Hip 518, a colt by Karakontie readies for a show this weekend in advance of the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga New York-bred yearling sale. Hannah Bonczkowski Photo.The Saratoga Special’s editorial team of Miles Clancy, Alec DiConza, Darby O’Brien and Julia Reedy combed the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga grounds to talk with consignors in advance of the two-day New York-bred yearling sale that opens Sunday and continues Monday:
Ron Blake, Blake-Albina Thoroughbred Services: “We have a couple of Mandaloun’s, McKinzie’s, Munnings’ and Drain The Clocks’, some very popular stallions … The Munnings’ sold very well in the select sale, so I suspect she (Hip 455) is going to do well. She’s a May foal so she’s maybe not as forward as the ones that were in the select sale, but she’s a good filly.”
Brian Graves, Gainesway: “We have six horses here and they’re all solid horses by different sires. We have some young new sires like Epicenter — his first crop — and Drain The Clock. And then we have some proven sires like Vekoma, and an especially fast-looking nice colt by a sire who’s the leading second crop sire and doing very well. So we’re excited about him. We’ve got a nice Twirling Candy, and he’s just having another great year on the track and just a proven stallion. We’ve got a Karakontie and a Blame. So hopefully we have a little something for everybody.”
Lili Kobielski, The New Hill Farm: “The main sale was so amazing and record-breaking. I hope it just keeps rolling and I would expect it to. There’s a lot of energy — we’ve been busy all morning. It’s been nonstop … Honestly, across the board, it’s (the crop) a very consistent group. The feedback we’ve gotten so far is that it’s a nice group overall. We only started selling our own horses that we either bred or raised at the farm so we can stand behind what we’re bringing to the sale. So they were all foaled, raised and kept with us.”
Jonathan Thorne, Thorndale Farm: “I try to bring a select group up here. They’re all really nice horses being well-received. I’m excited. I’ve got two homebreds and two horses that I got as babies. I’ve got a lot of first crop sires that I like — Corniche, a champion 2-year-old, his first crop; Drain The Clocks, he’s been stamping them pretty well, so they’ve been popular. Early Voting is an exciting horse by Gun Runner who’s doing great. So those horses I expect to do real well.”
Sarah Seitz, Brookdale: “We have two nice fillies that are a little bit different. The Runhappy (Hip 556) has a nice update, with being a half to the New York Derby winner (Train The Trainer), so that’s a nice update to have right before the sale. It’s always exciting to be in Saratoga and bring horses up here. The weather’s been great, the atmosphere is fantastic. It seems like there’s a lot of energy around the sales grounds and the races.”
Yearling buyers were out this weekend scouting prospects. Hannah Bonczkowski Photo.
John McMahon, McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds: “I think it will be a very good sale. We’re predominantly a New York-sired New York-bred farm. We have a couple of Kentucky-sired New York-breds in this group. I have a couple very young mares who are represented by their first foals, with Hip 536, a Bolt d’Oro filly out of a mare named Free Chickens. I’ve got a proven producer with a Yaupon who has a nice, standout physical. We have a Central Banker colt out of a multiple stakes producer. He’s Hip 477, a very good bodied, fast, precocious, 2-year-old type. I’ve got a really solid consignment top to bottom.”
Conrad Bandoroff, Denali Stud: “This is the best group that we’ve personally brought up here. We have a very strong group with some real sire power. We have a very nice Not This Time colt, a couple Constitutions. Some really top individuals and I think it will be a very strong market. It’s just a very consistent group of physicals and in addition to the New York stallions, we have a strong representation of some top Kentucky stallions as well.”
Frank Taylor, Taylor Made Farm: “I would think the sale will be good, just judging from the previous sale. There’s a lot of nice horses here. We have a really nice Cyberknife, Hip 322, out of My Favorite Day. That’s a really nice colt. We’ve got a really good Twirling Candy, Hip 336, out of Pharoah Fawcet. That’s a nice horse. We’ve got a real nice Drain The Clock, Hip 337, out of Picturesque. They’re very nice individuals and look like runners. In this sale, people look for horses that have a little pedigree but also good physicals. It’s a little bit of a larger group this year. I think each year, the sire power gets a little better. The horsemanship, the prepping and raising these horses is getting better by the year. Everything’s trending positive here.”
Fergus Galvin, Hunter Valley Farm: “We’ve a really nice Medaglia d’Oro filly. We just got a nice update, her half-sister was second in a stake at Presque Isle the other night. We have a Practical Joke filly that’s very nice. Great mover. It changes from year to year. About half of them are pinhooks, half of them are homebred, some are owned, some are clients. We’ve been selling up here for a number of years. This is a pretty strong group.”
Carl McEntee, Ballysax Bloodstock: “We’re just coming off the heels of a very, very good sale in the select sale. Obviously, different kind of horses, but still. There’s a vibrancy to the market and just being here the last couple weeks, there seem to be a lot of young people in town. Looks like racing is becoming cool again, which is really exciting for everybody in this industry. I brought three really nice New York-breds up here. A very good Corniche, obviously freshman sire stands at Coolmore. Mo Donegal stands at Spendthrift Farm, really sort of typey, early-looking horse. Sharp Azteca out of Truth Goddess. Truth Goddess is the dam of Her Laugh, who had 30 points on the Kentucky Oaks trail this year. She got hurt in the Fair Grounds Oaks and she just went back into training here last week. A lot of exciting things. They’re the right horses for the marketplace, but overall activity has been steady. It should be a positive sale. All the regular crowd are here, and some people I haven’t seen before.”
Kerry Cauthen, Four Star Sales: “We’ve got a number of good horses here. I’ve got a Good Magic that I really like, an Early Voting that I like, that people are picking up. We’ve got quite a nice group of horses overall and we’re looking forward to seeing which ones they decide they like the most.”
Sarah Sutherland, Indian Creek: “Everybody is pretty optimistic and has a little bounce in their step off of last week. I’m sure you’ll see that enthusiasm carry over here and on to the sales in September and October as well. It’s been very steady all morning. With more horses on the grounds here, everybody has a place where they like to start and a way they organize themselves. We’re not slammed, but we’re very steady and consistent. This is probably one of the best groups top to bottom that we’ve brought here. We’re represented by some really nice stallions, some proven horses as well as some young freshman sires, so it’s kind of a good mix. There’s a little bit of something for everybody. It’d be hard to sort of peg a couple over the others.”
Chris Shelli, Fort Christopher’s Thoroughbreds: “We’re just really excited after the showing at the select sale. We’re very optimistic and we’re hoping some of that transcends into the New York-bred sale. From the beginning of this morning, we’ve been very busy, so we’re very happy with the traffic and the showings so far. We have a really nice Nyquist in this consignment and as hot as Vekoma is, we’re excited to have two Vekomas as well.”
Marshall Silverman, Marshall Silverman: “I’m optimistic. It is what it is. They like the Drain The Clocks and I know he’s as nice as any of them that are here. I’m optimistic that he sells well. He’s a very well-balanced horse, he’s correct, he’s got plenty of bone. Just a good colt. He’s the only one I had this year to bring. I like coming up here. I could’ve sold him in the Maryland sale, but I figured I’d just come up here since he is a New York-bred. We’ll see what happens. You get a bigger audience.”
Colin Brennan, Colin Brennan Bloodstock: “We’ve brought a pretty solid group up here. I’m really looking forward to it. … We scratched down to nine (from 11). Probably the Mandaloun filly, Hip 600, is probably going to be the standout. Hip 326, by Cyberknife out of One Time Baby, should also do quite well. But it’s a solid group and it’s hard to pick apart the rest of them. I’m quite happy with what we brought up here. They all deserve to be here … Hip 344, Cyberknife out of Queen Bess, (after saying hello to some kids through the fence) is very sweet. My sister and I both have little kids that are always in the barns, and we prepped all but one of these yearlings so they’re quite accustomed to little kids and getting pets on a regular basis.”
Sarah Estrada, C&S Thoroughbreds: “The Drain The Clock (Hip 360) filly is a very useful horse. Not only for pinhookers but for end users as well. The Central Banker filly (Hip 539), her half-brother sold for $700,000 as a 2-year-old. And the Pinehurst (Hip 595) is very forward … There’s plenty of foot traffic and people are here to buy horses. We haven’t stopped since 8 a.m.”
Tom Eastham, Legacy Bloodstock: “I’m really encouraged. Generally, I’m an optimist, so you’ll probably get more of a positive spin off me. But I’m really encouraged about the enthusiasm with the horse business. Now, some people are saying it’s the depreciation. The tax depreciation that has motivated sales and boosts that we’ve had. We’re doing a good job with our product. The tracks are getting more aware of the customer service aspect of it and the owner experience. This sale’s going to be good, but I think it’s an accumulation of a lot of different factors. It’s good timing for us to be good and tax depreciation is going to make it be really great.”
Hip 400, a colt by Life Is Good, waits his turn this weekend. He’s the final yearling in the ring Sunday. Hannah Bonczkowski Photo.
Becky Thomas, Sequel New York: “I have two Yaupons that have been very popular so far. We have a Nashville and a nice Life is Good that have both been very nice. It’s hard because I’m a 2-year-old consignor. It’s hard for me to decide which horse to sell or which horses to train and raise. For me, it’s mostly driven by cashflow. Do I need money? We’ve got to put some horses in here. That’s about it. I love training. Every one of these horses are homebreds. All of them live at our farm except one. It allows us to see how to breed the mare next time, how they mature and what we’re looking at. We get so much more money for the regional horses the further we go, and the closer we are to racing. People want horses to be ready to go for Saratoga and the Belmont Fall meet. It’s much more effective as these horses are ready to go.”
Bill Johnson, Turning Point Bloodstock: “We’ve got a lot of sire power in our group this year. Really good physicals. We’ll see how the market likes us … This is overall a really solid group. They’re just different physicals, different horses in general. We have the brother of Mo Plex (Hip 316) going in the ring. We have Hip 374, a Twirling Candy out of Sister Margaret. We’ve got a lot of updates just across the board. Almost half of our horses have something that did something somewhere recently. We’re excited about those. There’s always those horses that everybody is looking at. Then there’s a handful of horses that will kind of sneak up on people. I have a Volatile out of Lemon Drop Kitty (Hip 592) that I think is going to make somebody very happy as an owner. Liam’s Map (Hip 509) and Nashville (Hip 409), too. These horses are definitely checking the boxes here. … Everybody gets excited about the sale. We’re ready to start selling.”
Martha Jane Mulholland, Mulholland Springs: “There are several that I love. Hip 500, the Uncle Mo out of Cry Value, is exquisite. She’s quite beautiful, lovely walk. Big hip, nice family, half to a stakes horse. The way Uncle Mo’s were received last week, there’s no telling what this horse could bring. I’m looking forward to it.”
Pat Costello, Paramount Sales: “Especially after last week, you have to feel confident it’s going to be a good market. The other thing, too, is they’re going to be running for the same purses as the open horses next year, so that has to encourage people with the New York-breds, too.”
Jim Perrone, Perrone Sales: “We’ve got two nice horses, they’ve been well received thus far, and just about everybody from the first sale is still here looking. We’re in the perfect spot, the weather is beautiful, we like it. The market is wonderful. This is a little bit different, but I do think it’s going to carry over. People are anxious to get nice horses. The Speaker’s Corner is out of a mare Passe. She’s produced a really nice Grade 1 horse who also produced a Grade 1 winner. The family is wonderful, good racehorses.”
Jorge Gonzalez, Point of Gravity Thoroughbreds: “I think I have a well-balanced horse (Hip 370). She’s going to become a really nice, athletic filly. Obviously, she’s got a long way to go because she’s a May foal, but I love her. She’s got a good mind, discipline. I think she’s going to be a great horse.”
Austin Winfrey, Straight Line Equine Sales: “Pretty high expectations. We brought a good group up here. We bought most of them out of the sale up here last year in October. They have all come together really well. They’ve got good pedigrees, good physicals. They stand out really well with the group that’s up here.”
Francis Vanlangendonck, Summerfield: “The number of people and the quality of people that are looking today are really good. I watched the horses ship in, and there were so many good horses. The New York breeders do such a great job of bringing in good pedigrees and raising them where they look like an athlete that can compete. And then, they have the program with the New York-breds running for the same money as open horses. With all of those things together, I expect this to be a good sale.”
