Private Thoughts wrote:So with their thoughts being that, then should they not be considered as racist, nationalist, etc? Aren't they being selfish for keeping all those animals on such a small island and with such a small racing audience. And gosh, where are they going to put all the foals produced every year? (Sarcasm)
They are, first of all, a commercial breeder. That is exactly the point that stipulates Shadai's 'modus operandi.' Or more precisely, they cannot afford to be nationalistic: they, first and foremost, have to sell their foals and yearling to any customer, home or abroad. That is the most important thing for any commercial breeder.
For the purpose, they have to prove excellence of their horses by winning races at all levels from maidens to G1s, which is not always that easy. It is this sense of crisis that I acknowledge every time I read what their representatives speak to the racing media, as opposed to complacency of maintaining the status quo of the top breeder in Japan.
Actually they've lived through a hell of surviving from one day to the next in the days of their father, and the difficulty of selling horses constantly to customers sinks deep in their mind, which is their driving force, I suppose.
Based on this commercial viewpoint, if they regard sending salt to someone abroad as profitable in the long run, they will just do that.
If selling the latest US stealth jet fighters to Japans serves the interests of the US national security best, America would do that. In reality, they keep their best technology at bay, and we accept their second bests, just as Sunday Silence was sold to us. Simple as that. No egotism or hostility, just a business sense that I can't blame.
Having said that, if they'll try to disguise quality at their Select Sale, their customers will look the other way. So there is always a risk of losing some of their bests to their competitors, which is the case with any sale.
For example, Admire Moon, bred at Northern Farm, was knocked down to a Japanese customer in the Select Sale 2003, and the colt won 7 G1s (two at Hong Kong, one at Dubai), and in his retirement the buyer allowed End Sweep's son out of a Sunday Silence mare to stand at Darley, which seemed to be a huge loss to Shadai back then. It is said that there was a similar risk with Deep Impact for Shadai.
In a similar context, they also have to import good mares for their Sunday Silence stallions; most of them are already SS's daughters, unavailable to his sons, while they are well aware of the risk of over-dominance of SS blood. So they keep importing new stallions mainly from Europe (turf sires) as a counterbalance:
Imported Stallions at Shadai since 2009
2009
Chichicastenango (died in 2012)
2011
Harbinger
2012
Workforce
2013
Turtle Bowl
2014
Novellist
(*) What I wrote here is just my personal opinion, not Shadai's, of course.
It was such a honour, but I politely declined. Also, the Godolphin wanted to have a look at him about 10 days before the Arc, and the Three Chimneys contacted us to show their interest in him....But, well, I want him to stand at Shadai. No option to let him stand abroad, never ever.'
