Airwaves standout

AIRWAVES has always shown Edendale trainer Craig Laurenson plenty of raw ability and lots of good speed, writes Bruce Stewart on the southlandharness.co.nz website.

The half–brother to Maximan, the winner of 20 races and $371,759, Airwaves is by Panspacificflight out of Clifton Beauty. He was bred by Ian Bennett.

“Maximan has gone 1:50 in Aussie and I think this horse has more speed. I know it sounds stupid,” Laurenson said.

Airwaves . . . another impressive winner by Panspacificflight

Airwaves . . . another impressive winner by Panspacificflight

Airwaves was having only his second start when he won at Invercargill on 25 May and Laurenson was hoping he’d just get round after he’d paced roughly on a number of occasions on debut.

“His heart rate is unreal. He’s lucky to get over 80 no matter what we work him. He went 3:02 one day at the workouts when he wasn’t qualified and his rate was 78 when he came off the track. You get a wee bit excited when they’ve got that much ability.”

And he thinks the horse is still two years away from being the complete racehorse.

“His brother (Maximan) is ten and has run 1:50 in Aussie so he’s got six years up his sleeve.”

Nearly three from three

THE RED ROBBER came within a nostril of giving Macca Lodge sire Panspacificflight a perfect record of three winners from three runners at the Invercargill meeting on 25 May.

The Tony Stratford-trained five-year-old was edged out by No More Change after sitting parked for most of the 2200 metres.

Earlier Airwaves paid $26 when he scored his maiden win at his second start — though he won like a $2 shot.

Alex Milne took the half-brother to big Australian winner Maximan to the lead from the outside of the front line over 2200 metres and was never headed. He coasted away by two lengths at the finish.

And Ansett Flight gave Panspacificflight his second winner for the day when he won his fifth race. He has also had 10 seconds and six thirds.

Arden’s Concord at Perth

SEVEN-YEAR-OLD PANSPACIFICFLIGHT gelding Arden’s Concord took bad luck out of the equation when he led all the way at Gloucester Park in Perth on 15 March.

He hadn’t won in eight previous starts this season but punters sent him out a $1.55 favourite on the back of some luckless runs. Owned by the Butterworths, who bought him out of Graeme Anderson’s Otago stable in 2016, Arden’s Concord has now won 11 times and earned stakes of nearly $100,000. He rated 1:57.5 for the 2130 metres.

Another from Panspacificflight’s stellar first crop, Last Flight In, posted her 13th win at Kilmore in Victoria on 12 March.

JD’s Chancey Gal

PANSPACIFICFLIGHT mare JD Chancey’s Gal took her career earnings past $US180,000 when she won the mares open pace at Miami Valley in Ohio on 08 March.

The former Indiana Sires Stakes three-year-old winner scored in 1:52.1. This was her 14th win in just 43 starts.

Another big win for Reciprocity

QUALITY PANSPACIFICFLIGHT mare Reciprocity recorded her fastest time when she won a $A24,000 mares race at Tabcorp Park Melton in Victoria on 23 February.

The five-year-old Group winner worked hard to get the lead from a wide draw and rated 1:54.1 for the 1720-metre journey.

Her fifth win of the season, and her 12th overall, took her career earnings past $A90,000. Another Panspacificflight mare, Last Flight In (12 wins, $124,000), ran third in the same race.

Reciprocity became Panspacificflight’s third Group race winner in Australasia when she won $30,000 Group Three VHRSC Metropolitan Pace Final on the same track on 04 January. Arden’s Choice won a Group I two-year-old fillies race at Auckland in 2015 and Little Rascal won a Group III mile at Menangle in 2017.

Brent off to a flier

THREE WINS, two seconds and two thirds from just 10 starters. That’s Brent McIntyre’s training record in the first two months of the new racing season.

The Macca Lodge proprietor has won twice with the rejuvenated Panspacificflight gelding The Manipulator and with the consistent The Bull Pen, who notched his third win at Invercargill on Saturday.

Brent has won 42 races with small teams since he first took a horse to the track in 1993. He has had a license to train ever since apart from two seasons — 2014-15 and 2015-16 — when Tony Stratford was the Macca Lodge trainer.

Last season was Brent’s best with five wins — two with The Bull Pen, two with Hunterton and one with Captain Thunderbolt.

First for Net Ten EOM

NET TEN EOM has left his first New Zealand-bred winner with the Tony Stratford-trained Wolf West scoring on his home track at Gore on 26 August.

Wolf West, one of three Net Ten EOMs to qualify last season, had one two-year-old start before being put aside. He was bred by Macca Lodge client Neill Timms from his one-win Son Of Afella mare Ali’s Fella.

Wolf West . . . first NZ winner for Net Ten EOM

Wolf West . . . first NZ winner for Net Ten EOM

“Timmsy” also bred the first New Zealand winner by Macca Lodge’s other sire, Panspacificflight. That was The Manipulator, who finished an unlucky third on the same card at Gore on the back of a win at his previous start.

Net Ten EOM two-year-olds

MACCA LODGE sire Net Ten EOM was represented on race day for the first time in New Zealand when two-year-old filly Countess of Arden stepped out in a Young Guns heat at Alexandra Park in Auckland on 02 March.

Unfortunately, she drew the outside of the second line and suffered a check down the back straight. She had two more starts for Clevedon trainer Barry Purdon, including lining up in the Group II Delightful Lady Classic, but has now returned south for a spell.

Countess of Arden, out of a daughter of New Zealand Oaks winner Young Eden, was the second Net Ten EOM to qualify here. In February Tony Stratford qualified Wolf West at Gore.

Net Ten EOM, a son of the late Somebeachsomewhere, is already a proven sire of two-year-olds in the United States, where he left 18 winners from his first crop last year.

Macca stop on bus tour

New Zealand’s leading trainers and big-spending owners are set to descend upon the Otago-Southland region to check out its yearling sales contenders.

The annual Southern Bred Southern Reared yearling sales tour is on Wednesday, January 31.

The bus tour will break from its usual two-day format and change to a one-day, nine-hour feast of the region’s blueblood standardbreds.

Among the classy lineup of yearlings is a full brother to West Australian star Chicago Bull. The yearling is the only offering being prepared by Katrina Price of Winton.

Macca Lodge will present a Majestic Son yearling from former classy trotter One Under Kenny. This season that broodmare has produced Kenny’s Dream. who looks to be on a path towards the country’s best three-year-old trotting races.

Arden Lodge will present another strong draft of eight yearlings including a colt by Somebeachsomewhere from broodmare gem Winter Rose.

The tour will take in six stops starting at Shard Farm near Invercargill and finishing at Wingatui racecourse.

To book your space on the bus tour RSVP to Katrina Price; katrina.price@xtra.co.nz ph 021 369 097.

Macca stud news

The south’s largest breeding farm, Macca Lodge, is about to close the curtain on another successful breeding season.

The Northern Southland property has served more than 300 broodmares and enjoyed good in-foal rates, studmaster Brent McIntyre said.

“The results have been very pleasing with mares getting in foal,” he said.

A Rocknroll Dance was the most popular stallion choice with southern breeders this season.

“He was available at quite a competitive deal so a lot of breeders took that up.

“Plus, it helped that he’s doing a job in the states and the feedback from trainers has been pretty good, too.”

Southland favourite Franco Ledger attracted a good book of 22 mares, standing his first season at stud at a zero service fee.

That fee has seen some breeders that would have otherwise left their mares empty mate them with the stallion, McIntyre said.

Macca Lodge has foaled more than 200 mares this season and there have been some bluebloods among them.

Three times Jewels winner Venus Serena foaled an Art Major colt and a full brother to Interdominion heat winner Galactic Star was welcomed from dam Petra’s Star. A full brother to New Zealand Cup winner Arden Rooney, by Bettor’s Delight from Tosca Hanover, was also born. All three colts are owned by Arden Lodge.

The stud’s resident stallion Net Ten EOM was mated with Wave Runner, the dam of Bonnie Joan, and they left a striking colt, McIntyre said. (courtesy Harness News)