Woodlea Rocks and Harness 5000 rescues Twidle’s breeding dreams

By Peter Wharton 

Canterbury hobby horseman Tom Twidle and his wife Sharon were on the brink of walking away from breeding after 30 years in the sport before the emergence of the Johny Rock three-year-old filly Woodlea Rocks.

“I had thoughts of not breeding again this year but my grandson Beau is absolutely enthralled in harness racing,” Twidle said after watching Woodlea Rocks produce a sparkling end-to-end performance to win the Listed $60,000 classic at the Phoebe Stud Harness 5000 meeting at Ashburton. 

“As a result I’ve bred two mares this year.”

The mares are Woodlea DJ, the dam of Woodlea Rocks, who has returned a positive test to Pebble Beach, and Cardi B, a half-sister to the Harness 5000 winner, who is in foal to Art Major.

“We thought we’d breed her to Art Major and put the progeny through the sales,” Twidle said.

A former teacher, researcher and winegrower who now trains a small team of four at Rangiora, Twidle described the Ashburton victory as one of the most significant moments of his career.

“We have been totally thrilled and are really thrilled for the other owners involved because they have never had a horse that has won anything like this before,” he said.

“I won a Group 3 race at Dunedin with Woodlea Legend, an uncle to Woodlea Rocks, and the Delightful Lady Classic at Alexandra Park with Woodlea Life at her first start.”

“I had never travelled a horse anywhere before and I trekked to Auckland with Woodlea Life and won.”

The Ashburton success carried added significance given the standing of the Harness 5000 series, which has rapidly established itself as a genuine platform for emerging talent and commercial relevance, offering breeders tangible reward while shining a spotlight on New Zealand-bred stock capable of competing on a national stage.

While campaigning Woodlea Life through the Sires’ Stakes series a few months later, Twidle attended a broodmare sale and made a pivotal purchase, securing the New York Motoring mare Secacus from Sandy Yarndley, a former chairman of the New Zealand Standardbred Breeders’ Association.

“We paid $2,000 for her in foal to Safely Kept, who had a $3,500 service fee at the time,” Twidle said. “We sold the resultant progeny for $50,000, so it proved a real bargain.”

“She was a tiny wee mare. I bought her because she was a direct descendant of the dam of Noodlum.”

“It was the best stroke of luck the world could ever send you.”

Secacus went on to become the dam of eight individual winners, six of whom earned black-type status, including three Group winners or Group placegetters, cementing her legacy as the cornerstone of the Twidle breeding programme.

The Twidles bred from only two of Secacus’ daughters, those being Woodlea DJ (by McArdle) and Woodlea Explorer (by Changeover).

“Woodlea DJ left Woodlea Diego, who won over $100,000, Cardi B, who has also won more than $100,000, and now Woodlea Rocks, who has already banked close to $60,000,” Twidle said.

Meanwhile, Woodlea Explorer, after producing the Captain Crunch two-year-old filly Woodlea Dream, was given away to Fernside horseman Kyle Cameron. She has since produced a yearling colt by Perfect Sting, ensuring the family continues to branch and evolve.

For the Twidles, the success of Woodlea Rocks is about more than prizemoney or black-type. 

It has reignited a lifelong passion, reinforced the value of patience and pedigree, and, thanks to the Harness 5000 platform, provided a timely reminder that breeding dreams can still be realised — sometimes just when you’re about to walk away.