Well somebody did well today...

Yes, it definitely wasn't me but well done to that person, they did look good in the mud.

Fancy that Proxy, you noticing how good the consignor looked  in the mud!

I can only assume that in this case most buyers were looking at the horses, however sartorially accomplished the vendor appeared. . .

Armani tweeds and Gucci wellies next year then?

Congrats PM, although this does mean you are now no longer entitled to moan about stallion fee levels for 2015.

not that i know the who or when ,but i can guess the what ,so well done potm ,ive enjoyed reading ur post's on here over the past few years ,plus ur always kind enough to answer most of the ? i've asked and mind u , u have explained them well once asked ,plus from reading ur post on here i can see that its not so glamours from the small vendors point of view a lot of the time ,so i do hope u did very well and got that pay day u ve been chasing for so long .......as the saying goes ,the sweet can't taste so sweet with out the bitter

Thank you lingbleed, things have indeed been a little sweeter recently, but it comes on the back of a very difficult year of injuries, dead foals, slipped foals etc etc so as you say, not all glamourous.

And Posh Paddy, if you think I'm going to stop moaning about stud fees. . .  well you don't really do you

I think when everything is a little heady and more than one person mentions the overheated word, then it remains a good time to seek out value. And when there's so little of it about, it's all bar impossible to get into the beggars.

I mean Mukhadram. ??

I cannot believe I was thinking of using this year's Mawatheeq, but I was, due to lack of alternatives. Turns out I wasn't alone, and how!!!!

I understand than an application has been made for a change of forum username to: quarterofamillionaire.........

I dont have clue who you are PotM, but by the look of these posts I should be congratulating you. So well done and keep it up.

Very pleased for you PotM.  Very polarised market and you nailed it.  On to the next year though and desperately got to keep the current mares going as straight replacements would be double what they were 4 years ago.

Don't you dare be negative about the next Lope de Vega!  I'm fully signed up and have a diary to prove it.

You've probably upgraded now but I'm sold on GFT (the next Showcasing obvs) and can't help coming back to the irish Dark Angel (Hannon's have two speedsters bred the same as mine would be) - that's despite mrs YM saying they sounded like gypsies on the phone! 

No more brainwaves?

I do agree that Gale Force Ten is good value and If he were closer to me I would definitely use him. However, my only slight negative is that he's out of a Kirkwall mare. I think Showcasing might have worked better than Arcano & Approve because he was out of a "speed" mare, whereas the other two are out of Daylami & Saddlers Wells mares. By this logic, I actually prefer the balance of pedigree that is offered by Coach House (ex of a fast Mujadil mare). Might be worth a punt on a mare I don't want to spend much on.

On another note, I was disappointed to hear Mukhadram was full. If I was a full-time breeder I might have got on and booked one. What number of mares do we think Shadwell considers as "full"?

Thank you truehonch, I was actually most pleased with a result from a little one that sneaked through!  But forgive me for not elaborating as I am not sure I want everyone to know my identity because it is a bit stifling to what I can say on here - probably no bad thing.
Thanks also Yer ma, I was expecting to see you at the sales with a Requinto or something similar too. Was I barking up the wrong tree?
You won't have me too negative on Mukhadram as I would have had a go myself, although I think a fast ground summer might keep Loup de Vega considerably quieter and I am sure you wouldn't have raced to use him in a normal year but it's all about the options available in any season isn't it. Sadly I am too late for Olympic Glory also which as p1ssed me muchly too.

I like Gale Force Ten, mostly because of his yearling price really,but I hate shuffling over the water for a cheapie as I always bang on about, because it ain't no cheapie by the time you've done it. I've not finally discounted it so I daresay he'll be full by the time I stop dithering anyway.
Did anyone get to the National Stud to see Heerat and Alhebayeb before they went home early? I was mighty irritato to say the least when all I had to look at was Gregorian there. Any reports would be hugely appreciated!

Also I have a cheapish proven quest and I'm currently on Clodovil / Camacho / Zebedee kick. Useful pointers to anyone, or am I triply crap?

I like Zebedee, he looked scopier than I would have expected having been whisked away as a 3yo.

I wanted to use Camacho at a considerably lower price when he was over here but dirtiness (not his I hasten to add) got in the way. He moved better than when I had seen him before in Ireland, not sure about the hocks.

Clodovil, not seen but composing a respectable runners record, fluctuating foal sales record but ? might rally. Feels like the least overpriced but least 'current' of the 3. Of course if you if you want some random numbers generating...

I'll leave the commerciality and conformation to you but have Footsteps, Big Bad Bob and Intikhab above Clodovil ability wise, Dandy Man Rock Of Gib and Dylan Thomas just below alongside Sixties Icon, Sir Percy and Medicean if its any use.

I've my Requinto in cotton wool as my Premier / Book 2 project next year.  If I'd known they were going to fly I'd of tried harder to get him ready after a little bug set him back but heyho.  I'm fan of Clodovil and camacho but at around the 6 euro mark not 10.  A nice Zebedee will still obv sell but I'd say there will still be double the foals than the aforementioned stallions to compete against.  I think Alhebayeb will get you more sales help.  Didn't see in flesh but trust yeomanstown to have sold a good specimen and the family all seem to sell well (ie. not some freak)

Hi  PotM,
I  went to the National Stud. I didn’t see Heeraat or Alhebayeb but I did see Toronado. He was quite badly turned out on his nearside fore.

I am booked in to Heeraat and will see him next Saturday. I will report back in due course.

Thanks proxy, you are pretty close to me there, but I don't think Big Bad Bob suits the two young mares that need the cheapish help. I'm not keen to do ancient, have a Dandy Man on the way so I'm probably still on the three.
I've committed to an expensive one now too so I have to claw it back with some of the others.

Yer ma, I am thinking your Zebedee rings true, the book sizes at Tally Ho are always a cause for concern. I'm also tickled by the phrase 'trust Yeomanstown' - not one you hear very often. If anyone has the 'art' of stuffing one in to an unsuspector it is surely them!
I'm glad you still have your Requinto for next year. I think that with the nice foundation of those first foals you might be able to join a good old head of steam next.

I looked forward to your report Truehonch on Heerat. I had forgotten I'd seen Toronado in December. I didn't love him like I expected to and as you say, that limb,  coupled with the wind operations I think I must have just filed him.

Happy New Year all forumites, hope everyone gets in foal 1st time in February.


I saw Heeraat over Christmas. Unfortunately the weather was fowl so viewing was limited. Looked a nicer stamp than a few others I've seen with a bit of substance to him.

Do we think that Shadwell will support him with a few mares? I like Mickley but my impression is that they lack a bit of support from the better quality breeders. They seem to use NH mares on a their flat stallions and I assume that's because they can't fill their books. Anyway I'm going to use him so it's all a bit academic.

Thank you truehonch, I am sorry I have been so slow.

Glad you liked Heerat and I think that at our bargain basement level we could do worse.

Mind you, what with Coach House and the E&E at Overbury there are choices now too which is good.

Having thought in October that there would be no commercial first season sires in England to go to at the lower end of the fee scale, it looks like we now have three. (As mentioned by Pot M)

I can't really split the three in terms of what they offer, so Coach House marginally ahead on price. Also, P Thorman might be able to give his charge more of a helping hand at the foal sales than the other two. Nice to have some good value competition.

Anyone heard of any foals born yet?