I was early looking through some In Reality line stallions for a young mare I was thinking of breeding in 07 that will be a bit of a gamble & have a list with my thoughts as to pros & cons & would love to get others thoughts & opinions as well?
Littleexpectations pros: was 4 for 4 and a stakes winner at 2; ran 9 & change as a two year old & is a full to successful sire Valid Expectations.
cons: sales average was so so & so far his colts have not fired bad but are not off to a hot start as you would think they may be. $3,500 stud fee is a bit of a reach for the mare in question.
Lunarpal pros: graded stakes winner at 2 & was the man for a while as an early two year old. I love Successful Appeal & have been a supporter of his from his start.
cons: its hard to know how good or not good he may have been, of course all of his stakes wins were very early so the times were not there his career best rag was an 11 & his female family is a bit light & the stud fee is $2,500. He may be the best of this group but that is a gamble.
Sand Ridge pros: nice solid sound honest sprinter thats huge to me as the filly in question is unraced & her dam was just 1 for 1. To be so hard knocking he was not light on ability in going 8 & change & earning up to 108 beyers.
cons: Known Fact is behind Valid Appeal & Relaunch to me in an In Reality sire of sires, he was a very nice horse but moreso in Europe & we just have Warning mainly to go by. Thats really my main & only knock on this guy. The stud fee fits at $1,500
Valid Belfast pros: another hard knocking stakes horse with 8 & change speed. While not brilliant he was very solid. His female family is not flashy but is also very solid imo. Stud fee $1,000
cons: He covered a nice number of mares for a La stud & his first crop were two olds last year with 40 foal & only 3 runners & 1 winner. His numbers may or have to be better this year as I need to check.
Captain Countdown pros: again a hard knocking stakes horse. He would add much need soundness as his dam had 70 starts & was an old school type stakes mare. Its really neck & neck on a son of Relaunch or Valid Appeal on my mare in question.
cons: I cant really comment on his ability but think he may have been a step or two behind I would think for sure Sand Ridge & maybe Valid Belfast. His last listed fee fits great at $750 but not knowing what farm he may be at is a bit of a concern as he not far from me at all when he was at Tyler.
I can not through any out but as of now I would rate them as follows:
1 Sand Ridge
2 Littleexpectations
3 Lunarpal
4 Captain Countdown
5 Valid Belfast
Thoughts?
Help me select through this group of stallions?
Moderators: Roguelet, WaveMaster, madelyn
Then they'll take a look and give their opinions.All of the horses you have mentioned have their good points. You seem to know what sire line you are looking for. hence your posted list of stallions.
My recommendation is totally biased, based upon my own decision for my mare last year, and the resulting 2006 filly that I have by Sand Ridge. I am really happy with the result of that breeding, and bred my mare back to Sand Ridge for 2007. Sand Ridge was a solid horse on the track, and I like the speed factor. In my opinion, Skybox has a role to play in that as well. Of course, the proof will have to come in a couple of years when the foals get to the track. Best of luck in your decision.
Bedouwia
My recommendation is totally biased, based upon my own decision for my mare last year, and the resulting 2006 filly that I have by Sand Ridge. I am really happy with the result of that breeding, and bred my mare back to Sand Ridge for 2007. Sand Ridge was a solid horse on the track, and I like the speed factor. In my opinion, Skybox has a role to play in that as well. Of course, the proof will have to come in a couple of years when the foals get to the track. Best of luck in your decision.
Bedouwia
For a Relaunch sire, I would look at Waquoit. A bit more price wise, but very worth it when you look at his numbers. He is getting up there in age so if he is still standing next year, it would be worth looking into. $5k in Maryland. Oh, and he had stakes winning speed at 6 furlongs and stakes winning stamina up to 1 1/2 miles, so he really was a total package. Nice broodmare sire if you get a filly too.
-
tinners way
- Allowance Winner
- Posts: 415
- Joined: Fri Jan 13, 2006 1:48 pm
Sand Ridges' foals have been absolutely wonderful. I believe someone above mentioned that they had one this year and the mare was bred back. His book went from the upper teens to the mid 30's in 2006. If you review his race record further you will see that he ran 100+ beyers 13 times and defeated Little Expectations, among many others. He retired completely sound.
I bred a Quiet American mare to him this year, who is out of a Known Fact mare- pretty close up, but it has worked before so I am taking a shot. As a tool, she nicks an A with Sand Ridge and a B+ with Littleexpectations.
Half sisters Reagent and Like A Charm out of Albany Isle is a positive.
He looks alot like his sire Known Fact (almost black), and is very correct. (Which you would expect from a horse that had that type of career on the track)
As you are in Arkansas I picked the Texas sire. Someone else mentioned Waqouit, and I do not think you could go wrong with him either.
I bred a Quiet American mare to him this year, who is out of a Known Fact mare- pretty close up, but it has worked before so I am taking a shot. As a tool, she nicks an A with Sand Ridge and a B+ with Littleexpectations.
Half sisters Reagent and Like A Charm out of Albany Isle is a positive.
He looks alot like his sire Known Fact (almost black), and is very correct. (Which you would expect from a horse that had that type of career on the track)
As you are in Arkansas I picked the Texas sire. Someone else mentioned Waqouit, and I do not think you could go wrong with him either.
stallions
Not to disrespect any of the specific stallions that you mentioned, but remember that many regional stallions should have been real nice geldings.
Be very selective and very careful. From breeding to racing is at least three years, maybe more, so don't tie up a useful mare with somebody's wishful thinking.
Be very selective and very careful. From breeding to racing is at least three years, maybe more, so don't tie up a useful mare with somebody's wishful thinking.
Not even sure if they stand him to any outside mares, but the stallion Churl is in Valley View, Tx. Same farm stands the Damascus stallion Festive. I can give you their ph. no., and also give you the long boring story about how Churl came to be at his current home. PM me if interested.
"Most people hate the taste of beer to begin with. It is, however, a prejudice that many people have been able to overcome."-Winston Churchill
Bright Launch has been pretty successful for breed-to-race. The sales have not been too kind to his offspring, but that may not be a function of the offspring as much as Bright Launch's connections. I may be all wrong on this but certain folk seem to get "shut out" at Keeneland, and his group seem to be among the "out" group. To give an example, there was a filly in the September sale at Keeneland (#5103) consigned by Bright Launch's folks.. and she is full sister to THREE STAKES WINNING FILLIES by Bright Launch.. and Keeneland stuffed her in Book 7 on the last day of the sale. Of course she was an OUT and will be in another sale later on.. maybe a Fasig-Tipton. You don't know what game his connections didn't play in, or what they did to be considered "uncool" by Keeneland...It's very clubbish.. snobbish.. these days it seems price and placement have not all that much to do with quality.
Anyhow, I think Bright Launch is a Very Good Value for the right mare, especially for breed to race.
Anyhow, I think Bright Launch is a Very Good Value for the right mare, especially for breed to race.
So Run for the Roses, as fast as you can.....