Even though it's a new year, the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. winter mixed sale was the victim of the same worldwide economic crisis that caused prices at many Thoroughbred auctions to plummet late in 2008. The gross revenue plunged 57.7% from a year ago while the average price and median price dropped 39.6% and 45.5%, respectively.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) winter mixed sale suffered downturns of 63% in its average price and 74.4% in its median price from a year ago as it opened with a consignor preferred session Jan. 6 in Central Florida. The gross revenue dropped 43% even though the number of horses sold was up 54.1% from 2008's first day total.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's 2009 Winter Mixed Sale begins Jan. 6 and a total of 613 horses are cataloged for the two-day sale, which begins with 264 horses in a Consignor Preferred Session. The single Open session is Jan. 7, with 349 horses cataloged. Both sessions begin at 11:00 a.m.
Ocala Breeders' Sales Company has hired Jim Ventura and Tod Wojciechowski as horsemen relations representatives. They will be visiting racetracks and training centers throughout the country in preparation for the 2-year-old sales season.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. has cataloged 613 horses for its 2009 winter mixed sale. The auction will be held Jan. 6 and 7 in Central Florida.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) recently revised the results for the 2008 August yearling sale on its Web site (www.obssales.com) because of new rules governing horse auctions in Florida that took effect in July. Sale companies now are required to disclose any horses that did not change ownership after being reported as sold.
Jim and Treasa Donnan and Terry Bailey's unbeaten Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) auction graduate Trinity Magic has been a blessing for Blessed Trinity Catholic Church in Ocala, Fla., since the 2-year-old colt was pinhooked out of a yearling sale in 2007, and the stakes are going up if he gets to the starting gate in the $1-million Delta Jackpot Stakes (gr. III) Dec.7.
What started as a simple conversation 13 years ago with the then chairman of Ocala Breeders' Sale Co. has turned into an extended labor of love for artist Catherine Goldman-Bloomfield - nearly 2,500 square feet of painstaking Thoroughbred painting excellence.
Frank Stronach's Adena Springs Farm will conduct a sale of 2-year-olds in training in March of 2009. Adena Springs' representatives had previously announced a decision to discontinue the auction earlier this year.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's 2009 February select sale of 2-year-olds in training has been rescheduled for Feb. 17 in Central Florida, and the Adena Springs sale of 2-year-olds in training has been added to the 2009 lineup and is scheduled for March 16.
The results were grim for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s fall mixed auction, which ended its three-day run in Central Florida Oct. 8. The buy-back/no bid rate rose significantly while the other key business figures suffered huge setbacks during a week when the American stock market is plunging and economic turmoil is increasing worldwide.
It took roughly six hours to get there, but a horse selling in the opening session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. fall mixed sale finally brought six figures Oct. 6, a day marked by severe across-the-board declines for the Central Florida auction.
With a yearling auction season all but over, and one that delivered a sharp dose of economic reality, industry eyes will be fixed on the upcoming Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. fall mixed sale, the unofficial annual kick-off to the campaign of selling of broodmares and weanlings.
Officials of Barretts, Fasig-Tipton, Keeneland, and the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) announced in early September that they were banding together to make major changes in the under tack shows for their sales of 2-year-olds in training. Beginning in 2009, they said they would strictly regulate the use of whips by riders during workouts and would prohibit the use of front toe grabs on horses.
Officials of Barretts, Fasig-Tipton, Keeneland, and the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. have agreed to institute major changes relating to the under tack shows for their sales of 2-year-olds in training.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) has cataloged 1,000 horses for its fall mixed sale, which will be held Oct. 6-8 in Central Florida. The auction will begin with a select session, and two open sessions will follow.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. August yearling produced some discouraging results, but they weren't really surprising considering the slumping American economy and the mixed bag of returns at other yearling auctions.
The market continued to lag behind last year's pace on the third day of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. August yearling sale. The gross revenue for the second of three open sessions fell 18.5%, and the average price dropped 30.4%. Meanwhile, the median price declined 26.7%.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. yearling sale didn't get pounded by Tropical Storm Fay, which rolled ashore in Florida Aug. 19. But the market did get battered by the reality of what happens to the demand for horses with modest pedigrees and physical attributes when the American economy is in the midst of a slump.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s August yearling sale got off to a rocky start in Central Florida, suffering significant downturns from the previous year in the number of horses sold, gross revenue, average price, and median price.
On top of America's economic woes, the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) might have to deal with a tropical storm or hurricane during its yearling sale, which is scheduled for Aug. 18-21 in Central Florida.
Progeny of Stormy Atlantic, Closing Argument, and Macho Uno stand out in the select session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. August select yearling auction.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) will test the yearling market with quantity at a time when some buyers might be cutting back on their purchases because of America's struggling economy. There are 1,342 horses cataloged for the auction, which begins with a select session of 230 yearlings Aug. 18. Three open sessions will follow.
Even though she could have gone into labor at any minute, a very pregnant Dr. Cara Erwin-Oliver spent Aug. 15 with her Marion Bloodstock consignment in the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s barn area. She is scheduled to offer more than 30 horses during the four-day August yearling sale, which begins Aug. 18 in Central Florida.
Adena Springs has canceled its juvenile sale for 2009, but is selling 217 yearlings this year at sales conducted by Fasig-Tipton, Keeneland, and the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.
Sales Integrity Program Monitoring Committee will use a survey later this year to determine the effectiveness of the Sales Integrity Task Force's 2007 recommendations.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) has cataloged 1,342 yearlings for its August yearling sale, which will be held in Central Florida Aug. 18-21. The auction will begin with a select session of 230 select yearlings; three open sessions will follow.
The 2008 Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June 2-year-olds in training sale saw the number of horses sold and the gross increase over last year's figures, while the average and median price fell off slightly during the two-day sale June 17-18 in Central Florida.
The OBS June 2-Year Olds in Training Sale 2008 Data Digest Preview Edition is a FREE download, presented by AuctionEdge! An in-depth preview of the upcoming auction.
West Point Stables' Macho Again had a solid work this morning for trainer Dallas Stewart at Churchill Downs, going a half-mile in :48.20 over the fast main track under exercise rider Kenny Borque. The move ranked 11th of 55 at the distance.
Behindatthebar comes into the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) a fresh horse, having scratched from the May 17 Preakness Stakes (gr. I) due to a bruised left front foot.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. has cataloged 591 horses for its June sale of 2-year-olds in training and older horses of racing age.
The Ocala Breeders Sales Co. (OBS) April sale of 2-year-olds training finished its four-day run in Central Florida Thursday with figures close to last year's results.
A Storm Cat colt sold for $400,000 Wednesday to top the third session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. spring sale of 2-year-olds in training.
A Silver Deputy colt, which brought $220,000, was the most expensive horse sold Tuesday during the second session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. spring sale of 2-year-olds in training in Central Florida.
A Macho Uno colt topped the opening session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) spring sale of 2-year-olds in training Monday in Central Florida, bringing $250,000 from Terri Pompay, who was acting on behalf of Klaravich Stable.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. spring sale of 2-year-olds in training begins its four-day run Monday in Central Florida.
Spring Mountain was among the standouts Friday during the fourth and final session of the under tack show for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) spring sale of 2-year-olds in training in Central Florida.
Four horses each worked an eighth of a mile in :10, which was the fastest time for the distance Thursday during the third session of the under tack show for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. spring sale of 2-year-olds in training.
An Is It True filly turned in the fastest quarter-mile work Wednesday during the second session of the under tack show for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. spring sale of 2-year-olds in training.
The OBS April 2-Year Olds in Training Sale 2008 Preview Edition Data Digest is a FREE download for all subscribers, presented by AuctionEdge! An in-depth preview of the upcoming auction.
Stormin Fever filly and a Yes It's True colt were among the standouts Tuesday during the first session of the under tack show for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. spring sale of 2-year-olds in training in Central Florida.
There were no positive results among the 12 horses tested for anabolic steroids following the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. March select sale of 2-year-olds in training.
Participants talk about the market at the OBS March juvenile auction.
The spring juvenile auction, scheduled for April 21-24 in Central Florida, has had 11 graduates go on to earn at least $1 million.
The OBS March juvenile auction posted its highest ever gross, average, and median.
Darley USA president Jimmy Bell struck early Wednesday, buying a Trippi filly named White Lamb for $550,000 during the first hour of the second session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. March select sale of 2-year-olds in training in Central Florida.
With four horses bringing more than $500,000 apiece, the Ocala Breeders Sales Co. (OBS) March select sale of 2-year-olds in training blasted out of the starting gate Tuesday in Central Florida.
A handsome chestnut Pure Prize colt will be joining Sheikh Mohammed's international racing operation after being purchased by Darley USA president Jimmy Bell for $550,000 Tuesday afternoon, about two hours into the opening session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. (OBS) March select sale of 2-year-olds in training in Central Florida.
Red Vow, a well-balanced bay son of Broken Vow, set the early financial pace with his $625,000 price Tuesday during the opening session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. March select sale of 2-year-olds in training sale in Central Florida.
