Rockabilly Blues adds to mare’s tally

CHRISTCHURCH: Rockabilly Blues gained some consolation for her dam, Chicago Blues, when she won on debut at Wyndham yesterday.

Chicago Blues was meant to have had her name up in lights at Addington tomorrow, courtesy of Chicago Bull, who had been favourite for the New Zealand Cup.

A freakish injury put an end to that, but it has not stopped his dam from starting her cup week in style.

Yesterday her 4yrold daughter, Rockabilly Blues, scored an impressive win in the much quieter surrounds of Young Quinn Raceway. The Rock N Roll Heaven halfsister to Chicago Bull came with a booming finish in the mile race in 1min 56.5sec for Winton trainers Katrina and John Price.

Remarkably, Rockabilly Blues’s victory came just weeks after she was bound to join her dam in the broodmare paddock.

‘‘We had her booked in and she was going to go to stud this year. We had her in work but we weren’t really committed to racing her,’’ Katrina Price said.

‘‘She came up pretty good this time and we persevered with racing her instead, and she will probably go to the breeding paddock next year.’’

Chicago Bull and Rockabilly Blues are nothing alike in appearance.

‘‘You would never dream in a million years that they are related. She is as big as he is small. But hopefully she has some of his ability, though.

‘‘She has always had speed, but she is a January foal and she was just weak. With her size and being a January foal, you would think time is going to help her.’’

Part of the reason Rockabilly Blues was heading to the broodmare paddock was because Chicago Blues has not produced a live foal for two seasons. A Bettor’s Delight foal died at birth last season and she failed to get back in foal.

The last foal from Chicago Blues is her salestopping yearling of last year. The Bettor’s Delight 2yrold, who has been renamed Express Stride, won a qualifying trial at Franklin on Saturday for trainer Ray Green. — NZ Harness News