This week in Dunstan Horse Feeds’ Meet the Breeder, we spoke with Nick Fairweather, who alongside his partner Nicole Brown, own and operate Carlaw Park in Ohaupo. Under their original company Fairweather Bloodstock Ltd, the couple celebrated their first victory as breeders and owners when Perfect Habit saluted at the Cambridge Synthetic meeting on Wednesday.
Tell us the story of Perfect Habit.
Perfect Habit was bred by John and Jan Cassin (Cass Thoroughbreds Ltd) and Nicole and I (Fairweather Bloodstock Ltd)
Going back to his dam, Bad Habits (Power), Nicole and I actually purchased her as a yearling from our own Carlaw Park draft as a yearling in 2019 under our original company Fairweather Bloodstock Ltd. We were offering Bad Habits as a yearling on behalf of Sir Patrick Hogan and Ron Saunders who have had good success with the family.
Nicole and I loved the family and I had a bit to do with the family's progeny at Cambridge Stud where I spent some time working there. We purchased her in the sale ring for $35,000 and we were thrilled to invest in a family that we knew had great success with fillies and mares.
Bad Habits showed us a little bit early, although through to injury we elected to retire her breed from her.
John and Jan weren't involved in the mare at that time, so while she was infoal to Tivaci they came on board in the ownership and it went from there.
We tried to sell Perfect Habit as a weanling, but he was a little bit first 'foaly' so we passed him in and elected to race him. Mark and Lorraine Forbes of Kiltannon Stables broke him in and they have continued on to train him. Mark has always thought a bit of him and while we may have pushed the button a little early last preparation, we've learnt a lot from the horse now and we hope he can continue to live up to the promise he has shown us.
Tell us the history of Carlaw Park.
Carlaw Park came about in 2016 where Nicole, her parents Peter and Roslyn Brown, and myself decided to kick off a business that provided high quality spelling facilities and services for local trainers. We were lucky enough to have received early support from good friends and clients around the region and gradually made additions and improvements on the farm.
While we never really intended to do yearling preparation, a few opportunities came about given Nicole and I both had backgrounds in yearlings at major stud farms. I think it was within our second or third year we offered our first draft at Karaka and we've grown from there and is now the primary aspect of our business.
Carlaw Park's name comes from the retired Rugby League stadium in Parnell, Auckland, in which both sides of our families have ties to family members that have either played or spectated on a regular basis.
How did you get into thoroughbred breeding?
My parents were hobby breeders and were fortunate enough to breed some winners including a Group 1 winner in Vonusti. I spent most of my high school summer holidays working for Sir Patrick Hogan at Cambridge Stud as we lived just around the corner. Nicole was also brought up in the equine world with her parents involved in Harness Racing, although she worked for Westbury Stud in Karaka and developed a great interest in the breeding side of the industry.
How many mares do you breed from?
We currently breed from three mares. Bad Habits (with a colt by Profondo at foot), Convene (infoal to Press Statement), and Secret Doubt (with a colt at foot by Home Affairs, and she currently resides in Australia.
What else do you have in your bloodstock portfolio? (foals, racehorses, stallion shares etc)
We have our three mares - with two colts so far - but the main direction of our business is pin hooking. We travel the weanling circuit and try to acquire 4-8 weanlings per year to re-offer as yearlings the following year. We have had some good results with this approach and we enjoy the process. From there we have shares in Ready to Runners, trade horses and several small shares in racehorses.
Do you breed to race or breed to sell? If sell, how do you decide on what to retain and what to sell?
We try to breed as commercially as possible, hence we breed to sell. If they breed a nice, strong, forward type they will most likely head towards a weanling or a yearling sale. In saying that, if the foal doesn't come to hand as well as we would have liked, we will attempt to trade or race them ourselves.
Do you seek advice on your breeding decisions?
We know what kind of horse we want to breed and we do put a lot of emphasis on type and commercial viability - if the stallion is going to match with the mare well physically - although it doesn't always end out that way. From a genetic perspective we seek advice from stud masters, successful breeders and we often consult Marcus Corban given his expertise in this field is of high quality.
Best breeding advice you have received?
Try not to get too emotionally involved. You can be passionate, but apply logic and reason.
What do you love about the thoroughbred breeding industry?
The people. It's such a hectic and chaotic time of year for stud masters and staff, while anxious owners wait for the arrival of their foals or researching their next mating prospect. From when the foals are born to receiving a call that your mare is 42 days positive, you just can't get a better feeling whether you are the breeder, stud master, or staff member receiving good news from all the hard work that has been applied.
What advice would you give someone entering the industry as a breeder?
Don't rush into it. Take your time and seek advice from professionals whether that be stud masters, bloodstock agents or successful fellow breeders. Also, be prepared to take the good results with the less fortunate ones.
If you could breed any past or present mare and stallion, who would they be?
Dubai Millenium (He could have been anything) and Urban Sea (dam of Sea The Stars, Galileo etc.)
