She is strong , looks like a colt. Is a great moving filly and has a terrific work ethic. Once again looks 2 year old material Photo by Stuart McCormick
The Melbourne version of the Annual APG Yearling Sales will be held this Sunday and with an earlier start than in past years - 10am.
Her now is Part Three in a look at the Girls who are prepping many of the youngsters for the Melbourne Sale. These three girls form the younger brigade and their comments are well worth paying attention to.
EILISH JUDD - BENSTUD STANDARDBREDS
Being a third generation member of the Judd family must have made the lifestyle of working with horses a living certainty.
Eilish Judd , who is now in her third year post schooling has had some outstanding teachers in her Mum and Dad , Renee and Craig as well as Poppy Peter.
It is now thirteen years since the Judd family purchased the highly productive farm in the Goulburn Valley region of Victoria , that was known for years before as Lynrose Stud.
“ I have lived here for a big part of my life now and just love working with the horses. Watching them grow from foals to yearlings and then following them on the racetrack is so rewarding “ said Eilish this week.
“ I have been lucky enough to work on the preparation of horses such as Heaven Rocks , Centenario and Philadelphia Man. “
Some people might be worried about the number 13 (the 13th year of Benstud ) but we doubt there will be too much “ bad luck “ with the brilliant draft of 16 yearlings that Benstud will bring to Melbourne on Sunday.
Eilish has an excellent co preparer in her Uncle Mark [ Commadeur ] so you know you can inspect the Benstud yearlings with sky high confidence.
Three of the yearlings are headed for the Trotting sale which is likely to commence around 5 30pm next Sunday. They are all sired by the new sensation of Trotting Sires , Father Patrick.
Then there are three Pacing Fillies and ten Pacing Colts to complete the draft. Having seen all the yearlings about a month ago , I knew it would be a difficult decision for Eilish to make when quizzing her about her favourites.
A month ago she really liked LOT 77 , a Rock N Roll Heaven colt from Arty Chick. She still does but cant quite squeeze him into her top three colts now. The top three include LOT 87 , a Captain colt from Beninjured and also LOT 167 , the Christmas Day foal from Mint Julep by Art Major.
So now Eilish , time to put your Tips on the line :
Eilish’s Selections.
Pacing Filly - LOT 98 Captaintreacherous – Celebrity Lass.
“ Strong type and both smart and willing .”
Pacing Colt - LOT 112 Captaintreacherous - Eye Catching
“ His Mum’s name says it all. This colt is super smart with a super work ethic. “
Trotting Filly - LOT 305 Father Patrick - Social Fireball.
“ A really intelligent filly with a great work ethic . “
COURTNEY SLATER - GOODTIME RACING
When you name your property or business enterprise with the moniker of Goodtime , you envisage its owners are thoroughly enjoying their life style.
In the case of Courtney Slater and her partner of 17 years Mark Driscoll - you bet – they love what they are doing. Courtney has the Trainers License , Mark is fast developing or already has the reputation as one of the best Educators of young horses in Victoria and somewhere in amongst the daily horse activities , Courtney is finding time to prep 10 yearlings for the Melbourne APG Sale on Sunday.
Courtney was born into the world of horses. She recalls as a young girl sitting on her Grandfathers lap whilst he was jogging horse around the Terang track.
Then there were days of heading to Shows in Southern Victoria with her Auntie and their horses.
Courtney’s mother and father , Judy and Ian , are now standing stallions such as Guaranteed , Restrepo and Cardigan Boko at their Goodtime Lodge property at Colac in Victoria. Ian recently added another horse to the portfolio when he purchased the top priced LOT at last Sundays Queensland Sale.
Courtney has been prepping Yearlings on and off for the past 10 years , but certainly this year with a team of ten will be her biggest impact at the Sales.
“ It has been a real delight this year working with these four Colts and six Fillies. There manners are superb , their work ethic is unquestionable and I just love them all .” said Courtney earlier this week.
Now the difficult part of our interview was persuading Courtney to name just one or two of each sex that she fancied just a wee bit more than the others.
So here goes with the Colts - she did agree that LOT 246 by Art Major from Tigress Franco is just a oh so handsome lad with massive presence about him and a colt you have to admire.
“ I think he has the physical conformation as well that will allow him to be an early runner . “
To the fillies and again it was difficult for Courtney to single out any particular girl but we did manage to glean these words of wisdom.
“ LOT 140 , an American Ideal from Im Elsa is a great moving filly with lots of length to her. She loves her work and daily routine.
LOT 130 is by Guaranteed and is a tall , athletic and attractive filly. She could be the dark horse of my draft. “
And then to a colt and filly that maybe put a little twinkle in Courtney’s eye.
Courtney’s Selections.
COLT - LOT 135 Always B Miki – Graces Beach.
“ He is a great moving horse , paces free legged on the jogger and has a terrific attitude. He gives me the impression he will be a ready made 2 year old type .”
FILLY - LOT 165 Rock N Roll Heaven - Married To The Mob.
“ She is strong , looks like a colt. Is a great moving filly and has a terrific work ethic. Once again looks 2 year old material . “
HALEY LANG - OAKBANK ESTATE
Haley Lang has a pedigree of her own that is saturated in Harness Racing participation.
Her Mum and Dad , Louise and Gary Toulmin , have been breeding , breaking in and preparing yearlings for the past 20 or so years.
Louise of course has been a popular employee of APG for many years now. Haley’s younger sister Alana is the Futurities Manager for HRNSW and a regular in the APG Office on Sales day.
Haley’s husband Chris Lang is a son of Chris ( Snr ) , grandson of Graeme and nephew of Gavin - all Legends of Harness Racing over the past 50 years.
So it was a no brainer that Haley found herself working in the Harness Racing Industry even though she did gain a Nursing Degree after her schooling had finished.
Haley recently ( 3 months ago ) added a new face to the Lang family with the birth of her and Chris’s first child - a lovely little girl called Sienna.
However Yearling Sale time arrived and so Haley , who had been prepping yearlings for the past 15 years , put on her working gear to put the polish on seven yearlings for Sunday’s sale.
Two of those yearlings , the property of Chris and Haley , are heading to the Trotting sale with the remaining five being Pacers ( 2 fillies , 3 colts ).
“ They are a lovely group of youngsters to work with and I like all of them “ said Haley yesterday.
“ LOT 176 – a Hes Watching colt owned by Mum and Dad is such a lovely looking lad. He is certainly one of my favourites and there is a lot to like about him . “
Haley’s Selections.
Pacing Colt - LOT 145 Always B Miki - Jazzam.
“ He is tall , strongly built and an impressive colt. He is also a terrific mover and from a mare who won a heap of races .”
Pacing Filly - LOT 218 Sunshine Beach – Shezaterror.
“ Wow she is a stunner to look at. Has athleticism and looks an early type. She is bred on the exact same cross as a 2 year old who was super impressive Trial winner at Menangle today [ 28th Jan ] in 1.53.9 “
Trotting Colt - LOT 291 Andover hall – Miss Warbucks.
“We have tried breeding an Andover hall before without any luck. This colt has been worth the wait. We think he is quite special . “
We will have online and telephone bidding options available if you are unable to attend. If you have any issues with the online registrations, I have personally inspected all of the Melbourne yearlings and will be pleased to answer any questions that you may have on the individuals featuring in the sale, or to bid on your behalf. John can be contacted on 0418 500 211.
Please phone Louise Toulmin on 0400 950 699 or e-mail her at louiset@apgold.com.au and she’ll be pleased to assist you with your pre-sale bidding approvals or to answer any other questions that you may have.
