May 2010InsIde thIs Issue>Aussie comes up trumps At NZ Hoty>LocAL Hero is BAck iN tHe cApe>rAre GAmBLe iN cHiNA>soutH AmericA HeAts up>e.i. eXiLe

irt Blueprint 20102

>>

ChaIrMan’s reportWhile the economy may be lifting, post-e.i. costs are rocketing.After a decidedly rocky patch for the world economy, encouraging signs of recovery in the horse industry are emerging, following a sound sale at the magic millions on Australia’s Gold coast in early January 2010 and a very successful sale at karaka in New Zealand later the same month.

At both venues there was strong buying from overseas countries. if this trend can be translated in the coming months to other sales ‘down under’ and passed on to the northern hemisphere for their sales later this year, the thoroughbred industry will have a strong footing from which to move forward after two tough years.

meantime the interest in the Australian and New Zealand standardbred industry remains solid. participants in equestrian activities have been blessed with appreciating local currencies, making it possible for them to import better horses from overseas. Later this year the interest in equestrian sports will be highlighted with the World equestrian Games to be held in Lexington, kentucky – where eight disciplines will be tested, with approximately 800 participants from over 40 countries.

on a sourer note, although the outbreak of equine influenza in Australia is now more than two years behind us, the cost of shipping horses to Australia continues to rise, courtesy of higher and higher Australian Quarantine & inspection service (AQis) fees.

to give you an example; the latest increase (effective 1 Dec, 2009) lifts the AQis daily quarantine fee – for the required 21 days confinement at government quarantine station – from A$34/day (pre e.i.) to A$196/day. more broadly speaking, since e.i., the cost of importing a horse to Australia from the usA & europe has increased by around 75%. With the amount attributable to the costs incurred from touchdown in Australia rising from about 10% to around 40% of the total cost.

Luckily for Australian importers the Australian dollar continues to appreciate against the usD, euro and pound, so the pain has been less than it might have been, so far.

With the Australian Government holding to a policy of full recovery of all costs associated with importing horses (such as maintaining and staffing the quarantine

stations as well as manning the horse import section in canberra), a vicious cycle is upon us. the AQis daily fee can only continue to rise, as the number of horses being imported dwindles, due to the spiraling cost.

What effect this will have on Australia’s equine genetic pool and the country’s ability to remain a strong source of horses for Asian racetracks and world equestrian markets is hard to quantify. However, unless the Federal Government decides to look at the import of horses as having a broader benefit to the community, than simply a benefit to the importer, and begins to underwrite some of the cost, Australia is heading towards a future where only the very wealthy will be able to afford the luxury of importing a horse. A scenario not suited to irt, nor our broad range of loyal customers.

rags-to-riches champion tAkeoVer tArGet enjoys a well-earned retirement drink, with owner-trainer Joe Janiak. Author Lyndall crisp recently published a book entitled Takeover Target – The Best $1375 Joe Janiak Ever Spent (ebury press), chronicling their amazing journey together. in 2009 irt flew tAkeoVer tArGet to europe for his final races and then back home to Australia.

Cover photo by: Kerry Marshall

photo by: Lyndall Crisp

3

peter mcmahon tackles a tough course and an old rivalry.Whether it be thoroughbreds, harness racing, showjumping or two flies crawling up a wall, competition between Australia and New Zealand is always fierce. Both irt Australia and New Zealand seem to do steady flights back and forth across the tasman throughout the year keeping the rivalry alive.

Last year we were pleased to transport Australian olympian peter mcmahon’s horse ks GeNoA to New Zealand to compete for the country’s most coveted showjumping trophy. this time the Aussie stole the show, with mcmahon winning the Bell tea olympic cup at the kelt capital Horse of the year show in Hastings. the show is the largest equestrian event in the southern Hemisphere with some 2,600 horse/rider combinations competing before crowds of more than 70,000 spectators.

the Leopoldo palacios-designed course was both large and challenging, with only two riders going clear in the first round. the second round saw the riders grow in confidence, with 12 combinations going through. including mcmahon, who heading out last, was riding for the win. He rubbed one fence, but nothing fell and the win was his.

mcmahon, a former diesel mechanic, took home NZ$150,000 in prize money and paid tribute to his wife (former world championship rider michelle Lang-mcmahon). He also made mention of his somewhat unique training practices for his sometimes difficult mare ks GeNoA. the 14-year-old Holsteiner is schooled on a lunge rein and walker, with mcmahon only getting on for a couple of practice fences before competition. “she’s best that way,” says mcmahon, and who could argue?

irt was also proud to transport copABeLLA HAymeN for another Australian competitor, Julia Hargreaves, who took out equal-second place. congratulations to all the riders and may the trans-tasman battles continue!

Aussie comes up trumps at NZ Hoty

When the hammer fell on the auction of prInCess Coup last June 4th, new south Wales-based agent (and long-time friend of Irt) tony Bott successfully outbid the competition to the tune of aud$3 million. the undisclosed buyers picked up not only a four-time Group 1 winning mare, but the record for a Magic Millions price.

“she went for more than I thought,” Bott said, “but mares like her only come up every couple of years and we were keen to buy her. she was a champion racehorse and she is a smashing individual.”

recorD price For priNcessprInCess Coup sets a Magic Millions sale record of aud$3 million.

Consigning agents Willow park stud were understandably pleased too, with Glen Burrows noting that “she was one of those rare jewels so you expect those sort of horses to make good money and we thought it was a good price.”

prInCess Coup is somewhat of a frequent trans-tasman flyer with Irt – we wish everything we touched turned to such “gold”.

photo: Courtesy of Magic Millions

photos by: Kerry Marshall

irt Blueprint 20104

Jet lag not an issue for GitANo HerNANDo.Last october irt’s uk and Los Angeles offices coordinated a late dash across the Atlantic for GitANo HerNANDo, to compete in the Grade 1 Goodwood stakes at santa Anita. traveling from trainer marco Botti’s uk stable, for Barry irwin’s hugely successful team Valor international and Gary Barber, the son of NiJiNsky arrived with just three days to spare before his Grade 1 us debut.

the punters gave GitANo HerNANDo little chance of having the goods for a race of such quality so far from home and he started at odds of 18/1.

Barry irwin had shown a good deal more faith when he first spotted the young prospect winning a lowly race, on

synthetic surface at Wolverhampton in record time, with kieren Fallon aboard. “on the turf, he is probably a Group 3 horse, or perhaps a Group 2 horse,” irwin said. “But, on the man-made stuff, i thought he had a chance to be top class.”

With Botti agreeing to prepare the horse for the Goodwood and Fallon signing on to come over from the uk for the ride, irwin’s plan was soon becoming a reality. And GitANo HerNANDo lived up to his expectations, seeing off a determined run from the heavily favoured coLoNeL JoHN to win the race and notch up team Valor international’s 104th stakes win.

irt were proud to be a part of this ambitious and hard-earned success story. our congratulations to the connections and best luck for the future.

Wesley Ward re-writes some english history. irt client and notable us trainer Wesley Ward made history at royal Ascot last year, setting milestones that saw him become the first us-based trainer ever to win at royal Ascot.

it was his strike tHe tiGer that claimed the Windsor castle stakes on June 16th, just one of six horses Wesley sent to the uk with irt for the royal Ascot meeting. As with many overseas interlopers, the experts didn’t expect much of a threat and the win paid a handsome 33/1.

then just a day later another of Ward’s traveling stable struck again, when JeALous AGAiN won the Group 2 Queen mary stakes, with a five length margin leaving no question as to her speed.

Four-year-old gelding cANNoNBALL ran a gallant sixth in the Group 1 king’s stand stakes, but impressively, followed up just four days later, to run a very close second in the Group 1 Golden Jubilee stakes. cANNoNBALL is quite the frequent flyer, so we look forward to seeing his name pop up in results around the globe.

All-in-all Ward’s grand assault on royal Ascot made some interesting additions to the history books: the us’ first flat winners in europe since FourstArs ALLstAr at the irish 2000 Guineas in 1991, the first ever us-trained winner at royal Ascot and the first us flat winners in england since reiGH couNt won the coronation cup at epsom in 1929. Better than your average vacation souvenirs.

iN tHe Nick oF timeit’s oFFiciAL For FeeLGooDnew Zealand’s harness “raider” seals australian title.In last year’s Blueprint we told the story of the new Zealand horse Mr FeeLGood’s “raid” on australian harness racing, winning three major races: the Gold Coast Inter-dominion, hunter Cup and shepparton Cup. In september his feats were officially recognised when the 2006 Little Brown Jug winner was named australia’s harness horse of the year.

Irt has since flown Mr FeeLGood back to new Zealand and no doubt the australian harness racing community were somewhat relieved to see this tough competitor go on his way.

siX Horses & tHree recorDs

Photo by: Benoit Photo

photo by: ascot racecourse

photo by: trackbred Magazine

5

photo: Courtesy of northfields Bloodstock

racing loses three big names in one month.the month of November 2009 was a dark one for the world of racing, as it saw the passing of three important figures and friends of irt.

perhaps the best known of all was us Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel, who died at his home in california after a long battle with leukemia, at age 68. Frankel gained his license in 1966 and went on to win five us eclipse Awards as outstanding trainer, becoming the second trainer in North American racing history to reach $200million in track earnings and as recently as 2003 set the world record for most Group 1 records in a single season (25). to say he has left a lasting impression on us racing is an understatement.

owner-trainer Ivan allan was a long-time supporter of irt, having booked the company’s first ever shipment from Australia to singapore, where he died at

Horse cHestNut is not only one of the most treasured names in south African racing, but also a great ambassador for the country’s burgeoning breeding industry. A stellar racing career saw the stallion win nine of ten starts between 1000-2400m, taking home south African Horse of the year in 1999.

But since the beginning of a stud career – that has thus far sired 137 winners in 323 races – Horse cHestNut has been standing a long way from home, at kentucky’s claiborne Farm. that ‘holiday’ is now over and irt is proud to have flown him home, to stand at Drakenstein stud, near Franschoek in the cape, in a deal brokered by longtime friend of irt robin Bruss of Northfields Bloodstock.

Horse cHestNut’s trainer, mike de kock, holds a special place in his heart for the old champ and even penned a book titled HORSE CHESTNUT: The Story of a Legend. mike recently said he’s “delighted that Horse cHestNut is returning to south Africa, albeit nine years later than it should have been.”

age 68, after a long illness. Well known in Britain as the owner of 1984’s Group 1 st Leger winner commANcHe ruN – ivan honed his training skills in Asia, becoming champion trainer of malaysia and singapore seven times, and training for 12 years in Hong kong, where he produced six Horse of the year winners before his retirement in 2004.

Billy Mcdonald was perhaps as well known for his work as a bloodstock agent, as he was for his big personality. originally from ireland – where he passed away at home in Belfast, aged 65 – Billy lived for much of his life in california and counted amongst his friends showbiz stars like Frank sinatra, pierce Brosnan and sir roger moore. His close association with former coolmore principal the late robert sangster, saw him purchase for the stud eventual dual Group 1 prix l’Arc de triomphe winner ALLeGeD. Billy also worked for some time as a rolls royce dealer, a part of his legacy not lost on trainer John Gosden, who noted upon

his passing that “Billy was one of the great characters of the game. He is still in the Guinness Book of World records for selling the most rolls royces in a day… He was an immensely popular and loveable man.”

our thoughts are with the families of these unforgettable racing identities.

iN memoriAm

BILLy MCdonaLd

LocAL Hero is BAck iN tHe cApeHorse cHestNut finally heads home to stud.

Ivan aLLan

photo by: hong Kong Jockey Club

BoBBy FranKeL

irt Blueprint 20106

soutH AmericA HeAts upshuttle stallions from the us growing in popularityeach year it seems that more and more regions of the world are participating in breeding using so-called “shuttle stallions”. in the past couple of years south America in particular has been a popular destination for shuttles operated out of irt’s us offices – especially since the founding of our miami office.

in 2008, 10 stallions caught the shuttle to south America and in 2009, that number doubled, with 20 stallions travelling to Argentina, Brazil, chile and uruguay to stand at local farms.

most notable of the 2009 group was the heavily-booked GiANt’s cAuseWAy, shuttling to Argentina from coolmore’s Ashford stud in kentucky. this was the son of storm cAt-mAriAH’s storm

irish and Danes steal the show at Far Hills.the 2009 Grade 1 Grand National at Far Hills in New Jersey saw a first and second place finish by two irt flyers this past october.

your sum mAN made the trip from ireland just a couple of months before the us$250,000 steeplechase and claimed the top prize. But perhaps more impressive was the run of second place-getter GeNerAL LeDGer, which flew in from europe a mere week before the race.

owner-trainer of GeNerAL LeDGer, martin Buskop (whose wife is the horse’s groom), was very pleased with the way the trip from Denmark to Amsterdam by van, Amsterdam to New york by plane and New york to New Jersey by van – all within seven days – had progressed for his star runner. “the journey has gone very well,” he said shortly before the race. “irt have taken very good care of us, organized the whole thing for us. it’s a shot, why not?”

Why not, indeed… the excellent second place run “off the plane” has encouraged Buskop to take another shot at a 2010 campaign. We look forward to continuing to help the Buskops take on the local competitors for many seasons to come.

photo by: tod Marks

A successFuL Jump iNto NeW Jersey

by rAHy’s second southern hemisphere breeding season at La mission (in san Andres, outside Buenos Aires), where he covered 160 mares, with a 95% conception rate.

irt are proud to be aiding in the development of another exciting new thoroughbred breeding hot spot and look forward to seeing the results on racetracks around the world soon.

photo by: Coolmore stud

7

total number of Breeders cup runners transported by irt at some time in 2009.

BY THE NUMBERS – BREEDERS CUP

29number of horses transported by irt specifically for the 2009 Breeders cup.16number of winners from that 16 (mAN oF iroN in the Bc marathon and miDDAy in the Fillies & mares turf).02

photo by: Benoit photo

magic millions branches out with auction in china.it’s still illegal to bet on a horse race in china, but that didn’t stop magic millions, in conjunction with Beijing’s tian ci sheng Quan (spring sky) stud Farm, taking a gamble on the country’s growing interest in thoroughbreds.

irt flew 21 horses in April and a further 83 in July last year for a special auction of mostly 2-year-olds, sourced from breeders across Australia. Like most journeys into previously unchartered waters, getting that many horses into china produced some new challenges for everyone at irt.

With the arrival of chinese Government officials in Australia to oversee the horses’ preparations for export, the first challenge was a language barrier. so irt hired chin communications to assist with translations and soon the inspection of the horses and their blood results was under way. the officials also made a trip to the Hunter Valley in NsW, where the horses were quarantined.

once all the formalities were taken care of, irt could work on arranging special

rAre GAmBLe iN cHiNA

charters with QANtAs to take the horses directly from sydney to Beijing. upon arrival they were put in the care of former Hong kong trainer and magic millions agent stephen Leung, who broke-in the horses and prepared them for sale.

Although not all the horses sold at auction (around 50% found buyers), the sale was considered a great success, with a four-year-old son of octAGoNAL out of From tHe ceLLAr topping the prices at a handsome AuD$195,000 and six other horses breaking the AuD$100,000 mark.

chief executive of the breeders’ company Aushorse marketing, peter mcGauran was encouraged by the results. “there is a growing interest in racing and breeding in china,” he said, “and Aussie-breds are leading the way. Although there is

no legalised gambling on horse racing yet in china, there are signs of growth in thoroughbred racing as a sport.”

With all the news of rapid expansion, both financial and cultural in china these days, magic millions’ debut auction might just have given them a very good “early draw” for when the race begins.

irt Blueprint 20108

Australian endurance champion meg Wade recovering well from near-fatal fall.As a four-time tom Quilty winner and perhaps Australia’s most successful endurance rider ever, meg Wade is no stranger to long, arduous challenges. But after a bad fall last April, during the tumbarumba endurance ride, her friends and family feared that this may be too much for even her to overcome.

meg described it this way, in a recent letter to loved ones: “on the 12th April i came off cAstLeBAr DeLL at the tumbarumba ride – apparently about 10km from the finish. this was to be the start of a long journey… a discovery about many things both emotional and physical.”

those watching meg’s ride that day said cAstLeBAr DeLL appeared to shy at a puddle. the resulting fall left meg unconscious, she was quickly flown to canberra Hospital and placed in an induced coma.

in her letter, meg goes on to say: “i have now worked out that my memory stops a couple of days before the accident and starts again about 2 months after. i have no memory of canberra Hospital and cannot even remember coming to epworth Hospital in melbourne at the end of may. Luckily my memory of things from before is as perfect as it ever was!

tough competitor’s Biggest challenge

VoLcANo prompts Detourirt & cathay pacific require some last-minute re-routing thanks to eruption.

Any kind of business that relies on long distance transport is prone to all sorts of unforeseen interruptions and unforeseen acts of nature. Last march one planned irt flight-path was diverted last minute, due to one of nature’s more dramatic events – a volcano eruption.

irt was handling the transport of horses from sydney to miami, the usual route for which is sydney-Hong kong-Anchorage (Alaska)-miami. Not your average passenger route, admittedly. the day before the flight was scheduled to leave sydney, staff at irt Australia were

informed that redoubt volcano, south-west of Anchorage, had erupted. All flights in the Anchorage area were cancelled.

With the horses ready to go and their owners’ plans made, irt staff weren’t about to let a little eruption slow them down. thankfully the staff handling the flight at cathay pacific were extremely helpful and the flight could be re-routed to go via Los Angeles, rather than Anchorage.

the horses left Australia and made it to miami as scheduled. safe, sound and free of any volcano ash.

“Now (as i am writing this it is mid December) i am still at epworth Hospital. 2 days ago they brought a walking frame over to the ward for me to use, i am allowed to use it 4 times a day, only short walks, but great to be on my feet and actually walking! i have got so used to the wheelchair and the basic independence that it gives me, so now the idea at this stage is to combine the 2 means of movement. things are improving but so slow and frustrating.”

We are happy to say that with the support of her many friends and family, and the staff treating her, meg is continuing to improve and in February was released from hospital to return home to her beloved castlebar farm.

2009 was a tough year for many – mostly due to a deflated economy worldwide – but given what meg went through came just months after her partner chris Gates lost a thumb while tying up one of their horses, it’s fair to say they had a particularly rough year. From all their friends at irt, we wish meg and her family a much more happy and healthy 2010 and a continued speedy recovery.

photos by: Meg Wade and Chris Gates

9

team New Zealand take home the trans tasman 2*the bi-annual trans tasman 2* eventing challenge was held in camperdown (200km west of melbourne) last year and irt had the privilege of transporting horses for the entire winning New Zealand team.

New Zealand team captain simon Gordon admitted to a little trepidation amongst the team before the event; about the quality of opposition they would face in the Australian team, which way the fickle south-eastern Australia weather would go that time of year, and how the horses would handle the travel. irt could only

help in one of those areas and thankfully we put simon and the team at ease there. “irt were fantastic,” he said, “and the horses were totally unfazed.”

With horses, riders and gear present and accounted for in melbourne, it was off to camperdown, where the team were met by gracious and generous hosts Lyn and Barry roycroft. Less hospitable was the challenging course, known as Lakes and craters, providing (not surprisingly) stunning views of two lakes, but some steep terrain also.

After dressage on the first day, the Aussies had crept ahead, but on the second day some mild weather and a

slightly softened ground suited the kiwis perfectly, and they pulled ahead in points comfortably after the cross country.

Final results were: Lizzie Brown (NZ) on AttorNey GeNerAL the overall winner of the class, Lauren Balcomb (Aust) 2nd, Helen Bruce (NZ) 3rd, simon Gordon (NZ) 4th, Jesse campbell (NZ) 5th and Ashley mckinstry (NZ) 6th – giving the New Zealand team a convincing win, their first since 2000.

congratulations to the New Zealand riders, their support staff and all the competitors. irt look forward to supporting many more trans tasman battles in years to come.

Jeremy Gask finds his feet at a new home with old roots.Horses First racing Limited is an unlikely training facility for the traditional green hills of england’s exclusive south-west Wiltshire district. Founded by eamonn Wilmott, a former computer magazine publisher, his long-term goal is to create a stable that is as successful on the track, as it is respectful of the environment within which it belongs. By Wilmott’s own admission, many of the local cynics think the stables staff “are tree huggers… wasting our time on green ‘non-essentials’.” this progressive approach, and what Wilmott describes as a “global view of racing”, may go part way to explaining how he hired a young, recently retired south Australian trainer to head-up their ambitious operation.

At the end of the 2005-06 season in Adelaide, at the age of 34 and already with 15 stakes race wins to his name, Jeremy Gask handed in his training license. He had struggled to make returns on the investment he was putting into facilities in the limited south Australian market. “the political situation, as far as racing goes, in Adelaide was an ever-present distraction,” says Gask. “i was losing the passion to do justice to the clients and horses.”

young riders, old rivalry

Aussie trAiNer puts Horses First iN uk

But in 2007 an ad for the trainer’s position at Horses First caught Gask’s eye. His youth, training record and interest in alternative methods (like running horses on the beachfront at Goolwa, by the murray river) appealed to Wilmott. Gask got the job and soon the entire Gask family had relocated to sutton Veny – a town that, as fate would have it, already had its own ties to Australia. 127 Australian Army soldiers, recuperating from battle in the First World War, had died there in a bout of spanish Flu and the township still honors their contribution to the war.

still, all that history hasn’t always made today’s conditions terribly hospitable for the new kid on the block. the different track conditions in particular have challenged Gask’s methods of preparation.

But last year irt were pleased to be involved in the transport of two horses from Australia to the uk for Gask, which had first and second place finishes. Australia’s leading female rider clare Lindop had her first english win on oNe WAy or ANotHer in a class three race over a mile at Haydock and a second on cAtALAN BAy at the same meeting. A great result for all involved and a promising sign for Gask and Wilmott’s developing crop of horses. the racing post has named Gask a “trainer to watch” and here at irt we will be doing just that – we wish him the best of luck.

photos by: Jeremy Gask stable

irt Blueprint 201010

more than two years on from the southern hemisphere equine influenza (e.i.) outbreak, travel restrictions are still making tough work of breeding plans for horses like New Zealand’s strAViNsky.

the once coolmore-owned “shuttler” returned home from Japan with irt to New Zealand’s cambridge stud in october 2009, but only after having to take a greatly deviated route. in 2007, when e.i. hit, strAViNsky was in Australia and finished up standing the season there, before returning to Japan. then travel restrictions to Australia and New Zealand kept him in Japan through 2008, as his connections hoped to “weather the storm” as it were. But to this day horses are still unable to travel direct from Japan, so irt helped map out an alternative route.

in July 2009 strAViNsky flew to New york and then on to coolmore’s Ashford stud in kentucky, for two months of quarantine. From there he went to melbourne, for an additional three weeks quarantine, before finally landing home in New Zealand in october. much to the delight of cambridge principal sir patrick Hogan, who said “He looks absolutely magnificent. i couldn’t be happier with his condition,” and promptly began booking mares to be covered.

After a busy breeding season, early this year strAViNsky was back on his way to Japan with irt. Hopefully the red tape will have cleared by the time he’s ready to head home again, for 2010 season in New Zealand.

photo by: Coolmore stud

e.i. eXiLestrAViNsky’s travel plans complicated by post-outbreak restrictions.

DAViD coLeA family tradition continues for our NZ co-director.Like many people within all the ranks of irt, our New Zealand founder and co-director David cole (known as “coley” to most) is a true horse man. His father was a thoroughbred trainer and when a friend turned down a horse freight job, David took the opportunity. that was 1979 and just a few years later, he met irt founder Quentin Wallace, who was looking for help in transporting horses from Auckland to the usA. in 1982, he and David formed irt New Zealand.

since then the business has grown and grown. David now shares command with fellow director ross Johnson and says that he puts the success of irt “down to the longevity of my fellow partners and directors worldwide…. there is close to 150 years of experience between all five partners” in Australia, New Zealand, the u.s. and u.k.

in those years, David has noticed significant changes in the local horse industry. in particular the growing popularity of “pleasure horses” (equestrian and endurance, etc.) and the decline of small thoroughbred and standardbred breeders selling yearlings.

David may not have carried on his father’s training business, but he still loves his thoroughbreds and owns a handful of horses – with wins in over 100 races, including one Group 1 race and many Group 2 & 3 races.

triumphantly competing for time with all those horses is David’s wife of 29 years, sheryll, his daughter rachel (20) and son steven (18). rachel is completing a degree in Hotel management, while steven is headed on a familiar path for a cole lad – the horse business – and is currently working in one of irt’s Auckland quarantines.

After almost 30 years in the irt family, coley’s still one of the most well-liked and energetic people in the company. “i’m thankful to have had the opportunity to have grown the company,” he says. “Along with Quentin and all my fellow partners and employees.” We hope he stays in the horse business with us for many years to come.

11

Aussie BreeD trAces its rootsBrumbies join the ranks of Dubai’s many horse imports.A few years ago Ali mohammed Al mohairi – the racing manager for deputy ruler of Dubai, sheikh Hamdan bin rashid Al maktoum – took a trip to the outback of Australia’s Northern territory. He was looking for a very particular breed of horse and before he knew it, they’d found him.

“there was a mare and a foal and they were galloping from behind and i yelled to go, i was screaming at the driver,” he recalled. “then they crossed in front of us and the sparks were coming off the road. When they came to a lake, they jumped straight in and swam across.”

mr Al mohairi had finally seen first-hand and in their own environment the dash and daring of Australia’s famous “brumbies” and they weren’t done yet. After they crossed the lake “there was a rocky hill on the other side and i said: ‘impossible, they will not climb that.’ And they did.”

it may play like a deleted scene from the movie Jurassic Park, but the brumby breed is not science fiction and like many Australians, their pedigree traces back to the other side of the world. in fact, they are said to come from Arab horses taken to europe. Now it seems, some of them, are going home. irt recently transported 14 brumbies to Dubai for the sheikh, to be trained for the rigors of endurance racing.

sheikh Hamdan is best known for his champion racehorses and has previously won two melbourne cups, but it may have been news of the horses culling in large numbers Down under, that pulled at the horseman’s heartstrings. everyone admits that it’s an experiment and so far the results in competition haven’t been as impressive as the brumbies wild outback gallop. they have speed, but although recovered, don’t like returning for consecutive race stages. “they’re not tired but they take care of themselves,” said mr Al mohairi, believing their wild instincts may lead them to conserve energy for unforeseen threats.

Hopefully mr Al mohairi’s instincts are just as finely tuned and he has found another winning breed for sheikh Hamdan’s illustrious stable.

sceNic BLAst has a big year of travel, trials and triumph. 2009 brought mixed blessings for the fleet-footed and baldy-faced bay sceNic BLAst. A trip with irt to see the Queen at royal Ascot for the king’s stand stakes resulted in a comfortable win, placing the prized silverware in Australian hands for the fourth time in just five years.

A heavily-backed 11-4 favorite though he was, the victory still had trainer Danny morton shaking his head in disbelief, “i know how tough it is to succeed here,” he said. “We knew we had a very good horse which is why we are here, but with all the travelling and the rest of it, it’s a big thing to get through and still compete.”

tAkiNG iN more tHAN Just tHe siGHts

photo by: ascot racecourse

subsequent journeys to Japan and Hong kong didn’t prove as fortuitous, with no wins and some bleeding occurring in Hong kong.

still sceNic BLAst’s impressive record was enough to capture both the 2009 Horse of the year and irt international performer of the year awards at the most recent Australian racehorse of the year Awards ceremony.

But unable to race at home in Australia – where rules on racing after a bleed place horses on the sidelines for three months – sceNic BLAst was again in the hands of irt early in 2010, heading to california (where treatment with the medication Lasix is allowed) for another shot at success on foreign soil. Hopefully he will find form again back in the Northern Hemisphere.

International racehorse transport suite 1501, 401 Docklands Drive Docklands, Victoria 3008, Australia t +61 (0)3 9643 3000 F +61 (0)3 9643 3030www.irt.com

Irt International offices

Australia melbourne t +61 (0)3 9643 3000 F +61 (0)3 9643 3030 e irtaus@irt.com

uK&europe Newmarket t +44 (0)1638 668 003 F +44 (0)1638 665 534 e irtuk@irt.com

newZealand Auckland t +64 (0)9 297 2022 F +64 (0)9 298 6066 e irtnz@irt.com

uSA chicago t +1 630 513 0312 F +1 630 513 0412 e irtusa@irt.com

Los Angeles t +1 310 306 0262 F +1 310 306 2003 e irtusa@irt.com

miami t +1 305 444 8184 F +1 305 441 8177 e irtusa@irt.com

staff profiles

Ian Jory Irt Los angelesian always knew he’d work with four-legged animals, but originally it was of the much slower kind, dairy cows. Awaiting his entry into university in england, he took a job in that field, at a dairy farm. But it just so happened that the farm also had a racing stable and he “never looked back”.

once the racing “bug had set in”, as ian puts it, he transferred up to Newmarket, where he worked as a trainer’s assistant for five years and made another fortuitous connection, getting to know irt uk director Jim paltridge.

it was in the sunnier environs of california where ian finally started training for himself, in 1984. it was a successful 20 year career, that saw him train a kentucky Derby runner-up and win over $16million in purses. eventually ian took a job as a private trainer, for a middle eastern prince, with stables in saudi Arabia and Dubai. it was in the middle east that he met his future wife, a New Zealand nurse and the two eventually settled back in california in 2007. He also has a daughter chloe (18), about to make the big shift to college life.

During his training days, ian took work handling the us office for international Horse services for extra income. so with his relationship with Jim, thoroughbred and international horse experience, it’s no wonder ian made such a good fit for irt. And what better post than sunny LA? Where ian can enjoy his other interests; playing tennis and sailing (or working on) his boat.

tetsuhito “hiro” hirose Flying GroomAs a schoolboy in Japan, Hiro was never around horses, not once. But that didn’t stop him falling head-over-heels for the horse races, particularly the Japan cup. then in 1989 his favorite horse, oGri cAp, was beaten by a nose. Not by another Japanese champion, but by a horse from New Zealand, HorLicks. the following year Australian Better LooseN up won and in 1992, countryman NAturALism was runner up.

Japan’s main race had become a worldwide competition and after completing a sports management degree, Hiro headed ‘down under’ to see where these quality thoroughbreds were coming from. He arrived in sydney in 1994 with “a backpack and a little english”, as he remembers it, and headed straight for the famous stud farms of the Hunter Valley to find work. His lack of experience with horses and “little” english prevented him from finding a job, but Hiro was not deterred and eventually took a much different path toward one day working with racing’s elite.

it was through odd jobs across the industry that Hiro improved his english (particularly his “Bush english”) and his knowledge of horses, working as a Jackaroo, an equestrian instructor, feed delivery man, float driver, breaking horses and eventually with leading trainers like Gerald ryan and Barry Baldwin in Queensland.

in 2006 Hiro began work with irt’s quarantine team in sydney, before becoming qualified as a flying groom.

When not in the air, Hiro has adopted quite the Australian lifestyle – driving from his home in Brisbane up and down the coast to surf, or, as he puts it “the thing i love the most”, a weekend BBQ in the backyard with his wife Hitomi and daughter momoko.

this year marks one significant milestones amongst the Irt family.

Milestones

Greg pope Irt nZ15 years, (since April 1995)

Design by Atticus Designwww.atticusdesign.com.au