Bowness Stud

It has been another busy and successful year for Bowness Stud with such classy graduates as Chapada, Funstar and Indian Pacific strutting their stuff whilst D’Argento is proving a popular first season stallion.

We caught up with Bowness’ John North in the lead-up to a big sales season…

How has your farm risen to the challenges presented by COVID 19?
Fortunately we operated in a Covid free area and were able to secure a very well credentialled commercial stallion in D’Argento. This negated the necessity for us to expose our operation to a lot of outside adverse influences.

Who are your favourite stallions?
All the good ones! I’m a big fan of the Sadler’s Wells sire line.

Describe your draft for 2021 with highlights.
A diverse draft, a selection that will have something to appeal to all buyers. Obviously the Pierro – Starspangled colt with three Group One winners under the first dam will be well inspected. The Pariah, So You Think, American Pharoah and Shalaa yearlings will also be popular.

Which horse in your draft looks the best chance to win a Magic Millions 2YO Classic or a Golden Slipper?
In a draft of 27 yearlings I would hate to single out any one horse because in many years of breeding I have learned that the good horse can come from anywhere. The opportunity and management they receive is probably one of the most important aspects.

In 40 years, what will people be nostalgic for?
Old fashioned cooking.

If animals could talk, which would be the rudest?
I had a foul mouthed cockatoo once that started swearing when invited guests arrived!

In one sentence, how would you sum up the internet?
A necessary time waster.

How many chickens would it take to kill an elephant?
Depends on which fast food outlet you bought the chicken from.

What inanimate object do you wish you could eliminate from existence?
Selfies (hopefully).

What is something you refuse to share?
Tools of trade.

If you had the power to shrink any one object and carry it with your in your pocket, which item would it be?
Refrigerator.

And a look at the draft…
Several of the draft are the members of the debut crops of exciting stallions including Pariah who has two, a colt out of the city winner Zaboss and a half-sister to the metropolitan winner Flying Touchdown from the Fanfreluche family.

There are not many Menaris around and the progeny of this Run To The Rose-Gr.2, 1200m winner should be in demand, including a son of the city winner Star Of Helicon.
The Gr.1 sprinter Spieth has two; a half-brother to the city winner Port Triano from the family of Zabeel and Twilight Payment and a colt from the family of triple Group One winner Yosei.

Caravaggio has a colt from the family of Group One winners Sharvasti and Linton whilst Ribchester has a colt out of the four times winner Babelicious, sister to stakes winning juvenile Jackson. Impending has the first foal for the city winner Lionel Left Me, a colt from the constantly stakes producing Emancipation family whose latest star members are the stakes winners Prague and Night Raid. There are also several yearlings by stallions whose first foals have just got up and running including Astern whose half-brother to the five times Hong Kong winner Zero Hedge is out of a half-sister to the Magic Millions 2YO Classic-RL, 1200m winner Karuta Queen.
Champion 2YO Colt Shalaa already has a stakes winner (Shaquero, Breeders Plate-Gr.3, 1000m) and he has two in the draft, a filly out of a half-sister to Group Three mare Sookie (dam of Shadow Hero) and a colt out of the Listed winner Pergram.

Written Tycoon is delivering as a sire of sires and his fast son Winning Rupert has two in the draft, a filly out of a sister to the Listed winner Choistar and a colt out of the city winner Good Hunting. Extreme Choice has made an encouraging start with two winners and the stakes placed Extreme Warrior amongst his first five runners. He has fillies out of the winning mares She Brings Hope and Victoria Heights. American Pharoah has had just the one local runner but is faring well in the northern hemisphere with ten debut crop stakes winners. His filly is out of the Snitzel mare Nervous Nellie from the family of Zafonic.

Proven stallions also make their mark in the draft including Pierro (whose colt is out of the terrific producer Starspangled dam of Group One winners Funstar and Youngstar and grandam of Tofane) and So You Think (a filly out of Pink Rocks, grandaughter of the $5 million mare Milanova). Smart Missile has three; a colt out of Margie ‘N’ Me (half-sister to Listed winner Stocks), a half-brother to the Group Two sprinter Alpha Miss and a colt out of six times winner Totally Devoted. Fellow Fastnet Rock stallion Foxwedge is represented by a filly out of the three times winner Spirit Of Pompeii, half-sister to the Group One placed Solar Antiquity .

The oldest progeny of Pride Of Dubai are just three and already he has been represented by seven stakes winners. His colt from the family of Zenyatta is out of a half-sister to stakes winner Monsili. Also represented are the first Australian yearlings by No Nay Never whose stakes winner ratio sits at 9.2%. His colt out of the winner Montaza is a half-brother to the stakes placed Egyptian Bullet.

Making up the draft is an Adelaide colt out of a half-sister to Listed winner Choistar, a Super One half-sister to recent winner Our Boy Trav and a Shooting To Win colt from the family of Fantastic Light.