WHAT KIND OF HORSES ARE YOU BREEDING?

Robert Muir
(Photo : Summerhill Stud)

ROBERT MUIR

Robert Muir owner of Champion and Group winners, The Sheik, Cataloochee, Candidato Roy, Ravishing, Jazzy etc. penned these words following the impressive victory of Vangelis in the Fairview Mile.

Dear Mick,

What kind of horses are you breeding? I have never had a horse place 10x or win 11x in 25 runs! Wow! Congratulations to you!! I wish I had listened to you more …. :)

Regards to the Champion Breeder of South Africa!

Best,
Robert

READY TO RUN TEAM SELECTIONS : PART 1

EMPERORS PALACE READY TO RUN SALE
8 NOVEMBER 2009

In this first segment of a four part series, we bring you the selections of those closest to the Summerhill Ready To Run Draft; the riders, grooms and managers in the Ready To Run Team who have an enviable record in pointing out the “obvious” talents.

Following are the “Top 2” colts and “Top 2” filles of Siyabonga Bhengu, Maxwell Riyani, Amos Khwetu, Mandla Hlongwa, Bheki Ndawonde, Khulekani Hlongwane and Hloniphani Zondi.

For your ease of reference, please feel free to print this page by clicking the “print” icon in the posting footer.

SIYABONGA BHENGU

LOT 5 INDIZA (C) Hobb Alwahtan  Foo Fighter	LOT 46 IWAYINI (C) Cataloochee Mininski	LOT 140 COCOCAT (F) Cataloochee Cococay	LOT 157 CATACHUCHU (F) Cataloochee Dream Maker

MAXWELL RIYANI

LOT 133 URBAN JIG (C) Malhub  Citidancer	LOT 144 GLOBE TROTTER (C) Way West Country Hideaway	LOT 73 WHARFEDALE (F) Malhub Rambo’s Gem	LOT 79 CHIANG MAI (F) Malhub Rose North

AMOS KHWETU

LOT 135 CHIP SHOT (C) Solskjaer  Civil Affair	LOT 96 CARTWHEEL (C) Way West Summersault	LOT 143 HALLOWEEN PARADE (F) Muhtafal Cornish Fair	LOT 97 KIRIYA (F) Malhub Surfers Eye

MANDLA HLONGWA

LOT 160 RIDETHEBREEZE (C) Anabaa Elleandee	LOT 23 RICHINSTYLE (C) Cataloochee In Style	LOT 128 SPICELAND (F) The Sheik Careless Mirth	LOT 143 HALLOWEEN PARADE (F) Muhtafal Cornish Fair

BHEKI NDAWONDE

LOT 144 GLOBE TROTTER (C) Way West Country Hideaway	LOT 136 SOWETO (C) Way West Claim To Fame	LOT 81 OLYMPIAS (F) Way West Savo Fare	LOT 128 SPICELAND (F) The Sheik Careless Mirth

KHULEKANI HLONGWANE

LOT 17 INDINDA (C) Malhub Gypsey Spirit	LOT 133 URBAN JIG (C) Cataloochee Mininski	LOT 95 SUCHA WONDER (F) Way West Sucha Looka	LOT 32 UNNAMED (F) Kahal Kaminsky

HLONIPHANI ZONDI

LOT 82 UMHLABA (C) Kahal Shirley Singer	LOT 54 MOJAVE (C) Hobb Alwahtan National Woods	LOT 104 CHEKECHE (F) Kahal Vanish	LOT 87 LEUCOSIA (F) Solskjaer Siren Song

 

EMPERORS PALACE READY TO RUN SALE
8 NOVEMBER 2009

For more information please visit :
www.tba.co.za and www.summerhill.co.za

THE SALE WITH A HORSE FOR EVERYONE

Phunyuka
(Photo : JC Photographics)

(Please click photo to enlarge…)

EMPERORS PALACE READY TO RUN SALE
8 NOVEMBER 2009

Charl Pretorius www.racingweb.co.zaThe word Phunyuka means to “escape” in Zulu, and the horse by that name’s massive win in this continent’s richest race on sand, the Emerald Cup (Gr.2) might’ve been many people’s idea of exactly that. Truth is though, this was a triumph for the little fellows, a sort of David and Goliath re-enactment in one of the few places where it’s possible. There was an old saying in racing that you could never beat Harry Oppenheimer in the boardroom, but you could level the playing fields on Saturdays. Here was a case of a regular owner, a regular trainer and if it weren’t for the fact that he is 54, of a regular jockey and an inexpensive horse, climbing to the mountain top.

To be fair though, these aren’t your regular guys. Wally Brits and Roy Magner work as hard as anybody when it comes to picking their horses, and “jockey” Willie “the Wizard” Figueroa has shown he belongs at the top table more often than we can remember. A dedicated bunch of professionals, who reap their rewards because they do the usual things, unusually well.

This victory brings home to us just one more time, the reality of the Ready To Run. For years now, as they’ve built this sale to its present place in the pantheon of excellent racehorse sales, Summerhill have dubbed it the sale with a horse for everyone, and Phunyuka’s was another outstanding example of this credo at work. R90 000 is all it cost to acquire this colt, despite the evidence of his ability at the gallops and the connectivity in his pedigree to the likes of Politician, Bianconi, Al Nitak and The Sheik, in recent years.

More aspirants in a crowded house…

Organisers of an event of the ilk of the Emperors Palace Ready To Run Cup, given its timing, would always harbour a concern that you’d be short of quality entries to fill a field of sixteen for a prize of R1,5million. No such thing when it comes to this Cup though, as it has a habit of rolling out the winners week after week. Popular KwaZulu Natal owner, Chips Pennells, is one who has targeted this race with success in the past, and there’s every possibility that all of his three purchases from last year, could be lining up for the big one on the 7^th November.

Just last weekend, Smanyo got up in the dying strides of a competitive maiden at Greyville, and Friday evening saw Vumani put up his hand for a place, when he showed his appreciation of the extra furlong at the Greyville circuit. Tucked in behind him less than a length away was Makulu-Kulu, who Mike Miller will no doubt be hoping will give him a second successive victory in the race.

Duke of Marmalade has strong South African connections

Cataloochee
(John Lewis)

Duke Of Marmalade stamped himself as the best turf horse in the world on the weekend when winning the Group I Juddmonte International over a mile and two furlongs (2000m) at the rescheduled venue of the Newmarket July course and this would have been good news for South African breeders as he is closely related on the female side to some of our best stallions and racehorses.

David Thiselton writes that Duke Of Marmalade is by one of the most influential sires of recent times, Danehill, out of Kingmambo mare Love Me True.

Love Me True hails from the outstanding broodmare Gay Missile via her daughter, Lassie Dear, who has become an internationally influential broodmare.

Lassie Dear, who is Duke Of Marmalade’s third dam, is the dam of our former champion sire, sire of sires and top broodmare sire, Al Mufti, as well as Wolfhound.

Al Mufti already has four sons at stud in South Africa, the proven successful Captain Al, the exciting prospect Victory Moon, former Champion Sprinter Cataloochee and twice Grade I winner, The Sheik.

Lassie Dear also produced the outstanding broodmare Weekend Surprise, dam among others of AP Indy, who is in turn the sire of the deceased South African stallion, Camden Park, as well as KZN Midlands sire, Mon Sang, and the Western Cape’s A.P. Magic.

That means our highest earning racehorse ever, Jay Peg, who is by Camden Park out of Al Mufti mare Laptop Lady, is in-bred 3x4 to Lassie Dear.

Weekend Surprise is the dam of another of our stallions, Tiger Ridge, who produced 11 stakes winners in the USA, before being imported here.

Another South African sire that has Lassie Dear as his second dam is KZN Midland’s stallion, Houston Connection.

Besides Lassie Dear, Gay Missile also produced the successful broodmare, Gallanta, who is dam of deceased South African sire, Sportsworld.

HIGHDOWN STUD back in the High Life

The Sheik
(John Lewis)

The South African season draws to a close on Thursday following the final major meeting last Saturday at Clairwood Park, in Durban, writes Nicola Hayward for Thoroughbred Internet.

It was a bumper day of racing that saw Buy And Sell gate-crash the much-anticipated Pocket Power vs Dancer’s Daughter showdown in the G1 Champions’ Cup over 1800m. Pocket Power ran a game second, half a length behind the winner with the outsider Surfin’ USA third. Dancer’s Daughter who lost three lengths at the start, did not disgrace in fourth.

Warm White Night was well and truly beaten in the G1 Premier’s Champion Stakes where Rocks Off a son of Orpen ran out the winner on only his third outing. Cerise Cherry added yet another runner-up finish to his resume with Bush Pirate, a son of Russian Revival, third.

The G1 Thekwini Fillies Stakes was won by Gypsy’s Warning. This bay filly is a daughter of Mogok out of the Royal Chalice mare Gypsy Queen who is also the dam of G2 winner Surabi (Wolfhound). Gypsy’s Warning was bred by Rathmor Stud and sold at the National Yearling Sale in 2007 for R170,000.

After winning a Maiden Juvenile Plate first time out, she was third in a close finish in the G3 Strelitzia Stakes, unplaced in the G2 Debutante, she was then third to Consensual in the G1 Golden Slipper before finding her best form on Saturday over a mile. Zirconeum (Jallad) was second with Mother Russia (Windrush) third.

Mogok stands at the Scott Brothers’ Highdown Stud. He is an unraced bay son of Storm Cat out of the Halo mare Coup de Folie, making him a half-brother to Machiavellian and Coup De Genie. He stood his first season in 2003 and he has already produced a number of very useful individuals, including the Listed winner Island Retreat (out of the Rakeen mare Mayreau), Sahara who was second in the G2 KZN Fillies Guineas and Coverley, second to Island Retreat in the Listed Dahlia Plate. Gypsy’s Warning is his first G1 winner.

Highdown Stud is no stranger to successful sires. Some four decades ago, three brothers Desmond, Robin and Neville Scott acquired a dairy farm of about 530 acres just outside Nottingham Road in the KwaZulu Natal Midlands. Initially the dairy was retained to help fund the development needed to convert the property into a stud farm and the first stallion to stand on the farm was a son of Wilwyn, called Kimberley Kid, who was out of the Hyperion mare Staward.

In the early 1970s, he was joined by Jungle Cove who went on to become champion sire five times and sired a champion, Bush Telegraph, among his 36 Stakes winners, which included Arctic Cove, Jungle Rock and Jungle Class. Jungle Cove ended his career at Highlands Stud in the Western Cape but he was followed at Highdown by another great champion Foveros.

Having raced in France and England from two to four, it was as a six-year-old in South Africa that Foveros really showed his class, winning five of ten starts, including the three Group Ones: the Queen’s Plate, Hawaii Stakes and J&B Met. At stud he produced 82 Stakes winners and was champion sire nine times. In the mould of a really top stallion, his influence is still felt through his daughters and he is broodmare sire of Imbongi, Warm White Night and Floatyourboat.

Highdown bred the great Politician and it was in the colours of Des and Robin Scott that the mare Devon Air won the G1 Durban July in 1984. The early 1990s saw a change of fortune for the stud (and indeed for many of the farms of the KwaZulu Natal Midlands). Devon Air was sold for a then record sum for a broodmare at dispersal and the farm was quiet for more than a decade.

The acquisition of Mogok thus represents a rejuvenation of the formerly successful operation and mirrors the general upswing in the region. Just down the road in Mooi River, Summerhill Stud stole the mantle of Champion breeder from the farms of the Western Cape and this has had a knock-on effect on the whole area. The revival at Highdown includes the appearance of some other exciting stallions. Last year heralded the arrival of Miesque’s Approval (the first time that a Breeders’ Cup Champion had retired to stud in South Africa) and his first foals are due within the next weeks. He was joined by the Australian-bred son of Danehill, Overlord, whose dam Prawn Cocktail is a daughter of Crimson Saint. The unraced Atso (Kingmambo) has arrived on the farm for the new season while The Sheik continues to provide his services.