Looking into purchasing this filly, with an eye on eventing, probably no higher than Prelim. Would love the opportunity to breed her farther down the line, too. What do you guys think about her lines, particularly as a potential eventer?
Oooh, sheās very pretty! It was a shame we lost her sire, Fast Anna, so early. I wanted to send a mare to him. He was a very good looking horse. I donāt have any firsthand experience with his offspring.
Medaglia DāOro is probably the best looking stallion in Kentucky. I canāt recall any MDO offspring going in the upper levels of eventing off the top of my head (itās Monday morning and Iām not yet done my coffee), but Iāve known a lot in the lower levels and they are very athletic.
But the bottom side of the pedigree has a lot of proven success with eventing. Also steeplechase racing, which tends to be a good analog for eventing success. Stormy Atlantic is one of the best SC sons for sport IMOā¦ just a really nice, balanced horse with a lot of jump. I am pretty sure there are some upper level horses with him close up, but again, that Monday coffee hasnāt kicked in. Crafty Prospector shows up with above average frequency in upper level eventers. Current 5 star horses with him close up include Jess Phoenixās Bogue Sound. And Broad Brush was probably one of the most influential TBs for sport in the late part of the 20th centuryā¦
So really, her paper is nothing but encouraging.
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I canāt speak to pedigree but her conformation screams āhighly athletic with an excellent chance of staying sound for a long timeā
Everything is as it should be. Front pasterns and cannons are maybe a touch long, but given that sheās just 4, sheāll put on a little more bone which will help. Her shoulder, legs well out in front of her withers, great hind end, good angles, itās all as it should be for a sound, athletic horse.
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it appears that she has been intentionally inbred to the superior mare Kittenās First, being 3X3 to her daughter Justenuffheart, a half sister to Kittenās Joy. Using the Rasmussen Factor does yield success, but not always. Fastinastorm was clearly not a runner. But it truly is a fascinating pedigree!
handy reading links:
https://pedigreeconsultants.com/2013/09/28/complacent-about-the-rasmussen-factor/
chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/http://lanternhillfarm.com/media/BHJanArticle.pdf
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Nice pedigree for sport. MDO & sons consistently make a nice type with great balance. Stormy Atlantic is one of my 2 āStorm Cat allowancesā, he tends to make a big, nice mover with minimal SC quirks, and allows other pedigree influences to blend. The third dam, Justenuffheart, is a stellar producer: dam of Lewis Michael, Dreaming of Anna (dam of Fast Anna), and Justenuffhumor. Itās unusual to see a horse inbred 3x3 to a mare, particularly both from daughters. From a sport perspective, I think it works favorably here.
From a sport breeding perspective, it may mean you will have a very good idea what to expect from her-- I would study Justenuffheart and her sonsā offspring closely to identify the strongest, most consistent traits in that family, and make stallion choices accordingly. 
Sadlers Wells and Blushing Groomā¦bet that horse can jump AND run. Great combo, add in the Storm Cat. Whew, that one is going to be a good one.
Whats your other SC allowance? Any thoughts on Tabasco Cat?
My Storm Cat allowances are Stormy Atlantic and Hennessy, provided they have a desirable pedigree otherwise and a standout physical.
I know many people love Giantās Causeway, and he does make a big, nice moverā¦but my own direct experiences with several, plus hearing respected, trusted racing professionalsā experiences (trainers, riders, chiros, vets), GC is on my Not Preferred list.
I probably wouldnāt touch a Tabasco Cat in the first 3 generations unless it had a number of other strong, sane influences. Athletic as hell, but definitely spicy and not known for good judgement.
Somehow I ended up with a handful of Storm Cat line racing broodmares on the farm this year, and it has driven home the notion that stereotypes are based in truth, lol. I have learned that 1 Storm Cat mare alone can be okay (most of the time), but get 2 or more in there together and the stupidity is exponentially worse. 
We have mares by Lion Heart, Pure Prize, Storm Cat damsire, and the Stormy Atlantic mare is definitely the most sensible and normal. But when she is with her ākindā, she lets her crazy flag fly too.
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Not even a Harlanās Holiday allowance?!? 
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I knowww 
Or if not Harlanās Holiday, what about Black Minnaloushe or Freud???
Mostly tongue in cheekā¦ She does like Hennessy, and we all love Johannesburg for sport so she gets a pass 
Well Harlanās Holiday was a grandson but itās not like we had a lot of Harlanās that lastedā¦ Menifee for a bitā¦
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Honestly Iām not a big HH fanā¦heās just OK to me. He will be around forever thanks to Into Mischief, who I personally put in a sireline of his own separate from Storm Cat (I donāt see much Storm Cat in them physically or mentally).
I admit I havenāt had as many dealings with Freud, not too many of them in KY/FL as the northeast. I know they are most always flashy and Iāve seen some nice hunter types, but again he isnāt one I seek out. Possibly because he is GCās full brother and I have GC bias, I admit. I used to train an appendix QH out of a Freud mare, and she was quite pretty to look at, but not my type for sport.
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Ah, Iāve been looking on that FB page too and noticed her. Iām not a pedigree guru so not much to chime in from that aspect, but I do think she is beautifully put together.
Her status is āpick up pendingā ā did you end up getting her?? 
I saw a lot of Freuds and GCs living in NY. I like both for different reasons but do love a good Freud. You are right Freud is popular with the HJ crowd. The right Freud you wouldnāt be able to pick out from a WB in the HJ circuit.
Itās funny how some siblings are nearly identical, some couldnāt be more different. They are full siblings but I donāt think they put the same thing on the ground.
Freud gives a much better disposition IMHO. He also seems to make an unmistakable eye and head, I donāt always see this on GC offspring. When I see GC I see all Rahy in the neck, shoulder, and even a little in the back. When I look at Freud he is quintessential SC. GC seems to sire more uphill with better shoulder freedom in the trot. Freud seems to sire okay movers but great canters. I like GC better for dressage ability, but I like Freud better for jump. GC can sire giants that are long-lined and front heavy. Freud seems to make a more modern package.
In the WB studbooks, GC mares are very positively received. The right one is quite close to the old fashioned, long lined phenotype with a little more modernity in the legs.
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Interesting. I havenāt seen as many Freuds but I go out of my way to look for GC. Iāve got two currently and one Stonesider (GC grandson) between myself and clients. They are giants, and mine can get front end heavy if heās not fit. But I donāt think there is another line that consistently throws as good a jump. Storm Cat brings the jump but I feel like it comes out best in the GCs. None of them have much of a hunter trot though. All great canters.
Iām always suspicious of jump if there isnāt SC in the pedigree somewhere. But thatās a personal experience bias.
Stonesider was a lovely stallion. I worked with several of his offspring and they had the type one wants for dressage. I think he was an improvement over GC in terms of dressage/sport. Brilliant canters and great trots, uphill and big bone.
There are better sources of jump than SC. Bold Ruler, Damascus, Roberto and Hail To Reason are solidly proven for sport. Mill Reef, Hand In Glove, Private Account, Ituango, and Acatenango are other lines secured in UL pedigrees.
If you want more āmodernā (as in the last ~20 years or so) horses, Mizzen Mast, Kittenās Joy, El Prado, Saddlers Wells, Smart Strike, AP Indy, Dynaformer, Gone West and/or Deputy Minister, Go For Gin are solid lines for sport. If you can find Animal Kingdom here, jump on it.
If you want current lines to look out for, I think Seville, English Channel, and Big Brown are promising for jumping ability and movement.
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@beowulf The Stonesider is a living saint. I forgot I had one by Causewayās Kin too, that one is small but a nice type and good jumper too.
I guess my caveat is that it has to be both the jump and the type. Maybe thatās where I discount a lot of those stallions. Like I think Jessica Redman does a beautiful job sourcing these athletic pedigrees, but in reality itās all eventing types and only once in a blue moon is there something I could get a hunter or jumper client interested in. I need it to be big and slow (not necessarily race slow, just slow tempo, and slow in the air).
I would murder for an Animal Kingdom though.
Thank you for the list too. I have overlooked Big Browns because heās sort of a common looking type himself, and I need to be more open minded on that.
I love a good TB horse and I love to shop for them and promote them, but the pool of suitable ones for my disciplines is smaller than I would like.
Thatās so interesting! My Tobasco Cat mare is simply the best thing since sliced bread. So chill and such a trier! All of mine are out together and they are all good mares! So funny how different are experiences are
āChillā is definitely not the norm for Tabasco Cat offspring. Every Tabasco Cat I had was a nice type, but tiresome to deal with.
But thatās why pedigrees are only one piece of the puzzle.
And I totally agree itās interesting how different experiences are.
When there were a lot of Storm Catās own sons and daughters on the ground, a lot of them could definitely be annoying to deal with. But personally, I havenāt seen a strong correlation with temperament problems in his grandkids. No more than any of the hotter lines.
The line I freaking hate (irrationally ) is Halo. If I see Halo in the first 3 generations on the page, I donāt want the thing in my barn (not concerned about it in the subject horse) . Yet clearly my experience is not the norm. There are plenty of fabulous Halo-line horses, they just never end up with me! Everyone breeding to More than Ready would think Iām nuts, ha.
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I second no thank you re: Halo.
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