Written by Lydia Symonds
Cover image courtesy of Darren Tindale
Dual Group 1 winner Snapdancer (Choisir) has been retired and will be offered at either next year’s Inglis Chairman’s Sale in Sydney or the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale on the Gold Coast.
Trained throughout by Ciaron Maher and David Eustace, Snapdancer ran consistently well for her whole career, but 2022 has seen her really furnish into a top-class performer, kicking off her campaign with a win in the Magic Millions Fillies and Mares H., before backing up that performance in the G3 Triscay S.
The mare notched her first Group 1 level win in May when she led all the way to take out the Robert Sangster S. at Morphettville. After being touched off by Startantes (Star Turn) in the G1 Tattersall’s Tiara at her next start, Snapdancer added her second elite-level victory to her CV in the G1 Memsie S. at Caulfield.
Following those brilliant performances, the mare was locked in to represent Inglis in The Everest but was forced to forgo a start in the $15 million race after sustaining an injury, which ultimately put paid to her career as a racehorse.
Managing part-owner Brad Spicer told TDN AusNZ on Wednesday that while there was a twinge of disappointment the mare will never be seen on the racetrack, he was keen to focus on the mare's brilliant career.
“This year has been an amazing year for the mare when you look back at it. Obviously, she kicked it off with the Magic Millions and then won the Sangster, topped off with the Memsie and you just have to go, “Wow”.
“This year has been an amazing year for the mare (Snapdancer) when you look back at it. Obviously, she kicked it off with the Magic Millions and then won the (G1 Robert) Sangster (S.), topped off with the (G1) Memsie (S.) and you just have to go, “Wow”.” - Brad Spicer
"If we think back to this time last year, we would have been happy to finish top three in the Magic Millions again, so to have such a wonderful 12 months out of the mare has certainly been an amazing ride.”
Should the ownership group opt to sell her at the Inglis Chairman’s Sale it will be the second time she will have been offered at the auction having been snapped up by Sheamus Mills Bloodstock (FBAA) for $60,000 at the 2017 edition of the sale.
From there, she was then purchased by Spicer Thoroughbreds for $180,000 from the Sledmere Stud draft at the 2018 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale. Spicer said it took connections a little while to work out the best trip for the mare having purchased her as a yearling with the Oaks in mind.
Snapdancer as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“She is such a powerful mare and we took a while to understand her best distance. At first, we thought she was a mile or 2000-metre horse and may have stretched out a bit further,” he said.
“But as time went on and with the jockey’s feedback and Ciaron and Dave’s feedback we thought we would race her nice and fresh and keep her to the shorter trips, which was the making of her. We wish we would have done that from day dot, but you’ve got to go through it.
“She is out of a Galileo mare and all her family got a trip, so you’re thinking she is going to get a trip. When we looked at her as a yearling, we thought she would be an Oaks style of horse, but she just kept putting on muscle and getting stronger and stronger.
Brad Spicer | Image courtesy of Bronwen Healy
“By the time she furnished she looked like a big powerful sprinter and that made us change tact and she has just got better as they’ve gotten older.”
Talks between Spicer and the two sales houses’ are already underway with both Magic Millions and Inglis vying for the right to sell the mare next year, but Spicer said it will be a collective decision between the whole ownership group and not one they will rush into.
“I have spoken to Magic Millions and Inglis and I am going to leave it up to the group of owners and we are going to put everything on the table and then pick,” he explained.
Connections of Snapdacer after winning the G1 Memsie S. | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
“It is going to come down to whether they want a trip to Sydney at Easter for the Chairman’s Sale or do they want to get out of the Melbourne weather in June and go to the Gold Coast. I don’t think it matters which sale she goes to, she's going to get found either way.”
As for a personal highlight, Spicer said her performance in the G1 Memsie S. at Caulfield in August will live long in the memory, especially given the high-class field she beat, which included Group 1 winners I’m Thunderstruck (NZ) (Shocking), Cascadian (GB) (New Approach {Ire}), Western Empire (NZ) (Iffraaj {GB}), Alligator Blood (All Too Hard), Callsign Mav (NZ) (Atlante), Duais (Shamus Award) and Tofane (NZ) (Ocean Park {NZ}).
“I think the highlight for me personally was the Memsie win. It was my birthday that day and it was an unbelievable feeling and I think we had 100 people in the owner’s room at Caulfield that day. It was just a terrific day,” he said. “She just got it right that day and Ethan (Brown, jockey) gave her a brilliant ride and she was actually pretty dominant in the end. She beat high-class horses in I’m Thunderstruck and Cascadian as well, so it was really special. For a mare to beat the boys at weight for age, it really ticks a box.”
“I think the highlight for me personally was the Memsie win. She (Snapdancer) beat high-class horses in I’m Thunderstruck and Cascadian as well, so it was really special. For a mare to beat the boys at weight for age, it really ticks a box.” - Brad Spicer
The mare retires the winner of seven of her 20 starts, which saw her accrue $2,022,570.
