Whole Lotta Love, the Finnish rower of Kymi GP, who will be racing in Kouvola on Saturday, is an example of the fact that even in a difficult field, you can succeed even if you are led by chance.
Whole Lotta Love has competed in Finland for the last two years. At that time, Philippe Daugeard’s defender was seventh in the Kymi GP and sixth in the Suur-Hollola semi-final. Ida Laine / Finnish Hippos
- The mother of Whole Lotta Love was selected for her owners by the name of the mare.
- The restaurateurs’ own kennel has already earned more than 350,000 euros.
- The puppies are named after the songs of the legendary band Led Zeppelin.
The nine-year-old whale Lotta Love – or Late at home – is one of the most successful horses born in Finland in recent years. It has run 87 races in its career, with 22 wins, and the horse already earns more than € 350,000.
Whole Lotta Love is owned and bred by For You Kotka oy from Kotka, whose main business is in the restaurant business. The company runs a restaurant called For You, and its horse ownership has started with the base of Whole Lotta Love – whose name happens to be For You.
– I was at a bar counter with a colleague when it was noticed that the magazine was selling shares in a horse called For You, one of the owners of For You Kotka oy. Yrjö Piirainen recalls.
– We had a little butter in the beak with a friend, and then it was decided to buy all the shares that are left of the horse. To my recollection, we bought 35 percent of it back then.
The deals were made fifteen years ago while the For You mare was still a foal. On the racetracks, For You’s success remained modest. It competed 13 times, finishing third at its best and earning € 2,490.
However, the enthusiasm of the Kotka men did not stop, even though For Yous did not become a powerlifter.
– It had some kind of throat problem that made it unable to compete terribly. When it was found that the career was in it, I asked the rest of the gang if they wanted to mate the mare. When no one else had the enthusiasm for it, we acquired the shares of others for ourselves.
The For You mare has made its breeding career as For You Kotka oy’s own horse. Its first foal, Ramble On, was a good racehorse with 15 wins and over € 40,000, but the real pot explorer has been For You’s second foal Whole Lotta Love.
Unprejudiced was rewarded
Whole Lotta Love’s successful career has also been driven by the open-mindedness of the owner company. Whole Lotta Love competed for her youth in Finland Juuso Holttinen in coaching, doing well, but in the five-year period, its success seemed to be working.
– Late had earned 80,000 euros at the age of three and four, and it would have had to start in Finland. I started researching the matter, and I noticed that there were also some places in France that were limited to parents according to age and winnings, Yrjö Piirainen says.
Effective contact with France was established after living in France for a long time and then returning to Finland Brita Flanders through. Flander suggested a Frenchman as his coach Philippe Daugeardin, in whose hands Whole Lotta Love has made a wild rise to the top starts. Over the last three years, the rune has earned more than € 275,000 from France.
– It has worked well in all respects. Philippe is a top coach and Brita has been a great help in handling things. This would not have happened without him, Yrjö Piirainen praises.
Return to Finland
Now, however, the adventures of Whole Lotta Love in France are behind us. Ruuna will fly to Kymi GP on Friday with a flight to Finland, will compete for 100,000 euros at the top start in Kouvola on Saturday and will then move on. Hannu Korven to the stable in Pirkkala.
– After Kymi GP, we aim for Suur-Hollola-Ajo. It has been agreed that Late will still run from Philippe’s coaching list, but after that it will move to Hannu’s coaching.
However, according to Piirainen, the cooperation with Philippe Daugeard will not end, and the men of For You will continue to have horses in training in France. Horse operations are already quite large, as the company has eight complete horses in Finland.
– This is precisely the company’s operations. There are four of us owners and horse breeding is already a significant industry for the company, Piirainen emphasizes.
Names by song
The stable’s own puppies are named after Led Zeppelin’s songs. Whole Lotta Love’s younger siblings are Living Loving Maid, Misty Mountain Hop, The Rain Song and Heartbreaker.
No foals were born to For You Kotka oy this year, even though two mares were mated last year. Now there are as many as three mares in the company.
– The intention is to develop and continue operations as long as the mares can be farrowed, Yrjö Piirainen emphasizes.
When the parts of the For You mare were bought “butter in the nose” fifteen years ago, Piirainen and the partners were not yet very knowledgeable horse racing enthusiasts.
– The raves had been visited and it had always been nice, but that was almost it. Of course, this could not have been imagined, Piirainen laughs.
At Saturday’s Kymi GP, the Late Ruuna belongs to the Surprise Department
– It leaves so strong that you will definitely start to get bows from the sixth track. Let’s see how long it is enough, Piirainen says of his expectations.