By Peter Wharton
The FOLLOW THE STARS filly Black Jack Baby, who was the top two-year-old filly in Western Australia last season, returned to the winner’s list as a three-year-old in emphatic style at Gloucester Park.
The filly came from worse than midfield to divebomb her rivals in the run home, carving out the last 800 metres in a stunning 55.9. It was her ninth win from 14 starts and boosted her stake tally to $122,926.
Nightwatch Star, a mare bred by Allwood Stud and one of FOLLOW THE STARS’ first crop, won her fifth race at Penrith recently.
FLY LIKE AN EAGLE was represented by a pair of winners in NSW in January. The three-year-old Eagle Commander captured a heat of the Starmaker Series at Tamworth, while Mondo’s Eagle won in 1:59.1 at Newcastle.
Allwood Stud bred four individual winners for the month. Besides Nightwatch Star, other Allwood bred winners were the Gloucester Park winners Quick Stride, who won a heat of the Nights Of Thunder taking his earnings to more than $100,000, and The Last Drop (1:57.9).
The Desert Fox, also bred and raced by Allwood Stud, made it two wins from three lifetime starts at Pinjarra.
FOLLOW THE STARS and FLY LIKE AN EAGLE are both strongly represented at the Australian Pacing Gold Sale in Perth on Sunday, February 28. FOLLOW THE STARS has 12 colts and five fillies, while FLY LIKE AN EAGLE has six colts and five fillies from his first WA crop.
The highlights of the FOLLOW THE STARS’ draft are:
- A half-brother to Selkie (Race For Roses)
- A half-sister to Kimba Bay and Scot Bay
- A half-sister to Atmospherical
- A grandson of the multiple Group 1 winner Sovereign Beejay
- A colt from Maia Maguire (1:55.1)
- A colt from a daughter of Ark Maree (dam of 10 winners)
- A colt out of a daughter of the Oaks placegetter Smartest Remark
- A colt from a sister to Joe With The Flow
The FLY LIKE AN EAGLE draft includes:
- A granddaughter of Shes Royalty ($288,146)
- A filly out of a sister to Shipwreck ($279,197)
- A grandson of the dual Oaks winner Millwood Meg
- A half-brother to Quick Stride ($101,620)
- A colt out of a half-sister to Jumbo Operator ($313,175)
- A half-brother to Jesse Allwood
