by Debbie Little

If variety is the spice of life, expect Carter Duer’s Peninsula Farm to be bringing some flavor to the Standardbred Horse Sale Company’s auction in Harrisburg, PA, with 18 yearlings representing 13 different sires.

Peninsula’s trotting troop of 11 colts and seven fillies includes a baker’s dozen of dual eligibles which are sure to draw some eyes.

“I’ve got a very good group,” Duer said. “There’s not a lot of names in there, but as far as individuals and what they can do, it’s a very, very good group.”

There are ones that standout to Duer on all three days, and although he’s not a big fan of showing on Day 1, that’s when some of his favorites are scheduled.

Duer said the leader in his pack this year is Hip #58 The Old Man, a son of Walner out of the impeccably-bred Muscle Hill mare The Ice Duchess.

“He’s a little earlier [in the sale] than I would have liked, but that’s just the way it fell, but it’ll be all right,” Duer said. “He’ll definitely be my top one and he should sell very well.”

The Old Man — who is New Jersey and Kentucky eligible — is the third registered foal out of The Ice Dutchess. Her first, Samwise The Brave, brought $150,000 at Harrisburg in 2022, while her second, Shatter Me, now known as R Dutchess, sold for $300,000 in Lexington in 2023.

“This colt is a very nice colt,” Duer said of The Old Man. “He’s very correct and he’s the right size and there’s just nothing with him that isn’t right. Whether he’s any good or not, none of us know, but he looks the part and he’s bred to be good. He doesn’t have a flaw.”

Peninsula’s consignment includes a pair of Day 1 Captain Corey sons. The first is Hip #39 False Dogma, a June 7 foal out of the Father Patrick mare Sister Christina.

“It’s late, but it’s better than nothing,” Duer said with a laugh of False Dogma’s arrival date. “He’s a very nice horse. He’s just not quite as big as I’d like him at this point, but he’s very correct and very athletic.”

Duer had high praise for his second Captain Corey colt [Hip #114] out of the Muscle Mass mare Emiliciousboomboom, and said he loves everything about him with one small exception.

“He’s nice, other than his name; It Could Be Worse is his name,” Duer said with a laugh. “That’s what the owner named him and that’s fine with me.

“He is very, very nice. He’s as nice as, or better than, M J D was. He is very, very special. And I would think he would sell where the top ones of the Captain Coreys sold, maybe $200,000, but I don’t know.

“He’s very correct and shows well, and is just a well-bred colt. And he looks the part too. He’s just as good as the Walner colt to look at. He’s just as nice a colt, he’s just not a Walner. But they’re both very, very nice.”

Duer sold M J D — a colt named for his grandfather — in Lexington this year for $275,000. Duer bred M J D, a son of 2021 Hambletonian champ Captain Corey, who was also bred by Duer.

For Day 2, Duer mentioned two Pennsylvania- and Kentucky-eligible colts Hip #247 The Green Hornet and Hip #496 I’ve Got People.

The Green Hornet is out of the Muscle Hill mare Sherrys Lady.

“I’ve got a very, very good Greenshoe colt, I mean, very good,” Duer said of The Green Hornet. “He’s right with the Walner and the two colts by Captain Corey, and I’m not a Greenshoe fan, but I love this colt.”

Duer explained that he was not the biggest fan of Greenshoe’s first crop but his opinion of the stallion after that changed.

“His second crop was better,” Duer said. “I feel a lot better about [Greenshoe] now than I did this time last year. He’s having a better year this year. He’s got a lot of them, colts and fillies, that are racing better.

“And this colt is very nice and the mare’s had two previous foals. Both of them have raced, but one of them has made a lot of money and is a good horse and that’s going to help. He is very athletic too, and very correct.”

Sherrys Lady’s first foal, Once In A Lifetime, sold for $50,000 in 2021 in Lexington and has earned over $648,000, while Ready Freddie sold at last year’s sale in Harrisburg for $150,000.

I’ve Got People is an International Moni colt out of Honorable Daughter.

“I really think he’s a little bit special,” Duer said of I’ve Got People. “He’s a very athletic colt, very good looking, very correct. I mean, I don’t expect a whole lot for him, but I think he’s a very nice horse.”

Although Duer said his colts stand out a little more than his fillies at this particular sale, he did point out

New Jersey and Kentucky eligibles Hip #254 Naked And Famous and Hip #142 No Promises.

“I’ve got a filly and she’s a Six Pack out of a mare of mine [Sleep Tight My Luv],” Duer said of Naked And Famous. “That’s from the Bold Dreamer family and I’ve had all her foals… I really think she could be kind of nice. In fact, I hate to sell her, but I, you know, I’ve got to sell her.

“And I’ve got a Tactical Landing filly [No Promises] who toes in somewhat, but handles herself very good; a big, strong, good looking filly.”

Duer said two standouts for him on Day 3 are Hip #774 Finn McCool and Hip #814 Stardust Joe.

Finn McCool is a son of Fabulous Wood out of the Tsunami Ranger mareMama’s Brokn Heart.

“He’s a foreign horse,” Duer said of Fabulous Wood a son of Ready Cash. “He’s just had a few in the United States. I sold a full brother to this one last year. He was a very nice colt and then he had a chip in his knee, which had to be taken out. But he trained down like a really good horse. And this one is a nice colt… everything the mare has races, so you can just about be assured he’ll race.

“I’ve got a Green Manalishi S colt [out of Donatos Stardust] and they all seem to want them. He’s not much on paper, but he’s a pretty good individual and I think he’ll sell all right.”

Peninsula did well this year at Lexington and Duer is hopeful they’ll do equally well at Harrisburg.

“I do have four or five trotting colts that I think are very, very good, and by good, I mean, as good as anybody’s got,” Duer said. “I’m sure someone’s will bring $600,000, $700,000, $800,000 and mine will bring $100,000 or $150,000, but I’ve got some I wouldn’t trade for some of those others. They’d have to be pretty darn good to be better individuals and can show more than these can. And I’m sure I’ll be disappointed in some of them and then there will be some of them that might bring more than I thought, but they’re very good.

“I’ve been around a long time and I’ve seen a lot and I wouldn’t care who had them, they’re nice horses. Now, what they’ll do, I don’t know, but I’m certainly pleased to represent them with how they appear.

“We’ve got high expectations for that one [The Old Man]. He’ll be as good as any colt there and whether I get him sold as well as any, I don’t know, but he’ll be as good as anything that’s up there. There are some very good ones on paper and I’m sure they’re good, but when you see him, he’ll be just as good as anything there. I will say that. And that’s the only statement I’m really making.”