Table of contents for February 2023 in Turf Monthly

Dark Ksar was a son of Ksar Royal out of the mare Gentle Pal. In all he was to start 81 times for 13 wins amassing prizemoney of over $1 million. Interestingly with those horses who trace back to Peter Pan, we see again a strong Queensland connection. In the case of Dark Ksar, he had his first race start as a 2yo at Doomben on 29 December 1990. He finished third of nine runners that day when ridden by Jason Babarovich who now has a joint jockey/trainers licence at Mount Isa in North West Queensland. After three runs as a 2yo, Dark Ksar was spelled and resumed as a 3yo in Adelaide. He was to record his first win in a race at Balaklava in September that was worth…

Global Glamour is one of the most recent stakes winners that trace to the wonderful Apollua. Coincidentally, her foals have been sold through Magic Millions in past years. The mare is by Star Witness out of Spectacula by Testa Rossa and was trained by Gai Waterhouse. She made her racetrack debut on 30 January 2016, winning a 2yo Maiden over 1000m at Kembla Grange on a heavy track. She led all of the way at the prohibitive odds of $1.50. After a spell, Global Glamour returned as a 3yo in an ambitious attempt at the Furious Stakes at Randwick in September over 1200m. Again on a heavy track, the mare underlined her quality by running third behind Foxplay. A sixth in the Tea Rose followed before the mare won the…

If it wasn’t for Phar Lap it is likely that Peter Pan might be revered by the Australian public. He was a true champion of the turf who managed to fight his way out of the shadow of Big Red in the hearts and minds of many. Peter Pan was foaled three years after Phar Lap and had his first start a little over a month after the death of the great idol of Australian racing. Perhaps fittingly he did little in his only two-year-old start, finishing a moderate twelfth of eighteen at Randwick behind a horse called Diamond De Rouge who was touted as an exceptional talent. Sadly he was to prove fickle, a horse with undoubted talent but not much heart for racing much to the chagrin of…

Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1931 - 1954), Tuesday 7 April 1936, page 12 JIM PIKE RELATES HIS LIFE STORY "My First Race Was A Race For Life" By JIM PIKE. In this, the first of a series of articles, relating his life story, the famous jockey, Jim Pike, tells how he started his career, and recalls a humorous incident, in which he says his first race was a race for life. I was born at The Junction, just outside Newcastle and right on the site of the old racecourse. I didn't come of a horsey family, but there were hacks and ponies abroad to be ridden, and I learned to catch and ride these at will. My first race was a race for life. Some mates and I had learned…

Sam Sung A Song traces back to the daughter of Peter Pan in Constant Hope. This gelding sees Apollua as his second dam He was son of the imported stallion Timber Country, an impressively performed US galloper who had won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and Champagne Stakes as a 2yo, and the famed Preakness Stakes at three. The stallion was based in Japan and came to Australia for only four seasons. He came from 1998 to 2000 and then returned some six years later in 2006 following the success of his best local runner in Eremein. He had only moderate success, producing only two other stakes winners apart from Eremein and Sam Sung A Song in Timbourina and Lord Of The Land. Interestingly, Sam Sung A Song was also to…

Rocket To Glory is at this point in time the most recent stakes winner to trace to a daughter of Peter Pan. He also shares a strong Queensland connection having been owned in part by Central Queensland racing identity, Rob Luck and trained by Mackay based John Manzelmann. The gelding was bred by Basil Nolan at his Raheen Stud near Warwick by Shovhog out of English Summer. The family also traces back to Constant Hope by Peter Pan. The gelding was to coincidentally have his first trial as a 2yo in Mackay where he beat two other Manzelmann horses, but more importantly was ridden by Jason Babarovich who rode Dark Ksar in his first race start. It was Trinity Bannon though that was legged on board Rocket To Glory when…

Magic Millions is always an important time on Australian thoroughbred calendar. While the prizemoney on offer is a highlight of this, the restricted nature of the event will always mean that it traditionally will not have the widespread appeal of the Golden Slipper as an example. We write this prior to the sale and to the race being run in 2023, and will have a wrap up next month of some of the results but there are some interesting factors that we would like to make mention of before then. The main feature of the sale is the appearance of the first yearlings of the new stallions and this year sees some remarkable stallions of offer. For our regular readers, we have highlighted these freshman stallions in previous editions. Another…