Coolmore Sires Quinella Oaks
8th November 2007
Coolmore based sires provided the quinella in the Group One $1million VRC Oaks at Flemington on Thursday with unheralded filly Arapaho Miss (3f Danehill Dancer - Happy Heart, by Exit to Nowhere) upstaging the Group One winner Serious Speed (3f Royal Academy - Twitter, by Kendor) to win the 2500 metre Blue Riband.For Mornington based trainer Pat Carey it was an unforgettable day as Arapaho Miss took the quantum leap from winning a maiden at Geelong two starts back to snaring the richest race for three year-old fillies in the country, thereby giving him his first Group One success.
Ridden a perfect race by Corey Brown who partnered the filly at her last two starts, Arapaho Miss unwound a powerful finish to surge between runners and dash clear for a two length win over the gallant Serious Speed, already a spring star having won the Group One MRC Thousand Guineas on October 17.
“She was very relaxed and although we got bottled up at the top of the straight I knew all we needed was a bit of luck,” said Corey Brown.
“She attacked the line once she got out and it was a great win.”
Trainer Pat Carey remained composed in the wake of his first Group One victory.
“It’s a great race to win,” said Carey.
“She ran well at Caulfield last start against a slow tempo and I knew if there was a good tempo today she’d run well and be in the finish.”
Arapaho Miss has made a great many people happy as she was purchased for just $22,500 by bloodstock agent Kevin Dagg at the 2006 Inglis Premier Yearling Sale and syndicated by Clanbrooke Racing.
Unplaced twice as a two year-old, Arapaho Miss resumed at Cranbourne on September 2 and promptly lost the jockey during the race, so the start to her racing career has not exactly been peachy.
She then finished third at Ballarat and won at Geelong over 1700 metres before finishing second at Caulfield on Cup Day over 2000 metres behind Try This.
From six starts Arapaho Miss has won $635,250 in prizemoney delivering a fairytale result for her large syndicate of owners.
“There would be 15 or 16 owners involved that all came in after our bloodstock agent Kevin Dagg bought her 18 months ago at the Inglis Sale in Melbourne,” said Dean Humphries of Clanbrooke Racing.
“This just shows you don’t have to spend a lot of money on a staying filly like this, although you do need patience.”
Mr Humphries went on to thank all those associated with Arapaho Miss in his acceptance speech including the filly.
“This is for you Arapaho, people say that racing is ‘made of dreams’ and today you are what dreams are made of!”
Arapaho Miss was bred by Tony Santic of Makybe Diva fame and offered by Smytzer’s Lodge (now Makybe) at the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale.
The third foal of the stakes-placed French mare Happy Heart, she comes from the extended family of leading sire Alzao, American Group One winner Toga Toga Toga and Queensland Oaks winner Vouvray.
The staying prowess of Arapaho Miss can probably be attributed to the stout pedigree on her dam’s side with Happy Heart, a winner up to 2000 metres, sired by Exit to Nowhere, a son of Irish River.
It’s not the first time Mr Santic has bred a Group One winner on the Danehill / Riverman cross with triple Melbourne Cup winner Makybe Diva bred the same way.
Arapaho Miss becomes the seventh Group One winner worldwide for Danehill Dancer who did not cover in Australia this spring owing to the outbreak of EI, returning directly to Coolmore Ireland where his fee has been set at 115,000 euros.
