Kim Blakemore – Young Breeder

Thirty year old Kim Blakemore is taking a break from harness racing for now as she focuses on being a new Mum to her ten week old daughter.

Despite the excitement of having a new baby, her enthusiasm for breeding horses albeit on a small scale, has not diminished.

She’s currently breeding from Love Yourself, a Sir Lincoln mare who won two races for Matt Purvis.

“She was a really nice mare and she never really got an opportunity on the racetrack because she had a few injuries. I always knew she was worthwhile breeding from,” she said.

Kim’s brother Michael leased Screen Idol and bred Love Yourself when Sir Lincoln was having his first season at stud. He worked at Lincoln Farms at the time and as owner John Street wanted everyone on board, he leased Love Yourself.

“My brother moved to Aussie, so Dad ended up with her.”

Love Yourself had minor tendon issues and never reached her potential.

“I ended up getting her out of retirement and had a go with her and that’s how she ended up getting to the races. I had two starts with her up here but I never got her fit enough. I was always watching those legs. I needed to give her to someone who hadn’t seen her go through the issues Dad had with her.”

Matt Purvis who trains at Woodend Beach was chosen to take on Love Yourself.

“Matt really taught her how to be a racehorse, which we couldn’t do up here. She was the only one I had in work and it’s hard to do one on your own. She was a very nice race mare who never really got to show her true ability on the racetrack and she ended up doing her tendon again. She was tough and had speed and I definitely think she would have made her way up the grades if she had the opportunity.”

After she finished racing she was sent to stud.

“It was Matt who suggested Lather Up because he had a couple of foals at the time that he said were really nice types. Being a Woodlands based stallion I wanted to back them as well.”

However that’s not the only reason Lather Up was chosen.

“I’m a very superstitious person. I went back and watched Love Yourself’s last race and it was called the Lather Up – Speed, Pedigree and Looks Fillies and Mares Mobile Pace so it was meant to be. If she’d never broken down in that race we would have never got this foal (Lathered In Love). Debbie Lincoln had been going around and she was by Lather Up out of a Sir Lincoln mare. I looked at that and thought I might be on to something here and have a good little cross.”

Lathered In Love was born at Woodlands on the 15^th December 2023.

“I was working at Woodlands and did two foal watches. My mare was there the first season I was there and was one of the last mares to foal. I’d been working all week and Tony (Grayling) goes ‘you have the night off’ and sure enough she foaled the night I wasn’t there. Tony face-timed me so I watched the whole birth.”

She was put into work as a young horse and qualified for northern trainer Matty White at Pukekohe in July this year and has had four race day starts for a second placing.

“I just wanted to see how this first foal went before potentially putting her in foal again. I’ll definitely go next year with her because we really like this filly.”

Many of Kim’s family are involved in harness racing. Her father Danny works at Woodlands Stud and is the race night starter, while her sister Kelly is 2IC at the stud.

When she left school Kim ventured down to Canterbury where she worked for Benny Hill for three years.

“After that I went to Aussie for six months. When I came home I worked for John Dickie for a bit, then ended up running Micheal House’s stable up here.”

Kim held a Juniors licence between 2016 and 2023 and drove five winners. Her first was on Rummage, trained by Benny Hill at Addington in August 2016 and her last, The Blue Beat for Adrienne Matthews at Alexandra Park in June 2021.

“I wasn’t out there enough to gain more confidence. It’s hard when you just drive here and there. You just don’t get enough experience.”

Kim worked for Matty White for eighteen months prior to having her baby.

“I’m not planning on going back to work anytime soon, but I’ll probably end up back out there because I love it.”

Her partner Zac Trimble works on his father’s dairy farm at Onewhero, south of the Waikato River.

“I sort of dragged him into it (laughter).”

Kim was always keen on breeding, but cost was a factor.

“I have always wanted to, but obviously it’s a very expensive thing to do. With my sister working at Woodlands it made me a bit keener on doing it.”

And she says the experience is even more special when breeding from your own mare.

“I’ve been around Love Yourself my whole life and have gone through the ups and downs. She means so much to me. Just getting one foal out of her has been so enjoyable and to go through all the stages with her and now she’s at the races. It’s a pretty special feeling.”

Despite their new addition neither she or Zac have missed any of Lathered In Love’s four starts.

“We’ve gone to all her races even with our newborn baby. I didn’t want to miss any of it.”

Lathered In Love last raced in the Group One Caduceus Club Fillies Classic at Alexandra Park.

“She went really good and finished midfield. She got a bad draw and we were always hoping for a bit of luck. It was pretty special to have one start as a two year old let alone four and a start in a Group One race. She’s going out for a holiday now because she’s been in since April. She trailed three times and had four races and had a very long prep.”

Kim is rightly proud of breeding a filly good enough to run in a Group One Fillies feature and next season she’s sure a win is on the cards.

“She’s a December foal and she’ll definitely be a way better three year old.”

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink