Cover image courtesy of Blue Gum Farm
Nestled in Victoria’s horse capital of Euroa lies Blue Gum Farm, a name synonymous with success in racing. Since the 2016 Melbourne Premier Yearling sale, Blue Gum Farm has managed 18 per cent stakes horses to yearlings sold. Furthermore, 12 per cent of its graduates are stakes winners which makes it one of the most successful vendors in the country.
Since the 2016 Melbourne Premier Yearling sale, Blue Gum Farm has managed to produce 12 per cent stakes winners to horses offered.
30 per cent of Blue Gum Farm’s stakes winners since 2020 were purchased for less than $100,000.
Blue Gum Farm has consistently averaged over three stakes winners per season since 2020.
Established in 1981 by Graham and Margaret Campbell, and then later purchased by son Philip Campbell and wife Patti Campbell, Blue Gum Farm has been a cornerstone of the Victorian bloodstock scene for decades. Acquired in December 2022 by Trilogy Rural Investments’ Jason and Melanie Stenning and Victoria-based Caithness Breeding owners Sean and Cathy Dingwall, Blue Gum Farm continues to uphold its reputation as one of the country’s leading producers of thoroughbreds.
| 2023/24 | 3 |
| 2022/23 | 2 |
| 2021/22 | 6 |
| 2020/21 | 2 |
Table: Blue Gum Farm graduate stakes winners by season
Averaging over three stakes winners per season since 2020, buyers can purchase from Blue Gum Farm with confidence. This season, the farm has produced three stakes winners headlined by boom Lindsay Park trained filly Bold Bastile (Brazen Beau) who featured in the farm’s Inglis Premier Sale draft last year. The winner of the rich RL Inglis Nursery on debut, the talented filly notched up two more stakes victories and gained the status as one of Victoria’s most exciting juveniles of the season. A $270,000 purchase for her trainers and Group 1 Bloodstock (FBAA), she has already recouped earnings double that of her purchase price.
Dual stakes wins from the Peter G Moody and Katherine Coleman trained mare She Dances (Street Boss) added further ammunition to the Blue Gum Farm reputation with dual black-type victories this season. A $180,000 Inglis Premier Sale purchase by John Foote Bloodstock, She Dances claimed the G3 Northwood Plume S. at Caulfield in October before earning further stakes success in the Listed Chautauqua S. just two-weeks later.
Veteran stayer Aurora’s Symphony (Glass Harmonium) claimed a third stakes victory last month in the G3 Hobart Cup to take his earnings north of $950,000. A cheap $40,000 purchase for his trainer Simon Wilde at the 2018 Inglis Melbourne Vobis Gold Yearling Sale, Aurora’s Symphony adds further accolade to the farm in that Blue Gum Farm was home to his sire Glass Harmonium who served only limited books over eight seasons.
| Express Pass | 2018 Inglis Vobis Gold Yearling Sale | $38,000 | Jj Consultants / Nick Ryan Racing |
| Aurora's Symphony | 2018 Inglis Vobis Gold Yearling Sale | $40,000 | Wilde Racing Pty Ltd |
| Allibor | 2019 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $60,000 | Wilde Racing Pty Ltd / Cameron Cooke Bloodstock |
| Canford | 2016 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $62,500 | R Balfour |
| Agreeable | 2019 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $125,000 | Dean Hawthorne Bloodstock (bafnz) |
| She Dances | 2021 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $180,000 | John Foote Bloodstock |
| Bold Bastille | 2023 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale | $270,000 | Lindsay Park Racing / Group 1 Bloodstock (fbaa) |
| Semillion | 2021 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $300,000 | International Thoroughbred Solutions (fbaa) |
| September Run | 2019 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $380,000 | Hermitage Thoroughbreds Pty Ltd |
| Nanagui | 2021 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $450,000 | Rosemont Stud Pty Ltd |
| Bruckner | 2020 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $725,000 | Aquis Farm Pty Ltd |
| Crosswinds | 2021 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | $1,100,000 | James Harron Bloodstock Pty Ltd |
| Tyche Goddess | 2019 Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale | Passed In R $100,000 | / |
Table: Blue Gum Farm stakes winners 2020 - 2024 by sale, price and purchaser
The Blue Gum Farm consignment at the 2019 and 2021 editions of the Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale feature some amazing statistics. A remarkable 31 per cent of the 16 yearlings offered at the 2019 edition of the sale are stakes winners or restricted listed winners. They include two-time Group 1 winning sprinter September Run (Exceed and Excel), G2 Sandown Guineas winner Allibor (All Too Hard) and RL Inglis Banner winner Ideas Man (Brazen Beau). The farm sold four stakes winners from its 2021 consignment which resulted in a 16 per cent stakes winners to horses offered rate. Its 2021 graduates included G3 Kindergarten S. winner Semillion (Shalaa {Ire}) and the $1,100,000 sale topper Crosswinds (Written Tycoon) who claimed the Listed St. Albans S. as a juvenile.
While the farm predominantly produces fast stakes winners, Blue Gum Farm produces versatile stock that are capable of producing winners at all ends of the spectrum. Of the 20 stakes victories since the start of the 2020 racing season, 65 per cent were won over short course trips of 1200 metres or less. The headline sprinting graduate is undoubtedly the Chris Waller trained September Run, who claimed the G1 Coolmore Stud S. as a 3-year-old before notching up weight-for-age status in the G1 William Reid S. a year later.
Three graduates claimed victory over middle distance trips including Agreeable (Sebring) who won the Listed Murray Bridge Gold Cup over 1600 metres and Tychee Goddess (Teofilo {Ire}), winner of the G3 Auraria S over 1800 metres. In addition to Aurora’s Symphony’s back-to-back Listed Launceston Cups and a Listed Hobart Cup, veteran stayer Canford (Canford Cliffs {Ire}) claimed black-type in the G3 Lord Reims S. over 2600 metres.
Patti and Philip Campbell of Blue Gum Farm | Image courtesy of Blue Gum Farm
Blue Gum Farm's streak of producing stakes winners shows no signs of slowing down under its new ownership structure. If past performance is any indication, we can expect a steady stream of talented gallopers to emerge from the historic property.
