September, Here We Come

tbh

tbh — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 01:49:56 GMT

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Sales Yearling: Stallion Choices

The Five-Cross Files — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:56:28 GMT

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re: September, Here We Come

MrElmero — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 18:55:12 GMT

Also, how important is that state bred/state foaled when it comes to the yearling sale ring?

Scot's reply: Important. It's hard to compare apples to apples since pedigrees are likely to be more important to sales prices, but foals bred in states with strong incentive funds almost always outperform similarly-bred foals that are not eligible for such rewards.

re: September, Here We Come

MrElmero — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:53:23 GMT

Scott

What does it cost to send your yearlings for sale prep? This is something that has to be figured into the business of being profitable. Also, do you do anything to the yearlings to help their confirmation when they are babies? I have heard of surgeries being done at a young age to help correct faults. What do you know about this?

Scot's reply: Yearling sales prep depends on your location and the class of the foal. I figure most yearlings need 90 days of pre-sale prep. At $25/day, that's $2,250. At $40/day, the figure is $3,600. I've been lucky and haven't had to deal with major conformational defaults. I've worked with my farrier to do corrective trimming, but I generally shy away from surgery unless medically necessary. I support a "full disclosure" policy for any corrective procedure when a weanling, yearling, or horse of racing age is being sold.

re: September, Here We Come

MrElmero — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 18:19:52 GMT

What are the requirements for the yearling sales? I know I can not just take any yearling to the sale and sell it. This is the part of the business I desire to get involved with so when purchasing my mare I want to make sure I am going to purchase something that will produce a yearling that will be able to be entered in the big sales. As we talked earlier I am going to look for a diamond in the rough but I want to make sure I can get a return on my investment and build my investment. I will start very small with rather inexpensive horses by doing my homework and building my way up to the level most people are on who participate in this blog. With that being said how picky are these sales? Your thoughts?

Scot's reply: Starting with "rather inexpensive" horses means one of two things: 1/ you're willing to train and race the first few foals to "prove" the mare, or 2/ you're willing to lose some money for several years while you learn the ropes. Most small breeders lose money because breeding is a numbers game. Many successful large breeding operations figure they'll lose money on 7 out of 8 foals, but the eighth foal will bring enough to cover the losses and have enough left for profit. If you're only breeding a couple of mares a year, you don't have the numbers on your side (I speak from experience!). ... As for the sales, most yearling auctions are "open sales" that accept any/all entries. There are state-bred and "selected" sales that have individual requirements. If you want to know the rules for a particular sale, check the sales company's Web site or request a nomination form (it will include any requirements).

re: September, Here We Come

polly h. — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:38:22 GMT

my father owned/part owned a race horse in the 50's and i have his silks and two copies of cahokia downs programs from 1959. looking for information on these. could you advise. i enjoy reading your blogs. thank you

Scot's reply: Neat! Google offers a huge array of information on Cahokia Downs... a good place to start. Join a "racing history" discussion group/chat room to see if you can locate anyone who has first-hand memories of the racecourse. Keep digging!

re: September, Here We Come

catnip lane — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 18:55:41 GMT

i find it interesting that you've mentioned your mare's produce sale prices, but not how they've performed at the races. With as many foals as she's produced, you should have an idea if they are competitive on the track. At this point in her breeding career, i would think that the performance or lack of in her offspring should significantly affect the sale price of the yearling.

Scot's reply: Six foals of racing age... four winners ... three repeat winners ... one stakes-placed winner that's still running ... and a 3-year-old that has run six times, placed twice, and will run again this coming Saturday, for a low-end tag. Only one black type foal (and he happens to have been the least expensive yearling), so she hasn't had a break-out foal to this point.

re: September, Here We Come

davisondad — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 18:21:30 GMT

I love the mares from the ack ack line. Were you breeding for speed in this cross? Do her foals tend to be on the small side? If so, I think a cross to Point Given would certainly add the needed size, throw in a double dose of Native Dancer that is missing from her pedigree and bring back her sires Classic distances, what do you think?

Scot's reply: I've seen race footage of some of Brush Back's earlier foals, and I went to see her 2005 Officer colt when he was being sold as a yearling. They appeared to be a bit bigger than my '07 colt. I bred Brush Back back to Honour and Glory and she has an '08 suckling filly that looks like she'll be fairly big. Why Honour and Glory? Check back over the weekend!

re: September, Here We Come

WT — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 14:29:36 GMT

I thought the dispute over Big Picture is that he had been heel nerved and it was not disclosed pre-sale.

re: September, Here We Come

KAB — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 04:31:29 GMT

I WISH YOU WELL ON THIS JOURNEY TO THE AUCTION RING WITH YOUR COLT. I WILL READ YOUR POSTINGS AND LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR OUTLOOK/COMMENTS ON THE EXPERIENCE.

I KNOW YOU ARE NOT SOLICITING ADVICE HOWEVER THAT $600,000 SALE OF THE COLT "BIG PICTURE" WAS DISPUTED. UNDER THE THREAT OF LAWSUIT, IT WAS SETTLED OUT COURT. I KNOW THE SELLER WAS K. RAMSEY AND THE BUYER WAS P. REDDAM BUT MY MEMORY FAILS ME AS TO THE REASONS FOR THE DISPUTE.

I HOPE THE ECONOMY IMPROVES FOR THE SAKE OF YOUR SALE. I WOULD SUGGEST THAT YOU SET A RESERVE, IF IT'S NOT MET, THEN BREAK/TRAIN THE HORSE FOR THE RACE TRACK, & RACE HIM. DON'T HAVE HIM PREPARED FOR THE TWO YEAR OLD SALES, I HAVE SEEN TOO MANY HORSES THAT DEVELOP PROBLEMS BECAUSE OF BEING PUSHED TOO SOON, AND GROOMED ONLY FOR THE SALE.

Scot's reply: Thanks for your comments. ... Reserve prices: another great topic to address in a future post! ... As for the sale of Big Picture, both parties agreed that the sale occurred as reported; the question was whether the colt had an undisclosed injury before the sale. (Original BloodHorse.com articles here and here.) ... I agree with you about 2-year-old sales -- they encourage overly aggressive training practices. Which gives me a chance to send kudos to Frank Stronach's Adena Springs, whose policy is to show their juveniles under tack without fast works. Thank you for responsible leadership!

September, Here We Come

The Five-Cross Files — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 04:14:48 GMT

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