MOYFINN Stud consigned the unraced four-year-old Boskill Lady (Flemensfirth) to last month’s Tattersalls Ireland November Sale, in foal to Beat Hollow (Sadler’s Wells). She was withdrawn, for whatever reason, but the vendors will surely be thrilled now to still have her, given that her half-brother Beware The Bear landed the Listed At The Races Rehearsal Chase at Newcastle.
In so doing the gelding became the fourth blacktype horse produced by a most talented mare that Nicky Henderson also trained. She was Native Bid, a daughter of Be My Native (Our Native), she made just three starts and won on each occasion. She captured a pair of bumpers, including a listed race at Kempton Park in a field of 20 runners, and then opened her hurdling account with a victory before she was retired to the breeding shed.
Her five offspring to race so far are all winners, and the best of them were trained by Henderson. In addition to Beware The Bear, he also handled Mayfair Music (Presenting) who won a listed mares’ novice hurdle at Doncaster, while Oscar Nominee (Old Vic) was hugely promising and graded-placed over hurdles before he died at just six. In Ireland, Charlie Swan trained another daughter of Native Bid, Stephanie Kate (King’s Theatre), and she was graded-placed over hurdles and fences.
Native Bid was one of just three foals out of the winning hurdler Coctail Bid (Mandalus) and two of them ran and won. Coctail Bid is a full- or half-sister to five winners, while her unraced own-sister Early Dalus bred the Grade 2 chase winner Bywell Beau (Lord Americo) and Rugger River (Over The River). The latter was placed in the same Rehearsal Chase won at the weekend by Beware The Bear.
This is the female line of a number of notable chasers, including Indestructible (Duky), Chives (Good Thyne), Certainly Strong (Strong Gale) and McKelvey (Anshan). All of them won blacktype races over fences, while the last-named was runner-up in the Grand National at Aintree a decade ago.
Beware The Bear was bred by Marilyn Syme and sold as a foal from Borris House at Tattersalls Ireland for €18,000 to Goldford Stud. He is the latest in a long line of outstanding runners sired by Shantou (Alleged). That Group 1 St Leger winner in 1996 also won a pair of Group 1 races in Italy before retiring to stud. He has the distinction of being a successful Group/Grade 1 sire on the flat and over jumps, though it in the latter sphere that he has excelled.
Standing at Burgage Stud now for many years, Shantou’s best runner on the flat was Sweet Stream, winner of the Group 1 Prix Vermeille, while his National Hunt standouts include Grade 1 winners Morning Assembly, Briar Hill, Death Duty and Airlie Beach. The veteran sire has just completed his 19th season at stud.