From the Washington Thoroughbred Breeders Association
A Cherokee Run filly sold for $92,000 to top the Washington Thoroughbred Breeders Association yearling sale Sept. 2 at the Morris J. Alhadeff Sales Pavilion at Emerald Downs. Produced from Silver Echo, she was purchased by David and Jill Heerensperger of Bellevue from Northwest Farms. The filly’s full sister, 2-year-old Cherokee Echo – a 2007 WTBA sale graduate – had won the Barbara Shinpoch Stakes at Emerald Downs just two days prior to this year’s auction.
The Heerenspergers also bought the fourth-highest-priced offering, a $45,000 filly by You and I out the young stakes-winning mare Cascade Corona. The filly was consigned by Mr. and Mrs. Frederick L. Pabst, who also bred Cascade Corona’s graded stakes-placed half-brother, Son’s Corona, who raced for the Heerenspergers.
El Dorado Farms consigned the second- and third-highest selling yearlings. Mark Dedomenico of Redmond went to $50,000 to acquire a City Zipfilly out of Stormbow, a stakes-producing daughter of Storm Cat, from El Dorado. The Enumclaw-based El Dorado also sold a half-brother to stakes winner Indian Weaver, which is from the final crop of four-time leading Washington sire Slewdledo, for $47,000. Out of Go for Jackie, the colt was purchased by California trainer Jeff Bonde as agent.
According to the WTBA, 114 yearlings sold for a gross of $1,279,500 and an average of $11,224. The gross and average last year were more than $2 million and more than $15,000, respectively. The sale median was $6,500, down 45.8% from the 2007 median of $12,000. The buy-back rate was 42.7%, an all-time high. The numbers are preliminary, and are subject to change.
