Concord consignment filled with quality and variety
by James Platz
The 87th edition of the Standardbred Horse Sales Company’s annual auction will kick off Monday (Nov. 3) with a Concord Stud Farm-consigned yearling entering the sales ring. The three yearling sessions will conclude with a horse from the farm selling next to last. Between the pair, the Cream Ridge, NJ-based nursery will offer one of its largest consignments at the Pennsylvania State Farm Show Complex.
“I would say that, once again, we’ve got a little bit of everything sprinkled across those three days,” said Concord’s Julie Meirs. “We’ve got the high-end stuff that we usually have, with some names that you have seen in the consignment previously from the dams that we’ve had previously, and then some new ones as well. We’ve got a whole bunch of King Of The Norths sprinkled throughout, which is new, and, as always, a lot of Chapter Sevens.”
The 76-yearling roster is weighted more toward trotters, with 49 cataloged (27 colts and 22 fillies) versus 27 pacers (16 colts and 11 fillies). It is the second consecutive year the farm has brought a group numbering in the 70s. Last year’s consignment also totaled 76 babies, with 75 selling for an average of $74,880.
“It’s a little larger,” Meirs said. “We’re usually in the 60s, so not a huge jump up, just a healthy increase.”
From that group, more than half the consignment — 39 yearlings — are dual eligible to the Kentucky program. Concord purchased a farm in the Bluegrass State in order to take advantage of dual eligibility, and Meirs believes it greatly benefits the yearlings with that distinction.
“It’s hard to say exactly, but I have had numerous people look at some that aren’t Kentucky eligible and say, ‘I really wish this was Kentucky eligible,’” she said. “I think it’s up to the individual horse as to how it’s going to affect each one, but I do think that there is still a discount sticker on there if they aren’t Kentucky eligible at this point.”
A total of 21 from the consignment will sell in Monday’s opening session, and among them are several individuals of note. Swingingchandelier, Hip #30, is a Chapter Seven filly out of the RC Royalty mare Swinging Royalty, who has already produced graded stakes winners Ahundreddollarbill and Slay and the graded stakes-placed sophomore Royal Mission.
“She’s a nice filly,” Meirs said. “And she is a full sister to Royal Mission, which we sold at Harrisburg a couple years ago.”
Also selling on the first day is Fine Tuned Man, Hip #120. The Chapter Seven colt is out of Fine Tuned Lady, and is a half-brother to millionaire and Mohawk Million winner Oh Well. Another Chapter Seven colt offered Monday is Hip #85 Seven Pledges. He is the first foal from Resolve mare Clockwork Orange, a half-sister to Dan Patch Award winner Allegiant.
“He’s from the Allegiant family, so we have a little bit of everything for Chapter Seven,” Meirs said of the farm’s seven yearlings from one of the sports leading trotting sires.
Also receiving attention at the farm are Headline, Hip #119, and Devil’s Revenge, Hip #128. Headline is a dual-eligible first foal Walner colt from the Father Patrick mare Vogue, a near $75,000 winner with a 3-year-old mark of 1:55.3. Second dam Swan And Only is a 100-per cent producer, and the third dam, Swan Lake, produced Swan For All. Devil’s Revenge is a dual-eligible Muscle Hill filly and second foal from Love You mare Hanna Bourbon. Her first foal is Kentuckiana Stallion Management Stake runner-up Creator 2, 1:54-’25 ($141,286).
Concord’s consignment is stocked with yearlings from the second crop of Captain Corey and Bulldog Hanover, as well as the first crop of King Of The North. The roster includes a trio from Captain Corey (two colts and one filly), with two that are dual eligible.
“Unfortunately, I don’t have as many as I would like after how they’ve been received thus far,” Meirs said. “But we’ve got three solid ones.”
Colt Captainofthenight, Hip #394, sells Tuesday, while colt Captain Northman, Hip #602 and filly Hip #615 Tack It On, will pass through the ring on Wednesday.
“We sell a little heavier on Wednesday this year than we have in previous years, so we’re definitely going to have plenty to offer all three days,” she said. “And it’s not that the quality is significantly lower on Wednesday, we just got a lot of horses and so they’re spread out.”
Eight from the first crop of King Of The North are consigned by Concord, with the first of the group, dual-eligible filly Neweve, Hip #267, selling Tuesday. The filly is a half-sister to Winndevie, dam of six-figure earner Winnpanzee.
“We’ve got a good, solid handful of them,” Meirs said. “We had a bunch shipped in to add to the consignment, so I’m excited to see their success continue into Harrisburg.”
The roster also includes five by Bulldog Hanover.
“We’ve got a few Bulldogs selling throughout,” Meirs said. “[Hip] #324 [Body Island] is a Bulldog filly out of Rah Rah Blue Chip. She’s put together very nicely. Then we have a couple selling on Wednesday as well. The Bulldog out of Perfect Storm [Upheaval, Hip #605] is nice as well.”
There are other pacers in the consignment that should also draw attention. Among them are Hip #72 Quick Look, a dual-eligible Huntsville colt that is a brother to Manolete 3, 1:49.2f-’25 ($482,456), Alexa’s Magic, Hip #54, a dual-eligible Sweet Lou filly whose second dam is the great producer Michelle’s Jackpot, Hip #151 Michelle’s Magic, a dual-eligible Captaintreacherous filly from Michelle’s Power, and Stay For The Night, Hip #166, a dual-eligible Stay Hungry filly from the American Ideal mare Penpal, producer of graded stakes-placed Treacherous Penny.
“We’re definitely heavier with trotters, but we do have some pacers that stand out,” said Meirs. “You would be fine taking any of them home.”
