After inclement weather across Florida April 11 delayed the opening salvo of the under tack show at the Ocala Breeders' Sale Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale to April 12, horses were safely out on the track in Central Florida Monday.
"I don't think the weather kept people away necessarily," said OBS director of sales Tod Wojciechowski. "Obviously the weather was pretty severe, and I think everybody just understood that there was no way we were going to get a breeze show in yesterday. I think everybody rolled with it pretty well."
With the under tack show now compressed to six days, the first 203 horses from 1,217 cataloged breezed for buyers on Monday. As of 4 p.m. April 12, 152 horses have been withdrawn from the sale.
The fastest work of the day went to Hip 107, a filly by Hill 'n' Dale Farms stallion Violence out of Royale Paradise by Unbridled's Song. Consigned by Eddie Woods, agent, the filly worked a quarter-mile in :20 3/5.
Bred in Kentucky by Pollock Farms, Hip 107 is a half sister to stakes-placed Bano Solo. The extended female family of the 2-year-old includes grade 2 winner Royale Michele and Cagey Exuberance, and stakes winners Excess Thrilling and Killing Me. The filly was purchased as a yearling by J.C.M. for $50,000 from the consignment of the Taylor Made Sales Agency to the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.
"She was a very backwards filly for the longest of times that's why she's in the April sale," said Woods of Hip 107. "But she grew up big and beautiful and developed out nicely. She's a big, tall, leggy thing that looks like she can really run.
"We had a couple of horses go in :21 flat. We had a Munnings filly (Hip 44) work really well and a First Samurai filly (Hip 96) work in :21 as well that I was really pleased with. We had a good, solid day."
Echoing Wojciechowski, Woods said he believed that the weather had not kept any buyers from the grounds as far as he could tell. With a long week ahead, there will only be more people coming in.
"If you're there, you're there. Once people have to travel to come down here anyway, a shower of rain doesn't keep them away. A lot of them won't come down yet anyway because it's so long. We have a six-day breeze show with two more days and then four days of sales. But there were a good accounting of people here today for where we are at."
Thirteen juveniles shared the fastest eighth-mile time of :10 on Monday. The under tack show continues Tuesday morning at 8:00 a.m. ET with Hip No.'s 204-406 scheduled to breeze.
