Racing: Filly heralds start of season

White Robe Lodge stud manager Wayne Stewart  handles  the stud's first foal of the season, a...
White Robe Lodge stud manager Wayne Stewart handles the stud's first foal of the season, a filly by Raise The Flag, at the North Taieri breeding establishment yesterday. Her mother, Cherry Creek, watches on cautiously. Photo by Craig Baxter.
Some of her future farm mates may end up far and wide around the racing world, but it looks as if White Robe Lodge's first foal of the breeding season might stay right here on the Taieri Plain.

The filly, complete with a blaze down her face matching mum, was born at 12.30am on Thursday, 11 months to the day after her mother, Cherry Creek, was served by resident sire Raise The Flag.

Her older half-sister, Coulee, has shown some galloping ability at the Wingatui jumpouts, while her older full brother was sold at the Karaka sales for $57,500 in January.

White Robe Lodge stud manager Wayne Stewart said the filly, who allowed herself to be patted by Stewart by the end of the photo session, would probably be retained by breeders Brian and Lorraine Anderton.

There is some interest at White Robe about the arrival of Inferno's first foal by Raise The Flag, while the British-born sire also served Royal Madam - the mother of leading South Island filly Madam Victoria.

The mother of Include, She's Snubbed, will drop a Raise The Flag foal this season, as will the stakes performers Lesley Brook and Miss Millbrook.

Stewart expects 80 to 90 mares to foal at the farm by the end of November, meaning a busy few months at both ends of the reproductive process for the stud's five employees.

''Next week we'll look at teasing mares [for serving] and all the mares that are due to foal we'll start vaccinating them,'' Stewart said.

''We'll go in to the foaling and carry through - the night watch [employee] will come on fulltime next week and go through to November.''

Raise The Flag is getting bookings every day with positive reports still coming in from trainers about his progeny, Stewart said.

''I know they've got to to get on the track and do the job, but the experts can't be wrong - they're all pretty positive with where they're at.

''Hopefully in the next 12 months, he'll leave a nice classical horse.''

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