Half Ours, Shackleford Colts Sizzle in OBS Workouts

Precocious colts by Half Ours  and Shackleford sizzled on the Ocala Breeders' Sales synthetic track June 8 in preparation for next week's July 2-Year-Olds and Horses of Racing Age Sale.

Breezing a quarter-mile in :20 1/5, the fastest time at the distance during the first three breeze shows, was the Half Ours colt consigned by Blue River Bloodstock as Hip 383.

Purchased for $8,000 from Kelli Mitchell, agent, at last year's OBS October Yearling Sale, the Louisiana-bred colt was produced from the winning Into Mischief  mare All About Ju Ju.

Blue River's Sergio Centeno said he anticipated a fast workout from the colt, based upon how the bay has performed at his Florida training center. The colt was targeted for the OBS June Sale, which was rescheduled to July 14-16.

"I expected him to work good, but not that fast," Centeno said. "We started breaking him a little later because we knew he was going to be in the June sale. He always trained well at the farm, and he prepped really good here at OBS."

Earlier in the session, a Shackleford colt zipped the quarter-mile in :20 2/5, the under tack show's fastest breeze time until it was eclipsed later in the day.

Named Capri's Son, the colt is cataloged as Hip 492 by Fabian Garcia's Fabian Sales. Garcia purchased the colt for $3,500 during the 11th day of last year's Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Garcia, an exercise rider for Eddie Woods who also worked on the track as a groom for Nick Zito, said he was surprised with how fast the colt breezed Wednesday, although he had always shown that potential on the farm. 

"From the first time I breezed him, he showed that he could do it," said Garcia, who has been buying and selling horses for four years and has seven remaining in the OBS sale after scratches. "I was expecting him to go in :21 or :20 4/5, but not :20 2/5. He told me he can be a good horse."

The colt was bred in Kentucky by H. Ray Horn, who purchased his dam, the unraced More Than Ready  mare Capri Song, for $11,000 at the 2017 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale while carrying the Shackleford colt in utero.

Garcia said he was surprised he was able to buy the colt for the price he paid, noting the colt's position late in the Keeneland September sale may have been a factor. He noted he was attracted to the colt because of the female family and that he had good luck with a Shackleford colt last year that was bought privately for $20,000 and sold for $70,000.

Fabian Sales also has another Shackleford colt in the sale, Hip 857, that is out of multiple grade 1 winner Life At Ten, whose lack of effort in the 2010 Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic (G1) at Churchill Downs led to a years' long investigation by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission and charges brought against then-chief Kentucky state steward John Veitch.

Sharing the day's and overall under tack show's fastest eighth-mile time of :10 were five juveniles.

Hip 428, consigned by Hartley/DeRenzo Thoroughbreds, agent, is a filly from the first crop of Runhappy  produced from stakes winner Bamboo Dream, who descends from the direct female family of champion Amazombie. The Oregon-bred filly was purchased for $70,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October Yearlings Sale.

Offered by Hoppel's Horse and Cattle Co., Hip 473 is an Ontario-bred daughter of Palace Malice  out of the winning Holy Bull mare Breech Inlet, the dam of stakes-placed Merveilleux. The colt's second dam, the winning Storm Cat mare Muneefa, produced grade 2 winner Bauble Queen, the dam of grade 3 winner Blitzkrieg, and stakes winner Leamington.

Hip 502 is a Midshipman  filly consigned by Vargas Sales, agent, that is from the female family of grade 1 winner and sire Geri and grade 2 winner A. P. Arrow. The Kentucky-bred filly is out of the Greatness mare Cat Ten, whose dam, Storm Royale, is a full sister to stakes-placed Flashstorm. She was purchased for $5,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Offered by Oscar Brown Stables, Hip 510 is a filly from the first crop of Not This Time  out of Champagne Sparkle, a Street Boss  mare who is a full sister to grade 1 winner Danza  and a half sister to grade 1 winner Majestic Harbor . The Kentucky-bred filly was a $95,000 Keeneland September purchase.

Gene Recio, agent, sent out another of the speedy :10 workers in Hip 525, a Kentucky-bred Maclean's Music  filly out of the Arch mare Chokonni. The extended female family of the filly, named Pretty Lori, includes high class winners such as champion Althea and grade 1 winner Aldiza.

The under tack show continues through Saturday, with sessions beginning at 7:30 a.m. ET daily.