"With the current state of the world and the economy we've had for the last couple of years, I'm not disappointed at all; we held our own," Ventura said.
The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's April auction of 2-year-olds in training ended with a bang Friday as the price for a Double Honor filly named Wonderful Honor soared to $380,000. The amount was the highest recorded for an individual horse during the four-day auction. Bidding over the phone, William Condren purchased the classy bay from her breeder, Farnsworth Farms.A member of her sire's first crop, Wonderful Honor was produced from the 8-year-old winning Fortunate Prospect mare T. G. for Wanda, who is a half-sister to grade II winner What a Diplomat (by Captain James). The filly worked three furlongs in :33 3/5, the fastest time for the distance during the sale's under tack show."She was a very pretty filly that was well-balanced. She worked well and looked smooth doing it," said Tom Ventura, the OBS general manager and director of sales.In all, 176 horses were sold during the final session for a gross of $3,854,800 and an average of $21,902.The figures for all four days combined were 704 horses sold for a gross of $14,923,000, an average of $21,197, and a median of $13,000. Compared to last year, the number sold was up 4.6%. However, the gross, average, and median declined 2.7%, 7.0%, and 13.3%, respectively. OBS reported a buy-back rate of 27.7%, down slightly from late year's comparable figure of 27.9%.In 2002, 673 horses were sold for a gross of $15,332,100, an average of $22,782, and a median of $15,000.