b4breeding

It’s a year since I last recapped on how my virtual stable of picks from the 2011 yearling sales were going – very early days for them, at that stage. Now they are 3yos and it is interesting to see how they have shaped up.

My “virtual yearling stable” of four horses from the 2011 sales were:

• Lot 79 Outlaw (Bettors Delight – Gift of Grace) – sold for $50,000. He qualified and had 3 starts as a 2yo for Cran Dalgety, and so far this season has had another 3 starts as a 3yo for 1 win, and earnings of just $5330. But fingers cross, there may be more to come.
• Lot 154 Alta Christiano (Christian Cullen – Right This Time) – sold for $50,000. Six starts for4 wins as a 2yo and he looked a very, very nice horse in the making. Sold to Australia for serious money, then injury has ended his 3yo season and I am not sure what the longer term prognosis is yet. Lifetime earnings to date: $72,584.
• Lot 92 Eye for a Deal (American Ideal – Illmakemyname). Sold for just $10,000. He’s been racing well in Australia, mainly at Albion Park, with 9 starts for 4 wins and 1 place. That’s only earned him $9,567 to date but he may keep stepping up.
• Lot 179 Sugar Ray Brogden (Grinfromeartoear-Swift Mirage).  Trialled well, then 2 starts for no wins, and it became apparent he had developed a palate issue that needed an operation, which the owner didn’t want to proceed with. So sold as a hack.

Kym Kearns’ picks from that 2011 sale included the nice Mexicano, a Christian Cullen colt who looks to have a bit of class about him; Los Amante who had 3 placings from 7 starts as a 2yo but yet to appear this season; Assassin (sold to Australia, not yet raced); and Isa Smiling the filly trotter that she bred, who has a ton of ability and qualified but yet to learn manners.

Of my 2012 yearling sales virtual stable, understandably nothing has started yet although two of my picks Derringer (now renamed, oddly for a handsome colt, Strawberry Heart) and my own-bred Destination Moon have been noted by their trainers as looking forward 2yos. The other 2 colts I picked were Crixus Brogden (now renamed Real Impulse) and Charlie Chuckles. So I will be keeping my eyes out for those as 2yos – and for the picks that a couple of other blog readers chose.

While the virtual stable is just a fun thing, it does remind me that for breeders and buyers the odds of getting a successful result on the track or financially are a huge challenge.

That’s why it is worth doing the homework to increase the chances of success and minimise the odds of making a real mistake!