by Sarah Mace
The New York-bred offerings at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s 2016 March sale of 2-year-olds in training topped out in the second and concluding session with Hip 558, a filly by Twirling Candy who was purchased by Alex Solis II and Jason Litt on behalf of the Roth family’s LNJ Foxwoods for $825,000. The filly was the top-selling female of the sale.
The second best New York-bred seller, a filly by Uncle Mo, went to Dennis O’Neill in Wednesday’s opening session for $350,000, but the second day of selling also saw two more New York-bred standouts besides the filly topper: the top-selling Empire-bred colt and top New York-sired juvenile, a speedy filly by Frost Giant. Overall the New York-bred 2-year-olds outperformed the general population of the sale in both average and median.
The dark bay or brown Twirling Candy filly was a brilliant pinhook, originally purchased by Carrie Brogden’s Machmer Hall as a weanling at the Fasig-Tipton New York fall mixed sale for $50,000. On the third day of the OBS breeze show the filly showed how fast she had become, firing a co-bullet quarter mile when she covered the distance in :22 2/5.
Consignor Nick de Meric said after the breeze, “She’s been in my son Tristan’s division, and has been just wicked fast every time she ever breezed. She’s an outstanding mover, very athletic and, as fast as she is, looks like she’ll stretch out and go two turns when the time comes.”
“That was a great filly,” Litt told the TDN after the purchase. “She did everything right, and we are elated to have her.”
Bred by Mares Rule II and foaled at Rhapsody Farm in Plymouth, the filly topper is out of Felicitee, a winning daughter of Menifee and a half sister to graded stakes placed Mazella and stakes-placed Veuve. The mare has already produced two winners from two foals to race.
The top New York-bred colt, a chestnut from the second crop of Trappe Shot who sold as Hip 320, went to Steven W. Young, Agent from the consignment of Steven Venosa’s SGV Thoroughbreds for $280,000. A graduate of the the Fasig-Tipton New York-bred preferred yearling sale, the colt was another clever pinhook, purchased by IBA for $55,000 last summer.
Bred by Eaton & Thorne and foaled at Thorndale Farm in Millbrook, Inc, Hip 320 is out of That’s OK, an unplaced daughter of Not For Love. A former $700,000 Fasig-Tipton 2-year-old purchase, That’s OK was bought by Jonathan Thorne as a 3-year-old at the Keeneland November sale for $12,000. The mare, who has produced one winner, is a full sister to Grade 1-placed Forever Partners and half-sister to stakes winner Pal’s Partner. The sale filly’s third dam is stakes winner and multiple stakes producer Thanks Pal.
The Frost Giant filly who emerged as top-selling New York-sired New York-bred sold as Hip 532 to Midwest Thoroughbreds, Inc. for $200,000 on the nose. Bred by Dormellito Stud, foaled at Mill Creek Farm in Stillwater and consigned by Dormellito Stud Sales, the dark bay/brown juvenile breezed the same co-bullet quarter of :22 2/5 as the top-selling Twirling Candy filly.
The filly’s dam Easy Erin, a winning New York-bred daughter of Johannesburg, has already produced two winners from two starters and issues from a well-known and productive New York family. Easy Erin’s dam is 1997 New York-bred Horse of the Year Dancin Renee. The seven-time stakes winner went on to produce five winners, including multiple stakes winner Risky Rachel. Dancin Renee is also the half sister of two-time New York-bred horse of the Year Say Florida Sandy, an earner of over $2 million. Frost Giant stands for Keane Stud for a 2016 fee of $7,500.
Of 32 New York-breds offered at the OBS March sale, 18 sold (including two private sales) for a high buyback percentage of 43.8. Eleven of those horses, however, commanded six figures and the New York-breds outperformed the general population with an average price of $170,333 and a median of $112,500. The average price for the sale at large was $158,923 (down 7%) while the median was $100,000 (down 5%).
