the thing I like about Sky Classic is his movement - he gets that largely in thanks to Nijinsky. A lot of the SC horses I see are better-than-average movers, compact, efficient. Good workers. The other good thing about Sky Classic is he seems to have horses that are decent jumpers - you can thank Nijinsky’s blood and Nodouble/Noholme for that – Noholme has a good bit of success in NZ and a lot of eventing blood. Of course w/ Sky Classic you have No Class, who herself was quite a good producer and out produced herself in every pairing. Now – Nijinsky horses themselves are not easy. They usually have very high opinions of themselves - I love it, but not everyone’s bag.
I am not personally a huge fan of Silver Deputy/Deputy Minister - I don’t tend to like their type or personalities - some of the SD horses I’ve met have just not been my type - coarse head thick bodies spindly legs – but fair warning, the mare has a lot to do with it. That being said, SD/DM seems to have collected a bit of a fanbase with the HJ and eventing crowd - SD horses very much have the huntery/sweepy movement. If your guy is an okay mover and not a whole lot of suspension, he probably inherited SD’s way of going.
Rahy/Blushing Groom - I have mixed feelings about this line - they always look beautiful. Usually big bays or rich chestnuts, expressive eyes - wonderful athleticism and engines… Blushing Groom has such a stamp that even his grandchildren can be identified sometimes. But my experience only (which doesn’t count for much, remember) it has been very difficult to find one with iron-hard legs. Which is odd, because Blushing Groom was listed recently (2014, 2015?) as a stallion with lots of very sound get. I think you have to take the mare into consideration – for instance, I had a Blushing Groom/Phone Trick gelding that I just could not keep sound and he had wonderful management… it was probably a combination of the two lines – where as if BG was paired with say, Petionville or Say Florida Sandy I would not for a minute falter.
World Appeal/Valid Appeal/In Reality - that line alone I always look for - sound horses with big frames. Valid Appeal himself did not have the best conformation, but he doesn’t seem to always pass that along. In Reality was a little better (though straight pasterns) and I do think he is a good source for reliability in sport horse pursuits.
Anyway, that’s just my opinion based on my experience - it’s worth what you paid for.
