Anethole looks the goods for Morgan's tilt at championships

Dubbo conditioner, Connie Greig and Sydney track-rider Leandro Ribeiro combined to take a winning double, with Call Me Trinity and Linden Tree (which both also won at Condobolin recently), however they missed the Cup feature by a head.

Unplaced in the Condobolin Picnic Cup, the Sharon Jeffries prepared Jin Chi Phantom stepped up to take the Tottenham Picnic Cup with Ricky Blewitt in the saddle.

Also read: A fast track to success for hard workers in horse industry

Crookwell picnics is next Saturday, followed by Ardlethan on Golden Slipper-day. Saturday 26 is Tullibigeal, then Tomingley on April 2, then Grenfell the following Saturday.

The $50,000 State Picnic Championship Final is scheduled for Coonamble in October.

Meanwhile in driving-rain at Tamworth, the Hunter and North-West region's Newhaven Park Country Championship Qualifier was won by Anethole and prepared locally by Cody Morgan.

By Exceed And Excel, the five-year-old defeated the Cameron Crockett, Scone, trained Commando Hunt, a son of short-lived Snitzel stallion Time For War, with both geldings aiming for its Championship Final at Randwick on April 2.

FOLLOWING a long battle with cancer former champion bush hoop and likeable bloke, Danny Frahm, passed away recently at age 75.

The Bowen Queensland born Frahm later found himself at Moree, and from the late 1960s this country base was central to where he rode in thousands of races and recording a mammoth number of winners in the north and north-western regions of the State for almost 50 years.

Beginning as a young-teen apprentice in Brisbane, he had his first ride in a race at Southport (Gold Coast) in 1960.

But his base at Moree saw Frahm win seven north and north-west jockeys' premierships, numerous country cups in many country racing associations and across the nation. He also enjoyed a regular and successful stint to New Caledonia, and one at which resulted in Frahm winning 36 races from 53 rides in one season.

Three memorable gallopers Frahm rode included Prunda, Jimalong, and River Ridge, the latter a sprinter (by GB import Galipar) which the hoop partnered in win 20 of the gallopers 53 successes. By GB import Galipar, River Ridge can be recalled also winning two Brisbane feature races and the 1976 AJC Challenge Stakes at Randwick.

HOW fickle the Thoroughbred breeding industry is, with "fashion" playing a major part with its commercial side.

Recent example could include Commands-bay horse Epaulette, a dual Group 1 winning earner of $1.7m for its former owner/breeders Darley, and a handsome stallion standing at its showplaces "Kelvinside" near Aberdeen, as well as Dalham Hall in England and Kildangan Stud in Ireland.

With his popularity appearing to decrease, 12-year-old Epaulette found a new home in Turkey being exported last October to further his stud duties. But then, up comes Epaulette's first Australian bred Group 1 winner, when Daumier won Victoria's premier two-year-old race the MRC Blue Diamond Stakes at Caulfield.

This adds gloss to the stakes winning sire record of Epaulette, which already had sired Group 1 winners in America and South Africa.

MIGHTY international Australian bred stallion Choisir was recalled with significance recently after a Randwick stakes-double via the deceased chestnut's young sire sons following wins by Promitto in the ATC Skyline Stakes-G2 for two-year-old colts and geldings, and Hinged taking the Surround Stakes-G1 for three-year-old fillies.

Trained at Newcastle by David Adkins, Promitto (now two starts for two wins) is a second crop son of Melbourne Group 1 winner Divine Prophet which stands at Aquis Queensland.

Hinged belongs to another Queensland based Choisir sire-son Worthy Cause, which stands at Clear Mountain Fairview at Greenmount. Trained by Chris Waller at Rosehill, Hinged belongs to the first crop of Worthy Cause, which won two stakes races.

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