b4breeding

10 out of 15 ain’t bad. You can hardly fault the effort from top sire Bettor’s Delight to be represented as the sire of 66% of the 3yo colts and geldings in the field of the Sires Stakes on Tuesday (including the two emergencies).

On top of that he is the damsire of Shandale, the classy northerner.

Will he be the sire of the winner? That’s another step, although the odds are well and truly in his favour, and Chase The Dream and Lazarus will have huge support.

Mach Three has two representatives as a sire, and one (Classie Brigade) as a damsire. Art Major has two as a sire, and Jereme’s Jet one (second emergency Imola who is unlikely to get into the field). That foaling year, Bettor’s Delight had 220 live foals in New Zealand. Art Major had 49, Mach Three 94, Jereme’s Jet 57 (his last crop here).

So yes it is partly a numbers game, but it is also cream rising to the top of a lot of milk. Will it turn into beautifully matured cheese? Wait for my next blog which looks at the Cup field itself…the older stars who shine.

The 3yo race should be a cracker, with the draws levelling the field if something can cross the insiders and push the second row stars further back on the fence.

But this blog isn’t about the result – it’s a tip o’ the hat to the sires, mares and breeders who laid the foundation for the moment.

Breeders of the Sires Stakes field 2015

I want to note especially three runners bred by Breckon Bloodstock from the same family: the very good mare Megaera, a daughter of Alberfeldy, which is how the Breckon brothers first got “bitten” by harness racing. In this race there is Bite The Bullet from the Presidential Ball mare Pistol Packing Mama, and Cash N Flow from the In The Pocket mare Karen Donna (both of them are by Mach Three).

Karen Donna is the dam of Pistol Packing Mama (and also the dam of Katy Perry). So that is a dam and daughter with offspring in the race. Both of those mares descend from Ken Breckon’s foundation mare Megaera, and Megaera (a daughter of Aberfeldy) is also the grandam of another horse in this field of classy 3yos – Shandale. So big congrats to Breckon Bloodstock for having three in the race from the same family line – that is remarkable and a fitting result for a passionate and astute harness racing breeder/supporter, and also for Jan and Sandy Yarndley who were the “keepers” of that Black Watch/Aberfeldy line for so many years.

Both Karen Donna and Pistol Packing Mama were part of the “clear out” draft Ken Breckon sent to the Autumn Weanling and All Age Sale in May 2013, with Karen Donna selling in foal to Art Major for just $1000 and Pistol Packing Mama likewise for $2250, both sold to Mike Stevens. A very canny buy and a reminder about how hard it is to predict which lines will suddenly fire and which will not, and the struggles that all breeders have to get a return. The winner of most races is Hindsight.

Also I’d like to give a tip o’ the hat to damsires and especially our “downunder” Direct Scooter line. Christian Cullen is the damsire of 3 horses in the field, and Christian Cullen’s sire In The Pocket is the damsire of another 2. A quirky note – two of the damsires are sons of Jate Lobell, being Village Jasper and Caprock. What an influence that horse has become!

Here’s the full list of breeding, and breeders, for the 3yo colts and geldings Sires Stakes Final field 2015:

1. Mowtown, Bettor’s Delight x Touch Of Grace – Walton Hanover (Breeder: D J Bennett, Ms L A Joyce)
2. Franco Cristiano, Bettor’s Delight x Cherish A Franco – Caprock (Breeder: Spreydon Lodge Ltd)
3. Bite The Bullet, Mach Three x Pistol Packing Mama – Presidential Ball (Breeder: Breckon Bloodstock Ltd)
4. Art Form, Art Major x Highfields Diamond – Holmes Hanover (Breeder: C H Barlow, Mrs T J Barlow )
5. Cash N Flow, Mach Three x Karen Donna – In The Pocket (Breeder: Breckon Bloodstock Ltd)
6. Imola (E2), Jereme’s Jet x Imprint – Life Sign (Breeder: A J Johnstone)
7. He Can Fly, Bettor’s Delight x Falcon’s Flybye – Falcon Seelster (Breeder: P G Argus, J M Argus, B Robertson, C Robertson, T Ryder, L Ryder)
8. Kimani, Bettor’s Delight x Lizzie Maguire – Christian Cullen (Breeder: Rosslands Stud Ltd)
9. GI Joe, Bettor’s Delight x Breath Of Life – Village Jasper (Breeder: Mrs D C Cournane)
10. Chase The Dream, Bettor’s Delight x Christian Dreamer – Christian Cullen (Breeder: V L Devery, Mrs D L Devery)
11. Lazarus, Bettor’s Delight x Bethany – Christian Cullen (Breeder: G Chin, Studholme Bloodstock Limited)
12. Alta Las Vegas (E1), Bettor’s Delight x Bethany – Christian Cullen (Breeder: Alta Breeding Co Ltd)
13. Can’t Refuse, Bettor’s Delight x Dream Offer – Dream Away (Breeder: Woodlands Stud (NZ) Ltd)
14. Classie Brigade, Bettor’s Delight x Trigirl – Mach Three (Breeder: Miss S A Matthews, R Faulkner, Mrs C A Faulkner)
15. Shandale, Art Major x Delightful Dale – Bettor’s Delight (Breeder: Breckon Bloodstock Ltd)