By Gary King
Ed Harper has made significant strides at Whitsbury Manor Stud over the last few years. The farm boasts an impressive stallion roster, including Showcasing (GB), and is coming off a highly successful sales season. TDN's Gary King sat down with Ed for a quick debrief.
GK: Everything seems to be on an upward curve at Whitsbury Manor. It must be an exciting time to be at the helm.
EH: Yes, it's exciting, but I'm not really one to stop and think. We want to keep raising the bar in the quality of stallions we stand and drafts of horses we sell. We just had our best-ever foal sales which is pleasing, but I'll be determined to beat it again next year.
GK: You've established an impressive stallion roster (Adaay {Ire}, Due Diligence, Showcasing, Swiss Spirit {GB}). Have you plans to increase this number over the coming years?
EH: We have had five stallions once before, and we are always on the lookout. I will genuinely only ever stand a new stallion that I'm excited by. I would rather say no to horses that just miss, than spend four years boring myself to death about a horse I'm not passionate about.
GK: Showcasing's progeny were the talk of the town at Tattersalls. You must be expecting another big year for him?
EH: It's hard to fully explain to people the pitfalls that a stallion like Showcasing had to cross to get to where he is. He has pretty much done it through raw ability. The most exciting thing for me is that we are now in a far better position to support our new stallions. We have been/will be able to give Adaay twice the support that we ever gave Showcasing.
GK: The Due Diligence weanlings were also very well received. What attracted you to standing this particular son of War Front?
EH: Have you watched his race video on our website? His 3-year-old performance at Ascot in the [G1] Diamond Jubilee would have guaranteed him a [G1] Commonwealth Cup if it had existed. Imagine what fee he would have stood for if he was a Commonwealth Cup-winning son of War Front. Of course, we would not have been able to afford him (so lucky for us it didn't exist.) A 3-year-old Timeform rating of 120 is a benchmark of excellence, so he was a no-brainer for me.
GK: Due Diligence was actually named a 'TDN Rising Star' after breaking his maiden for Chad Brown at Saratoga by eight lengths on Aug. 12, 2013. That was some performance?
EH: It's certainly worth watching. He is slow out of the gate, green getting into stride, bustled along round the outside, and then he just leaves the field for dead. I managed to find a replay of the race before we bought him. I made my mind up right then.
GK: Here's the replay. It's well worth watching again.
GK: What do you enjoy most about running a multi-faceted operation like Whitsbury?
EH: It's unique. Where else can you find a commercial stallion stud, intensive arable farm, and Classic-winning training stables and gallops all in a ring fence? I very much feel the responsibility of having taken it on from my father. It has been his life's work.
GK: And what are the greatest challenges?
EH: The demise of the British small breeder is the greatest challenge. In Ireland it seems as though 90% of breeders manage to pass on their passion to the next generation. In England, 90% manage to warn their children away from it. It's very sad, a cultural phenomenon that is not easily combatted. I try and explain to graduates that a gambler's life in the breeding fields is more interesting than a safe life at a desk, but English parents don't seem to agree.
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