There are several reasons why the activity on this blog has been very moderate these past few months, but we are now back, and with all the big stakes winners in Europe and the USA underways, the activity will definitely pick up.
A lot of people are talking about the French dominance in this year’s edition of the Elitlopp, and when the French trainer Fabrice Solouy takes a double victory, this might seem correct. But when looking at this year’s fabulous winner, Exploit Caf, this is far from the real truth. First of all, this horse is Italian bred and there is only Standardbred blood in his veins. Even though the French horses with more and more Standardbreds in their pedigrees have gradually developed a higher speed, it is not surprising that Exploit Caf is of pure American genes - taken into the consideration the speed he has shown, in for example the Elitlopp 2008.
His sire Toss Out is a son of Supergill out of the same maternal lines as horses like Steinlager and SJ’s Caviar in addition to Supergill himself. Toss Out is a class example of what one can achieve by crossing a stallion and a mare from the same maternal line. He has also shown excellent results as stallion in Italy. With Exploit Caf he has now had a major breakthrough in other European countries as well.
Broodmare sire Friendy Face is also of pure US blood, and he is probably the one who has passed on the enormous will to battle to Exploit Caf. Friendly Face was himself a very good racehorse, and his sire Speedy Somolli was a tough stallion who suited European conditions perfectly. Speedy Somolli is sire of the two Swedish Elite stallions Alf Palema and Spotlite Lobell. Like a lot of very good broodmares, his dam About Face, has an interesting double x-factor to show for. Hers goes to Peter Volo’s dam Nervolo Belle. Both in the maternal line of sire Speedster and dam Frosty Face we can find daugthers of Peter Volo. The value of About Face increases even more when we know that Friendly Face’s full brother Trotting Happy is broodmare sire to a.o. Kadabra.
One generation further down we find Calibra, the granddam of Exploit Caf. Also this horse was bred in Italy, but her sire is the Americanbred Short Stop. Via the sire of Short Stop’s granddam, Protector, Calibra has a line to the super mare Margaret Parrish in x-position. This is often a very valuable property. Dam of Calibra is then Albione who has an American sire in the form of Marco Hanover and an American dam in Corsage Hanover. Like most good broodmares, also Albione has several x-factors to at least one good mare, in this case to Dean Hanover’s dam Palestrina. Very few stallions in his time gave a nicer trot to his offspring than Dean Hanover, and his bloodlines are very valuable in the maternal side even today. Dean Hanover is both broodmare sire of Marco Hanover and sire of Corsage Hanover.
Exploit Caf is in my view a product of 100% American bloodlines, and he also confirms the importance of good x-factors in the maternal lines.
9. juni 2008
17. mars 2008
Frozen semen vs race results
I have been following the discussion that the Swedish trainer Anders Lindqvist has startet in his blog on Travnet.se. It reminds me a great deal of the discussions in the US about horses that are produced via ET (Embryo Transfer). There are those who claim that horses resulting from ET have a reduced chance of becoming successful racehorses compared to other horses. In his blog, Lindqvist questions whether or not offspring by top stallions produced with frozen semen are less likely to make it, compared to offspring by the same stallion bred by fresh semen in the country where the stallion is standing. It is very difficult for me to accept the idea that the freezing of semen would in any way destroy the genetic code that the offspring inherits from its sire. The genetic source (DNA) from the sire is exactly the same regardless of how the semen has been treated. If DNA changes or is damaged in this process, the mares simply will not become pregnant or they will reabsorb/abort because the fetus is not fit to develop.
What this discussion tells me, is the fact that too many breeders in Scandinavia using frozen semen from the US or France don't know what kind of mares these stallions are suitable for. If you as a mare owner never go out there to see the stallions available, nor their offspring, how can it be possible to make an educated conclusion to whether the stallion suits yourmare or not? Regardless of what stallion you are thinking about, he will not be a good match to all mares. It is vital to choose the correct stallion for your type of mare.
Another element in this is the fact that we in Scandinavia have a completely different stock of mares, pedigree wise, to what they have in the countries where the stallions are standing. If for example the French sire Goetmals Wood produces superb horses when bred with French mares, it doesn't automatically mean that he would cross well with Scandinavian mares by for example Super Arnie, Spotlite Lobell, Super News or Carmody Lobell.
I have also noticed claims stating that using a stallion to breed a lot of mares (several hundred per season) gives poorer quality foals. I would counter this claim by saying that a lot of the mares a stallion like this would get in such a situation with very high numbers, would then be mares that don't cross well with him, and that the only thing thinning out the semen means is that fewer mares get in foal. The foals that are born share the same geneticfoundation from their sire as their older siblings have.
What this discussion tells me, is the fact that too many breeders in Scandinavia using frozen semen from the US or France don't know what kind of mares these stallions are suitable for. If you as a mare owner never go out there to see the stallions available, nor their offspring, how can it be possible to make an educated conclusion to whether the stallion suits yourmare or not? Regardless of what stallion you are thinking about, he will not be a good match to all mares. It is vital to choose the correct stallion for your type of mare.
Another element in this is the fact that we in Scandinavia have a completely different stock of mares, pedigree wise, to what they have in the countries where the stallions are standing. If for example the French sire Goetmals Wood produces superb horses when bred with French mares, it doesn't automatically mean that he would cross well with Scandinavian mares by for example Super Arnie, Spotlite Lobell, Super News or Carmody Lobell.
I have also noticed claims stating that using a stallion to breed a lot of mares (several hundred per season) gives poorer quality foals. I would counter this claim by saying that a lot of the mares a stallion like this would get in such a situation with very high numbers, would then be mares that don't cross well with him, and that the only thing thinning out the semen means is that fewer mares get in foal. The foals that are born share the same geneticfoundation from their sire as their older siblings have.
2. januar 2008
Top performers in North America
I’ve spent this afternoon making lists of the richest horses in North America 2007 (see ”Best Horses” on Worldoftrotters.com). It seems like a lot of people are most interested in the final sire statistics, i.e. which stallion will be champion each year, but for me it isn’t significant what stallion becomes champion sire. If I am to draw a conclusion about a stallion I need to look at the performances of each of his crops separately. This way I can find a pattern to the properties the stallion has as a sire.
When it comes to Champion sire of North America 2007, Andover Hall has expectedly taken this title. Keeping in mind his first crop were only 3-year-olds, what he has done in 2007 it is an amazing achievement. Muscles Yankee did the same in 2003, and one can only bow down to such breeding results. In comparison, runner up for the champion title in 2007 is Angus Hall. He had five crops at racing age (f.2001-2005) in 2007. This means that these five crops put together made a total amount of money that is smaller than the two crops by Andover Hall did (f.2004 and 2005). Both Andover Hall and Angus Hall are outstanding sires, but it is important to look at the whole picture.
Another thing that it is important to be aware of when looking at stallion statistics in North America is what kind of money the stallion’s offspring have the opportunity to race for. In general the various states in the USA can be compared to Europe with different countries. To explain it in a different way, we can’t compare what the Norwegian best horses of each crop can make money wise, to those of Sweden, France and Italy. This is because the horses can make so much more money in other European countries than they can in Norway. Should we make a list of the richest 3-year-olds in Europe, the best Norwegian horse, Lucky Buck, would probably not even make it in the top 20.
In North America, like European countries, the difference in total purse money is very big from state to state. This clearly reflects in the prices obtained for yearlings at the sales. Most people buy a youngster hoping it will eventually race in the Hambletonian, Breeders’ Crown, Kentucky Futurity etc. – races that are open to all horses taking part in the Grand Circuit. We can compare these races with the Swedish E3-races, Gran Premio Orsi Mangelli, and in Norway, the Ulf Thoresen Memorial which is an open race for all 3-year-olds. But everybody knows that most of the youngsters will never be able to compete in these races, and therefore, the stakes races in each state is a good consolation. In Europe these races are closed for horses not bred in the particular country, and can be compared to the sire stakes of North America. Yearlings in North America eligible to the New York and Ontario Sire Stakes programs will in general fetch a lot more money at the sales than the yearlings eligible for the New Jersey Sire Stakes program will. The Kentucky Sire Stakes is even poorer, but clearly on the increase. Also the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes will have a lot more to race in the next few years than they have had so far.
So what determines what Sire Stakes the youngsters are eligible for? It all comes down to what state the sire was standing in. This way foals by Credit Winner and Conway Hall are eligible to the New York Sire Stakes program, and foals by Kadabra, Angus Hall and Striking Sahbra in Ontario, have a big advantage vs. foals sired by stallions like Muscles Yankee, Yankee Glide and Self Possessed in New Jersey. The latter three encounters a lot of competition and smaller purses in the New Jersey Sire Stakes, and will depend more on racing in the Grand Circuit to make a living. This is one of the factors one needs to be aware of when looking at stallion stats, the same reason that US buyers are willing to pay more for a yearling eligible to the best possible Sire Stakes program.
The way I see the list of the richest horses in North America in 2007, is that they are clearly a result of what I have discussed above. Amongst the 20 two-year-olds, Kadabra is sire of four, Angus Hall is sire of three, and two are sired by Striking Sahbra. This means that nine horses out of 20 are in the list simply from what they have made in the Ontario Sire Stakes program. What impresses me is the five New Jersey-sired horses that have made the top twenty by making their earnings in the hardest Grand Circuit competition. Snow White is an incredible talent and has flattened all competition in all the big Grand Circuit races for 2-year-old fillies in 2007, and will possibly compare muscles with the colts in 2008. Deweycheatumnhowe won the Breeders Crown and is undefeated in his 10 races at two. Muscovite won the Merrie Annabelle Trot and Blue York Yankee won the Peter Haughton Memorial. The best foals by Andover Hall, Broadway Hall, Lindy Lane and SJ’s Caviar are probably as good as the foals by the Ontario stallions, even though the latter race for larger purses and have higher earnings. This because the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes (where Andover Hall, Broadway Hall, Lindy Lane and SJ’s Caviar are standing) yet can’t be compared with Ontario Sire Stakes when it comes to earning potential.
Now that an increasing number of stallions are available by imported (frozen) semen in Europe, it is important to take these facts into consideration when analyzing each stallion, unless you are happy to ride the popular wave and choose the stallion that is the hottest the year you breed your mare.
When it comes to Champion sire of North America 2007, Andover Hall has expectedly taken this title. Keeping in mind his first crop were only 3-year-olds, what he has done in 2007 it is an amazing achievement. Muscles Yankee did the same in 2003, and one can only bow down to such breeding results. In comparison, runner up for the champion title in 2007 is Angus Hall. He had five crops at racing age (f.2001-2005) in 2007. This means that these five crops put together made a total amount of money that is smaller than the two crops by Andover Hall did (f.2004 and 2005). Both Andover Hall and Angus Hall are outstanding sires, but it is important to look at the whole picture.
Another thing that it is important to be aware of when looking at stallion statistics in North America is what kind of money the stallion’s offspring have the opportunity to race for. In general the various states in the USA can be compared to Europe with different countries. To explain it in a different way, we can’t compare what the Norwegian best horses of each crop can make money wise, to those of Sweden, France and Italy. This is because the horses can make so much more money in other European countries than they can in Norway. Should we make a list of the richest 3-year-olds in Europe, the best Norwegian horse, Lucky Buck, would probably not even make it in the top 20.
In North America, like European countries, the difference in total purse money is very big from state to state. This clearly reflects in the prices obtained for yearlings at the sales. Most people buy a youngster hoping it will eventually race in the Hambletonian, Breeders’ Crown, Kentucky Futurity etc. – races that are open to all horses taking part in the Grand Circuit. We can compare these races with the Swedish E3-races, Gran Premio Orsi Mangelli, and in Norway, the Ulf Thoresen Memorial which is an open race for all 3-year-olds. But everybody knows that most of the youngsters will never be able to compete in these races, and therefore, the stakes races in each state is a good consolation. In Europe these races are closed for horses not bred in the particular country, and can be compared to the sire stakes of North America. Yearlings in North America eligible to the New York and Ontario Sire Stakes programs will in general fetch a lot more money at the sales than the yearlings eligible for the New Jersey Sire Stakes program will. The Kentucky Sire Stakes is even poorer, but clearly on the increase. Also the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes will have a lot more to race in the next few years than they have had so far.
So what determines what Sire Stakes the youngsters are eligible for? It all comes down to what state the sire was standing in. This way foals by Credit Winner and Conway Hall are eligible to the New York Sire Stakes program, and foals by Kadabra, Angus Hall and Striking Sahbra in Ontario, have a big advantage vs. foals sired by stallions like Muscles Yankee, Yankee Glide and Self Possessed in New Jersey. The latter three encounters a lot of competition and smaller purses in the New Jersey Sire Stakes, and will depend more on racing in the Grand Circuit to make a living. This is one of the factors one needs to be aware of when looking at stallion stats, the same reason that US buyers are willing to pay more for a yearling eligible to the best possible Sire Stakes program.
The way I see the list of the richest horses in North America in 2007, is that they are clearly a result of what I have discussed above. Amongst the 20 two-year-olds, Kadabra is sire of four, Angus Hall is sire of three, and two are sired by Striking Sahbra. This means that nine horses out of 20 are in the list simply from what they have made in the Ontario Sire Stakes program. What impresses me is the five New Jersey-sired horses that have made the top twenty by making their earnings in the hardest Grand Circuit competition. Snow White is an incredible talent and has flattened all competition in all the big Grand Circuit races for 2-year-old fillies in 2007, and will possibly compare muscles with the colts in 2008. Deweycheatumnhowe won the Breeders Crown and is undefeated in his 10 races at two. Muscovite won the Merrie Annabelle Trot and Blue York Yankee won the Peter Haughton Memorial. The best foals by Andover Hall, Broadway Hall, Lindy Lane and SJ’s Caviar are probably as good as the foals by the Ontario stallions, even though the latter race for larger purses and have higher earnings. This because the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes (where Andover Hall, Broadway Hall, Lindy Lane and SJ’s Caviar are standing) yet can’t be compared with Ontario Sire Stakes when it comes to earning potential.
Now that an increasing number of stallions are available by imported (frozen) semen in Europe, it is important to take these facts into consideration when analyzing each stallion, unless you are happy to ride the popular wave and choose the stallion that is the hottest the year you breed your mare.
27. desember 2007
Bob Marks: Match Making
It is the time of year when a lot of breeders are thinking about choosing stallions for the next breeding season. I have asked Bob Marks of Perretti Farms in New Jersey, USA, to throw in a few general thoughts. Bob is one of the most respected people in American trotting, so it is a pleasure for us to forward some of his thoughts around the subject of selecting horses for breeding.
”Mares should have fluid gait. It is very important that our yearlings video as well as possible, so from that perspective we want good gaited mares with the best possible conformation. Small mares often breed small foals, consequently we prefer larger mares, though won't eliminate a smaller one if it has great pedigree. Since it is difficult to see a mature horse and imagine what it looked like as a yearling, we view a large number of yearlings each fall since these fillies will be potential broodmares at a later stage. The same goes for stallions. It is very important to know what the breeding stock looked like as youngsters for thats what their offspring will be like in the auction ring.
I would say that you learn from seeing a significant number of youngsters and and correlate how they perform at the racetrack. Some blood lines (this applies to maternal lines as well as sire lines) seem to function despite conformational flaws, while others with the same flaws are chronically sore. For example Muscles Yankee's, right front hoof is a bit clubby. He himself had no problems when racing, and his offspring tend not to either. Therefore the point is really to individualize, and not generalize when choosing breeding stock. It is important to have as much possible knowledge about the background of each individual and the horses in their pedigree.
Regarding sire lines, note when the stallion had his best performances and expect his foals to behave likewise when it comes down to their own development, toughness and gait. Some horses come to their speed early on and don't improve much with maturity. Others develop later and continue to get better with an extra year of seasoning. I won’t be surprised if Cantab Hall has superb 2-year-olds in 2008 and that our own Windsong’s Legacy's foals will show up better as 3-year-olds in 2009. Much as they themselves did.
It's not always possible but we try to avoid stallions that weren't fighters on the racetrack, in addition to those lacking fluid gait.
As we are manufacturing sale yearlings, we utilize the more commercial stallions. Therefore we look for multi dimensional mares who might match up with a variety of studs instead of being limited to just one specific male line.
”Mares should have fluid gait. It is very important that our yearlings video as well as possible, so from that perspective we want good gaited mares with the best possible conformation. Small mares often breed small foals, consequently we prefer larger mares, though won't eliminate a smaller one if it has great pedigree. Since it is difficult to see a mature horse and imagine what it looked like as a yearling, we view a large number of yearlings each fall since these fillies will be potential broodmares at a later stage. The same goes for stallions. It is very important to know what the breeding stock looked like as youngsters for thats what their offspring will be like in the auction ring.
I would say that you learn from seeing a significant number of youngsters and and correlate how they perform at the racetrack. Some blood lines (this applies to maternal lines as well as sire lines) seem to function despite conformational flaws, while others with the same flaws are chronically sore. For example Muscles Yankee's, right front hoof is a bit clubby. He himself had no problems when racing, and his offspring tend not to either. Therefore the point is really to individualize, and not generalize when choosing breeding stock. It is important to have as much possible knowledge about the background of each individual and the horses in their pedigree.
Regarding sire lines, note when the stallion had his best performances and expect his foals to behave likewise when it comes down to their own development, toughness and gait. Some horses come to their speed early on and don't improve much with maturity. Others develop later and continue to get better with an extra year of seasoning. I won’t be surprised if Cantab Hall has superb 2-year-olds in 2008 and that our own Windsong’s Legacy's foals will show up better as 3-year-olds in 2009. Much as they themselves did.
It's not always possible but we try to avoid stallions that weren't fighters on the racetrack, in addition to those lacking fluid gait.
As we are manufacturing sale yearlings, we utilize the more commercial stallions. Therefore we look for multi dimensional mares who might match up with a variety of studs instead of being limited to just one specific male line.
Bob Marks, dec'07
17. desember 2007
Progress in breeding and US bloodlines
I thought I would write a few words today about what I consider progress in breeding, and what for me are the basics for choosing a stallion for a mare. These are general thoughts that apply regardless if you are talking about coldbloods or standardbred trotters.
There is always something in each horse that can be improved, and to improve the weakest point in your mare is something that should be of importance. This means that the stallion will have the properties that she lacks, but he should also have the same good properties that the mare has, so that their offspring has a greater chance of inheriting this. Confirmation, gait and properties as a racehorse (early/late developed, speedy vs strong etc) and the temperament in a race situation are very important issues, and applies to both mare and stallion. The pedigree is also important because the mentioned properties in the pedigrees of the two horses you are combining determine the product.
For a mare and stallion who not yet have any offspring racing, it is difficult to tell what characteristics and properties their foal will have, but you can predict rather a lot if you have a good knowledge og the individuals in the pedigrees of these young horses, and what properties they possess. The bloodlines that have been most distinct and dominating in their properties, will most likely also stay that way in the future.
To me, progress in breeding is producing a horse with an easy gait and a sensible head when racing, combined with a strong will to win. Some horses will develop earlier than others, and to me, the optimal horse is a good 3-year-old that competes in the stakes races of its year, and then develops to be a top horse at 4. I imagine a horse like this will be more likely to establish itself in the elite as aged than that a super 3-year old with a poorer campaign at 4 would. The best 3-year-olds today will normally be bypassed by horses of higher physical capacity, but that has needed more time to bloom. When I choose to use American stallions, in general I will I ”translate” their performances to Norwegian conditions by adding a year to their age. A horse that was unraced in the US at 2, is to me equal to an unraced 3-year-old in Norway. If the horse has been a good 2-year-old in the US, it has the capacity to produce a very good Norwegian 3-year-old. My optimal stallion has very good performances at 2, and these will be confirmed and improved at 3. This shows that the horse has shown the development I want to see in my Norwegian foal. In addition to this, it is important that the stallion has shown good performances on track types that the offspring will be racing at in Scandinavia. This means that it should have good results at 800m (half mile) and 1000m (5/8th mile) tracks. In Europe we have no abbrevation or codes that shows if the record has been set on 800m, 1000m or 1609m tracks, but everybody who are into harness racing knows it has a lot of importance to the record, and it also tells you a great deal about the horse’s gait.
In Norway we also (unfortunately) have a very defensive style of driving in the races. This requires a horse that is fast from the starting gate since a lot of races will then be decided early in the race. In Sweden the style of driving is very different, and powerful horses with a big gait will perform better. I hope the Norwegian driving style could follow the Swedish eventually when we get more and more talented youngsters here, but starting speed is something I feel is very important when choosing breeding stock.
In Norway we still have a few mares with relatively old bloodlines, and we have therefore great use of US bloodlines introducing finer and lighter gait. The past few years we have also had more US bloodlines to our disposal. The widespread inbreeding og Speedy Crown in the 80ies and the 90ies gave a considerably finer gate in the US trotter, and this has opened the oportunities for sire lines that normally wouldn’t give early speed, but that scores higher in toughness and development potential. All the mares with a lot of Speedy Crown matches very well with the Noble Victory sire line via Garland Lobell and his sons Andover Hall, Angus Hall and Conway Hall. They also make good matches for SJ’s Photo and his sons, and also Kadabra who had his first crop of 2-year-olds at the tracks in 2007. That more of these bloodlines are available in Europe only shows the possibilities we have today to produce youngsters with US bloodlines and that also have the properties that we use French stallions to acchieve.
Breeders will spend the next few months finding a suitable stallion for their mares. In this connection I have talked to some very well renowned breeders in the US that I can quote here on Worldoftrotters.com. Bob Marks is marketing director of Perretti Farms in New Jersey, thay are standing Muscles Yankee, Reveniue and Windsong’s Legacy. Perretti Farms is one of the largest breeders in the US, and Bob Marks is often published in American harness publications. Additionally, Pete Spears, breeder of a.o. Windsong’s Legacy and Rotation, will provide his reflections on different issues.
Kind regards, Tina
There is always something in each horse that can be improved, and to improve the weakest point in your mare is something that should be of importance. This means that the stallion will have the properties that she lacks, but he should also have the same good properties that the mare has, so that their offspring has a greater chance of inheriting this. Confirmation, gait and properties as a racehorse (early/late developed, speedy vs strong etc) and the temperament in a race situation are very important issues, and applies to both mare and stallion. The pedigree is also important because the mentioned properties in the pedigrees of the two horses you are combining determine the product.
For a mare and stallion who not yet have any offspring racing, it is difficult to tell what characteristics and properties their foal will have, but you can predict rather a lot if you have a good knowledge og the individuals in the pedigrees of these young horses, and what properties they possess. The bloodlines that have been most distinct and dominating in their properties, will most likely also stay that way in the future.
To me, progress in breeding is producing a horse with an easy gait and a sensible head when racing, combined with a strong will to win. Some horses will develop earlier than others, and to me, the optimal horse is a good 3-year-old that competes in the stakes races of its year, and then develops to be a top horse at 4. I imagine a horse like this will be more likely to establish itself in the elite as aged than that a super 3-year old with a poorer campaign at 4 would. The best 3-year-olds today will normally be bypassed by horses of higher physical capacity, but that has needed more time to bloom. When I choose to use American stallions, in general I will I ”translate” their performances to Norwegian conditions by adding a year to their age. A horse that was unraced in the US at 2, is to me equal to an unraced 3-year-old in Norway. If the horse has been a good 2-year-old in the US, it has the capacity to produce a very good Norwegian 3-year-old. My optimal stallion has very good performances at 2, and these will be confirmed and improved at 3. This shows that the horse has shown the development I want to see in my Norwegian foal. In addition to this, it is important that the stallion has shown good performances on track types that the offspring will be racing at in Scandinavia. This means that it should have good results at 800m (half mile) and 1000m (5/8th mile) tracks. In Europe we have no abbrevation or codes that shows if the record has been set on 800m, 1000m or 1609m tracks, but everybody who are into harness racing knows it has a lot of importance to the record, and it also tells you a great deal about the horse’s gait.
In Norway we also (unfortunately) have a very defensive style of driving in the races. This requires a horse that is fast from the starting gate since a lot of races will then be decided early in the race. In Sweden the style of driving is very different, and powerful horses with a big gait will perform better. I hope the Norwegian driving style could follow the Swedish eventually when we get more and more talented youngsters here, but starting speed is something I feel is very important when choosing breeding stock.
In Norway we still have a few mares with relatively old bloodlines, and we have therefore great use of US bloodlines introducing finer and lighter gait. The past few years we have also had more US bloodlines to our disposal. The widespread inbreeding og Speedy Crown in the 80ies and the 90ies gave a considerably finer gate in the US trotter, and this has opened the oportunities for sire lines that normally wouldn’t give early speed, but that scores higher in toughness and development potential. All the mares with a lot of Speedy Crown matches very well with the Noble Victory sire line via Garland Lobell and his sons Andover Hall, Angus Hall and Conway Hall. They also make good matches for SJ’s Photo and his sons, and also Kadabra who had his first crop of 2-year-olds at the tracks in 2007. That more of these bloodlines are available in Europe only shows the possibilities we have today to produce youngsters with US bloodlines and that also have the properties that we use French stallions to acchieve.
Breeders will spend the next few months finding a suitable stallion for their mares. In this connection I have talked to some very well renowned breeders in the US that I can quote here on Worldoftrotters.com. Bob Marks is marketing director of Perretti Farms in New Jersey, thay are standing Muscles Yankee, Reveniue and Windsong’s Legacy. Perretti Farms is one of the largest breeders in the US, and Bob Marks is often published in American harness publications. Additionally, Pete Spears, breeder of a.o. Windsong’s Legacy and Rotation, will provide his reflections on different issues.
Kind regards, Tina
Vincennes - Criterium des 3ans
To watch racing at Vincennes is one of the best ways to spend leisure time. On ecember 9th the Criterium des 3ans was being held, a race that reveals a lot of future stallions. This is the main race for the 3-year-olds in France. The colts winning this race are normally both strong and early developed, and will naturally bring these properties on to their offspring. This year, the Love You-filly Qualita Bourbon was the big favourite to win. She lost the first race of her career, and came second. A different horse with Coktail Jet as grandsire won, Quaro, who now has EUR 284 500 in the bank. As a response to people who are critical to French horses with US standardbred genes – Quaro not only won, he also set a new race record of 13,6 over 2700m – pretty impressive by a 3-year-old racing on the world’s most challenging harness track. Coktail Jet, whose dam has a full US predigree, is as mentioned Quaro’s grandsire, and Quaro also has Workaholic as sire of dam. His dam Encombevineuse is also dam of the stallion Kinder Jet 5-13,3vL / EUR 466 928, winner of a.o. Criterium des Jenues (Gr.1). All the horses that occupied first, second and third place in this race, are results of a successful cross between US and French blood lines. The previous race record was held by Pearl Queen (Workaholic as grandsire) in 15,0 / 2700m.
1. desember 2007
US versus French trotters
One of the blogs I enjoy reading the most is published on Travnet.se, and it is by the Swedish trainer Anders Linqvist, who is based in France. To read his thoughts and reflections on various issues in the harness world, and particularly with a great deal of information from France, this is something I appreciate a lot, and it is a unique source of information.
However, I did recently read in his blog that the French trainers are starting to get frustrated over the fact that they feel it was much easier before to eliminate French youngsters from training at an early stage. This is because the trainers could easily spot if the horse did or did not have the gait that was needed to become a successful trotter. Now that more and more US blood is mixed into the French trotter, and more and more breeding on the same US bloolines is a reality, more or less all youngsters look talented and promising. This is apparently something not all French trainers are happy about. The French trainer referred to in the blog is of the opinion that the French horses with US blood has a lot of talent, but “no will”. He feels they don’t WANT to race.
I feel this is a very unfair way to view the Standardbred trotter. Of course, a generalization like this would be unfair.. and we must not forget how different the development, training, racing and track conditions are in North America compared to France. The US trotter is being bred and is trained for talent. There are new aids to help achieve this invented all the time (the latest being the trotting hobbles discussed in the previous blog). I have worked a lot with US standardbreds, and you very rarely come across a horse that don’t want to trot. The individuals that do want a lot, and that are talented, are unfortunately subject to a lot of pressure and hard training at a very young age, and this way a lot of them are broken down mentally when their health subsides. The same will happen to a Swedish or French horse under the same circumstances, but it is of course more difficult to break down a French horse that won’t race under 1.25 KR regardless of what you do to help it along.
My point is that we mustn’t forget that the US trotter makes most of its earning because it is early developed, and that no tree grows up into the sky. To ask that the earliest and best youngsters in the US also should have the development and stamina to be on top at the age of 5 or 6 or beyond, is simply asking too much. But look at horses like Moni Maker and Mr Muscleman. Extremely good racehorses as aged, and that were top of their crops at 3, but who weren’t subjected to the hardest training and racing as 2-year-olds due to their size. In France they normally don’t ask for the max from their 2- and 3-year-olds. They wait and give them time, but then perhaps horses with more French blood in their pedigrees will have developed year by year. Also, in the US they don’t race distances of several miles and using the whole width of the track like they do in France.
In other words, I think we should enjoy and take advantage of the different qualities we can introduce into our trotters with US versus French blood. The two breeds complement each other extremely well, something we have a large number of examples of. It is up to the French trainers to get accustomed to and plan the training of the more talented youngsters than what they have been used to in the past. It is not a bad thing if one is constructive and takes advantage of the possibilities it gives you.
However, I did recently read in his blog that the French trainers are starting to get frustrated over the fact that they feel it was much easier before to eliminate French youngsters from training at an early stage. This is because the trainers could easily spot if the horse did or did not have the gait that was needed to become a successful trotter. Now that more and more US blood is mixed into the French trotter, and more and more breeding on the same US bloolines is a reality, more or less all youngsters look talented and promising. This is apparently something not all French trainers are happy about. The French trainer referred to in the blog is of the opinion that the French horses with US blood has a lot of talent, but “no will”. He feels they don’t WANT to race.
I feel this is a very unfair way to view the Standardbred trotter. Of course, a generalization like this would be unfair.. and we must not forget how different the development, training, racing and track conditions are in North America compared to France. The US trotter is being bred and is trained for talent. There are new aids to help achieve this invented all the time (the latest being the trotting hobbles discussed in the previous blog). I have worked a lot with US standardbreds, and you very rarely come across a horse that don’t want to trot. The individuals that do want a lot, and that are talented, are unfortunately subject to a lot of pressure and hard training at a very young age, and this way a lot of them are broken down mentally when their health subsides. The same will happen to a Swedish or French horse under the same circumstances, but it is of course more difficult to break down a French horse that won’t race under 1.25 KR regardless of what you do to help it along.
My point is that we mustn’t forget that the US trotter makes most of its earning because it is early developed, and that no tree grows up into the sky. To ask that the earliest and best youngsters in the US also should have the development and stamina to be on top at the age of 5 or 6 or beyond, is simply asking too much. But look at horses like Moni Maker and Mr Muscleman. Extremely good racehorses as aged, and that were top of their crops at 3, but who weren’t subjected to the hardest training and racing as 2-year-olds due to their size. In France they normally don’t ask for the max from their 2- and 3-year-olds. They wait and give them time, but then perhaps horses with more French blood in their pedigrees will have developed year by year. Also, in the US they don’t race distances of several miles and using the whole width of the track like they do in France.
In other words, I think we should enjoy and take advantage of the different qualities we can introduce into our trotters with US versus French blood. The two breeds complement each other extremely well, something we have a large number of examples of. It is up to the French trainers to get accustomed to and plan the training of the more talented youngsters than what they have been used to in the past. It is not a bad thing if one is constructive and takes advantage of the possibilities it gives you.
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