Shackleford Filly Fastest at OBS Under Tack Show

A Shackleford filly sped a quarter-mile in :20 4/5 to post the fastest time during the July 6 first under tack show session in preparation for the Ocala Breeders' Sales July 2-Year-Olds and Horses of Racing Age Sale.

The auction takes place in Ocala, Fla., July 14-16, with sessions beginning at 10 a.m. ET daily. The catalog consists of 1,114 entries, and as of 2 p.m. Monday there had been 274 withdrawals.

Jesse Hoppel, who has the filly named Shack's Lil Mishap consigned as Hip 15 under his Coastal Equine banner, said the OBS track was playing slower Monday than in recent days but that didn't faze his filly. .

"We knew this filly would go in :20 and change, but with the slow track today I just didn't know if it would be :20 2/5 or :20 4/5," he said. "She prepped in :21 and we were holding her down pretty good so we knew she was going to go fast."

The filly is out of the Indian Charlie mare Peace Queen, a half sister to Tizaqueena who won the Churchill Distaff Turf Mile Stakes (G2T) and Arlington Matron Stakes (G3) and placed in four other graded stakes including the First Lady (G1T) at Keeneland. Breeder James Doyle purchased Peace Queen for $10,000 at the 2013 Fasig-Tipton New York Saratoga Fall Mixed and Horses of Racing Age Sale from Eoin Harty's consignment.

While the Shackleford filly was alone at the top of the quarter-mile work tab, six juveniles shared the best eighth-mile time of :10.

The six :10 workers at an eighth-mile were:

• Hip 27 (Bobby Dodd, agent), a colt by Race Day —Pistolpackinsenora, by Closing Argument. Bred in Kentucky by Brad Grady and Misty Grady, the colt's second dam is stakes-placed Prospective Angel.
• Hip 49, (Brick City Thoroughbreds, agent), a filly by Into Mischief —Prospective Saint, by Saint Ballado. Bred in Kentucky by Mulholland Springs, the filly is out of a graded stakes-winning mare and is a half sister to grade 2-placed Island Saint. She was bought back on a final bid of $170,000 at this year's OBS March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training.
• Hip 66 (Grassroots Training & Sales, agent), a colt by Ride On Curlin —Rated Xtreme, by Magna Graduate , bred in Florida by Pinky Mendoza, and an $11,000 purchase at the 2019 OBS October Yearling Sale. The colt is out of a full sister to graded stakes winner Blueeyesintherein.
• Hip 82 (Eddie Woods, agent), a filly by Frosted —Ride to Houston, by Candy Ride . Bred in Kentucky by Whisper Hill Farm, she was bought back for $275,000 at last year's The Saratoga Sale, Fasig-Tipton's select yearling sale. The filly's dam is a half sister to grade 2 winner Runway Model, the dam of grade 1 winner McKinzie.
• Hip 115, (Wavertree Stables, Ciaran Dunne, agent), a filly by Malibu Moon —Samsational, by Unbridled's Song. Bred in Kentucky by Newtownanner Stud, the filly was a $125,000 purchase at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton October Yearling Sale. The filly's dam is a half sister to grade 1 winner I Want Revenge.
• Hip 143, (Bobby Dodd, agent), a filly by Tale of Ekati —Shelby's Song, by Songandaprayer. The filly was also bred in Kentucky by Brad Grady and Misty Grady and is from the family of stakes winner Sapphire Beads.

The workouts that continue through July 11 were interrupted in late morning twice by brief rain showers that did not seem to affect the breeze show.

"The great thing about our racetrack is it can take rain," OBS sales director Tod Wojciechowski said of the artificial surface.

Traditionally held in June, the sale was rescheduled this year due to the 2-year-old sales calendar being disrupted as a result of the effects of COVID-19.

Hoppel said Monday's weather was milder than it generally is in North Central Florida in July and that he and other consignors were taking necessary precautions to protect the horses in their care.

"Last week, when we were prepping it was extremely hot, but it looks like this week it's subsided just a touch," Hoppel said. "The more comfortable our horses are the better they do for us. We're using fans, water, and baths, just anything we can do to help them settle in better is better for them and us."

Wojciechowski said OBS has scheduled the breeze show so it doesn't extend into the hottest part of the day and that having a covered chute for the horses to wait before their workouts helps ease the effects of the weather.

The under tack show continues July 7, beginning at 7:30 a.m.