Place of beauty and a home to champions-Avontuur Estate
When Pippa Mickleburgh first arrived at Avontuur Stud, situated at the foot of the Helderberg Mountains 25 years ago, she had no idea that she was about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime. Though if she understood the local language, Afrikaans, she might have had an inkling of what lay in store: Avontuur translates to Adventure.
Those days, the Stud was considered boutique by comparison to the rest of the Western Cape stud farms with only eight mares and no resident stallion.
Oratorio – Avontuur’s new man
Today Avontuur is home to 47 broodmares, two top sires in Var (Forest Wildcat) and Oratorio (Ire) (Danehill), around 150 hectares of vineyards and an award-winning winery.
The broodmare band at Avontuur is not what anyone would consider large, but what they lack in numbers, they make up for in quality, and their 2015 Cape Premier Yearling Sale draft is considered to be one of the standout drafts of the sale.
Conducted by the Cape Thoroughbred Sale Company (CTS), the CPYS is in its fourth year and while the consignors initially found it challenging to prepare horses this early in the year, they have certainly mastered the art.
Of the 13 yearlings consigned by Avontuur, six are by resident stallion Var, who to this day is the most expensive horse in training ever to be purchased for stud in South Africa.
Reigning champion sprint sire and the sire of recently crowned joint-third best horse in the world, Variety Club (SAf), Var produces consistently beautiful horses capable of performing up to a mile.
The standout of the Avontuur draft and a Var of course, is Lot 32, the first foal out of multiple Group winning mare River Jetez (SAf) (Jet Master{SAf}).
River Jetez wins in Dubai
Winner of the G1 J & B Met at home, River Jetez also embarked on a successful international campaign, which included a victory in the G2 Balanchine S. in Dubai, runner-up efforts in the G1 Singapore Airlines International Cup and the G1 Dubai Duty Free S. and a third in the GI Beverly D. S.
Mickleburgh considers her colt to be an exceptional individual.
“He is medium sized and while I would have loved him to be 2 cm taller, one has to remember that he is a first foal,” she commented.
“I couldn’t be happier with him and I think he will be an early individual. He has that star quality, that x-factor!”
Another yearling that has attracted a considerable amount of interest is Lot 200, a chestnut colt by G1 Dubai Duty Free S. hero Jay Peg (SAf) (Camden Park) out of the South African stakes-placed Argentinian-bred mare Muamba (Arg) (Pure Prize).
“He will be the last horse in the ring Friday night, but he is a really smart individual. He moves beautifully with a lovely elastic stride,” explained Mickleburgh. Of course we are fortunate to able to offer a half sister to the star 3-year-old filly, Cold As Ice (lot 79). Being by Trippi, who currently tops the South African sire log, she is a quality individual and is likely to be very precocious.”
Cold As Ice – looks top drawer
Cold As Ice recently cantered home lonely in the G2 Sceptre S. over 1200 meters, winning easily by 2 1/4 lengths and is the current favourite for the 1600-meter G1 Majorca S. on the J & B Met undercard at Kenilworth Jan. 31. Hence buyers have been queuing to have a look at her half-sister named Live Life.
A Majorca winner herself, Avontuur’s star broodmare, Sarabande (SAf) (Goldmark{SAf}), has a filly, by sire of the moment Dynasty (SAf), on offer as Lot 37. The Sept. 15 foal is a half-sister to four winners from five to race, including MGSW Chesalon (SAf) (Fort Wood), SW La Volta (SAf) (Var) and G1SP Valeta (SAf) (Var).
“She is an outstanding physical specimen, but will be more of a classic horse,” Mickleburgh says.
Cold As Ice half sister by Trippi is lot 79
Sire of 2014 Horse of the Year and G1 Vodacom Durban July winner Legislate (SAf) and superstar racemare Beach Beauty (SAf), Dynasty’s offspring are all the rage and seem to get better and better as they get older.
The Avontuur draft has been beautifully prepared and Mickleburgh attributes it to taking the time needed, while catering to each individual yearling’s needs without being too intrusive.
“You need to allow them to still be horses,” she suggests.
“Ours grow up in large paddocks and locking them up in a stable would have a detrimental effect. So I work around that. You have to watch the colts, as they tend to play rough, and therefore I had several large rings built, where the colts can be close to each other, with enough space to run, but without the danger of injuring one another.”
The rest of Avontuur’s yearlings will be consigned at the CTS March Sale and the Bloodstock SA National Yearling Sale in April, but for now the spotlight is firmly on their outstanding draft of 13 yearlings that can be viewed daily at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, in the heart of city.
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