White Robe Lodge stud manager Wayne Stewart has been temporarily relieved of duties at Wingatui and is heading north with his classy race mare Include (Gallant Guru[AUS]-She's Snubbed) to have a tilt at the Group One Fiber Fresh New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders' Stakes.
"Its 30 years since I travelled with race horses to the North Island, but at White Robe we take turns at all the jobs. The last horse I took north was Joyarty and she ran second in the Group One New Zealand Stakes, this mare I'm pretty sure can go one better and win at Group One level.
"She has the ability, it would be quite nice if she could prove herself in the north, she has been running good times, she travels well and I think she can be really competitive. She relaxes well in her races now and a mile is her go," enthused Stewart after Include won the Listed Valachi Downs South Island Thoroughbred Breeders' Stakes at Riccarton.
"I have been with her since she went to Ashburton earlier this month. Courtenay said after that win she was looking for 1600m and so it proved at Riccarton. She has improved each start. She won the Southland Guineas last year over a mile, and this year she is a lot bigger and stronger and has a great constitution. She has done well since the Breeders' Stakes, she licked the bowl clean and drank plenty of water. When I walked her on Monday morning she had a real spring in her step."
Include who was bred by Stewart and his wife Karen, who also shares in the ownership, has now won 10 races, including the last three on end since she resumed in February. Earlier in the season she also notched up a double, and last season she won a further five including the Listed Dunedin Guineas and Southland Guineas. She is trained at Wingatui by Karen's father Brian Anderton and her brother Shane.
So far his role as travelling trainer has been going well. Include wasn't the only mare to be in Stewart's care from Ashburton to Riccarton. He was also responsible for Avow, a No Excuse Needed(USA) mare also raced in partnership with Karen, and she dead-heated with Mr Spiderman in a rating 65 1800m.
"It was a great day, a great thrill to win with Avow (ex Mayday Jones) especially as it was a real family affair with our nephew Jacob Lowry being the winning jockey.
"We bought Avow as a yearling from the Festival Sale out of Esker Lodge's draft. Karen picked her out, she liked her pedigree and the fact that she was out of an O'Reilly mare. Once we saw her we decided we had to have her. Her full brother Duplicity Jones has also been a winner in Melbourne and she is out of a young mare so there is a bit ahead of her yet. We think she can go on to get some black type."
It was Karen's penchant for O'Reilly mares that led the Stewarts to bred Include. They bought her dam She's Snubbed (O'Reilly- Slightly Aloof) specifically to go to their resident Montjeu (IRE) stallion Gallant Guru[AUS].
Karen loves studying pedigrees and picked her out as a good cross with Gallant Guru. At that stage Sharp Princess (Pins[AUS]) was not proven, but subsequently won six races including the Listed South Island Breeders' Stakes. She's Snubbed was in foal to Scardee Cat and we sold that colt for $100,000 (Mr Trim a winner of two races) and then a Gallant Guru colt for $57,000 (Immortal Glory – 2 wins) and that was followed by a Gallant Guru filly to Paul Moroney for $32,000 but unfortunately she broke a pedal bone.
"Karen's Dad Brian always says you should send a mare to a stallion three times, well Include is the result of the third mating. We then entered a foal share arrangement with Rich Hill and John Thompson has a three-year-old Pentire filly, She's Aloof, out of the mare and we had a yearling colt by the same sire but sold him to Chris Waller out of the paddock and I believe he is going really well in that stable.
Currently "She's Snubbed" has a filly foal by Raise The Flag (GB), and is in foal to Savabeel under a foal share arrangement with Mark Chittick."stated Stewart.
She's Snubbed was placed before she went to stud and is a half-sister to five winners including High Command. Her dam Slightly Aloof (Centaine[AUS] ) is a winning full sister to the VRC Oaks winner Slight Chance both being out of the stakes winning mare Lady Aloof (Sir Godfrey[FR]-Miss Coventry). Slight Chance is also the dam of the stakes winners Dane Shadow and Salgado. This is also the family developed by the Chittick family of the Savabeel stakes winners Brambles and Lopov.
- Michelle Saba
"Its 30 years since I travelled with race horses to the North Island, but at White Robe we take turns at all the jobs. The last horse I took north was Joyarty and she ran second in the Group One New Zealand Stakes, this mare I'm pretty sure can go one better and win at Group One level.
"She has the ability, it would be quite nice if she could prove herself in the north, she has been running good times, she travels well and I think she can be really competitive. She relaxes well in her races now and a mile is her go," enthused Stewart after Include won the Listed Valachi Downs South Island Thoroughbred Breeders' Stakes at Riccarton.
"I have been with her since she went to Ashburton earlier this month. Courtenay said after that win she was looking for 1600m and so it proved at Riccarton. She has improved each start. She won the Southland Guineas last year over a mile, and this year she is a lot bigger and stronger and has a great constitution. She has done well since the Breeders' Stakes, she licked the bowl clean and drank plenty of water. When I walked her on Monday morning she had a real spring in her step."
Include who was bred by Stewart and his wife Karen, who also shares in the ownership, has now won 10 races, including the last three on end since she resumed in February. Earlier in the season she also notched up a double, and last season she won a further five including the Listed Dunedin Guineas and Southland Guineas. She is trained at Wingatui by Karen's father Brian Anderton and her brother Shane.
So far his role as travelling trainer has been going well. Include wasn't the only mare to be in Stewart's care from Ashburton to Riccarton. He was also responsible for Avow, a No Excuse Needed(USA) mare also raced in partnership with Karen, and she dead-heated with Mr Spiderman in a rating 65 1800m.
"It was a great day, a great thrill to win with Avow (ex Mayday Jones) especially as it was a real family affair with our nephew Jacob Lowry being the winning jockey.
"We bought Avow as a yearling from the Festival Sale out of Esker Lodge's draft. Karen picked her out, she liked her pedigree and the fact that she was out of an O'Reilly mare. Once we saw her we decided we had to have her. Her full brother Duplicity Jones has also been a winner in Melbourne and she is out of a young mare so there is a bit ahead of her yet. We think she can go on to get some black type."
It was Karen's penchant for O'Reilly mares that led the Stewarts to bred Include. They bought her dam She's Snubbed (O'Reilly- Slightly Aloof) specifically to go to their resident Montjeu (IRE) stallion Gallant Guru[AUS].
Karen loves studying pedigrees and picked her out as a good cross with Gallant Guru. At that stage Sharp Princess (Pins[AUS]) was not proven, but subsequently won six races including the Listed South Island Breeders' Stakes. She's Snubbed was in foal to Scardee Cat and we sold that colt for $100,000 (Mr Trim a winner of two races) and then a Gallant Guru colt for $57,000 (Immortal Glory – 2 wins) and that was followed by a Gallant Guru filly to Paul Moroney for $32,000 but unfortunately she broke a pedal bone.
"Karen's Dad Brian always says you should send a mare to a stallion three times, well Include is the result of the third mating. We then entered a foal share arrangement with Rich Hill and John Thompson has a three-year-old Pentire filly, She's Aloof, out of the mare and we had a yearling colt by the same sire but sold him to Chris Waller out of the paddock and I believe he is going really well in that stable.
Currently "She's Snubbed" has a filly foal by Raise The Flag (GB), and is in foal to Savabeel under a foal share arrangement with Mark Chittick."stated Stewart.
She's Snubbed was placed before she went to stud and is a half-sister to five winners including High Command. Her dam Slightly Aloof (Centaine[AUS] ) is a winning full sister to the VRC Oaks winner Slight Chance both being out of the stakes winning mare Lady Aloof (Sir Godfrey[FR]-Miss Coventry). Slight Chance is also the dam of the stakes winners Dane Shadow and Salgado. This is also the family developed by the Chittick family of the Savabeel stakes winners Brambles and Lopov.
- Michelle Saba