'Lots' On Offer at RTR
Durbanville, the country cousin of Hollywoodbets Kenilworth, has blossomed into a sporting venue now able to stand tall with any other racecourse in South Africa. Durbanville used to be an annual sideshow in the Cape, a sort of racetrack that provides a “holding service” in the winter months until the sun comes out again and all roads lead back to Kenilworth.
However, thanks to a huge cash injection from Hollywoodbets and the enthusiasm and expertise of Cape Racing, Durbanville has become a jewel in the equine industry’s crown and racegoers have embraced the venue. Further confirmation of its rise comes this Sunday when the CRS Ready To Run and Unbroken Two Year Old Sale takes place at the course. Not that it’s entirely new, because in previous years it was held there.
It’s just that now Durbanville is able to showcase all its charm and uniqueness again, as Kenilworth, which hosted the Sale for three years from 2020-2022 is being made picture perfect for the looming Cape Summer Season. Veteran trainer Greg Ennion says that he actually prefers Durbanville for the RTR Sale. “I think that at Kenilworth the horses are too far away, while at Durbanville you’re able to judge them galloping a lot better, because as a spectator you’re that much closer. It makes a big difference when making decisions. That’s one of the bigger positives,” he said at the course last weekend.
At last count there have been 18 withdrawals from the 110 catalogued horses – including Nadeson Park Stud, so affected by the recent Cape storms, and who took out their 13 lots – but it’s packed with quality. The 2020 Sun Met winner One World has his offspring on show and he’s the only stallion with unraced progeny.
It is a Sale which always throws up a future champion and naturally there’s the incentive of the lucrative Ready To Run Stakes to provide an incentive for owners to get involved. The winner’s roll of the RTR Stakes in recent years has been Seeking The One (Klawervlei bred), Fifty Fiver (Klawervlei), Seeking The Stars (Klawervlei), Pure State (Limpo Trading) and Cirillo (Riverton). The other incentive is that, being two-year-olds, they’ve had a chance to grow from being sold as yearlings and an owner doesn’t have to wait that long before they hit the racetrack.
You will also find Kuda Insurance’s Bloodstock Product Manager Jo Campher and Janine Koster, Kuda’s division head of niche products. The latter is part of the Koster family which runs Cheveley Stud in the beautiful Western Cape region of Ceres. It was founded by Wilfred and Shirley Koster in 1980 and is now overseen by another Koster in Vaughan. Some 15 different Grade One winners have been bred by the farm over the years, including London News, National Emblem, Argonaut, Badger’s Drift, Divine Act, Gluwein, Legislate, Snowdance and Bela Bela. Legislate, the 2014 Horse of the Year, is represented by four lots, one of which was bred by Cheveley Stud.
Kuda offers a variety of products and Koster is quick to say that, “Because we (at Kuda) understand insurance and are directly involved in our various niche industries it helps us to better understand our clients’ needs. We go through each step with our clients and it becomes a partnership.”
Among the products that anyone buying a two-year-old and looking to insure them at the sale can choose from are two that stand out.
“The Lifesaving Surgery and Critical Care extension is really worth considering when buying a horse at this Sale,” says Campher. “We refer to it as ‘higher limits with lower worries’. It’s an all-in hospital cover, including treatments and operations, where the horse’s life is in immediate danger. It covers up to R100 000 or eight days, whichever comes first.
Then there is the Among the products that anyone buying a two-year-old and looking to insure them at the sale can choose from is the After Auction Keep Cover.
It’s a product aimed at new and existing owners and applies to the first year after a Sale.
“The After Auction Keep Cover is a fall of hammer product where Kuda insures the horse on an annual basis for a selected mortality value based on the fall of hammer price. Training, spelling, pre-training and other horse related costs can be quite substantial. In the unfortunate event that your horse should perish, choosing this cover at or after the auction covers you for up to R12 500 per month (minus earnings) as additional protection,” Campher explains.
“It all shows that when it comes to a Sale there are so many moving parts, and that everyone has a role to play in making the experience memorable and stress-free,” she adds.
