Pretty Gully

If you've been looking at the foot of the page recently, as in the last couple of days, you may have noticed a second Australian beastie sneak into the list of active runners. Well, I did drop a hint that I was interested in another JLH Racing horse, and I couldn't resist it in the end. Ultimately, I'd missed out on one earlier in the year, investing in something to jump - said horse hasn't jumped, and the JLH one won at the peak of the anger this situation had brought about! I've just about given up on the idea of a jumper now, even though it's been something I've wanted for decades, and with me hoping to do more Down Under anyway, this little lady - Pretty Gully - brings the master plan a bit closer to reality.

Courtesy JLH Racing

One of the deciding factors, apart from my fondness of the team behind JLH, was Pretty Gully's bloodlines, which are remarkably close to those of 'Bugatti'. Born in 2009, she was sired by Spinning World, who won the Breeders Cup Mile in the States and the Irish 2000 Guineas in amongst his eight victories. His sire was Nureyev, which is the same S2 position on the family tree as 'Bugatti' boasts. They also share the 3Sx5S Northern Dancer cross, and Mr Prospector in the same D4 position; Alleged is also close, being D3 generation on this mare, and D4 on the mad one. There's a Sir Ivor cross (5Sx5D)
in Pretty Gully's DNA, too, which pleases me immensely, and Floral Brook, her dam, even manages to add a touch of Nijinsky blood along the way. Floral Brook is by Umatilla, by the way, a very successful New Zealand horse.

It will be interesting to see what Pretty Gully can do. So far, she's had 24 races, clocking up five wins, three seconds and three thirds. By the sound of things, we won't have long to wait, as Jo Hassett is already saying she's entered her for a race on the 10th!

PS. The other JLH horse, still a youngster, will probably make his debut in mid- or late-September if all goes well. Really looking forward to that, too...