Te Akau Tuesday Update
Date: 25 Jun 2024
David writes:
What another exciting weekend it was for Te Akau Racing – winning races in three countries!
The tangerine team won races at Tauranga (from our New Zealand stable), Warrnambool (from our Australian stable) and Kranji (from our Singapore stable).
However arguably the biggest thrill for me was seeing our New Zealand co-trainer Sam Bergerson in his very first season as a trainer in partnership with Mark Walker, record his 161st win for the season on Saturday in Tauranga.
Now that is an incredible performance! And is the second highest number of winners a stable has ever had in New Zealand.
Te Akau has in fact recorded the top three highest winners in a season: 203 (NZ record 2022/23 season), 161 (this season) and 160 (2021/22).
It is intriguing sometimes seeing uninformed comments such as ‘well of course Te Akau wins double the races, they have treble the horses of any other stable'. The NZTR website records the number of horses each stable in New Zealand has in training, and comments that that are simply untrue.
What is impressive, is the incredible strike rate that our trainers have again recorded this season - for a major stable, to have a strike rate of 5.87 just shows how well the team is training and placings our horses - that's a winner basically for every five (.87) runners.
We could not be more proud of the men and women who make up the team in Matamata, Christchurch, Cranbourne and Kranji - world class horse people who are passionate, dedicated, hard-working and so determined to deliver the best results possible for our owners.
As is normal heading in to the winter months, Te Akau won’t have many more runners this season but we still have some nice horses to race in the next two weeks. With the shortest day already taking place last Friday, the days will start to get longer and it's not long until Spring now.
What’s really exciting about Spring racing is the huge stake increases that New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing and Entain have just announced. The good news keeps coming and the latest news sees horses that are eligible for the lucrative NZB Karaka Millions Series now able to race for an additional $1 million in bonuses.
This exciting new initiative sees $1 million in bonuses up for grabs across 40 maiden races each season, for the next three years, through the efforts of New Zealand Bloodstock, New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing and Entain.
Comprised of 40 non-Saturday maiden races located throughout New Zealand, a $25,000 bonus will be struck if a Karaka Millions eligible horse, three years or older, wins.
Yes it is certainly an incredibly exciting time to be racing in New Zealand and we have a cracking team of horses being prepared to race in New Zealand for the next season.
Between the amazing opportunities available from our Australian stable, and the continuing New Zealand initiatives, the future is indeed very exciting.
When Karyn and I were in Australia in late May to attend the sale of Imperatriz and attend the yearling sale, I bought four yearlings - a Hellbent filly, a Zoustar colt, a Cool Aza Beel filly and a Written Tycoon filly.
The shares in all of them are all sold.
We still however have limited shares available in some very promising yearlings that I can really recommend to you.
One yearling that I am really impressed with is the Proisir colt out of Hayle Bay. There is only 15% now available in this colt, and if he is not a top horse – I will give up!
He is just magnificent - he was a star pupil during his breaking in, and has impressed everyone who has handled him during his first stable prep. They all say he gives them a huge feel when they ride him, so roll on the new season! and everybody who rides him, they say he gives them just the best feel.
Remember - just because these shares are among the last to sell, it does NOT mean these horse won't shine - Imperatriz and Avantage, Cool Aza Beel and Sword of Osman - just for examples of horses that were among the very last to sell in their year - all Group 1 winners, 21 Group 1 titles between them in fact!
So if you want to be involved in the next top horse that comes from Te Akau, please feel free to give me a call on 021 925 151.
This week on the farm we have bought our first weanlings our of their paddocks to box and to handle them. The farrier will trim them on Thursday, and they will have a drench and a vaccination.
Each day they go for a nice long, accompanied walk and then we will put them out in their paddock on Friday morning. It's all part of their early handling and education.
We will then bring another nine down next week. These yearlings have been unbelievably well handled by our team at Te Akau Stud led be Deane Lowcay. These young horses are an absolute credit to Deane and all our team.
The grass on the farm has never been better, I have never seen more good quality grass and clover at this time of the year. On Thursday we are going to drench and vaccinate our five year old old ewes and crutch them. Then the middle of next week we will set stock them because they are due to start lambing on the 14 July.
Last week I went to NZ Bloodstock's weanling sale, and although I did not buy one at the sale itself, I did purchase a weanling the previous week off Gavelhouse. He's an Embellish colt out of a Danehill mare, with one of the best pedigrees you would ever see, and I am really looking forward to seeing him develop in the months ahead.
Overall, I thought the sale was very good for the quality that was there. The really good weanlings made their money so overall I thought it was a big success.
Tomorrow Wednesday, Karyn and I are celebrating a very special day.
It is our 20th wedding anniversary. So, 20 years ago we got married in Wellington, and we are having a lovely dinner with our family to celebrate. It's hard to believe 20 years have flown by!
Best of luck to all our owners with runners this week and ... GO THE TANGERINE!!