Horse Chestnut (Fort Wood x London Wall)
Thought of as one of the greatest racehorses to set foot on a South African racetrack in the past forty years, the Drakenstein Stud stallion Horse Chestnut had a terrific week with two smart juvenile winners. The son of Fort Wood formerly stood in the USA, and it was only a matter of time that he would strike from his first SA crop.
His colt Chestnut’s Rocket won at Greyville on Wednesday, while his daughter Luv U Babes scored at Arlington on Friday. Horse Chestnut raced in the famous black and yellow silks of the Oppenheimer family. He is by Fort Wood out of the 1998 SA Champion broodmare, London Wall (by Colonel Pickering).
Horse Chestnut, who was trained by SA Champion trainer Mike De Kock, won the SA Triple Crown and both the Equus Award for Horse of the Year and Champion 3yo Colt at three. He ran 10 races, winning 9 from 1000m to 2450mand was placed once.
Some notable wins include the Gr 1 J&B Met by 8,25 lengths, the Gr I SA Derby over 2450m by 10 lengths and the Gr I SA Classic over 1800m by 4 lengths. Sent to race in the USA, he won the Gr3 Broward Handicap at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida over 1700m by five-and-a-half lengths. During his preparation for the Gr I Donn Handicap, Horse Chestnut fractured a piece of his splint bone on his near-foreleg, resulting in his early retirement from racing.
The Oppenheimer’s subsequently sold the majority of shares in Horse Chestnut to Seth Hancock’s Claiborne Farm in Kentucky where he went to stud. At stud, he has sired ten Stakes winners in the USA and Europe and some of his most notable offspring include Lucifer’s Stone, Spanish Chestnut, Smart Enough and Fete.
There are many who may recall Horse Chestnut’s daughter, the brilliantly versatile Roy Magner trained Woman Of The Year, who raced here. Bed in the USA, she was out the Time To Explode mare, Explosive Kitten, and won 11 races (with 7 places) from 29 starts. Horse Chestnut arrived back in the land of his birth in 2009, and his local crops are 2yo’s this season.
The Vaughan Marshall trained Chestnut’s Rocket ran on strongly to win the Maiden Juvenile Plate run over 1600m at Greyville on Wednesday. Ridden by ace heavyweight jockey Bernard Fayd’herbe, Chestnut’s Rocket won going away despite running green and beat Hunting Horn by 2,25 lengths in a time of 97,84 secs, with the favourite Salesman well beaten in third.
This was Chestnut Rocket’s third run and first try at a mile. The Arc En Ciel bred is out of the four time winning Jet Master mare,Wish On The Wind. He cost R130 000 on the National Yearling Sale. The stallion followed up at Arlington on Friday, when Jacques Strydom’s nicely named 2yo filly Luv U Babes (formerly called London Miss) showed good pace after a promising fourth on debut, to win a Maiden Juvenile Plate over 1000m.
She ran on well under Andrew Nienaber to beat the favourite Reigning Wind by 2,25 lengths in a time of 58,89 secs. The Nutfield Stud bred winner cost just R80 000 on the Cape Premier Yearling Sale Book 2 and is out of the one time winning Badger Land mare, Skyward Lady. Horse Chestnut stands at Drakenstein Stud for a R15 000 live foal fee. All enquiries to [email protected]
Editor’s Note: Horse Chestnut sired a further winner on Monday 27 May when the Gavin Smith trained colt Zobens won the Maiden Juvenile Plate over 1200m at Fairview. Zobens was bred by Favour Stud out of the Proclaim mare, State Your Choice
