Harringtons Get Creative at Barretts

Mike and Patricia Harrington, more often a presence at the racetrack than in the sales ring, enjoyed a strong showing at last year's Barretts May Sale when their homebred Milton Freewater brought the auction's second highest price of $250,000. The gray colt was already a winner when he went through the ring last May, in fact he was the first winner for his freshman sire, the Mike Harrington-trained millionaire Creative Cause. The Harringtons will be looking for more sales success next week when they offer a pair of juveniles at the Barretts Select 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale at Del Mar. Both offerings are consigned by Havens Bloodstock Agency.

“We are mostly breeding to race, but we need to sell some once in a while to support the racehorses,” explained Mike Harrington, a fourth-generation horseman who has been training full time in Southern California since retiring from his veterinary practice in 1993.

The couple, both licensed trainers, have a broodmare band of “more than 10, but less than 20,” Harrington said. Harrington-bred pedigrees are littered with names the Washington native is very familiar with. In addition to Creative Cause, who won the 2011 GI Norfolk S. and was third in the 2012 GI Preakness S., Harrington also trained Swiss Yodeler, who is the broodmare sire of Milton Freewater, and the young stallion Empire Way (Empire Maker), a full-brother to champion Royal Delta.

All three stallions were owned by Harrington's longtime client Heinz Steinmann and all three feature in the Harringtons' upcoming Barretts offerings.

Hydrostatic, hip 32, is a son of Creative Cause out of Short Sentence (Swiss Yodeler). The mare is a full-sister to multiple stakes winner Tilde and has produced stakes winner Better Bet (Southern Image). Positive Ways, hip 134, is a son of graded placed Empire Way and out of My Yolady (Mineshaft), a half-sister to Steinmann's stakes winner Theonewewaitedfor (Creative Cause).

Creative Cause got off to a strong start with his first crop to race last year with the multiple stakes placed Milton Freewater and Theonewewaitedfor, who captured the Landaluce S. last July, leading the charge. The Airdrie stallion was represented by his second stakes winner last weekend when Twisted Tom won Laurel's Private Terms S., a day before Milton Freewater was a strong second in his comeback allowance race at Santa Anita. While Theonewewaitedfor has been sidelined, Harrington is hopeful to have the filly back on the track this fall.

Asked if Creative Cause's offspring remind him of the stallion that took him to the GI Kentucky Derby five years ago, the veteran horseman explained, “Last year, none of them much reminded me of him, but this year I have several that remind me of him. He was a fireball, getting to the track and getting back, I'd take him with a pony all the time. He was a big, energetic horse and some of his colts are starting to act like that.”

Empire Way, who stands at Lovacres Ranch in California, has four winners from two crops to race, including Mr Ability, who the Harringtons sold last May for $75,000.

Two of the Harringtons four offerings at last year's May sale were already winners when they went through the sales ring and, while their Select duo haven't made it to the starting gate in a race yet, they both have registered works at Los Alamitos. Hydrostatic, with three works on view, most recently went a furlong in :11.80 Mar. 10. With two posted works, Positive Ways most recently covered an eighth in :12.00 Mar. 8.

That experience should serve the two juveniles well when Barretts holds its under-tack show at Del Mar Monday, according to Harrington.

“Last year, we chose the May sale because two of those horses had already run and we knew they were runners,” Harrington said. “I think when these horses preview, they are going to preview better. My agent Andy Haven has said those horses are very prepared to preview, so they are going to preview better than some of the other horses.”

The juvenile sales season will be making its third stop at Barretts after registerring strong, but polarized, results at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale and at the OBS March sale. Harrington is expecting more of the same at Barretts, but hopes having two California-bred offerings will attract buyers looking to take advantage of the state's breeding program.

“The last two 2-year-old sales have been positive,” Harrington said. “But the trouble with the market nowadays, as everybody knows, is that there is a top and a bottom and not much middle. So unless your horse makes the top tier, you're probably going to have to take him home. But Andy says that Cal-breds are kind of a different deal. He thinks that there are a lot of people interested in Cal-breds just because of the Cal-bred program, so we're hoping that that is a stimilus for the local market.”

Heading into Barretts third year of selling 2-year-olds at Del Mar, Harrington acknowledged that it is important for the California breeding industry to have a strong sales outlet for its product.

“It's definitely important to have somebody because if we don't have an opportunity to sell them, then we've got to race them all,” he said. “There are a lot of people breeding Cal-breds just to sell, so we have to have a strong sales presence in California.”

Two Juveniles Supplemented to Barretts

A pair of juveniles have been supplemented to next week's Barretts Select 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. Hip 135 is a son of leading sire Tapit and is the first foal out of Grade I winner Lady of Fifty (After Market). The chestnut colt is consigned by Wavertree Stables. Hip 104 is a daughter of Stay Thirsty out of Social Amber (War Front). The bay is consigned by Crane Thoroughbreds Services.

The under-tack preview for the Barretts sale will be held Monday at Del Mar beginning at 10 a.m. The sale will be held Mar. 29 beginning at 2 p.m.