Open House attracts large crowd

Stallion Manager Joe Hickey presents The Autumn Sun, "the last masterpiece by the great Redoute's Choice", to the large crowd at Arrowfield on Saturday 26 August 2023. (PHOTO: Joan Faras)

Beautiful Spring weather, delicious food & coffee, a warm welcome and a stunning line-up of eight stallions greeted the 900+ guests who attended Arrowfield’s 2023 Stallion Open House last weekend. 

Planning for the event begins in May and it’s an all-team feat of logistical sweat and magic to present the stallions & the farm in magnificent order, offer excellent coffee and food and host a large crowd of breeders, owners, agents, trainers, horse lovers, local supporters, friends and clients over two days.

Arrowfield’s Communications Manager Susan Archer provided the commentary on each stallion including these snippets:

SNITZEL 
Like his legendary sire Redoute’s Choice before him, Snitzel has become a mainstay of the entire Australian bloodstock economy generating total business worth more than $1 billion – and counting. Because he has more than 400 foals yet to race from his latest 4 crops – at his current success rate they will include another 35 stakeswinners or so.

Over the past 10 seasons, Snitzel’s progeny have averaged a stakes win every 15 days.

In that same period since 2014, the average price for all of Snitzel’s yearlings sold is $361,000 – in straight dollar terms, that’s well above this year’s Magic Millions Book 1 average, and not far off the Inglis Easter average.

DUNDEEL
We knew and told everyone, including right here 12 months ago, that Dundeel’s 2020 & 2021 crops would put him right up at the top of the tree.

And sure enough, he finished 6th on last season’s Australian General Sires’ Premiership, in the company of Champion Sires Snitzel, I Am Invincible, Savabeel & Written Tycoon. 

But even Arrowfield didn’t predict that he’d also be a top 5 2YO sire last season with 16 2YO winners and his third juvenile Group 1 winner Militarize, plus 3 Group 1 performers: Arrowfield’s filly Miracle Of Love & the colts Townsend & Tannhauser.

MAURICE 
Maurice’s Australia progeny have achieved elite success from 1200m to 2500m – that’s versatility of a very high order and it’s not all Maurice is capable of – because last season he also left a pair of 2YO stakeswinners, the filly Azula and the colt Namesake.

Even better for Australian breeders, Hitotsu, Mazu, Azula & Namesake, plus the Group 2 winner Bank Maur are out of Danehill-line mares.

What’s most impressive about Maurice’s record in Australia is that he hasn’t so far had huge numbers of runners
– in fact, last season he had fewer runners than every other active top 20 sire.

Arrowfield has supported Maurice with almost 100 mares over the past two seasons and we’re looking forward to presenting a superb draft of Maurice yearlings next year – including colts out of Group 1 winner Fenway & 2YO Group winner Teaspoon, and half-sisters to Group 1 winner Profondo and Stakeswinners Dashing Legend & Bend The Knee.

THE AUTUMN SUN
The Autumn Sun is one of only 4 first-season sires who left 2 or more Australian stakeswinners last season.

62 of The Autumn Sun’s first and second-crop foals are out of SW mares – 12 of them out of G1 winners; & 78 of those foals (now 2YOs & 3YOs) have stakes-winning siblings.

The quality & the numbers have continued through The Autumn Sun’s 3rd & 4th books – including the great Black Caviar, who last week produced a gorgeous colt by The Autumn Sun.

Arrowfield has around 40 foals by The Autumn Sun due this Spring & 46 mares allocated to his 2023 book.

Delicious food served with a warm smile!

DUNDEEL - now a top 10 sire of 7 Group 1 winners

ADMIRE MARS - the Champion 2YO's first yearlings sell in 2024

Team Arrowfield welcomed 900+ guests over two days

4-time Champion Sire SNITZEL is universally admired

SNITZEL with leading vendors Jo & Greg Griffin of Lime Country Thoroughbreds

Stallion Manager Joe Hickey with THE AUTUMN SUN

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CASTELVECCHIO 
You may have noticed we have a fathers-and-sons theme on our 2023 roster – it’s a strategy that has been stupendously successful for Arrowfield and breeders who have used Arrowfield stallions.

Castelvecchio is one of those rare colts that have won Group 1 races at both two and three.
Anamoe did it. Extreme Choice did it. Pierro did it. The Autumn Sun did it.
But they’re all standing at considerably higher fees than Castelvecchio.

29 Castelvecchios are nominated for the Golden Slipper and their trainers include Golden Slipper-winning stables of Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott, Michael Freedman, Hawkes Racing, Richard & Will Freedman & Chris Waller.

HITOTSU
64 Australian Group & Listed Races worth $1 million or more last season and 38 of them – almost 60% – are run at 1600m or further.

In other words the Classic distances of Hitotsu’s racing career.

Throw in races like the All-Star Mile, the Big Dance & Five Diamonds and we have to be breeding horses with high-class speed and the strength to take it out to a mile and beyond.

ADMIRE MARS 
You know you’re doing something right when, a quarter-century after you sent Australian mares to Sunday Silence in Japan, people come up to you saying Gee, those Japanese horses are amazing and Japan’s racing is the best in the world.

The rise of Japan is one of the biggest stories in our sport, and Arrowfield is right in the middle of it – thanks to the vision & ambition of John Messara & the Yoshida family of Shadai & Northern Farm, and the emergence of stallions like Maurice, Satono Aladdin, Brave Smash & Staphanos.

If I had to nominate a sleeper among our young sires it’s Admire Mars. To borrow a phrase from my colleague Alison Brassil: He looks fast standing still.

SHOWTIME 
Of the 34 stallions who had their first 2YO runners in Australia last season, only 8 managed to post one or more stakeswinners – including Showtime, sire of 2YO SW Show Royale & Group-placed 2YO Tacito.

Snitzel is proving to be a terrific sire of sires. This time last year 5 of his sons had left stakeswinners – that number is now 11 and four of them are Group 1 sires.

And maybe it’s a co-incidence, maybe not, but six of Snitzel’s 11 stakes-siring sons were bred by Arrowfield – including Showtime. 

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