Cover image courtesy of Lime Country Thoroughbreds
One of the operations that seems to have a particular affinity with the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale is Lime Country Thoroughbreds, with Greg and Jo Griffin’s emerging operation heading back to Riverside off the back of stellar results in 2023.
It was there that the team cracked the top 10 vendors by average ($148,000), had the third highest selling lot of Book 1 ($460,000), and finished fifth in overall gross ($2,220,000), with 15 of their 17 horses offered knocked down.
Lime Country Thoroughbreds seem to have a particular affinity with the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale | Image courtesy of Lime Country Thoroughbreds
The Scone-based farm is once again hoping to be in the thick of things again in 2024, with 20 lots currently slated to be offered when selling commences on Sunday.
To find out more about some of the highlights of their draft, and learn a bit more about their recent results, The Thoroughbred Report caught up with co-owner Jo Griffin as attention turns to Riverside.
Strong clearance numbers at Magic Millions despite a ‘lacking’ draft
Lime Country have only had a full-time presence in Australia since 2017, but they’ve certainly wasted no time establishing themselves as a farm that can consistently prepare horses of a good quality to sell.
Much like anything in life, there are ups and downs, and despite a Magic Millions draft that Griffin doesn’t hold amongst the strongest the operation has taken north, she has found some key positives out of the results from last month.
“It’s been two years now since we moved into the Hunter Valley from the Southern Highlands, which is where we went to when we originally landed (from New Zealand).
“The 300 acres that we purchased in the Hunter Valley was the first farm we ever purchased. Australia is a great place to go ahead and be able to do that sort of thing and take those opportunities.
“The 300 acres that we purchased in the Hunter Valley was the first farm we ever purchased. Australia is a great place to go ahead and be able to do that sort of thing and take those opportunities. ” - Jo Griffin
“Magic Millions for us, we lacked the sire power that we normally have there. We had a high percentage of fillies, and we were lacking stallions in that top five current sires (bracket).
“So we're looking forward to the sale (Classic) and particularly Easter going forward.
“I guess one of the things from Magic Millions is that we had a 100 per cent clearance rate, and one of the things Lime Country is extremely strong on is an extremely high clearance rate year on year.
“We tell our clients we’re going to bring horses to the sale, and we sell them.”
“We tell our clients we’re going to bring horses to the sale, and we sell them.” - Jo Griffin
Diverse draft set to sell at Classic
One cursory glance at the draft Lime Country is taking to Riverside this week, and the diversity of the offering immediately sticks out.
The old cliche of ‘there’s something for everyone’ does certainly look to ring true when examining this draft, with a wide array of stallions and global influences present in their 20-strong offering.
“I think we've got 20 horses here, we’ve got 18 different stallions (represented). It is a very diverse range of stallions and largely out of younger mares.
“I think we've got 20 horses here, we’ve got 18 different stallions (represented). It is a very diverse range of stallions and largely out of younger mares.” - Jo Griffin
“We've tried to really focus on what the market wants at the sale, and I think one of the joys of being a consignment farm versus a stud farm is that you get to put your drafts together.
“You don't have to take everything that's on the farm by a given stallion just because you’ve got that stallion on the farm.
“Classic has religiously been a very good sale for us, it’s one of our favourite sales of the year, we do very, very well here.
“Classic has religiously been a very good sale for us, it’s one of our favourite sales of the year, we do very, very well here.” - Jo Griffin
“That’s what I would say about Classic, you bring horses in front of a stack of eyes, and we like selling here.”
Griffin struggled to nail down a particular standout in her farm’s draft when speaking to The Thoroughbred Report on Monday, instead highlighting a quartet of colts and fillies that she believes should be front of the mind of buyers when selling starts on Sunday.
“I'm going to say Lot 355, the colt by Too Darn Hot (is a highlight of the draft). Obviously, the stallion is off to a sensational start in Australia, and he (Lot 355) is very typical of what we've seen from the stallion, and he's out of a super quick So You Think mare (Intrinsic).
“He’s an attractive horse and very (much) in keeping with his sire. He’d be one of the really nice horses that we have.
“He’s (Lot 355) an attractive horse and very (much) in keeping with his sire. He’d be one of the really nice horses that we have.” - Jo Griffin
“I think for those looking for horses that will train on into those 3-year-old races and further, Lot 398, the So You Think colt (would be a good option).
“He’s from the family of Humidor and this is her (La Casade’s) second foal, she’s a half (sister) to Cyber Attack and On The Lead. He’s a different style of horse but he’s got a lot of class about him.”
Lime Country have more than just classy colts to waltz through the Riverside ring in the coming days, with Griffin also excited to see what a filly from a sire residing on the other side of the Tasman can produce in time.
Gallery: Some of Lime Country Thoroughbreds' draft at the 2024 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale
“Probably Lot 420 (is another highlight), the Per Incanto, this is a very athletic, quick looking filly, the dam (Latin Rose) was stakes placed and Mastercraftsman is doing a great job as a broodmare sire at the moment.
“If I have room for anything else, I would say Lot 340, the Hyrtle Mytrle filly (by Capitalist), she would be one of the best-bred fillies in the sale, her dam was a Group 1 winner.”
“If I have room for anything else, I would say Lot 340, the Hyrtle Mytrle filly (by Capitalist), she would be one of the best-bred fillies in the sale, her dam was a Group 1 winner.” - Jo Griffin
She may have saved the best until last, with Lot 340 being a half-sister to the G3 Ming Dynasty H. winner Holyfield (I Am Invincible), and hailing from a family decorated with stakes performers in Australia and Hong Kong.
The diversity of stallions on offer is one of the most intriguing narratives surrounding the Lime Country draft heading into Sunday, with first-season sires such as Farnan and King’s Legacy joined by established stallions like Toronado (Ire), Frosted (USA) and Maurice (Jpn).
It’s not just the here and now that excites Griffin, with the draft for the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale in April also holding some quality that she cannot wait to see chart a path through the sales ring.
Jo Griffin
“We've got the I Am Invincible colt (Lot 492) out of the mare Different To, and we sold the half-sister last year by Fastnet Rock for $1.1 million to Sheamus Mills.
“This colt is a full brother to the Group 1 winner Media Sensation, and the mare has had a lot of fillies, so there haven't been a lot of colts to actually make it to the track, so we’re really excited to get him to the sale.”
