Bloodstock
Native River is the best of 12 foals from a mare who was lucky to survive a staking accident, while each Festival winner was by a different stallion
Gold Cup hero Native River’s bloodlines
WITH horses, along with other aspects of life, first impressions are often best — and so it proved for Ulster dairy farmer Fred Mackey, breeder of Gold Cup hero Native River.
At the Tattersalls sales in
Co. Meath back in 1997, he spotted a yearling filly by Be My Native, a sire he had always admired. Although he did not buy her then, he could not get her out of his mind. A few weeks later, he made an offer to the successful bidder.
She cost him IR£4,000, and was named Native Mo after his wife Maureen. And although the filly did not make the track — she staked herself on a gate as a youngster and was lucky to survive her injuries — as a broodmare she has justified
Co. Down-based Mackey’s judgement by giving him the crowning moment in his three decades as a breeder.
Native Mo has produced 12 foals, of whom three have won. Eight-year-old Native River is obviously the best, but before
him came another smart one in Orpheus Valley (Beneficial), winner of a valuable Grade A handicap chase at the Punchestown Festival four years ago. Mahler Ten (Mahler) won over hurdles last season.
Native River is by the late Indian River, who was a high-class chaser himself, his most notable success coming in France’s most prestigious handicap chase, the Prix du President de la Republique at Auteuil. He was a son of the great French jump sire Cadoudal, responsible for a
Gold Cup winner of his own in Long Run, as well as longdistance hurdle legend Big Buck’s, and was a half-brother to Franciscaine, dam of Blaklion, favourite for this year’s
Grand National.
Indian River started his stud career in his native France before moving to Ireland, where Native River was one of his penultimate crop, conceived during his time at Park House Stud in Co. Carlow. The first to put the stallion on the map was French-bred Madison Du Berlais, winner of the
2008 Hennessy Gold Cup and conqueror of Denman at Kempton and Exotic Dancer at Aintree later that season.
A FAMILY AFFAIR
NATIVE RIVER is the second member of his distaff family to reach a Cheltenham Festival podium. Native Mo is out of dual bumper winner Milford Run, a half-sister to Minella Lad, who won 10 races over hurdles and fences but produced his best performance in defeat, when he ran third in the 1994 Stayers’ Hurdle as a novice. The pair are out of Belle Of The West, a winner five times over hurdles and fences.
Native River was one of 14 Irish-bred winners in the 28 races at Cheltenham, a total that also included half of the week’s 14 Grade One contests. Frenchbreds took 11, including five Grade Ones, with those foaled in Britain winning three races, of which two were at the highest level.
Unusually, each of the winners over the four days was by a different stallion, for the first time since 2002. Sire honours went to the retired Oscar, who pipped Flemensfirth on countback with Albert Bartlett Hurdle winner Kilbricken Storm and two runners-up in Splash Of Ginge and Rather Be.
Among breeders, the Trapenard family, based at Haras De Sivola in the Allier department in central France, were on the mark with two winners, the handicap chasers Coo Star Sivola and Le Prezien.
Newsells Park Stud in Hertfordshire were responsible for the first two in the
Stayers’ Hurdle, Penhill and Supasundae, and the Champion Hurdle runner-up Melon, even if all three were bred with Flat careers in mind.