Photo: Atkins Photography
A text message from Bloodstock Agent Paul Willetts was the first inkling that Ainsley Downs Stud owners Courtney and Mandy Howells that Affaire A Suivre (Astern [AUS] – Laurelling [USA]), a filly they had bred, had won the Listed Port Adelaide Guineas (1800m) at Morphettville.
“I have to admit that I hadn’t picked up that she was racing until I got a text from Paul Willetts congratulating us,” said a delighted Courtney Howells. “I had to go and have a look at the race, it was quite emphatic the way she did it.”
“PauI was involved in purchasing the mother in Sydney and in purchasing Affaire A Suivre from the sales so it was nice to hear from him.”
Affaire A Suivre debuted in the spring and was unplaced in two starts. She was put aside and returned to the racetrack in mid-march with a third placing at Pakenham over 1400m. Two weeks later she lined up at Cranborne and easily won a maiden over 1500m, before heading south to the Port Adelaide Guineas two weeks after that where she put them to the sword winning by one and a quarter lengths.
“We bought the mare in Sydney in foal to Astern for $36,000,” he recalled.
“You know how much I rate European pedigrees more than anything else, put that pedigree on a page and it’s phenomenal. She is an absolute sweetheart of a mare, she foals down at Hallmark Stud and they are fans of her as well.
“She Is lovely to work with and throws a good foal. She has a lovely Darci Brahma weanling and is in foal to Proisir.
“Affaire A Suivre was a beautiful filly that needed time when she sold in 2021 for $75,000. I didn’t expect her to grow as big as she did. She was a lovely classic type filly, the type that Ciaron Maher likes, and I knew he was looking at her through agents. First Light Racing bought her through Paul and I wasn’t surprised when they gave her to Ciaron Maher to train.
“Her Ocean Park colt was a bit the same, I didn’t get the money I wanted for him at Karaka last year, so sent him across for the Inglis Ready To Run Sale and he still didn’t make what I thought he was worth. He will be a nice three-year-old, he is not an early type of horse. He is back in work with Greg Hickman and he likes him and thinks he should get to a trial this prep.”
Howells was not exaggerating when he said that Laurelling had a phenomenal pedigree page. The Darley bred mare is by the successful French stallion Highest Honor (FR) (Kenmare [FR] - High River [FR]) from the Sadler’s Wells (IRE) mare Dance of Leaves (GB). She was placed in France before retiring to stud in Australia. She is the dam of eight named foals and five winners.
When she was purchased by the Howells, Laurelling had produced four winners including Laure Me In who at that time had won four races but has subsequently won four more including the Listed Scone Cup and has been stakes placed a further four times.
Laurelling is also a sister to Medaaly, the winner of the Gr.1 Doncaster Racing Post Trophy and who later stood at stud in France, Ireland and South Africa. She is a three-quarter sister to the stakes winner Poet Laureate and half-sister to Charnwood Forest who won twice at Group Two level. As well as Danse d’Ecole and Dubai Fall who were both stakes placed producers, and too the dams of the Giovanni a stakes winner in Japan and Fresnaye a stakes winner in South Africa.
It’s through the second dam that the pedigree becomes even more international and mouth-watering. Dance of Leaves is out of Fall Aspen (USA) (Pretense [USA] - Change Water [USA]) a winner of eight races including the Gr.1 Belmont Matron Stakes and the dam of 14 foals, 13 to race of which 12 were winners, a true “blue hen mare”.
A quick search in Arion Pedigrees for a pedigree update on Fall Aspen produces a mere 18 pages of descendants with dozens of them being black-type, but let’s just take a brief look at Dance of Leaves siblings and their offspring.
She is a full-sister to Fort Wood, a top European three-year-old who won the Gr.1 Longchamp Grand Prix de Paris and went on to a be a successful sire. As well she is a three-quarter sister to Northern Aspen, a group winner of five races and to Agenda a stakes-placed winner. Northern Aspen is the dam of Cypriata while Agenda left Agnes, a Champion Stayer in Italy.
She is a half-sister to the stakes winners Hamas, Timber Country, Bianconi, Mazzacano, Prince of Thieves and stakes placed Native Aspen. As well as the Group Two winners Colorado Dancer the dam of the Champion racehorse and successful sire Dubai Millennium, and Elle Seule the dam of the Champion racehorse and successful sire Elnadim, and the Champion filly Mehtaaf the third dam of Ribchester.
Laurelling is just one of the mares the Howells have at Ainsley Downs based in Waeranga in the North Waikato. In the past it has been home to the stallions Veloso, Lord Waverley, Don Tristram, and Prince Ferdinand and more recently was where the dual Derby winner Mongolian Khan was raised.
“I haven’t stood a stallion for over 15 years,” Howells said. “I do miss the stallions, I loved working with them. We ventured into pinhooking a little bit after that but we always say we are going to downsize but it doesn’t happen.
“We foaled down eight mares last year and have seven mares back in foal. If they foal late, we leave them empty. I have recently bought a couple of mares back from Australia and I still have a few mares that are descended from Eastern Joy’s family.”
Eastern Joy (Three Legs [FR] - Diatrelic) was the Champion Three-Year-Old Filly in 1984-85, and along with her stakes winner sister Josette Nicole were daughters of Diatrelic [FR] (Diatome [GB] – Dentrelic [FR]) a French mare from one of those European families that Howells is keen on.
The mare was imported by Captain Tim Rogers who bred the aforementioned fillies before selling her to the Howells. The first foal they bred from the mare was the winning mare Velinda by their stallion Veloso (Zamazaan [FR] - Top Of The Pops). She went on to leave the Group One winner Russian Pearl (by Soviet Star [GB]) and the listed winner Promise Me by Lord Waverley.
The descendants currently on the farm include Sorceress (Showcasing [GB] - Gelinda) who is in foal to King of Comedy (IRE) and Rossita (High Chaparral [IRE] - Dialect) who has a colt in this weekend’s HTBA Yearling Sale in Sydney.
According to Howells, who also works at a rural real estate agent for Property Brokers in Huntly, there are a few youngsters at home to be broken in during his spare time and a few in the pipline to race.
“Mandy has just finished all the weaning and is hoping to get back to the sales in Australia,” he said. “Our daughter Philippa is the leading FEI Show Jumping Course designer in New Zealand. She is currently building a course at Larapinta in Queensland for the Queensland World Cup Qualifier for the 2024 Paris Olympics, so it’s still all things equestrian at Ainsley Downs.” -Michelle Saba, NZTBA
