On Thursday afternoon members of the press were invited to the launch of the much awaited Pocket Power biography. The launch took place at the Haytreads home in Constantia, where Pocket now resides.
The book itself is an easy to read, in depth account of Pocket Power’s background, and connections. It is beautifully illustrated, and the level of detail makes it a very interesting read.
The event was attended by people from the media and by Pocket’s former groom, Boy Boy Jevu, who was clearly thrilled to see his former charge. Owners Marsh Shirtliff and Arthur Webber, breeder Dan de Wet and trainer Mike Bass were on hand to answer questions, as were Mike’s wife Carol, son Mark, and daughter Candice.
Pocket Power stole the show, and the champion looked absolutely magnificent. He is the picture of calm, and was completely unfazed by the children running around him. Pocket clearly has taken to show jumping like a duck to water. He is not by and large a spooky horse, although Belinda does say that he is very sensitive to noises, and he will respond quite negatively if he gets a fright.
His next show will probably be the SARDA show, which takes place on 10th and 11th of December, where his numerous fans can see him in action.
Mike gives Belinda Haytread a lot of credit for Pocket Power’s happiness, and says she is a world-class rider, who could have been competing internationally. The rapport between Haytread and Pocket is unbelievable, with the bond clear for all to see.
A horse with his own quirks, Pocket is more laid back than his famous sister, River Jetez. Mike described that famous mare as something of a madam.
The champion is somewhat claustrophobic, a trait which accounted for his tendency to rush into the starting stalls. But this never become a real issue for Bass and his team, as Pocket was a horse who never shirked his work.
Pocket Power was a once in a life time horse, and I feel privileged to have been able to see a horse of this calibre. Few horses have ever touched the South African public more, and Pocket is a horse who will live long in the memory of all those who saw him.
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The Men at Maine Chance
I was fortunate recently to view the Maine Chance stallions. Veteran sire SIlvano stands out, he really is an imposing stamp of a horse. He is a sire in red-hot form as his 3yo sons Silver Flyer (G2Dingaans) and Astro News (G3Graham Beck Stakes), have really kept Silvano to the fore this year. He is a remarkably calm and relaxed horse, who likes to ‘chat’ to stallion man, Max.
Stud manager, John Slade, believes that Silvano is one of the easiest sires he has ever worked with. Not only is he blessed with a wonderful temperament, Silvano has great libido and is a very fertile horse.
Stable companion Black Minnaloushe is a more difficult horse, who has something of his sire, Storm Cat’s, personality. He is a horse with varying mood swings, but has settled down well at stud. Maine Chance’s stallion man, Max, does a superb job managing this fiery horse. Black Minnaloushe’ behaviour clearly reflects the importance of having capable people looking after stallions.
Black Minnaloushe is really an eye catching horse, very classical in appearance, and not a typical chunky Storm Cat by any means. The young sire Lateral is interesting in that he has a breeding pattern similar to Rakeen – a half-brother to his own sire, Singspiel. Lateral has made a bright start to his stud career in Europe, with his first crop of juveniles including the promising French based 2yo, Ice Cool. The latter was beaten just a short head by subsequent G1 winner French Fifteen (Turtle Bowl).
The latest arrival to Maine Chance is Querari, a son of Oasis Dream. He is a compact horse, who is yet to let down properly, but has plenty going for him on both pedigree and race record. Querari’s granddam is a daughter of Devil’s Bag – brother to the dam of Rakeen. It is worth noting that Querari shares his broodmare sire, Acatenango, with this year’s Kentucky Derby winner, Animal Kingdom.
What is especially interesting about Silvano and Black Minnaloushe, in particular, is how they have inherited certain traits from their sires, Lomitas and Storm Cat respectively. Silvano is apparently a horse who gets quite claustrophobic at times – a trait which nearly ended his sire’s racing career.
On the other hand, Black Minnaloushe has clearly inherited the stormy (no pun intended) temperament of his sire, whose other sons have also been known to be hot tempered.
So is a stallion’s temperament more indicative of his genes, or his handling? The issue of temperament is an important and interesting one and I would like to hear of more examples of stallions who show similar (or differing) personality traits to their own sires, and if anyone has any examples, please email me at [email protected]
Interviews anyone?
It was infuriating watching the replays of Sunday’s racing, only to find there was no interview for the day’s highlight – Igugu’s spectacular win in the G2 Ipi Tombe Challenge. It is a mystery that Tellytrack can show interviews for small race meetings but fail to show the interview with her connections after the day’s biggest race was won by a filly who is probably the best horse in the country.
The least the public should have been offered an apology, and an explanation.
