Despite suffering the cruel fate of losing two of Ontario’s top stallions seven weeks apart last fall, there is considerable enthusiasm in John Carey’s voice about the prospects for the two new thoroughbred stallions standing at his T.C. Westmeath Stud Farm in Mulmur, ON.
Carey
(shown with Pink Lloyd's full-sister Just Pinky in 2021 / Dave Landry photo) said he is excited most about
Harlocap (Justify-Mezinka by Bodemeister) and
Azul Coast (Super Saver-Sky Treasure by Sky Mesa), “bringing new blood to Ontario.”
They are two of nine new thoroughbred stallions standing in Ontario in 2025.
Harlocap is the first son of Justify standing in Canada.
“It’s nice to be able to bring in a horse like Harlocap,” Carey said. “He has so much staying power on the top and bottom… What I like about him is his dam is a half-sister to a top-class stallion, Pioneerof the Nile, the sire of American Pharoah, etcetera.
“He’s got a real international pedigree, and, on top of all that, when he was prepping for his 2-year-old in training sales, he showed brilliant speed.”
Carey said Azul Coast gives breeders access to the first son of Super Saver standing in Canada.
“It's somewhat new blood,” Carey said. “But what I liked about this horse is his broad-spectrum pedigree… It goes right back to Bold Ruckus on the bottom line. Bold Ruckus, I would have to say he was the best sprint sire that ever stood in Ontario. [Azul Coast] is out of a mare which earned half-a-million [dollars] and her top line is Sky Mesa, Pulpit, A.P. Indy. Then, on the bottom, before you get to Bold Ruckus, you have Smart Strike… What we have to prove now is Super Saver as a sire of sires.”
It's all a big change at T.C. Westmeath Stud. Last fall, both Souper Speedy and Old Forester died seven weeks apart.
The day Souper Speedy died in a freak paddock accident in October, Carey was originally scheduled to meet with Harlocap’s connections for the first time to try to strike a deal to bring the stallion to the farm.
“[Souper Speedy] was just playing in the paddock, and next thing, all of a sudden, he went down,” Carey said. “Just the way he jumped in the air and landed on the ground the impact shattered his humerus.”
Souper Speedy was Canada’s leading sire by progeny earnings when he died. He was 15.
A little more than a month later, Old Forester died at age 23. He was the top sire in Canada by progeny earnings five times (2010-12, 2015 and 2017). Lifetime, his offspring have earned over $35 million.
“[Old Forester] did have somewhat a heart condition, and it just went with his age,” Carey said. “That morning, he had more life in him than I anticipated… he was just jumping and bouncing. And I said, ‘There's lots of life in you, buddy.’ And that evening, just after six o'clock, he had a massive heart attack right in front of us… he was gone two minutes after.
“That was very, very tough. It was worse than Souper Speedy, in a sense, because I had [Old Forester] for 18 years.”
Carey said he was touched by how many people called to offer condolences – particularly from the United States.
“I thought, ‘Holy smokes.' I didn't realize he was that popular down there, but he was a popular racehorse because of the way he ran. He was one of the horses that if there was a wall of horses there, he'd either have to hit the fence or he would have to run into the back end of the horses. He was bound and determined he was going to get through those horses. He was a great talent that way, and he never quit. He ran 22 times, 19 times in the money and he had six wins, 11 seconds and two thirds.”
Old Forester’s most famous son, eight-time Sovereign Award winner and 2017 Canadian Horse of the Year Pink Lloyd, was foaled on Carey’s farm, “30 feet from where I’m talking to you now,” he said.
Now Harlocap and Azul Coast are giving the Carey family a fresh start in the stallion game. Both stallions have already proven to be relatively easy with which to work.
“Azul Coast is absolutely a real gentleman, great to be around,” Carey said. He's full of spirit, and the other guy never has given me an ounce of trouble. They're both very nice horses to be around.”
It will be several years before we know the impact of Harlocap and Azul Coast on Canadian breeding, but we’ll start to get an indication about Carey’s other stallion,
Bond Street, this year. His first crop is now 2.
The other new stallions to Ontario this year are:
- Astronaut (Quality Road-Armanda (GER) by Acatenago (GER)) – standing at Colebrook Farms
- Eskiminzin (Cold Harbor-Ms. Forum by Open Forum) – standing at Jecara Farms
- Ghostzapper (Awesome Again-Baby Zip by Relaunch) – standing at Adena Springs North
- Lost Ark (Violence-Marion Ravenwood by A.P. Indy) – standing at Northern Dawn Stables
- Model S (Mr. Scotty-Long and Leggy by Notebook) – standing at Select Stud Farm
- Perfect Speighty (Speightstown-Perfect Shirl by Perfect Soul) – standing at Colebrook Farms
- Weyburn (Pioneerof the Nile-Sunday Affair by A.P. Indy) – standing at Adena Springs North
Ghostzapper, the sire of Breeders’ Cup champion Moira, has moved to Ontario from Kentucky at the request of Adena Springs North owner Frank Stronach. It will, reportedly, be the final season at stud for 25-year-old Ghostzapper, whose progeny have exceeded $130 million in collection earnings lifetime.
The nine new studs means there are now 45 registered thoroughbred stallions standing in Ontario.
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