Darley

Darley's Kelvinside Stud. Oh, a place to die for. And to think we spent almost four glorious days there. It is exquisite. The staff are wonderful. And the horses. The horses!!!! Just another delirious Darley trip....

Below: Bernardini (AP Indy - Cara Rafaela). A beautiful, beautiful boy. Beautifully balanced. You CANNOT take a bad photograph of this horse, it's just not possible. The most exquisitely natured stallion I've come across. We adored him, and I cannot wait to see the babies appearing on the track, as this fellow was a superstar on the track, with the looks to match.




Below: Commands (Danehill - Cotehele House). Stalwart of the Darley stable, and a full brother to another very successful sire in Danewin. Terrific horse. He's the sire of Skilled, Undue, Paratroopers and Purple to name a few.


Below: This image is now a little bit famous, after featuring on September 3, 2010, on the front cover of the SMH's "The Form" section. It is of Denman (foreground: Lonhro - Peach), Lonhro (centre: Octagonal - Shadea) and Octagonal (rear: Zabeel - Eight Carat). These three very famous and incredibly popular horses are now standing alongside each other at Kelvinside. The public reaction to this image has been remarkable, and is a testament to the huge fondness the racing public held for all three horses.


Below: Denman enjoys his free time in the paddock. Having only just arrived at stud he's yet to 'let down', but he looked terrific.






Below: Lonhro does things his own way, and is not given to hysterics. He also looks great.





Below: Medaglia d'Oro (El Prado - Cappucino Bay), or "the Golden One" as they call him. He's gloriously beautiful. And he's the sire of the great Rachel Alexandra. Loved him! And fed him carrots....





Below: the great Octagonal. He needs no further introduction. Still a star...





Below: Street Cry (Machiavelian - Helen Street). Sire of the mighty US mare Zenyatta, winner of 19 of her 20 starts (sigh..). And in Australia he's the sire of Shocking (2009 Melbourne Cup winner) and Whobegotyou, winner of the 2008 Caulfield Guineas and the 2009 Caulfield Stakes. A big horse (deceptively so). Fantastic horse.


Below: Exceed and Excel (Danehill - Patrona).


Below: Shamardal (Giant's Causeway - Helsinki). Sire of Faint Perfume, and his dam is a full sister to the might stallion and racehorse Street Cry (see above).


Below: Teofilo (Galileo - Speirbhean). He was a lot of fun to photograph, and was certainly full of himself.



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