Jack Hobbs and Time Test pinpointed for Arrowsmith mares

Ken and Jan Arrowsmith of Harts Farm Stud in Gloucestershire have one clear aim - to breed horses with the ability to stay over middle distances.

"We are, in the scheme of things in this industry, small-scale owner-breeders who on occasions have the pleasure of punching above our weight," said Ken Arrowsmith.

"Our chosen route from the outset has been to breed 1m2f-1m4f staying horses and this policy is here to stay, no pun intended, in spite of the current trend for all things being focused around the speed-orientated commercial market for two-year-olds.

"I believe this aim is reflected in our mares and choice of stallions that are selected to cover them."

New boys

With that desire to breed middle-distance horses and operating on a budget "less than half the cost of a 2018 Dubawi covering fee", Harts Farm Stud have giving their backing to two new recruits to the British stallion ranks in Jack Hobbs and Time Test.

Half of the six-strong broodmare band at Harts Farm Stud will be on Jack Hobbs' dance card for next year including Reaf, an unraced sister to dual Group 3-winning stayer Boreas.

Reaf, who is currently in foal to Toronado, has already produced four winners, three of which have achieved a Racing Post Rating on the Flat just shy of 100. Her three-year-old gelding Duke Of Bronte, by Dubai Destination, won a valuable heritage handicap at Ascot in September and is described by Arrowsmith as "an extremely promising and progressive horse to be going into 2018 with".

Angeleno, a winning half-sister to the top-class hurdling mare Annie Power also in foal to Toronado, will join Reaf in going to last year's Irish Derby hero. Angeleno has already produced the US Grade 3 winner Lady Pimpernel, who won the 2014 Listed Upavon Fillies' Stakes at Salisbury for trainer Henry Candy.

Her yearling colt by Sea The Moon was picked up by Rabbah Bloodstock for 50,000gns at Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale.

Watch Lady Pimpernel's impressive Listed Salisbury success

Completing the trio is Dreams Allowed, an unraced daughter of Authorized who was orphaned when her dam In Your Dreams died immediately after foaling her.

Dreams Allowed descends from By Charter - dam of three Flat performers with an RPR of 100 or more including high-class stayer First Charter - and the great Time Charter, the dam of four runners to surpass that benchmark including Jockey Club Stakes scorer Zinaad.

"With the loss of Mount Nelson and Champs Elysees to Ireland, I was extremely pleased to see Overbury Stud had secured the services of Jack Hobbs," continued Arrowsmith.

"I've already visited to inspect him and he's everything I hoped to see and believe that, in spite of him being labelled a National Hunt stallion, he will be more than capable of siring quality Flat staying horses and as a result have booked those three mares to him."

The Test of Time

Time Test, the dual Group 2 winner set to stand his first season at the National Stud next year at a fee of £8,500, has been chosen for two of the other three Harts Farm mares, both of whom are maidens.

Taws, described by the Arrowsmiths as their "pride and joy", is a Hernando mare out of Reaf.

"What she lacked in the speed department on the track was more than compensated by her heart and will to win," remembered Arrowsmith. "She finished her racing career this year as the winner of six Flat races and she also finished second in the Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot.

"She's also a winner over hurdles and was second behind Finian's Oscar in an Exeter Listed hurdle in February."

Annies Couture, meanwhile, is an unraced half-sister to Lady Pimpernel out of Angeleno.

"I think that Time Test and Jack Hobbs are two great value-for-money additions to the British stallion ranks and would ask others to support them to encourage their owners to keep them in Britain," said Arrowsmith.

Last but not least

Golden Valley, a Doncaster maiden winner at two, is by Three Valleys out of Reaf and her three-year-old Equiano filly looks set to be her first runner in 2018.

Golden Valley has a colt foal by Mustajeeb, is in foal to Cityscape and will be going back to Cityscape next year.

This year also saw the launch of Harts Farm Stud's first racing partnership, with Duke Of Bronte running in their two-tone blue silks.

All of the shareholders, some of whom had no previous experience of racehorse ownership, have evidently caught the racing bug and bought in to the second syndicate with Duke Of Bronte's Dalakhani yearling half-brother.

The tale doesn't end there for the consistent broodmare Reaf, with her Mount Nelson filly set to debut in 2018 aged three. She has been given the fitting name Duchess Of Bronte.

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