What's in a name?
Ever wanted to know how our owners derived the weird, wonderful, wacky and witty names for their horses? Well wonder no more...
Anaconda (Anabaa ex Porretta)
Named after the largest and strongest snake in the world. Anaconda also includes part of the sire's name.
Anton Chigurh (Oasis Dream ex Barathiki)
Anton Chigurh is a character from No Country for Old Men which was a 2007 American crime thriller directed by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, and starring Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, and Josh Brolin. The film was adapted from the Cormac McCarthy novel of the same name. The character was a sociopathic assassin and Javier Bardem won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Chigurh.
Ballista (Majestic Missile ex Ancient Secret)
In reference to both the sire and dam, a Ballista was an ancient missile launcher developed by the Ancient Greeks, particularly effective over shorter distances and a predecessor to the catapult.
Barolo Top (Amadeus Wolf ex Princess Mood)
Named after part owner Jonathan Woodgate's unusual method of drinking red wine. While enjoying a rather expensive bottle of Italian red called Barolo, Jonathan requested the waiter to add coca cola to his glass. The waiter was not impressed and hence the name 'Barolo Top'. Apparently this is how the Spanish like to drink their red wine, a taste that Jonathan developed when visiting the country.
Basantee (Lucky Story ex Soft Touch)
Basantee is partly owned by a few guys whose family are from India who named Basantee after the 2006 Indian drama film Rang De Basanti, which features a famous horse race.
Bear Behind (Kodiac ex Gerobies Girl)
The Kodiak brown bear (or Alaskan grizzly bear) is the largest subspecies of brown bear, hence we get "Bear" from the sire Kodiac. The addition of the "Behind" is just a bit of fun.
Canadian Red (Sleeping Indian ex Pontressina)
Canadian Red is from St Jovite which is a place in Quebec, Canada where there are towering red mountains. The colt is a reddish coloured bay horse. So Hence Canadian Red. The red can also be linked to his sire Sleeping Indian e.g red indians and the fact that the Canadian flag is also red. As you can see lots of links to Canada and the colour red!
Cool Hand Luke (Le Vie Dei Colori ex Thelma Louise)
Luke, the son of owner Phil Mousley, apparently thinks of himself as being a bit of a cool dude, although his Mom and Dad beg to differ! The film by the same name is also a favourite of Phil's, in which Luke (Paul Newman) wins a poker game on a bluff with a worthless hand. Luke comments that "sometimes nothing can be a real cool hand" and is later given the nickname "Cool Hand Luke".
Decision By One (Bahamian Bounty ex Intellibet One)
Tom rang Mike Jones, part owner in the horse, telling him "Look, I'm still waiting to give your horse a name, I want to enter it for Chester today! I need a decision by one o'clock!" Mike rang fellow partner in the horse, Michael Owen, relaying the urgent request to which Michael replied, "well just call it that; Decision By One!"
Gin Twist (Invincible Spirit ex Winding)
Taken from the breeding, Gin being a spirit and Twist being a synonym for Winding.
Hung Parliament (Numerous ex Sensational Mover)
No connection to the breeding, and fairly obvious what is referenced here, but it should be noted that the horse was named prior to the 2010 general election! Top tipping by the Tipperary Partners.
Jonny Mudball (Oasis Dream ex Waypoint)
Jonny Mudball was owner Jonathan Woodgate's nickname in his football playing school days.
Juno The Muffinman (Holy Roman Emperor ex Mackenzie's Friend)
Juno was an ancient Roman goddess, the protector and special counselor of the state. She is a daughter of Saturn and sister (but also the wife) of the chief god Jupiter and the mother of Mars and Vulcan. Juno also looked after the women of Rome, hence the link to the sire Holy Roman Emperor. "The Muffinman" comes from the children's nursery rhyme "Do you know the Muffinman?", linked by the fact that "Juno" sounds like "Do you know"!
Kenny Powers (Vital Equine ex Alexander Ballet)
Kenny Powers is the fictional character from the HBO television series Eastbound and Down, played by American actor Danny McBride.
Marford Missile (Majestic Missile ex Khawafi)
Named by Nick Hughes and Dylan Jenkins, two of the partners in the MHS 4x10 Partnership, Marford is a village near Wrexham where Nick and Dylan grew up together.
Northern Star (Montjeu ex Slow Sand)
There are a number of things that led to owner David Ward naming his filly Northern Star. When he looked at her pedigree she had the great sire Northern Dancer on both sides of her parentage. At this time he was also reading a book about the sire and he hoped that his talent would shine through her. The star part was after the star shape on her head.
Premier Steps (Footstepsinthesand ex Primissima)
Premier Steps is an amalgamation of the sire and dam's names namely Footstepsinthesand & Primissima hence "Steps" & "Premier". It also became apt as this was part owner, David Lowe's first venture into sole ownership with his name actually appearing as an owner along with his partners Laurence, Nick and Caroline.
Riczar (Intikhab ex Tharwa)
Owned by Richard Woods, Riczar is named after Richard's son Rickie and daughter Zara.
Roman Seal (Holy Roman Emperor ex Gilded Vanity)
The "Roman" comes from the sire Holy Roman Emperor and can also be linked to the local city of Chester which was a famous Roman town. The "Seal" comes from Chester City Football Club whose nick name was The Seals. Michael Owen's father used to play for Chester FC. A Roman Seal is also a wax stamp, which are often gilded, a reference to the Dam.
Stripped Bear (Kodiac ex Triple Zero)
This filly is named along the same lines as our 2009 colt, Bear Behind. Her sire Kodiac brings in the bear element from the Alaskan Kodiak bear and the partnership found it rather funny to add the stripped part.
Switcher (Whipper ex Bahamamia)
Switcher is is a synonym for Whipper. A whipper or switcher: is a person who administers punishment by wielding a switch or whip.
Viola D'Amour (Teofilo ex Dame's Violet)
The father of owner Laurence Bellman is now in his 90s and was a professional violist and one of the best in the country in the fifties and sixties. Laurence has dedicated this horse's name to him. Viola can be derived from three letters within the dam's name, Dame's Violet and from the prefix 'la' in reference to the horse being a filly. A Viola D'Amour itself is a specific instrument closely related to the Viola, but with six or seven strings and an equal number of sympathetic strings which are not played with the bow.
If you would like your own horse to be featured here, or would like to request that another horse in the yard be added, please e-mail one of us in the office...