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What a sweet week I had. I was able to go to Keeneland 4 times for the January Horses of All Ages Sale. It was a moving experience as always.
This sale featured hip numbers 1 thru 1796. Of these, 1,040 Thoroughbreds sold versus 948 for this same sale last year. I arrived the day prior to the sale and the grounds were bustling with horsemen, prospective buyers and of course, the horses we love so much. The sale ran from Monday 1/11 thru Friday 1/15/16. The 5 day session was a full day longer than the previous year. On opening day, the auction began with hip 3 after the first 2 horses, and several more were “out” for various reasons. Hip 3, seen above in the Keeneland sales pavilion, is Captive Melody. She was consigned by an agent for Claiborne Farm. At a price of $70,000 she didn’t really get sold. She is listed as “RNA”, reserve not attained. This was the case with several of the horses at the auction. Captive Melody is 13 years old. She was sired by Unbridled’s Song and she did race. Her earnings are over $117,000 and she is pregnant with Malibu Moon’s foal. I find her to be very pretty.
Many horses did fetch a good price. Hip 259 was Summer Solo. She is a 5 year old daughter of Arch, in foal by Ghostzapper. She was consigned by Denali Stud for the dispersal of Sarah J. Leigh’s estate. She was purchased by Payson Stud, Inc. Her half-sister, hip 260, is Summer Sweet. Sired by More Than Ready, this 2 year old filly was also sold by Denali to Payson. These beauties were sale toppers at $700,000 and $550,000 respectively.
Virginia Kraft Payson bought the above Arch filly, hip 230, from Denali as well. She fetched $450,000. Payson was this sale’s top buyer. In all, the sale grossed over $35 million dollars. It made $158,000 more than the 2015 January sale and should be considered a success.
The crowd released audible coos when hip 76, Grenobloise, entered with her 5 day old baby. What a doll! I heard from Taylor Made Sales Agency, the leading consignor with 92 horses sold, that several babies were born in the Keeneland stalls during the sale. Grenobloise and her baby were also RNA. They were consigned by Buckland Sales.
I couldn’t attend on Tuesday but on Wednesday I saw 4 of the top 5 sale prices for that session. Seen above are hip 828, a filly by More Than Ready for $95,000, hip 917, Ready For Romance for $240,000, hip 927, Rock Me Mama for $90,000 and 945, a colt sired by Shanghai Bobby for $105,000.
Prom Time, hip 1271 and a colt by Super Saver, 1314, were the two top prices on Thursday. Each can be seen above. Eaton Sales consigned Prom Time. She was sold to Warrendale Sales. The colt was consigned by Hidden Brook and sold to Calumet Farm.
The best thing about Thursday is that it was the first time I was warm enough to roam the grounds freely. I saw some nice short yearlings and some stallions too. That is one of the pleasures of this sale. It is such a mixed bag. This sale offers horses that have raced, that will race, great broodmare prospects, stallions, you name it! Not only are they all ages but they are all kinds of pretty too. I likes the grays, especially the ones that almost look white. See some of the lovelies below.
I didn’t make it out yesterday but I see that it closed strong and the final horse was hip 1795, a gray or roan colt sired by Uncle Mo. Consigned by Brandywine Farm, this little guy sold to Eico Ventures for $80,000, the top price of the day.
I will have to wait until September 12th thru 24th to see the next Keeneland sale. It will feature yearlings. Fortunately, Fasig-Tipton has a Winter Mixed sale in Lexington February 8-9th. Perhaps, I can venture out then. Stay warm my friends and keep watching for my next post.
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