A horse for every occasion

By Nigel Reid

The Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society (CTHS) has attracted a healthy 31 entries for its Horses of Racing Age sale, including an eye-catching collection of 17 two-year-olds in training.

Much of the interest in the sale, organised for the first time by the CTHS and slated for Hastings’ racetrack on 16 March, will be centered upon the 22 entries consigned by the ‘Hole in the Wall Gang’.

This major draft is the result of a bold initiative by the BC industry’s key players and is aimed at boosting the number of horses in training at Hastings for the coming season. The majority of the consignment is an 11-strong draft of two-year-olds originally purchased for relatively modest prices at Fasig-Tipton in October 2018.

All horses consigned by the Hole in the Wall Gang are to be sold without reserve under the condition that papers remain in the race office at Hastings for the duration of the track’s 2019 racing season. As a Condition of Sale, purchasers undertake to race their purchased horse exclusively at Hastings for the duration of the 2019 season.

Included among the youngsters bought in Kentucky are half-siblings to a hatful of winners, as well as representatives of sires capable of getting very smart runners and including familiar names such as Paddy O’Prado, Macho Uno, Colonel John, Stay Thirsty, Creative Cause and Cowboy Cal.

The costs of purchasing, shipping and sustaining Kentucky-sold yearlings through to their debut two-year-old start can be prohibitive, so this extremely welcome initiative offers prospective owners and trainers a unique opportunity to secure a horse that might otherwise fall outside budget considerations.

Highlights among the Fasig-Tipton yearling purchases include DEW TELL, a March-foaled daughter of the late Paddy O’Prado out of a winner-producing Fusaichi Pegasus mare; MACHINE, a son of Colonel John out of a half-sister to a Stakes winner from the family of Shaman Ghost; and CAUSIN’ HAVOC, a gelded son of Creative Cause out of a Mineshaft mare who is a daughter of the G3 winner, Vegas Prospector.

Also included among the Hole in the Wall consignment is a small but high-quality batch of older horses formerly campaigned by Swift Thoroughbreds and, again, offered without reserve.

The Swift draft should interest prospective purchasers looking to secure ready-to-run horses, such as previous Hastings’ winners BEAR, HORST and EZEKIEL, as well as the placed BUCK. Both Buck and Bear are by Super Saver, a stallion who has, according to his WinStar Farm home, “made the best start for a Kentucky Derby winner since Seattle Slew.”

BC breeders looking to upgrade their paddocks will be interested in several of the horses on offer at Hastings, including the Swift-campaigned OMI, a Stakes-placed daughter of the mighty Rosberg from a family littered with Black Type through the first two dams.

Other sales entries that might eventually grace BC paddocks, once their racing careers are finished, include UNION OBSESSION, a multiple winner and daughter of Union Rags from one of those Ken and Sarah Ramsey families crammed with winners by Kitten’s Joy.

The five-year-old mare SEEKING BULL, meanwhile, is by Flashy Bull out of the Stakes-placed Seeking The Gold mare, Seeking Sheba.

Potential breeders might also want to inspect COMMERCIAL APPEAL, a winning seven-year-old Successful Appeal half-sister to no less than six winners.

Three juveniles offered for sale represent the first crop of BC-based sire, Bakken. Part of the Hole in the Wall draft, TILTED is a half-sister to the Redekop British Columbia Cup Classic runner-up Till The Storm, while REFRIED DREAMS, consigned by Red Rock Farm, is the first foal from Remarkable Lady, a winning full-sister to the multiple Hastings Stakes winner, Remarkable Miss and a half-sibling to the likes of Strate Remark, Trick Of The North and Sunnyside Gal.

The third BAKKEN in the catalogue is consigned by Soarin Holdings and is out of a Macho Uno mare from the family of French G3 winner, Northern Premier, as well as a host of other Stakes performers.

Unraced as two-year-olds, the Paul Caravetta-consigned sophomore duo may catch the attention of anyone looking for horses with potential to progress. WEEKEND ACTION, by Second In Command, out of the Stakes-placed Lady General, is a full sister to Stakes winner Fair Command and a half-sister to Stakes Placed Lady Cash, while the Kentucky-bred BUCKIN ROSIE, by Belmont Stakes winner Drosselmeyer, is from a strong Stakes-performing family.

Tommy Bloy, as agent, offers a trio of three-year-olds for sale who are not only all BC bred, but also proved up to the challenge of two-year-old campaigns. DIXIE’S WILCARD and SUWALKASWILDCAT are by the speedy Canmor-based sire, Texas Wildcatter, while COMMANDING NOTICE is another representative of perennial leading BC sire, Second In Command.

Consigned as the sole representative of Glen Todd, SPOKANE’S GEM is a BC-bred with some solid racetrack form and the potential to go on to greater things. He ran well on several occasions last season without winning, making him a desirable option for trainers seeking maximum flexibility from any future campaign.

Unraced two-year-olds, lightly raced three-year-olds, a smattering of older male horses with plenty of miles on the clock and a selection of older fillies and mares with alluring pedigrees should ensure something for everyone and, hopefully, at most price points. The first ever CTHS Horses of Racing Age Sale reflects the typically adventurous spirit of everyone involved with running racing and breeding in BC - here’s hoping that buyers and sellers alike are rewarded accordingly.