how much for that bridge?

It's yearling season 2008, which always makes for fun times. Sure, I know they've been selling yearlings for months now, but September/October is when I typically try to dial in and see if there's anything worth picking up. Our last acquisition, Veiled Reference, was waaay back in 2006, at the Fasig-Tipton Timonium sale, so we're due to mix it up a bit. Like the big guns in the housing and equity markets, I'm counting on the feds to guarantee my solvency just in time to shell out the major bucks. (Judging by some of the mortgage-backed securities coming out of the woodwork, I'm not so sure that equine-backed ones wouldn't have stood a better bet.)

Anyway, I loved the story over at bloodhorse.com detailing all the high-profile yearlings that they'll sell early on. Big Brown's half-sister by Touch Gold is pictured above. Ummm, she's not much to look at, a little small and fine-boned (thank you, Touch Gold) and not much of a back end, but the clincher is how the consignor talks her up in the story (you have to scroll down a little bit): something to the effect of she's really smart, alert and has some spunk. For those not in the know, that's Kentucky-speak for, "she's not much to look at physically, but, shoot, she's a half to the Derby winner (one w/ physical issues of his own, we know), so somebody's gonna shell out some real money, right? Anyone?" Ha! Maybe they'll get celebrity chef, Bobby Flay, on the hook. I'm totally down with his cooking, but, man, has he been taken to the cleaners at the sales. I look at all of these sales results, and this guy is dropping serious coin with little to show for it. His $250,000 pick-up back at the May FT 2yo sale, a Successful Appeal filly named Colcannon, hasn't been up to much on the track, with just a 3/8ths breeze at Monmouth since the sale. He had that one filly, Grace and Power, that was nice enough, but otherwise the guy is getting clobbered. I'm confident that Mesa Grill and Food Network revenues are more than sufficient to keep him out of the poor house, and you can tell that the guy is really into the business, but he's been taking it on the chin for a few years now. If they rope him in on the Big Brown sister, we'll have to stage an intervention.

One other note before I forget. Barclay Tagg debuted a half to NoBiz Like Showbiz the other weekend up at Saratoga. The Broken Vow colt's name is Hello Broadway and he's got every right to be better than his brother. He made multiple moves to break his maiden impressively that day and demonstrated some real brilliance in the affair. His brother, NoBiz, was too much horse on top (Albert the Great, his sire's influence) and not enough leg, (and never did what Hello Broadway did in his debut), but the younger brother is all athlete - great balance and proportion, and just what you'd expect a good Broken Vow to look like. None of the gangly business you might find with an Unbridled (BV's sire), but more Nijinsky, Broken Vow's dam sire. To see what I mean, check out this video of Nijinsky winning the King George in 1970 and pay particular attention to the gallop out. You could rest a cup of coffee on his backside, no? Plus, take a look at his bone and then look at the photo above. Makes you want to go drop $500k on that Touch Gold filly, I'm sure. Anyway, just a reminder that Nijinsky was no joke, and it's good to see so much of him in Hello Broadway. Tagg will likely come back in one of those one-turn mile G1s at Belmont later this month.

just like that

Crew at Shadybrook Farm down in Ocala must be pretty pumped. Bo Yates, who runs the operation (and is pictured at right with Nautical Agent), consigned Stardom Bound to the March OBS 2y0 sale earlier this year and yesterday she won the Grade One Del Mar Debutante. He bought the Tapit filly last year at Keeneland for $50,000 and turned her around for $375,000, which isn't the worst return on your money if you can get it. Bo breaks and trains for T Street, too, and he's been a great guy to have on the team. Honest, straight-shooter that works hard and has a good head for the game. I remember talking to him about this filly right after the sale, and he didn't have more to say than that she seemed to have a nice enough frame that would fill out with time. He likes to buy later, usually less mature or smaller foals (she was born in April), out of young mares with a bit of black type and then pray like heck that the develop nicely in time for the spring sales. Obviously, to flip her for the $375,000 suggests that she came along just fine (If I recall correctly, I think she worked a big 3/8ths at the sale). Judging by Monday's race, she continues to keep on the improve. I'll do my best to keep his ego in check now that he's gone big time. That's assuming, of course, that he'll keep taking my calls.

Props, too, to Anak Nakal, who won the PA Derby on Monday. He's by Victory Gallop, sire of the one and only, Nautical Agent. Like Nautical, Anak Nakal isn't the most talented horse, but the sucker just keeps trying and grinding along. Yesterday, he got up to nip IEAH's Acai right at the wire. Those guys are still swimming in cash from the score pulled off selling breeding rights to Big Brown to Three Chimneys, so don't feel too bad for them.

Speaking of Big Brown, how great is it that he'll run back at Monmouth Park next week? I hope they get a big crowd out to watch him take on some real turf stock in that race they put up. Now, my contention is that they played it all wrong asking for the $500,000 pot that MP is offering, because you know that some decent runners will show up for that kind of money. If the goal is to maintain the smoke and mirrors act, you ask for $150,000 and then just deal with Hotstuffandthensome coming back on two weeks rest. Given the 4-5 weeks or so that the race has been on the calendar means that some quality turf runners will take him on, and likely take the lion's share of the purse, too. Should make for great TV. "Yeah, well, the Breeders' Cup has always been our primary goal for the year, so this was just a chance to get a race into him and have him set for a big day out at Santa Anita. He faced some tough, older turfers, so we're really okay with the fourth place finish. We got what we needed and we love the people here at Monmouth Park. Oh, btw, tell track management to ship the few crab cakes we didn't eat up in the parterres back to me in Long Island. Man, were those good." Meanwhile, Three Chimneys is holding a $50m bag and will be stuck mapping out how they'll get out on that nut. Poor Big Brown will be seeing 250 mares a year right off the bat, I'd bet.