Down, Under, And Then Across

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Cris Caldwell, a Keeneland auctioneer, blogs about his experience in Australia.

I head to Australia now, having recently left New Zealand and the Cleary family at their home in Queenstown. They are the owners of Blue Sky Farm in Lexington, Kentucky and one of the families far flung interests is a large dairy south of Queenstown with a plant for processing milk, a product that is one of the countries largest exports.

Bernard and his sister Trina were celebrating Mohaymen (Tapit)'s win in the GII Holy Bull S. at Gulfstream Park. This Tapit colt was sold at Keeneland for $2.2 million in 2014 to Shadwell Farm and Sheikh Hamdam. He is now one of the early Kentucky Derby favorites and is unbeaten at this point. Their mare is bred to Tapit, due to foal soon and will, coincidentally, revisit that Gainesway stallion after foaling.

Landing in Sydney, I headed straight to the Royal Randwick Racecourse for a lovely day at the races. As the summer festival kicks into full swing they will have regular weekend crowds of 40,000 plus.

People were very well dressed and many of the ladies wore hats similar to our Kentucky Derby day or the Breeders Cup. The track boasts a very well laid out plant filled with constant commentary between races and interviews of interest both before and after each post. Very highbrow and very well done.

I was a guest in the Inglis suite and betting was easily transacted from a machine within each room. Jamie Inglis and I talked extensively about the auction selling process, noting the similarities and differences between our countries. Jamie was most recently at the Keeneland November sale in 2015.

A past Keeneland intern, Louis Le Matayer, had the horse Wolf Cry entered and he was on the lead until the very end in heavy going. He imports older horses from France and has a buying agency in Australasia.

There are four tracks laid out concentrically at Randwick to minimize overuse and grand views abound in every direction. There is plenty of outside seating under umbrellas near the rail to take advantage of the perfect weather.

As soon as the racing concluded Saturday, the Inglis Classic Yearling sale began with an evening session held nearby at their storied grounds. Two more day sessions finish this mid-level auction held in an open air facility with stadium seating surrounding a large rubberized walking area. Offices, food service and repository are in close proximity.

Over the course of the three-day event the average was up by 35%, gross was up by 37% and the clearance rate was a phenomenal 90%. A very strong auction with many consignors selling every lot offered. Top lot was Hip 193, an I Am Invincible colt out of a Red Ransom mare. The $410,000 price set a new record for the sale.

Mark Webster, the sale manager, stated that many foreign buyers are now keeping their horses in the country competing for the largest purses in Australia. He noted that it has taken years of exchange, dinners shared and a slow building of confidence before many of these buyers now find it more engaging to stay and race on this grander scale against other international race horse owners. Graded wins in Australia readily increase the world wide value of the horses purchased and raced as opposed to other smaller jurisdictions.

Some time was spent in and around the town of Scone in the Hunter Valley. This area is the Lexington, KY of Australia with over a dozen stud farms. Many of these are owned by international players with other horse properties positioned around the world. It is set in a huge, beautiful valley that also contains over 100 Wineries that produce Semillon and Shiraz varietals.

I was invited by Wendy Perriam, the resident farm vet for Arrowfield, on a tour of this large 2,500-acre stud. Standing more than 10 stallions, including Australian legend Redoute's Choice and shuttle stallion Animal Kingdom, this property will breed over 1200 mares starting in the 2016 season.

A new breeding barn, a mirror image of the current barn, is being built to process mares with greater efficiency. Many of these mares, similar to Lexington, are driven in and out the same day. New, wide entry roads are being built now, in the off season, to facilitate ease of entry for these numerous four-legged clients. Other pastures and stallion turnouts are being built as well.

On Arrowfield there is a separate sales centre dedicated to yearling sales preparation. It is a huge multi-row barn with an in-water walker, pool, weigh scales and innumerable turnout pastures for a complete sales prep service. This farm will sales prep close to 200 head for themselves and clients for the Magic Millions, Inglis and other local venues. As Wendy stated “Never a dull moment!”

Magic Millions recently concluded its Premier Gold Coast Yearling sale with the gross up 25%, a top lot at $1,600,000 and a near 90% clearance rate. Inglis will hold its Premier Easter sale soon and is building a new, state of the art sales facility outside of Sydney that will be ready in 2018. Optimism abounds on all fronts.

Finally, as I return home to the United States from visiting both New Zealand and Australia, I am struck by how the pursuit of raising Thoroughbreds, whether broodmares in foal or yearlings heading to an auction, requires the same effort, the same quality land and the same physical structures from barns to fencing, from pastures to breeding sheds, everywhere around the world. At the end of it all, the horse rules the day and those specific needs when met, outline the way to create an environment for success.

The culture, in any given area, may be wildly different but the horse is the great equalizer and common denominator that intrinsically designs an environment suitable to creating an optimal and gorgeous animal that catches the eye and fires the imagination of people worldwide.

 

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