The four-year-old Kiss At Midnight, a smart trotting winner at Melton last Friday night, is certainly a splendid advertisement for the Balliang-based training, breeding, agistment and rehabilitation centre Evolution Lodge.
“She’s been a work in progress but she’s finally starting to hit her straps,” owner-trainer Tyrone Abela said. “She’s one of the biggest beneficiaries of our facilities.”
Evolution Lodge was established on the 220 acre property owned by Joe Abela and his wife Carmen since 2004.
“When dad passed away in 2022 I had to make a decision to either let the farm continue on as it was or turn it into something commercial and viable,” Tyrone said. “That’s when we started Evolution Lodge and we put all the big ticket facilities in.
“It’s evolved into something that we probably didn’t expect that it would. We thought we would do a little bit of pre-training but it quickly became apparent that there’s a lot of need for horses to do rehab and rejuvenation.”
Among the facilities at Evolution Lodge are a 20 metre swimming pool enabling horses to swim continuously for extended periods, a water walker, a high speed treadmill, a 1400 metre jog track with an 18 degree gradient and an 1100 metre fastwork track.
There is stabling for up to 40 horses and 40 separate paddocks.
“With the exception of Leap To Fame we’ve had nearly every other superstar in the country come here for a rehab or a freshen up,” Tyrone said.
The best horse trained by Tyrone so far is Madena Sky, who won 10 races and more than $90,000 in stakes.
“She’s a half-sister to Kiss At Midnight. A younger half-sister named Heavenly Glow won her first race a fortnight ago. She was one of the last horses that dad and I bred together,” he said.
Tyrone has 10 horses in work at present including several owned by close friend Charles Cauchi, the manager of farrier suppliers JC Milton.
Sharing the workload at Evolution Lodge are farm manager Cathrine Abela, Tyrone’s son Matthew, who handles the farm maintenance, and professional trainer Kyle Marshall and Teagan Corbert, who help work the racing team.
Evolution Lodge is also actively involved in the breeding side of the industry. They are currently breeding from three broodmares in Peggyhall, dam of Shes Sky High and Jays All That; Itsgettingcalder (dam of Distant Sun) and her daughter Archangel Liz (dam of Orlando Veyron).
“We have four yearlings including an Orlando Vici half-brother to Kiss At Midnight, a sister to Orlando Veyron and a Father Patrick filly out of Peggyhall, a Volstead weanling filly out of Peggyhall and four foals including a Muscle Hill colt from Peggyhall, a Tactical Landing colt from Archangel Liz, a Tactical Landing filly out of All That Remains and an Orlando Vici colt from Itsgettingcalder.
Waikare Patricia, a Group 2 trotting victor, has left a talented type in Waikare Adrienna, who led throughout for her sixth win at the Kilmore midweek meeting.
Anakie couple Jack and Karen Kendall bred the Melton three-year-old winner Weona Our Rights, who registered her second win on Friday night.
Desert Viper, a three-year-old trotting filly bred, owned and trained by Danny and Gill Norris, notched her first success at Ararat. She is out of the handy racemare Desert Spur.
