b4breeding

Nostalgic Franco and her Tintin In America colt as a foal last year at Macca Lodge

Nostalgic Franco is the second of the two mares I am breeding this season – a Rustler Hanover mare I bought at a mixed sale in foal to Tintin In America. That was a cross I really, really liked the look of and the resulting (now yearling colt) foal is a very nice type and I will go back for more in future. The mare then had a year off.

I look at the reality of Nostalgic Franco: a mare with some ability as a racehorse but quite one-paced, who has been bred to Nevele R sires as part of a broodmare band, and done well with that opportunity – but more potential is there, not yet the speed sire to click her genes into a new gear. That is my challenge.

According to my breeding formula I also needed to sort out WHAT I am breeding this next foal for, and what I would optimally want to do with it. It is a question that stops you going in wider and wider circles (which I started to do, just out of interest), and narrows your options to a reasonable number of sires you can afford and match your aim.

I decided I wanted to breed from a commercial sire to give me the option of selling as a yearling (depending on the sire’s commercial appeal at the time and the quality of the foal, of course).  That didn’t mean the 4 to 5 top sires. For financial reasons, they were out of the question. The Art Major choice for Zenterfold is where any savings are going! So I was left with considering sires that were within my budget but are likely to be or could be commercial about 3 years from now. And that gets further reduced by sires that for genetic reasons might be totally unsuitable.

When you look at it that way, you can see why breeding to sell early is extremely difficult. But the good news is there is plenty of choice, thanks to a very competitive Australasian market for new and enduring sires in the $4000 to $6000 bracket.

Long story cut short, I have looked closely at (in alphabetical order) A Rocknroll Dance ($6000), Betterthancheddar ($4000), He’s Watching ($6000), Rock N Roll Heaven (borderline at the $7000 price I recommended in my blog lol), Roll With Joe ($5,500), Shadow Play ($4000), Sportswriter ($4500), Sunshine Beach ($4000), and Sweet Lou ($6000). These are great horses, proven on the track, good pedigrees, etc.

Interestingly, several are from the same Western Hanover sire line as my mare. But I think my mare’s family (and I’ve talked about this with someone who has been closely involved in that maternal family for many generations) overall needs injections of speed almost every generation. It is the maternal family of Cardigan Bay. But it doesn’t have that underlying speed factor coming in genetically from its mares – it seems to rely on injections from sires who add value AND speed. Even then, the progeny tend to be good types, reasonable size, who are a little “one speed” and lack that ability to crank up another gear or two quickly. (Which is of course what most horses lack, as we humans do!)

So part of my elimination rounds – a more sporting term for “mulling” – was looking for a reinforcement of speed genes and quick flex ability, rather than strength and stamina.  The end of my mulling has been A Rocknroll Dance, and it is the combination of several factors. First, I like the match in terms of pedigree. The Western Hanover line seems to be competing with the revived Direct Scooter line as the “line of speed”. That is from a siring perspective. But for an overall match this is something quite new for me, considering how many times Wendymae Hanover pops up (3f,5m, x 4m) but this is more breeding to strong mares – both Wendymae Hanover (and her maternal package) and Rich N Elegant (and her maternal package) are coming close up.

You know I am a great admirer of strong maternal influences and much as the strong engine room sires and damsires. So I like seeing Overtrick in good places on this match.

The mare’s bottom line feeds into this in a less obvious way. Back further there are more synergies and duplication from good lines. But my focus is bringing speed and ability in, to update the family rather than reach backwards. So it is a fairly new and exciting breeding in that regard.

On type, I have kept a close eye on the foals A Rocknroll Dance is producing, including the filly I have out in the paddock here. He really stamps his mark as a sire on type – proportioned and athletic. That doesn’t mean all his foals are like that, but like some other successful sires, many of his offspring have a similar look. Signs of a sire that can make it? I don’t know but I think many breeders and buyers will take a chance on it.

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