OBS March Sale a Welcomed Ray of Sunshine

The first juvenile sale of the year gets underway March 15 with the Ocala Breeders' Sales March 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale that has cataloged 635 horses for the two-day event.

Over the weekend the under tack show was disrupted by a tornado that touched down March 12 in southwest Ocala, pushing the final breezes to the next day. The sale begins Tuesday with a revised time of 1:00 p.m. ET to accommodate the additional time buyers required for their inspections.

"Fortunately, when we schedule the under tack shows and sales days, we tend to have those two days in between. We do live in Florida, and the weather changes with storms popping up frequently," OBS director of sales Tod Wojciechowski said. "However, we are prepared even though nobody likes to make those adjustments. Thankfully it all worked out and Friday we were able to have a longer day and breeze more horses while just north of us was getting hammered with the weather that gave way here on Saturday."

The under tack show began Thursday and ended Sunday, with Saturday being a dark day because of the weather. A Bayern  colt (Hip 139) breezed the fastest eighth-mile in :9 3/5 and 30 juveniles breezed in :9 4/5. The fastest quarter-mile was achieved by an Adios Charlie   filly (Hip 213) who went in :20 2/5, with four 2-year-olds sharing the next-fastest time of :20 3/5.

"This is going to be a good year; all of my horses breezed well here this week. Last year was very good for us, and I think this year will be even better," said Gerard Ochoa of GOP Racing Stable ahead of the sale. "I like everything I have in this consignment. I am big on freshman sire Good Magic  , and we have one (Hip 485) selling on the second day as well as Hip 253 a filly by Collected   for the first day."

All three days of the under tack show had different variables in the weather, both from the morning hours until the late afternoon, but similar times were turned in throughout the day.

"We have been doing 2-year-olds sales a long time and are pretty good at pulling them off. I think the history and experience over the years dealing with weather issues and having to rearrange things lends itself," commented Wojciechowski. "One thing is our track allows us to have the same surface over several days from morning to late afternoon. No other sales company breezes more 2-year-olds than us anywhere in the world. Our track works well for that, and our crew do a great job organizing and keeping things moving."

The weather didn't deter buyers from attending the under tack show, and by Monday morning, the sun was out in full force, and buyers were busy inspecting horses in the barns. Foot traffic was up and expectations high.

"For this sale we have five horses, all very nice colts. The breeze show went beautifully, we have all good solid clean vet reports, grade one throats, and everyone is behaving. As far as 2-year-old in training sales go, you can't expect more," said Liane Davis of Davis Breaking and Training. "The weather has been a huge factor. It's gone from thunderstorms to tornados to freezing cold, and they predict more rain for Tuesday. All of the horses have done wonderful, and we couldn't be more pleased."

"There is an old saying on the racetrack, 'You'll never kill yourself as long as you have a good 2-year-old in the barn,' because they keep you looking constant to the future," Davis said. "There are some bright spots in the future for racing."

The ongoing war in Ukraine have led some to worry about its impact on the financial markets. However, most consignors on the OBS sales grounds were more optimistic about the purse increases and rising handle at the tracks that seem to keep money flowing into the sales markets.

"Last year, we had to give more going in and there are fewer horses. With purses up, fewer horses, and our dollar not being worth as much, perhaps those three things have raised the prices of the yearling market, which means we have to get more for them as a 2-year-old," Coastal Equine's Jesse Hoppel explained. "I hope it transitions on down the line, and we can continue forward."

Consignor Tom McCrocklin shared a similar mentality, commenting: "I'm typically a nervous seller; I don't trust the market. We had a solid yearling market last year; I can't wrap my brain around why it was so strong; I have heard a lot of different reasons. The question all winter was if it would translate to the 2-year-old sales, and we are getting ready to find out. Having said that, we do the same thing, and the buyers tell us. They are the judge. We try to appeal to the masses."

The catalog this year contains horses with actively running and successful pedigrees; updates have continually rolled in since the catalog was printed. Most notably for the Nial Brennan consigned Hip 125, the Mendelssohn   fillies half sibling Simplification  scored in the Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) March 5 at Gulfstream Park. The Always Dreaming   colt is consigned by Wavertree Stables and is a half sibling to the Feb.19 Risen Star presented by Lemarque Ford (G2) winner. The opportunity to get in on the family of top Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) candidate Epicenter  is offered as Hip 121.

"This is a great sale to get the season started, and I am sure there are a lot of nice horses on the grounds. Our Mendelssohn filly (Hip 125) is a half to Simplification, so that was a big update. She is a beautiful filly and had a nice page regardless," Brennan said. "She's an exceptional individual with a super mind, a good mover, and has great balance; she's gorgeous and ticks all the boxes."

The first opportunity to watch offspring by this year's freshman sires draws plenty of excitement and accounts for 235 of the cataloged juveniles.

"One of our best breezing horses was the Tale of Verve   filly Hip 361. She has been by far our most popular horse in the shedrow," said Hoppel.

"I have a nice City of Light   filly (Hip 147), a very nice Army Mule   filly (Hip 185), and a lovely Bucchero   filly (Hip 341); those are our freshman sire offerings," McCrocklin said. "My West Coast   colt (Hip 305) is also excellent, and he worked well in 20.4."

Brennan brought over from Europe three Irish-bred individuals, all by popular overseas stallions.

"We have a sharp Invincible Spirit  filly (Hip 108); she is a real 2-year-old type and is ready to rock and roll. I like our Kingman  colt (Hip 178). He has done very well, and he will only continue to get better," Brennan commented. "I didn't know if this would work, bringing these pedigrees over allowing the American buyers to get in on one of the most impressive sires in Europe. You won't be able to pick up many Kingman's here, and they are tough to acquire in Europe as well; he is one of the most popular sires right now. It will be interesting to see how the market perceives it and if they are smart enough to jump on."

Tuesday's first day of selling will see Hips 1-316 through the ring beginning at 1:00 p.m., followed by Hips 317-635 Wednesday with a start time of 10:30 a.m. As of Monday afternoon, 142 horses have been withdrawn from the sale.