RECORD PRICED YEARLING WINS ON DEBUT - NOVEMBER 2019
By Peter Wharton
The Aldebaran Park bred and raised Aldebaran Knox, who set the trotting world abuzz when he sold for an Australian record price of $90,000 at the Australasian Premier Trotting Sale in 2018, made an auspicious debut at Maryborough on November 25.
The big, muscular bay three-year-old colt took full advantage of a perfect pocket drive from trainer Matt Craven to reel off a flying last 800 in 58.8 to leave his rivals struggling in his wake.
Aldebaran Knox is the third foal of his dam, Kyvalley Aldebaran NZ, a half-sister to Aldebaran Park’s champion resident sire SKYVALLEY and dam of an earlier winner in Imahe Man (Tr 2:00).
Kyvalley Aldebaran NZ has since produced a two-year-old filly by Love You and a yearling filly by Trixton and is carrying a positive test to Tactical Landing.
The next Aldebaran Knox?
Yearling sale purchasers looking for the next Aldebaran Knox are advised to check out the Aldebaran Park yearling draft for the 2020 Australasian Premier Trotting Sale on Sunday, February 2.
The seven-prong draft – five colts and two fillies – includes the first crop of exciting newcomer ALDEBARAN EAGLE, featuring a half-sister to the Breeders Crown 2YO champion Kyvalley Kyrie and Fear Not ($131,415).
The draft is spearheaded by a Love You colt out of a half-sister to the multiple Group winner Cold Sister Tr 1:57.2 ($262,321), a SKYVALLEY colt from the Victoria Trotters Derby winner Jingling Silver Tr 1:58.4 ($191,322) and a Trixton half-brother to the Maori Legend winner Aldebaran Shelly.
VSTA Awards
Duncan McPherson OAM, the principal of Aldebaran Park, and SKYVALLEY’s champion son Tornado Valley were recipients of major awards at the Victorian Square Trotters Association Awards Night held at Melton recently.
McPherson was presented with the inaugural Bob Conroy Award for Excellence in Trotting, while Tornado Valley was the unanimous choice for 2018/19 Victorian Trotter of the Year.
Aldebaran Park sponsor young drivers
As part of Duncan McPherson’s vision to globalise and internationalise trotting and investing and promoting its young participants, Aldebaran Park is a joint partner with Harness Racing Australia and leading Swedish media company Travronden in a driver exchange program for the leading Australian and Swedish young drivers.
The three-year deal will see the leading Australian driver in the Australasian Young Drivers Championship invited to drive in the famed Swedish Guldklockan (Gold Watch) series held at Sovalla, Stockholm in December each year.
Conversely, the winner of the Gold Watch will be invited to compete in the AYDC the following year, being the first time a non-Australasian driver will compete in the series since its inception in 1993.
McPherson said: “Our future is based on bringing in and retaining more young people in the sport. For me, it feels absolutely right to sponsor a competition series like this.”
The series in Sweden has been renamed Aldebaran Park presents Travronden’s Gold Watch.
Hotjane Bling is hot!
On the racing front, the Aldebaran Park bred Hotjane Bling, a daughter of EILEAN DONON, earned a new speed badge of 1:53.9 for the flying mile at Menangle on November. Earlier in the month the six-year-old carved out the mile in 1:55.8 with the last half in 56.1.
SKYVALLEY, who is in third position on this season’s Sire Premiership, left five individual winners for the month headed up by Kyvalley Finn, who overcame a 10 metre handicap to annex the St Arnaud Trotters Cup and put up a new lifetime mark of 2:00 for 2240 metres at Melton.
Kash Valley, who won twice off long handicap marks in NZ, the Melton winner Myrtle Vale, Black Valley (Redcliffe) and Rememberme (Globe Derby Park) were other recent winners sired by SKYVALLEY.
Meanwhile, Godofthunder gave a further boost to the stocks of YIELD BOKO in winning at Globe Derby for the fifth time.
November foals
New arrivals at Aldebaran Park in November:
Filly: Aldebaran Miley (Magic Mason - Father Patrick)
Filly: Aldebaran Chloe (Aldebaran Crumpet - Southwind Frank)
Filly: Aldebaran Dahla (Aldebaran Daisy – Aldebaran Eagle)
Colt: Aldebaran Buddy (Sundon’s Babe – Aldebaran Eagle)