late, great Warring Kingdom - and should be a moral in a maiden next time.
2 comments:
Should I be congratulating myself on finding a soft option for Imperial Decree's intended debut on Saturday? I don't think so - the last two winners of that race have been Cockney Rebel and Killybegs. Looking farther back, Lujain won it in 1998 and Hayil won it the previous year; I think they both won the Middle Park. Foodbroker Fancy won it in 2000. I think that's five subsequent Stakes (three at Group One level) winners to have won it in the last ten years. And 2004 winner Camacho was a decent horse for Prince Khalid Abdullah and Henry Cecil, if I remember rightly. I must have taken leave of my senses!
That's great. What price Imperial Decree for next year's 1000 Guineas?
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