Sixty-two well-bred yearlings, including 58 eligible to the lucrative New York Sire Stakes, went up for auction on Sunday (September 20) at the annual Morrisville College Yearling Sale, which took place at the Nancy Sears Stowell Equine Arena, located on the college campus.
A large and enthusiastic crowd gathered well in advance of the 1 p.m. start time for breakfast and to get a good look at the next generation of stars from 17 top sires in the sport before finalizing their short lists and heading into the sales arena.
When everything was said and done, 48 trotters and 14 pacers produced a sales total of just under $1 million with an average price per horse of $15,540. That number is up a substantial 43 per cent from last year’s average bid of $10,715 and a 60 per cent increase over the average price of the last five years combined. Speculation at the sale was the smaller group of higher calibre yearlings drove the prices up.
The sale topper (as well as highest priced trotter) was hip number 24, Royal Pinot (RC Royalty-Graduation Party) who was consigned by Crawford Farms. The filly was purchased for $55,000 by Burke Racing LLC of Frederick Town, PA.
The second highest bid of $40,000 was realized for hip number 68, Texican (Cash Hall-Hot Chili Girl) who was consigned by Lakeview Equine. The trotting colt was purchased by Wanda Polisseni of Fairport, NY.
On the pacing side, hip number 42, Planet Rock (Rock N Roll Heaven-Villa Hanover), who was also consigned by Lakeview Equine, drew a final bid of $24,000 from Ken Jacobs of Baldwinsville, NY.
Chapter Seven yearlings brought the highest average price of the sale at $24,667, just ahead of Conway Hall who commanded $24,200. RC Royalty, who had the highest number of yearlings in the sale (21), was third at $18,190.
The seven-horse consignment from Crawford Farms brought the highest average price of $21,143. Lakeview Equine who offered 15 head averaged $17,767 and the Morrisville College Equine Institute, who had the largest consignment of 18, realized $17,500 per horse.
A complete listing of all hip number bids and other searchable information can be found here.
(Harness Horse Breeders of New York State)