Without Being to Pessimistic

After just watching Noah from Goa and Light the Lights made me come back to this article to ask are we just not that good enough ?

Surely M.J. could have bought the Plane never mind paid his way .

What Do You Think ?

The ambitious plan to fly Legal Eagle, The Conglomerate, Marinaresco and Silver Mountain to race in America – and so pave the way for the South African bloodstock industry to be opened up to the world – looks to have fallen through, writes Michael Clower.
Derek Brugman – not giving up yet
Derek Brugman, the man behind it all, said yesterday: “It now looks highly unlikely and the feedback I am getting from the other guys involved is that it is a no-go for the money involved.”
The original target was 15 horses sharing the $600 000 flight cost but, with only six (possibly seven) horses confirmed, the cost per ticket has risen from $40 000 to $100 000.
Brugman said: “It’s a great shame but I gave Markus Jooste an undertaking from the beginning that we would only do this if it made economic sense and I can’t justify spending that kind of money. It’s too big a risk.
“Similarly the other guys who committed from the start are not prepared to spend an extra $60 000 a horse. The exercise doesn’t make sense at that price.”
The intention was that, once the big-name horses came through their 60-day lockdown in New York with a treadmill for exercise, they would add to their reputations on the racetracks of the States and so advertise South African bloodstock to such an extent that American owners and trainers would buy yearlings here and take them home via the same New York 60-day quarantine.
When the market developed sufficiently breeders here could benefit further by breeding some of their mares to Northern Hemisphere time.
SA Horse Of The Year Legal Eagle stays put
Brugman, who has been working on this project for two years, regards the setback as temporary and said: “I can assure you that I haven’t thrown in the towel in terms of trying this again in the future, possibly even later this year.”
He is looking forward to the day when South Africa is regarded by the Americans as Contagious Equine Metritis-free.
At the moment it is not and so they insist that any colts or entire horses coming from this country must do a third month of lockdown during which they have to cover two mares. It is a requirement that would play mental and physical havoc with any plans to keep them racing.
Brugman said: “But for this requirement we might have been able to send a couple of our good three-year-olds with the shipment.”

you are correct

Why group all the horses into one category 'not good enough'? every horse should be judged individually. I think South African horses have proved enough to show we're good enough.

For every Ertijaal and Noah from Goa, You've got Vercingetorix(Gr 1 winner in dubai + second to the World's best rated horse Just A Way) and Variety Club who went to Hong Kong and thrashed their beast Able Friend. Just because the last few haven't worked out doesn't mean our horses are inferior.

Also realise many complications arise with travel etc. Horses sometimes hate their new surroundings and never show their true ability.

Quarantine is the problem takes them 2 years not months to recover

MasterOfMyFate wrote: Why group all the horses into one category 'not good enough'? every horse should be judged individually. I think South African horses have proved enough to show we're good enough.

For every Ertijaal and Noah from Goa, You've got Vercingetorix(Gr 1 winner in dubai + second to the World's best rated horse Just A Way) and Variety Club who went to Hong Kong and thrashed their beast Able Friend. Just because the last few haven't worked out doesn't mean our horses are inferior.

Also realise many complications arise with travel etc. Horses sometimes hate their new surroundings and never show their true ability.

this type of conversation comes up every year and this morning you said if the real Noah comes to the course it wont be any race and now after it got beat we must not group with other horses,and for me Vercingetorix was no star at all.Please be a realist and dont muddle patriotism with reality

and my rider comment was regarding Bobs remarking SA form

Every year people in SA make the same mistake and believe that because such and such horse won this and this race it would be natural progression that the horse will clean up in Dubai or wherever else. Not so.

Looks like Chicken has found a new mate , he just agrees with everything that Fafi says :sick:

chicken n chips wrote: Every year people in SA make the same mistake and believe that because such and such horse won this and this race it would be natural progression that the horse will clean up in Dubai or wherever else. Not so.

But chook on form (Grade 1 winners ) should beat the UK runners(listed class)

Remember Variety Club ended his career the best Miller in the world

Looks like Magi has some serious competition with the ARM that are currently around :whistle:

MasterOfMyFate wrote: Why group all the horses into one category 'not good enough'? every horse should be judged individually. I think South African horses have proved enough to show we're good enough.

For every Ertijaal and Noah from Goa, You've got Vercingetorix(Gr 1 winner in dubai + second to the World's best rated horse Just A Way) and Variety Club who went to Hong Kong and thrashed their beast Able Friend. Just because the last few haven't worked out doesn't mean our horses are inferior.

Also realise many complications arise with travel etc. Horses sometimes hate their new surroundings and never show their true ability.

Ok maybe those are the wrong words to use. I as referring to the truth in the Article , at the moment do we have one of the ones you mentioned. M O M F - With a horse population of 7000 a year over the amount of time you have mentioned does not look very good as a percentage. Yes we have very good race horses , but that race in Dubia now was a Group 2 and both our top three year olds the winner of the Guines and a horse that ran 4th in the met have been trounced good and solid.

Just a Thought . I have been to Churchill Downs and attended the Keenland sales watching over 500 horses being sold.

We breed a great looking horse I would be proud of presenting there. So don't get me wrong . Just asking a question ,.

and actually nothing will change until we realize that our ratings arent what they are

Craig Pienaar wrote: Looks like Chicken has found a new mate , he just agrees with everything that Fafi says :sick:

He is my new mate on the forum You have let me down by siding with the wilting daisy. :whistle: dont worry fafi the me any my entire coup have your back. Anyone starts with you chicken and his gang will peck them down.