Haras du Cadran’s incredible journey

Pierre Talvard is a commercial breeder – but one who prefers racing over sales. Known for his outbursts of joy during big victories, he enjoyed the win of Leffard, a colt produced with Ecurie  Melanie, in the Grand Prix de Paris in an extremely intense way.

Ten days later during our conversation, the breeder is still on cloud nine. The emotion is all the stronger as it marks the return to the spotlight of his friend, Leffard’s trainer Jean-Claude Rouget, for whom the past year has been blighted by cancer.

“It’s a movie, a fairy tale,” says Talvard (right). “Because we mustn’t forget that this is the third time Jean-Claude has won a Group 1 with a horse bred at Le Cadran after Qemah and Puchkine. Jean-Claude was sure he’d be in the finish of the Jockey Club with Leffard. And then, well, it didn’t go well. But he didn’t have a hard race and was therefore able to win the Grand Prix de Paris.

“This victory is the best medicine. This year, the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe is on October 3. That’s my birthday. I’ll be 70. And for my 50 years in service of the horse, we can dream of the Arc! As always, Jean Claude Rouget will present him at 100 per cent for the big day.”

Some turned their backs on Rouget during his turmoil. However, many others remained loyal, and the Rouget stable, even when the boss was in hospital, never stopped producing winners.

“I think we need to give a big round of applause to [assistant] Jean René Dubosc and his team who truly supported Jean-Claude,” says Talvard. “What touches me in this story is that in the end, there are many empathetic people in the racing world who remained loyal to Jean-Claude. But well, he deserves it too.

An exceptional man

“I think he is an exceptional man. During the Covid year, I called him. I said, ‘Listen Jean-Claude, the sales are going to be difficult. I can’t miss them given my situation.’ We sat down across from each other with a piece of paper and a pencil. We did our estimates. And he bought six yearlings from me. We shook hands, and eight days later they were paid. There aren’t many people who would be capable of doing that.”

This year’s Grand Prix de Paris was the first European Group 1 victory – as co-breeder – for Écurie Melanie, aka Gerardus Beemsterboer. This Dutchman made his fortune with the vegetable seed brand Bejo, and his company has developed in multiple sectors. A Classic breeder and owner in New Zealand, Beemsterboer has been one of Talvard’s main partners for several years in the  purchase of broodmares.

“Last year, Gerardus told me, ‘Pierre, well done, we had good sales, but now I want to be in the top 50 breeders in the French rankings and win a Group 1’,” says Talvard. “Mission accomplished!  He is an exceptional person with whom I work in confidence. After each yearling sale, we look at each other and say: ‘How much can we spend this winter on mares?’ The deal is that I invest the same amount as him.”

Haras du Cadran has had the same clients for decades, attracting a loyalty that stands out in a modern world that is increasingly unstable.

“People who pay boarding fees must be rewarded,” he says. “They have to get winners.”

But the wealthy individuals who breed to race by entrusting their mares to Haras du Cadran are also there for Pierre Talvard himself. He is a man who loves to share his passion and who perfectly fits the term ‘aimable’; in French, being ‘aimable’ means both ‘worthy of being liked by others’ and ‘someone who seeks to please others’. Talvard, always welcoming, fits that definition. He has boarded dozens of broodmares for owner-breeder Jean Claude Séroul for decades. And it is highly likely that Haras du Cadran is one of the French breeding operations that produces the most winners every year if one combines those bred by Talvard, his partners, and his clients.

One must be honest. But honesty takes a very long time to pay dividends.

“When Jean-Claude Séroul comes to see his horses, I spend the day with him,” he says. “Same for Alain Jathiere. We have a duty to be kind and respectful to our clients. After all these decades, if Mr Séroul is still one of my clients, it’s because he’s convinced — and he’s right by the way — that I’ve never stolen a single cent from him. It’s a matter of trust. I’m the first to push him not to keep certain mares, even though that means fewer boarders. One must be honest. But honesty takes a very long time to pay dividends. It pays off when you’re old!”

In recent years, the number of French studs present at the Arqana August Sale has significantly declined, as has the number of yearlings eligible for French premiums. Many traditional French studs have either disappeared, been bought by breeders who do not sell (such as Haras du Mézeray, for example), or belong to people who cannot keep up with the pace of an increasingly fierce commercial market.

Pierre Talvard, on the contrary, heads a stud that is gaining in prominence year after year. With 24 yearlings catalogued to this month’s Arqana August Sale, his consignment is larger than in previous years.

“It’s up to each breeder to find partners, because there are a lot of people interested in buying good mares,” he explains. “I’ve recently found new investors. The key is that the breeder invests the same amount as his partners. Otherwise, they feel a bit trapped. Risk sharing is important.”

Let’s Misbehave, the dam of Leffard, cost €320,000 as a five-year-old. Unraced but from an exceptional pedigree, this Montjeu half-sister to High Chaparral was in foal to War Front, a mating that ultimately produced Sippinsoda, winner of the Listed Prix Occitanie.

“We turned down a lot of money for Sippinsoda,” says Talvard. “My partner, who is much smarter than I am, told me it would be good to keep her but to sell the dam. So Let’s Misbehave was sold for €920,000 while her son Leffard was still a foal. It’s always difficult to sell mares of this quality. But from time to time, you have to bring in some cash. Sippinsoda has a Lope De Vega colt – and he’s the most beautiful foal at Haras du Cadran!”

Leffard has always been an exceptional colt.

When it comes to matings, Talvard tries to avoid inbreeding as much as possible and he likes to reproduce successful crosses. When Leffard was conceived, the cross of Le Havre over Montjeu had just produced the dual Group 1 winner Wonderful Tonight.

“Ah yes, that was obvious to me,” he says. “And I had no trouble convincing my partner.

“Leffard has always been an exceptional colt. He is an intelligent horse who understands everything that is asked of him. And I told Jean-Claude to buy him. When he saw him, he was won over. That year, Paul Shanahan had asked me who my best colt was. And I told him about the one who would become Leffard. He had everything going for him.”

She is a real hope for next year

Not all breeders succeeded with Le Havre, a stallion that Talvard managed to match well, also producing the Group 2 winner Roman Candle and Listed scorer Romina Power.

Talvard has also retained several daughters of Le Havre at the stud including Chuppy, a full-sister to Wonderful Tonight. The mare has a Mehmas filly (Lot 50) catalogued to the Arqana August  Sale.

“Her first produce, the two-year-old Constitution River, was beaten a nose on debut at Newmarket’s July meeting,” says Talvard. “Her trainer Aidan O’Brien, whom I met on the day of the Grand Prix de Paris, told me she was a real hope for next year.”

Overall, Haras du Cadran’s Arqana consignment is another quality draft. The group also includes Lot 83, a Wootton Bassett filly who is the first foal out of the Group 1-placed Flighty Lady, a mare that Cadran owns in partnership with the Cheval Invest syndicate, Écurie Melanie and Ballylinch Stud.

“She’s an exceptional filly physically,” says Talvard. “Strongly stamped by her sire, she’s exceptional. Wootton Bassett is breaking all records. Every day, more and more, we realise how right Coolmore were to buy him.”

Talvard used the former Haras d’Etreham stallion quite early in his career, notably breeding the Group winner Wootton Asset.

One of Talvard’s major coups in recent years was buying Latita for only €20,000. She was five years old at the time, with a fairly modest pedigree, but had a Listed win and a third place in the Group 3 Prix de la Grotte to her name.

“It was Jean-Claude Rouget who told me to buy her,” he says. “He had told me that without an accident, she would have won her Group race. She gave me Daylight, second in the Cheveley Park Stakes. Her sister, by Teofilo, will be Lot 136 of the August Sale. I went to Teofilo hoping to keep a filly as a broodmare. But I have important investments ongoing, the dam is young and I have an exceptional filly foal – so we’re selling this year’s yearling.”

The progeny of Cayman Sunset has also brought great success to Haras du Cadran, not only with the triple Group 1 winner Qemah, but also Pretty Gorgeous, winner of the Fillies’ Mile. One granddaughter of Cayman Sunset remains at Haras du Cadran in Niedziela, whose yearling by Blackbeard is Lot 169.

“Her sister has just won nicely in Germany,” says Talvard. “He’s a good yearling who looks a lot like Qemah. The resemblance is actually quite striking, as my son Emmanuel recently pointed out to me.”

Among the new partners of Haras  du Cadran are the Forien family and bloodstock agent Victoire Langlais, with whom he purchased Sola Luna when she was in foal to Justify. The mare is from the great Strawbridge family of In Clover.

The Lope De Vega – Dansili cross needs no introduction.

“Her Justify colt (Lot 264) is a spectacular yearling,” he says. “The dam cost $250,000, but divided into four shares, it’s already much more reasonable. And a quarter of a broodmare’s board is next to nothing.”

From the same family, the Group 1-placed Queen Trezy joined the stud when bought for €800,000. Her Lope De Vega colt (Lot 210) was bred in partnership with Écurie Mélanie, trotting legend Jean-Pierre Dubois and Ballylinch Stud.

“He’s a very handsome colt in whom you can really feel the influence of Lope De Vega,” says Talvard. “But his biggest quality is his walk – it’s absolutely outstanding. And the Lope De Vega – Dansili cross needs no introduction.”

From the Lomitas mare Varsity, Talvard has produced seven black-type horses in just a few years, including five by Dubawi or his sons. Now that’s a  successful cross!

“That family really is the pride of Haras du Cadran,” says Talvard. “The yearling looks a lot like her full-sister La Parisienne, runner-up in the Prix de Diane. She will be Lot 261. The three year-old We’ll Defend won her maiden in spectacular fashion at Chantilly. It really is a page of courageous horses.”

Among French studs, Le Cadran is known for truly paying its staff well, who are also often rewarded when the sales are successful. As a result, employee turnover is limited – which is rare these days.

“We’ve always taken on a lot of apprentices,” says Talvard. “From each generation of apprentices, we keep the good ones and they then stay on with the team. There’s no turnover here. t’s always the same people over the years. To motivate people, you have to pay them well. That’s obvious. And everyone does a bit of everything – you can’t always leave the unpleasant tasks to the same people. This is a perfectionist’s job. You have to look at your horses ten times a day. You have to think only of them. I don’t go to the movies, I don’t go to the theatre, I don’t go to restaurants. I  don’t go on vacation. I am at home, in my stud, with my horses.

You cannot have multiple passions when you’re a breeder

“You cannot have multiple passions when you’re a breeder. I’m lucky that my son Emmanuel is just as passionate as I am. He’s given me a second wind since he arrived at the stud. He’s even closer to the staff than I am because the age gap is smaller. What’s more, Emmanuel brings in new, younger clients.”

Fifty years ago, Talvard started from nothing. He lived in a caravan for years, going through enormous difficulties before achieving financial success and managing to buy land on a regular basis. After decades of breeding, logic would dictate that he should slow down. But that is unthinkable for this workaholic.

“You have to constantly try to improve the quality of mares,” he says. “Horses must be kept in comfort all year long. We have to prepare them to become athletes. With them, you can’t put things off until tomorrow. If you see a horse lame, it has to be dealt with immediately. Similarly, if it’s not eating, the issue must be handled straight away. If my horses are happy, then I’m happy. With good organisation and a good team, things go well. But you must not rest on your laurels.”

Haras du Cadran now covers 400 hectares and Talvard concludes: “The horse is an animal that needs space to thrive.”

It’s been an incredible journey for a man who started working in the horse world as a teenager at the very bottom of the ladder; Talvard is one of the rare true rags-to-riches stories in the world of racing.

 

British and Irish interest on the rise

A deeper representation from British and Irish-based vendors has been one of the developing themes of recent editions of the Arqana August Sale, writes Nancy Sexton.

The likes of Ballylinch and Camas Park Studs have long sent stock to the sale and are again well represented as the source of nine and ten yearlings respectively. Baroda Stud, which sold a €780,000 Night Of Thunder filly in 2024, has ten catalogued this time around while Barton Stud returns with a group of six, an increase on last year when its two yearlings offered included recent Vichy  debut winner Pen And Sword. Kildaragh Stud (four yearlings) and Jamie Railton (two) are other consignors making a return trip.

This year, however, they have been joined by a number of Arqana August debutantes, namely Hazelwood Bloodstock (two yearlings), Moanmore Stables (one), Tweenhills (three) and  Yeomanstown Stud (two).

The sale marks an important auction test for Baaeed (left) as the host of nine of his first-crop yearlings, among them Moanmore Stables’ colt out of the Listed-placed Magical Journey (Lot 147), a  relation to Kingman from Barton Stud (filly; 301) and a relation to Classic winner Beauty Parlour (colt; 39) from Baroda Stud.

Baroda is also responsible for a  Dubawi grandaughter of Group 1 winner and blue hen Lillie Langtry (109) as well as a Churchill half brother to Australian Group 1 winner Land Legend (134).

Barton Stud also sends through a Night Of Thunder filly out of the Group 3-placed Dean Street Doll (61) while Tweenhills’ trio includes a Siyouni colt out of the 2011 Cheveley Park Stakes winner Lightening Pearl (140). Another Group 1 winner, Watch Me, is also the dam of a Zarak filly from Jamie Railton (299).

Ballylinch Stud hit seven-figure heights last year when selling a €1 million daughter of Lope De Vega to Oliver St Lawrence. A Mehmas half sister to that filly (174) is among the highlights of a nine-strong draft for the Kilkenny farm this time around.