THE win of I’ll Have A Bit in the Group 2 $500,000 Euclase Stakes at Morphettville last Saturday is great news for property owners Amber and Ollie Tait, as they will be standing the three-year-old filly’s sire Smart Missile at their Cootamundra property, Twin Hills Stud this stud season.
Previously having stood six seasons at Arrowfield Stud, Smart Missile was Champion first season sire 2015-16. He then had the most winners for his second season runners, and now is again near the lead for the third season sires by winners, siring 82 winners to May 1.
Smart Missile gets a terrific number of winners and has huge crops of yearlings and foals in the pipeline; he is an accomplished young stallion and great value (fee $13,200).
- Ollie Tait
Making it a city winning double last Saturday when Missile Launch saluted in Perth, Smart Missile has also sired stakes winners Debellatio (WATC Sires’ Produce Stakes-G3, and Sassy ‘n’ Smart.
By champion Australian sire Fastnet Rock, Smart Missile has been exceptionally well supported by breeders and buyers.
His 71 yearlings which sold (to mid April) this year has averaged about $80,000 and have been purchased by some of Australia’s best trainers and syndicators.
These include Peter Snowden, Gary Portelli, Anthony Freedman, and syndicators Triple Crown, and Darby Thoroughbreds.
Bred and raced by Gooree Park Stud, Smart Missile was produced from one of the Mudgee located property’s best female families, being produced from Comic Smile a half-sister to outstanding ill-fated sire Northern Meteor.
“Smart Missile gets a terrific number of winners and has huge crops of yearlings and foals in the pipeline; he is an accomplished young stallion and great value (fee $13,200),” said Ollie Tait.
Jack Woolridge remembered
NUMEROUS long time breeders and racegoers will recall Dr John (Jack) Woolridge, who not only had a love of horse racing and breeding, but had a devotion to his patients as a specialist general physician and cardiologist.
He passed away of illness in March at age 92.
He was one of the first four Honorary Medical Officers at Sutherland Hospital (in southern Sydney) after it opened in 1958 and later played a major role in the opening of its coronary care unit.
Retiring at 90, Dr Woolridge gave more than 60 years to the Sutherland Shire community.
In the early 1970s, Dr Woolridge – and wife Sue, decided to purchase of property at Exeter in the Southern Highlands to spell their racehorses, and at a similar time they initiated a Murray Grey stud.
The couple’s strong love of horse racing saw them further involve themselves in the breeding industry and purchased and developed Inverness Stud at Burradoo.
There they stood a number of stallions in the 1990s including New Zealand breds Phizam and Simonstad, GB bred Medaaly, and US bred and Danehill’s brother Nuclear Freeze.
Among their early boodmare buys included young Western Symphony female Songline.
At the time she was the dam of one foal to race, who turned out to be champion New Zealand and Australian racemare, Sunline winner of 32 races and $11.3m.
Vale Pins
PINS – a stallion who achieved several honours from stud duties in New Zealand, has died from reported complications after suffering a colic attack.
The Australian bred and performed Group 1 winner when trained by Clarry Connors at Warwick Farm, Pins was retired to the Matamata property of Waikato Stud in 2000.
The 21 year-old son of Snippets has been buried at the farm alongside some of their other former champion sires Pompeii Court, Centaine, and O’Reilly.
Pins enjoyed an outstanding stud career, siring over 75 stakes winners including eight Group 1 winners his best El Segundo in Australia, and Katie Lee in New Zealand.
Interestingly Widden Stud’s young Stratum sire son Stratum Star was produced from a mare by Snippets who for some time stood at the Widden Valley located property.
Yearlings by Pins this year averaged over $NZ133,000, more than four times his service fee with a top price of $NZ420,000.
Vale Giant’s Causeway
GIANT’S Causeway – who should be recalled by breeders for his gorgeous conformation and stature who shuttled to Coolmore Stud, Jerry’s Plains for four seasons from 2001, died at 21 after a short illness at Coolmore’s US base Ashford Stud, Kentucky recently.
Known as “The Iron Horse”, Giant’s Causeway was a champion racehorse finishing first or second in his 13 starts, winning nine races including five consecutive Group 1 events.
The son of Storm Bird’s Storm Cat, Giant’s Causeway had an immediate impact at stud with champion two-year-old and top three-year-old Shamardal, and unbeaten 2000 Guineas winner Footstepsinthesand emerging.
Both of these horses then spent a number of seasons on the southern hemisphere shuttle run with varying success.
Another Group 1 winner sired by Giant’s Causeway is US bred stallion Frost Giant, who has shuttled for a few seasons to Western Australia.
One result from these stud duties includes this season’s juvenile gelding Valour Road, winner of Group 2 WATC Karrakatta Plate in Perth last month.
