Andrew Caulfield, June 29, 2004–Grey Swallow (Ire) P EDIGREE INSIGHTS The presence among the broodmare sires of several other notable mile-and-a-half performers meant that BY ANDREW CAULFIELD Daylami did well to come up with eight winners from his first 26 runners in Britain and Ireland, with further BUDWEISER IRISH DERBY-G1, i1,199,100, The winners in France and Norway. His daughter Bay Tree Curragh, 6-27, 3yo, c/f, 1 1/2mT, 2:28.70, gd/fm. had become his first stakes winner and his second, Grey 1--sGREY SWALLOW (IRE), 126, c, 3, by Daylami (Ire) Swallow, was rated the second-best two-year-old colt 1st Dam: Style Of Life, by The Minstrel of 2003. Daylami also earned black type through the 2nd Dam: Bubinka, by Nashua speedy filly Birthday Suit and the Group 1-placed Day or 3rd Dam: Stolen Date, by Sadair Night. I had also been impressed by another Daylami (150,000gns yrl ‘02 TATHOU). O-Rochelle Quinn; colt, Thajja, but injury prevented this youngster from B-Mrs C L Weld; T-D Weld; J-P Smullen; i736,600. adding to his debut win. Lifetime Record: 6-4-0-1, i882,011. *1/2 to Central The winners have continued to flow from Daylami's Lobby (Ire) (Kenmare {Fr}), GSP-Fr, $232,027. first crop, with Hidden Hope becoming his third stakes Click for the free brisnet.com catalogue-style pedigree winner in the Cheshire Oaks, while Day or Night failed or the racingpost.co.uk chart. by only a short neck to take the G2 Prix Greffulhe. Once, after my team had won the local PTA quiz Daylami has also caught the eye through his unbeaten night, a beaten rival spoke these words of wisdom to son Bull Run, who won his first two starts by a total of me: “Nobody likes a smartass, Andrew!” Bearing that in 24 lengths; Thajja, who again looked useful when he mind, I am hesitant to say that Daylami's emergence as made a winning return to action in April; Tamarillo, who a potentially top-flight stallion comes as no surprise to took the UAE Oaks on dirt; and Remaadd, who made a me. Indeed, I considered him to be extremely good pleasing winning debut at Newbury. value when his fee for this year was left at i20,000, There is also the enticing prospect that Daylami's some i5,000 less than was charged for his services second crop could prove similarly effective. His early two years earlier. two-year-old winners include Whazzat (Chesham S.) and Of course Daylami's fee this year had to take account the Aga Khan's Kerasha, who could hardly have been of the arrival of his illustrious half brother Dalakhani to more impressive when she made a winning debut at stand alongside him at Gilltown Stud, as breeders are all Saint-Cloud. too willing to ignore the old in favour of the new and With Storm Bird as her broodmare sire, Kerasha is out unproven. But there were plenty of reasons for breeders of a grand-daughter of Northern Dancer, as are Grey to stand by Daylami in his fifth season. Swallow and Day or Night, so Daylami promises to His first runners had hit the track in 2003 and they develop into a very valuable asset to the many European had done very well for a stallion whose progeny can breeders looking for a top-notch outcross. fairly be expected to improve with age. Daylami, after I was interested to hear one of Grey Swallow's all, had begun his highly distinguished career at two connections say that he was sure the colt would be with a Timeform rating of 112p, which he improved to suited by a mile and a half, because Daylami won over 124 at three, then to 126 at four and finally to an the distance and so did The Minstrel, the sire of Grey outstanding 138 at five. Swallow's dam. I am not sure I would have been quite Another factor to take into account was the type of so confident: Daylami--a classic winner over a mile-- mare he had often been paired with in his first season. didn't score over that distance until he was five, and As many as seven of the 80 foals in his first crop were The Minstrel was somewhat unpredictable where out of mares by Sadler's Wells, while quite a few others stamina was concerned. Some of The Minstrel's group were out of mares by winners of the English, French or winners, such as the Prix de l'Abbaye winner Silver Irish Derbys, such as Shirley Heights, Generous, El Gran Fling and the five-furlong winner Peterhof, possessed Senor, Troy, Caerleon, Sanglamore, Kahyasi, Nashwan much more speed than stamina, and Grey Swallow's and The Minstrel. dam, Style of Life, also fit this profile. www.coolmore.com Considering that Style of Life's broodmare sire was Nashua, twice winner of the Jockey Club Gold Cup over two miles, she could have been expected to stay reasonably well. However, a mile was the longest distance she was asked to tackle and she didn't win until she was dropped back firstly to seven furlongs and then to six. Style of Life's good sister Seasonal Pickup was also at her best at under a mile, winning four Listed races in Ireland. With a son of Northern Dancer as her sire and Stolen Hour as her third dam, Style of Life was bred to a similar pattern to Northern Dancer's outstanding son El Gran Senor, who also has Stolen Hour as his third dam. It's worth remembering that, although El Gran Senor won the Irish Derby, the main legacy of his champion brother Try My Best has been one of speed, through the likes of Last Tycoon, My Best Valentine (Prix de l'Abbaye) and Pont-Aven. El Gran Senor comes from the Best In Show branch of the Stolen Hour family which also numbers Xaar, Spinning World, Denon and Aldebaran among its galaxy of stars. Grey Swallow, though, comes from the branch descending from Best In Show's half sister Stolen Date, a mare best known as the dam of the successful Irish stallion Taufan. Stolen Date also produced the talented Nashua fillies Stoshka and Bubinka. Although Stoshka stayed a mile and a half well enough to win a Listed race over that distance in France, Bubinka--the second dam of Grey Swallow--gained her best win in the G3 Premio Buontalenta over a mile. If I were asked to name the principal source of Grey Swallow's stamina, I would nominate Daylami's second dam, Damana. This daughter of the Prix du Jockey-Club winner Crystal Palace won at up to a mile and three quarters and her stamina dominated Miswaki's speed to the extent that Daylami's dam Daltawa was able to win over a mile and a quarter as a juvenile. Even so, I don't anticipate any problems for Grey Swallow when he reverts to a mile and a quarter later this year..