Vinery seeking Exceedance dividend from trade mares
Vinery Stud will sell a group of four mares at this week’s Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale in a trade venture devised to increase the exposure of their young stallion Exceedance (Exceed And Excel).
All four mares are offered in foal to Coolmore Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Exceedance and were purchased by Vinery at last year’s Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale.
“We came up with it last year with the idea of continuing the support for Exceedance. We would trade the foals out of the mares and then put them in foal to Exceedance, before trading them back in foal,” Vinery Stud’s bloodstock manager Adam White told ANZ Bloodstock News yesterday.
“It is mainly a ploy to support the stallion and get them out there into the system. We’ve still got a nice broodmare band of our own which we use to support the stallions. We’re there to make profit, yes, but that’s not the main objective of the program, we’re doing it to support the stallions.”
Among the cohort is Allure (Lonhro), a stakes-performed mare and daughter of New Zealand Group 1 winner Captivate (Stravinsky), who was purchased for $150,000 in foal to Microphone (Exceed And Excel) and will be sold tomorrow as Lot 968.
While on Thursday, Vinery will offer Listed-placed mare Meikas (Show A Heart), who is out of a half-sister to three-time South African Grade 1 winner Greys Inn (Zabeel). She was a $180,000 buy from the Baystone Farm draft in foal to Exceedance.
“They’re nice mares, they’ve got good pedigrees and they suit Exceedance well. From what we’ve seen of the horse, we’re sure these mares will produce some good looking foals,” White said.
“The first thing is that they’ve got to suit the stallion that we’ve got in mind for them, whether that’s Ole Kirk or Exceedance, both physically and pedigree-wise. We try to stay away from the higher-priced mares and scout around the edges, but we still pick up some nice little pedigrees, without spending too much so we can trade them well.”
Vinery enjoyed initial success with the plan at last week’s Magic Millions National Weanling Sale, with the Exceedance foal out of Meikas realising $85,000 while Allure’s Microphone colt was purchased for $260,000 by Musk Creek Farm, putting a useful profit to the concept even before her resale this week.
Also among last year’s broodmare purchases was Loved Up (Nicconi), a Listed winner bought for $120,000 whose Exceedance foal made $200,000 on the Gold Coast last week.
Vinery, however, lost the mare last month before she could be traded at the following mares sale.
Exceedance’s first weanlings averaged $107,000 at the two-day Magic Millions auction on May 19 and 20.
“Allure is the classic case in question,” White said. “She’s a very good looking mare and had a very good looking first foal, which sold well, and it should be a big selling point for her (this week) to know you’ve got a good physical.
“We’ve done terrifically out of the weanlings and now the mares are going to generate a lot of interest, being in foal to Exceedance. That little group that we bought last year has been very successful and these mares will pop out there on the market again and get into some breeders paddocks.”
Vinery will also offer Akela’s Charm (Charm Spirit), a half-sister to multiple Group 2 winner Lady Kipling (Savabeel) and the stakes–placed Lady Chapel (King’s Chapel), who is consigned as Lot 964. She was bought empty for $100,000 and is now in foal to Exceedance.
Selling on Thursday is Kyoto Moon (Makfi), a half-sister to Group 3 winner and ATC Sires’ Produce Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m) runner-up Odyssey Moon (Snitzel). Offered in foal to Exceedance, she was also bought for $100,000 at last year’s Magic Millions sale.
“Trading is helping and it’s a bit of fun. At the same time it’s helping the young stallion in getting some nice mares and getting the support that, as a farm, we need to give them,” White said.
“We’ll go round again and have a similar look for mares in foal that we can trade. They’ll then go in foal to either Exceedance or Ole Kirk and be traded again next year.”