Keep an eye on the track and results this week as many of the horses selling at Monday’s January Select Mixed Sale at the Meadowlands have raced or are in to go.

by Dave Briggs

Racehorses to be sold at Monday’s (Jan. 16) January Select Mixed Sale in New Jersey will not only be available for viewing starting Sunday in the barns at the Meadowlands Racetrack, a huge number of them have either been showing their talents on the racetrack in the last week or are scheduled to race before the sale.

“I would say over 80 horses have raced within the last seven days, as well, 62 horses are entered to race between January 12th and January 15th,” sale general manager David Reid said Thursday. “There’s a lot of activity for people to watch. So, make sure you look at the updated past performances.”

The sale on the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday will see some 250 head, as well as a list of stallion shares on offer in the paddock at the East Rutherford track starting at 11 a.m.

“There’s nothing really new, it’s just straight at you and we will, hopefully, have a good old solid horse sale,” Reid said. “The overall numbers are down over last year which simply is a sign of the times with the reduction of the horses being bred every year. It’s trickling down to the sales level. That being said, we’re going to make the best of what we have and move forward.

“I know the Meadowlands Racetrack is facing challenges by competition with racetracks that have enhanced purses, but Yonkers, Ontario, Delaware and the Pennsylvania circuit are still very strong. I would hope to see the Meadowlands bring back the Winter Series at some point in the future.”

Online catalogs and updated pdfs are available at: http://tattersallsredmile.com. The pdfs will be updated on Monday morning before the sale starts to include the results of the weekend’s racing.

“I’m excited the sale’s here,” Reid said. “It’s been established on the calendar for a number of years on the holiday Monday. I’ve had a lot of interest in this sale and it looks like the weather is going to cooperate with us. I’m looking forward to having a nice day on Monday.”

So long as the technological Gods are being cooperative, the sale will be web-streamed (click here to view) and sales results can be viewed online (click here to view).

The online list of outs for the sale is available here and the outs board is available here.

Customary videos will be available for the racehorses in the sales paddock.

Reid’s Preferred Equine Marketing Inc., will consign the most horses.

“I think with Preferred it’s that old cliché line that we have something for everybody,” Reid said. “We have open horses such as: 161 American Passport, 170 Dr J Hanover, 178 Lagerfeld, 179 Missile J and 195 Western Fame. Then we have such fabulous fillies as hip 155 Mother Of Art and recent Yonkers winner hip 158 Swishnflik. Another horse of interest is hip 206 Iron, who also recently won at Yonkers.”

Northwood Bloodstock’s Bob Boni has the second largest consignment. Boni touted hip 175 Gerries Sport as, “a legitimate high-end pacer. He’s a horse that’s going to race in the top classes anywhere you go. He’s probably the one that gave Betting Line his toughest test last year and, almost, gave him a bit of a scare. He shows where he can race. He’s going to fit with just about anybody that’s looking for a Levy horse or anything on that level.”

Boni also highlighted some of the stallion shares he’s selling.

“I think one of the interesting items I’m going to be selling is the Trixton share because my understanding is his book is full or very close to it. I think that will give breeders something to take a shot at,” Boni said. “Some of the other shares I think that are worthwhile, too. Obviously, you’re taking a flier with the A Rocknroll Dance shares because he’s a young sire and his first crop is racing. Who knows what that could be? The Art Major share is very legit. He’s a proven stallion. I think those are worthwhile… we’ve also got a couple of Kadabra shares and my understanding is he’s almost full and closed.”

Finally, Boni said those looking for broodmares would do well to take a good look at hip 21 Sangaal.

“I find her a very interesting mare to be in the sale, only because she’s already a good producer and, unfortunately, she lost a foal this year. She either ran into a tree or got kicked and it kind of discouraged the ownership. I think she’s a mare that you don’t normally see in the sale at this time of year,” Boni said. “Her first foal set a track record at Saratoga this year. He won in :53 on a half-mile, he made almost $100,000. She’s carrying a full brother or sister. Unfortunately, and I think (losing the foal) discouraged the ownership where they said, ‘Maybe this isn’t for us’ and they decided to sell this mare, but she’s a legit mare… She’s a daughter of Burning Point, so she’s certainly got enough going for her and her first foal is already a good horse… I think that’s one that I think is definitely worth somebody looking at.”

Overall, Boni repeated a tried-and-true sale mantra.

“It’s the same thing I’ll always tell you, ‘There’s something for everybody.’ Anybody that comes here and doesn’t think they can find a horse, they’re not looking hard enough,” Boni said. “The one thing I will try to impress on everybody is to pay attention to the updates because right now as I go over current lines, a significant number of horses are in to go.”

At the 2016 January Select Mixed Sale, 258 horses, stallion shares and breedings went through the ring in the Big M paddock, grossing $5,849,400 for an average of $22,672.

The gross was down 6.6 per cent from the $6,265,200 fetched at the sale in 2015 when 269 horses, stallion shares and breedings were sold and was off two per cent from the gross of $5,971,500 reached in 2014 for 234 horses and items were auctioned.

Last year’s average was down 2.7 per cent compared to 2015’s average of $23,291 and off 11.2 per cent from the average of $25,519 reached in 2014 when 234 horses and stallion shares were sold for a gross of $5,971,500.

In 2013, 206 horses and stallion shares sold for a gross of $4,549,600, an average of $22,085. In that sale, 158 racehorses grossed $4,192,000 and averaged $26,532.