The 81st auction of the Standardbred Horse Sales Company was held November 4-8 at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were dedicated to yearlings, before the mixed sale began on Thursday and wrapped up Friday.
Day 1 saw six horses sell for over $300,000, four sold for $400,000 or more, and one sold for over $500,000. The topper for the yearling sale was the Muscle Hill – Order By Wish filly, Gangsta Rat (Hip 45), who was sold for $550,000 to Ake Svanstedt. Gangsta Rat is a full sister, and now stablemate, to Marseille, who was the upset winner of the $500,000 Earl Beal Memorial Trot at Pocono earlier this Summer.
The second highest for the yearling sale, was the next to last horse sold on day 1. The Father Patrick – Global Desire colt Glacier Hanover was bought by Jeff Snyder for $470,000. Glacier Hanover is a full brother to two year old Gangster Hanover, who this year was a winner of multiple Pennsylvania Sire Stakes legs, as well as a division of the Bluegrass at Lexington.
Other highlights of Monday were Hip number 47 Panda Hanover, number 56 Illicit Funds, and number 90 The Ice Countess.
Panda Hanover (Somebeachsomewhere) is a full sister to Papi Rob Hanover, who was dq’d from his win in the Breeders Crown 2 Year Old Colt Pace at Woodbine-Mohawk in October for interference in the stretch. Panda Hanover was purchased Dana Parham of Florida.
Illicit Funds (Kadabra) is a daughter of the 2005 O’Brein 2 Year Old Trotting Filly of the Year, 2006 O’Brein 3 Year Old Filly Trotter of the Year, and million dollar earner Pure Ivory. She is also a full sister to the 2019 Hambletonian winner Forbidden Trade. Illicit Funds was purchased by Courant Inc. of Florida.
The Ice Countess is a full Sister to world champion Ice Attraction, and to the O’Brein 2 Year Old Trotting Filly of the Year in 2018, The Ice Dutchess. The Ice Countess purchased by Tony Alagna, Agent, from New Jersey
Day one ended with an overall average of $114,446, a 22% increase over 2018. The gross was $19,227,000 for 168 horses, representing an increase of $3,300,000 over 2018. Trotters average more than pacers at $137,225 vs $93,739.
The Yearling portion of the sale continued on Tuesday with 300 horses going through the sales ring. The American Ideal – Electric Fool colt, Hip 462 Make My Deo, topped the Tuesday session bringing $280,000. Robert Cleary, agent for Royal Wire Products was the successful bidder.
The second highest price on Tuesday was Hip 456, Delayed Hanover. Delayed Hanover is a son of Southwind Frank – Don’t Wait Up. He was purchased by Ake Svansted.
Tuesday concluded with an average of $44,750 and a gross of $13,425,000. Trotters continued to average more than pacers on Tuesday, at $47,019 vs $43,174. Overall at the conclusion of the Tuesday session, the sale saw a 16% increase for the average, and would begin Wednesday nearly $4.5 million ahead of the prior year.
The strong trend continued into Wednesday’s third and final yearling session. And for only the second time in its 81 year history, the yearling sale eclipsed $40,000,000 in gross sales.
Hip number 809, Keystone Catalyst (Betting Line – Keystone Caitlyn), topped the Wednesday session. Keystone Catalyst was sold for $120,000 to agent Myron Bell of Florida.
Wednesday ended the Book 1 portion of the sale, and as mentioned before, the gross sailed past $40,000,000 for the second time in the history of the sale, with the gross for the first three days landing at $40,736,000 for 833 horses. The gross for the first three days was $48,903, and when all was said and done, trotters averaged higher than pacers by $10,833 at $54,872 vs $44,039. The gross total was up 14.8% over the prior year, and the average ended the three day session up 14.4%. Trotting Fillies averaged the most overall at $55,297, followed closely behind by trotting colts ($54,469), pacing colts ($49,343), and then pacing fillies ($38,161).
Thursday started the mixed portion of the sale and the session started just as strong as the yearling session left off.
Weanlings were up first, the top selling weanling was Hip 938, Captainryanmichael, a Captaintreacherous – Pucker Up colt. He was sold for $50,000 to Thomas Maloney of New York.
Following the weanings were Stallion Shares. The stallion share portion was largely dominated by Muscle Hill on the trotting side, and by Captaintreacherous on the pacing side. Both had shares selling for between $150,000 and $160,000.
The White Birch Farm mare dispersal followed the stallion shares. The third mare through the ring was Hip number 1052 Celebrity Ruth, a Archangel mare in foal to Muscle Hill. Celebrity Ruth was sold for $400,000 to Agent Megan Velardo of New Jersey.
World Champion Darlinonthebeach, in foal to Always B Miki, followed Celebrity Ruth in the ring. On the track, Darlinonthebeach compiled career earnings of $1,068,648 and retired with a lifetime mark of 1:48:1. Carrying her first foal, she was purchased by Diamond Creek Farm of Wellsville, PA for $450,000. 29 of the13 of the mares in the White Birch Farm dispersal were sold for $100,000 or more.
Day 4 ended with a gross of $12,419,000 and with an average of $37,863 for 328 horses and shares. Those totals were well above the 2018 totals, when the day finished with a gross of $5,198,000 and an average of $21,568.
Friday started the final day of the sale, which is dedicated to all racehorses. The first horse to hit the $250,000 mark for the day was Hip 1432, Medusa, who just eclipsed $1,000,000 in career earnings at The Meadows earlier in the week. She was purchased by Erika Sergent of Indiana, PA.
Hip 1441 was Quincy Blue Chip, who with a win in her NYSS Championship in August, has amassed earnings of $493,468 this season. She was bought by Steven Stewart of Paris, Kentucky for $300,000.
Hip 1456 was Percy Bluechip, who had earnings last year of $501,478. The daughter of Shadow Play was purchased by Hanover Shoe Farms for $340,000. Hanover Shoe Farms also acquired Hip 1463, Starita. Starita has been on the board in 18 of 29 career starts with earnings of $307,696, she was purchased for $360,000.
Donttellmeagain, hip 1624, topped the Friday sale when he was sold for $400,000 to Jon Paton of Doylestown, PA. The 5 year old Dragon Again gelding has career earnings of $779,011 and a lifetime mark of 1:47:2 at The Meadowlands.
The 2019 sale ended with very impressive gains. In the mixed sale alone, the gross finished at $27,021,000. That number is $8,762,000 ahead of last years mixed sale gross. The average during the mixed sale was $40,756 this year vs $29,498 in 2018. The 2020 Black Book Sale will return to the Farm Show Complex next November.
