Allen Harper

THERE are many, many ways to breed a successful greyhound.

Just take a close look at the diverse pedigrees of the winners at any racetrack throughout the country, or the world for that matter.

Generally there are patterns to be seen.

Once a winner is a high class winner it can become very apparent to those who ponder pedigrees just what went to making that good greyhound, just what he or she is.

But how often do we look at pedigrees of those greyhounds who are not so good?

Sometimes there can be much more to be learned from doing that than agreeing with a top class pedigree.

Allen Harper and his litter brother Allen Lawson (Over Flo-Kazar Bale) are flag bearers for the Wheeler kennel in recent times. The former recently won the Peter Mosman Classic at Wentworth Park running a scorching 29.58 to boot.

His brother Allen Lawson has been second in a Traralgon Cup and a finalist in both The Launching Pad and The Dawson.

Dam Kazar Bale has produced two previous litters, one to Irish sprinter Valentia Citrate and the other to top sire, Melbourne Cup and Maturity winner Hallucinate.

The Valentia Citrate litter was moderate to say the least. Gotham Bale, from this litter, won seven of 90 starts but was a winner at The Meadows.

The Hallucinate litter produced Walter Bale the SA Derby winner and a very good city performer.

Walter Bale was the obvious standout of the Hallucinate litter, although Kora Bale won 16 races and was a Meadows and Angle Park winner.

The rest moderate to say the least.

But when Kazar Bale was mated to Over Flo she has produced two Group performers and a couple of other gallopers who have shown plenty of ability with city performances far ahead of the majority of the litter by Valentia Citrate and Hallucinate.

So what was the difference?

Why did Kazar Bale produce to Over Flo and not as well to champion race dog and sire Hallucinate, or to star Irish sprinter Valentia Citrate?

Over Flo was a very, very good sprinter, but he was no Hallucinate.

So it must have been in the pedigree the Wheelers designed to produce Allen Lawson and Allen Harper etc.

The intensity of linebreeding the mating of Over Flo-Kazar Bale contains is immense, far more than anything produced by the matings to Hallucinate or Valentia Citrate.

First, and foremost it brings in a 3x4 duplication via two daughters to that great speed influence Malawi's Prince. He comes along the alternate sex path on both sides of the mating.

The alternate sex path for a male runs down to Kazar Bale, up to Go Wild Teddy, down to Web Of Silence and up to Malawi's Prince. For a female, it runs up to Over Flo, down to Flo Jo Tears and up to Malawi's Prince etc etc.

Many great greyhounds are bred along this type of line breeding to common and dominant, or similarly bred ancestors.

But the pedigree of Allen Harper does not only rely on just this.

Grove Whisper is duplicated and sex balanced 5x4 via his son Captain Standby and daughter Luana Bale. Paul Wheeler in recent times has often duplicated Grove Whisper with success.

It is also interesting that Over Flo carries in his pedigree two crosses of Chariot Supreme both coming through daughters. Kazar Bale brings in a cross of Shining Chariot significantly a SON of Chariot Supreme.

The mating also provides three crosses of Bowetzel and one of his half sister Shining Light.

There are other influences that provide further intensity within this mating but these come further back within the pedigree.

The Wheeler family is the flag bearer for outcross matings around the world. The world of greyhound racing, specially in Australia, certainly needs outcross influences within its pedigrees.

But line breeding will always win out in the end. It is the narrowing-down of the gene pool and if dominant ancestors, proven they can upgrade a pedigree for racetrack success, are used then success can often be assured.

The litter that contains Allen Harper and Allen Lawson is just one such example.

Another is the litter that produced Tonneli Bale (Collision-Ambrosia Bale).

Tonneli Bale is a multiple Group winner of the Ladies Bracelet and WA Oaks. She has been a finalist in a number of Group races and unlucky in most.

I have noticed in recent times that Paul Wheeler and his family are having great success with broodbitches that are in-bred along the tail female line to their own famous broodbitch family.

Ambrosia Bale (Ashom Bale-Daishi Bale) the dam of Group performers Tonneli Bale, Martili Bale and Stefan Bale, traces directly to the half sisters Dynagold (Benjamin John-Dynabolt) and Emiline Bale (The Smoother-Dynabolt).

Dynagold is the fourth dam of Ashom Bale. Emiline Bale is the fourth dam of Daishi Bale.

Take a very close look at Benden Flex, the dam of champion Dyna Lachlan. She too is bred along a similar intensity along the tail female line of her pedigree to the Wheeler foundation damline.

Ambrosia Bale, a very good race bitch who won in 30.18 around Albion Park, is a half sister to Wheeler's Turanza Bale.

She is also heavily line bred to the litter brothers Walkabout Sid (via his son head Honcho) and West Cape via a daughter. Both are SONS of Brother Fox and appear in the pedigree of Ambrosia Bale through its middle.

Tonneli Bale and her littermates are by Collision who is the greatest source of balance for sons of Brother Fox.

Collision has as his second dam the famous broodbitch Follow Through a DAUGHTER of Brother Fox. It is the only instance of Brother Fox in the pedigree of Collision.

He was the perfect balance for Ambrosia Bale.

Ambrosia Bale has had two other litters, to Big Daddy Cool and Stryker's Ahadow.

Big Daddy Cool has only two SON strains of Brother Fox in his pedigree via his sire Just The Best.

Stryker's Shadow has no Brother Fox but he carries another son of Brother Fox's sire Little Blade - again no balance.

The Big Daddy Cool and Stryker's Shadow litters from Ambrosia Bale could hardly compare to her mating to Collision.

I do hope Paul Wheeler has used Ambrosia Bale to Surf Lorian.

It would duplicate West Cape in a very powerful position in the pedigree of the resultant offspring.

Another option for Ambrosia Bale would be Collision's champion son Smooth Fancy.

Having a great broodbitch does not necessarily guarantee success unless the mating is designed to suit.