Eureka Stud is poised for a timely double before the Magic Millions yearling sales when Marking Time and Express Air run at Doomben on Boxing Day.

Eureka Stud and the McAlpine family are an institution at the Magic Millions.  Colin McAlpine was one of the guiding forces in the early days of the Gold Coast sale and he returns with another quality draft in 2010.

The Group 1 Toorak Handicap winning Red Dazzler (Red Ransom) has his first yearling for sale and his first to parade is the half-sister to Express Air (Lot 31).

Express Air (4m Piccolo – Air’s Precious by Air Express) won the G2 Queensland Guineas in June and she signalled another win isn’t far away when a fast-finishing fourth behind Alverta in the LR Just Now Quality at Eagle Farm on December 12.

Trainer Rex Lipp has set her for the LR Bernborough Handicap (1615m) at Doomben on Boxing Day.

The Toowoomba conditioner will be guided by her summer form before deciding if she’s up to a trip to Sydney for the G1 Coolmore Classic (1500m) at Rosehill in March.

Express Air is owned in partnership by Colin and Scott McAlpine and her dam is a half-sister to Diamondsondinside (Iglesia).

He is another Eureka product who has won up to Listed level and collected over $550,000 for connections.

Now based with Luke Oliver at Caulfield, Diamondsondinside is due to win again after a last start placing behind Right Fong and Playwright at Flemington.

MARKING TIME will stake his claim for the $2 million BMW Magic Millions 2YO Classic in January when he starts in the LR Tommy Smith Slipper at Doomben on Boxing Day.

He is by Markane who is another son of Red Ransom based at Eureka.  Markane was raced by Tony Santic and was stakes placed at Flemington at two.

Marking Time (2g Markane – Legal Tune by Piccolo) has a full sister set to go under the hammer at the 2010 Magic Millions QTIS 600 Yearling Sale in March.

Trainer Alan Bailey has a big opinion of the youngster after wins at the Gold Coast and Eagle Farm.  “”I was a bit surprised he wasn’t rated more strongly,” Bailey said after his last start win in town on November 28.

“Glen rode him in his first start at Doomben when he ran fourth and I thought he was going to win 200 metres out but he knocked up.  He then won really well second-up at the Gold Coast but everyone reckoned he couldn’t beat the favourite today.”

Marking Time finished strongly for an impressive win while Slice And Dice started a $1.50 favourite but only beat one runner home.

Raced by the Blue Horizon Syndicate, Marking Time was purchased for $52,000 at this year’s Magic Millions QTIS 600 Yearling Sale.  “When we bought him for at the sales we liked him because of his breeding,” Bailey said.

Red Ransom died at Vinery Australia last month aged 22 but the son of Roberto will live on through his sire sons in both hemispheres.

Red Ransom enjoyed a successful spring with sire prospect All American (Emirates Stakes) and top mare Typhoon Tracy (Myer Classic) winning Group 1 events on the final day of the Melbourne Cup carnival at Flemington.

Apart from Markane and Red Dazzler, his sire sons in this part of the world are headed by Charge Forward (Arrowfield), Face Value (Lindsay Park) and Domesay (Darley) who sired his first winner when Backgammon won at Flemington last Saturday.