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Reliable Man colt turns NZ$5,100 into NZ$230,000 at Karaka.
When Glen Harvey paid NZ$5,100 for a weanling colt by Reliable Man (Dalakhani) via New Zealand Bloodstock's online sales platform gavelhouse.com last year, he could never have dreamt the colt would have turned into one of the big sellers at the auction houses Ready To Run Sale just over a year later, but that dream came to fruition on Wednesday when Hong Kong trainer Francis Lui went to NZ$230,000 to secure the now gelded son of the Westbury Stud shuttler.
Harvey, who purchased the colt in conjunction with his parents Bruce and Maureen and sold him under his families Roysyn Stables banner, said he was familiar with the colt's pedigree, which prompted him to take the plunge and buy him from Cambridge Stud.
"He was sold by Cambridge Stud and he had a pedigree that we knew quite well," he said.
"We had a horse out of Shalt Not (second dam) before for the Hong Kong sale. Amelia's Dream (dam's half-sister) was a pretty freakish race horse that we never really got to see the best of.
"We had bought another Reliable Man earlier that night for $3,500, so we thought that this guy definitely had the better pedigree.
"It was no risk buying two horses for $9,000 when the service fee was $15,000. It was law of averages and he kept thriving the whole time."
Harvey had been pleased with the gelding's development and felt he could handle a Ready To Run preparation.
"We always thought we could do quite well, especially from the reports when he was broken in," Harvey said.
"He had that confidence and toughness about him that he could handle the preparation for a Ready To Run."
The colt, who breezed in a time of 10.77 seconds, was catalogued as Lot 120 and he is out of unplaced Zabeel (Sir Tristram) mare Ziffel.
Ziffel herself is out of Queensland Listed winner Shalt Not (St Covet), who is also the dam of 2008 Silver Slipper Stakes (Gr 2, 1100m) winner Amelia's Dream (Redoute's Choice) - the dam Listed-placed Impasse (Sepoy) and Better Land (Shamardal).
Shalt Not is also the dam of Group 3-placed Elimbari (Fastnet Rock), the dam of stakes-placed Vincere Volare (I Am Invincible).
Further back this is the family of Group 1 winner Grand Zulu (Grand Lodge).
"It's a good family occasion and nice for Mum and Dad to get a result like that," said Harvey.
"They have put a lot of money into the industry over the years and it is nice to see them getting rewarded."
Reliable Man, who is standing for a fee of NZ$15,000 (plus GST) this season, had four lots sell on Wednesday for a total of NZ$546,000 at an average of NZ$136,500.