Syndicates for National Yearling Sales?

One point counting in favor of spending the 500k on one horse and not 100k on 5 horses, is that you pay the same keep whether a horse costs 500k or 100k and if you buy 5 then your keep is going to cost you 20 - 25k more per month (or 240k to 300k more per year):S

As I am ever the opportunistic optimist I would ask you to evaluate the following snippet of news :

Apparently volcanic ash is already having an impact on the forthcoming sale. A prominent trainer told me this afternoon that a handful of potential international buyers have already cried off as a result of the present chaotic travel conditions globally.

Who knows - this ( to quote the Fifa ad ) might be a 'once in a lifetime' opportunity to acquire a yearling for less than you might normally expect to pay!

Makes you think...........................

So whats happening at Doncaster?

Well, there's no need to miss out - just follow Nancy Sexton's live blog from the Doncaster Breeze-Up.

Here's some of her highlights from the Tattersalls Craven Breeze-Up last week.

Thursday:
9.05pm: "A rollercoaster renewal of the Tattersalls Craven Breeze-Up Sale has drawn to an end. After last night's session, which at times was a bloodbath, today's sale produced some remarkable figures: the average is up seven per cent at 79,755gns while the median is 17 per cent of last year's figure at 70,000gns."

8.40pm: "Sheikh Mohammed's agents - secret and otherwise - appear to have been busy tonight. An Arch colt (153) from Grove Stud appears to be the latest recruit after falling to Dick O'Gorman for 150,000gns."

6.25pm: "The week has got worse for some vendors from across the Irish sea, who risk being stranded in Newmarket after volcanic dust from Iceland grounds the majority of flights at Stansted and Gatwick. A long journey in a horsebox now awaits most of them."

Wednesday:
9.30pm: "I've never seen a sale do this before," is the verdict of Tattersalls marketing director Jimmy George. The opening hour of this sale was terrible, which is illustrated by a 12 per cent drop in clearance rate to 64 per cent. But trade picked up markedly during the final hour and a half to push the day's average two per cent beyond its 2009 mark to 77,989gns."

9.05pm: At this sale last year, Yeomanstown Stud sold a Medaglia d'Oro colt for a sale-topping 260,000gns to Dick O'Gorman. Named Passion For Gold, he later won the Criterium de Saint-Cloud for Godolphin.
This evening, Yeomanstown Stud were again on the mark with a colt by the same sire, who sold to John McCormack for 200,000gns. A$90,000 yearling purchase, the colt is out of the Grade 1-placed Western Dreamer.
"He's for an established client to stay in Europe," said McCormack. "He breezed well, the sire has done great and he's just what you think a Medaglia d'Oro should look like."

8.30pm: A new top lot as Angie Sykes fights off Charlie Gordon-Watson for a 170,000gns Dalakhani colt (63) from Paddy Twomey's Hawthorn Villa Stud. The colt represents a fair profit on the 92,000gns shelled out for him as a yearling in this ring last October. Sykes has bought on behalf of Sheikh Mohammed in the past, and this colt was reportedly purchased on behalf of a long standing client.

8.10pm: 20 of the first 34 through the ring are listed as having not changed hands.

7.20pm: There maybe some long faces by the end of this evening's selling.
Only eight of the first 21 offered are listed as sold - that is a 38 per cent clearance rate.
The average is 64,125gns, 16 per cent behind last year's first day average (including private sales).

Jokes aside, this really is a time of opportunity to buy.

Like any African athlete, the real up side is if you are good enough to leave SA. We do produce decent animals, they have proven tough and able to compete overseas.

I don't think SA buyers have to be overly worried about foreign buyers, they tend to buy the very obvious horses anyway and are more a concern for the local power buyers.

If you stick to a formula of buying by a proven sire (not neccessarily very top) out of a decent mare, there will be nice looking horse will be available at these sales. Cost of production is about 60K-90K plus stallion fee. I say there will be plenty proper horses selling 120-200K that give you an above average chance at least.

But then if one is willing to wait 4 months, one may also buy something nice by a proven sire out of a decent mare at the 2yr old sale for 20 to 30 percent less (80-150K)?

zoro...so is there a sundicate formed?

I reckon the quality of this sale is well up to snuff based on my inspections this week. The top horses will be as hard to buy as ever.

But the bottom figures to fall out on the unwanted ones, because there are fewer and fewer smaller owners willing to pay training expenses because of the global meltdown.

R3.6 Million, R4 Million !!!!

Did you put up your hand Zoro?

Scotia not enough red wine on the house,so did not bother.