Hanover brings another stellar group of yearlings to Lexington

The sport’s leading breeding farm is selling all 23 of its yearlings on the first two days of the sale.

by Dave Briggs

There’s a practical reason Hanover Shoe Farms has brought some of its very best yearlings back to the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale again this year.

“We need to sell them all in the first two days of the sale so we can get back and video the Harrisburg yearlings,” said Hanover’s executive vice president Dr. Bridgette Jablonsky. “We can’t stay all week, so we keep that in the back of our minds. We select yearlings that we know that the sales company won’t have a problem selling on Monday and Tuesday this year and that deserve to sell on Monday and Tuesday.

“I don’t know if they are our 23 very best yearlings, because there are very, very good yearlings left for Harrisburg, but these would all be Monday Harrisburg horses or the vast majority.”

This year marks the second year in a row Hanover has sold a small-yet-stellar group of yearlings at the Lexington sale. Prior to 2021, it had been six years since Hanover had sold in Lexington. There was a very good reason for their absence from the Kentucky sale. The Pennsylvania farm that produced world champion Bulldog Hanover, operates the Standardbred Horse Sales Company that this year will hold its sale Nov. 7-11 in Harrisburg, PA.

Last year, the move to sell a small group in Lexington paid off for Hanover. The sport’s perennial leading breeder sold 20 yearlings in Lexington in 2021 for a gross of $3,102,000. The average of $155,100 was second highest among all consignors behind only Concord Stud, which sold seven select yearlings.

This year’s Hanover consignment in Lexington, represents “the best ones that we have from that sire,” Jablonsky said. “Just as an example, the Stay Hungry colts. You might come to the (Hanover) fairgrounds and find a Stay Hungry colt that you like as much, but you’re not going to find one that you like better than those two (Hip 205 Fasnacht Hanover and Hip 26 Stay Cool Hanover). It’s kind of that situation.

“It’s the same with Greenshoe. There’s two outstanding Greenshoe fillies and, of course, there’s the colt out of Hannelore (Hanover — Hip 47 Holy Grail Hanover). You might come around and find one you like just as much, but you won’t find any that you like better.”

Hanover Shoe Farms stands both Greenshoe and Stay Hungry and Jablonsky is high on both. This year is Stay Hungry’s second crop of yearlings. It is the first crop for Greenshoe. Hanover is selling eight Greenshoe yearlings in Lexington.

“They are very, very athletic horses with good personalities,” she said of the Greenshoe offspring. “I’ve said this before, he’s kind of a ‘people horse.’ He likes being around people and he has a distinct personality and I think he’s given that to his yearlings. They like to interact. They’re not wallflowers, they don’t hang back. They are attention seekers.

“Everyone knows that I was one of Greenshoe’s biggest fans and very instrumental to secure the deal to stand him here and he has not disappointed so far. I’m very happy with what we got.”

DR. J’S CHOICE PICKS

Keeping in mind that Jablonsky believes all 23 of Hanover’s Lexington yearlings are outstanding, she did pick out a few more yearlings worthy of more praise.

Hip 7 Bree Hanover — “is the filly out of Bedroomconfessions. She’s a full sister to Boudoir and Bellisima. So, of course, the mare is two-for-two with very good fillies… She’s a very nice filly, good in the paddock. There’s no reason to believe she can’t be a good as the first two sisters. I’m excited about her… She’s the second one that we sell. Actually, the first one that we sell is a very nice Greenshoe filly (Hip 1 Above Par Hanover), so I think we’re going to start off well.”

Hip 26 Stay Cool Hanover — “He’s a colt that is kind of a favorite of mine because he’s a brother to Stone Hanover, which I owe a little piece of. Stone is a very good, underrated horse. He’s a Stay Hungry colt and he looks like a stallion already. He’s muscular with a great head and neck. He’s beautiful. Stay Hungry was a beautiful horse and he couldn’t be having a better first year.”

Hip 36 Emoji Hanover — “is a half-sister to Emoticon Hanover. She’s a Greenshoe and she is just, to me, beautiful. Whenever I see her, the word ‘ballerina’ comes into my mind. She looks like a ballerina – she’s graceful, she’s got these long legs, beautiful head. She’s just the vision of a trotting filly to me. She’s been one of my favorite fillies since weaning and she’s done nothing to change that. I will note that Emoticon was always very high strung, like at the fairgrounds when we were prepping her she was a handful. In the winner’s circle, there were two people holding her… but this filly is very quiet. She is nothing like Emoticon. She’s on her toes, but she’s not high strung.”

Hip 47 Holy Grail Hanover — “is the colt from Hannelore (Hanover). What can you say about him? He’s a beautiful, beautiful colt… He’s got her body style, more than Greenshoe’s body style, but he’s got long legs from Greenshoe… Hannelore was a big, massive yearling and he is much more athletic looking than Hannelore with longer legs, narrower chest and Greenshoe gave him that.

“You can’t tire the horse out. In the exercise machine, you know, when you take him out he still has his nose right on the gate. In the paddock, he’ll go forever in the paddock. He’s a bit of a clown in his personality. He wants everyone to always be staring at him.”

Hip 80 Youbet Hanover — “A Bettors Delight filly (that is the) first foal out of Youaremycandygirl, who made $1.5 million. This is the family of Sweet Lou, Bettor Sweet, Captain Crunch. It’s just an amazing family. To me, I can’t imagine that there’s a better bred Canadian-sired pacing filly. I’ve looked at the book and I don’t see one.”