This year the most expensive (although not very pricey, comparing to others) was [color=red]Ch. Blue Rabbit (created). She is also the horse number 10000 in the game! She is currently silver ranked, her oldest foal is stakes placed. In foal to Deep Impact, which I like and I wanted to strengthen his line at Clicker Lab. I’ll probably breed her to one of my stallions.
Price: $100,500.
Next, a racehorse [color=red]I’m No Mystery (FFCh. I’m No Fool x NCh. Mysterious Miss / WCh. Highland Mystery). I now have seven mares by I’m No Fool! Four 2yo’s bred by me, one weanling and two older mares. I’m No Mystery is stakes placed, but she’s spent two years at Santa Anita and had lots of training. For now she just had one workout and we’ll race her till the end of year, then probably retire to broodmare.
Price: $90,500.
Broodmare [color=red]Ch. Rally The Troops (War Chant x Answer To Me / Alydar). Speed record on turf and stakes winner. Her dam is gold ranked. Not in foal, so will be bred early next year.
Price: $25,000.
Also broodmare [color=red]Ch. Sirona (Ch. Irish River x GCh. Rhiannon / Man O’War). Another stakes winner with speed record on turf, no foals and not in foal.
Price: $25,000.
I also decided to focus on good broodmares and youngstock. I feel compared to prior years I got away with murder in what I paid.
Nabbed top choice [color=red]Wild Oats (Unnamed before, undecided on name), a Strike it Rich yearling out of Ch. Worth Her Oats (Gold, Reine-de-Course). Dam was MSW of over 500k, 4 speed records, and has produced 2 MSW’s from 3 runners. I want to strengthen Strike it Rich’s foals now that he’s in the barn and felt she was a steal at 25k.
First of the nice broodmares to add to our herd is [color=red]Ch. Seeking Sadler (Sadlers Wells x Seeking the Fire). G1W and MSP. She’s already silver ranked with a SW and SP between two foals and comes in foal to Run Jenny Run. Picked up for 34k.
[color=red]Ch. Cross Your Heart (Steal Your Heart x Cross My Heart). Mostly picked up for her damline, as she’s half to As You Wish and several stakes producers, and her dam is half to my mare, Passing Fancy (Gold, 3 SW’s from 4 runners/winners). She’s MSP with 1 foal, a 2yo, who is FF-owned/campaigned. Purchased for 25k.
[color=red]Only Wonder (Prince of Wonder x Only Ask). Unraced in 2 years, but a big mahogany bay, MSP, has hit the board 6/8 times. She’s only five so hoping a few months at the farm will give her a nice breather to race a few more times being joining the broodmare herd. Half to 4 MSW’s. Bought for 25k.
[color=blue]Unnamed (Yes It’s Paddy x Autumn Melodies). Out of gold-ranked Autumn Melodies, he is half to MSW/millionaire GCh. Autumn Cat. Picked up for 25k.
Got 4 of our top 5 selections, but lost the 5th one to Windward Farm.
Top pick was [color=blue]FFCh. I’m No Fool, 11yo Stallion by [color=blue]FFCh. Foolhardy § out of [color=red]Highland Gold (G). He will hopefully fill the shoes left by his illustrious Sire, who died last year. He himself is Silver-Rated. Got him for $2,250,500 which was quite a bit less than I thought he’d go for.
Next pick was [color=red]Ch. I Can Only Imagine (G), 9yo Broodmare by [color=blue]GCh. Worth My While (G) out of [color=red]Beyond Imagination (S). Her sire is a Chef-de-Race and is the Sire of one of our resident Stallions [color=blue]NCh. Worthy Victor. Her Dam is a Reine-de-Course and is the Dam of one of our Platinum-Rated broodmares, [color=red]Ch. Minaret. I was originally drawn to this pick because of her name, having just seen the movie by that name this summer (a great movie and a bit of a tear-jerker, although they are happy tears). She cost $200,000. She will probably go to [color=blue]FFCh. I’m No Fool next year.
Our third pick was [color=blue]Life Imitates Art, a 5yo by [color=blue]FFCh. I’m No Fool (S) out of [color=red]WCh. Easy Decision (G). Consistent horse, although he hasn’t raced since 2020 (this inactivity was not through injury). He cost $34,000.
Our fourth pick was an Unnamed yearling by [color=blue]WCh. Sponsored out of [color=red]Key To Glory (S). She has since been named [color=red]Key Sponsor. She cost $875,500.
We currently have one more active bid in and have a couple of “wait-until-Shanthi-increases-the-limits” prospects.
Managed to get our two top choices with the other three we’d hoped to get going well over budget. Still managed to come home with five and as we managed to pick up the majority for their reserves, hopefully they’ll earn back their purchase prices.
Previously unnamed yearling [color=blue]Archipelago was our top choice and most expensive purchase at $175,500. We picked up his sire Quarren at this sale a few years ago and are hopeful his son can follow in his footsteps. His dam is GCh Fanfare (What’s It Worth) who was a MSW on both dirt and turf. She’s also half to several stakes level performers including ICh Bay of Biscay and WCh Noteasybeinggreen.
Our second choice was [color=red]Bellagio’s Girl, a 6yo racemare by Bellagio out of Gold-ranked broodmare, NCh Set The Sails. She won a stakes race at 3 but didn’t race again after two starts that year until earlier this year - I’d like to think she may have been more talented than her race record suggests as 6 of her 7 siblings to race are SP or better. She’ll join the (ever expanding) broodmare band next year. Purchased for her reserve of $25,000.
[color=red]Agreeable Bell is a lightly raced 4yo by Golden Text. She’s only had two starts, both this year under FF management. She’s been switched to SC already but managed a third place in a stakes race on her first start. We opted to bring her home based on her dam-side pedigree - she’s out of Silver Devil, a daughter of Silver Skies who’s broodmare daughters have a pretty strong record in the paddocks. Hopefully this mare will show some talent.
[color=red]Dare To Try, a 3yo filly by Worthy Victor out of Platinum-ranked Canyoutopthis, was our second most expensive purchase at $45,000. She’s yet to win this year but is MSP.
[color=blue]Dr Faustus completes the line-up. A weanling by Golden Text out of created mare Devil’s Minstrel. Dam was unraced but has produced one stakes winner and 2 SP runners. 5 of her 7 foals to race are winners. Purchased for $25,000.
Won our 5th horse from this Auction, [color=blue]Navy Cross, a 4yo by [color=blue]NCh. In The Navy (S) out of [color=red]GCh. Splendid Silence (G). He is by one of our resident stallions and his Dam is Gold-Rated. He currently has a 33% win percentage. He cost $1,000.
Now to wait for the “wait-until-Shanthi-increases-the-limits” prospects!!! LOL!
Brought home our fifth, with pending bids on another 3 after Shanthi raised the limits because I have a problem, haha.
[color=blue]Ode to Autumn, a weanling by our late stud NCh. Yes It’s Paddy out of the silver-ranked Reine-de-Course mare Autumn Melodies. He’s half to MSW and millionaire GCh. Autumn Cat and 4 other winners. Bought for 25k.
Didn’t get any of my top picks, but I’ve already got so many horses, I didn’t fight too hard for anybody either. Lol. Picked up a few here toward the end though, because I have an unhealthy addiction to buying horses. Paid $25k for each.
The first is [color=red]Diversion, a 2014 mare by GCh. Highland Laird (S) and Ch. Detour (G). No foals yet, and being raced by Final Furlong, her true running potential is unknown, but if she produces as well as her dam, she’ll be well worth the price paid.
Next is [color=red]Flashy Wish, a 3YO ICh. Sleipnir (B) filly. She’s already stakes placed, so should be able to hold her own on the track with some good training.
Last but not least, a weanling colt by ICh. Unabridged (G) and Ch. Behind The Mask (B). Hoping he’ll live up to his sire’s reputation. For now he’s being called [color=blue]Plot Hole.
Picked up a final three at 25k each. Overall, only spent $209,000 for 8 horses from the Select Auction. I think I’ve done worse with just 3 horses in prior years.
[color=red]Mandalay Bay (Blue Smoke x Las Vegas). Weanling filly, named for a Luxury hotel in Vegas, Of her 4 raced half-sibs, one is champion-titled and a SW and one has hit the board in all 5 of her lifetime starts. Gimme A Shot is gold as a damsire, so fingers crossed. Las Vegas is also half to the dam of NCh. Crafty Magic.
[color=blue]Folkloriques (French Ruby x Folk Song). Formerly named The People’s Song, yearling colt purchased from Coleman Branch. His dam set 2 speed records at SC, Folkloriques is a full sibling to Ch. Cabrette who is SP over jumps, and half to Twelve Bar Blues who has won 6/9 SC starts and has been off the board just once. Given Ruby’s tendency to throw jump foals, he should be a jump monster once he ages.
[color=red]Mord’Sith (Must Be Magic x Queen of Scots). Set a speed record and was G2P while racing. Half to gold-ranked Ch. Marie de Guise and silver-ranked Ch. Spectacular Queen. I don’t have any Must Be Magic daughters and he’s gold for damsire, so very happy to pick her up.