Ex-pat Kiwi Brian Hutchinson, the part-owner and breeder of the group one Thorndon Mile winner Say No More (Pentire[GB]-Our Lucy[AUS]), may be Sydney-based but his thoroughbred interests are firmly established here in New Zealand.
"It's a great place to raise horses and an inexpensive way to try them out and get them going," said Hutchinson as he admired Say No More's half brother in the paddock at Club Med Lodge in the Waikato.
Hutchinson and two of his partners in Say No More, Terry Boys (also one of her breeders) and Ross Mackenzie were still extremely excited and on a high when they called in to NZTBA Councillor Vicki Pascoe's property this week to see the dam of Say No More, Our Lucy and her colt foal by Duelled.
"He's a real cracker of a foal, and the mare looks in fine fettle even at rising 22. We may think about sending her back to Pentire next year, and have one last shot at getting another filly," said Hutchinson.
The trio were all in attendance in Wellington along with David Capes, a friend of Hutchinson's who has a 10% share in Say No More, to see her triumph in the group one event, her fifth win from nine starts. Octogenarian Peter Harris who bred the mare with Hutchinson and Boys was unable to make the trip from Australia due to ailing health.
Say No More, trained at Cambridge by Paul Duncan, won her first start just on 12 months ago, and two more starts last autumn for a win and a second before being spelled for the winter. She started her current campaign with an unlucky run behind the promising horses Durham Town and Appiel in late October and in her subsequent five starts ran second twice before putting together a hat trick of wins culminating in the Thorndon.
"It's our first group one win and its quite surreal. We were just happy to be here watching her compete at group one level. We hoped but didn't think she could beat that field, so its all credit to Paul - he has done a fantastic job with her," he enthused.
Hutchinson's no stranger to racing or breeding but it is purely a hobby. Over the years he and his partners mainly raced the horses they have bred and admit that they haven't really spent a lot of money, but have had a lot of fun.
The trio responsible for breeding Say No More – Hutchinson, Harris and Boys - got together 20 –odd years ago, when Harris had a horse in the same stable as Hutchinson and Boys.
"I had a pretty useful horse called Czar Oak (Oakridge[FR]-Mushki), who unfortunately broke down when he was third favourite for the Melbourne Cup. He was out of a Mussorsky (IRE) (Tudor Melody[GB] – Enticement [GB]) mare out of a Five Arrows (GB) (Exbury [FR] – Jane II [FR]).
"After he broke down I was keen to get another horse bred on a similar cross, using the Mill Reef (GB) and Five Arrows cross, and Czar Oak's trainer mentioned to be me that he had a filly in his stable out of a Five Arrows mare called Our Lucy (Walking Ring [IRE] – Lucy Primrose [NZ] by Five Arrows). He didn't think she was going to be a city winner but thought she could win in the bush. Her owner at the time, Peter Harris who farmed near Orange in New South Wales, wasn't really interested in having a bush runner so he decided to sell her.
"When I told him why I was buying the filly he decided to stay in for a third. So we raced her and she won three races and was placed in town and then we sent her over to Vicki in 1995.
"By that stage Oak Ridge was dead so we couldn't send her there, and I liked the look of The Jogger (USA) (Danzig-Cadillacing) so we sent there. The first foal died and the second was a horse called Nudge who won five races. Her next foal was Bankonher by British Banker (CAN) and then she went to Four Seasons (GB) and produced Lucy Love who won three and was second in the group three Cambridge Breeders Stakes, followed by Reigns and Pours also by Four Seasons.
"By the time Reigns and Pours got to the races everything out of the mare had won so we thought she deserved a crack at a good stallion so we went looking for that Mill Reef line and sent her to Pentire (Be My Guest [USA]-Gull Nook [GB] by Mill Reef).
"In 2004 Our Lucy produced a strapping stunning big brown almost black colt to Pentire and he topped the 2005 Select Sale. He was knocked down to a client of Paul Duncan's and we tried to buy back into the horse but the owner wasn't interested in taking in some partners. So we decided to send her back to Pentire.
"To our surprise instead of a big strapping dark brown colt we got a chestnut filly with white markings and thought how the hell did that happen but we decided never-the-less to keep her and now look at what she has done. It's been a great ride.
"Terry has continued to breed from Bankonher and she has produced Johnny D'Cash (D'Cash[AUS]) and he has two cracking Mr Nancho (ARG) colts here in work with Paul and a Great Britain (GB) two-year-old in Perth. She is now in foal to Sir Percy(GB).
"Say No More is back here (Club Med Lodge home to group one winner Honour Bound) for a brief spell, and no matter what, this will always be her home. When we retire her from racing she can return here and be walked in from here. According to Ralph Manning, the Duelled(AUS) colt that we sold to him at Karaka last year is a stunner as well and he has high hopes from him so he could easily be winner number eight for Our Lucy.
"Vicki has done a fabulous job with Our Lucy and even if we don't breed from her again she will remain here as a nanny mare," he stated. "New Zealand will always be the best place to raise horses."
- Michelle Saba
"It's a great place to raise horses and an inexpensive way to try them out and get them going," said Hutchinson as he admired Say No More's half brother in the paddock at Club Med Lodge in the Waikato.
Hutchinson and two of his partners in Say No More, Terry Boys (also one of her breeders) and Ross Mackenzie were still extremely excited and on a high when they called in to NZTBA Councillor Vicki Pascoe's property this week to see the dam of Say No More, Our Lucy and her colt foal by Duelled.
"He's a real cracker of a foal, and the mare looks in fine fettle even at rising 22. We may think about sending her back to Pentire next year, and have one last shot at getting another filly," said Hutchinson.
The trio were all in attendance in Wellington along with David Capes, a friend of Hutchinson's who has a 10% share in Say No More, to see her triumph in the group one event, her fifth win from nine starts. Octogenarian Peter Harris who bred the mare with Hutchinson and Boys was unable to make the trip from Australia due to ailing health.
Say No More, trained at Cambridge by Paul Duncan, won her first start just on 12 months ago, and two more starts last autumn for a win and a second before being spelled for the winter. She started her current campaign with an unlucky run behind the promising horses Durham Town and Appiel in late October and in her subsequent five starts ran second twice before putting together a hat trick of wins culminating in the Thorndon.
"It's our first group one win and its quite surreal. We were just happy to be here watching her compete at group one level. We hoped but didn't think she could beat that field, so its all credit to Paul - he has done a fantastic job with her," he enthused.
Hutchinson's no stranger to racing or breeding but it is purely a hobby. Over the years he and his partners mainly raced the horses they have bred and admit that they haven't really spent a lot of money, but have had a lot of fun.
The trio responsible for breeding Say No More – Hutchinson, Harris and Boys - got together 20 –odd years ago, when Harris had a horse in the same stable as Hutchinson and Boys.
"I had a pretty useful horse called Czar Oak (Oakridge[FR]-Mushki), who unfortunately broke down when he was third favourite for the Melbourne Cup. He was out of a Mussorsky (IRE) (Tudor Melody[GB] – Enticement [GB]) mare out of a Five Arrows (GB) (Exbury [FR] – Jane II [FR]).
"After he broke down I was keen to get another horse bred on a similar cross, using the Mill Reef (GB) and Five Arrows cross, and Czar Oak's trainer mentioned to be me that he had a filly in his stable out of a Five Arrows mare called Our Lucy (Walking Ring [IRE] – Lucy Primrose [NZ] by Five Arrows). He didn't think she was going to be a city winner but thought she could win in the bush. Her owner at the time, Peter Harris who farmed near Orange in New South Wales, wasn't really interested in having a bush runner so he decided to sell her.
"When I told him why I was buying the filly he decided to stay in for a third. So we raced her and she won three races and was placed in town and then we sent her over to Vicki in 1995.
"By that stage Oak Ridge was dead so we couldn't send her there, and I liked the look of The Jogger (USA) (Danzig-Cadillacing) so we sent there. The first foal died and the second was a horse called Nudge who won five races. Her next foal was Bankonher by British Banker (CAN) and then she went to Four Seasons (GB) and produced Lucy Love who won three and was second in the group three Cambridge Breeders Stakes, followed by Reigns and Pours also by Four Seasons.
"By the time Reigns and Pours got to the races everything out of the mare had won so we thought she deserved a crack at a good stallion so we went looking for that Mill Reef line and sent her to Pentire (Be My Guest [USA]-Gull Nook [GB] by Mill Reef).
"In 2004 Our Lucy produced a strapping stunning big brown almost black colt to Pentire and he topped the 2005 Select Sale. He was knocked down to a client of Paul Duncan's and we tried to buy back into the horse but the owner wasn't interested in taking in some partners. So we decided to send her back to Pentire.
"To our surprise instead of a big strapping dark brown colt we got a chestnut filly with white markings and thought how the hell did that happen but we decided never-the-less to keep her and now look at what she has done. It's been a great ride.
"Terry has continued to breed from Bankonher and she has produced Johnny D'Cash (D'Cash[AUS]) and he has two cracking Mr Nancho (ARG) colts here in work with Paul and a Great Britain (GB) two-year-old in Perth. She is now in foal to Sir Percy(GB).
"Say No More is back here (Club Med Lodge home to group one winner Honour Bound) for a brief spell, and no matter what, this will always be her home. When we retire her from racing she can return here and be walked in from here. According to Ralph Manning, the Duelled(AUS) colt that we sold to him at Karaka last year is a stunner as well and he has high hopes from him so he could easily be winner number eight for Our Lucy.
"Vicki has done a fabulous job with Our Lucy and even if we don't breed from her again she will remain here as a nanny mare," he stated. "New Zealand will always be the best place to raise horses."
- Michelle Saba
