This is the eighteenth and final of an occasional series of articles reviewing multiple classic producing broodmares with five or more offspring in results information as shown on the Classic Families (CF) database. A number of these mares won classic races, became the dams of classic winners/progeny and contributed to the genetic inheritance of numerous outstanding performers.
GORSE BUSH (1996 Ticket To Heaven/Barrington Lass), Australian family of Black Annie (A41), 2:02.1, $48,413; 11 foals, 10 to race for 8 winners. Breeder : BJ Rattray, TAS. All foals bred by Rattray Family Trust, TAS
Gorse Bush’s sire Ticket To Heaven (No Nukes/Sabel Collins by Airliner) was a 1:52.0US miler in North America, the winner of 26 races for $712,826 in stakes including New Jersey Sires Stakes (Fall) – 3c. He was a good producer leaving 152 Australian bred winners ($6m+), the majority of which are Tasmanian feature winners including Prodigious (1:52.4US, $343,341, TAS Pacing Championship, Hobart/Governors Cups), Roses Sweetheart (TAS Oaks, SS/Sweepstakes – 2f, Bracelet – 3f), Simply Electric (Hobart/Governors Cups, SS 3c/4h Globe Derby/Raider), Colsta (SS 2c/3c Dandy Patch/Globe Derby, Sweepstakes – 2c), Henry Halo (3yo Championship, SS 3c/4h Globe Derby/Raider), Lindys Ticket (SS – 3f/4m Bandbox/Granny Smith, Governors Cup), Ticket Flow (TAS Oaks) and Shy Ticket (1:51.4US, $344,704, NSW Spring Gift, 2nd Ladyship Mile), Susan (1:55.1US, VIC The O’Keefe), Hearts Legend (VIC Legends). His 104 broodmare credits (99 Australia, 5 USA) include Gorse Bush’s descendants (see below) e.g. Beautide; Shez Ryleymak (VIC SS – 2f, TAS Oaks, TAS Sweepstakes – 2f, Princess of Pace – 3f), The Jobs On (WA Pearl, Golden Slipper – 2).
Her dam Barrington Lass was the subject of an earlier Classic Australian Winner Producing Mares article (number 11 in this series). Briefly, Barrington Lass (2:10.0, $2,766) won her only race at two at Hobart ; was bred every season from 1986 onwards (20 foals – 12 colts, eight fillies); equalled the Australasian record of 15 winning foals (four in two minutes) held by Lovely Lawn (18 foals in NSW) and Rustic Maid (19 foals, 2 died before naming) in NZ. Her foals won 180 races and $999,841 in stake money making her the almost million dollar broodmare now that her final foal Bymarjac has been deregistered from racing (last start August 2017). Barrington Lass is the dam of then fastest Australian bred female pacer in Barrington Belle (1:51.3US, $247,747) a full sister to Gorse Bush and Alby Albert ($201,721); grand dam of fast North American winners in Chip and Gale (1:52.3US, $563,343), Bar Ron Boy (1:51.4US, $336,564), Rockin Belle (1:51.3US, $171,948) as well as Laterron, 1:52.9AUS, $217,381.
Gorse Bush belongs to the family of Black Annie bred in Tasmania, left three foals for two winners – Ann’s Treasure (2:49.2) and Annie Ash (2:31.2), dam of five foals for three winners :
- Annies Design (2:16,2, winner producing mare by Raiders Design)
- Anns Surprise (2:16.8), dam of Elderkin (2:07.6, TAS Pacing Championship heat, TAS Metropolitan Cup) and Anne Belmont, dam of Melfield Tyros (TAS Derby, ID heat), third dam of Hilton Fly High (1:53.3, $268,617, APG – 3c) and Em Jay Fortyseven (1:53.9, $54,271)
- Derby’s Desire (2:21.2)
- All Hope, 3rd dam of Sunny Boy (TAS Golden Mile)
This family is made up of mostly Tasmanian descendants with numerous juvenile winners forming part of Barrington Lass’s immediate family.
Gorse Bush (2:02.1, $48,413) was the winner of ten races in Tasmania (5 Hobart, 3 Launceston) between the ages of two and five. These included two three year old victories and the St Marys Cup as a five year old, her final win. The dam of 11 foals for ten to race and eight winners, her major claim to fame is as mother of the best Tasmanian horse of the past fifty years since Halwes in the mid/late 1960’s being the Australian Harness Horse of Year “Beautide“. Gorse Bush was 2012 Tasmanian Broodmare of Year and 2015 Australian Broodmare of Year.
Note : classic winning progeny (five) of classic producing mare Gorse Bush are underlined.
The maternal line descendants of family of Gorse Bush follow – male progeny included :
- Acutabovetherest, 1:57.1, $82,291, 14 (9 TAS [6 Launceston/3 Hobart]/5 QLD [3 Albion Park]) wins, TAS McKillop Classic – 4
- Beautide, 1:50.2, $2,183,132, 49 wins in 81 starts (23 NSW with 22 at Menangle/26 TAS [14 Hobart/10 Launceston]) wins, TAS Sweepstakes – 2c, TAS SS – 3c, TAS Metropolitan Cup, NSW New Season Championship, Miracle/Len Smith/Newcastle Miles, ID Pacing Final twice, Coca Cola Amatli Sprint twice, Australian Harness Horse of Year twice, TAS Hall of Fame
- I Pity The Fool, 2:00.1, $66,411, 11 TAS (5 Launceston, 3 Hobart) wins
Gorse Bush’s fillies included :
- Ashkalini, year younger half sister to Beautide, 2:00.2, $124,338, 14 TAS (7 Launceston/5 Hobart) wins, TAS SS – 2f/4m (Granny Smith), dam of three winners
- Goggo Gee Gee, 1:58.2, $63,450, 10 TAS (3 Hobart/4 Launceston) wins
- Harshali, 2:02.1, $27,806, 3 TAS (2 Hobart/1 Launceston), TAS Blue Bonnet – 2f
- Ignatius, 1:51.3 two year old, $110,080, five wins from six starts (3 Hobart/2 Menangle) including NSW Breeders Challenge 2c&g, TAS Sweepstakes – 2c
- Ashura, 1:59.5, $45,475, 7 TAS (4 Hobart/2 Launceston) wins, Shirley Hills Memorial
- Death and Taxes, 1:58,1, $125,300, 15 (14 TAS [6 Launceston/5 Hobart]/1 NSW at Harold Park) wins, TAS SS – 4m (Granny Smith)
- Chalondra, 1:56.6, $23,193, 2 wins (1 Menangle/1 Hobart)
- Delmi, 2:04.4, $13,110, winner at Devonport, dam of Hobart winner Inwil, 2:04.2, $12,774
- Fuscienne, 1:59.5, $35,951, 5 TAS wins (3 Launceston/2 Hobart) wins
This concludes the series reviewing multiple Australian classic producing broodmares with five or more offspring in results information as shown on the Classic Families (CF) database.
Peter Craig
13 December 2017
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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