Te Akau Thursday Update

David writes:

It has been another busy morning at Te Akau Stud with nine horses arriving to be spelled and three horses returning to the stable.  It is important to educate two years olds (2YOs) fully but not put any pressure on them until they are ready for it, so we often give our 2YOs six or seven weeks' work and then turn them out for three weeks.  After that we bring them back into work and possibly proceed to a jump out and then spell them again. Racehorses tell you when they are ready to step up to the next stage and the key is not to put them under pressure until they are ready for it.

Today we have some Christmas drinks for our stud staff and we have Jason and Stacey, Pam and Tommy and Jeff coming over from Matamata for a fun afternoon.  It is great that this year we have Mark Walker home and he returns to Singapore on Monday.

Tomorrow Mark ad I are going to inspect the draft of Pencarrow Stud - they have about 30 catalogued for Karaka next month.

We are now gearing up for the Boxing Day races which Karyn and I really enjoy.  It is over 42 years since I first went to the Boxing Day races and I haven't missed one in that time since.  It is just great seeing everyone get dressed up - and the fashion is amazing as the ladies really get dressed up to the nine and the young men are these days really keeping up!  It is a fun day and this year we have some really nice horses that will step out on the day.

In the Group 2 Sir Tristram Eight Carat we have two really good chances - Group 1 NZ 1000 Guineas' winner Costa Viva who will be ridden by Matt Cameron and Flirty Gertey, the promising Thorn Park filly who has Kelly Myers aboard.  In the Group 2 Great Northern Guineas we have a three pronged attack - All Decked Out will be ridden by Opie Bosson, Group 1 NZ 2000 Guineas' runner up Chambord will be ridden by Matt and Aspen by Kelly.

This morning we drafted 190 lambs that have gone to the works - we kill our lambs with Wilson Hellaby and I am one of those loyal people who, providing we get a fair, honest go, sticks with the ship and I have been selling them my lambs since 1979.