Patience Rewarded as Cummings Strike Again with $175,000 Canterbury Colt

Patience, perspective and a pedigree years in the making were all on show at Canterbury Agricultural Park last Wednesday.

For Canterbury breeders Martin and Shirley Cummings, the Christchurch NZB Standardbred National Yearling Sale has delivered its share of highs and hard lessons.

There have been the encouraging results, the quieter years, and the occasions where you load up and head home wondering why you put yourself through it.

This time, the drive home felt very different.

Lot 181, their colt by Downbytheseaside out of Sugar Loaf, sold for $175,000 to Kentuckiana Lodge after a strong and sustained bidding duel. Prepared and presented by Ashleigh Keast and the team at Renwick Farms, the colt became the Cummings’ second major six figure result in consecutive seasons.

For a couple who openly admit they set conservative reserves simply to ensure they sell, it was a result that comfortably exceeded expectations.

“Yes, we were very nervous on what we were going to get. Didn’t expect it to be like the colt of last year. Because that was a fairy tale, and we nearly did the same thing. But we were very surprised.”

The reference to last year is telling. In 2024, the Cummings sold an Always B Miki colt out of Lovetodream for $190,000, smashing through a ceiling they had not cracked since 2019. Until then, their best recent return had been the $55,000 received for Winelight in 2023.

At the time, that looked a fair result.

With hindsight, it reads very differently.

Winelight has since won the Listed 2YO NZB Harness Million and placed at Group One level against the very best fillies of her crop at two and three. She has done her part to elevate the page and underline the depth of the family.

The 2025 colt is a full brother to Winelight, though in type he presents differently.

“We thought he was a good colt, he is a good colt. He’s a completely different build. He’s a nuggetty chunk to be honest. But some people like that. Some people feel he’ll go early because he’s nearly there, put it that way. He’s a nice natured horse.”

Leading into the sale, feedback had been encouraging without being overwhelming.

“Ashley, she’s a great girl, rang us every time somebody came and did a private viewing and there were three or four of those. So there had been a lot of attention. Not as much as the colt last year, but very close to it mostly.”

As anyone who frequents the sales knows, inspections do not always translate into bids. Interest can cool quickly once the auctioneer finds his rhythm.

From his position just behind the main seating, Martin felt the nerves as the bidding opened and briefly stalled.

“It did hit a flat spot. I thought, ‘God,’ and then it just went. Then there were three serious bidders for it, and then two serious bidders.”

Momentum built. The increments lifted to $5,000 rises. Suddenly the number on the board was climbing with real purpose.

“Oh, I was ecstatic. The reserve was, in both cases in the last two years, just under six figures. We go there to sell. We don’t want to bring them home. We don’t want to be a vendor who’s known to cart horses back. So we’re genuine sellers.

“We’re a bad judge in setting the prices. But we were over the moon. It was not expected by any stretch of the imagination.”

There is a refreshing honesty in that approach. In an environment where some vendors aim high and risk taking horses home, the Cummings’ philosophy has always been grounded. Set a sensible reserve, trust the market, and be prepared to move forward.

That mindset has been forged over years of participation.

“Early on, when we were doing them ourselves, you’d cop the bath occasionally and wonder why you do it. But that’s the game. It ebbs and flows.”

Crucially, the colt has gone to a stable they know and respect.

“We’ve known Chrissie and the Dalgety family for a very long time, so great it’s gone there. They do a great job, and Cran’s had a lot of success in the last few years buying high end valued stock. Hopefully there’s another one.”

At the heart of the story sits Sue Dreamer, the six win, Group Three placed daughter of Dream Away who laid the foundation for the Cummings breeding programme. Her influence continues to ripple through the property.

Through her daughter Sugar Loaf, the line has gained real traction.

A Cup Day maiden winner herself, Sugar Loaf has developed into a mare of presence and reliability, both physically and as a producer.

“She’s beautiful. She holds her condition. You look at her and think, ‘Why did we retire her early?’ She’s a stunning looking horse and she’s dappled eleven months of the year, probably twelve, and lovely nature. The grandkids just treat her like a pony really.”

Temperament has always mattered to the Cummings.

“She’s just easy to have around. That counts for a lot.”

The mare currently has a foal at foot and is back in foal to Downbytheseaside, reinforcing the cross that has already delivered.

“She’s got a foal at the moment, and she’s in foal again to Downbytheseaside. I should have known that straight away, shouldn’t I?”

Not every chapter in the story has been smooth.

In 2024, the Cummings took two fillies through the ring. One of them, an Always B Miki half sister to Winelight named Valoris, failed to attract a bid.

“In hindsight we’re very pleased we brought her home. She was a good looking girl then. A few sales back they didn’t appreciate the sire.”

Rather than force the issue, they regrouped.

Now trained by Robert and Jenna Dunn, Valoris has already signalled her promise, finishing runner up on debut after qualifying impressively.

“She’s quite a big girl so Robert gave it time. She’s had a lot of spells, been in our front paddock more often than we normally have horses.

“It was all set to go back in winter and Shirley said, ‘That horse is too young for you to come pick it up, John.’ So John arrived the next day to pick it up, he’s always liked her, and then Shirley woke up and didn’t sleep that night. She rang him the next morning and said, ‘Bring that horse back, I don’t feel comfortable about it. We aren’t in any sales series, so we don’t need to push her.’

“So she came back in the paddock for another three months. She’s had a very soft life up to now. That was Shirley not wanting to push.”

The instinct to wait, to trust the horse rather than the calendar, has become a quiet strength of the operation.

Preparation has evolved too.

For many years, the Cummings handled everything themselves. Yearlings were educated and readied at home. That changed after Shirley suffered a stroke a couple of years ago.

“Shirley had a stroke and we used to do them all ourselves and play the hero and do everything. Then we asked Ashley whether she’d take the horse like Baxter we called him, and she said yes. Basically we’ve booked us in. We aren’t shifting.

“They’re great girls. They do a marvellous job. They’d sleep with them if they had to. We thank them greatly. We get on very well, we talk about things, exchange things. It’s really good.”

That partnership with Renwick Farms has now produced consecutive standout results, built on horses raised in their own paddocks and anchored by a family that continues to deliver.

From modest expectations and sub six figure reserves, to $190,000 and $175,000 returns in successive years, it is the sort of momentum most breeders dream about.

The reaction, however, remains simple and grounded.

“We’re over the moon.”

After years of graft, patience and perspective, it is hard to think of a more fitting summary.