Hip 215, a weanling filly by Catalina Cruiser, sold for a record $195,000 Monday at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale. Fasig-Tipton Photo.
By Mary Eddy
The Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale made its return Monday with a strong crowd in attendance to bid on the 232 broodmares and weanlings that went through the ring. Canceled in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the sale came back with positive results and saw the most expensive horse through the ring in its eight-year history.
With $3,657,800 in total sales this year, New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc. Executive Director Najja Thompson was pleased to see the sale back on the auction schedule.
“It was a great feeling to have the Saratoga fall mixed sale return to its proper venue after being forced to cancel last year due to the pandemic,” Thompson said.
Topping the auction was Hip 215, a New York-bred weanling filly by multiple graded stakes winner Catalina Cruiser that sold to Reeves Thoroughbred Racing for a record of $195,000. Out of the stakes-winning Red Giant mare Catcha Rising Star, the filly was bred by Gentry Stable and is a half-sister to a Liam’s Map filly Joe Migliore purchased at this year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale in August for $260,000.
“Physically, I thought she was really nice,” said Dean Reeves. “We think she’s every bit as nice as the other filly out of the mare. The pedigree is there and we really like the program in New York. We race a lot here and we like to support the program.”
Hip 256, a son of leading New York sire Freud, sold for $100,000 to St. Elias Monday at Fasig-Tipton Saratoga. Gregory Fisher Photo.
New York-based sires were well-represented and led by Hip 256, a dark bay son of leading New York sire Freud who was purchased for $100,000 by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing. Bred by Sequel Thoroughbreds and Thummps Racing Stable, the colt is out of the Birdstone mare Hoopskirt and is a half-brother to the winning gelding Farragut.
St. Elias Stable took home four weanlings Monday, hoping to continue the success they have had in past years at the sale. Among their other purchases was Hip 199, a colt by Kantharos out of the Midnight Lute mare Bella Cara for $120,000, and two sons of Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Vino Rosso – Hip 292 and and Hip 214 – that each sold for $100,000. St Elias also bought Hip 185, a daughter of Connect, for $95,000.
“We love the New York-bred program and we always love this sale,” said Monique Delk, St. Elias executive director. “We have gotten very lucky and got some really nice horses out of here.”
Bred by Windylea Farm in Hoosick Falls, the Connect filly is the first live foal from the winning Harlan’s Holiday mare American Lynx. After the filly went through the ring, Kip O’Neill of Windylea stressed the importance of the fall sale in the local market.
“This sale is very important for New York breeders like ourselves,” he said. “It allows us to keep our farms moving and to not have to wait for the sales next August to move some horses. It’s well-timed.”
Of the 79 broodmares through the ring, it was Nice Smile (Hip 12) that brought the highest bid at $70,000. A 5-year-old daughter of Smiling Tiger, the mare sold to Goose Wickes for $70,000 and is in foal to Spendthrift Farm stallion Vekoma on a March 13 cover.
Consigned by Stuart Morris, agent for Rocky Top Racing and Highclere Inc., the bay mare is a half-sister to Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile-placed Red Vine and was a $17,000 yearling at the 2017 Keeneland September sale. Noting the popularity of Vekoma in his first book this spring, Wickes said foaling progeny of stallions like Vekoma in New York is something breeders should take advantage of.
“Vekoma is a first-year stallion and was a good New York horse,” he said. “These sales are wonderful and I want to be part of the good fortune here. It will be a huge upside (to foal in New York). This stallion had a large book, and how do you stand out? With the New York breeding program. This program is the best in America.”
Morris said the mare’s pedigree was a good fit for the Empire State.
“She was very popular (showing this weekend),” he said. “Being in foal to Vekoma, I think she communicated very well with the New York marketplace and that’s why we brought her up here. It’s a fun market and it’s well-supported and reliable.”
Overall, 163 of the catalogued horses were sold for an average price of $22,440 and a median of $10,000. Thompson said the results demonstrate the strength of the New York breeding program.
“The buzz heading into the sale was enthusiastic and buyers responded accordingly,” he said. “A credit to our program’s breeders, stallion owners, consignors, buyers and of course Fasig-Tipton, who managed to put together a solid catalog displaying the quality that can be found here in New York. Every horse purchased today has the solid and lucrative New York-bred program as their foundation and an exciting future ahead.”
