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Like-A-Butterfly
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Like-A-Butterfly
Like-A-Butterfly (19 April 1994 – 7 February 2013) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who competed in National Hunt racing. Although she did not begin competing in public until she was seven years old she had a successful racing career, winning twelve of her seventeen races, including five at Grade I level. She was unbeaten in three National Hunt Flat races including the Champion INH Flat Race and her first five over hurdles including the Royal Bond Novice Hurdle, Deloitte Novice Hurdle and Supreme Novices' Hurdle. She won the Irish Champion Hurdle but missed the whole of the next season through injury. In her final season she competed in steeplechases and won three times including the Powers Gold Cup and the Mildmay Novices' Chase. After retiring from racing she produced five foals before dying of horse colic at the age of nineteen.
Like-A-Butterfly was a bay mare with no white markings bred in Ireland by P. J. McGee. he was sired by Montelimar, a lightly-campaigned son of Alleged who won the Gallinule Stakes in 1984 and became a very successful National Hunt stallion: his other progeny included the Grand National winners Hedgehunter and Monty's Pass. Her dam, Swifts Butterfly, was a poor racehorse who never finished better than third in thirteen attempts in 1990 and 1991.
During her racing career, Like-A-Butterfly was owned by J. P. McManus and trained by the former flat race jockey Christy Roche at Coolaghknock Glebe, County Kildare.
Like-A-Butterfly did not race until the age of seven, when she began competing in National Hunt Flat races, also known as "Bumpers". On 7 January at Naas Racecourse she started even money favourite against twenty opponents in a two-mile event and won easily by eleven lengths from twenty opponents. Two weeks later at Leopardstown Racecourse moved up in distance to two and a quarter miles and started 4/9 favourite in a field of eight. Ridden as on her debut by Alan Crowe, she took the lead three furlongs from the finish and drew away to win by fifteen lengths.
On 27 April, the mare was moved up in class for the Grade I paddypower.com Champion INH Flat Race in which she was ridden by the leading amateur jockey J T McNamara, Crowe being forced to miss the ride after sustaining a broken collar bone. Like A Butterfly started 11/8 favourite ahead of the previously unbeaten geldings Native Jack and Davenport Milenium. She was restrained by McNamara in the early stages before moving up to take the lead a furlong and a half from the finish and kept on well in the closing stages to win by one and a half lengths and three lengths from Davenport Milenium and the mare Spirit Leader.
In the 2001/2002 season, Like-A-Butterfly competed in Novice hurdle races, beginning at Navan Racecourse in November. Ridden by Charlie Swan and starting the 4/7 favourite, she won by eight lengths from Rule Supreme, a gelding who went on to win the Hennessy Gold Cup in 2005. Swan partnered the mare again when she started 4/7 favourite for the Grade I Royal Bond Hurdle at Fairyhouse on 2 December. She took the lead three hurdles from the finish, went clear of her opponents, and won by four lengths from Sacundai, despite being eased down by Swan near the finish. At the end of the month she won again at Leopardstown, but had her closest race up to that time, prevailing by half a length from the five-year-old Pietro Vannucci.
Like-A-Butterfly prepared for her first Cheltenham Festival with a run in the Grade II Deloitte and Touche Novice hurdle at Leopardstown on 10 February. She took the lead at the sixth hurdle and drew clear of her rivals in the closing stages to win by five lengths, with the unplaced runners including Beef Or Salmon. On 12 March at Cheltenham Racecourse, the unbeaten mare started 7/4 favourite against twenty-seven opponents for the Grade I Gerrard Supreme Novices' Hurdle, with her main rival appearing to be the former flat racer Westender. Like-A-Butterfly led briefly in the early stages and then tracked Westender before regaining the lead two hurdles from the finish. She was overtaken by the Willie Mullins-trained Adamant Approach, but when that horse fell at the last she regained the lead and held off the renewed challenge of Westender to win by a neck.
Like-A-Butterfly was unbeaten in eight races when he started favourite for the Grade I Menolly Homes Champion Novice Hurdle at Punchestown Racecourse on 24 April. She took the lead after the second last hurdle, but was soon overtaken and sustained her first defeat, finishing third behind Davenport Milenium and Thari.
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Like-A-Butterfly
Like-A-Butterfly (19 April 1994 – 7 February 2013) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who competed in National Hunt racing. Although she did not begin competing in public until she was seven years old she had a successful racing career, winning twelve of her seventeen races, including five at Grade I level. She was unbeaten in three National Hunt Flat races including the Champion INH Flat Race and her first five over hurdles including the Royal Bond Novice Hurdle, Deloitte Novice Hurdle and Supreme Novices' Hurdle. She won the Irish Champion Hurdle but missed the whole of the next season through injury. In her final season she competed in steeplechases and won three times including the Powers Gold Cup and the Mildmay Novices' Chase. After retiring from racing she produced five foals before dying of horse colic at the age of nineteen.
Like-A-Butterfly was a bay mare with no white markings bred in Ireland by P. J. McGee. he was sired by Montelimar, a lightly-campaigned son of Alleged who won the Gallinule Stakes in 1984 and became a very successful National Hunt stallion: his other progeny included the Grand National winners Hedgehunter and Monty's Pass. Her dam, Swifts Butterfly, was a poor racehorse who never finished better than third in thirteen attempts in 1990 and 1991.
During her racing career, Like-A-Butterfly was owned by J. P. McManus and trained by the former flat race jockey Christy Roche at Coolaghknock Glebe, County Kildare.
Like-A-Butterfly did not race until the age of seven, when she began competing in National Hunt Flat races, also known as "Bumpers". On 7 January at Naas Racecourse she started even money favourite against twenty opponents in a two-mile event and won easily by eleven lengths from twenty opponents. Two weeks later at Leopardstown Racecourse moved up in distance to two and a quarter miles and started 4/9 favourite in a field of eight. Ridden as on her debut by Alan Crowe, she took the lead three furlongs from the finish and drew away to win by fifteen lengths.
On 27 April, the mare was moved up in class for the Grade I paddypower.com Champion INH Flat Race in which she was ridden by the leading amateur jockey J T McNamara, Crowe being forced to miss the ride after sustaining a broken collar bone. Like A Butterfly started 11/8 favourite ahead of the previously unbeaten geldings Native Jack and Davenport Milenium. She was restrained by McNamara in the early stages before moving up to take the lead a furlong and a half from the finish and kept on well in the closing stages to win by one and a half lengths and three lengths from Davenport Milenium and the mare Spirit Leader.
In the 2001/2002 season, Like-A-Butterfly competed in Novice hurdle races, beginning at Navan Racecourse in November. Ridden by Charlie Swan and starting the 4/7 favourite, she won by eight lengths from Rule Supreme, a gelding who went on to win the Hennessy Gold Cup in 2005. Swan partnered the mare again when she started 4/7 favourite for the Grade I Royal Bond Hurdle at Fairyhouse on 2 December. She took the lead three hurdles from the finish, went clear of her opponents, and won by four lengths from Sacundai, despite being eased down by Swan near the finish. At the end of the month she won again at Leopardstown, but had her closest race up to that time, prevailing by half a length from the five-year-old Pietro Vannucci.
Like-A-Butterfly prepared for her first Cheltenham Festival with a run in the Grade II Deloitte and Touche Novice hurdle at Leopardstown on 10 February. She took the lead at the sixth hurdle and drew clear of her rivals in the closing stages to win by five lengths, with the unplaced runners including Beef Or Salmon. On 12 March at Cheltenham Racecourse, the unbeaten mare started 7/4 favourite against twenty-seven opponents for the Grade I Gerrard Supreme Novices' Hurdle, with her main rival appearing to be the former flat racer Westender. Like-A-Butterfly led briefly in the early stages and then tracked Westender before regaining the lead two hurdles from the finish. She was overtaken by the Willie Mullins-trained Adamant Approach, but when that horse fell at the last she regained the lead and held off the renewed challenge of Westender to win by a neck.
Like-A-Butterfly was unbeaten in eight races when he started favourite for the Grade I Menolly Homes Champion Novice Hurdle at Punchestown Racecourse on 24 April. She took the lead after the second last hurdle, but was soon overtaken and sustained her first defeat, finishing third behind Davenport Milenium and Thari.