by Matthew Lomon

With more than 50 years of experience in the standardbred industry, there isn’t much Bob Boni hasn’t seen or done himself.

Boni is the owner and president of Secaucus, NJ-based Northwood Bloodstock, a program that discovered top-tier talents Camtastic, Always B Miki, and the legendary Nihilator.

A Lexington yearling sale veteran, Boni knows exactly what to expect going into Monday. His operation is selling a group of 28 yearlings, all as an agent. The consignment features babies from Captain Crunch, Papi Rob Hanover, and Tall Dark Stranger.

“I’ll tell you the same thing I say every year because it’s true, the good horses will take care of themselves, they really do,” Boni said. “Every year the sale seems to get a little stronger. People like to buy good horses and I don’t see any reason why we won’t see a similar trend this year. People will certainly take a good look at the one’s they’re enthused about.”

A strong pedigree, which applies equally to both Northwood and its crop of yearlings, goes a long way in building that enthusiasm and excitement.

“If you put a good pedigree out there and a good individual, people are going to be interested,” said Boni, former president and a long-time member of the board of directors for the Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of New Jersey. “Good horses will always sell and it’s important for buyers to see that there’s already some out there racing for the kind of money they’re racing for.

“You see in Toronto the amounts of money horses are racing for; in Kentucky with their stakes program. If you get one that can compete on the stakes level, it can be very rewarding.”

Boni knows that finding those stakes-level competitors starts with looking into their sires, and that’s why he’s especially excited about what he sees in offspring of Captain Crunch, Papi Rob Hanover, and Tall Dark Stranger.

Captain Crunch leads the way with four yearlings (Hip #180 Captain Magestic, Hip #765 Captain Uptown, Hip #779 Zip Time, and Hip #800 Pirates Poison), and he has two each from Papi Rob Hanover (Hip #27 Robbing Mcgibson and Hip #155 Poppy Power) and Tall Dark Stranger (Hip #93 Strangeronthebeach and Hip #506 Strange Summer).

“Talented horses make the most successful sires,” Boni said. “Between Papi Rob, I’ve got a number of them, a couple of Tall Dark Strangers, I think they will both sell tremendously well. Papi Rob is a very liked horse, and being the son of Somebeachsomewhere, we know the success his sons have had, makes it that much more appealing.”

Papi Rob Hanover and Tall Dark Stranger are both new sires, which bodes well for their value coming into the sale.

“I think both of those horses will have tremendous first crop sales,” Boni said. “We’re in a business where the first crops seem to sell very well.”

When asked if there were any yearlings flying under the radar that buyers should know more about, Boni said he doesn’t necessarily look at it that way.

“The horses get exposed pretty good now,” he said. “Between the internet and feature videos, so much is done before the sale that, sure, there may be some where people make a good buy here and there, but it’s usually not for a lack of looking.”

Video, in particular, stood out to Boni as a valuable tool for buyers. He says it offers a significant advantage because it allows them to gather most of their intel before setting foot in Kentucky.

“It makes a big difference and gives you that chance to get a head start,” Boni said. “Really, it’s about doing your homework with all the information and resources available on these horses nowadays. The more homework you do, the better your luck will be.”

Boni offered one more word of advice to buyers.

“Any horse that you like on paper, you’re supposed to go look at,” he said. “I think the worst feeling someone could have at a sale is seeing a particular horse sell for what they would consider less than what the page would dictate, but they didn’t try to see the horse in the first place.”