Three-year-old Gimmethegreenlight colt Continue The Dream became the fifth of five full-brothers to win on debut, when powering home over 1400m at Hollywoodbets Durbanville on Sunday (Picture: Wayne Marks)
Klawervlei Stud-bred Trippi mare The Real Princess has already won an Equus Champion Broodmare award having produced three stakes winners with her first four foals and she looks to have another champion in the making in her fifth foal Continue The Dream, who ensured on Sunday at Hollywoodbets Durbanville that her mother now has the enviable record of her first five foals all winning on debut.
All five of her foals are by Gimmethegreenlight, all have been bred and are owned by Lady Christine Laidlaw’s Khaya Stables and all of them have been trained by Dean Kannemeyer.
The two most prominent among them to date are Gimme A Prince, a now retired monster of a horse who won three Gr 1 sprints and was the Equus Champion Sprinter, while also managing to finish third in the Gr 1 wfa L’Ormarins King’s Plate over a mile; and The Real Prince, whose two Gr 1 wins have been in the country’s most famous race, the Hollywoodbets Durban July over 2200m, and the country’s most prestigious wfa mile, The King’s Plate.
All of Continue The Dream’s siblings won over 1200m on debut, but an inkling that he is more likely to follow in the footsteps of The Real Prince than Gimme A Prince was that he made his debut over 1400m on Sunday.
Jockey Craig Zackey agreed with that sentiment after the race, but pointed out that, pleasingly, Continue The Dream was the size of Gimme A Prince.
Continue The Dream has inherited the family’s laid back nature and did not give Zackey an easy time going down. Then, after a tardy start, Zackey had to work hard around the bend as the horse came on and off the bridle
He decided to drive him to the outside coming around the final part of the bend in order to put fresh air in front of him, which he hoped would ignite his athleticism.
The tactic worked a treat and the colt displayed another attribute of the family, a magnificent turn of foot.
The gears he showed even took Zackey by surprise and he had not expected to make up the leeway so quickly.
Commentator Brandon Bailey was able to say “It’s race over” as he passed the 200m mark.
He justified his 33/20 favouritism when going to the line a 1,50 length winner, a scenario which had not looked likely after his tardy start and Zackey’s battles around the bend.
In fact Zackey, despite being a very fit jockey, returned puffing more than the horse.
The runner up, the Vaughan Marshall-trained Time Thief gelding Godfrid Gryffindor, also caught the eye as he responded when Continue The Dream passed him by running on strongly and finishing 2,50 lengths clear of the rest of the field.
The time of 86.18 seconds did not compare favourably on the day, but made the winning performance even more impressive as it takes something special to quicken so well off a slow pace.
Zackey said he hoped the penny would drop by the next start and he expected this colt to get better and better.
Dean Kannemeyer spoke about Continue The Dream’s “wonderful temperament” and also expected continual improvement.
He believed Real Princess was due to foal down to Gimmethegreenlight again soon.
Going back to the well has proved a winning breeding strategy in this case and Continue The Dream should join The Real Prince in helping make it an exciting season for the connections.
