It has been announced that world champion Woodside Charm 2, 1:53 ($531,658), the winner of the 2018 Breeders Crown Two-Year-Old Filly Trot, has been sold.

Woodside Charm has been sold to Hunterton Farm’s Steve Stewart and partners. Bloodstock agent Ernie Martinez put the sale together.

“She was a big number cost-wise, but she is a big-time mare,” said Stewart when asked about the price. “I will say she was very, very expensive, and we bought Pizza Dolce for $500,000. But we realize that when you buy these type mares, over the course of 10 years, it has been good to invest in the factory, you might say. When you buy a mare like this, you are improving your chances.”

Woodside Charm is a daughter of Chapter Seven out of Fireworks Hanover (by Muscles Yankee). She is a half sister to the top colt and successful sire Explosive Matter.

“We’ll breed her to Tactical Landing, not just because we bred and raised Tactical Landing, but because she’s not a big mare, and we’re counting on him to give her foals size,” said Stewart.

Woodside Charm was trained, driven and owned by Verlin Yoder during her racing career. Foaled and raised by Indiana’s Woodside Farm, the filly had suffered an injury as a youngster and her chances for a successful racing career were doubtful. Woodside Farm’s Lester Beachy made a deal with Yoder: you can have her, train her and race her, but if she’s not going to be racing, she’ll return to Woodside Farm.

“I still have Fireworks Hanover,” said Beachy of the decision to sell Woodside Charm. “She’s in foal to Chapter Seven and she has a Dover Dan weanling colt who is long and strong.”

Woodside Charm defied the odds, putting together an undefeated campaign as a freshman that led to Dan Patch divisional honours and earning accolades from astute trotting horsemen and breeders. She was considered to be so talented that she could take on the colts as a three-year-old. The filly’s 2019 season ended quickly due to health problems that surfaced early in the year.

“In late February or March, she had an issue in Florida. We took her to a university and they used ultrasound to check everything, but they did not put her on a treadmill, and they said she was fine and everything is good to go,” Yoder explained. “We gave her some time and went back to work. For three months, I’ve been saying this isn’t the same horse; there is something wrong.”

Veterinarians found the filly had a heart issue, so she was retired after just two races this year, giving her nine career starts.

(Harnessracing.com)