Telemon acquire neighbouring Running Creek Stud
Leading Queensland operation Telemon Stud have acquired neighbouring property Running Creek Stud, with proprietor Dan Fletcher saying the new acquisition offers them ‘paddock to paddock, one of the best farms to breed a thoroughbred’.
Fletcher, along with his wife Rae, will take over the property run by renowned breeder Gary Pemberton and family.
It’s been an incremental growing process for the Fletchers, who purchased their existing land in late 2016 and rebranded the farm Telemon Thoroughbreds in 2018. This opportunity, however, was too good to pass up, building the blocks for further expansion that aligns with their ambition for the historic property.
“It’s a very exciting time,” said Dan Fletcher to ANZ Bloodstock News. “It’s one of those situations where when your neighbour’s land becomes available it’s probably more valuable to us than it is to anyone else and we’re just delighted to be able to get it.
“Probably the biggest thing that it may allow us to do over time is that it has the potential to repurpose some of our existing stallion facilities and potentially put our stallions up there.
“We don’t plan to do that immediately, but it’s a foundational moment for us and allows us to plan for our long–term future. It’s exciting for now and for ten, 20, years’ time.
“If there is the opportunity there to expand our stallion operations then we certainly would, but we’d never, ever compromise on quality. If the right horse came along and we were able to do something then this acquisition would certainly help us in those ambitions over time.
“We’re planting acorns and it will take time for those to turn in to oaks.”
Although Fletcher sees their involvement in the thoroughbred business as very much a long-term project, the couple have already had a prominent influence in racing circles, forming part of the partnership who bred champion filly Sunlight (Zoustar), while they are also involved in the ownership of dual Group 1 winner Russian Camelot (Camelot).
“In the short term it gives us some more capacity, more paddocks and is just going to allow us to treat our paddocks more kindly,” said Fletcher.
“We might have 12 or 15 what I call ‘mainsale mares’ here at Telemon. We’ve started at a low base and over time we’ll be looking to multiply those numbers and maintain that quality so we can look to access these mainsales. We’re not there at the moment, but at this stage I feel like we’re under the radar.
“What we’re trying to do at Running Creek is just go about our business and have the best quality farm and produce the best quality horses we can offer.
“Hopefully this is a good statement of our long-term intentions and people can see that we’re investing in what we’re doing and they’ll come along on the journey with us.”
Telemon stands three stallions, headlined by Sidestep (Exceed And Excel), who produced Golden Slipper Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Kiamichi from his first crop. The second crop of barnmate Jungle Cat, a son of Iffraaj (Zafonic), will be born this year while Sun City (Zoustar) will have his first foals on the ground.
“We’re really looking forward to getting Sun City’s first foals on the ground and, as for Jungle Cat, if you look at the foals that he’s produced he’s really captured a lot of attention,” said Fletcher. “After a smaller foal crop initially he’s got a much better second crop, and I think we’re going to get an even better book going to him this year.
“The whole Iffraaj sireline is really on the move. It’s so exciting to see what a horse like Almanzor has done this season and we’re hoping people will appreciate Jungle Cat’s representation of that sireline on our stallion roster. I’m very excited by what he might achieve.
“We’ll be looking to consolidate with our stallions this year and my standpoint at this stage would be to maintain our positioning and look after the breeders that have supported us.
“We’ll be judged in the long run by the results that we produce.”