It might have been nearly dusk, but after Travimyfriend (Tavistock-Pineau) won the Listed The Sofitel (1400m) at Flemington on Saturday, Silver (John) Goodin was down to Pineau’s paddock with an extra scoop of feed and a carrot.
Goodin, who owns Pineau with his wife Helena and good mate Gavin O’Dea, loves his horses and was so chuffed with Travimyfriend’s win that he had to reward his mother.
“Even when she goes to stud, she must be fed twice a day to give her a boost and I don’t mind paying the extra cost,” enthused Goodin, a member of the Taranaki/Whanganui Branch of the NZTBA who lives on an 11 acre property in Bell Block just north of New Plymouth.
Eight-year-old Travimyfriend, from the second crop of Tavistock, was recording his seventh win. It was his third in Australia since relocating there with his trainer and part-owner Rachael Frost in 2018.
Prior to that he had won four races in New Zealand and placed in the Gr.1 Haunui Farm Classic, the Gr.2 Japan/New Zealand Trophy, the Gr.3 Anniversary and the Gr.3 Taranaki Cup.
He was also placed in third in the Gr.3 Sandown Stakes, and second in 2019 edition of the Listed The Sofitel.
Travimyfriend is the third foal from Carnegie (IRE) mare Pineau and is now her third stakes winner. Her first foal, Dancer’s Tale (Tale of the Cat[USA]) who was bred by Helen-Gay and Graeme Bax and Go Bloodstock, won the Listed Welcome Stakes at Riccarton, and her fifth foal Matchbreaker (Makfi[GB]) won the Gr.3 Wellington Stakes.
“Gavin and I have been breeding horses for about 44 years,” Goodin said.
“The first mare we bought together was a daughter of Light Fingers, called Nimble Fingers. She was in foal to Grosvenor and we got a colt that I took to the Trentham sales and sold to the great Tommy Smith.
“We had another good mare too out of Analight and we bred a Marscay out of her and sold it at the opening day of the Karaka Sales Centre.
“In 2012 Gavin and I went up to the broodmare sale looking for another mare, we liked the bloodlines of this mare (Pineau) who was in foal to Tavistock.
“I am a good mate of Gary Hennessey’s who is neighbours with Graeme and Helen-Kay Bax who were selling Pineau. Garry introduced me and said I was an ex-dairy farmer with a small block who looks after his horses to the point of spoiling them.
“Graeme Bax said that we would be ideal owners for the mare as she was always being pushed out of the way in a herd, and perhaps treated individually by herself would thrive.
“She was in foal with Travimyfriend, I did all the work, brought him up and looked after him.
“He was a bit tough and quite strong but the hardest one out of the mare is the three-year-old Puke Park out of Ocean Park.”
That horse is named after Pukekura Park in New Plymouth where Goodin played a lot of cricket in his younger days and also the home of Taranaki racing.
The first foal that Goodin and O’Dea breed out of the mare was a filly by O’Reilly, who tragically died from leukaemia a week before the yearling sales. Her next foal was Matchbreaker, and he was followed by another Makfi (GB) named Not Santa who is raced by her breeders.
She is in work with Fraser Aurett and has had nine starts for three wins and four placings. They have also retained the Sacred Falls yearling filly from the mare.
“There is a lot more to come,” enthused Goodin, “Not Santa is a lot stronger mare now and is capable of winning a group race, and Puke Park has already won a jump out.
“We have an Iffraaj colt that was meant to go to the Sydney sales but didn’t due to COVID -19 and he is the best looking horse I have ever bred.
“He is a magnificent looking individual and if he can run like he looks and wins a couple of group ones he could be a stallion. He certainly has the bloodlines from that strong family.
“My Dad was a breeder and so I have been around horses all my life, and our families go way back with the Chitty’s who have had that family for years.”
The family that Goodin is referring to descends from Foxona a foundation mare for Haunui Farm’s Chitty.
By Carnegie, Pineau is out of the Tights (USA) mare Dopff a winner of eight races including the Gr.2 Bluebird Foods Trophy at Ellerslie and the Listed Waikato Sprint and Evergreen Stakes. She went on to leave eight winners from 10 foals including Octapussy (Octagonal [AUS]) a Group One placed winner of six races and the dam of the stakes winners Pussy Willow, Pussy O’Reily – both by O’Reilly – and Inside Agent.
Another daughter Irion (Danroad) won four races and was placed in the Gr.3 Cuddle Stakes.
Our Reisling a winning Last Tycoon (IRE) mare left the Group Three winning mare Valpolicella who in turn has produced the Group Two winning mare Vavasour (Redoute’s Choice[AUS]), and Vilanova (Commands[AUS]) a Group One placed winner of the Gr.2 MRC Autumn Classic.
She has left a third stakes winner in Celebrity Dream (Thorn Park[AUS]), along with the Group One placed four race winner Rondinella (Ocean Park).
Dopff is out of the Crested Wave (AUS) mare On The Rise, the dam of 15 foals including 10 winners. She is a half-sister to the Gr.2 Herbert Power Stakes winner Rizon (Zabeel), Ready To Lift (More Than Ready[AUS]) the winner of 10 races including the Gr.3 AJC Summer Cup, and the Group One placed Whitford Hill.
Another half-sister, the unraced mare Ascendo (Conquistarose), is the dam of the Champion 3YO of his year Sir Clive (Bigstone[GB]) and his sister Ascending. Other stakes winners descending directly from On The Rise include Saracino, Sunshine Region and Currigee.
The stakes winning Sovereign Edition (IRE) mare Lavender Hill is the dam of On The Rise, and she also left the stakes winners Khamacruz (Sir Tristram[IRE]), and Snow Chief.
In turn she is a half-sister to the Champion 3YO Filly of her year Rosie’s Girl (Zamazaan[FR]), Prince Ruling (Ruling[USA]), and Lord Westminster (Grosvenor), being out of the stakes winning mare Rosehill (Test Case[GB]- Foxona).
As for Pineau, she is due to foal down to US Navy Flag (USA) and will return to Haunui Farm to visit their son of Iffraaj in Ribchester (IRE).
According to Goodin when it comes to mating Pineau he and O’Dea sit down and work out a mating.
“Gavin and I talk amongst ourselves about the matings,” said Goodin. “Most of the time though we come up with the breeding plan.
“We try and go to the best stallion we think will do the best for the mare, and when we come up with a plan, we might run it past a breeding specialist.”
For O’Dea, who retained a racing share in Travimyfriend, the win capped off a great couple of days after other horses he bred and races were placed on Friday at his local meeting at Hawera.
Cooga Moon, also bred by Goodin, ran second in the NZB Insurance Pearl rating 65, and Makadoon was placed third in a maiden 1400.
“Travimyfriend went well didn’t he?” said O’Dea, also a Taranaki/Whanganui NZTBA branch member.
“I’m really happy, it was a good field and capped off a good couple of days.
“I’m proud of what he has done in Australia and I’m proud of the mare. She has now left three black type horses and we have three in work with Fraser Auret to look forward too.” -Michelle Saba, NZTBA
