Boutique Canterbury breeders in the Cash

Canterbury breeders Mike Stevens and Robert Anderson showed astute judgement when they outlaid $8,000 for the broodmare Karen Donna and her daughter Pistol Packing Mama – both in foal to Art Major – at a Karaka mixed sale in 2013.

Karen Donna, an unraced daughter of the 1996 NZ 2YO Filly of the Year Megaera, had already left five winners headed up by the multiple Group-winning pacers Katy Perry and Cash N Flow prior to the sale.

The In The Pocket mare then produced three more winners for her new owners in Pitch Perfect, a 1:49.8 Group winner at Menangle, The Real Crunch, a three-year-old winner at Invercargill in April, and Betterthankaty, who won three races at Auckland.

“Betterthankaty was a beautiful pacer who had great manners. She qualified for the Jewels Final at Addington and we retired her after that,” Anderson said.
“She probably would have won another couple, but we thought she had more value as a broodmare.”

That decision proved a masterstroke as Betterthankaty’s first foal, Betterthancash, a $62,500 purchase at the NZB National Yearling Sale at Christchurch in 2022, has emerged as a pacer of real quality.

The Art Major gelding reeled off seven wins including the Listed $107,000 Country Championship Final at Addington, the Winton Cup and the Northern Southland Autumn Cup at Ascot Park.

Exported to Australia in June, Betterthancash endured a disappointing Queensland Constellations carnival raid but bounced back in style with a barnstorming Menangle win last Saturday, taking a fresh lifetime mark of 1:50.9.

Betterthankaty’s next two foals, Cash Is King (by Captain Crunch) and Skinny Dippin (by Downbytheseaside), sold for $45,000 and $17,000 respectively at the Christchurch sale but are yet to open their winning accounts.

“Her Art Major yearling colt hasn’t been broken in yet. We didn’t put him in the sale as he had a bit of an offset knee, so we thought we would get him going ourselves,” Anderson said.

The weanling colt by Sweet Lou has been earmarked for the Christchurch sale next year.

“Betterthankaty has a positive to Always B Miki,” Anderson stated.
“We normally breed eight to 10 foals a year, but we bred only four last year and two of them are in foal to Miki.”

While Karen Donna sadly died 12 months ago, Pistol Packing Mama, now rising 20, remains an active member of the Stevens-Anderson broodmare band.

The daughter of Presidential Ball has left six winners, with five inside 2:00 and three earning more than $100,000.

“The first foal we bred from her was Major Mama, who we put through the sales and she won the Group 1 Western Australian Oaks,” Robert said.

Major Mama won nine races and $163,911. Pistol Packing Mama also produced the Kurow Cup winner Bite The Bullet, the Albion Park victor Rocknroll Mama and the unraced A Rocknroll Dance mare Gleniss Mama, dam of the recent Group 1 $150,000 QBred Triad Final winner Ride The Highs.

Besides Betterthankaty and Pistol Packing Mama, the partners are breeding from another daughter of Karen Donna named Major Donna.

“We sold a Captain Crunch filly out of her at last year’s sale to clients of Kirstin Green,” Anderson said.

“It’s a great family. We’ve been pretty lucky over the years.”