Dayley K with Gavin Chester
The influential Australian jumping stallion, Daley K, died yesterday evening at his home at Blackall Park Stud in Victoria
The stallion by Daktylus (imp) out of Gold Song (imp) by Goldstern was the first Australian bred foal by Holger and Melanie Schmorl of Kinnordy Stud in Queensland. Born in 1984, Kinnordy Stud sold Daley K when he was three and he was later sold to Denis Crane of Blackall Park Stud. Denis campaigned him with considerable success in showjumping and his progeny have gone on to be influential at the highest levels of Australian showjumping despite the fact that he was rejected by the licensing panel of the AWHA.
His most well known showjumping son is Warlord II who represented Australia at the World Cup Jumping Final in Las Vegas in 2007, ridden by Gavin Chester but his bloodline can be found in many horses competing at World Cup level in showjumping in Australia. Examples are his sons, Nero GHP ridden by Olivia Hamood, SL Limerick ridden by Tom McDermott and Cool K ridden by Jamie Grant and two of his granddaughters are Penrose ridden by Ally Lamb, and Caltango ridden by Tim Clarke. In September 2008 a son of Daley K, Warwind became the first Warmblood winner of the prestigious Garryown trophy at the Royal Melbourne Show. He also sired Splash II, a top level dressage horse ridden and trained by Viv Axton.
Stuart Tinney and Pluto Mio
More recently one of his sons, Pluto Mio has made his mark in top level eventing. Owned by John and Jane Pittard, Pluto Mio had a late start in competition but he quickly rose through the grades and is now competed by Olympic gold medallist Stuart Tinney. In December Pluto Mio won the CCI*** class at Lakes and Craters and is one of Stuart’s hopes for London 2012
For Denis and all at Blackall Park Stud, New Year’s Day was a sad one when Daley K died suddenly at home. Denis had fed him and left him briefly; when he returned only 15 minutes later, the great stallion was dead. On the Blackall Park website, Denis has put a tribute to his equine friend and influential stallion “Daley K suffered a heart attack at 6.pm this evening (1/01/2012) and died almost instantly. He would have been 28 years old on the 15th of January. He had been in great spirits, and today was as feisty as ever when I led him from his paddock to his stable. He will be sadly missed not only by all of us here at Blackall Park, but also by many in the equestrian community. He leaves a legacy of performance horses that excelled in all disciplines, particularly showjumping. RIP old friend. You will live on in our hearts forever”
Daley K with Denis Crane
