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David Scott breeds two or three standardbreds a year  – principally with the objective of putting them through the sale ring.

And the one major common theme for the West Gippsland breeder is that they are all trotters.

Scott caught the “trotting” bug early in his harness racing experience.

He raced pacers when he first entered ownership ranks, but it would be a trotting mare, Karamea Vermah – bred by the legendary Noel Simpson – which would give him his first real success.

“She was pacing bred (a 1981 Scottish Bret foal), but all she wanted to do was trot.

“She won 12 races for me, including a number at Moonee Valley.

“I followed that success and raced trotters exclusively after that.”

Scott said in those days it was not unusual to have trotters by pacing stallions.

He said it was difficult to get a specifically bred trotter, with a big part of the horse pool bred along pacing lines.

Things have changed, with no better example than the bloodlines of the two lots Scott is offering at the Nutrien Equine Standardbred Yearling Sale at Melbourne’s Oaklands Junction on Sunday, April 3.

He describes each as “affordable” with a “solid trotting” pedigree.

“They should suit buyers who don’t necessarily have the budget or the inclination to go to the top end of the market.”

LOT 116

VOLSTEAD US-ZIPPIN AROUND (Majestic Son Ca) colt

This lot comes from the maternal family which launched Scott into breeding.

Scott said with well-bred trotting broodmares not easy to access in Australia, he went to the New Zealand yearling sales with the aim of purchasing a daughter of Sundon.

He secured a filly out of Filly Folly, which went on to race as Sunny Folly and win seven races.

“She was my first foray into breeding.”

And what a success Sunny Folly has been as a broodmare, leaving seven winners including group 2 winner Invasive (Armbro Invasion) 1:57.4, 16 wins, $141,000; group 1 Redwood Classic winner Elusive Charm (Cr Commando) 10 wins; Doctor Sam (Dr Ronerail) 8 wins; and Sonofpaco (Yankee Paco) 7 wins.

Zippin Around is also out Sunny Folly and this is her first foal.

Zippin Around is the second daughter of Sunny Folly to go to the breeding barn to date, with Elusive Charm already proving an outstanding success for Scott.

She has produced four winners from four foals to race, including group 3 placed Melpark Magic (Muscles Yankee) 1:57, 15 wins, $132,000; and two-time group 1 winner Is That A Bid (Andover Hall) 1:58, 6 wins, $166,000.

The colt is from the first crop of Volstead.

LOT 121

SEBASTIAN K-ALWAYS TREASURE NZ (Sundon US) filly

The filly continues the Sundon flavour for Scott.

He said he purchased Always Treasure as a racemare from NZ, with her winning six races, including three in Australia.

This is her third foal, with the previous two fillies by Bacardi Lindy.

He understands her first foal, a three-year-old, is close to trialing and expects her two-year-old will race later this season.

“There’s a lot to like about the (Sebastian K) filly.

“She’s well grown and very correct,” Scott said.

Thank you to David Brehaut for this story.

If you would like more information on our Melbourne Sale please click here.

2022 Melbourne Yearling Sale Catalogue Here

Contact Mark Barton on 0419 488 256

Introduce world class trotting bloodlines and with it take the standard of the trotting gait on the track in Australia to a whole new level.

This became a passion for Pat Driscoll after witnessing in person one of Europe’s biggest trotting races – the Prix d’Amerique.

Determined to make his dream a reality, he would establish his own little piece of Europe on Australian shores in 2015 – Haras des Trotteurs, predominantly offering the best French stallions to Australasian breeders, alongside his breeding and racing arm Yabby Dam Farms – at a state-of-the-art facility near Ballarat.

He’s delivered big time, with legendary French sire Love You anchoring ever-expanding stallion offerings.

Driscoll has not limited his focus on stallions though.

He’s taken every opportunity to purchase overseas-bred mares from Europe and North America as well as the best available from Australasia to build on his breeding stock and ultimately the quality of the racing product.

Success has followed in a big way, with many wins for him in age classics and open class features.

Up to a couple of years ago Driscoll raced most of the foals he bred, but now he is taking a different direction.

He is offering the vast majority of the yearlings he breeds to the greater harness racing population through the sale ring.

And in addition, to encourage and build on what has been a growing interest in the trotting gait across the harness racing industry, Driscoll’s Haras des Trotteurs has became the sponsor of a new race series linked to the Nutrien Equine standardbred yearling sales.

For the second year in a row, Yabby Dam Farms is offering the biggest consignment of trotters of any breeder at the Nutrien Equine Standardbred Yearling Sales, with 25 lots going to the Melbourne sale at Oaklands Junction on Sunday, April 3.

Yabby Dam Farms led the way at Nutrien Equine’s inaugural standardbred yearling sale in Melbourne last year.

They had 29 lots sell at an average of $40,931.

This included $170,000 for a Father Patrick colt out of multiple group one-winning mare Une Belle Allure – the highest price ever for a trotting yearling in Australia.

This year’s Yabby Dam Farms consignment includes 12 foals by US-bred Swedish group 1 winner Volstead, which has been part of the Haras des Trotteurs stallion roster.

Six other lots are by Love You and three by Quaker Jet Fra, a son of Love You and member of the Haras des Trotteurs stallion line-up.

There are also three by Father Patrick Us and one by What The Hill Ca.

The lots also include the progeny of an array of overseas-bred mares from France, Canada, United States and New Zealand, including daughters of champion French sires Ready Cash and Coktail Jet.

They include:

Lot 125: VOLSTEAD US-ANOTHER PLAYER NZ (Dr Ronerail US) filly. Another Player is the dam of multiple US-winner Majestic Player – the fastest ever Australasian-bred trotter.

Lot 159: FATHER PATRICK US-ELUSIVE JET Fra (Coktail Jet Fra) filly. Elusive Jet is a full sister to  group 1 European Derby winner Dro de Jet Fra.

Lot 160: FATHER PATRICK US-ALDEBARAN EVE (Skyvalley NZ) filly.  Aldebaran Eve was a multiple group 1 winner.

Lot 218: QUAKER JET Fra-PRETTY PEGGY SUE (Pegasus Spur US) filly. Half-sister to group 1 winners Kinvara Sue and Pretty Majestic.

In association with the sale, Yabby Dam Farms are offering a travel rebate of any YDF yearling purchase at the sale where the yearling is exported to
New Zealand within 60 days after the sale.

The export rebate will be A$500 per A$10,000 spend or part thereof, to a maximum of A$5000, payable on receipt of a paid travel invoice.

With the sponsorship of Haras de Trotteurs, all trotting yearlings sold at this year’s Nutrien Equine sales, including Sydney on Sunday, February 20, will be eligible to contest a race series in Melbourne in 2023 and 2024.

The 2023 trotting series will carry an overall stake of $125,000 with separate $62,500 divisions for two-year-old colts and fillies.

Graduates of the 2022 sale will also be eligible to compete for a further $250,000 as three-year-olds in 2024.

Pat Driscoll has already made a massive mark on the trotting breed in Australia.

With his own breeding programs and continued drive to make world class stallions available to southern hemisphere breeders, his legacy is only going to get greater.

His involvement and partnerships with Nutrien Equine all point to even greater opportunities for the industry and more exciting times for the trotter in Australia.

Click here to the Nutrien Equine Melbourne Sale Catalogue

The Howe family from Wagga Wagga catalogued four yearlings at the inaugural Nutrien Yearling Sale.

All four were sold at an average price of $28,375 and Lot 73 which is now gelded and named Shantilly became the first product of a Nutrien Standardbred yearling sale to win when he won on debut at Menangle last Tuesday. *pictured

Denis Howe who has been breeding Standardbreds for the best part of 20 years has a further four yearlings in the 2022 Nutrien Sydney Yearling Sale on February 20th.

The quartet are all by highly commercial proven stallions in Sweet Lou, Bettors Delight and two by Art Major.

“Shantilly was a lovely yearling and just so easy to get along with which is half the battle,” Denis said earlier this week.

“Of this year’s group Lots 57 and 71 are similar in temperament and have come along nicely since we brought them in to begin their sale prep.”

Lot 57 is a colt by Bettors Delight from the Bathurst Gold Tiara winner Distant Memory p,3,1:55.1 $173,155 who is a half-sister to the grand-dam of last Friday night’s impressive Gloucester Park winner Sahara Storm.

Distant Memory has already produced four winners including Hows The Memory p,1:50.1 $154,424 and last season’s smart 2yo Beach Memories p,2,1:53.4 $48,804 which won six times in her debut season.

“He is a typical Bettors Delight and very cool and laid-back,” Denis said.

Lot 71 is by Art Major from the Mach Three mare In Her Memory p,3,1:59.0 and he is from the family of Lennytheshark p,1:49.2 $3,007,585.

Lennytheshark’s first crop include Lot 22 in the Sydney Nutrien Sale.

The Howe family’s second Art Major colt is Lot 60 which is out of Equus Franco who is already the dam of four winners including Flem N Em p,1:49.6 $981,885 and Glenferrie Bronte p,1:51.4 $451,852.

Their one filly is Lot 63 which is by Sweet Lou from the McArdle mare Custom Franco which is the dam of four winners including The Pima Indian which unfortunately died as a 4yo when he looked to be a rising star in the stables of Gary Hall Snr.

“She is a big athletic filly who missed out on the white markings of the majority of the Sweet Lou’s.”

The grand-dam of Lot 63 is the Great Northern Oaks winner Cherubic which is the dam of nine winners including Franco Catapult p,1:49.4 $629,403.

Denis Howe would be more than happy to show you his four yearlings and inspection can be arranged by a call to 0418 692 273.

 

Can you believe we are at $5.7 million dollars after one and a half days of sale for the 15th Nutrien Classic Sale. With 85.95% clearance we have had 208 of 242 horses sold with this mornings offering being a very strong start to the day.

We didn’t have to wait long with Lot 115 MATRON MAGGIE selling for $125,000 on account of WAYNE & RACHAEL BEAN. That certainly makes the long trip from the NT worth it and we are sure they are celebrating tonight. MATRON MAGGIE was purchased by Maree Duncombe & Jye Banks who are from Sunshine Coast in QLD.

This mare is by the late HARD HAT HENRY out of ONE MOORE ACRE and is the second highest open horse ever sold through the classic sale.

As we reported earlier the top selling mare of the day was in the 2 year old section at the highly anticipated Lot 257 YAVEN CHAMPAGNE ROMANCE selling to Peter & Shari Knudsen from Haymac Campdraft Horses for $260,000.00. Long time vendors John and Jenn Corbett from Adelong in NSW were ‘over the moon’ with how she went today and was beautifully presented by local trainer Hugh Miles.

The average overall at the end of day two was $27, 403.85.

Lets get stuck into the stats, we love ourselves some stats.

MARES – Day Two 

113/134 Lots have sold so far with 84.33% clearance and Averaged $32,429.20

Top Lot 257 YAVEN CHAMPANGE ROMANCE $260,000

Lot 115 MATRON MAGGIE $125,000

Lot 196 ONE CHILLI NIGHT $90,000

Lot 197 SMOOTH PLAYIN $75,000

Lot 213 CONPETA $70,000

There is over 100 horses that are $30,000 plus and it with the top five prices of the sale so far are mares just shows the commitment the industry is putting towards the mare lines.

GELDINGS – Day Two

91 of 101 lots sold (90.10%)

Average: $20,467.03

Top Price Gelding of the 2yo was Lot 244 STEVEY WONDERS on account of Tommy Williamson sold for $23,000. Lovely play on the name, being by the impressive STEVIE REY VON out of OAKS CHIME, who goes back to DOCS FRECKLE OAK on her top side.

He was purchased by local Chris Szafranski from Nemingha NSW.

Lot 182 SPINS FORTY NIAH a 5 year old gelding on account of Darrin Jones from Mount Perry in QLD is by BENIAH and out of SPIN PEPPY PAL. This lovely gelding was purchased by LT & BL Hindle for $50,000, from Highfields, near Toowoomba in QLD.

Lot 174 CHANCES ROYAL GUNG $46,000

Lot 136 RATHCOOL LANCELOT $42,000

Lot 126 REFLEXIONS OF DESTINY $38,000

STALLIONS Day Two 

4 of 7 lots sold (57.14%)

Average: $43,250.00

Top Price Lot 256 ROYALISH on account of Claire Murphy from Mt Isa, QLD,  sold to Goodwood Equine from Allorha in QLD for an amazing $72,000. This flashy stallion is by the champion cutting stallion HOTTISH and out of THIS ONES TIMELESS, who is by ONE TIME ROYALTY.

Lot 192 ELECTRIC DUCK $48,000

Lot 254 JUST A CAT $23,000

We are really looking forward to the next three days of sale.

Tommorrow we kick off with Lot 281 through to 460, which will be 2year olds and 3year olds and always very highly anticipated age group.

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