Page 24 - Demo

nh racing
route to Cheltenham and that good jumping ground at the big meeting would not hold any fears.
Aspire Tower has something of a mixed pedigree – his unraced dam is by the speed influence Pivotal and she is a half-sister to the stakes race 5f sprinter Pivotal Flame, however the pair are out of the Cheveley Park Stud- bred 2m Southwell Turf winner Reddening (Blushing Flame).
The family stretches back to the smart sprinter/Irish 1,000 Guineas runner-up Dancing Goddess.
Wave Of The Sea, another by the transferred sire, is trained by Joseph O’Brien for JP McManus. Rated 132, he finished third in that same Leopardstown juvenile race behind Apire Tower, while the sire’s 121-rated Broughtons Admiral won a handicap hurdle at Hereford for trainer Dr Richard Newland. Born To Sea also got a December handicap hurdle winner Snookered, who is now rated 140.
Sea The Moon, a son of Sea The Stars, is developing into a pretty decent Flat Stallion as evidenced by his Group 2 winner Alpine Star, but his early NH performers have not wasted time in making a strong impression.
ALLMANKIND, bred and owned by the Gredley family, was transferred to the winter game and the yard of Dan Skelton after proving difficult to anchor on the Flat and without a set of hurdles to break his stride.
Even in the winter ground at Chepstow in the Corale Finale Juvenile Hurdle (G1) he set off at a pace deemed by many to be too fast, but he maintained his momentum despite the heavy conditions and proved the class that
as a 89-rated Flat performer he has up his sleeve.
He is now unbeaten over hurdles, is officially rated 140 and connections have the Triumph Hurdle firmly on the horizon. He was bred by Stetchworth and Middle Park Studs, but hails from a deep Juddmonte pedigree – he is out of Wemyss Bay, an unraced sister to Juddmonte’s Group 1 winner and Derby third Beat Hollow. The pair are out of Wemyss Bight (Dancing Brave), winner of the Irish Oaks.
Sea The Moon has had seven runners over timber so far, three have won with Must See The Doc, also rated 140, and Gealach, trained by Gordon Elliot, the winner of three-year-old maiden hurdle at Punchestown on the last dayof2019. ThreeComets,rated93onthe
24 www.internationalthoroughbred.net
This season’s leading British and Irish juvenile hurdlers: above, the Irish-based Aspire Tower (Born To Sea), and, below, Allmankind (Sea The Moon), the runaway Grade 1 winner at Chepstow. Aspire Tower is by a half-brother to Sea The Stars, Allmankind is by a son of the Gilltown stallion
Flat for trainer Roger Varian and now trained by Luke Comer, who paid 35,000gns for the gelding at the Tattersalls Autumn Horses
In Training Sale last October, fell when in contention behind Gealach.
The one-time winner Sea Ducor, trained by Arthur Moore, was the only one to give Aspire Tower a race of it when second in to the subsequent Grade 1 winner in a November
maiden hurdle. The form looks good on two counts – Sea Ducor then finished ahead of Wolf Prince, second to the Aspire Tower at Leopardstown.
Bred by Eric Cantillion, Sea Ducor was bought as a yearling by the trainer’s son JD Moore at Tattersalls October Book 3 Sale in 2018 for 10,000gns from Whitwell Bloodstock.