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Patience is a Virtue

14th Feb 2011

Patience is a Virtue

Breednet - Tara Madgwick - Sunday, 13 February 2011

They say ‘patience is a virtue’ and well known breeder Ian Smith of Edinburgh Park Stud at Taree had his well and truly rewarded at Randwick on Saturday.

Mr Smith bred and part-owns four year-old Redoute’s Choice mare Sister Madly (pictured), who resumed from a spell to post a long overdue Black Type success in the Group III ATC Southern Cross Stakes, beating smart male sprinters Pinwheel and Cardinal Virtue by the best part of two lengths.

Trained by Anthony Cummings, whose wife Bernadette shares in the ownership, Sister Madly has always shown well above average ability and been placed twice in Group I company in the AJC Flight Stakes and SAJC Robert Sangster Stakes, her overall record now two wins and six placings from 12 starts with prizemoney a tick over $300,000.

Sister Madly is a half-sister to world champion sprinter Silent Witness and is one of six winners from the top class producer Jade Tiara, who was bought off the track by Mr Smith back in 1998.

She produced Silent Witness as her first foal, the El Moxie (USA) colt sold by Edinburgh Park Stud at the 2001 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale for $55,000.

The sale was considered a good one by Mr Smith, but in hindsight a better one for the new owners of the colt, who would go on to win 18 races and $9.8 million with Silent Witness, who was also crowned HK Horse of the Year.

Edinburgh Park sold three subsequent yearlings from Jade Tiara for as much as $480,000, but when Sister Madly (pictured with her dam as a foal in 2006) went to the 2008 Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale with a reserve of $800,000, the bidding came up short.

Mr Smith elected to retain the Redoute’s Choice filly having sold her dam Jade Tiara privately, a decision that has proven a good one with Sister Madly now a very valuable replacement.

Jade Tiara has since changed hands on a few occasions and is now with Patinack Farm, who sold an Encosta de Lago filly from her at Inglis Easter last year for $700,000 to Paul Messara.