The stallion farms in the Hunter Valley will be opening their gates to breeders in August this year, however will be replacing the traditional one- or two-day parades, with a six-day open house format between Tuesday 18th August and Sunday 23rd August 2020 .
Each stud will have individual arrangements for their parades, whether by invitational appointment or at fixed times through each day with specific times and details to be published in due course. The change comes as a result of Covid-19 and the continuing requirements for social distancing. All visits will be conducted in strict adherence to any government health and safety restrictions that are in place at the time.
The new arrangement for parade week mimics the very popular open house format that occurs in in Kentucky and Newmarket over their annual broodmare sale periods. This format allows breeders to inspect each stallion more closely and to interact with the studs’ staff on a more intimate basis. Breeders can create their own schedules and will be able to see some of the best bloodstock from Australia and around the world in their own time.
Parade week is an important annual event for the Hunter Valley and sees a large influx of visitors each year. Our leading stallion farms have together shown great initiative by allowing breeders the continued opportunity to visit these wonderful properties and see their impressive array of stallions. We hope that breeders from around the country can safely and responsibly travel to the Hunter in August and enjoy these open days.
Included in the parades this year will be the exciting newcomers Brutal, Cosmic Force and Tassort (Newgate), Calyx, Magna Grecia and Yes Yes Yes (Coolmore), Castelvecchio (Arrowfield), Exceedance (Vinery), Microphone and Too Darn Hot (Darley), Pierata (Aquis), Unite And Conquer (Kingstar) and Zousain (Widden). These as well as established sire stars Exceed And Excel, Fastnet Rock, I Am Invincible, Snitzel, Written Tycoon, Zoustar and their many barn mates will be on display.
A full list of all stallions standing in the Hunter Valley this season can be viewed on our website www.htba.com.au/links. Nowhere else in the world is such a dazzling line-up of elite stallions available for inspection in one geographical region, the Hunter Valley is a true centre of Thoroughbred Breeding Excellence.
