Rowsthorn family's thoroughbred stud is set on 133 acres. Photo: Supplied

Rowsthorn family horse stud hits the market

Ingrid Fuary-Wagner|May 27, 2019

Businessman and founder of logistics company Asciano, Mark Rowsthorn and his family are selling their thoroughbred stud in Tylden with a price guide of between $12 million and $14 million.

Woodside Park Stud, located between Ballarat and Bendigo, is 84 kilometres from Melbourne and set on 133 acres.

The stud comes with a 1850-metre pro-ride track, a 1800-metre grass track, a water walker, a 60-metre swimming pool and 50 spelling paddocks.

Also on the property is a manager’s house – a newly built five-bedroom home – as well as a three-bedroom weatherboard cottage.

The main barn has stabling facilities for up to 80 horses as well as additional barns for pre-training work,

The property is home to one of Australia’s top stallions, Written Tycoon, which has produced five individual group one winners.

Sam Triggs, of Inglis Rural Property, said the stud, which has been run as a pre-training and breeding property, would suit a local top-tier operator or an international buyer.

The property is for sale with expressions of interest due by June 26.

“The opportunity to acquire an extensively developed first-class complex such as Woodside Stud Training Complex is rare by Australian standards,” Mr Triggs said.

“It has an illustrious reputation as a leading bloodstock operation and is arguably one of the most intensively and best developed assets in Victoria.”

Rowsthorn, who runs the stud, is a former rich-lister who founded logistics company Asciano, where he worked as chief executive until 2011.

Rowsthorn then joined trucking company McAleese in 2014 as chief executive in a bid to restore investor confidence before the operation later went into voluntary administration.

Mr Rowsthorn, who is chief executive of Woodside Park Stud, said the family had decided to sell the property, which is built from scratch after a long period of deliberation.

“We have made the decision to divest our Tylden Complex. It would be nearly impossible to replicate a development of this magnitude,” he said.

“The time and development process alone would be an exhaustive process, then there is the astronomical quantum of capital invested, accordingly we have not taken the decision to sell lightly.

“However, we are turning the page over and it represents an outstanding opportunity for a buyer,” Mr Rowsthorn said.

The Rowsthorn family already leases another farm about an hour away, but it’s not clear whether they will be purchasing elsewhere.