CAPE WINTER CLASSIC AWARD!
AMBLEWAY's graduate LOVE IS IN THE AIR won the Winter Oaks (listed) in facile fashion - her jockey raced her quite handy and she took over to win the race going away, showing that she stayed well over the 2200m trip. In her last start she won a feature and has since then been awarded the Cape Winter Classic Filly title. Interestingly enough this same award was given to Pocket Power who is also a progeny of Jet Master. A few years ago Mike Bass had decided to follow the route of not entering him in the Guineas and Cape Derby but to rather go the Classic route. He has done the same with this filly, hence bringing her on quite slowly. It will be interesting to see if she can follow in the footsteps of her illustrious older stable mate. She has improved with racing, having now won her last five starts in a row for Mike Bass and I believe she is now being put away to give her a break before being prepared for the graded races in Cape Town at the end of the year. Congratulations to Mike Bass' team and for the achievements with this filly and especially to her owners and breeders, Pat and Henry Devine. I am sure it has been a feather in your cap to breed a filly such as this and to continue the interests of your stallion Jet Master.
We have just sent in the full sister to LOVE IS IN THE AIR - COSMIC JET to Justin Snaith in Cape Town so we will follow her with interest and see if she can follow in her sister's path. Ambleway also sent quite a few very well-related siblings into training recently and of no small measure is the colt, JET DOT COM (pictured). This smashing racy colt is a full brother to our international star - JJ The Jet Plane. JJ is currently racing against the world's best sprinters under the professional care of Mike de Kock and his team and in his last start where he ran a great third in "Britain's Sprint Championship" - the July Cup, a group 1 - where he beat Auzzie legend Take Over Target and star Sonic Blast in the race. This well-grown colt is also owned and bred by Pat and Henry Devine and has been sent to Lucky Houdelakis. This is fitting as Lucky was the person who found JJ and took him along so carefully in his early races to become the star that he is today. Let us hope that he can follow closely in his brother's footsteps.
We have also sent into training some very nicely bred two-year olds for Mrs Oppenheimer which are by champion stallion Fort Wood and Strike Smartly - the latter being an up and coming sire who is a full brother to the stallion Smart Strike the sire of Curlin, the former World Champion of 2008. Included in this group is a very nice Brazilian filly by Mark of Esteem called IRELAND. Watch her as she steps out under Gavin van Zyl's care as she is a very smart filly. Gavin has already been successful with two of our graduates, CASHEW NUT and BULSARA.
A new group of owners under the name of Moodley's Racing Team have recently purchased a number of young horses to go into training with Garth Puller in Durban. They have purchased some very well-bred youngsters including SABRINA, a half-sister to the useful stayer in Gauteng, Santa. We wish this group of enthusiastic owners the best of luck with their new venture.
Dennis Drier, one of the top conditioners in KwaZulu-Natal, has been very patient with his younger horses and he is now being rewarded when stepping out two of his two-year olds at the end of the season - CLEARLY SILVER and JO PIPER. CLEARLY SILVER pulverised his field in his debut, winning by four lengths over 1000m to win much better than expected! It was really great for this win as this is the first of a group of horses bought by Mr F Lau from Hong Kong, to race in South Africa. Well done Peter Gibson - it is very exciting to have these new owners in the country and to come out and win your first race with one of the horses you purchased for them. Long may your relationship with Dennis continue. Dennis also came out with a very nice filly JO PIPER to win her second start. She pulverised the field by winning by eight lengths. This filly by Goldmark is from one of Dennis's favourite families where he has trained many of the progeny and she races for the Toweel family. It was really great to see her win so well for all of you. Well done to Joe, Barry, Stan and the boys. I think you have got yourself a very useful filly!
Other juveniles who need watching who have come out and won and who are following up with really good races are: KING'S WINGS, BULSARA and FORESTATION. FESTIVAL SPIRIT and PRINCE PASEO have been knocking on the door for some time and they should win their maidens soon. NIGHT TIME ran a great second in his debut! Do follow all of these babies!
Dennis Drier must be thrilled with his young Auzzie import SHARKS BAY - SHARKS BAY won the Graded Merchants against older horses in his penultimate start. He then competed in his first grade 1 race, The Mercury Sprint. He ran a cracking race to finish second to the already proven Gr1 winner The Giant. The Giant had won 11 races and was only giving SHARKS BAY 0.5kg - who is only a three-year old with 4 wins under his belt! Watch this horse "bite" the sprint races in the future as his last two runs have shown him to be very talented sprinter! Well done to his owners, Steve Sturlese, Greg Blank and George Naidoo of Summerveld Trust.
We have also seen two other very useful three-year old graduates from Ambleway. One is a sprinter, CANDY TUFT and the other looking like being a useful stayer - GOLDEN PARACHUTE. CANDY TUFT was raised at Scott Bros and owned and bred by Des Scott and Robert Muir. She comes out of a very good mare Candelabra. She was always a very well-balanced filly and looked to be a very nice type and she certainly showed us on the track, having run four times for two wins and two places. In her last start she beat the field very easily by over one and quarter lengths over 1000m and was full of running at the end. I think trainer, Dennis Drier, can have plenty of fun planning her future career as she looks like being a useful sprinter.
Mike Bass and Marsh Shirtliff saw GOLDEN PARACHUTE at our farm last year before the Sibiya Sale where he was sold as part of a dispersal sale for Mr Jaffee and Des Scott. Des Scott remained in the horse and Rupert Plersch and lucky owner, Marsh Shirtliff, purchased this horse for Mike Bass as they both felt that this horse, on pedigree and on confirmation, looked like being a useful stayer and might even develop into a Gold Cup prospect. Mike Bass has nursed this horse along very slowly and on July Day he won his second start for the team. It was very exciting to see him run over 2400m and he came with a great finish at the end to win very easily. He is now being slowly prepared for the Gold Cup possibly next year and we wish the team the best of luck and watch him in staying races - he is by Montjeu who himself has produced two Derby winners and definitely looks like being a serious stayer.
A few useful horses that have been spelled here have come out and won lately - BISMARCK and GIANT'S JEWEL. BISMARCK had a rest here and then was finally sent to Lucky Houdelakis who has found the most amazing form with this horse. He has now won four out of five of his last starts for Lucky over 1000m - well done to you! GIANT'S JEWEL, who came to rest having had a throat operation, took a while to come back to the track to win a race. She was placed very often for her owner, Mr Snyman, under the care of Mike de Kock and his team and has now won her last two races - sprints over 1200m. Congratulations to you as she will make a super brood mare one day being a daughter of Giant's CAUSeway.
Other winners we have had that have cracked their maidens are COOBER PEDDY who won in Kimberley for Graham Hawkins and Mervin Chetty. He won over 1200m by three lengths and it was great to see this handsome son of Rich Man's Gold who was very disappointing in KwaZulu-Natal, win his maiden for the team. Another very good looking horse that has broken his maiden for Basil and Betty Linington is the horse ANUTHABAR. This horse is by the recently deceased stallion Anabaa, a very good sprinter. Well done to Tobie Spies, his conditioner, I hope he carries on with this.
Apart from the juveniles that should win soon there are plenty of older horses that should break their maidens and win other races including MOON BREAKER, ANT OF AUGUSTA, AMERICAN JET, CONNOR McLEOD, CATCH ME CAT, JET TYCOON, NATIONAL HUNT, RUBY ROCKS, CHEERS CAPTAIN, BOLD PRINCESS, BIG BLACK, MISS DU BOIS, THE GIANT, ANDA, DUAL EMBLEM, SARONG, KANAVARO, WOMEN'S RIGHT (ran fourth after her rest here), ELEGANT ASPEN (ran second in the Conditioner's Stake in PE) - watch these as they should feature in the winning box soon!
The recent Sibiya Sale was a rather difficult sale for sellers and therefore a little easier for the buyers. The prices were generally down, however, the fillies' average was a little inflated due to some well-bred fillies that increased the average price from R61,000.00 to R62,000.00 per filly and the colts were down on last year from R72,000.00 down to R59,000.00 average. We were very happy to obtain babies to school from popular KwaZulu-Natal trainers, Michael Roberts and Dennis Drier for owners James Drew and Mike Fullard. Thank you all very much for your support and we look forward to watching the babies develop over the next few months.
The next sale is in mid-August - the National Two-Year Old Sale in Johannesburg, which usually has very excellent specimens that are mature. It will be interesting to see the types of horses that are on this sale. We will be there so we will see you then.
Enjoy the remainder of the KwaZulu-Natal feature season!
JANE TROTTER
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