GOOD HORSES

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 81, 27 June 1927, Page 6

GOOD HORSES

DIFFICULT TO GET BLOODSTOCK VALUES What a vast difference there still is between bloodstock values in England and Australia! But the gulf dividing them is not so pronounced as it was several years ago, as Valais has set a new standard for yearling prices in Australia. Whereas a comparatively short time ago there was applause for a buyer plucky enough to bid 1,000 guineas for a baby racehorse, now it takes 3,000 guineas or more to create much excitement. Last year Avant Courier, who has yet to win a race, realised the Australian record price of 5,500 guineas, a figure that is likely to remain unbeaten for some time. Mr. Harry Taylor, who bred that youngster, however, is nothing if not optimistic, and he is looking forward to seeing the stock of his latest importation, Caravel, soar over the 6,000 guineas mark. GLITTERING GOLD At the 1927 sales the colt by Valais from Glittering Gold got to within 500 guineas of Avant Courier’s record, and throughout Australia 27 others topped the 1,000 guineas. Considering the splendid stakes to be won in the principal racing centres it is not surprising that yearling values have advanced in proportion to the prizemoney. The. law of average naturally necessitates a good percentage of duds among the aristocrats, and many people contend that if the owner who goes into the thousands for a yearling expended the same amount on a proved galloper, ■ the odds about getting a better result would be in his favour. That may be, but ask a racehorse auctioneer if it is an easy matter to buy a proved galloper, and you may receive an answer something like this: “It is difficult to get hold of a good horse, because an owner fortunate enough to possess one does not want to lose it. He will often demand an exorbitant price, or reply ‘not for sale.' ” OVER 10,000GNS. FOR COLTS The 28 highest priced yearlings at the 1927 sales throughout Australia ranged from 1,000 to 5,000 guineas, but latest flies from England show that during 1926 no fewer than 137 youngsters reached 1,000 guineas and more, and that 17 fetched over 5,000 guineas in the Old Country. The most costly of all was Saracen, a colt by Gay Crusader from Love-Oil, who was sold to Mr. J. S. Courtauld for 12,000 guineas, while the Aga Khan paid 10,000 guineas for a brother to the Derby winner, Manna. Australian owners are much better off than those in England, where they have to provide most of the stakes; but in England there are infinitely more wealthy men in the game than in Australia, and that really accounts for the difference in bloodstock values in the two countries. How would our breeders welcome the entry into Australian racing of a few men who spend money on such a lavish scale as the Aga Khan? Every year that enthusiastic owner puts thousands of pounds into the game, but probably never before has he exceeded 53,800 guineas, expended on his behalf in 1926. And those investments comprise only purchases of 1,000 guineas and over. Many others of less value were also bought by him, besides which he has three studs of his own.