Originally published in TDN AusNZ, written by Jessica Owers
Musk Creek Farm has a boutique number of broodmares heading to various stallions for the upcoming breeding season, and farm manager Scott Williamson took time out this week to tell us about them.
Musk Creek Farm, on the gentle slopes of the Mornington Peninsula, has 25 breeding mares for the upcoming season. As it stands, the booking sheet is a relatively even split between stallions based locally in Victoria, and those based in the Hunter Valley hub.
Farm Manager Scott Williamson said the decision between one or the other was interesting this year.
“I think there’s a really good vibe about Victoria at the moment,” he said. “Widden has come down here, which is great, and Darley is bringing a couple of really nice horses this year. Rosemont is doing a great job with Shamus Award, and Spendthrift is getting a nice bunch of stallions together by champion sires.”
“I think there’s a really good vibe about Victoria at the moment.” – Scott Williamson
With Written Tycoon at Yulong, soon to be joined by Northern Hemisphere import Lucky Vega (Ire), and Toronado (Ire) firing at Swettenham, the local options for the Musk Creek mares were bountiful.
“I think there’s a bit of momentum being gained by Victorian farms, and we’re very happy to support them,” Williamson said. “I think it’s exciting for Victoria, and we’re certainly getting behind it. We’re using five or six of the farms down here this season, and sending them multiple mares too.”
EARLY STRATEGIES
Musk Creek is owned by Melbourne identity David Kobritz, and managed by Williamson for the last four years.
The farm graduates include Coolmore stallion Pierro, who was Champion 2-Year-Old of his generation, G1 Epsom H. hero Rock Kingdom (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) and Newport (Encosta De Lago), winner of the G1 Metropolitan H.
The operation is boutique by nature, with mare numbers dipping and rising around the sales, but Williamson said he’s happy with around 25 this season.
“We’ve put a lot of work into our mares the last few years,” he said. “We’ve sold 18 since I started working here four and a-half years ago, and when you sell that many you obviously have a drop off in foal crops, but we’ve built our numbers back up again and we’re probably as big as we want to be, in terms of broodmare numbers.”
“When you sell that many (mares) you obviously have a drop off in foal crops, but we’ve built our numbers back up again and we’re probably as big as we want to be, in terms of broodmare numbers.” – Scott Williamson
Among the notable matrons heading out for covers this season upcoming, Apologynotaccepted (USA) (Fusaichi Pegasus {USA}) is a highlight. She was purchased by Musk Creek and Boomer Bloodstock (FBAA) at the 2019 Inglis Chairman’s Sale for $500,000, direct from the draft of Coolmore Stud.
Apologynotaccepted arrived in Australia in late 2018, a winner of four races in the United States and stakes placed in three of her last four starts. When Musk Creek bought her, she was carrying a filly by Medaglio D’Oro (USA) that the farm sold this year for $150,000 at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale. She went to Kevin Corstens Racing.
“She’s currently in foal to Snitzel, and due to foal in September,” Williamson said. “To follow up that mating, we’re going to go with a first-season horse and send her to Bivouac. He was a must-have for us as a first-season sire. He was an exceptional racehorse that trained on, by Exceed And Excel, and we just saw Bivouac as the heir apparent. He should be very well-received at the sales if he throws types like himself.”
“He (Bivouac) was a must-have for us as a first-season sire. He was an exceptional racehorse that trained on, by Exceed And Excel, and we just saw Bivouac as the heir apparent.” – Scott Williamson
Williamson said the choice of a debut sire was calculated.
Apologynotaccepted visited Written Tycoon and Snitzel in her last two seasons, both proven sires, and the resultant offspring was positive. He said the time was right to push the boat out.
“We paid a good bit of money to get her to the farm,” Williamson said. “We don’t have large numbers and we feel, to give these mares every possible chance to be a success as a broodmare, those first three years at stud are crucial. So we like to give them, in an ideal world, the opportunity to go to three proven stallions in those first three years, and once they’ve had that, and after seeing their foals and seeing what types will suit them, maybe go to a new sire thereafter.”
PERSONALISED SERVICE
One of the more topical mares in the Musk Creek band these days is Personalised (Snitzel), a half-sister to the G1 VRC Oaks winner Personal (Fastnet Rock). This is a happening family, with Personal on her way to a berth in the Breeders’ Cup later this year.
Musk Creek picked up the now 7-year-old Personalised at the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale in 2019, paying $525,000 to Cressfield for her in partnership with Craig Rounsefell’s Boomer Bloodstock.
Williamson admitted it was a pretty penny, but the mare was in foal to Spirit Of Boom at that Sale, and the resultant colt became the highest-priced progeny of that stallion to date when he sold this year at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
He went to trainer Tony Gollan, in partnership with John Foote, for $575,000.
“These sorts of families don’t come up for sale very often,” Williamson said. “They’re great families to get into, and Cressfield’s history as breeders is outstanding, so to buy off them with this family was significant. That Spirit Of Boom colt straight away paid for the mare, and Personalised is a really exciting mare for us.”
Personalised has been to Dundeel (NZ) and Zoustar since her first foal to Spirit Of Boom. The Zoustar foal is due this spring, and Williamson said she is booked to Capitalist.
“It’s a really good mating on type and pedigree,” he said. “It gets that speed into the mare. She’s obviously by Snitzel, but she’s a bit bigger type, and Capitalist will suit her. We considered sending her last year, but went to Zoustar instead, and Capitalist has proved pretty prepotent as a stallion so far, and Newgate has done a fantastic job with its stallions and it’s easy to support them.”
OUR LADIES
Notre Dame (Exceed And Excel) is one of Musk Creek’s notable mares on pedigree. She is the seventh foal from the brilliant race mare Divine Madonna (Hurricane Sky), a four-time Group 1 winner and the dam of the Listed Gai Waterhouse Classic winner Maternal (Street Cry {Ire}).
Musk Creek and Boomer Bloodstock picked up Notre Dame at the Magic Millions National Sale in 2020, when she was sold by Godolphin for $320,000.
That season, she was carrying a colt by Street Boss (USA), which is growing out on Musk Creek Farm. Notre Dame will foal to Written Tycoon this spring, and is booked to visit Zoustar thereafter.
Mumtaazah (Al Samer) will join her in the Hunter Valley, a dry mare that missed to Frosted (USA) last year. Mumtaazah was unraced, and Musk Creek picked her up for $140,000 from Raheen Stud in 2016.
She is booked to Arrowfield shuttler Maurice (Jpn), and she hit the road north just this week.
“We’ve been really impressed with Maurice,” Williamson said. “Most people have. He’s got a lot more 2-year-olds out there winning, racing and trialling well than most people were expecting. They’re very athletic types, and they’ll surely keep getting better as they’re turning three with the sort of racehorse he was.”
“They’re (Maurices) very athletic types, and they’ll surely keep getting better as they’re turning three with the sort of racehorse he was.” – Scott Williamson
Musk Creek has additionally booked its mare Ascertain (USA) (Blame {USA}) to Shalaa (Ire) at Arrowfield. Ascertain was a three-time winning filly in the United States, and imported early last year. She was picked up by Craig Rounsefell at the 2019 Keeneland November Breeding Sale, and will foal to Deep Field this spring.
Additionally, Williamson has the broodmare Blackline (Blackfriars) heading to Toronado at Swettenham. She is currently in foal to So You Think (NZ), and is a mare that Musk Creek and Boomer Bloodstock purchased at the recent Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale.
The partnership paid $230,000 for her from the draft of Willow Park Stud, and she is one of the many mares that Musk Creek has committed to a Victorian stallion. In fact, the operation is sending six on-farm mares to Darley Victoria sires alone.
CAPTIVANT AUDIENCE
There are numerous other mares heading out of Musk Creek this season upcoming.
Cardiac (Encosta De Lago), whose first foal was the stakes winner Declarationofheart (Declaration Of War {USA}), is heading to Golden Slipper winner and Kia Ora stallion debutant Farnan. There is also the stakes winner If I Can I Can (NZ), by Iffraaj (GB), who will visit Darley’s new shuttler Ghaiyyath (Ire).
Additionally, Williamson mentions Anne Cecilia (More Than Ready {USA}), whom Musk Creek and Boomer Bloodstock purchased as recently as May, at the 2021 Inglis Chairman’s Sale.
“She was Lot 6, and she’s a half-sister to Captivant,” he said. “We obviously paid a bit of money for her too, and she’s in foal to Ocean Park, carrying her first foal. We like buying young mares, and predominantly young mares carrying their first foal, just so we get a bit of control on how we set them up, and control their destiny, in some respect.”
Anna Cecilia was purchased for $420,000 from Lime Country. She is from Speedboat, the Commands mare and dam of G1 Champagne S. winner Captivant (Capitalist). It’s the same family as Headwater and Kulgrinda (Exceed And Excel), and Musk Creek has booked Anna Cecilia to Snitzel this season.
“The obvious mating would have been Capitalist, to get a three-quarter to Captivant,” Williamson said. “But we went with Snitzel for this season because he’s been an outstanding stallion for many, many years. It’s a great mating for the mare, and we’ll keep the option of sending her to Capitalist for next year.”
“We went with Snitzel for this season because he’s been an outstanding stallion for many, many years. It’s a great mating for the mare (Anna Cecilia), and we’ll keep the option of sending her to Capitalist for next year.” – Scott Williamson
The decision goes back to that three-year strategy by Williamson of keeping the young mares among proven names early in their breeding careers, and then pushing the boat out thereafter. Nevertheless, the spread of stallions on the Musk Creek run-sheet is still vast.
Williamson made bookings to Pinatubo (Ire), who won’t shuttle this season on account of an eye infection and also Street Boss (USA) and Dundeel (NZ). Musk Creek also purchased pinhook weanlings by Maurice and Shalaa throughout the selling season.
The foal crop this year will include progeny by Toronado, American Pharoah (USA), Omaha Beach (USA) and Kermadec (NZ), and Williamson said they’re not afraid to spread the love when it comes to breeding strategies.
“You have to be diverse,” he said. “You can’t just breed one type of horse, and I think you have to produce something for everyone. The Golden Slipper and the Blue Diamond are at the forefront of everyone’s mind, but the prizemoney is so good in Australia for the older horses racing over 2000 metres and I feel if we can breed those horses and educate owners to be a bit more patient, we can see the best of horses bred like this.”
Copy: TDN AusNZ (written by Jessica Owers)
