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Age or distance doesn't stop the thrill of winning!

With Gaze being trained in the North Island and her 87 year old owner/breeder Melba Murfitt living in Christchurch she doesn't get to see her quality mare race very often. Last Sunday when the mare won the Listed Jim and John Evans Limited Classic at Counties was no exception – Melba had to be content to watch the race on Trackside television. That didn't lessen the thrill of seeing her blitz a field which featured eight other group race winners. "It was a lovely win and I was so thrilled ...

New Scholarship Announced "Waikato Stud Young Achiever Award"

NEW SCHOLARSHIP ANNOUNCED – 'WAIKATO STUD YOUNG ACHIEVER AWARD' Dr John O'Flaherty, Chairman of the New Zealand Equine Research Foundation (NZERF), announced today the inauguration of a new scholarship for the equine industry. Waikato Stud and the Chittick Family are to support 'The Waikato Stud Young Achiever Award.' Dr O'Flaherty stated: "The Chittick Family, Owner of Waikato Stud, is very keen to support people either entering the equine industry or establishing themselves in a specific...

A distinguished honour for a worthy recipient

The highlight of the recent Auckland Branch Awards dinner was the announcement of this year's recipient of the New Zealand Bloodstock Insurance Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Industry. Ron Chitty (left) with long-time friend Peter Walker at the Auckland Branch Annual Awards dinner last week. Photo courtesy of Trish Dunell This year the Auckland Branch gave the award to another worthy recipient who has a lifelong and very full involvement in the industry –...

NZTBA Auckland Branch honours the region's achievers

The Auckland Branch of the Thoroughbred Breeders held their annual awards dinner in Auckland last Friday night. The event, sponsored by New Zealand Bloodstock Insurance, recognises the achievements of Auckland-based breeders and stallions over the past season, and each year pays tribute to a member who has made an outstanding contribution to the industry in this region. This year the honour was bestowed upon Haunui Farm proprietor Ron Chitty. Auckland branch members last season bred 14 grou...

"World class benchmark for spring campaigns"

The release this week of the New Zealand Free Handicaps and the latest Timeform Global Rankings will give Australasian racing a class benchmark for racing over the spring. The New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders Association commissions New Zealand's chief handicapper, Dean Nowell, to frame the Free Handicaps for two-year-olds and three-year-olds, at the end of each season, and Nowell found that Alamosa (NZ) was 'the most outstanding racehorse of the (New Zealand) season.' Nowell assigned the O...

Group One Glory for the "Pride of the Wairarapa"

Winning a Group One race is the ultimate aim of any owner or breeder. Last weekend's Group One Mudgeway Partsworld Stakes winner Fritzy Boy is no exception. It is the dream result especially for his "hobby breeder" and part-owner John Jury. "Winning the Mudgeway is the highlight of my racing and breeding career - a Group One win is something special," he said. And the way Fritzy Boy dealt to the Mudgeway field there should be a few more Group Ones in store. A sixth generation Wairarapa s...

Bruce's Blog – August 2008

Blog 8 - Taylor Made Farm It's so hard to believe that I am already half way through the final leg of the incredible opportunity that is the Sunline Trust international management scholarship. There have been so many highlights, so many wonderful experiences, so many top class people, and oh so much learnt in England (Cheveley Park), Ireland (Coolmore) and now the U.S.A. (Taylor Made Farm). I have always been extremely ambitious and excited about what the thoroughbred industry can offer me(and ...

Latest Waikato Branch Bloodline Magazine

Click here to read the latest Waikato Breeders' Bloodline Magazine September 2008 issue - ...

Latest Auckland Branch Newsletter Hoofprint

Click here to read Hoofprint - Auckland Branch...

Il Quello Veloce and Alamosa head 2007-2008 NZ Free Handicaps

The 2007-2008 New Zealand Free Handicaps for two-year-olds and three-year-olds are now online here. The Free Handicaps are compiled by chief handicapper Dean Nowell for the NZTBA. Il Quello Veloce heads the two-year-old Free Handicap with 58 kg, followed by Fully Fledged on 57.5 kg, Captain Fantastic 56.5 kg andVincent Mangano 56.5 kg. Alamosa (62 kg) in the 1200-1600m category) is the top-weighted three-year-old, ahead of Nom Du Jeu (61 kg) and C'Est La Guerra (60.5 kg) in the 1601 metres-plu...

Keeper Special comes up trumps for Margaret

Margaret Watson in her younger days driving LOL who won ten races and beat Delightful Lady. To say Margaret Watson, owner and breeder of Ryder Stakes (LR) winner Keeper Special, shuns the limelight would be an understatement. The Silverdale breeder was adamant that she didn't warrant a story and instead wanted the focus to be on her very special filly who goes by the stable name of Shelly. "I just feed her, she's the one who has done something," says Margaret. Keeper...

Bruce's Blog – July 2008

Bruce Wraps Up In Ireland 8/6/2008-8/7/2008 The Stallions, Ballydoyle, and Primus Time doesn't just fly, it is jet propelled. Here I am at the end of the second leg of my Sunline scholarship journey and my emotions are tainted with a mixture of complete sadness and burgeoning excitement for what America holds. Coolmore has been magnificent. As a commercial operator it has been a very different knowledge gaining experience to that of Cheveley Park, with both being so important to the fully r...

Laurence Redshaw makes it to the short list for Mercedes Breeder of the Year

First time nominee for the Mercedes Breeder of the Year Award, Hawkes Bay-based Laurence Redshaw, is another boutique breeder to be recognised this year. With seven mares at present along with horses in training, Laurence gained his first Group One winner as a breeder ten years ago when Vegas took out the Group One Telegraph Stakes. While the first taste of Group One victory is always sweet, the result of this season's VRC Derby provided Laurence with another memorable moment and catapulted...

Philip and Catherine Brown featu finalists again for the Mercedes Breeder of the Year award

Philip Brown finds the fact that a number of smaller breeders are in the running for the Mercedes Breeder of the year award intriguing. "It is interesting that none of the major studs are there and that a lot of small breeders won major races during the season," he muses. "From my point of view, I have a handful of mares and some of the big studs will have up to 160 and you just compete with the numbers. Still, the smaller breeders have come up with the results this year," he adds. Philip al...

Karreman makes the Breeder of theYear Shortlist again

For the second consecutive year Karreman Bloodstock is a nominee for the Mercedes Breeder of the year. In fact, they feature predominantly in the award nominee stakes being finalists in Mercedes Owner of the Year, Mercedes Champion Sprinter of the Year, Mercedes Champion Middle Distance Horse, Mercedes Champion Stayer of the Year, Mercedes People's Choice and for good measure Just Cruisin, the dam of Seachange and Keepa Cruisin, is a contender for Mercedes Broodmare of the Year. That's an inc...

Breeder of the Year Nomination tops off big season for Scott Williams

"What Can I Say ?" That could well have been the answer that Scott Williams gave when asked the question of how he felt about being nominated for Mercedes Breeder of the Year – not because it is one of his favourite expressions but because it is the name of one of his broodmares. The dam of just one of the three stakes winners he bred that won in the 2007-2008 season, in fact she is the dam of Gibraltar Campion(Rock of Gibraltar) the winner of the listed MRC Kevin Heffernam Stakes last Novem...

The Cause and Spread of Strangles (Epidemiology)

Strangles is caused by a bacterium with the scientific name of Streptococcus equi subspecies equi. But it is usually referred to as Strep. equi. Horses of all ages are susceptible to strangles but it occurs most commonly in young horses less than two years of age. Foals under three months are usually resistant due to the protection they get from drinking their dam's colostrum. Although outbreaks can occur any time, they are more common in spring. A horse infected by this organism does not show...

Celebrations spread all the way to Japan

When Matamata stud master John Thompson arrived in Hokkaido last Saturday evening he was greeted with the excellent news that Jungle Pocket – the Japanese-owned stallion he stood at Rich Hill Stud – had left his first New Zealand Stakes winner with Pocket Diary winning the Listed Oceanz Seafood Northland Breeders' Stakes that afternoon. And what made the news, delivered to him on arrival by Shadai's PR representative, even more exciting was that it was bred by his hosts in Japan, his Japan...

Vicki Pascoe - new Northern Region Councillor

Recently elected NZTBA Council member Vicki Pascoe admits to having only one brief six-month spell in her life when she was without a horse. "I got my first horse at 11," recalls the Northern region representative. New NZTBA Councillor Vicki Pascoe That six-month period occurred when her pony foal had died and her grandfather took her to Claudelands and bought her three broodmares. "You had to be 21 to own horses and I was 16 so they went in my mother's name," she says.One...

2008 MERCEDES AWARDS FINALISTS ANNOUNCED

New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) today announced finalists for the 2008 Mercedes Thoroughbred Racing Awards to be held at Mystery Creek, Hamilton on the evening of Friday, 15 August 2008. The list of selected Finalists is posted on the NZTR website homepage: http://www.nzracing.co.nz/Documents/2351/15-7-08.Mercedes%20Finalists.web.pdf Further information and tickets for the evening are available from office@nzracing.co.nz or by telephoning 04 576 6240.Further information and tickets for...

John Fokerd - Central Region's new Councillor with a passion and a vision

Following the Annual General Meeting last week two new members were elected to the NZTBA Council – John Fokerd representing the Central Region and Vicki Pascoe the Northern Region. John Fokerd - recently elected Central Region Councillor Wellingtonian John Fokerd is a passionate racing and breeding enthusiast with a background in Chartered Accountancy. He didn't hesitate when approached by the Wellington Branch – he was their Honourary Auditor - to stand for council bel...

NZRB's Supply Chain Wastage Report presented to AGM

Around 50 members were in attendance at the Annual General Meeting of the NZTBA in Auckland recently specifically to hear the report delivered by the CEO of the New Zealand Racing Board Graeme Hansen, on the thoroughbred breeding figures and the domestic racing requirements for the future. Graeme Hansen, CEO, New Zealand Racing Board With all the talk of synthetic tracks and increased racing to satisfy the needs of the commingling agreement with Tabcorp in Austral...

Notice from NZTR Studbook Department

Cessation of Blood Typing for Parentage Verification As of 1st August 2008, the Equine Parentage and Animal Genetic Services Centre at Massey University will no longer be providing the service of blood typing of horses for parentage verification. Parentage verification of thoroughbred horses in New Zealand, essential for registration, has used the DNA based technology of DNA profiles since the 2002 foal crop. There should now be very few broodmares not on the DNA database, and so the impact ...

Living the dream through Ististar

A scheme to help a mate with a yearling draft a number of years ago was the catalyst that set Taupo NZTBA members and breeders Steve and Marlene Clark on the path to breeding Saturday's dual Platinum Homes NZ Tauranga Classic Listed winner Ististar(Istidaad- Marlanda Star by Star Way). "What Ististar has done is a wonderful thrill, breeding a stakes winner is what you dream will happen when you start out and when it does happen the feeling is out of this world. We have been to see a number of ...

Mr Baritone' Stradbroke win a fitting legacy for the late Graeme Stubbings

Mr. Baritone (Stravinsky x Tunisia by Sanglamore), the six-year-old winner of last week's Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap in Brisbane, was bred by Raffles Farms' Fred Lee and the recently deceased Graeme Stubbings. Mr. Baritone is a success of Graeme's making and just the beginning of his legacy. Graeme's daughter Leigh East, who worked closely alongside her father managing the administrative and accounting duties at Raffles, was touched by the Stradbroke outcome. "Dad watched Mr. Baritone's last ...