Blue Gum Farm

The Elvstroem bandwaggon kept rolling when London Ink (2 f Filming, by Brocco) provided the five-time Group 1 winner with his fifth winner at Bendigo on Sunday. Making her debut in what looked a 'hot' Maiden beforehand, London Ink was all business, edging out Bluey's Mist and On Your Mark in the time of 59.53 for the 1000m. Gruenfeld (Elvstroem) started favourite for the event and he was close up fourth in a tight finish on his reappearance.

Congratulations to London Ink's breeders Danny and Dianne Molloy, John and Elizabeth Mortensen who have been great supporters of Elvstroem.

Elvstroem has now had five winners from his first-crop at an excellent strike-rate of 20.83 per cent and earnings of over $300,000. His stakes winning colt Carrara was only narrowly defeated in the Australia Post Stakes (Listed) on Saturday completing what has been a very successful first preparation with the promise of more to come.

INKSTER HOLES OUT AT SANDOWN PARK
Blue Gum Farm homebred INKSTER (4 m Umatilla - Delgara) is one of the biggest mares in training and has a heart to match her proportions as she showed with another gritty win at Sandown Park on Saturday. The heavy going made for testing conditions in the Betfair Handicap over 2400m but Inkster showed plenty of heart to wear down the favourite Spare A Dime in the final strides and score.

The win advances Inkster's record to four wins and earnings of $175,205 and as a classic winner of the VRC St Leger and placed in a South Australia Oaks, she will be a valuable addition to the Blue Gum broodmare band this Spring.

The victory also reinforces what a good stallion UMATILLA continues to be. If there is a better value stallion than the Group 1 winning son of Miswaki at $4400 then we would like to hear it!

CHURCHILL DOWNS LEADS GREAT SOUTHERN SIRES
Churchill Downs has been making a splash with his first-crop foals - the first of his sale offerings returning some excellent figures. At the Inglis Great Southern Sale in May, Churchill Downs had weanlings sell for $40,000, $32,000 and $20,000. These returns saw him head the first-season sires by averages with three or more sold and he was the only stallion in the Top 10 by averages to return a better figure than conception cost.

Churchill Downs represents outstanding value at $8,000 plus gst in 2009. A typical Danehill in appearance his stock have a similar look and he has the opportunity to make a real impression with his first yearlings in 2010.

CARRARA IS ELVSTROEM'S FIRST STAKES WINNER
HEARTIEST CONGRATULATIONS TO FRANK TAGG who had the honour of breeding and racing Elvstroem and now has the distinction of racing Elvstroem's first stakes winnner after CARRARA (2 c Crystal Sprite) produced a towering performance to land Saturday's Doomben Slipper (Listed) over 1350m.Making just his third race start and starting from 18 barrier on a heavy 9 track, Carrara went forward in driving rain, assumed control early in the straight and then ran on gamely to defeat Choistar in a dominant display under hands and heels riding..

"I am very tempted to head to the Sires at Eagle Farm next week with him on the proviso that he does well during the week and gets over the run," Vasil said afterwards. "I strongly believe in giving two-year-olds plenty of time to mature. Although the TJ Smith is a Group One race I'd be more inclined to put this horse away and concentrate on the spring in Melbourne with him."

Carrara thoroughly impressed his sire's former regular rider, Nash Rawiller. "That was my first ride on him but he's a push-button horse," he said. "He began really well and landed in a good spot and he just kept giving every time I asked him for an effort."

The Elvstroem bandwaggon is now gathering real momentum and with several more promising types about to hit the track, the time is right to make a booking to the champion son of Danehill, especially at his 2009 fee of $25,000 plus gst.

DORSODURO IS ELVSTROEM'S THIRD CITY WINNER
DORSODURO (2 f Drinkcard Princess) made it two wins from as many starts when she ran out the brave winner of the $30,000 2yo Handicap at Morphettville on Saturday. An impressive winner on debut at Bendigo in April, Dorsoduro loomed up to make her challenge into the straight and while she was clearly ill at ease on the rain affected track that had been downgraded to dead, she maintained her momentum to gain the upper hand inside the final 100m and score a game win over Super Tuesday by half a neck. Dorsoduro clocked 1:12.22 for the 1200m - a smart effort considering the state of the track and even better when one considers trainer Tony Vasil's opinion that the stylish grey will be better over a bit further.

Dorsoduro is now the third metropolitan winner in three different states from the first-crop of Elvstroem following Viking Legend and Viva Las.

FOURTH WINNER FOR ELVSTROEM
Elvstroem posted his fourth winner when the Tony Vasil-trained filly Dorsoduro made a winning debut at Bendigo over 1100 metres on April 26th..

Well fancied to win, Dorsoduro settled off the pace and unwound a big finish, surging near the line to win by nearly a length. Like the recent Vasil-trained Elvstroem winner Carrara, Dorsoduro is also raced by Frank Tagg's Arch of Gold Syndicate.

Dorsoduro sold for $300,000 from the draft of the Yallambee Stud at the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale was the most expensive Australian sold yearling from Elvstroem's debut crop.

Grey like her mother, Dorsoduro is from former smart metropolitan winner Drinkcard Princess, whose grey colouring can be attributed to her female family which traces back to include famous grey gallopers Bounding Away and Glastonbury. Dorsoduro is the fourth winner for Elvstroem joining Viking Legend, Carrara and Viva Las.

TWO IN TWO DAYS FOR ELVSTROEM
Debuting at Warwick Farm the John O'Shea-trained Viva Las has made it two wins in two days for Elvstroem, following on from the performance of Carrara the previous day at Seymour.
Second to stakes-placed Amarantha in a recent barrier trial, Viva Lass coped best with the rain affected going to take the 1100 metre maiden by the best part of a length.

Retained to race by her breeders, Viva Las is from the Zeditave mare La Frizzette, who has since been back twice more to Elvstroem producing yearling and weanling full sisters to Viva Las.

An outstanding racehorse, Elvstroem won 19 races and $5.6 million in prizemoney highlighted by memorable wins in the Group One VRC Victoria Derby, MRC Caulfield Cup and the Group One Dubai Duty Free. A son of champion sire Danehill (USA), Elvstroem's best form was from the age of three on so whatever his progeny are doing now is probably a bonus. A hugely popular horse since his retirement to Blue Gum Farm, Elvstroem is anticipated to be busy again this spring after having his last season cut short by injury.

ASTRONOMER ROYAL TO STAND AT BLUE GUM FARM
Nothing stands still in this business and now is another exciting time for Blue Gum Farm. We are delighted to announce that we have added the Champion and Classic winning sprinter/miler Astronomer Royal to our stallion roster in 2009.

From the final crop of Danzig, Astronomer Royal fulfills everything a breeder in Australia could ask for in a stallion. A Champion and Classic winner on the track, by a proven sire of sires and boasting a high-class female pedigree, Astronomer Royal is an outstanding physical specimen that did his racing on turf and drug-free. Read on

VIKING LEGEND SHINES FOR ELVSTROEM
Viking Legend (2 c Elvstroem - Innocent Baby) gave Elvstroem his first winner with a classy performance at Moonee Valley on Saturday. Away sharply, Viking Legend was used up to cross from the outside and lead and then found plenty of courage to hold the challenges in the straight. Appropriately, Viking Legend was sold by Blue Gum Farm at the Melbourne Premier Sale for $165,000 and his younger brother is catalogued as lot 437 among the Blue Gum draft of 21 for the Premier Sale in two weeks time.

ON THE WIRE . . . .ON THE WIRE . . . . ON THE WIRE . . . . ON THE WIRE . . . .