Peninsula’s Lexington consignment offers some ATMs

by Debbie Little

Lexington will be a little special this year for Peninsula Farm’s Carter Duer as he sells for the first time as a newly minted Hall of Famer.

“It’s a great honor, believe me,” Duer said. “I’ve got a lot of good friends in [the Hall of Fame], and it is a great honor, and I appreciate it.”

Duer, who will be formally inducted into the Hall of Fame in Goshen, NY in July 2027, is expecting big things from this year’s Lexington Selected Yearling Sale.

“This sale down here will be exceptional,” Duer said. “At least the first couple days, I think it’ll be absolutely exceptional. And I think Harrisburg will be big.”

Duer’s Georgetown, KY-based nursery will offer a total of 26 in Lexington, including 24 as agent.

As usual, Peninsula offers looks to bring you in and breeding to back it up.

“I do have, I think, some very nice horses, pacers and trotters… that have got a chance of doing something, and they’re a very correct bunch,” Duer said. “And you know, I just think there’s some nice ones in there.”

Duer added with a laugh, “I won’t be getting any big checks, but I think whoever gets them has got a very good chance of getting some.”

Although he’s never been a big fan of showing on Day 1, Peninsula has two going that day: Hip #62 Juno Beach a Tactical Landing colt out of Magic Bee and Hip #104 Astral Skys a Walner filly out of The Ice Dutchess. Both are Kentucky and New Jersey eligible. 

“They’re both nice horses,” Duer said.

Astral Skys is out of an amazing filly family that goes back to the great Southwind Serena.

“Believe me, she’s very nice,” Duer said. “I wish I owned her, but I don’t. But she’s a very nice filly. The family is deep, and I wish I had more of it.”

Juno Beach is a first foal whose second dam is Beehive, the dam of Bee A Magician.

“They both have great families,” Duer said.

Peninsula is offering yearlings from 13 different stallions.

“I think we have maybe four Tactical Landings, and they’re all pretty nice, and I’ve got three nice Muscle Hills colts, and he still does very well; every year he comes up with something,” Duer said. “I’ve got a couple King Of The Norths, which I like. He’s done very well in Canada, and I kind of like them. And then I have three Captain Coreys, and they’re all okay, and I got a few more pacers this year than normal.”

Peninsula has three Tactical Landings — Hip #417 You’re Unmuted out of Aperfect Ruby, Hip #549 Here Comes Magic out of Magic Touch, and Hip #597 Elizabeth Swan out of Rosalie Swan — selling on Day 3. Of their three Muscle Hill colts, Hip #199 Grasevina out of Croatia and Hip #379 Private Trade sell on Day 2, with Hip #512 Teddy Boom Boom on Day 3.

Their trio of Captain Coreys are also split across Day 2 and Day 3 with Hip #133 My Lover out of You Want Me and Hip #217 Loving Captain out of Ever Lovin on the former and Hip #617 Dateless out of Single In The City on the latter.

All three are nice horses,” Duer said of his Captain Corey’s. “I mean, very nice horses. Not just nice horses, very nice horses.”

Both King Of The Norths, Hip #535 Cantera King a colt out of La Cantera and Hip #635 Grandslam Anne a filly out of The Dealers Ace are on Day 3.

“I’ve got three Confederates in this sale here, and I really like them,” Duer said. “They’re nice horses. His yearlings are very, very nice, and they do everything right. So, I’m hoping that they’ll be alright for these clients because they’re very good clients and they’re friends of mine. I don’t have a single pacer myself, but I’m glad to have them.”

Hip #278 Midwind Loveknot out of Love For Sail and Hip #508 G H Charm out of Giver To Er are both Confederate fillies and Hip #454 Confederate Railway is a Confederate colt out of Cerise Hanover.

“I haven’t got a single colt or filly that if I had to train them, I would feel bad about it,” Duer said. “All of these, the pacers, the trotters, they’ve got good confirmation, they’ve got enough pedigree to make it, and they’re just nice horses.”

Although Duer doesn’t love the name his son picked out for Teddy Boom Boom, he does think well of the colt.

“He’s a very nice colt,” Duer said. “He’s a first foal of a mare who was destined to be a lot better than what she was, but she was alright, and it’s kind of a family horse. We own the grandam and the dam and the great grandam. So, you know, we’ve had them all, so he’s kind of like a family horse.”

Duer will always be partial to the offspring of Captain Corey, who he bred. Even though Corey has not gotten as many top-level mares as Chapter Seven or Walner, and rightfully so, Duer has faith in him as a top-level stallion.

“Chapter Seven and Walner have been so good and are getting all the good mares that it’s tough to unseat them until Mother Nature unseats them,” he said with a laugh. “[Captain Corey’s] done exceptionally well, I think.

“I follow him closer than anybody because it’s just like one of my kids playing ball. I look at every one of them that races that comes on TV, so I think he’s done exceptionally well, I’m very happy with him.

Duer said Captain Corey was always special and it’s something that he passes on.

“He was beautiful,” he said. “From the day he was born until the day we sold him; he just was absolutely perfect in every way.

“A lot of them look like him. I can look at them on TV and pretty well pick them out. He’s added years to my life I think because I’ve just been so enthused, being able to watch his horses go and race and it gives me some pleasure.”

Just like a professional gambler, Duer holds his cards close to his vest, but he did mention that he has the same feeling about one of his yearlings that he had about Corey when he was the same age. Whether he’ll share that information with anyone before or after the sale remains to be seen.

Most of Peninsula’s consignment is dual eligible including nine from New Jersey. As a result Duer was happy to hear the good news that Meadowlands owner Jeff Gural shared about the two new races he will have for 2027, the million-dollar Meadowlands Trot and $500,000 Meadowlands Oaks Trot. 

“That surprised me,” Duer said. “That really surprised me. We need New Jersey. We can’t afford to lose it, but you know Atlantic City is going to make it to where I don’t think we’ll ever get [a casino] up there, but we do need The Meadowlands and we need New Jersey.

“I mean the whole business I’m not talking about just for Jersey, but for me, and people that do what I do, and everybody else, we need New Jersey.”

Duer said he knows with the closing of Southwind Farms it has not yet been determined where all the stallions, such as Walner, will be going.

“Yeah, well, it doesn’t matter where [Walner] is; he’s all right,” Duer said, adding with a laugh, “They could put him in Alaska, and he’d still fill his book and everything. But, if it would help New Jersey, we need him there.”