b4breeding

After a 3-blog diversion into “Neddaland” I’m back looking at the new damsires in the 2012 yearling sales. In previous blogs I’ve covered Elsu, Courage Under Fire and McArdle. Now I’m focusing on the two damsire credits for Bettor’s Delight.

Lot 132, Premier Day One, is a colt named Full Disclosure by Christian Cullen out of Maddison Lee. He is one of only two yearlings in the 2012 yearling sales catalogue with a Bettor’s Delight dam – but he certainly won’t be the last.

With Bettor’s Delight building such a strong reputation as a sire now, and as a sire of good fillies, the next few years will see more of his earlier (frozen semen) mares getting in foal  to commercial sires and appearing in the sales catalogues.

And in the future his huge crop numbers will see a swarm of Bettor’s Delight broodmares, all looking for the sire/s that will ‘click’.

And that’s an interesting thing to ponder on, as I will over next couple of blogs – and I invite your thoughts (please post as comments and share your ideas).

Because it’s a bit like Sundon mares in trotting – the sires that unlock that Bettor’s Delight treasure trove of mares will write themselves a chapter in NZ standardbred history.

What proven, new or potential sires do you think will take up that role successfully, and why?

Lot 132 Premier Yearling Sales, a Christian Cullen colt from a Bettor's Delight mare

But for now, let’s take a closer look at Lot 132. Lyn O’Connell of Twisted Stick Lodge is the breeder and is very familiar with the family – in fact (as Lyn McLachlan) bred the very good filly Adios Dream from Deborah Dundee, this yearling’s 3rd dam.

Lot 132’s dam Maddison Lee was one of Bettor’s Delight’s first frozen semen crops via Nevele R Stud. She was a 2004 foal, when Lyn recalls the stud fee was around $10,500, so she was bred with a longer view as a quality broodmare. Lyn describes the mare as ’round and not very athletic’ and although she did qualify she didn’t show enough to pursue as a race horse.

She says the choice of Christian Cullen as the sire for Maddison Lee was strongly influenced by the success of Christian Cullen mares going to Bettor’s Delight (with Highview Tommy being one example). “That cross is well regarded and successful, so I am just doing the same in the opposite direction.”

However the yearling has thrown more to the dam’s family, and is neither a big bold Christian Cullen replica, nor the solid round type that Bettor’s Delight can produce. She describes Full Disclosure as a racy type, very athletic, who “paces fast and free legged around the paddock, and wants to be on the go. ”

“In fact he reminds me a lot of Adios Dream and Courage Under Fire as a type – it’s the smaller ones from this family that seem to turn into the good racehorses.”

In the next blog I’ll check out Lot 283, Lexus Franco, the other yearling with a Bettor’s Delight dam. In the meantime, start gazing into your crystal balls and give me some thoughts on who you see as a good future cross for Bettor’s Delight mares, particularly for the many who have In The Pocket and Holmes Hanover as their damsire.