Master of his domain

BY AIDAN RODLEY

In human years, champion sire Volksraad is rising 76.

He's had a few recent health scares and has had to battle arthritis in a foreleg since he was prematurely retired from the racetrack in England as a three-year-old.

But don't make the mistake of assuming he is fragile.

Visitors are advised to stand well clear and staff at his Cambridge home of Windsor Park Stud go to lengths to ensure his routines are strictly adhered to in order to keep the 22-year-old stallion happy.

Stories of him carrying a handler across the paddock with his teeth and his animosity toward  former stallion Black Minnaloushe are legendary at Windsor Park but stud manager Steve Till doesn't want people to get the wrong idea.

''He is a grumpy fella but he's no man-eater,'' Till says.

''He a tough, no-nonsense sort of character and we've keep the same stallion man handling him all the time because if we change the routine with him, he can become intimidatory. He's a horse you can't take your eyes off.

''If the same routine is followed, he is generally pretty happy and under control but every now and then he does have a bad hair day. He's just a masculine horse and like some herd animals, he lives under the law of the jungle that the strongest survives.

''He gets on very well with King's Chapel but when we had Black Minnaloushe he just rubbed him up the wrong way and they didn't get along.

''He's more of that ilk than a good-natured, tractable stallion to work with. We just take a bit more care with him.

''The one thing about him though is that you wouldn't get a stallion who leaves more tractable racehorses and for that reason, we don't think he's being temperamental, it's more of a masculine trait.''

While age hasn't mellowed Volksraad, neither has age stymied his influence as a sire.

Cambridge three-year-old Military Move credited Volksraad with his first New Zealand Derby winner earlier this month, sparking jubilant celebrations with the Windsor Park Stud team, who were also his breeders.

Trainer Shaune Ritchie and his family this week joined the Windsor Park crew to share a few drinks and toast the Derby triumph, which was yet another memorable achievement for Volksraad.
The Green Desert stallion's list of milestones is formidable.

He has sired 12 individual Gr I winners and sired 54 individual stakes winners of 130 races.

Mexican Rose's stakes win in Singapore last weekend took his season tally to seven stakes winners, highlighted by Military Move's Derby success and Veloce Bella's breakthrough Gr I win in the Darci Brahma International Stakes.

Volksraad is currently more than $600,000 ahead on the New Zealand general sires' list as he seeks his eighth Grosvenor Award to draw level with St Leger (1893-1902).  Foxbridge is the benchmark, having won 11 titles from 1941.

''As they say, it's not over till the fat lady sings but given what racing is left this season, you'd think the only stallion with a chance of catching him is Pins and his chief flagbearer Katie Lee is in the paddock,'' Till says.
''If he was to win it, that would make it eight of the last 10 years and the other two years he's finished second to Zabeel and O'Reilly.

''He's got to be one of New Zealand's most iconic stallions, to give the horse his dues. Pakistan II, Copenhagen and Noble Bijou   you look at those stallions with a lot of reverence and they won three or four New Zealand stallion titles at most.

''In context, that puts him up with the greatest, for sure. We've very proud of him and feel very privileged to be involved with him.''

Till, along with Windsor Park boss Nelson Schick, Pat Connell and the Davison family bought Volksraad for 21,000 guineas at auction from the 1992 December sales in England.

''I'll never make a better investment in my life,'' Till told the Waikato Times soon after Volksraad sired his 40th stakes winner in 2006.

The Green Desert stallion was favourite for the English 2000 Guineas but had to be retired through his foreleg injury and the Cambridge horsemen were quick to swoop.

He made his mark straight away as a stallion becoming leading first-season sire and the accolades haven't stopped since.

Among his best progeny are Gr I winners Sir Slick, Vinaka, Zola, One Under, Star Satire, Orange County, Dantelah, Willy Smith, Dezigna, Veloce Bella and former South African star Clifton King.

Volksraad has earned a reputation of getting a young broodmare up-and-running with good early performers but there has also been a slight stigma about his stock not handling wet ground or getting past 2000m.

It has hardly mattered, as his good track runners up to 2000m had done such an admirable job.

There were Wellington Cup winner Willy Smith and New Zealand Cup winner Torlesse who had both won over 3200m but they were considered part of that unexplainable group of racing anomalies.
Until now.

Military Move's Derby win over 2400m and the prospect of a Gr I New Zealand Oaks (2400m) win through either last week's Listed Sunline Vase (2100m) winner A Chance To Dream or Corsage at Trentham tomorrow has altered the playing field.

''For us, it was the first New Zealand Derby winner Volksraad had sired and the first one we'd bred,'' Till says.
''We'd bred [VRC Derby winner] Monaco Consul and Showella, who won the South Australian Derby, but it was a first for both us and the stallion. In terms of his career, it was a crowning achievement.

''He's not really thought of as a staying-oriented sire but when you look at a lot of very good sires, like Danehill whose progeny excelled at 1600m to 2000m, they do get the odd good stayer.

''Volksraad's had a couple of two-mile winners in Willy Smith and Torlesse and others who have won over ground but now he's produced a couple of good staying three-year-olds.

''The thing with Volksraad, when he's mated with a mare with a staying pedigree, there's every chance you'll get a racehorse that will go over ground. A Chance To Dream has got a very good female staying family.
''Hopefully she'll go a good race at Trentham. She's in good form and she keeps improving. If she gets a good track, I'm sure she'll be competitive.''

Till says there are no plans to retire Volksraad from the breeding barn while his ''libido and vigor''  is so good.

''Over the last 12-to-18 months he's had moments when he's had a bit of discomfort but overall he's enjoyed pretty good health,'' Till says.

''During the sales there was a day or two when we were concerned enough to get the vet in to check him out but he recovered pretty quickly. He carries his years pretty well in that respect.

''We had Star Way still serving mares at 31 and as long he's healthy he'll carry on. We restrict him to 75 to 80 mares and make sure he's well looked after.''

- © Fairfax NZ News