THE BACKBONE of a big share of the future success that predictably will continue to flow from the paddocks of Fred Pesiah’s Lomar Park, at Werombi on the mountain fringe of Sydney, is likely to be through use as broodmares of daughters of resident Danehill sire Arena. So far Arena, a former versatile high rank performer, whose efforts included wins in the Victoria Derby, Canterbury Guineas, Hobartville Stakes, Hill Stakes and Gloaming Stakes, has only had eight of his daughters represented by runners, but four have produced winners and one other a placegetter. His latest broodmare success came on Saturday when the Lomar bred and raced 4-year old Quest for Fame gelding Portos won the 2400m event which opened the Randwick program by 1.5 lengths.Trained at Warwick Farm by Bill Prain, Portos has raced 13 times for five wins, all since early June and in a seven race campaign. In addition these seven outings have included a second and a third at Randwick.
Another good winner bred on Lomar Park using an Arena mare, but an outside sire, Canny Lad, has been King Pulse.Tragically, as he had the makings of a top sprinter, he has been restricted to only four starts. He won his first two, appearances at Geelong (by 4.75 lengths) and Caulfield (0.75 lengths), and then finished a nose second to Headway last spring in the Coolmore-Gr.1 (Ascot Vale Stakes) at Flemington and in March a1.5 lengths fourth on the same track in the Newmarket-Gr.1. Both Portos and King Pulse are not only out of mares by Arena, but they are related and from mares that mirror over 40 years of achievement for Fred Peisah at Lomar Park.They both descend from one of the stud’s foundation mares, Social Smile, and share the same three Lomar Park sires maternally, Arena, Archregent (CAN) and Adirondack Holme (USA) (by exported Star Kingdom champion Noholme). In addition the fourth dam of Portos is by another Lomar Park sire, foundation winner getter Le Cordonnier (GB). Besides Portos and King Pulse, the big list of good performers from the Social Smile family raised on the hills and dales of Lomar Park have included Razor Sharp (15 wins, VRC Newmarket-Gr.1 twice, AJC Challenge Stakes-Gr.2 thrice), Steel Blade (11 wins, AJC Challenge Stakes, second AJC Epsom-Gr.1, George Main-Gr.1,The Galaxy-Gr.2), Super Elegant (19 wins, BTC Doomben 10000-Gr,1, SAJC Goodwood Handicap-Gr.1), Elegancy (12 wins, SAJC Angas Brut Classic-Gr.2), Mister Elegant (14 wins, four stakes) and Robian Steel (7 wins, QTC Stradbroke-Gr.1, second Doomben 10000).
Pleasure Ground, the Arena mare who produced King Pulse as her first foal, was a smart galloper who won in Sydney and finished second in the Illawarra K.F.Nolan Classic-LR, but Portos’s dam, the Arena mare Regal Arena, could manage only one place each at Armidale and Goulburn in eight starts. She is a sister, however, to Regal Cheer, a winner of six races, including the STC Coolmore Classic-Gr.1 and AJC Surround Stakes-Gr.2 and second in the STC Queen of the Turf Stakes, and a three-quarter sister to My Lady’s Chamber, an Arena winner in Sydney and Canberra (the National Sprint-LR) and second in four stakes headed by the AJC Flight Stakes-Gr.1. Pleasure Ground, Regal Cheer and My Lady’s Chamber are among more than 150 winners and earners of $11.3million got at Lomar Park by Arena to date.The others include Rena’s Lady (won the AJC Australian Oaks-Gr.1, Adrian Knox Stakes-Gr.3), Top Spin (15 wins Singapore – Malaysia including three Group1s), Vegas Charm (Singapore Juvenile Championship), Sydney winners and Group 2 placed Public Opinion and Whitefriars. The most recent new winner for Arena has been Circle of Power, a 3-year-old gelding bred by former NSW TAB Board chairman Ross Cribb and raced by him in a partnership out of the Rod Craig stables, who broke through for a win by 2.8 lengths at Canterbury this week. He is bred on the reverse cross to that which produced Portos, being out of a Quest for Fame mare.
Arena (2010 fee $8,800) can be expected to supply many good winners and also to forge ahead as a significant broodmare sire. In particular, he could play a big role in establishing Lomar Park’s newest sire, imported Valixir (IRE) (fee $13,200). Due to be represented by his first 2-year-old in 2010-11, this son of Trempolino, a Sharpen Up product who won the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in new track record time, was a leading performer in France at two and three and one of the world’s best older milers at four in 2005. Valixir looked after ten Arena mares in his first season, one in which he also served daughters of Canny Lad, Woodman, Zabeel, Dehere, Royal Academy, Danewin, Spinning World, Archregent, Umatilla, Chief’s Crown, Twig Moss, Mister C, Vettori, Danehill, Lure, Military Plume, Slew o’Gold and Commands. The Valixir – Arena cross produces pedigrees conversely similar to that possessed by Danehill Dancer. He is by Danehill and from a Sharpen Up mare.
