Bloodstock Briefing: Blanka aim to challenge offspring; Handicapper Silca races on following spell at stud.
SILCA BLANKA, who made it two out of two this year when landing a 0-90 handicap at Chester last Thursday, has one important task to perform before his retirement-he must race against one of his offspring. The eight-year-old, owned by Alan Smith of Duckhaven Stud and trained by his neighbour Tony Newcombe in Devon, is clearly as good as ever. Or at least almost as good, for at two he won the Listed Woodcote Stakes at Epsom, and the following season he was beaten a neck in a Group 3 in Cologne.At four he finished fourth in the Diomed Stakes back at Epsom, and Smith is sorely tempted to let him run again in that Group 3 race next month.
Silca Blanka has had an interrupted racing career, for he was at stud in 1997, and the products of that season are now two-year-olds. One has already run-Pertemps Gill, who faded after showing up well in a Windsor fillies' maiden nine days ago.
She is one of eight juveniles by the son of Law Society handled by Smith, who took out a full licence around a year ago, but does not train their sire as "he was with Tony Newcombe before and we share a lot of facilities anyway".
The decision to resume Silca Blanka's racing career during the winter of 1998 looked at first to have been a mistake. Smith recalls: "The Newcombe's stable said, `We can't get him to go on to the gallops'. I told them to lunge him and lunge him, and then put him on the gallops. He was fine after that. But he's still a stallion. If someone who doesn't know him enters his box, he'll think about going for them."
Silca Blanka's future at stud depends on the exploits of his progeny. Smith is hopeful "one or two" will win this year, proving Silca Blanka is transmitting some of his own ability, and the trainer's ambition is to run one of them against their sire next year. He believes that has not happened before, at least in living memory.
A similar ambition was held for Environment Friend, who mixed covering and racing for three seasons-in 1993-95, but was finally retired when his oldest progeny were yearlings. And last year Troon ran with credit in Listed sprints for Norwegian trainer Rune Haugen while two of his offspring became multiple winners for the same yard.
Troon was retired without racing against his progeny.
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| Title Annotation: | Sports |
|---|---|
| Author: | Hickman, Janet |
| Publication: | The Racing Post (London, England) |
| Date: | May 17, 2000 |
| Words: | 409 |
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