Arapaho Joe
TWENTY, or maybe even 30 years ago, Queenslander Graham Beh headed over to America to see for himself the greyhound industry in the States.
Graham was then a leading Gabba trainer and one of the world's foremost greyhound vets.
What he found was graded dogs who simply chased only when they got to the front, but Free For Allers the match of any in the world ... especially Australia.
What Graham noticed most was the longevity of the US greyhound. He came back, not proclaiming we had to swamp Aussie bloodlines with a Yank influence, but had to change our own thinking on the dogs we bred with.
As a professional trainer, Graham often said he would rather have a sound dog he could race up to twice a week for three years, than a superstar that stood up for only a dozen or so races.
There was more to be made by owners and trainers in the dog, maybe a few lengths slower than the high class gallopers, but who would earn much more prizemoney simply by competing more often.
Which brings me to the reason for this column ... last week's Sandown winner Arapaho Joe (Didda Joe-Our Lisa by Bombastic Shiraz).
I am always taken when researching pedigrees by "obscure" bloodlines.
When I came across Arapaho Joe, I just had to check out how he is bred.
His sire, Didda Joe, is by Vapour Whirl-Debbie Saquan by Lilli Pilli Lad. He started 80 times for 17 wins and 19 placings and earned $68,000 from multiple city wins.
This is a damline that traces directly to Little Barby (his fourth dam) the winner of 13 races at Olympic Park and Sandown and provincial tracks in Victoria. Her very last start saw her unplaced behind Head Honcho's mother Fitzroy Lass. She was a Laurels finalist.
This is also the damline of Laurels finalist Riverdale Katie, Sapphire Classic finalist Rush Galore.
LOTS of Didda Joy's family get to the races, lots of them win, and lots of them stay sound ... just as Graham Beh looked for.
Our Lisa, dam of Arapaho Joe, is Bombastic Shiraz-Special Jaqui by Exceptional.
She was a Sandown, Meadows, Geelong and Ballarat winner in 59 starts for 10 wins and 19 placings.
Her dam won eight races at Meadows, Sandown., Geelong, Bendigo and Horsham and was placed 23 times.
Third dam Limburg Lass won 28 races and was a multiple Group finalist while running 19 placings.
Fourth dam Shirl's Image won 17 races and was placed nine times.
So what does this tell us?
That this is a sound and prolific female family breeders should be tapping into in order to find themselves with race dogs capable of constantly and consistently earning a return on their investment.
It is a damline that also includes Limburg Gem a finalist in the SA Oaks, New Years Punch a Laurels finalist and dam of recent Group 2 McKenna Memorial winner Bruce Tycoon and Laurels runner-up Sweet Barbados.
To emphasise the success of this line, Arapaho Joe is a month off turning two years of age. He has already raced 14 times for four wins (including a 29.66 at Sandown, and a win at Bendigo) and five placings.
Lisa O'Keeffe bred the litter of six dogs and five bitches and all but one have been named.
The pedigree of Arapaho Joe is interesting in that it links similarly bred Vapour Whirl and Bombastic Shiraz 2x2. This is the cross in recent Group 3 Vince Curry Maiden winner Fire To Rain whose littermates finished second and fourth in that time-honoured series.
Vapour Whirl and Bombastic Shiraz are bred on a reverse cross.
This mating also brings in a very rare duplication of Pop Gun albeit well back in the pedigree.
If I was in the market for some pups, I couldn't get to the connections of Sweet Barbados quick enough to order a couple of dogs and a couple of bitches.
As a Group runner-up, from this most sound and consistent of damlines, and being a sister to a Group 2 winner, she is just about a certainty to produce quality gallopers.
