You asked, Alan answers! (Part (V) The Blood-Horse recently hosted an online seminar called "What Is TrueNicks," in which Alan and Byron presented an overview of the TrueNicks system and answered users' questions. The response from the Webinar audience was overwhelming, and the TrueNicks co-founders wanted to make sure every question was answered. Here is the first round of questions, with responses from Alan. Look for additional updates over the next few days. If you have not seen the free Webinar, you may see it here: http://www.bloodhorse.com/webinars/truenicks1/register.aspThose who have already registered may sign in here to re-view: http://www.bloodhorse.com/webinars/truenicks1/index.asp. -- TrueNicks Guru
Q: How come so matings have no rating? Try Street Sense-Vanilla Latte mating. Alan: The "No Rating" notification comes up when we consider that their is insufficient evidence to rate a mating. That occurs, when going back three generations in the sire line and three generation of the broodmare sire line, there not two stakes winners out of unique mares, nor 15 starters on the cross. The
Street Sense (
TrueNicks,
SRO) /Vanilla Latte cross represents something that hasn't been tried very often - a Machiavellian (by Mr. Prospector) line stallion over a Mr. Prospector line mare. It has produced one stakes winner from less than 15 starters.
Q: Is there an bigger upgrade if the stallion and the associated mare has a colt that wins the Derby or other grade one Alan: No, we don't differentiate between the Derby and other grade one events.
Q: Does True Nicks compile data from the Aa of each area of the physical horse, as well as the siblings, sire/dam, and performance records. Alan: No, TrueNicks purely examines the sire/broodmare sire cross, relative to opportunity, although to do this it does search thousands of race and breeding records - all in seconds
Q: how does true nicks work with limited information on bloodlines that are not well-known, i.e., German sires like Sumuru or Monsun? Alan: With access to the Jockey Club data base, TrueNicks can examine crosses involving relatively unusual or geographically limited sire lines better than any other nicking system. When it comes to German stallions like Surumu (who I saw win the German Derby in 1977) and Monsun, TrueNicks is able to look at every foal by that stallion, their sire and their grandsire. That gives TrueNicks the maximum chance of finding enough examples to provide evidence for a valid rating.
Q: Is it desireable to capture multiple nicks in a breeding.....i.e. Northern Dancer-Ribot, Mr. Prospector-In Reality, Northern Dancer-Buckpasser, Nasrullah-Princequillo, etc., irrespective of postion in the pedigree? Do multiple nicks tend to fight each other or reinforce each other? Alan: With regard to multiple nicks, I would see them of benefit, especially if they are duplicated through high-class runners in both sides of the pedigree. Say, for examle Bold Ruler/Princequillo through Secretariat and Bold Lad. If nicks are combined through good runners, its likely that the strains have an affinity for each other, so should have a benificial rather than competing effect.
Q: my mare is by supremo. What are the best sire lines for her. Her mother is by crozier and the immediate family has produced student council, don't get mad, patriot act and others. Thanks for your advice Alan: We can't really recommend matings for individual horse in this particular format, but we can quickly note that Supremo is by Gone West and among other things mares from this line have done well under Storm Cat line stallions.
Q: I have a mare that was a good sprinter, but 5 furlongs was her maxium distance. Her first foal was bred to Songandaprayer and could only go about a half mile. Should I breed to a stallion that has an average winng distance over a mile? or would that just create a slow distance horse? Alan: Breeding extremes together generally doesn't work.
Songandaprayer (