NEWS
Carter Sales Co.’s OKC September Sale Posts Big Jump in Average Carter Sales Company’s OKC September Sale saw a record 50 percent increase in average price, which jumped to $10,858 from $7,228 in 2018, while the median nearly doubled from $4,500 in 2018 to $7,500 this year. In addition, the 19 percent buyback rate was the lowest to date. The sale was held September 1 at the OKC State Fairgrounds Sales Arena. The sale’s top seller at $30,000 was Hip 19, a yearling colt by Pollard’s Vision out of Kip Seville, a sister to multiple Oklahoma champion and Horse of the Year Kip Deville ($3.1 million). The colt was consigned by Mighty Acres for Center Hills Farm. Lee Young of Oklahoma City signed the ticket for Young Stables LLC. Hip 17, a yearling filly by Graydar out of the Ghostzapper mare Heavenly Ghost, commanded the second highest price at $27,000. Mark Hixon, agent for John Barger of Grand Prairie, Texas, bought the filly from the consignment of Buena Madera. While the sale posted records in most categories, the number of horses offered was the smallest in the sale’s 13-year history. The 42 yearlings offered represented a 46 percent drop from 78 in 2018. “The number offered and the incredible purses for racing produced the highest median in our sale’s history, but in an industry where sales are contracting across the board, we have reason to be concerned,” said sales manager Terri Carter. “With two equine veterinarians in the family, we see many other types of horse sales with similar declining numbers, but we also see disciplines with recent increases. “Like any business, we have a responsibility to fix our problems and then use our many resources to share our love for horses and the industry,” she added. “It is just too easy to be negative, and that drives people away. I am a big believer that attitude is everything, and the attitude and atmosphere at the sale, along with the record increases, told me we are headed in the right direction.” The mixed session sold four of six mares for an average of $1,825 and a buyback rate of 33 percent. Go to cartersalesco.com for complete results.
Oklahoma Derby Produces Record Handle at Remington Park
process. The export handle, from all outside venues, was $2,851,667, also a new all-time high for that category. Bettors at Thunder Roadhouse played $7,521 on the card. “I want to thank our entire team whose hard work resulted in the biggest single day of wagering in the history of Remington Park,” said Matt Vance, vice president of racing operations. “Congratulations and thanks go to all the horsemen who participated and made Sunday such an incredible day. Many of the top horses in America were here for our biggest day, and we appreciate all of the horseplayers who recognized the Oklahoma Derby program through their wagering.”
OREGON HBPA Greetings from Oregon In our last news update from Oregon, we shared that Portland Meadows was closing after many years of racing. A new group from Grants Pass, TMB Racing, had been granted a commercial race meet license. We have just concluded our first commercial fall race meet in Grants Pass. By almost every measure, it has been a huge success. TMB made a large financial investment in the Grants Pass Downs race facility. A new safety rail was purchased and installed at a significant expense. Much-needed sand was added to the racing surface, and new equipment for working the track also was purchased. Portable stalls were added to accommodate the increase in the number of horses stabled on the grounds. The result has been a very safe race season for horses and riders with the horsemen and horsewomen feeling excited about the future. For the racing fans and betting public, great additions were made as well. A huge state-of-the-art electronic tote and videoboard was installed on the infield, making betting data and race replays awesome. New self-service wagering terminals were brought in, making the wagering experience much improved. The food and beverage choices are very good, making a day at the races an enjoyable experience in Grants Pass. And the weather overall was incredible, rounding out a wonderful fall racing experience. The racing has been excellent. While we are currently limited to eight-horse fields due to the track width, most races had a full starting gate. The majority of races had seven horses, with only a few dropping to six or five. In addition, the average purse payout per day was $60,000, which for Oregon is very good. The one area we need to improve is the betting handle. It appears many ACKERLEY IMAGES
In the $50,000 male division, D Toz became a multiple stakes winner at Remington, following up his Don McNeill Stakes win as a 2-year-old in Oklahoma City last year. D Toz, bred by the Richter Family Trust and co-owned with B.J. Richter, is trained by Danny Pish and went over the $100,000 mark in earnings with the win. “I think he’s better now than when he won the Don McNeill last year,” said jockey Lane Luzzi. D Toz’s sire, Chitoz, stand at the Bravos’ River Oaks Farms in Sulphur.
The Oklahoma Derby Day program on September 29 generated a record pari-mutuel handle day for Remington Park. The 13-race program featured eight stakes events including the Grade 3 Oklahoma Derby and Grade 3 Remington Park Oaks. Total handle was $3,086,572 and included money wagered on-track, export betting and money played at Thunder Roadhouse in Oklahoma City, a Remington Park-authorized off-track site. It was the first time in Remington Park history that a racing card produced total handle of more than $3 million. A crowd of 10,610 witnessed Owendale’s win in the Oklahoma Derby and Lady Apple’s score in the Remington Park Oaks, wagering $227,384 in the 60
THE HORSEMEN’S JOURNAL
WINTER 2019