Brisbane APG Yearlings Sales Review: 5 of 7

Our next instalment of the sales circuit is the Brisbane edition held back on the 12th of March

With 72 Lots catalogue by a total of 23 different sires on behalf of 18 consignors and 10 preparers

The team at Burwood had 12 lots under their care for the day, as always their yearlings had that special look about them as they walked into the ring. This family run business has the ability to really present a fantastic looking animal, they do as well as anyone in the country.

Lindsay Vagg should also be mentioned here. He had 3 absolutely striking looking lots, that on challenging day for vendors all found homes at reasonable prices. Lindsay’s ability to meet the market will keep him in the buyers calculations moving forward to next year’s sale, well done to the Vagg’s.

I’m told this could be the last time Cold Mountain has any real numbers in the Brisbane sale. While they have been fantastic at meeting the market over many years (and I’m told they are a great organisation to deal with), their cutting back on numbers will help the sales averages going forward. A clear indication on how hard it is to stand and bread from your own stallions would be Lot 550. This filly is a half-sister to  River Shark, a winner of more $1,000,000 in North America. Yet she was sold after the sale for  $2,000. The photo below also tells a story.

The Brisbane vendors unlike those in Perth have been really good at uploading their photos and video’s before the sale. Please see the list below that didn’t get done, with ave of $5,433 no more needs to be said.

Racing QLD have been fantastic with forming the partnership with the Albion Park Club and APG to provide an additional $100,000 race for graduates of this sale only. This race in time will build into something very exciting and without it, people may start to question the future of this sale. Which is clearly so important for Harness Racing in QLD.

Unfortunately the race card at Albion Park the night before the sale didn’t have any races of note. Without any 2 or 3YO races scheduled, I do think they missed an opportunity to help the breeders in QLD. A yearling parade of some kind the night before and some good entertainment can only help.

On the stallion front, it was hard to find a top 5 sires that had sired 3 or lots that got sold on the day. However we did get there in the end.

Now this bloke below was outstanding, on an extremely warm and challenging day. With some technology issues outside of his control, Jamie Quinlan handled the 71 lots on his own, in a polish and very skilful manner. Well done Jamie. Please watch the clip below, of Jamie Pre-sale.

I know this was correct at the time as l used the sheet Grant Dixon signed that day to publish the result above. As you can tell by the table below, Peter McMullen is the new buyer at $30,000. Whatever has happened here is between the parties mentioned, however, it has an effect of Bettors Delights Averages for the day and a very small change to the overall result.

With a clearance rate of just under 60% and a sales average of $17,390 which is down on last year it’s my view Brisbane has some challenges that need fixing before more breeders are lost in this state.

The key points l believe that need a serious look are:

1. A small amount of vendors need to re think their behaviour at this sale, a growing level of distrust between buyers and a few vendors has the potential to de-rail this sale for ever.
2. The idea of a change of venue needs to be on the table, when you have horses only arriving 2 hours before the sale is not treating the buyers with enough respect. This also makes it very challenging to get pre-sale promotions and video’s out to buyers down south, who are clearly needed to build this into a successful and exciting event.
3. Until a bigger pool of buyers are supporting this sale, l would cap the entries at 50 yearlings from consignors that are breeding the product that people want and will do the right thing when the yearling walks into the ring. Having 32 yearlings by Mr Feelgood, Lonestar Legend and South Park Hanover is almost mission impossible. Making sure the preparers are doing their job correctly, plus adding a stronger mix of sires and mares from families with depth can turn this around. 17 lots sold for  $6,000 or less, results like this can be improved on very quickly.

Regardless of what people my say, it really does hurt me to say this sales event is a C from me this year. The opportunity to turn this sale around is mind blowing and the team at APG will get it right. I am of the belief you will see a rating much higher this time  next year, once some of the changes like the above are put into place

Its Bathurst that’s next on the list.

Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com

Driving The Future Of Harness Racing