industry FoCus to geld or not to geld? the roAd so FAr editoriAl

Transcription

gai’s gazette
1st edition / August 2013
Find out more about racing a horse with Gai Waterhouse at www.gaiwaterhouse.com.au
editorial
Pierro blazes his way to stud
industry FOCUS
An interview with Gooree’s Monica Barrera
To Geld or not to Geld?
Rob Waterhouse takes on Racing’s biggest question
the road so far
Our year to date and what we can expect for the future
Proudly sponsored by Magic Millions
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www.gaiwaterhouse.com.au
What’s New?
What’s
New?
Our year to date............................ Pages 4-7
Denise Martin and Star
Thoroughbreds.............................. Pages 8-9
Industry Focus: Monica Barrera
on Gooree Park Stud...................... Pages 10-12
Industry News............................... Pages 14-16
Pierro: Two years of
excellence..................................... Pages 18-21
In the Spotlight: Racing
stable manager John Livingstone.... Pages 22-23
Rob Waterhouse takes on
racing’s biggest question:
To geld or not to geld?....................Pages 24-25
Gai Waterhouse: The Stallion
Maker............................................Pages 26-27
Miler Excels at creating history........Pages 28-29
Behind the Scenes with Desert
War stable hand Suzy Horvath........ Pages 30-31
Back in the day.............................. Pages 32-33
Publishing
Information
TULLOCH LODGE
16 Bowral St,
Kensington NSW 2033 AUS
Telephone:+61 2 9662 1488
Fax: +61 2 9662 6328
Editor: Lea Stracey
Editor-in-Chief: Madison Whant
Production Manager: Adrian Bott
Advertising Manager: Adrian Bott
Journalists: Zeb Armstrong, Ryan
McEvoy, Rob Waterhouse, Madison Whant , James
Bester & David Bay
Graphic Design and Layout: Madison Whant
Chief Photographer: Bradley Photography
Sponsors: Magic Millions, The Australian Turf Club,
Widden Stud, Emirates Park Stud & Gooree Wines
Tommy Berry and Overreach
Photograph by Bradley photography
Contributors: Zeb Armstrong
Producers: Graphic Impressions
3
OUR YEAR TO DATE
From the Pen
Of the
Lady
Trainer
Every month at Tulloch Lodge is
different. Yes I wish they all contained
a Golden Slipper or a Doncaster Winner but the reality is the small and big
winners at different times of the year,
are equally important for any stable.
The provincials are very important
meetings for the horses at Tulloch
Lodge; the prize money these days
away from Sydney is very respectable and horses such as Bentley
Biscuit and Grand Armee started their
careers at the provincials.
Late June and early July is usually a
time to travel for the Lady Trainer and
my darling one. This year we visited
France, Royal Ascot and Ireland for
the wedding of Henry Field and his
beautiful bride Louise. Visiting Adare
in Ireland brought back memories of
my twenties when I spent many days
in this area hunting. I really enjoy this
sport; it is a great feeling of adrenalin
shared between you and your horse
while you are on the hunt.
Royal Ascot is aptly named. These
five race meetings contain the highest calibre of horse all on view for
the world to see. In the crowds at the
track you are all always surrounded
by superbly attired ladies and gents.
Over the last 20 years Royal Ascot
has become a great show place of
American and Australian horses.
Speed in Australia as well as America
is an essential ingredient that all
breeders try to instil in the equine in
these countries. People ask me all
the time why many Australian horses
have plenty of speed. I answer that
it is because of the land, the environment and the feed. These are all
crucial components in a young horse
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maximising the speed with which it is
born. There are always exceptions,
but I prefer to put my money where
my mouth is in the sales ring and
trust my judgement. Travel broadens
one’s mind, and I have no doubt
travel has made me a better trainer.
On my return all eyes will be on the
Golden Rose. Sweet Idea, Overreach
and Star Thoroughbreds’ Whittington,
among others, will all be aimed at this
fantastic Group One race for threeyear-olds. Before we know it, it will
be Guineas time; then the big three
Spring Classics, the Caulfield Cup,
the Cox Plate and the Melbourne
Cup.
The Melbourne Cup is the most recognised and richest two mile race in
the world. Fiorente, Glencadam Gold
and Michelangelo are already getting
the wake-up call at Randwick most
mornings in preparation for the race
that stops a nation. I might even have
a smoky or two yet for the big race.
The old boys are all back. Reuben
Percival, Kontiki Park and Star Thoroughbreds’ Kinnersley are all back
and getting fitter every week. These
three old boys have been thrilling
their owner’s preparation after
preparation and this time it will be no
different. Then there are the late season two-year-olds. Bull Point and
Romantic Touch are two that immediately spring to mind. It is always
exciting considering how horses like
these might improve as three-yearolds and what they might achieve
in the next few months. This time of
year is a time for two-year-olds to find
their feet in easier company. But in
the future a class rise will be essential; there are many two-year-olds in
my yards that I am sure will make this
big jump in the coming weeks and
months.
One of the best things about racing is
that there are always bigger and better things just around the corner. The
supreme opportunities for glory come
around so quickly I can hardly contain
my excitement. Yes, it might be cold
and raining right now, but the first
Group One of the spring, the Golden
Rose in reality is not too far away and
believe me, all my lieutenants and I
have well and truly started planning
for this race and the rest of the riches
that await in the warmer months.
Until next month,
Gai
Letters to Gai
Dear Gai.
Dear Gai
Hi Denise & Emma
I don’t know if you know this but
your record in the Golden Slipper
is better (statistically) than Bart’s
in the Melbourne Cup. There are
a few stables that have a huge
number of two-year-olds, but you
seem to always come out on top.
Do you have a secret? Bart always
has preached that a horse has to
have a certain amount of miles in
its legs heading to the Cup; do you
do something albeit on a smaller scale with your two-year-olds
heading towards the Slipper?
Geoff Huxley, Grafton NSW
You always look as you would
put it ‘simply divine.’ How do you
continue to look great and find
great clothes year after year? I
am definitely a carnival racegoer
and I don’t mind the odd $5 bet
on the good looking horses. I saw
you at the Ladies’ Luncheon at
the races during the Warrnambool
May Carnival, and the way you
were dressed and the way you
handled all the questions was just
so wonderful. After all these years
it is still so wonderful to see a lady
at the top of a traditionally male
dominated sport, and looking the
part while doing so. Thank you for
coming to Warrnambool and I look
forward to seeing you there again
soon.
Susanne Martin, Warrnambool VIC
Just got home from celebrating the
race result with Wayne and Anne
Marie Lambert and Sharee Marshall and her partner Leon. We had
a lot of fun reminiscing about the
run of Equator today.
I am obviously still glowing from
the day and the gutsy run from
Equator. He was so gallant in
defeat and to see the race replay
again tonight you really appreciate
Nash’s ride and the way our horse
fought to the very end.
This has been an amazing experience for me from day one and I am
having a love affair not only with
Star Thoroughbreds but also with
the Northern Meteors so as a man
of my word I would like to buy a
share in the filly you are syndicating out of Magsaya.
I love the Northern Meteors and
also the history that Gai has with
the family of this filly plus you
bought her at a very good price so
this is the next share I would like
to invest in.
Sorry I can’t be at the stables tomorrow as I work on a Sunday but
I really hope Equator has pulled
up ok and his success helps you
sell a few shares tomorrow in the
yearlings you have available.
Thank you again for your guidance
and professionalism.
Thanks for your letter Geoff. Bart’s
winning of 12 Melbourne Cups since
1965 is the most remarkable statistic
in the history of the Australian turf,
and just to be compared to him with
my five Golden Slippers is a real
honour. I have a secret, but I don’t
keep it a secret if that makes sense.
I think it is essential that a two-yearold is at least up and running by Cox
Plate time. It is also beneficial for a
young horse to have had a trip away
well before the Golden Slipper. This
gives them a chance to gain experience at the track and fitness and
even go for a spell and come back by
Slipper time. Overreach had her first
start during Caulfield Cup week at
Caulfield. Pierro started his career in
early October in the Breeders Plate.
Then there is the Magic Millions. A
two-year-old that is fit for these races
is invariably well suited come Slipper
time. The Slipper is full of horses with
natural talent but by having given my
horses plenty of time from October
the previous year to show their best
and get acclimatised, I feel I have the
best chance to win the Slipper. My
2014 Slipper chances will all be up
and running in the coming months.
Wow Susanne, I don’t know what to
say. Thank you very much for your
magnificent compliments and I can
tell you first before anyone else that I
will be back at Warrnambool in 2014.
It won’t just be me either; I will have
a team of horses and will be attacking that magnificent carnival head
on. I do love shopping as I am sure
you do. Wherever I go in the world
(including all my Australian travels)
I have a look through the shops.
You always find treasures hidden in
unique shops. I tend to pack for a
holiday then come home with twice
as much. I am also lucky enough to
be an ambassador for David Jones.
They have such a wonderful selection
of clothes, all at reasonable prices. In
my role, I do have a couple of people
who pick out clothes for me to promote the company. So the answers to
the fashion questions… David Jones
and hidden treasures. Seek and you
shall find. Thank you again for the
email and I will see you at the ‘Bool.’
All the best,
Bruce Kennemore
Sydndicate Owner of Star
Thoroughbreds Equator
Send your letters to emma@gaiwaterhouse.com.au
The deadline for our next issue is August 21.
Please include your name, postal address and contact.
5
Recent Winners
The Great Snowman
Star Thoroughbreds Oceans
Under the Sun
Pitcrew
Laidback Larry
Star Thoroughbreds Charing Cross and Masahiko
Bull Point
Star Thoroughbreds Houston
Fiorente and James McDonald
Photograph by Bradley Photography
Future forcasts
Article by Zeb Armstrong
Fiorente the ‘parachute horse’ is back
in full training after a very brief autumn
campaign. The term ‘parachute horse’
comes from the fact that Fiorente landed
in Australia a very short time before last
year’s Melbourne Cup; it was almost
like he was pushed out of the plane and
parachuted to the starting gates at the
3200m on the first Tuesday in November.
The truth is Gai had a little bit of time to
work with him before the 2012 Cup and
what she did absolutely worked wonders
with him. As an entire, Gai knew Fiorente
needed to be switched onto the job very
quickly, so she had James McDonald
ride him in some unique ways doing
some Lady Trainer patterned exercises
out at Werribee to get the entire interested as quickly as she could. The rest
is history. Fiorente’s was the best run in
the race and he ran a brilliant second to
Green Moon. The run gave everyone in
the ownership and everyone at Tulloch
Lodge a real thrill and left everyone
counting down the days until the 2013
Melbourne Cup.
After the Cup Fiorente went for a spell
then quickly dropped back into Tulloch
Lodge for a few weeks over the autumn.
The entire was given just the one race
in the autumn in the 1400m All-Aged
Stakes. Not many people expected much
from the stayer first-up over 1400m but
Fiorente demonstrated just how much
he loved racing and how good he was
by storming home for third in the Group
One race.
After such a brilliant run, the Doomben
Cup and other races in Queensland
would have been very much winnable for
the import, but Gai decided much to the
relief of all, that Fiorente would be rested
for the spring. It was clearly the right
choice as is reflected in the current betting markets not just for the Cup but the
Cox Plate as well. In his European days
Fiorente managed to beat the globetrotting Melbourne Cup runner up Red
Cadeaux and was competitive against
Japanese champion Orfevre. Fiorente
is clearly all class. He showed the class,
dash and toughness to be competitive in
one of the best 1400m Group One races
of the year as well as the Melbourne
Cup. Yes Fiorente has had just the two
starts in Australia for a second in the
race that stops a nation and a third six
months later in the Group One All-Aged
Stakes that contained five Group One
winners. This is a marvellous record
and a definite reason for people to get
excited. Lloyd Williams has perfected the
preparation for a European import to be
ready for the Cup, and Gai knows very
well that it is important to learn from the
best. Dozens of trainers over the journey
have learnt from Gai after all. So expect
maybe just a few runs for Fiorente before
the race that stops the nation. But write
him in your black book because when
the gates crash back and the roars can
be heard, Fiorente will be ready.
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Theseo and Nash Rawiller
star thoroughbreds
Australasia’s premier thoroughbred racehorse syndication company
Star Thoroughbreds is recognised
throughout Australasia as the premier
thoroughbred racehorse syndication company, and has been for close to 20 years.
Star Thoroughbreds offers quality horses
in share partnerships, purchased from the
principal yearling sales in Australia and
New Zealand each year, all to be trained
by Gai Waterhouse. Denise Martin, who
established the company in 1994, owns
and operates Star Thoroughbreds and
continues to identify brilliant types at
all the major sales, importantly at very
affordable prices.
When quizzed about her favourite alltime Star Thoroughbreds horses, Denise
admits her top three change from time to
time, but she still has a very special place
in her heart for them all. There have been
so many wonderful Star Thoroughbreds
success stories that it is difficult to narrow
a ‘favourites’ list down to just three; but
here goes…
Sebring (More Than Ready x Purespeed).
This brilliant colt is now a very exciting
sire standing at Widden Stud in the
Hunter Valley. Sebring only ran as a twoyear-old, but in that one season he did
more than enough to earn him an early
retirement and a life at stud. Sebring
was the champion two-year-old of his
year and one of the best two-year-olds
in recent memory. Sebring had six starts
only, all as a two-year-old. Firstly, the
future sire won a two-year-old handicap
at Rosehill, and then he was thrown
straight into the deep end, in the Listed
Canonbury Stakes at Randwick where he
demolished a quality field by five lengths.
Next it was to the Breeders’ Plate where
Sebring was again successful in very
dominant fashion. From here the son of
More Than Ready was given a freshen up and a trial before heading to the
Golden Slipper. Sebring stormed down
the outside on a very heavy track to win
the Slipper by a narrow margin. It was a
tough win as compared to the brilliance
Sebring had shown previously. The
young colt now had toughness and class
personified and he was given his chance
to win the two-year-old Triple Crown.
Sebring easily won the Sires’ over 1400m
defeating the champion filly Samantha
Miss in the process. However in the final
leg, the Champagne Stakes over 1600m,
Samantha Miss got past Sebring by no
more than an inch. It was a wonderful
clash between two champions.
Theseo (Danewin x Ozone Sand).
Kinnersley (Al Maher x Miss Radiant).
Theseo was Australia’s Middle Distance
Champion and an iron horse for Star
Thoroughbreds. During his career he
improved as much as a horse possibly could. Theseo went from moderate
city form to become a five times Group
One winner. Once he started improving
dramatically as a late three-year-old, he
held this brilliant form for three and a half
years. Theseo won an Epsom Handicap,
the Ranvet Stakes twice, a Mackinnon
Stakes and a Chipping Norton. He also
won multiple Group Two and Group
Three races. He was the first horse Denise purchased for more than $100,000.
On the track, Theseo won a remarkable
$3.2 million during his illustrious career.
The ‘old boy’ returned to form recently
with an eye catching third in the Listed
Winter Challenge at Rosehill. Earlier this
year, Kinnersley won the $200,000 Magic
Millions Stayers’ Cup on the Gold Coast
under the top weight of 59kg. Kinnersley
has been winning both Saturday and
black type races regularly since 2009. It
is easy to see why the now seven-yearold is one of Denise’s all time favourites.
Driefontein (Fastnet Rock x Follow
Gold).
This wonderful mare won her first four
starts as a two-year-old including the
Magic Millions Classic and the Group
Three BJ McLachlan Stakes along the
way. This was followed by a determined
effort to win the Widden Stakes, therefore
increasing her significant residual value,
as the mare is by the much sought after
Fastnet Rock. She completed her twoyear-old season as the second highest
juvenile prize money earner in all of
Australia winning just over $1.5 million; a
great result for her owners from an astute
Star Thoroughbreds $75,000 Magic Millions sale purchase.
There are many quality Star Thoroughbreds performers “hitting” the track right
now including several which have regularly returned to the
winner’s circle.
Whittington (Tale of the Cat x Maha
Chakri).
This magnificent colt won his first career
start, in the time honoured Breeders’
Plate in dominant fashion by three
lengths at Randwick. The Breeders’ Plate
has been the “launching pad” for many
very good horses in the past. Whittington then headed to Warwick Farm for
a strong win in the Lonhro Plate in the
autumn of 2013.
He is now being prepared for a tilt at
some of the major three-year-old Classics
during the spring.
Masahiko (Haradasun x Saffie Darling).
Denise is very excited about the prospects of this son of Haradasun. He has
won two of his last three Saturday races
at metropolitan level and was defeated
by the shortest of margins to run second
in the other. Those horses which he has
defeated most recently have progressed
to the winner’s circle themselves, thus
franking his form. Masahiko is a tough
and very resilient gelding who looks to
have a very bright future on the track.
Syndicate owners
of Driefontein,
Dave and Ingrid
Murphy made this
piece for Denise
and the team at
Star Thoroughbreds. It now
hangs proudly
amongst their
many other
Syndicate
memorabilia.
To join Denise and the Star Thoroughbreds juggernaut please call +61 2 9662 3683 or email
admin@starthoroughbreds.com.au
INTERVIEW
Gooree Park Stud
Interview with Gooree Park Stud’s new Racing
Manager Monica Barrera.
The outstanding success achieved
by Gooree Park Stud has been well
documented over the years. Can you
please tell us a bit about the History
of Gooree Park Stud?
The original Gooree, now referred to
as ‘the complex’ in the Gooree Park
portfolio, was purchased in 1978 from
Lloyd Foyster. Prior to this date, my
grandfather had only been agisting
his racehorses in Australia and they
were trained by Neville Begg who actually trained a very good racehorse in Kapalaran for us. We bought
Kapalaran as a yearling from Inglis
Easter Sales. The boss then began a
vast expansion and purchased more
of the surrounding properties. Cullenbone is now known as the ‘pastoral
area’ and Galambine became the ‘stud
side’. I believe it is fair to say that he
and his team have successfully built a
showpiece stud from scratch.
As the years went on, he purchased
more land in the region and in 1996 we
expanded operations into viticulture and
planted our first vineyard known as ‘Tullamour’. From this, ‘Fords Creek Vineyard’ was purchased across the road
in 1997 and by 1999 we were ready
to make our first wines. Since then,
the boss has been a keen advocate of
advanced viticultural practices that have
allowed us the opportunity to develop
what is today renowned as high quality
wines. My grandmother, Gretchen
Cojuangco or ‘Ta’ as the grandchildren
call her, has developed organic gardens
throughout the farm which are her pride
and joy. My grandmother has a very
strong passion for all things natural and
she is responsible for many of the architectural designs around the property
and the homestead. All of them are her
pieces of art and she has an amazing
eye for design with natural materials.
We have Spanish heritage and the
Spanish interpretation for grandmother
is ‘Abuelita’. However as young kids we
were unable to pronounce this, hence
the reason we call grandmother ‘Ta’.
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In terms of the racehorse history of
Gooree, we actually used to operate
as a multitasking commercial stud. In
the 1970’s, Planet Kingdom stood as
a stallion at the farm. Tommy Smith
trained one of his successful sons in
Mighty Kingdom who won the Caulfield Cup as a three-year-old and was
also reared at Gooree. Tolomeo stood
at Gooree and was once the highest
priced horse ever exported to Australia
before stallion shuttles existed. Our
association with Gai has been greater
than meets the eye, with Tommy being
involved with Gooree before she even
took out her trainer’s license. We agisted some of his broodmares and reared
their progeny, and we also spelled his
racehorses. In fact, Bounding Away
was born and reared at Gooree. In
1986 when Bounding Away won the
Golden Slipper our homebred filly Just
Blooming ran 2nd, both were reared at
Gooree, so that was a great achievement for the team.
In 1990, the farm became privatised
and the stallions were dispersed. My
grandfather was primarily a breeder but
he also raced a few. Obviously since
then our racing team has significantly
increased parallel to his excitement
for his bloodstock. Over the years
he has enjoyed a lot of success with
his business in the racing industry
having bred many winners including
Desert War, Northern Meteor, Shower
of Roses, Smart Missile, Your Song,
Tempest Morn, Swift Alliance, Laser
Hawk, Crowned Glory, Romantic
Touch, Queen of the Hill, Beauty
Watch, Dreamscape, Mr Murphy, Sandy’s Pleasure... the list goes on!
He is determined to see the special
pedigrees that he has acquired throughout his time in racing from the USA and
Australia succeed, and I am in awe of
his patience. Romantic Touch is a great
example of how he has developed his
bloodstock. He is a 100% Gooree bred
horse being by Northern Meteor, and
his dam side goes back 4 generations
in the farm. He first acquired Bosk who
Gai and I have the same
goals and
interests when it comes
to Gooree horses, and
that is to give each
racehorse the
opportunity to show its
maximum potential at
the right time...
is the dam of Silken Step, the dam of
High Heels who produced Desert War,
Laser Hawk and Dearness who is the
dam of our Group One winner Romantic
Touch.
He had great satisfaction when he
purchased Candy Bird who was
carrying Bush Padre, who then went
on to win over a million dollars in
races including the Doomben Cup! He
purchased a mare from the knackery
called Miss Clementine for $800, and it
was a painstaking task for Andrew Baddock to find her before it was too late!
This mare is the great dam of our black
type performed mare Agueda. He has
bred a lot of good fillies and now his
goal to breed successful commercial
stallions is coming to fruition. Sometimes his choice in bloodstock may be
difficult for some to understand, but he
backs his judgement and will wait to
see it pay off.
How did your grandfather become
interested and involved in racing
horses in Australia?
When I asked him this question, he told
me that Australia is a horse country
and that the Philippines is very limited in terms of horse racing. Australia
was geographically the closest to his
home and as a beautiful country with
the friendliest people there was no
question for him to establish his racing
Natasha Kent, Gai Waterhouse, Monica Barrera, Andrew Baddock, Nash Rawiller and Wassim Gazal
empire here. His interest in racing
stems back in the family to my great
grandfather, his father, who we refer
to as Lolo Endeng. We have a good
racehorse, which is now a stallion,
called Don Eduardo who is actually
named after him. Growing up, my
grandfather took a strong interest in his
father’s passion of breeding horses that
were used for transport. Lolo Endeng
purchased his stallion from Australia
and bred it to native horses in the Philippines even before WW2. There was
no access to gasoline at this time due
to the Japanese army seizing all the
supplies, and the Filipinos had to rely
on horse drawn carriages. After the
war, he began breeding racehorses in
the Philippines and was racing them
with friends who shared his interest.
My grandfather broadened his interest
into racehorses in the USA where he
knew friends that were already investing over there. Interestingly, the first
racehorse he purchased in the USA
he named after his grandfather’s sister
Dona Ysidra Cojuangco. This mare
then went to stud and he sent her to
Lyphard. Amazingly, this first foal he
bred outside of the Philippines turned
out to be the racehorse, Manila, who
was inducted into the American Racing
Hall of Fame following his outstanding
racing career. Unfortunately, due to personal circumstance, he was unable to
race the stallion himself and had to sell
him. Needless to say, he had a great
thrill to be so strongly associated with a
horse of this calibre, and I believe this
experience further ignited his passion
for breeding.
Your grandfather and Gai have
shared a strong relationship
throughout the history of Gooree
Park, what has been his most
satisfying and successful moments
racing with Gai?
Northern Meteor of course! Gai
started training for Gooree around
15 years ago. His first winner with
Gai was a mare called Actress
who won two stakes races, and we
have since shared a LOT of great
success stories. It is quite an honour
that Gai has chosen two out of her
four stables to be named after Gooree
homebred champions Desert War and
Tempest Morn, whilst Bounding Away
was also reared at the farm too.
What do you think has been the key
to the success of Gooree Park Stud?
I believe a key factor to the success
of the farm is our team. Our staff are
dedicated and put in the hard yards because they love our horses and the
farm, and this is of utmost value
in our business. We have employees
that have been with us from the very
beginning and have witnessed and
contributed to the growth and success
of Gooree. As breeders, we take a lot of
pride in the idea that we breed tough,
sound horses. We lend this to our geographical attributes. It is no coincidence
that 40 minutes away is Corumbene
Stud that bred the 2013 Golden Slipper
winner in Overreach. The farm offers a
great design for rearing young horses undulating hills, big 40 acre paddocks,
hard ground to toughen their feet and
bones. This foundation means that as
racehorses they are advantaged as
they can take the work load and are
tough. Just as an example, in her threeyear-old Autumn/Winter campaign
Tempest Morn ran in seven Group One
races across 3 states and ran 1st and
2nd in all of them. Desert War, our 4th
generation homebred known as ‘The
War Horse’ captured the imagination of
the public through his bold catch-meif-you-can tactics to win 6 Group One
races.
You mentioned that a team is essential to the success of any business,
who do you work with closely within
your role?
It goes without saying, I work very
closely with the boss, Eduardo
11
Industry Focus: Goree Park Stud (cont...)
Cojuangco. He is the head of the team
and I have to admit that he is incredible
to work for. In trying to achieve success, however, I work very closely with
quite a few people. I strongly believe that
communication is the key to success
and I have a great network internally
with the team at Gooree and also with
our trainers. Andrew Baddock (stud
manager) and John Peatfield (Gooree
vet) have a wealth of knowledge for me
to tap into. Their experience not only
with Gooree, but also the racing industry as a whole, is invaluable and I regularly enjoy bouncing ideas off them and
hearing their thoughts and ideas.
Jamie Thomsen is our pre-trainer at
Gooree, and he recently joined our team
during the 2013 Autumn Carnival. He
is the son of legendary trainer, Bobby
Thomsen, and he has a lot to add to
Gooree having watched his father train
many Group One winners. One of our
valued long term staff is Bob McCrae who has been working at Gooree
for over 20 years and is a huge help to
me in managing our spellers at Gooree.
Max Crockett has been with the boss
since day one and now his son Cameron
has joined him in breaking in our yearlings. He’s earned the reputation as one
of the industry’s best breakers and I’m
lucky to get to see his methods.
I get a lot of support from our office
at Gooree from Jeanette Tioseco and
Elise Wildner, who actually play a very
pivotal role in the smooth running of the
business. Mike Barrera, my father, is
heavily involved as the Director and is
an absolute all-rounder in terms of offering support in every facet of Gooree.
I value each of our trainers equally, and
am so grateful for their encouragement
and support in my role. I have found
them all to be good to deal with and in
the seven months that I have been in
this job I have been able to deepen my
wealth of knowledge from them!
How did you arrive at the position you
are at today, at what point did you realise you wanted to stay in the family
business?
I was offered the job as Racing Manager
for Gooree in December 2012. I had a
brief stint with Joe Pride before I really
fuelled my interest in Gooree racehorses when I began to work for Gai in
2009. After some time, I moved to Bart
Cummings Racing to broaden my knowledge and experience with a different approach. I had caught the racing bug.
Growing up my grandfather and grandmother wanted us to know horses. Vikki
Canon is one of our longest serving
members of staff and our racehorse
midwife. She was given this great feat
and she bravely took on his challenge
12
of educating thirteen grandchildren. She
taught us the ropes. She had us cleaning boxes and learning basic horse husbandry and she was the first person to
put any of us on a horse. It couldn’t have
been easy, especially with me. I say this
because I believe there must be some
reason that I was no longer referred to
around the farm and my family as Monica, but I had earned the nickname “Holy
Terror” from my grandfather. As a young
teenager, I had dabbled in showjumping
and dressage, but this never caught my
attention the way the racing industry did.
I had graduated from the University of
Sydney and had been managing a small
portfolio of racehorses that I had leased
from Gooree for a few months. My
interest and passion grew like wildfire
and I suppose the boss identified this
in me. When he offered me the job, it
was probably the first time I realised I
could actually have a career in the family
business. I was always privy to the idea
that business and family are hard to mix,
and I probably never looked at a job with
Gooree because of this. I feel so lucky
to have this opportunity, and in terms of
Gooree as a family business I only hope
to make them very proud. How has your relationship progressed since then and what did you
learn from your initial experience
working with Gai?
Gai and I have the same goals and interests when it comes to Gooree horses,
and that is to give each racehorse the
opportunity to show its maximum potential at the right time. Working for Gai
taught me to have the discipline and professionalism that is required in business.
In watching her, she has also taught me
the value in acknowledging the efforts of
the people that are involved in your success, no matter how great or small their
role is. Most importantly, I have learned
how to be a part of a team.
Where would you like to see yourself
and the Stud ideally placed in 10
years?
As the boss says, ‘Only God Knows!’
DR LEANNE BEGG
On ‘Tying-Up Syndrome’
‘Tying-Up’ or Exertional Rhabdomyolysis
is a muscular disorder occurring after
exercise. It was originally called ‘Monday
Morning Disease’, as carthorses were fed
the same high-grain feed on Sundays,
which were non-working days. On Mondays when these horses commenced
work, they developed acute muscle pain
to the point where they could not move;
hence ‘set fast’ was another name for
this disease. If the muscle damage is severe enough, the breakdown products of
muscle, called myoglobin, damages the
kidneys. If enough muscle is damaged,
irreversible kidney damage and death
can occur.
Fortunately most of the cases we see in
racehorses are not this severe and not
life threatening. They can however have
a detrimental affect on performance.
Horses that are prone to this disorder,
mostly fillies, should be worked seven
days a week. If less work is given on a
particular day, the grain content of the
feed should also be reduced.
The cause of ‘tying-up’ is still unknown
but diet, exercise, training status, hor-
monal and genetic factors are thought
to play a role. Initially the problem was
thought to be a build-up of lactic acid in
muscle. This has been disproven as most
of these horses are alkalotic, or have a
high blood pH, not a low one. In quarter
horses a genetic defect termed Polysaccharide Storage Myopathy has been
identified where a build-up of glycogen
in muscle causes muscle damage. This
same genetic defect has not been found
to date in thoroughbreds. Once a horse
shows the clinical signs of lameness,
stiff stilted gait, palpable muscle pain,
sweating, high heart rate and respiratory
rate, treatment should be sought from a
veterinarian. Blood levels of the muscle
enzymes CPK and AST can be measured to give a definitive diagnosis. In severe cases, the horse’s urine will be red
in colour due to the presence of muscle
breakdown products or myoglobin.
Anti-inflammatory drugs such as phenylbutazone are indicated to reduce pain
and the inflammation in muscle. Care
should be taken, however, to ensure
that the horse is well-hydrated, as these
drugs are also toxic to the kidneys.
Electrolytes are often given by stomach
tube, to stimulate water intake and, in
severe cases, intravenous fluid therapy is
warranted.
Prevention is again better than cure and
titrating work and feed is the important
consideration. Swimming these horses
prior to work can also be effective in reducing the incidence of this disease. The
administration of branched chain amino
acid paste (Branch Paste) has proven
useful prior to fast work. The mechanism
of action is thought to be reduction of
lactic acid production. Although this is
not considered to be the direct cause of
‘tying-up’, use of this preparation results
in lowering of muscle enzymes and
improvement in clinical signs. Phenytoin (Rexin) has also been used in the
management of these horses. This drug
inhibits calcium release from inside
muscle cells and over time can lessen
the degree of ‘tying-up’ in some horses.
As this drug has a significant withholding
period, it is not as useful in a horse that
is close to racing.
Photograph: Dr Leanne Begg applying her
expertise to Oceans
13
Tommy Berry on Overreach
Extra...
Extra...
Read
all
about
it
Racing News for the year to date
The first half of 2013 in the Australian racing industry was a monumental period in the history of the sport
of kings. Perhaps our best sprinter
ever, Black Caviar retired unbeaten;
two great three-year-olds Pierro and
All Too Hard were also retired and
sent to stud; while champion mare
More Joyous was retired and has
been booked in for a date with Frankel. They were potentially the four
best horses in racing in Australia in
2013 and they now leave a big gap
that will no doubt be filled by some
up and coming young horses in the
spring.
The three-year-olds dominated throughout the autumn. It’s A
Dundeel became the first horse to
win the three-year-old Triple Crown
since Octagonal in 1996. Not even
the champ the Big O won with as
much authority as Murray Baker’s
Kiwi colt. Geldings like Super Cool
and Fiveandahalfstar were close to
unbeatable in the middle distance
Weight for Age races across New
South Wales and Victoria. Pierro
and All Too Hard, two of the best
colts in recent memory dominated
the shorter WFA races across the
two states. The two major two-yearold races were won by connections
at the opposite ends of the spectrum
by two fillies that may just have the
world at their feet. The beautiful little
filly Miracles Of Life ridden by the
2kg claiming apprentice from South
Australia Lauren Stojakovic who
won the Blue Diamond at Caulfield
in fantastic fashion. There were
racetrack whispers leading up to
the race regarding the inexperience
of Lauren in relation to riding the favourite in such an important and rich
race. But Lauren put all the doubters
to rest with a 10 out of 10 ride and
won the race very easily. A perfect
ride allowed the filly to relax and win
as she wished. Miracles Of Life is
trained by unheralded South Australian horseman Daniel Clarken, a man
who has big plans for his filly for the
upcoming spring. The other major
two-year-old race, the Golden Slipper, was won by Gai Waterhouse
with the superb filly Overreach
ridden in a very confident manner
by Tommy Berry. This win gave Gai
Waterhouse her 5th Slipper winner
out of the last twelve that have been
run. That is an amazing statistic.
That means Gai has won 42% of
the last twelve Slippers that have
been run. Remember that this is
the richest two-year-old race in the
world. It must be a real confidence
booster for owners and potential
owners to know these statistics. The
Brisbane winter carnival was one to
remember with many great winners
in the sunshine state’s time honoured races. However like Doncaster day in Sydney almost every year,
a great deal of the winter meetings
in Queensland (and the off-season
meetings in Sydney) were competed
on very heavy tracks. Gooree gelding Romantic Touch improved from
a midweek meeting to a Group One
winner during the winter and he like
Pitcrew, Bull Point and a few other
young horses at Tulloch Lodge are
looking at a successful spring.
15
Northern
Glory
Two Great Performances
Northern Glory (Northern Meteor x
Cliantha) won two low key off-season
two-year-old races in June at Randwick
over 1200m. However these two wins
were absolutely outstanding and were
good enough for Northern Glory to
earn the performance of the year (so
far) award. The first win on 8 June was
on a dead 5 track and the filly ridden
perfectly by Alysha Collett sat back in
the field and stormed down the outside
to win with authority in devastating
fashion. Win number two on 22 June
was equally as impressive. This win
was on a heavy 10 track; a track so
wet and under conditions so bad, that
the races were called off immediately
after the race, half way through the
card. Again Alysha Collett rode the filly
perfectly sitting back in the field and
unleashing a well-timed run shortly after
the turn.These two wins were so good
due to the turn of foot shown by the
filly on tracks at almost opposite ends
of the wet/dry scale. Northern Glory
displayed an ability to travel beautifully
and accelerate when required. Alysha
Collett also deserves a wrap for the way
she positioned the filly in these two wins
and the confidence she displayed to just
wait and wait and trust the filly’s ability.
The Golden Rose in mid-September is
no doubt at the forefront of thoughts for
this filly. The Golden Rose has provided
a great picture for the future in recent
years with winners like Forensics and
Epaulette going on to bigger and better
things after winning the race.
16
Northern Glory looks as if she will eat up
the 1400m and she of course will get a
slight weight relief for being a filly. At this
stage Nothern Glory has had just five
starts. At her debut she smashed a
handy field at Kembla Grange by three
and a half lengths. Start number two
was at Doomben in a Group Three race
where the filly ran a brave fourth to the
likes of Sweet Idea (Golden Slipper
Alysha Collett on Northern Glory
placegetter) and Missy Longstocking
(multiple stakes winner). Then it was a
quick spell before returning at a Listed
race at Scone where she came from a
long way back to run a fantastic third.
Then it was the above mentioned two
straight wins at Randwick. So three wins,
a 4th and a 3rd; the future certainly looks
bright for this filly that will grow, mature
and be a force come the spring.
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Pierro
Two years of excellence
Pierro is the most exiting horse I have ever trained. He possesses all the attributes
of a champion - Gai Waterhouse
Pierro has left Tulloch Lodge for
a career in the breeding barn; we
are of course all sad to see him go,
but at the same time we wish him
all the best. There has been a lot
of press dedicated to his sale price
and his value to his new owners;
but what needs more attention is
his actual record on the track. He
was a champion, a true champion
and behind the immortal Black
Caviar, the second best horse
Australia has seen in the last five
years. He had fourteen starts for
eleven wins, two seconds and one
third. Yes, fourteen starts is not a
huge amount for such a champion,
but that is the nature of the game.
On reading through the data on all
these fourteen starts, it becomes
very apparent that despite being
labelled a ‘champion’ Pierro may
not have received enough plaudits.
In every one of Pierro’s fourteen
starts, he either did something
remarkable or beat fellow great
horses. Consider…
Pierro’s first start way back on 1
October 2011 in the Breeders Plate
was just a regulation win, but eight
minutes after the race was won,
Gai made no secret that the horse
was a champion and would win the
Golden Slipper in six months time.
Some ‘racing identities’ called her
mad; after all it was just a halflength win in only fair time and in
hindsight the opposition this day
have not really risen to any great
heights. But as it turns out the colt
won simply on talent because he
still had a long way to go fitness
wise, and Gai’s predictions turned
out to become reality.
At Pierro’s second start, the Silver
Slipper, five months after the
Breeders Plate, the colt walked
into the mounting yard looking
short of a run, fat and with a lot
18
of improvement left in him. But
this is exactly how Gai wanted
him to look considering what he
was aimed at for the remainder of
the autumn. Pierro won this race
and the experts were starting to
take notice that this colt could win
despite looking like he still needed
a run and had lots of improvement
left in him.
The next start was in the Todman
and Pierro managed to beat Epaulette who is a subsequent Group
One winner and the horse to have
pushed Black Caviar the most
almost in her entire career. Next, it
was the Golden Slipper and Pierro
fulfilled Gai’s earlier prediction by
winning fairly easily. In the process he accounted for the race
favourite and Blue Diamond winner
Samaready as well as Snitzerland.
Snitzerland of course has gone
on to win multiple Group Two and
Three races and is one of the most
exciting fillies in training in Australia. After claiming the Slipper,
with eyes on the Triple Crown, Gai
sent Pierro to the Sires’ and here
he managed to beat another boom
colt All Too Hard by two lengths. All
Too Hard won a Group One race at
this track and distance at his
last start to demonstrate that he
could still win big races in Sydney.
Pierro really showed off his champion qualities in this win and it was
clearly one of his best. In the third
leg of the Sydney Triple Crown for
two-year-olds, the Champagne
Stakes, Pierro beat Dear Demi
by three lengths. Dear Demi has
since won the VRC Oaks and ran
second and third in several other
Group One Classics.
After a spell, Pierro returned as a
three-year-old in the Run to the
Rose over 1200m at Rosehill. Here
Pierro was again carrying a lot
of condition and was sent to the
race looking very happy and well
fed with an eye on the later spring
Classics. He could not be tuned up
fully first up because he was heading to the Cox Plate and that was
the day he needed to peak, not this
day at Rosehill. Pierro also in this
race was required to carry 60kg
which is a huge burden for a threeyear-old. Yet he still managed to
win the race and in the process
he again beat Epaulette as well
as last start Group One winner (by
five lengths) Your Song. This was
another remarkable performance
against really good horses, but
this time Pierro also had the 60kg
to contend with. It did not even go
close to stopping him. Next it was
down to Victoria for Pierro for
the Bill Stutt Stakes at Moonee
Valley. Generally a horse is
granted excuses at its first start
in a different state, running in a
different direction; but Pierro did
not need any excuses, he won the
Stutt Stakes by five lengths despite
all the above mentioned circumstances. At Pierro’s next start in the
Caulfield Guineas, defeat greeted
the colt for the first time. Yet, it was
still clearly the best run in the race.
Pierro, like Kingston Town and
countless others before him, was a
little lost around Caulfield. He was
wide, he was bustled up the hill,
he was not let in and on hitting the
front, he was tired and would have
been excused had he run last. But
he held on for second, beaten by
the colt All Too Hard. Beaten half
a length by a horse considered by
many to be his equal after one of
the most torrid runs seen in recent
memory in a Classic at Caulfield.
This was a defeat yes, but it too
was an outstanding performance
and in fact was one of Pierro’s
Nash Rawiller on Pierro
best runs. Then it was off to the
Cox Plate where Pierro ran third.
Third in the best Weight For Age in
Australia is nothing to be sneezed
at, especially as a three-year-old.
Pierro was sent for a spell after
the Cox Plate. He was not at his
best in the Cox Plate, but natural
ability and class still got him into
third place. Again he could have
simply wilted and would have been
forgiven, but he let his heart take
him into third place. First up in the
Sydney autumn Pierro tackled the
Hobartville Stakes at Rosehill over
1400m on a heavy track. Again,
look at all the potential excuses;
1400m, first up, heavy track not
to mention a star studded field.
But again Pierro won just like a
champion should. He held out
the in-form Rebel Dane, boom
colt Proisir not to mention Sydney
three-year-old Triple Crown winner
It’s A Dundeel. Another great win
and a further indication of Pierro’s
champion status.
Next it was back in distance and
the Group One Canterbury Stakes
over 1300m. Here Pierro had to
beat a super field of older horses
including the second best horse
in Sydney, More Joyous. Again he
won. He beat More Joyous in a
race she had won the previous two
years. Pierro also beat Solzhenit-
The best horse I’ve ridden.
Being associated with him
over the last 18 months
was one of the most enjoyable times of my career. He
is an absolute champion
with a tremendous will to
win - Nash Rawiller
syn who was a Group One winner
in the previous spring. After the
Canterbury Stakes, Gai took Pierro
to the traditional Doncaster lead
up, the Group One George Ryder
Stakes. After a slightly wide run,
Pierro managed to dig deep to win
the race by half a length from King
Mufhasa and Shoot Out. Between
them, these two geldings have won
fifteen Group One races.
Pierro’s last start was in the Doncaster Handicap and as is usually
the case with Doncaster week, the
heavens opened. Yes, Pierro was
proven on the heavy, but in this
case, the colt was burdened with
57kg. 57kg for a three-year-old on
a heavy track in an open handicap
is a task that not even Pierro could
overcome. The horse that beat
him, Sacred Falls carried 53kg for
being the same age. There is no
doubt Pierro deserved the 57kg;
we can’t call a horse a champion
then complain about the weight
he receives in the biggest races.
But on a heavy track, carrying
weight is harder than it is on a
dry track. Pierro simply couldn’t
match the turn of foot of the other
horse with the 4kg less on his
back. But Pierro didn’t give up.
He didn’t accept his fate. He tried
his hardest and gave everything
he had and still finished second.
Neither Tulloch, nor Kingston Town
ever carried as much as 57kg as a
three-year-old in an open handicap. Pierro was retired having
never run a bad race, and short of
Black Caviar who he never faced,
he comprehensively, and in some
cases, regularly beat the next three
or four best horses in the country.
More Joyous, All Too Hard, Epaulette, Snitzerland, Dear Demi, Your
Song and Shoot Out unless they
are facing each other, generally
start favourite or second favourite
in the majority of their races. They
are all proven gun horses and they
all share one thing in common:
they were all beaten by Pierro.
The son of Lonhro was a champion
and if he is half as good at stud as
he was on the track, the Australian
racing industry is in for generations
of quality horses with class, heart
and a will to win.
19
Pierro: Two Years of Excellence(cont)
James Bester dissects
Pierro’s first book of mares.
Article by James Bester
Whilst it is said that “manners maketh
the man”, it is certain that “mare-books
maketh the stallion”.
That being the case, Pierro is already,
though not in the Mafia sense, a ‘uomo
d’onore’ – a ‘made man’.
Not only is he a horse whose manners would make him a model for any
treatise on equine etiquette; he is also
a stallion who surely boasts the finest
book of mares ever afforded an Australian first-season sire.
For ye of little faith who require more
than just our word on that score, we
here, for the first time, open the curtain
a crack on some of the mares who
will be paying homage to Pierro this
season.
Try, for starters, some 60 or so Group
winners and/or dams of Group
winners, alongside a further 30 or so
Listed winners and/or dams of Listed
winners. Rest assured that by the time
his book closes, over 100 of Pierro’s
mares will be black-type winners
themselves and/or already have produced black-type winners.
Now add another 20 or so sisters
(including half or 3-parts sisters) to
Group winners and a picture emerges
of a stallion blessed with a mare-book
unmatched in the annals of first-season
sires.
Space constraints prevent a full listing
of the mares already booked but here
is just a taste of some household
names:The Group One winners include such as Cox Plate heroine Dane
Ripper, Blue Diamond winner Sleek
Chassis, Thousand Guineas winner
Irish Lights, Emirates winner Bonanova, Myer Classic winner Hurtle Myrtle,
Oaks winners Dizelle and Larrocha
and Futurity winner Aqua d’Amore.
Now throw in the dam of – silence
please – Fastnet Rock, alongside
the dams of triple Group One winners
Ortensia and Scintillation, dual Group
One winner Road to Rock, champion
two-year-old Meurice, Galaxy winner
Snowland (as well as Snippetson,
Portillo etc.), Railway Stakes winner
Covertly, VRC Oaks winner Arapaho Miss and WA Derby, Oaks and
Guineas winner Dreamaway. We could
mention Group Two winners like (or the
dams of) Shania Dane, Satin Shoes,
Buffering, Military Rose, Criterion,
20
Pierro
Pierro is already, though not in the Mafia sense, a
‘uomo d’onore’ – a ‘made man’...
Rocha etc. and Group Three/Listed
winners like Bliss Street, November
Flight, Upon This Rock, Arctic
Flight, Augusta Proud, She’s
Meaner, Gybe and so many others.
But we think you get the point, even
without adding sisters to the likes of
Fastnet Rock, Overreach, Magnus,
Samaready, Eremein, Red Dazzler,
Amelia’s Dream, Hips Don’t Lie,
Domesday, Beneteau, Raheeb, etc.
One thing’s for sure – come the
Magic Millions, Karaka, Easter and
other yearling sales of 2016, there is
only going to be one first-crop yearling sire on the top of every buyer’s
shopping list: Pierro.
Because, his near-perfect race-record and matchless mare-book
aside, his physique is so flawless,
his action so fluid and his temperament so admirable that his foals can
scarcely fail to embody and express
‘the three P’s’ – that ‘holy trinity’ of
racing and breeding success – pedigree, physique, performance.
Pierro, ci salutiamo!
INTERVIEW
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Racing
stable manager John Livingstone.
compensation cases. We have two
tiers of foremen’s meetings every Monday and Tuesday where each foremen
gets the chance to discuss how his or
her stable is running, any maintenance
issues, staffing issues and / or any gear
to be ordered and I am responsible
for following up any and all of these
issues. The rest of my time is spent
managing four staffing rosters for our
four yards and roughly 90 staff.
John Livingstone with Manhattan Rain and Gai
What are your primary roles at
Tulloch Lodge?
The overall management and supervision of all four GW Racing Stables*
ensuring that the standards are
maintained with ambition for constant
improvement, including the acquirement of more responsible management
from our stable managers (foremen).
Duties include dealing with the efficiency of staff (including interviews / hiring),
rostering, maintenance requirements,
ordering and distribution of feed, track
readings for metro meetings, riding
track work, assisting Gai for training
purposes when necessary, inspecting the accommodation and all other
issues regarding the stable manager
role. I also oversee and supervise
horse movements, updates and work
lists.
*Tempest Morn Lodge, Desert War,
Bounding Away and Tulloch Lodge.
How did you get the job?
I came through a work experience
program in 1999 when I was still in high
22
school. I graduated in 2001 and was
offered full time employment straight
away as I was already working consistently on a casual basis during my
schooling.
What does a regular day entail?
4am start, riding trackwork / assisting Gai at the trainers’ tower when
required; twice a week I do the feed
audit and order for 140 horses. Going
through applicant emails takes up
a good bit of my day but I try and
prioritise to get myself around all four
stables to oversee the staff and horses
both morning and afternoon. Basically
I am a second set of eyes for Gai. The
weekly foremen’s roster is a task that
has to be perfected every Tuesday for
our week ahead. I fax through to Gai
and mail to all office staff the details
of what each foremen will be doing for
the week; their duties include saddling
at the races /weekends off/ public holidays and annual leave. There is also
a roster for the beach supervisor, work
list duties and any workers
Any favourite Tulloch Lodge horses
from the past or present?
I have a few. I rode and strapped
Group One winners Northern Meteor,
Manhattan Rain, Dance Hero and Sunday Joy so they’re all pretty special to
me. One of my all-time favourites was
a horse called Specialist. He won five
straight in town and could have been
anything with Group One form littered
around him. He sadly had a heart
attack and died in 2002. It was very sad
to see him pass.
What is the most genius move you
have ever seen Gai make in regards
to a horse that was no good but then
started going great?
I’ve seen quite a few but the one that
sticks out was a mare called Rapida.
She was an ageing mare out of form
with a few duck eggs next to her name.
Back when the stock whip was legal
we used to chase them over the jumps
freehand. We did this with her one
day with blinkers on over at the mile
bullring and she came out with a complete form reversal to get beaten in a
photo by Group horses Swiss Echo and
Dress Circle at her next start. I think
she was just going through the motions
but this certainly woke her up and
showed me another way to get the best
out of disinterested mares.
Have you ever disagreed with Gai
over an issue with a horse and-
eventually convinced her you were
right and the horse went on to do
great things to vindicate your position?
Gai and I have always had a good
relationship, I find nowadays it can be
a little more stressful being in such a
demanding position but we can always
talk through what needs to be done.
Some days the voice is sterner than
others. We did have a horse one time
that Gai was planning to spell. She had
only had two starts that prep; ran great
first up then disappointed second up
and was a bit short in her action after
the second run. Gai said she would
spell her and I said we should look
deeper into it before we do. I got our
equine physio to go over her and kept
the swimming and beach right up to
her. Within the week she was responding to all of this so Gai kept her in work
and found a race about three weeks
later for her (at which stage Gai had
gone on her annual holidays overseas
so I was managing her as well as every
other horse in the stable).
The rest is history. She came out
and won then was stakes placed the
following run. Not bad as she was a
Fastnet Rock mare so that added to her
broodmare value. It made good on my
opinion. Gai did thank me for it.
The team has a very famous leader
but Gai can’t tend to 130 horses and
A good man once told
me you can’t
demand respect you
have to earn it so I always make an effort in
whatever I’m
doing, not solely for
that reason but it’s just
in my make-up to have
a strong honest work
ethic and hopefully
others see it and follow
suit...
hundreds of owners alone. A good
team is essential and multiple staff
who could train in their own right
when required. Do you see yourself
as an independent trainer one day?
Absolutely without a doubt in my mind.
Being that I’ve had international experience too I feel I’ve got a few more tricks
up the sleeve than most. As well as
Gai, I have worked for Racehorse training greats like Todd Pletcher (USA),
Michael Dickinson (UK) and Kevin
Prendergast (Ireland) among others. It
really opens your eyes to another world
out there.The training methods vary so
much from continent to continent so
I would encourage any young racing
people to go over and expand their
mind and relationships.
Apart from the knowledge that Gai
trusts your judgement, what is the
most rewarding part of your job?
I know I’m especially good at what I do
but I never take anything for granted.
I’m always looking for ways to improve
myself and listen to the people that can
give me the advice to suit the situation.
Experience and opportunity are two
factors I believe are necessary to make
some headway in this game and I’m
fortunate that Gai amongst many others
have given me both.
Obviously any time we are training
winners it is most rewarding because
that’s what we are here to do. For me,
the respect of my peers and other
employees is something that kicks me
along a bit also.
A good man once told me you can’t
demand respect you have to earn it so
I always make an effort in whatever I’m
doing, not solely for that reason but it’s
just in my make-up to have a strong
honest work ethic and hopefully others
see it and follow suit.
We have a great senior team at Tulloch
Lodge that are always there for each
other and that is very comforting. There
is certainly never a dull moment working here too and I could write several
books on the stories of staff and horses
here over the years alone!
There has to be some fun with all the
seriousness of a multi-million dollar
stable surely :-)
Desert War
Photgraph by Bradley Photograsphy
John Livingstone strapping Northern Meteor
21
To geld or
not to geld?
Rob Waterhouse takes on racing’s biggest question.
“To geld or not to geld: that is the question!” (with apologies to the Bard).
There is no more fraught issue between
trainer and owner than the “gelding”
one. I overhear Gai trying to explain the
issues when she thinks gelding a colt
is the best option: “He’s getting just too
big in the shoulder. He’s developed very
colty habits”.
Every owner dreams of having a Pierro
or Sebring to give them (and their children and children’s children) a ‘comfortable old age’. The trainer, naturally, is
mindful of confirmation and behavioural
problems that can develop and stop a
racehorse approaching his potential, and
the owner, the best result.
Gai is very mindful of the balance. No
one can deny Gai is Australia’s ‘stallion
maker’. She has achieved glory and a
payday for owners recently with quite a
few:
Pierro and Sebring are two examples, but there have been many more
including Northern Meteor, Manhattan
Rain, Nothin’ Leica Dane, Squamosa
and Swift Alliance; all of which are still
serving in Australia right now.
But my close friend and keen racing
man, Peter Lawrence, sees it, as I’m
sure other owners do, as almost a
conspiracy by Gai to, in his words,
“steal their nuts”. I haven’t been able to
assuage him by my reminding him that
Gai only wants to geld his horse – not
himself!
I’ve repeated, to Peter, the no doubt,
apocryphal parable, I was told as a
B
P
child, about the ‘glass-bottle’ monkey
trap that contained a nut as bait. A
doomed monkey would put his hand
in and grab the nut and refuse to let
go. Whilst ever his hand held the nut,
he could not withdraw his hand. But
he couldn’t bring himself to let go of
it.
To me, that’s a pretty good analogy
of Peter’s ‘gelding aversion’. If it is
not good enough as a colt, second
prize isn’t bad (and better than nothing) – an effective gelding.
Many horses are denied their full
potential because owners “won’t let
go of the monkey’s nut”, as it were
(and forgive the poor pun). If they’d
owned Kingstown Town and had
their way, the champion may well have
died a maiden.
In considering the question, it’s useful to
remind oneself what happens in the wild.
The alpha male usually has a harem of
about a dozen mares.
The corresponding 11 beta males are
left as outcast bachelors. And the ‘wild’
breed improves by only using the ‘best’
male to breed – all part of evolution.
Sadly for the Alpha male horse, they
don’t have a long life expectancy in
the wild, in contrast to mares and the
“Betas”.
Correspondingly, so that the thorough-bred breed improves, we only
need/want 1% of males to be entire and
shape the breed. The good news for the
owners of geldings is that the geldings
race truer and for much longer.
Bradley Photographers
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24
Many horses are
denied their full
potential because
owners ‘won’t let go of
the “monkey’s nut...”
Connections must, as a group, realise
this. Nearly all entires (E) are gelded (G)
by the end of their careers.
As metropolitan male two-year-olds,
there is roughly a 50-50 split between
the two groups;
I concede entires appear, statistically,
better racehorses. But, why wouldn’t
they be? They must, as a group, be “Mr
Perfects”, be much more valuable (to
want to preserve prospective stud
Contact us on:
(ph) 02 4868 1433
(fax) 02 4868 3794
PO Box 18, Moss Vale,
NSW 2577
value), be better conformed (not
heavy-shouldered horses, likely to
deteriorate as they mature) and not
have testosterone-induced behavioural
problems. Hence the predominance
of geldings in Slippers and Melbourne
Cups.
But, I know as a form student, entires
are inconsistent betting propositions and
penalise them sometimes. Entires underperform their market price consistently and significantly. Geldings, conversely, are better betting propositions.
For the sake of fullness, I should add
horses do improve a bit in general having been gelded (and for the rest of the
subsequent preparation). More importantly, it often stops the stallion disaster
or train wreck – those that should have
been gelded get worse. To illustrate this
point, Gai will persist with a runner she
was allowed to geld but sack an entire
she was stopped from cutting.
I recently read an article by a James
Gallagher, science reporter of the BBC,
which gave me no pleasure personally
but is on the point. He revealed eunuchs
live much longer than men. His cruel
punch line was “Will castration earn a
few extra candles?”
The journalist wrote: “Castration had a
huge effect on the lifespans of Korean men, according to an analysis of
hundreds of years of eunuch “family” records. They lived up to 19 years longer
than uncastrated men from the same
social class and even outlived members
of the royal family. The researchers believe the findings show male hormones
shorten life expectancy.
Eunuchs had important roles in many
cultures from protecting harems to castrati superstar singing sensations. The
imperial court of the Korean Chosun dynasty used eunuchs to guard the gates
and manage food. They were the only
men outside the royal family allowed
to spend the night in the palace. They
could not have children of their own, so
they adopted girls or castrated boys. Researchers in South Korea analysed the
genealogical record of these “eunuch
families”.They worked out the lifespans
of 81 eunuchs born between 1556 and
1861. The average age was 70 years,
including three centenarians - the oldest
reached 109. By comparison, men in
other families in the noble classes lived
into their early 50s. Males in the royal
family lasted until they were just 45 on
average. Instead he thinks the data “provides compelling evidence that the male
sex hormone reduces male lifespan”.
Men vs women.
Women tend to outlive men across
human societies. However, theories are
hard to test in experiments and the exact
Dance Hero
Percentage of Gelded to non Gelded
Age
Percentage (G)
Percentage (E)
3 yos
4 yos
6 yos
76%
93%
98%
24%
7%
2%
reason for the difference is uncertain.
One thought is that male sex hormones
such as testosterone, which are largely
produced in the testes, could be damaging. The researchers said the hormones
could weaken the immune system or
damage the heart. Castration would prevent most of the hormone from being
produced, protecting the body from any
damaging effect and prolonging lifespan.
Dr Min said: “It is quite possible that
testosterone reduction therapy extends
male lifespan, however, we may need to
consider the side effects of it, mainly the
reduction of sex drive in males.”
Very troubling.
25
Gai Waterhouse:
The Stallion Maker
Article by Ryan McEvoy
Following on from the last month of
racing in Sydney in which PITCREW(Sebring) and NORTHERN GLORY(Northern Meteor) were both impressive
back-to-back winners, I thought it was
timely to visit the ongoing success of Gai
Waterhouse as an emerging trainer of
succesful Stallions.
Many critics will argue the question of
what makes a champion trainer. Premierships? Group One winners?Overall
winners? Strike-Rate? When analysing
a promising young colt, one important
factor that is often discussed at racecourses and yearling sales, is a trainer’s
ability to not only set the foundation for
a potential stallion but to ensure the colt
has a race record worthy of commercial
appeal. Providing this is achieved, it is
then up to the stud to book the mares
and ultimately the stallion himself to
complete the transition of champion colt
to champion stallion. Angus Armanasco,
Rick Hore-Lacy, Lee Freedman, Paul
Perry and John Hawkes are almost always mentioned having conditioned the
racing careers of a number of our most
influential stallions of the last 30 years.
After the last racing season it would
be fair to include Gai Waterhouse as
an addition to that list. With a powerful
Darlley arsenal aside, how many trainers
have trained more than one Group One
winner in a single season that were sired
by stallions trained by the same trainer?
(Fat Al - Epsom, Romantic Touch - J.J
Atkins) The numbers achieved this season by the Waterhouse trained champion first crop sires Sebring & Northern
Meteor are unprecedented if you consid-
er the modern day record of 16 individual first crop two-year-old winners (shared
by Lion Hunter and More Than Ready).
Combined the two stallions have had
more two-year-old winners this season
than Redoute’s Choice, Encosta de
Lago, Lonhro, More Than Ready, Snitzel
and Fastnet Rock put together.
For two stallions to achieve 30+ individual winners and 16 stakes horses whilst
competing with each other in the same
season is something that will rarely be
repeated, certainly not by two stallions
who were trained by the same stable.
This must surely be a nod to not only
the potential ongoing success of the
aforementioned two stallions but that of
the likes of champion PIERRO, Group
One winner MANHATTAN RAIN and the
talented DREAMSCAPE.
Northern Meteor(Left) and Sebring(Right)
For two stallions to achieve 30+ individual winners and 16 stakes horses
whilst competing with each other in the same season is something that will
rarely be repeated...
I remember a conversation with Gai I
had at Widden almost 10 years ago. She
remarked about her critics suggestions
of her inability to train two-year-olds.
Rather than dismissing those statements
she took them on board and made a
conscious effort at the yearling sales to
concentrate on early, mature types that
would improve her two-year-old strikerate. Two years later HA HA led home a
Waterhouse trifecta in the Golden Slipper thus providing the springboard that
would establish Gai Waterhouse as the
world’s premier two-year-old trainer.
Not long after this Slipper success the
critics still had the lady trainer questioning herself with regards to being able to
train those well-bred and well performed
colts, to become established successful
stallions. Is Gai Waterhouse the right
trainer for my colt the owner of the top
priced yearling would ask oneself? The
very next racing season SEBRING was
the champion two-year-old colt, winning
the Golden Slipper and amongst that
crop was NORTHERN METEOR who
would become the hottest sprinting
three-year-old seen in years. The following seasons have produced another
two highly commercial stallion prospects;
MANHATTAN RAIN and PIERRO. Two
of the best performed, most sought after
colts in Australian breeding history. The
stable’s record of targeting and successfully competing in the ‘stallion making’
two-year-old Group One races has become second to none. Let’s look at the
Golden Slipper, AJC Sires’ Produce
Stakes and Champagne Stakes as
examples. In the last 10 years the stable
has trained:
• 2x Golden Slipper winning colts
• 3x AJC Sires’ Produce winning
colts
• 2x Champagne Stakes winning
colts
As two of Sydney’s most exciting threeyear-old’s PITCREW (Sebring) and
ROMANTIC TOUCH (Northern Meteor) head towards the ultimate Sydney
spring goal of the Golden Rose we are
reminded of the phenomenal impact of
these two young stallions so early in
their careers but that of the masterful
handling and foundation they received
from Tulloch Lodge and what future colts
of the stable can look forward to.
27
28
27
In the news
Behind
the
Scenes:
With Stable hand
Suzy Horvath
Article by Madison Whant
With consistent rain beating down on
Sydney’s race tracks throughout April
there was a lot of debate as to how
Gai’s superstar two-year-olds Overreach(Exeed and Excel x Bahia) and
Sweet Idea(Snitzel x Flidais) would
fair against each other on the muddy
tracks in Australia’s richest day of
racing, the Tooheys New Golden Slipper at Rosehill Gardens. Sweet Idea,
with a proven record on a wet track
formed a big part of the spotlight in
the build up to the Slipper. But Sweet
Idea still had to contend with her
30
Suzy and Gai with Overreach
stablemate Overreach, the clear
favourite for the historic win.
However the debate wasn’t just
amongst the punters and the trainers,
as the nerves began to show for
those closest to the young fillies.
Suzy Horvath is one of Gai’s leading stable hands at her Desert War
Stable at Randwick Racecourse.
Suzy has been with Gai for 12 years
now and experienced her first Group
One win when she strapped Arlington
Road who won the All-Aged Stakes
at Randwick in April, 2003. Suzy not
“Strapping
champions like
Overreach and
Arlington Road is
what makes the hard
work so rewarding”
only starts work at 3am six days a
week, managing Gai’s stable
Desert War, but also leaves the track
at 8am every morning to manage a
restaurant in Bondi. Running a restaurant and a stable housing a great
number of horses involves a lot of
hard work and dedication - attributes
that seem to flow naturally amoungst
many of Gai’s staff at the track.
When asked how she copes with
such a busy life style Suzy was
buoyant, “Strapping champions like
Overreach and Arlington Road is
what makes the hard work so rewarding”. Suzy had been with Overreach
at her Desert War stable since
January this year and had high hopes
for the filly’s two-year-old career but
admits, she was probably as nervous
and excited as jockey, Tommy Berry,
for the race to come. “The atmosphere was tense but filled with excitement,” she recalled of the mornings
lead up.
But despite all the nerves, on April 6
at Rosehill Gardens when Overreach
flew to victory a spectacular five
lengths in front of Peter Snowden’s
runner up Sidestep(Exceed and
Excel) all the hard work paid off for a
person like Suzy. When asked what
the atmosphere was like in the aftermath of Overreach’s win Suzy shook
her head, “You can’t describe it. You
have to go through it to know the
feeling”. Suzy is just one of the many
stable hands working for Gai and
represents the rewarding nature of
the industry not only for the trainers
and owners but for the people behind
the scenes, with the horses every
day. The people we don’t necessarily
always see, but couldn’t do without.
31
Back in the
day
Tulloch in the 1957 Caulfield Cup
“Tulloch’s time of 2.26.9 for the 12 furlong race was not only a race and
track record, it was also the fastest 12 furlong run ever recorded in Australia (imperial era) and the fastest 12 furlong run ever recorded in the world
on a grass track.”
(Above) Tulloch after his 1957 VRC Derby win. He was probably laughing at how easily he won. (Above
Right)T.J. Smith and Jockey Neville Sellwood.
32
Neville Sellwood and Tulloch at the Caufield
Cup, 1957
Tulloch really was a magnificent type. His build and stride indicate versatility and that was definitely one of the key ingredients of the then colt’s
success.
Tulloch is one of the best horses to
ever run in Australia and probably the
greatest all-round horse the country
has seen due to his dominance as
a two, three, five and six year old.
Tulloch was the greatest horse ever
trained by T.J. Smith and the very
venue that has since housed Gunsynd, Kingston Town, Pierro, More
Joyous and Desert War is named
after Tulloch. He was a national icon
and one of the five original inductees
into the Australian Racing Hall of
Fame.
As a three-year-old, Tulloch won the
1957 Caulfield Cup very easily. But
this win was far far greater than the
simple four lengths romp it looked.
Here are some facts and figures that
show exactly how great this win was.
A three-year-old had not won the
Caulfield Cup for 22 years before
Tulloch in 1957. Only five have won
since. Tulloch’s 7.8 is the greatest
weight ever carried to victory by a
three-year-old in the history of the
Caulfield Cup.
Tulloch at 6/4 on, jumped as the
shortest priced favourite ever in the
Caulfield Cup. Tulloch was at one
stage of the race, forced back to last
in a field of 17 hard, older handicappers. In working through the field,
Tulloch suffered three bad checks; as
we all know from backing horses over
the years, one bad check is usually
enough to end a horse’s chances.
So to win after three bad checks is a
truly remarkable feat.
It is also important to note that the
second and third place getters, which
Tulloch rushed by, were two really
good horses. Mac’s Amber won a
Toorak Handicap and a Chipping Norton Stakes and Sailor’s Guide once
beat Rising Fast in New Zealand as
well as winning a VRC Derby, Sydney
Cup and a Mackinnon. Tulloch gave
these two great horses a cold when
he went past them!
Debate still rages about why Tulloch
did not run in the Melbourne Cup
where he was acclaimed a certainty.
T.J. Smith desperately wanted to
run his colt in the two mile feature,
especially after Tulloch won the VRC
Derby untouched by eight lengths.
But in the end, Tulloch was scratched
from the Melbourne Cup because
his owner Mr Haley felt the two miles
of the Melbourne Cup would be too
gruelling on his young horse. So that
was that.
33
SUNDAY AT THE STABLES
With Gary Beecroft
John and Stephen Lewis, Harry and Bev Evans and George
Bedwani with Star Thoroughbreds Equator
Harry Evans with visitors Bill and Janette Shea holding
Bounding Away’s Golden Slipper
Jeff and Trisha Sheehan celebrate the victory of Star
Thoroughbreds Charing Cross
John and Anne McDonnell inspect Star Thoroughbreds Pitcrew
Gai, Sue Hardie, Nash Rawiller, Chris and Jane Tohl, Anne
Howlett, Adrian Bott and Star Thoroughbreds Driefontein
John Watts casts his eye over Star Thoroughbreds Certitude
Gai and Donna Kolivos discuss the preperation for Projectile
Tony Mitevski with Fiorente

industry FoCus to geld or not to geld? the roAd so FAr editoriAl

Transcription

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