Ocala

Longtime Ocala Pinhooker Carl Bowling Dies At 84

Carl Bowling, a longtime pinhooker in Ocala, Florida, died July 26 at the age of 84. The following is an obituary provided to the TDN by the Bowling family: "Carl Bowling passed away July 26, 2024, resulting from an accident while riding a motorcycle near Hiawassee, GA, where he enjoyed his summers with his family in the North Georgia mountains. Carl was 84 years young, born in 1940 in Black Mountain, NC. He was one of two boys and five girls. He is survived by his wife of 66 years,...

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Ocala's Peterson Smith Equine Hospital Enhances Care With New CT Wing

Ocala-based Peterson Smith Equine Hospital recently completed a new CT wing to their facility, the healthcare provider said in a release early Thursday. The project included comprehensive upgrades to the lobby and examination rooms, along with the construction of a cutting-edge standing surgery suite. The new development includes the installation of the Qalibra Aquillion Exceed LB Computed Tomography (CT) system, which features industry-leading technology and a large (90cm) bore. The advanced CT unit enables safe and efficient diagnostic imaging of patients undergoing standing sedation or general anesthesia. The enhanced imaging...

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$400K Twirling Candy Filly Sets the Pace at OBS June Sale Thursday

OCALA, FL - The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training continued its steady course Thursday, with figures through two of the auction's three sessions in line with its 2023 statistics. During two sessions, 384 juveniles have sold for $14,402,900, with the average of $37,508 ticking up 3.1% from a year ago and the median remaining steady at $20,000. With 125 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate was 24.6%. Through two sessions a year ago, 410 juveniles had grossed $14,922,600 for an average of $36,397. The...

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'I Don't See Racing's Future as Rosy' – Trainer Eddie Plesa Looks Ahead Following Milestone Victory

Eddie Plesa, Jr. secured his 2,500th career training victory with the 3-year-old gelding Raging Fury at Gulfstream Park Apr. 13. TDN's Senior Racing Editor Steve Sherack caught up with the highly respected 74-year-old conditioner for a wide-ranging interview to discuss the milestone victory, his trip to the 2-year-old sales in Ocala this spring, the future of the sport and much more. TDN: Let's start things off with your milestone victory. What does it mean to you to reach 2,500 wins? EP: When you hit a number like that, you take...

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OBS June Catalogue Now Online

A total of 994 horses--980 2-year-olds and 14 horses of racing age--have been catalogued for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June 2-Year-Olds In Training and Horses of Racing Age Sale, to be held Wednesday through Friday, June 12-14. The under-tack show and sale itself have both been moved forward by one day to facilitate inspection and travel time for those horsepeople attending the Belmont S. at Saratoga the week prior. Hips 1-350 are set to go under the hammer during the opening session and a similar number of horses will...

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OBS Spring Kicks off Busy Under-Tack Week

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company launched an action-packed week of under-tack shows ahead of its Spring 2-year-olds in Training Sale, which will run from Apr. 16 through Apr. 19. A total of eight juveniles--half fillies and half colts--led the way Sunday morning with joint :9 4/5 moves. WinStar's freshman sire Improbable was the only sire to be represented by a pair of session-topping workers--Hip 131, a colt out of I Know That Mom (Distorted Humor) (S G V Thoroughbreds LLC), and Hip 133, a colt out of MSW and MGSP...

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'Succession' Presented By Neuman Equine Insurance: De Meric Sales

"It's a really difficult thing, to let go of something that you've spent your whole life building," acknowledges Nick de Meric. "I don't know if 'letting go' is quite the right way to put it. But to actually cut that umbilical cord, it's a leap of faith." The Ocala horseman, who reflected on a colorful past in yesterday's TDN, now turns his attention to the future. For the evolution of a successor program, parallel to his own, makes the de Meric family a particularly pertinent case study for our series...

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De Meric's Odyssey Brings Him 'Home' To Horses

The island is still there, nearly 50 years later, which would have surprised Nick de Meric at the time. He'd have assumed that there could be nothing left by now. "Because they were basically mining it off the map," he recalls. "It was made of iron ore. So they had these massive Euclid trucks, wheels high as a building. And all these men on shift work, living in long huts. Not quite a prison environment, but it was all-male, tropical heat, nothing to do but drink beer and play cards....

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A Pair of Queens for King's Equine

ARCADIA, CA - As the unbeaten Tamara (Bolt d'Oro) looks to emulate her legendary dam Beholder (Henny Hughes) with a win in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, the duo have something else in common that you won't be able to find in Friday's program at Santa Anita. Before heading out to join Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella in Southern California, they were both broken and trained on behalf of Spendthrift Farm at Raul and Martha Reyes's King's Equine in Ocala, Florida. Like mother, like daughter? "Actually, Tamara was...

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Arqana May Breeze-Up Offers Plenty for Americans

The North American breeze-up calendar is a busy one, typically offering around 2,500 juveniles for sale over the course of the spring. And while all eyes will be on Ocala this week, American two-year-old buyers in recent years have been rewarded by adding another sale to their calendar: the Arqana Breeze Up. Held this year on May 13, with breeze shows on the 11th and 12th, the catalogue offers 43 two-year-olds by North American stallions, including Accelerate, American Pharoah, Blame, Candy Ride (Arg), Catholic Boy, Curlin, Into Mischief, Justify, Medaglia...

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Champ Wonder Wheel Gearing Up for Sophomore Debut

Every morning at 8:30 sharp, 'The Wonder Wheel Show' takes over Casse Training Center in Ocala. Just after the break, the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies champion and newly crowned Eclipse Award winner takes to a freshly groomed track and flies through her paces solo before regular training resumes. "She gets her own set," trainer Mark Casse said with a grin. "She's special." Casse's smile grew even wider Monday morning as he watched Wonder Wheel in action. After a day off on Sunday, the daughter of Into Mischief was enthusiastic...

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OBS October Sale Kicks Off Tuesday

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's October Yearling Sale kicks off Tuesday with a selected yearlings session, which will be followed by an open yearlings session Wednesday. Tuesday's session gets underway at noon with Hips 1-185 and is followed by the supplements, which are Hips 186-209. Wednesday's session begins at 10 a.m. with Hips 251-660 and followed by a section of supplements, which are Hips 661-684. "We are certainly excited seeing what has transpired in the yearling market so far this year," said OBS's Tod Wojciechowski. "The graduates of this sale...

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