The female line of Kiss Of Peace is a gift which keeps on giving. That much was evident when her great-grandson Second Base landed Turffontein’s Gr3 Sea Cottage Stakes in fluent style.
Second Base streaks home in the Listed Sea Cottage Stakes under Chase Maujean (Pic- JC Photos)
An exceptional racemare, Kiss Of Peace was the country’s champion three-year-old filly in an outstanding crop which also included such top level winners as Mill Hill, Saintly Lady and Love Of London. A dual classic winner of both the Cape and SA Fillies Guineas and the Paddock Stakes at four, she scored four times at Gr1 level.
Her sire Fordham, one of a slew of Forli sons to take up stud duties in South Africa, cut little ice as a stallion, hence it can be argued that Kiss Of Peace inherited her talent from her exceptional female line. Her dam Pax Romana, a Royal Prerogative half-sister to the Gr1 winning sprinters Harry Hotspur and Rotterdam, lived up to her fine bloodlines at stud as the dam of nine winners from as many foals.
In addition to Kiss Of Peace, she also bred At The Savoy (Dancing Champ), who claimed the Gr2 Greyville 1900 and the Gr3 winner Magnolia King (Anono), while her descendants include the Gr1-performed black type winners Deliberation and Gang Related, as well as this season’s Gr3 Victory Moon hero Christopher Robin.
Kiss Of Peace was acquired by Varsfontein Stud on the recommendation of bloodstock agent John Freeman. As Varsfontein Stud manager Carl de Vos recalls: “Susan (Rowett) gave the go-ahead to buy her unseen, just on what we saw on the racetrack. She was a nice mare, not overly big. We did the deal on the proviso that both Harry Hotspur and Rotterdam had won Grade 1’s – in those days you could not check things like that on the internet! What was to be was to be.”
History will show that the grey proved an inspired purchase. As prolific a broodmare as her dam, she enjoyed a long and fruitful stud innings, producing no less than 13 foals. That baker’s dozen included the Gr2 Gold Bracelet victress Kiss Me Quick (Caesour) and Mason Dixon (Foveros), winner of the Gr3 Matchem Stakes. Varsfontein’s decision to retain a number of her daughters, all greys like their mum, has paid handsome dividends.
Stakes-placed Jet Master daughter Kiss And Fly has to date outperformed her dam as a Gr1 producer, her Silvano colt Kilindini claiming the 2019 Cape Guineas.
Also dam of Zimbabwean stakes winner Heir Line (Dynasty) and Gr3-placed Kiss Me Hardy (Captain Al), Kiss And Fly has a Lancaster Bomber colt at foot and is in foal to Second Base’s sire Gimmethegreenlight.
Kiss Of Peaces wins the Cape Fillies Guineas under Felix Coetzee
Sent to Elliodor, Kiss Of Peace produced Whatsinakiss, the grandam of Second Base. Retained for stud after showing little on the track, she has made up for her lack of racing talent as a broodmare.
A mating with Al Mufti produced stakes winner and Gr1 Cape Guineas third Kiss Again, while visits to Jet Master resulted in Gr3-placed stakes winner Top Jet and his good-looking sister Kissimmee, who won three races and currently roams the Varsfontein paddocks with a Silvano colt at her side.
Varsfontein also retained Kissimee’s Gimmethegreenlight half-sisters Kissaway and Different Light. The former never raced and visited Jet Master’s splendid son Master Of My Fate in her first season, the resultant foal being the cleverly named filly Underthemistletoe, who appropriately broke her maiden at Greyville on Boxing Day!
Different Light, a winner at three, is carrying her first foal to Mauritzfontein stalwart Ideal World. Still in training is the mare’s last filly Whatsinadream, a placed three-year-old by Judpot.
“Whatsinakiss is old now,” Carl remarked. “We haven’t managed to get a foal out of her since she produced a William Longsword colt, which is a yearling.”
Varsfontein no doubt rued the day it sold her Fort Wood daughter Whatsinakiss as a yearling.
Named Passionate Kiss, she scored once at three for owner Ashley Devachander, who fittingly sent her to Varsfontein and a liaison with Gimmethegreenlight. Whether the mating can be regarded as either logical, a huge stroke of luck or a work of genius, the stars aligned, for the result was Second Base.
Now raced by his breeder in partnership with the Wernars, he added to the legacy of Kiss Of Peace with a flawless victory in the Sea Cottage. Successful in five of six starts and still on an upward curve, the three-year-old surely rates a live classic candidate.
