Yearling sale almost here

By Rockhampton Jockey Club CEO Ian Mill

Hello to you readers and don’t we have a huge week ahead of us out here at the Rockhampton Jockey Club headquarters at Callaghan Park?send

It seems like an eternity ago since I was informing you about the upcoming Capricornia Yearling Sale and Racing Carnival. Lone behold it is upon us and happening next Friday and Saturday at Callaghan Park with two excellent race meetings followed by the sales the next day.

The Unknown author a got it right with “time waits for no one”.

Benjamin Franklin was more to the point with “time is money”. Regardless, whichever way you look at it there will be good times for sure to be had later this week at the races and the CYS at the Robert Schwarten Pavilion at the Rockhampton Showgrounds. First things first though and that brings all of us to Callaghan Park on Friday for an eight race TAB card with approximately $237K prize money to be won. Naturally, we are expecting the nominations for this meeting to be very worthwhile. The feature races are the $39K 0-55 Band QTIS Handicap (1200). This will be the first race of this type in Rockhampton in that there is no age restriction to the QTIS eligible entries. They can be 10 for example and still be eligible for the lucrative QTIS bonuses. So, any owner or trainer reading this column please take that on board.

As well there will be a $41K QTIS 3YO Maiden (1300m) and a 2YO Maiden (1100m) on Friday’s card. The other feature race is the $30,000 Country Cup Benchmark 65 (1600m) with special conditions applying. But wait for it readers, the good news for you is that Friday’s big meeting offers a “FREE GATE”. In other words, no entry fee so you are on a winner before you even enter Callaghan Park.

After the completion of the races on Friday at Callaghan Park the DVL Finance Classic Calcutta Dinner will commence at 6.30pm. This takes place in the Amateur Lounge with the Calcutta raffle to be run on the $150K CYS 2yo Classic. Raffle tickets for the Calcutta are selling at $10 each. A Calcutta is akin to an auction with each horse in the field put up for sale at which resident race caller and host for the evening in Russell Leonard excels. Tickets for the dinner are costed at $75 which includes a drink upon arrival and a scrumptious two course meal. Attendees will no doubt mingle with the connections of runners in the big races which will be run less than 24 hours later at Callaghan Park next Saturday. It promises to be a very entertaining evening.

Next Saturday’s DVL Finance CYS 2YO Plate (1200m) with $150,000 on offer is bolstered by the staging of the similar CYS 3&4YO Classic (1300m) where the horses run for a cool $100,000. All up on this day of seven races, an allocation of approximately $420,000 will be offered. Both feature events are restricted to graduates of previous Capricornia Yearling Sales. As such horses along with their trainers, owners and jockeys will be coming from diverse areas throughout Queensland. Coinciding with the Capricornia Yearling Sale assures that many out-of-town racing and breeding industry stakeholders will converge on Callaghan Park. Over the years some outstanding CYS graduates have won the 2YO Classic for which they only are eligible to compete. None better mind you than River Lad trained at the time by the late Frank Crick which took out the Classic in 2010. On that fateful day at Callaghan Park on March 26 of that year River Lad was ridden by Damian Browne (since retired). Down the track some four years later on June 6, 2014 River Lad won the GR 1 Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) for Caloundra trainer Natalie McCall. So, it would be hard to think of a more illustrious CYS 2YO Classic winner than River Lad. Last year if was won by the Jamie McConachy trained NSW bred Sammiballerina which was by the sire Sebring Sun. That winner was bred at Glenthorne Park, Taree and that stud has two yearlings by the same sire on offer at the yearling sale here on Sunday. Oh yes, we have some packages planned for you to take advantage of next Saturday on the big race day. First of all discounted entry fee is available online at $20.00. A special feature on the day will be Cocktail Style Prosecco Paddock. As the name suggests it will centre around a Cocktail Theme. Priced at $60 for members and $70 for guests, that covers entry to Callaghan Park, a selection of four canapés and a glass of Prosecco. The Prosecco Paddock will be the place to be and to be seen. As usual, get on to the RJC/Callaghan Park Website and Facebook Page where further details are displayed and from where the details for bookings are available,

Ok, so where I am I up to?

That’s right we were going racing at Callaghan Park. The day is far from over as after the races I invite you all to whizz out to the CYS complimentary Welcome Barbeque at the Showgrounds. Geoff Elliott from Allenstown Square Meats is providing the meat so it will be a feast to behold commencing around 6.30pm. Naturally, prospective buyers at Sunday’s sales will be able to inspect the yearlings at the venue of the Robert Schwarten Pavilion at the same time. At 7pm next Saturday a select parade of yearlings will enter the sales ring with commentary from a member of the team of sales agents Magic Millions. Refreshments both liquid as well as other foods will be available during the course of the evening which only runs for a few hours. It is a very enjoyable function where vendors that couldn’t make the races during the Carnival can let-down and mix with clients.

That of course leads on to the sales themselves commencing 11am sharp next Sunday, April 2. A bar and food facilities will be in operation throughout the event. The catalogue numbering 135 yearlings provides for the most expansive list of stallion progeny ever assembled at the Rockhampton Sale since its inception in 1988. Some 65 individual stallions are listed with progeny to sell. The stallion Rothesay has the greatest number of stock with nine yearlings presented while Heroic Valour has next best with eight. There are 39 vendors despatching yearlings to Rockhampton with the largest consignment from KBL Thoroughbreds, Beaudesert with 16 yearlings to be auctioned. Hopetoun Farm, Southbrook will send up 13 yearlings while Lucas Bloodstock, Croftby and Raheen Stud, Warwick are each transporting 10 to the Rockhampton Showgrounds. Local breeders, M. Adams, Tungamull; Belroma Park, Nerimbera; Clark-Peoples Racing, Frenchville; Graceville Thoroughbreds, Morinish; Kuhn Racing, Berserker; S. Peddle, Dululu; Palm Valley, Tungamull and Stewart Park, Alton Downs all are vendors as well. So, there you have it all readers, three hectic and exciting days centering around Rockhampton from Friday through to Sunday this coming week. There will be winners galore with the local business community to derive great benefit from the influx of racing and breeding stakeholders. As for the weather? Well predicting it accurately is as difficult as tipping a winner. Anyhow for what it is worth Friday, March 31 is tipped to be sunny, partly cloudy with a few thunderstorms likely with a top temp of 34 degrees forecast. Saturday sunny to 32 and Sunday similar.

St Patrick’s Day races at Callaghan Park was highly successful and well attended last Saturday. Mixed bag of results in many ways with only two favourites, Graeme Green’s Mistaken Identity (Justin Stanley) at $2.80 and stablemate Shamedy (Chris Whiteley) winning at the odds-on quote of $1.45. The Hall family’s Grant’s Patch won as a $10.00 candidate while local jockey Tasha Chambers brought Roma trained Famus Fella home a winner at $13.00. Graeme Green’s warhorse Master Jamie ran a pearler in Brisbane last Saturday when third and returning $6.00 for the place.

Finally, on behalf of the Rockhampton Jockey Club our deepest sympathies are extended to the family of Len Milner who passed earlier this week. Len was an integral part of racing and thoroughbred breeding in Central Queensland for over 40 years. He and wife Lyn Milner conducted a breeding operation Palm View Stud, Pink Lily from where they produced hundreds upon hundreds of winners. Palm View was a household name among industry stakeholders at the CYS and earlier named Rockhampton Yearling Sales. Len’s funeral is taking place in Rockhampton today (Saturday, March 25) at the East Chapel, of the Rockhampton Crematorium at 10am. Len will be greatly missed by all, particularly so by those fortunate enough to have met and had dealings with him. Vale Len Milner. RIP.

That’s it again readers, until next week.