Cover image courtesy of Arrowfield Stud
From last Thursday, four days of stallion parades took over major operations across the Hunter Valley. Plenty of industry participants, both finalising mating plans and catching up with peers, made a long weekend of it.
The early days belonged to Widden Stud, Newgate Farm, and Riverstone Lodge, with Yarraman Park Stud’s Friday afternoon parade capping off the week. Arrowfield Stud and Vinery Stud paraded their rosters on both Saturday and Sunday, with the Darley stallions signing off Saturday afternoon and Coolmore Stud following on the Sunday.
A focus for many was on seeing these stallions in three dimensions, but for Astute Bloodstock’s Louis Le Metayer, the physical is only part of the story.
“I’m like Winston Churchill, I’m always satisfied with the best,” he said.
Louis Le Metayer | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
“Looks can be deceiving. Many top stallions are not necessarily attractive - Northern Dancer was a pony, Fastnet Rock was big and plain, the best stallion in the country Extreme Choice is rather small. Snitzel was rather neat, and Written Tycoon wouldn’t win a beauty contest. All are terrific stallions. What I think really matters in the stallion is having elite 3-year-old form.”
In the Hunter Valley, this is available in spades.
New boys on the block
It’s the first time that many will get to see this year’s first season sires in the flesh, and names that cropped up often in conversation were Darley’s Broadsiding and Coolmore Stud’s Storm Boy. The latter is one of four new additions to the Coolmore roster, alongside fellow Justify son (USA), City Of Troy (USA).
“There’s two horses we’re really fond of, it’s Broadsiding and Storm Boy,” said Cannon Hayes Stud’s David Morrissey. “Could not fault Storm Boy. He’s a very good looker, he’s by a good stallion, he was a very good 2-year-old, and the price is right. So there’s four boxes ticked.”
David Morrissey | Image courtesy of Inglis
And of Broadsiding, the first son of Too Darn Hot (GB) to stud, Morrissey was emphatic; “If you can’t afford the real thing, you go to the best son of the real thing. You couldn’t fault the horse. His record speaks for himself.
“Of the first season sires, he’s the one I’m most excited about. With the clients all in, we have six or seven booked to him.”
“If you can’t afford the real thing (Too Darn Hot), you go to the best son of the real thing (Broadsiding).” - David Morrissey
“Broadsiding is a horse I’ve got huge hopes for,” said bloodstock agent Suman Hedge. “We have booked a couple of mares to him. He’s just got a really good profile, being by arguably the most exciting young stallion in the world and out of one of the best broodmare sires. And then he's got the race of performance back it up, so he's quite a nice horse.”
Broadsiding | Standing at Darley Australia
Well balanced young sires
Storm Boy’s barnmate Switzerland also gave a good account of himself in Coolmore Stud’s Sunday parade.
“Switzerland is a beautiful horse,” Hedge said. “We loved him as a yearling, and he has the right kind of physique that you would hope for by that stallion. We thought he has a lot of quality and continues to improve.”
“I liked Switzerland, he’s more typical of your Snitzels in terms of height, but he probably has a bit more length to him,” Bernie Kane of Middlebrook Valley Lodge said. “Shinzo has let down well too.”
Kane also took a shine to Arrowfield Stud’s latest addition Vandeek (GB). The dark grey sprinter had his first public outing on Saturday morning, where the sun had dried the valley enough for a weekend’s worth of parades to proceed.
Vandeek | Standing at Arrowfield Stud
“I just thought he had good length, and scope too,” he said. “He was a little lighter-boned, but I think you can send the right mare to him and he’ll do well over here. He was probably the one that most people were talking about afterwards at the rest of the parades around the weekend.”
“He (Vandeek) was probably the one that most people were talking about afterwards at the rest of the parades around the weekend.” - Bernie Kane
“I thought Cogburn was a very nice horse at Widden,” Hedge added. “He’s obviously very fast, and a big outcross to our broodmares. He’s a well balanced horse, he moved along quite well and should impart that speed into anything he covers.”
Suman Hedge | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Hedge was also taken by Starlust (GB), the new addition to Riverstone Lodge. The son of Zoustar arrived on farm earlier in the week, seven weeks after his Royal Ascot swansong.
“He's a really good looking horse," he said. "He's got that Zoustar presence, and the broad forehead. He's a well balanced animal, he moves quite well, he's very athletic and strong. I think he's got a lot of the ingredients that we look for in a good young stallion, and I think that Nick (Taylor) has priced him beautifully for the market.
“I think he's (Starlust) got a lot of the ingredients that we look for in a good young stallion.” - Suman Hedge
“I think he gives everyone a chance. To get a horse of that performance and category at that price, he gives is a really good opportunity.”
Starlust (GB) | Standing at Riverstone Lodge
Off on the right foot
Kane will be throwing his weight behind Vinery Stud’s Exceedance again this year.
“I’m a massive fan,” he said. “I have a half-sister to Dublin Down, his dual Group 3-winning juvenile, in foal to him and ready to foal down any day now. She’s already booked back in to him.”
Exceedance’s barnmate Hawaii Five Oh, who heads into his second season, was a headturner for breeders, particularly those that had already patronised him in his first season.
“I’ve also got a cracking Hawaii Five Oh foal who’s four days old now,” Kane added. “We’ve got 70 or so mares to foal down this year and I reckon she’ll probably be in the top five foals by the end of the season. She’s a really nice filly - she’s out of a Starspangledbanner mare who’s about 15.3hh, and she’s thrown a ripping foal.”
“I’ve also got a cracking Hawaii Five Oh foal ... I reckon she’ll probably be in the top five foals by the end of the season.” - Bernie Kane
Hawaii Five Oh will be getting repeat custom from Morrissey as well; “We have a very good foal by him, and on the back of that foal, we’re going to send the mare back to him.”
Hawaii Five Oh | Standing at Vinery Stud
Over at the Darley parade, Kane was pleased to see the return of second season stallion Native Trail (GB).
“I’m a big fan of the horse, I’ve got one in foal to him and, pending what the foal looks like, she could potentially go back to him,” he said. “He was probably the best looking first season sire last year, and he hasn’t taken a backwards step. He’s a lovely horse, and I’m more than happy to say that I’ll find another mare to go to him if I can’t send that one back.”
“You look at a lot of stallions, and then later on, when you’re reflecting on them all, he’s (Native Trail) one of the horses that really sticks in your mind.” - Suman Hedge
“I think the one that stood out to me the most just as a nice type is Native Trail,” said Hedge. “To me, he’s physically as nice a horse as I’ve ever seen. He’s such a masculine horse, he’s got a lot of presence. He’s one of those ones to remember. You look at a lot of stallions, and then later on, when you’re reflecting on them all, he’s one of the horses that really sticks in your mind.”
“It was great to see horses that will have their first yearlings offered for sale on the Gold Coast in January - the likes of Hitotsu, In The Congo, Best Of Bordeaux, and Artorius” said James Hetherington, bloodstock consultant for Magic Millions. “You can certainly see why they’ve left such great types, and they will be strongly represented in the ring.”
Native Trail (GB) | Satnding at Darley Australia
Promises of early action
Ahead of the first juvenile trials of the season, anticipation is high for the offspring of sires about to have their first runners, and it’s Coolmore’s Home Affairs that continues to appeal to Morrissey.
“We’re heavily invested in Home Affairs,” Morrissey said. “We’ve got nine in foal to him, and we only foal down around 30, so we’re heavily invested in him based off of his foals the year before.”
Home Affairs along with barnmates Acrobat and St Mark’s Basilica (Fr) have a combined 346 foals from their first crop ready to hit the track this season.
Home Affairs | Standing at Coolmore
For Kane, it’s all about Newgate Farm’s Stay Inside and Wild Ruler; “I’m a big fan of Stay Inside. I’ve got one in work and three to go to the yearling sales next year.”
Tiger Of Malay and Profiteer round out Newgate’s quartet of stallions with their first runners this season, all of whom were stakes winners in their juvenile years.
“(The St Mark's Basilica yearlings) have sold well, they’ve broken in well, and the early reports are good.” - Bernie Kane
Kane added, “I think St Mark’s Basilica is a good looking horse as well. The Siyouni factor probably worries a few people over her, but they’ve sold well, they’ve broken in well, and the early reports are good.”
Stay Inside | Standing at Newgate
Only the best
It’s not all about the up and coming sires; roster stalwarts such as I Am Invincible, The Autumn Sun, Zoustar, and So You Think (NZ) were warmly received by attendees. Such a concentration of racing and breeding talent needs little additional advertisement.
So You Think (NZ) | Standing at Coolmore
“So You Think is one of my favourite stallions, and he looks as good as he does every year,” said Kane.
“The star of the show is Wootton Bassett. He’s a real bull, he just oozes quality from top to bottom. If his 3-year-olds come out and they start to win stakes races and he starts to dominate a little bit like he does overseas, $350,000 (plus GST) will probably be very cheap.”
