Cilacap making a splash for surf wear supremos
Stakes races on the agenda for exciting filly following her weekend win
Grahame Begg’s flying filly Cilacap (Written Tycoon) is currently riding the crest of a wave – which is entirely appropriate given she is jointly owned by Brian Singer and Alan Green, respectively the founders of Rip Curl and Quiksilver.
Green was trackside with his bloodstock agent, former trainer Bruce Elkington, to see Cilacap score her first city success in the opener at Caulfield Heath last Saturday – with Begg keen to test her at stakes grade in the new year given the dominant nature of her performance.
Singer and Green have enjoyed notable success previously in the racing game, not least as part of the syndicate which raced the 2016 Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m) winner Almandin (Monsun), but the beautifully bred Cilacap might just be the most exciting horse they currently own.
Green races around ten horses in partnership with his wife Barbara under their Echo Beach Bloodstock banner, named after the beach in Canggu (Bali) famous for its advanced reef breaks and 180-degree seascape and sunsets.
After retiring from the training ranks almost a decade ago, having saddled up multiple Group 1 winners both individually and during his long stint as an assistant trainer to his later father Meggs, Elkington decided to branch out into the bloodstock trade.
Elkington had trained a number of winners for the surf supremos, with their relationship stretching back as far as the 1980s, and so they were keen to engage his services as their bloodstock advisor once he had hung up his binoculars.
Green and Singer both take a very active interest at the sales and the pair shop primarily at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale, believing it offers excellent value for money.
Due to her pedigree, Corumbene Stud’s bay filly out of the Group 1-placed mare Falkenberg (More Than Ready) – who is a sister to the mighty Sebring – certainly caught their collective attention last year. Once Elkington had given his stamp of approval, they were determined to leave the complex with Lot 128 in their keeping and eventually prevailed with a final bid of $300,000.
Having already amassed earnings in excess of $100,000 from just three starts, and with Begg now eyeing off autumn targets such as the Boronia Stakes (Gr 3, 1100m) and the AV Kewney Stakes (Gr 2, 1600m), the future certainly looks bright for Cilacap.
“Before the sale Brian and Alan had given me a list of horses to look at, and when I inspected this filly she was definitely one of the standouts from their list,” Elkington told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“I really liked what I saw, she was a very correct filly who had the scope to develop into a really nice individual. She’s also got a lovely pedigree to match so when the boys turned up at the sale, I told them they should definitely go after her. Fortunately she met their budget and now that she’s showing plenty of promise, her purchase price looks very reasonable.
“She’s getting better with every run and she’s bred to get over further ground, given her dam was placed in a Queensland Oaks. She’s quite big and rangy and there’s definitely further improvement to come, so Alan and Brian are both quite excited about her.
“Alan and I certainly enjoyed the win at Caulfield on Saturday, and we stopped off for a very nice celebratory meal at the Torquay Hotel on the way home. Somehow I ended up paying the bill, so I might have to send him an invoice for that! But in all seriousness, he’s enjoying the journey with her and even though we knew she was a very good winning chance on Saturday, I probably didn’t expect her to win as comfortably as she did.
“The boys have had some luck in the past with Grahame, he trained a nice mare called Purrpurrlena who won a few races in the city and was stakes placed. So hopefully they’ve found another nice one with this filly. I know that Graham has a bit of an opinion of her, so I’d like to think it won’t be the last time we get to celebrate a win after the races.”
Begg has hit a purple patch of form himself, having sent out four winners and four minor placegetters from the stable’s last 11 runners.
The Cranbourne-based trainer is renowned for his patient approach with his horses, but even he is excited about the potential for Cilacap to scale some loftier heights next year.
“She’s not a flash trackwork rider and she’s quite an assuming type in the stables, but she definitely knows when it’s game day,” said Begg.
“She’s just a genuine racehorse, and even though she didn’t win on debut we knew we had something on our hands the way she ran home and hit the line after drawing a wide barrier.
“She won well at her next start and I thought her performance at Caulfield on Saturday was really professional, so she’s better than that grade and we’ll aim her at some bigger races in the autumn.
“She sat wide but still had that quick turn of foot at the end of the race, so it was impressive to see. She’s got a great stride on her and all she wants to do is find the line, so she’s got that real will to win which all the good horses seem to have. She can maintain a good gallop and still have that sprint in her legs at the end of her races.
“She’s very relaxed in the run and travels sweetly, and the way she finished off on Saturday would suggest that the mile won’t be any issue for her. To have the ability to switch off is a really important tool, and the fact that she has that in her arsenal means we can take her to some stakes races early next year.
“She’s an exciting prospect and I think she’d be really well suited to Flemington, so a race like the Kewney Stakes is very much in our thoughts now.”