Wow! The autumn of 2009 is one we won't forget in a hurry.
The LA bred Can't Keeper Down (Keeper- Ashley Downs) commenced proceedings with a courageous second in the Group One New Zealand Oaks before Marquardt (Shamardal-Centrefold Angel) who is only the second horse we have bred to start in the Group One Golden Slipper, came from the second widest gate and last on the turn to run 6th in the richest two-year-old race in the world.. She was 2nd in her previous start at Group 2 level.
The other LA/Te Parae bred to start in the Golden Slipper was Unspoken Word who ran 7th to Canny Lad in the 1990 edition.
More Bountiful (Van Nistelrooy-Centaine Gu Li) scored a great win in the Group Two Chairman's Trophy in Hong Kong over 1600m (with Armada fourth). More Bountiful was sold from LA's 2006 South Island Sale draft for breeder and our former head groom Helen Phinney.
To cap it all off, Roman Emperor (Montjeu-Gussy Godiva) whom we prepared and sold for his breeders Mick Ormond and the Ormond family from Hawkes Bay at the 2007 Karaka Premier Sale took out the time honoured Group One AJC Derby at Randwick.
On the breeding front the demand for Towkay's stock continues with his weanling from Clayton's Saint fetching the top overall price at the Highview Stud dispersal and all of our Sydney Easter Sale consignment found good homes in a tough market.
Sydney Easter Sale 5, 6 and 7 April
| Pins - Rites of Spring colt | Debbie Price NZ | $125,000 |
| No Excuse Needed - Clermont Rose colt | DGR Thoroughbreds NSW | $110,000 |
| Zabeel - Trigon Lass colt | Neville Parnham WA | $100,000 |
So much about the sales for LA are forming lasting relationships with our purchasers and at Sydney we experienced both sides of the relationship spectrum from Bart Cummings - through DGR and Debbie Price through Graeme Rodgerson who have bought a number of horses from us over the years including Roman Emperor, through to Neville Parnham - leading trainer in Perth for a number of seasons - who bought his first horse from us. Thanks and to all our purchasers we trust your buys bring you and your clients a lot of highs.
Towkay
Our son of Last Tycoon is having another fantastic season in Hong Kong, currently sitting 9th on their Sires Premiership but with the best winners to runners ratio of any stallion within the top ten.
Armada (Towkay- Dance in Time) who is having a quiet season by his high standards showed with his fast finishing run for 5th in last months Group One Queen's Silver Jubilee Cup that he maybe on the way back to the kind of form that saw him rated the equal best NZ bred galloper in the world last year. He heads to the Champions Mile then onto Japan for their richest mile, the Yasuda Kinen in June.
Winners for Towkay over the last month have been;
Bringelly (Towkay-Stranami) recorded his fourth win from 14 starts in Queensland
Silent Prayer (Towkay - Cooininee) scored over 1400m in Queensland
Casey (Towkay - Kincia) broke her maiden at Matamata
Wai (Towkay - Iamwhatiam) won a $40,000 race on Oaks day at Trentham
Ribot Legend (Towkay - Tzigane) won over 1200m on debut in Hong Kong
Helene Elite (Towkay - Mayfair) successful over 1400m in Hong Kong
Super Bobo (Towkay - Reasonable) broke his maiden over 1600m in Hong Kong
Ambitious Owner (Towkay - Melissa Moon) recorded win no 3 in Hong Kong on Sunday
Gold Poole (Towkay - Cuts Both Ways) a winner over 1600m in Singapore
Lady Baretta (Towkay - War Cry) broke her maiden at Otaki last Thursday
Shoothim (Towkay - In the Lane) 1200m winner at Woodville this week
Wai (Towkay - Iamwhatiam) also grabbed the all important black-type for her eventual broodmare career when third in the Manawatu Breeders Stakes at Awapuni.
With a winner's roster for March like this, results such as the sale topping effort at the Highview dispersal come as little surprise. Towkay's service fee for this coming season of $6,500 plus GST gives all breeders a very good chance of a profitable result come yearling sale time in 2012.
National Broodmare and Weanling Sale
LA takes a draft of seven weanlings and one broodmare to this years sale at Karaka on 4 - 6 May.
Highlights of the draft include a striking grey Towkay colt from a full sister to an Australian Group 2 winner, a Dubai Destination colt from a Sir Tristram daughter of Morar and probably the pick on type, a big and scopey O'Reilly filly from Timamou for Lorraine Jameson.
One of our draft certain to turn a few heads is the Zed colt from Maggs, one of only two by the first season stallion in the sale. Amongst Zed's first crop of some 100 foals you would not see a superior individual.
Other News
Larry's Never Late (Pentire-Laebeel) won over 1600m at Caulfield on 20 March. The Te Parae bred colt is being aimed at the South Australian and Queensland Derbies.
Actually it's been a good month for LA broodmare Laebeel as her four-year-old son Sesotho by Danasinga won at 1600m in Victoria for the Danny O'Brien stable. Sesotho was a $50,000 Karaka 2006 Premier purchase by Danny.
The Towkay gelding we syndicated through this newsletter late last year looks set to give his ten owners some fun judging by an easy jumpout success last month and then a just as easy trial success. Named Rampant (Towkay - On Honeymoon) the Guy Lowry trained two-year-old should go to the races over the next fortnight.
The LA bred stakesplaced two-year-old Pachanga who scored over 1300m in South Australia last month is a half sister to the Pins colt we sold earlier at Karaka this year to Anthony Cummings for $120,000. Pachanga then went onto run second in the Listed Laelia Stakes in Adelaide last week.
Last month staff said their fond goodbyes to the Savabeel - Sound Lover 2YO filly who left for Melbourne where she will be trained by Mick Price for LA, Rob de Bomford and friends.
Longtime LA client Lorraine Jameson has had a wonderful run over the last two months with her broodmare Kincia. The roll started in Hong Kong with Appreciation (Danasinga-Kincia) winning twice and running second in his first three starts and continued with Casey (Towkay-Kincia) scoring over 1400m at Matamata.
Appreciation was a $92,500 purchase from our 2007 Karaka Select draft by John Foote Bloodstock while Casey was sold for $30,000 from our 2006 Karaka Festival draft.
It takes a tough and talented horse to win seven races in Hong Kong and that's exactly what the LA bred Special Day's (Keeper-Eva's Belle) has done, winning again, this time over 1800m at Sha Tin in March.
Bellabaci (Zabeel - Sound Lover) who is owned by the stud showed she is right on target for next weeks VRC St Leger with her fighting second in the Galilee Series Final at Caulfield on Easter Saturday.
Taranaki owner Eddie Burke certainly knew the virtues of an exceptional female family when he bought two yearlings from us at the 2008 and 2009 Karaka Sales series. His 2008 purchase, the Volksraad - Gussy Godiva half brother to Roman Emperor has since been named Volgus and he looks a lovely three-year-old prospect judging by his second placing at Awapuni on 3 April. From the same Sellou/Sneetch family, Eddie this year purchased the O'Reilly - Ashley Downs half brother to Can't Keeper Down for $140,000. Great buying in anyone's language.
For anyone wanting to read more about the racing and breeding game, John Duncan who writes our newsletters and website updates as well as writing for New Zealand Thoroughbred magazine has a blog. Its http://wwwdarkhorse.blogspot.com/ There's no dot after the 3 w's by the way.
Enjoy the last of the autumn sunshine and until next month where we'll update you Marquardt's bid for Group One glory in the Sires Produce and give you the rundown on our weanling crop.
