The buy-back rate was 24.8%, with 175 horses going through the ring and failing to find new owners. In 2001, there were 211 RNAs (28%).The highest price during the final session Wednesday was $125,000, which Gary Biszantz, Bluewater agent, paid for a colt by Boston Harbor out of the stakes winning Princely Pleasure mare Strawberry Burrah. The half-sister to graded stakes winner Mining Burrah was consigned by Summerfield, agent.One other yearling Wednesday reached six figures, a Tale of the Cat colt bought by Brian Morgan as agent for Carl Lizza's Flying Zee Stable for $100,000. Also sold by Francis and Barbara Vanlangendonck's Summerfield, the colt was produced from the stakes winning Mr. Leader mare Satin Surprise and is a half-brother to graded stakes winner French Satin (by French Deputy).
The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale finished down just slightly in gross and average, but showed an increase in median price and had fewer buy backs. All in all, pleasing results in a down market.Over three days in Timonium, Md., 530 yearlings were sold for $8,840,400, an average of $16,680. The gross was a decrease of 3.4% from a year ago, when 541 were auctioned for $9,153,000. The average decreased just 1.4%, from $16,919 to $16,680.The median took a nice jump, going from $8,000 to $9,500. The second and third days of the three-day auction, the median was $10,200 and $10,000, respectively.