Cupid colt closes Keeneland Book 5 on a high
Cupid colt closes Keeneland Book 5 on a high
The barns and walking rings of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale grounds continued to be well-shopped through the closing session of Book 5 as 238 horses sold through the ring to bank gross receipts of $4,664,900 (approx. AUD$6.63 million).
Yearlings sold during Wednesday’s session garnered an average of $19,600 (approx. AUD$27,850) and median of $12,500 (approx. AUD$17,750). The 63 horses from the 301 offered that went unsold represented an RNA rate of 20.9 per cent. Keeneland has reported 2,129 horses sold for receipts of $245,278,700 (approx. AUD$349 million). The 795 unsold horses represent an overall RNA rate of 27.2 per cent.
Topping the sale’s 10th session was Hip 3391, a colt by Ashford Stud’s Cupid (Tapit) out of the Distorted Humor (Forty Niner) mare Just Joking. Bred in Kentucky by Don Blow and Jory Sherman of Ascot Thoroughbreds, the colt was purchased for $200,000 (approx. AUD$284,300) by Larry Zap, agent for Mike Mellen.
“He checked all the boxes,” Zap said. “It’s a cliche, but he’s a big, strong colt by a good sire. I’ve seen something in the Cupids and I wanted a Cupid, so I looked at them all. Honest to God, I was going to try this horse for less like everyone else, but when I saw other people looking at him in the back ring, I had to get my owner really excited because I knew we weren’t going to steal this one. He had it all—bone, size, athleticism. He’s the kind of horse that takes you to the big races on Saturday.”
Hip 3391 was the most expensive horse purchased by Zap on behalf of Mellen—who races as Bran Jam Stable—at the sale so far. In total, Zap has signed for five yearlings for Mellen for receipts of $514,000 (approx. AUD$730,500).
“We’ve bought him quite a few,” Zap said. “We’re trying to get back to the big dances. He’s a great guy and he wants to have some fun. This is the kind of horse that brings fun to the party. Everybody was looking at him. I’ve been blown away on so many colts, so perseverance pays off.”
The celebrations following the sale of Hip 3391 were jubilant at the barn of consignor Shawhan Place, where breeders Don and Beth Blowe were elated to see their colt top Wednesday’s session.
“We have the mare and we keep them with us until they’re just about to drop,” said Don Blowe. “Then we take them over to Shawhan Place and they do a good job of looking after them from there on in.”
“I want to give special credit to Gus Koch because he’s the one that looks after them from the time they’re weanlings until they get to the sales ring,” Beth Blowe said. “We want to wish his future connections the best of luck with him, and we want to acknowledge Cupid, too. We saw him when we initially decided to breed our mare to him. We liked his top bloodline, and his size and scope impressed us. That is what has made this baby so good.”
“He’s an awesome colt and he just wowed you when you looked at him,” said Courtney Schneider of Shawhan Place. “He never went through a weird phase. He did everything the way he was supposed to, and it worked out today.”
Shawhan Place sold all five yearlings offered through the ring from their consignment on Wednesday. Total receipts for the operation on the day came to $334,000 (approx. AUD$474,750).
The second-highest-priced yearling on Wednesday was Hip 3523, a colt by Darby Dan Farm’s Klimt (Quality Road) out of Spirit of Wailea (Out of Place). Bred in New York by Allen Hallett, the colt—named Klimt Eastwood—is a half brother to Grade 1 winner El Deal (Munnings) and was purchased by Jesse Hoppel, agent, for $115,000 (approx. AUD$163,500) from the Vinery Sales consignment.
“He was just an easy-walking horse,” said Hoppel, who owns and operates Coastal Equine. “He’s a young horse, so maybe not everybody has seen him. He’s going to grow into something special.”
As pinhookers and consignors, both Matt Koch of Shawhan Place and Hoppel said the polarization of the market and the demand for the “perfect” individual continued to have the greatest impact on a horse’s selling price even as the sale draws to a close.
“For the horses you like, it seems like all the same people are there,” Hoppel said. “You see the same faces. It’s polarized toward the better horses, but that is the way that it goes.”
“It’s a tough year,” Koch said. “Everyone is on the big horse, and everyone else is falling through the cracks. In this market, if you have the right horse, you just have to bring it out there and let the market tell you what it’s worth. You have to get out of the way. It’s easy for the good ones, but for your average horse, it’s always a tough sale.”