Summer 2016 Newsletter - Kennet Valley Thoroughbreds

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KENNET VALLEY
THOROUGHBREDS
SUMMER
2016
NEWSLETTER
Tullius battling to a great win in the Diomed Stakes (Group 3)
A Group of Wins
Welcome to KVT’s summer newsletter and with a fantastic start to the season
highlighted by a trio of Group wins, we will be keeping everything crossed that
the second half of the year can exceed expectations too.
Older Horses
TULLIUS fittingly kicked off the
2016 season for KVT when having a
crack at the Winter Derby (Group 3)
in February, although his 5lb penalty
proved too much against younger legs
and a similar story was to ensue for
much of the spring despite solid runs
at St Cloud in March and Newmarket
in April when third. One would not
have been speaking out of turn to
say that the experienced campaigner,
now aged eight, was perhaps not the
horse he was. However his masterful
handler, Andrew Balding, had been
murmuring for a while that he felt
we still had a trick up our sleeve
courtesy of the possible application
of headgear, something his late
sire Le Vie Dei Colori improved
markedly for. And so the visor was
fitted for the Diomed Stakes (Group
3) at Epsom and what happened
next was something very special.
The rejuvenated Tullius travelled
ominously well into the race before
quickening up to take a gap between
two fine horses in Custom Cut and
Decorated Knight to get up on the
line to score a nail biting victory. The
thrill as the photo finish result was
read out was an incredible moment
and one to savour for many years
to come.
Two -Year - Olds
BOHEMIAN FLAME was
a winner on debut in May at
Salisbury which was hugely
exciting for his partners, a
number of whom are new
to KVT. Moving onto the
National Stakes (Listed) at
Sandown where he was the
most inexperienced in the lineup, the colt ran a cracker to
finish third, one place behind
the subsequent dual Group 2
winner Mehmas. Bohemian
Flame bypassed Royal Ascot
to take his chance in a red
hot renewal of the July Stakes
(Group 2) where he was far
from disgraced. A further step
up in trip is likely to prove
beneficial for this son of Zoffany
who remains a very exciting
prospect.
Magical Memory taking the Duke of York Stakes (Group 2) in style
MAGICAL MEMORY began
this season with far higher
targets than the previous year
when he started off as an
87-rated handicapper. With
this expectation came pressure,
although nobody remembered
to tell this to our wonderful
grey who, handled brilliantly
by Charlie Hills, strode to two
fine victories in the Abernant
Stakes (Group 3) in April
and the Duke Of York Stakes
(Group 2) in May. The stage
was set for Royal Ascot where
‘Magic’ went off 3-1 favourite
for his excited owners. Having
broken a shade tardily, he
was not suited by the slow
pace but still made up a huge
amount of ground effortlessly
to look a big danger at the
furlong pole before coming
home fourth, beaten less than
a length. Things did not go
right for him again in the July
Cup, but he remains a horse of
a lifetime with the sprinting
world potentially at his feet
for many years to come as his
regular jockey Frankie Dettori
has mentioned a number of
times.
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FRENCHMAN has promised
a lot, but he has not quite
fulfilled his potential yet with
his maiden win at Lingfield
in May and subsequent close
second on handicap debut at
Goodwood proving his career
highlights to date. Charlie is
hopeful he can improve again
this autumn, perhaps back on
a turning track and with the
option of running on an allweather surface which seems
to suit.
Ralph Beckett was bullish
about MATCH MY FIRE ’ s
prospects over the winter
and his fourth on seasonal
debut at Nottingham in April
did nothing to dampen our
enthusiasm. However, after a
subsequent loss of confidence
at home, a decision was made
to give Match My Fire a
change of scenery. He was sent
to Hetta Stevens’ Robins Farm
where he enjoyed a more varied
routine and has since returned
to Kimpton in good health
ready for what we hope will
prove to be a profitable autumn
campaign.
SIGNAL HILL was highly
touted in the spring at Kingsclere
with Andrew mentioning him
as a similar sort to Bishop’s
Leap, who won three for KVT
last season before being sold to
Hong Kong for a considerable
sum. Signal Hill has not shown
this promise on the track so
far and whilst we hope he can
turn things around this autumn
following a recent break, he will
be off to the horses in training
sales in October.
Frenchman, off the mark at Lingfield
THE BIG SHORT as his
name suggests, is a sizeable
chap who showed Charlie Hills
plenty at home before making
his debut at Haydock in late
May. Displaying an abundance
of speed early on, he ran with
the choke out and did not
quite get home, something
that could also be said about
his next two starts at Salisbury
and Epsom, the latter where he
was a promising third. He has
since been gelded and will be
given plenty of time. He has the
potential to make a big impact
off his initial rating before
improving through the sprint
handicap ranks next season.
from the homework of this
attractive colt but, after his
slightly disappointing debut,
it transpired all was not one
hundred percent with his
action. Having been trained
PERCY THROWER blotted largely on the treadmill since,
his copybook in the spring he has been moving better and
with some coltish behaviour we hope he will be given the
giving
Charlie’s wife Pippa a green light to resume racing
Another game performance from Stroke of Midnight at Lingfield
close shave on one occasion in soon.
particular. Since being gelded,
‘Percy’ has never looked back Of our three unraced twoand has gone from strength to year-olds to date, SOCIAL
strength at home both physically SECRETARY, having showed
and attitude-wise. He went on up nicely in her work this
to make his racecourse debut spring, has been given time
in early August at Salisbury to mature after a training
where he finished his race in setback. GORHAM’S CAVE
eyecatching style. With stamina is a lovely colt who has done
in abundance on the dams’ side everything that has been asked
of his pedigree, it is all about of him to date at Roger Varian’s.
next season with him where he Affectionately known as ‘Rocky’,
can hopefully reach the heights this May foal was always going
of his talented half-brothers to need time but is a good
Dubday and Dannyday.
prospect. The latter comments
also apply to CONTANGO
DANDY ROLL was our who is another with bundles of
first two-year-old to make scope and who may not be far
his debut back in April. The off a debut.
vibes were very positive
Bohemian Flame wins on debut at Salisbury
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2017
Partnerships
The yearlings will be on show
at our annual yearling parades
at Ardington House on 20th
October and at Newbury
Racecourse on 22nd October. If
you are interested in reserving
a share or have any questions
regarding the new partnerships,
please contact Sam Hoskins.
Current Shares
For Sale
William Knight who will train
for KVT in 2017
We have recently launched
our new partnerships to race
in 2017 and will be acquiring
six yearlings from the major
sales who will be trained
by our established roster
of Andrew Balding, Ralph
Beckett, Charlie Hills and
Roger Varian. In addition
we will be sending a horse to
William Knight who trains
at the historic Angmering
Park.
Contango cantering on the downs
We have a few shares remaining
in Contango (2014 ch c by
Casamento ex Call Later). His
sire, Casamento, who made a
winning debut in August of
his two-year-old season before
going onto win The Racing
Post Trophy (Group 1), has
now sired seven individual
winners from his first crop of
runners. Trained by Andrew
Balding, Contango is a striking
individual who goes well at
home and should be ready to
run in the next month or so.
This partnership comprises
of sixteen shares at a cost per
share of £8,250.
Out and About
Partners at Percy Thrower’s Salisbury debut
Summer racing at Bath
KVT Partners on the winner’s rostrum with The Duke of York
Diomed Stakes (Group 3) winners
In full flow
Magical Memory leads the KVT string at Faringdon Place
Celebrations
Third place in the National
Stakes
Abernant Stakes (Group 3) winners
Magic does it again
Dates for
the Diary
TRAINER FOCUS
William Knight
Angmering Park will be an
appealing one.
William set up on his own in
2006 having spent his formative
years in the industry as assistant
to leading handlers John Hills
and Ed Dunlop. He has swiftly
developed a reputation as one of
British racing’s most promising
trainers with Illustrious Blue
being his biggest success
story to date with wins in the
Goodwood Cup (Group 2) and
the Sagaro Stakes (Group 3).
William Knight with first lot
William Knight will be new to
the KVT training ranks in 2017
and we are confident that the
opportunity to have a horse
with a young trainer going
places based at the historic
Angmering Park is a sporting
estate owned by The Duke of
Norfolk and former inhabitants
include his aunt, Lady Herries,
who sent out a plethora of
winners during her time there
including the likes of Celtic
Swing and Sherrif ’s Star.
William has full use of the
estate’s magnificent facilities
which include two all-weather
gallops, one of which has been
recently resurfaced.
With approximately sixty horses
in his care, William and his wife
Emily always offer a really warm
welcome at Lower Coombe
Stables with owners having the
chance to be involved in a small
friendly team where it is easier
to meet the individual demands
of each horse.
We are extremely optimistic
that with the combination of
Angmering’s superb facilities
and William’s experience and
enthusiasm, KVT Partners who
invest will have every chance of
success and above all, much
fun too.
Our
annual
Yearling
Parade and Lunch for
partners will be held at
Ardington House, near
Wantage, on Thursday
20th October. We will also,
once again, be holding an
extra parade morning on
Saturday 22nd October
at Newbury Racecourse
for invited guests – if you
would like an invitation,
please apply by emailing
[email protected].
VETERINARY CORNER
To geld or not to geld?
Part of the attraction of the
industry is its uncertainty and
along with the purchase of
every new racing proposition
brings with it the owners hopes
that this will be the one – the
colt that wins Group 1 races and
can then be sold or syndicated
for telephone numbers.
As we all know, the reality
is entirely different and the
likelihood of ever owning or
profiting from such an animal
is highly unlikely, but there is
no more fraught issue between
trainer and owner than the
‘gelding’ one. First off and before
the necessary success at the
highest level on the racecourse,
the animal must possess the
most blue blooded of pedigrees
in order to be marketable as a
stallion – offspring of equine
aristocracy do not come
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cheaply and it is rare that one
will slip through the net unless
there is a very good reason.
Even with the best pedigree and
results, a successful transition
to becoming a stallion is not
guaranteed – conformational
perfection is also required.
Another overriding consideration
is the temperamental issues
related to keeping horses entire
beyond the age of puberty
(around two years old). Often
a colts’ attitude will interfere
with training as they are too
distracted by their hormones
to settle down and actually
race or keep their minds on
the right job. They can also be
very difficult to handle from
the ground risking the safety
of the staff that look after them
on a daily basis. Testosterone
contributes to some colts
becoming ‘over topped’ and
heavy through their shoulders
therefore
increasing
their
chances of suffering injury.
With all of the above factors
being taken into consideration,
it is no surprise that the large
majority of male three-yearolds in training on the flat are
geldings. They generally stay
sounder, race longer and are
easier to train and with the
industry only requiring one
percent of males to be entire
to shape the breed, do not be
surprised when your trainer
wants to give you the chop.
Probably the most noted
modern day example of a gelded
superstar is the recently retired
ten-year-old Cirrus Des Aigles
who won over £6,000,000 in
prize money. It is highly unlikely
that he would have become the
athlete he was without that
judicious snip as two-year-old
year. This also applies to KVT’s
current flagbearer, Tullius,
whose adolescent exploits as
an entire two-year-old made
most jockey’s run for cover and
convinced connections that ‘to
geld’ was the only option.
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EXPERIENCES
KVT at Breakfast With The Stars
Thanks
to
some
good
connections and a bit of arm
twisting, a healthy group of
KVT Partners attended Epsom’s
Breakfast With The Stars
morning ten days before The
Derby. This really was the
most fantastic opportunity
to witness classic contenders
working on the track, followed
by a delicious breakfast,
live streaming of the press
conference and to finish off, a
power walk round the course
with commentary by Colin
Brown of Desert Orchid fame.
Whilst the eventual 2016 Derby
winner, Harzand, was not in
attendance we did have the
chance to cast an eye over the
prospects of Wings Of Desire
and Cloth Of Stars but the
subsequent Coronation Cup
winner, Postponed, stole the
show, with an easy looking
spin round the track that
really caught the eye. Equally
the Hugo Palmer-trained,
A beautiful morning for Breakfast With The Stars
Architecture, looked impressive
and tempted a good few to
back her in The Oaks at good
each way odds.
sent horses to the track that
morning, were particularly
informative as to how they
thought their animals had
handled the peculiarities of
Roger Varian giving KVT a tour of Kremlin House Stables
Epsom certainly laid on a Epsom.
spectacular breakfast for us
with almost every possible Once fed and watered, Colin
choice on offer which was marched us around the mile
readily consumed during the and a half course giving us an
press conference. Most of the insight into the technicalities
major connections with Derby of riding round the course
runners were interviewed and the difficulties that
and those trainers who had jockeys encountered with the
undulations and camber. Colin
attempted to start the walk at
the ten furlong marker in order
to save us (or him) the efforts
of the first vertical incline but
much to his humiliation, one
senior KVT Partner insisted
that we took in the whole ride.
This really was the most
magical morning blessed with
sunshine, equine superstars,
good grub, exercise and
entertaining banter.
KVT at The HAC
an event and an ambitious idea
to have young thoroughbreds
bought into central London.
Through a close friend of Peter
Winkworth’s, we managed
to persuade The HAC that
their venue was tailor made
for the purpose and that our
prized animals would not let
rip over the perfectly tendered
cricket ground or worse still,
through the various security
checkpoints.
Military history
The evergreen gelding ‘Cirrus Des
Aigles’ with his adoring trainer, Corine
Barade-Barbe
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On March 23rd 2016 KVT held
a parade at The Honourable
Artillery Company in The City
of London. This was the first
time that we had organised such
More than 200 guests attended
with a champagne reception
in The Prince Consort Rooms
getting things underway before
being ushered out to see the
three two-year-olds strutting
The Big Short, Gorham’s Cave and Contango parading in The City of London.
their stuff on the parade ground.
As they all circled in front of
the crowd, the sound of hooves
seemed to drown out the hustle
and bustle of the nearby City
Road and for a moment, one
might have imagined what
would have gone on at this
very place in year’s past when
this sound would have been a
regular feature.
The evening was a tremendous
success and greatly enjoyed by
all – just a taste of what owners
can enjoy many miles away
from a racecourse – food, drink
and being treated like royalty.
Unusual surroundings for Contago
KVT Open Days
With a few intended early runners,
we had some February and March
outings to Andrew Balding, Charlie
Hills and Ralph Beckett booked in
before the open days commenced.
Not exactly warm or dry mornings,
but fascinating to see the horses at
this time of year and then being
able to compare the progress that
most of them make physically when
seeing them later in the spring.
A strong contingent turned out for
the trip to Herridge and as per the
Then on to the unknown – an open
day in Newmarket to see Gorham’s
Cave with Roger Varian. As this is
the first season for many years that
we have had a horse in training at
Headquarters and because several
partners had driven hours to get
there, we decided on making a day
of it. A reasonably early start was
involved to see “Rocky” at Kremlin
House Stables before heading to
The Rowley Mile for an afternoon
of top class racing at The Craven
Meeting. The Jockey Club Rooms
in Newmarket have a wonderful
facility at the racecourse for
members which enabled us to have
a private lunch whilst enjoying the
racing and cheering on Tullius to
third place in the Earl of Sefton
Stakes (Group 3).
April continued to be a busy month
with two open days apiece courtesy
of Andrew Balding and Charlie
Hills. As per usual, both trainers
and their wives could not have been
more generous with their time and
hospitality and their continued
support in this respect is hugely
appreciated by us all. Mornings
spent in these private training
establishments are very special
indeed and make us feel privileged
to be involved in this wonderful
sport. Faringdon Place is well
positioned not just from a training
Tullius at an early visit to Park House Stables
perspective, but also from a suitable
lunching point of view. This year
we decided to give the recently
acquired The Queens Arms in
East Garston a try out – it did not
disappoint, although I am not sure
that they will be welcoming us back
next year after our party did not
disperse until well in to the evening
on both occasions.
Our mornings at Park House
Stables have, as always, been a
joy – Anna Lisa’s pre and post
gallop sustenance is renowned
and her ability to make us all
feel at home quite so often is
astonishing. Having four inmates
with Andrew has meant that she
has had a healthy number to cater
for so we are extremely grateful
to them for accommodating us so
warmly. Both of these mornings
have been followed by lunch at The
Wellington Arms – a small local
pub which has been voted No.2 in
The Times 'Best Places to Eat in the
Countryside' – so, all in all, quite
a treat.
The final open day of the season
was with Ralph Beckett at his
Kimpton Down Stables followed
by lunch at our usual haunt, The
Hawk Inn at Amport. Despite the
fact that Dandy Roll and Match
My Fire had already had their
first runs of the season, the visit
was extremely well attended and
hugely enjoyed by all. Along with
all the KVT Partners concerned, we
would like to express our gratitude
to our trainers for hosting us all
so generously and very much look
forward to our visits in 2017.
Social Secretary (far side) cantering
on the grass at Herridge
Gorham’s Cave at Kremlin House
Stables
The Big Short during a Faringdon
Place visit
Bohemian Flame looking the part
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www.kvtracing.com
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Fulham Green, Chester House, 81-83 Fulham High Street, London SW6 3JA
Enquiries to: Sam Hoskins on 0203 542 1620 or 07791 746119
email: [email protected]
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Kennet Valley Thoroughbreds
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Just before Christmas, Charlie
and Tracy Vigors of Hillwood
Stud hosted a splendid morning
for partners to come and see the
progress that had been made with
their new yearlings. This has been
the second year running that the
Vigors have broken and ridden
away our yearlings and aside from
having done a fantastic job with
them all, they have been extremely
generous in accommodating so
many of us on these visits. After
refreshments, we drove the short
distance to Ramsbury to gather
for a Christmas Lunch at The Bell
Inn. Sadly, the Vigors will no longer
be taking in horses for breaking
and pre-training as they intend to
concentrate solely on the breeding
and sales preparation side of their
business. Fortunately, Hetta Stevens
who is based at Robins Farm and
who is well known to KVT, will
fill the void as she has established
a successful pre-training operation
and has wonderful facilities at her
disposal.
norm, we were not disappointed
by either the progress of our filly,
Social Secretary, or the offerings
of bubbles and bacon butties
in the owner’s suite afterwards.
Unfortunately the same could not
be said for lunch at The Shears
which was somewhat disappointing
but luckily and not surprisingly,
Richard Jnr has taken matters into
his own hands and invested in a
pub nearby which should be just
fine for next year.
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KVT Partners have once again this
year had many opportunities to get
behind the scenes with the usual
round of open mornings followed
by lunch and several additional
trainer visits that have been
organised on an ad hoc basis.
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