Hardalicious is the result of a breeding decision that Corey and Trudy Holden were eagerly anticipating. Sired by Hard Hat Henry and out of their exceptional mare Garterlicious, he was bred with the intention of producing a horse that could perform at the highest level while ultimately offering genuine value as a future sire.
Born in late January on American time, Hardalicious was an unusually late foal by Australian standards. Corey and Trudy initially kept open the possibility of sending him to America to be campaigned, but as he developed, it became increasingly clear that he was a colt they wanted to retain, train and ultimately breed themselves. He is the first foal from one of their successful mares that Corey and Trudy have retained to develop within their own program, making him a particularly significant horse for the CBARH team.
Broken in by Bradley Sharrock, Hardalicious made an immediate impression. During his early education, Brad famously commented that by the time the colt was old enough to breed, he had better have found himself a good mare to breed to him. It was an early indication of the potential Brad saw in the young horse.
For Corey and Trudy, temperament was always the number one priority when deciding whether to retain Hardalicious as a colt, and it is a quality he continues to impress them with every day. Now successfully campaigning as a three year old futurity cutting horse with Corey, he has shown that the exceptional mind they saw in him from the beginning has translated directly into his performance.
One of Hardalicious's standout qualities is the way he reads a cow. He is exceptionally intelligent and cautious without being hesitant, naturally waiting for a cow to reveal its intention rather than overcommitting himself into a difficult position. He thinks his way through a cow and makes each manoeuvre deliberate and efficient. His natural speed control is equally impressive, allowing him to accelerate and slow down with a cow smoothly and effortlessly.
Corey describes him as an extremely soft-moving horse from the very beginning. He naturally travels collected, carries his head low and in, and has always been willing to give his nose and bend without resistance. His movement is quiet and smooth, and that calmness carries through to the way he approaches cattle. Even when working fresh cows, Corey finds they rarely feel intimidated by him. Hardalicious does not threaten a cow with his movement; instead, he remains composed and allows the cow to dictate the work.
That natural feel can sometimes be deceptive. Corey explains that after a stop, there are moments when it feels as though Hardalicious may be late to the cow, only for him to immediately accelerate and place himself exactly where he needs to be. It is a quality that speaks not only to the horse's ability, but to his understanding of his job and the confidence he has already developed in Corey's training program at just three years of age.
Garterlicious was a seriously quick mare, and Corey believes that speed has passed directly to her colt. Hardalicious has the ability to be extremely quick when required, but he does not rely on speed to work a cow. His intelligence, body control and efficiency mean he can often achieve the same result without having to make excessive movements.
Corey also believes Hardalicious possesses the natural attributes to transition successfully into both Challenge and Campdrafting. He naturally uses his body in a way that complements both disciplines, while his intelligence, athleticism, conformation and size give him the versatility to pursue a broader performance career. The plan is to campaign him throughout his entire aged events career in Cutting before supporting his transition into Campdrafting.
Genetically, Hardalicious represents a particularly valuable addition to the CBARH program. He is 7 Panel Negative and brings together influential Australian and American performance horse bloodlines, including High Brow Cat, Dual Rey, Docs Spinifex, Peptos Stylish Oak and the renowned Duck mare lines of John Brekelmans. Corey and Trudy believe there are very few horses in Australia offering this combination of genetics, performance potential and versatility.
His value to their breeding program is further strengthened by the fact that he is an outcross to the majority of the mares within the CBARH performance and broodmare program. Having previously experienced the limitations that can come with breeding a home sire closely related to many of their performance mares, Hardalicious provides an exciting opportunity to breed, raise and train homebred progeny from their proven mares without those same genetic restrictions. His dam, Garterlicious, is the only performed mare within their current program directly related to him.
Hardalicious will therefore receive an exceptional opportunity in his first breeding season, with Corey and Trudy intending to breed him to their outstanding, proven mares at the CBARH stud. The ability to produce homebred, home-raised and home-trained progeny from these mares will allow the team to continue developing and showcasing Hardalicious not only through his own performance career, but through the success of his progeny.
Corey believes Hardalicious has everything required to become an influential Australian performance horse sire. Good minded, strong boned, trainable, athletic, naturally cowy and genetically diverse, he brings together the qualities Corey and Trudy value most in a performance horse.
For now, the focus remains firmly on the arena. Hardalicious will continue his aged events career in Cutting before progressing into Campdrafting, with Corey confident that there is no clear limit to what this young stallion may ultimately achieve.
