Bill Casner | Horse Racing Free Tips

Letter to the Editor: Bill Casner

Editor's note: Bill Casner, a long-time participant in many facets of racing, is probably best known for founding WinStar Farm with Kenny Troutt and winning the 2010 GI Kentucky Derby with Super Saver. Among Casner's many roles in the sport have been founding director of the Race for Education and Kentucky Equine Education Program (KEEP). He has sold his interest in WinStar to Troutt and currently operates as Casner Racing.

Horse racing is in a firestorm. We are at survival tipping point. The decisions that are made in the short term will determine whether horseracing can endure as we know it. The American public has no tolerance for what they perceive as a sport that is immersed in carnage. I commend Churchill Downs for suspending racing to take a hard look at their future and to explore solutions that will be significant in mitigating breakdowns and restoring confidence to our fans.

The one decision that would be a major game changer is to convert the racing surface at Churchill Downs to synthetic. In the released 2022 The Jockey Club (TJC) Equine Injury Database (EID) for the year 2021, injuries on dirt were 1.44 per 1,000 horse starts. Turf injuries were 0.99 per 1,000. Injuries on synthetic were vastly diminished with 0.41 per 1,000. This data shows that synthetic surfaces are 3.5 times safer than dirt and 2.2 times safer than turf. These stats are compelling in showing the exponential safety of today's synthetic surfaces over dirt and turf.

The data is compelling but it doesn't tell “WHY” synthetic tracks are safer. Back in 2006, I chaired the shoeing committee for TJC Welfare and Safety Summit. We were tasked to examine the safety of toe grabs which Dr. Sue Stover at UC Davis had shown to significantly contribute to breakdowns. We employed sophisticated high-speed cameras with a closed group of nine horses provided by Chris McCarron's jockey school to understand why toe grabs were contributing to breakdowns. We filmed the hoof's contact with the racing surface using a variety of shoes with varying toe grab lengths on both dirt surfaces and Keeneland's synthetic track.

The results were dramatic. What we learned was the effect of “slide” on the lower limb of the horse. With Queen's Plates, the front foot has an average slide on dirt of 3 1/2 to 5 inches. The average slide on synthetic was 1 1/2 inches. Slide is important to understand. It's the “give” in a horse's stride. The increased length of slide on dirt causes two things to happen. First, it magnifies torque on a horse's lower limb. If a horse “toes in” the limb incurs torque medially because of the increased forces on the outside of the hoof. If they toe out, then the torque is lateral with the increased forces on the inside of the foot. And when horses step in holes on a dirt track, the torque can go either way. This doesn't happen on synthetic tracks because of the shorter slide which greatly diminishes torque. Also, a horse's foot is always landing flat on a synthetic surface as opposed to the cuppy holes that cover a dirt track. Synthetic also provides a much higher energy absorption than dirt with a higher energy return.

The second important factor that we were able to measure was the magnified load on the pastern that was presented on dirt. Because of the exaggerated slide and delayed break over on dirt, the pastern continues to load through the stride, increasing its drop by as much as an inch over synthetic. We were also able to see this increased load when horses landed in the “holes” created on dirt tracks.

As you can visualize, the increased load or drop of the pastern creates excessive strains on the suspensory apparatus of the horse's lower limbs magnifying the opportunity for a catastrophic failure. When a horse blows out its suspensory apparatus in a race it leads to a broken leg in the next few strides.

Suspensory and tendon injuries are extremely rare on synthetic but occur way more frequently on dirt because of these magnified strains.

The videos also exposed how lethal toe grabs were on all surfaces. They were especially detrimental on synthetic because they abruptly stopped the foot not allowing any slide. This is why trainers were experiencing rear-end injuries early on because they were continuing to use toe grabs on the rear feet.

Sarah Andrew

Catastrophic break downs are rarely caused by one bad step although this is more likely on dirt. As most orthopedic surgeons will testify, they are the result of cumulative microscopic injuries that accrue with the thousands of steps a horse accumulates in training and racing. It's the laws of physics. Excessive torque and loads on a horse's legs will eventually take its toll. With a synthetic surface these strains are greatly diminished and a horse's natural ability to remodel its bone will repair and strengthen it at a cellular level.

We not only have the irrefutable data over hundreds of thousands of horse starts on synthetic but we have the notable success of several major tracks that have employed them.

The first is Keeneland. The last meet they ran on synthetic in 2014 was the most successful meet in Keeneland's history at that point. All-time attendance and handle records were set. There were record field sizes, minimal scratches with inclement weather when races were taken off turf. And most importantly, there were zero breakdowns!

The second is Santa Anita. The last meet run at Santa Anita in 2009 had an injury rate of 0.57 per 1,000 horse starts compared to their pre-synthetic era on dirt of 2.78 per 1,000. That computes to a 4.8 times higher safety record. This is in spite of a poor-quality installation that would not properly drain, eventually having a subsurface membrane failure allowing aggregate to float to the surface.

Here are some compelling stats from three tracks currently running on synthetic surfaces: Golden Gate, Presque Isle, and Gulfstream.

Golden Gate had an injury rate of .38 per 1,000 with 12,986 horse starts in 2021 and 2022 on their Tapeta surfaces.

Presque Isle race meets in 2021/2022 had 0.24 injuries per 1,000 with 8,178 horse starts.

Gulfstream with its newly installed Tapeta track had the best record of all with only one injury out of 7,085 horse starts with 0.14/1,000. This translates to a 9.7 times safer surface than their dirt track.

Belmont has recognized the advantages of having a synthetic surface with its scheduled completion in the spring of 2024.

Injuries on a national basis have dropped significantly at certain tracks since the implementation of intensified pre-race veterinary examinations of our horses and have the promise of continuing to diminish injuries with mandated requirements by HISA. This high-level scrutiny of starters combined with the safest possible racing surface will dramatically reduce injuries and show the world that we care.

Horseracing is a sport with a rich history of tradition. The thought of changing the racing surface of the Kentucky Derby to a synthetic surface will not appeal to those that value tradition above the safety of our horses and the survival of our beautiful sport. If we do not take drastic proven steps to significantly eliminate breakdowns we are destined for the fate of Greyhound racing.

Today's public has no stomach or tolerance for what they perceive as abuse of our horses. The “writing is on the wall” or in our case the New York Times, CNN and the 6 o'clock news. We either embrace innovative change supported by the data to maximize safety for our horses and riders or we are destined to experience a slow painful death.

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From Dust to Dust: Do “Terrible” Racetrack Barns Exacerbate EIPH?

For all the satchels of research dollars and reams of ink devoted to exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH), it remains a topic Swiss cheese riddled with unknowns.

Which means that, as the sport continues to move away from Lasix as a crutch to manage the problem–especially when the federal Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) outlines a timeframe for a total race-day Lasix ban–various lines of inquiry beg pursuit.

Given the sometimes rundown, poorly ventilated state of racetrack barns around the country, perhaps the most urgent one is this: How much of an impact do these conditions have on a horse's EIPH susceptibility?

There have been efforts to find answers, however, including a recent multi-state study designed primarily to gauge the prevalence and severity of post-race EIPH in 2-year-olds.

“This is certainly the largest study of 2-year-old horses that's been conducted,” said Dr. Warwick Bayly, dean of Washington State University's College of Veterinary Medicine and the lead researcher on the study, which took in video endoscopies of 893 2-year-olds after 1,071 races at 15 American racetracks.

The results of the endoscopies–taken between 30 to 60 minutes after the race–were then sent blind to a team of three observers who assigned an EIPH score of zero (none) to four (severe) to each.

Though these results are currently being spun into a peer-reviewed paper, Bayly shared some of the preliminary data with the TDN.

As a comparison between 2-year-olds that received Lasix and those that didn't, the study “unfortunately lacked sufficient statistical power” because the bulk of the horses scoped–roughly 83%–ran Lasix free, said Bayly.

Nevertheless, despite Bayly calling the results of the 2-year-old study “pretty homogenous,” the study has generated some conclusions of interest, including how:

EIPH was found in 66% of cases, with scores of three or four occurring in 8% of cases. The prevalence and severity of EIPH in 2-year-olds, therefore, was consistent with that of older racehorses.
The severity of EIPH appeared to vary with track location but not track surface–a trend, says Bayly, that warrants further investigation.

Bayly and his fellow researchers didn't just study 2-year-olds; stake-race performers aged three and older also formed a separate study group. From these results, Bayly draws a few conclusions of note.

As has been shown in other studies, more severe EIPH is linked to poor racetrack performance. The chances of severe EIPH also increased with race distance.

Another is that as horses age and accumulate more races and workouts, the severity of EIPH worsens. “If a 6-year-old is still running in stakes races, it's because it's a darn good horse,” he said.

Coady

Perhaps most interestingly, an episode of moderate to severe EIPH isn't necessarily predictive of an equally bad event next time the horse runs.

“A couple of horses that had a three or a four [grade EIPH], the next time they ran, they didn't have it–they might have been a one,” said Bayly. “Horses that were a grade two, subsequently their next run afterwards might have been a two or a one or a zero.”

Most pertinent for this story, the study also sought to determine whether various environmental factors predispose a racehorse to increased likelihood of EIPH.

The researchers are hoping to look at the Air Quality Index (AQI) at each location, the horse's bedding, the material of the horse's stall (wood or metal, for example), and whether that stall opened inwards into the barn or faced outwards.

Because of the migratory nature of racing, with horses routinely shipped from track to track, Bayly described the gathering of much of this information as rather catch-as-catch-can.

“We just didn't have the resources to really delve into that and I am not sure we will find anything, although horsemen are interested in the subject,” he said.

That last observation is on the money, as some industry stakeholders argue that the relationship between a horse's environment and EIPH is already clear.

Coady

Real-world application

“Our stalls at our racetracks are terrible,” said Bill Casner, former trainer and co-founder of WinStar Farm.

“If trainers would only have a high understanding of the implications of a poor respiratory environment on their horses, they could really go a long way in mitigating bleeding,” he added.

For years now, Casner has been on something of a crusade to raise industry awareness of the importance of a horse's environment to its respiratory health and overall athletic performance.

“I trained racehorses in my youth, and I couldn't shake out a straw stall,” he said, in explanation of what prompted this interest. “Straw would give me a severe asthma attack. That was where I really started to become aware.”

In 2016, Casner appeared at the Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit at Keeneland, extolling the virtues of stalls and shedrows free of lung-clogging dust, pathogens and mold.

His presentation included an overview of his then relatively new bespoke training barn at WinStar Farm, in Kentucky, which he designed to address what he sees as the four central pillars of lung health: ventilation, bedding, forage and contamination.

A concrete and metal shell that's easy to clean with a power-wash, the WinStar barn is tall and airy to prevent ammonia collecting in the horse's immediate breathing space. Ammonia can irritate the respiratory tract in horses.

Indeed, unlike traditional stables with a loft overhead to store hay and straw, the horses sleep beneath a ceiling full of skylights and large fans to circulate the air without dredging up dust from the floor.

Visitors to the barn won't even find rafters where birds–what Casner describes as “just another vector” for disease and bacteria–can perch.

Hay is steamed and fed to the horses on the floor. Hay nets are anathema. Shavings and wood pellets are used to bed the horses down instead of straw.

And once a week, Casner “fogs” the stalls with a novel mixture made from a cationic steroid anti-microbial (CSA) liquid diluted in five gallons of water.

Casner swears that since routinely fogging the barns with the anti-microbial mist–a mixture that kills only the bad microbes, not the good–the coughs, sniffles, spiking temperatures and skin problems that typically rampage through a barn full of youngstock with their embryonic immune systems have been all but eliminated.

“I've been spraying it in my barn for gash-dang eight years now. Since then, we haven't had one cough and we haven't had one temp,” he said.

Ultimately, said Casner, “bleeding is an inflammatory issue.”

Coady

Environmental factors

The thing is, while researchers have identified an association between EIPH and inflammatory airway disease [IAD] in horses, a scientifically proven link “has not been published,” said Dr. Laurent Couetil, a professor of large animal medicine at Purdue University whose research has focused on inflammatory respiratory disease in horses, including racehorses.

“The big picture is that EIPH is very common in racehorses, as we know, as is mild asthma,” Couetil added, using another more everyday term for inflammatory airway disease.

“To just have those two things co-exist because they are common in their own right makes sense,” he added. “So, the question truly is: Are they linked?”

The first such potential association between EIPH and airway inflammation arrived in the late 1980s with a study on horses that had raced in Hong Kong and had suffered a bleeding event.

Through subsequent necropsies, pathologists found that in the same areas of the lungs most damaged though EIPH there existed an unusual amount of localized inflammation.

Since then, published research into IAD shows that the number one villain is probably dust and particulates in the air, with much of the literature reinforcing Casner's approach to clean, well-ventilated stables, along with dampened hay fed on the ground.

“Anything that really works to reducing dust exposure, especially the small dust particles, is exactly what should be done,” Couetil said, pointing to how fine particulates can trigger airway inflammation, while larger particulates worsen it.

Jen Roytz

“If you think about horses and their normal environment, their habitat should be outside on the prairies, grazing,” he added.

This study, for example, compared horses fed hay in nets to those fed hay on the floor.

Not only were the hay-net fed horses exposed to more dust and particulate matter than the floor-fed horses, but their lungs appeared to have significantly greater inflammation, too.

This leads to other potential connecting threads.

Horses kept in enclosed or dusty stables are more likely to exhibit visible mucus in the trachea, this study found. And as this prior study of Thoroughbreds determined, higher levels of tracheal mucus were linked to poor racing performance.

More than 10 years ago, a team of experts looked at the air quality throughout the day in three different barns at Thistledown Race Track over the months of July, September and November.

Among the key findings:

Enclosed, poorly ventilated stables had the dustiest air
The barn location of the stall dictated air quality
Air particulate concentrations were highest in September and November, lowest in July
The quality of the air was significantly worse in the morning than the rest of the day

Respiratory health isn't just an issue confined to the indoors, however.

Like Bayly with his ongoing multi-state study, researchers are looking at the potential impact that outdoor air quality might have on the equine athlete.

“I was doing some quick math and when a horse goes out to train or race, the amount of air they move in and out is similar to the rest of the day and the volume of air they breathe in when they are quiet,” said Couetil, adding that a horse's “ventilation” increases 30-fold during peak exercise.

The air surrounding inner-city tracks can be polluted with all sorts of contaminants like industrial chemicals and exhaust fumes, long-term exposures to which are known to cause severe human health issues. Are horses vulnerable to similar effects?

“If you race just a short amount of time in a polluted area, it might lead to a similar exposure to the rest of the day when they're quietly breathing in the stall,” Couetil explained. “Nobody has really looked at this–it's something that needs to be explored.”

In that vein, Couetil is involved in an ongoing two-year study to assess real-time dust exposures at four different tracks using a monitor attached to participating horses' halters. The study will simultaneously measure the pollution levels at each track.

Nevertheless, when it comes to the link most critical to horseracing–that between EIPH and inflammatory airway disease–there is “so much we don't know,” Couetil emphasized.

“We are kind of scratching the surface right now.”

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‘Broken Systems And Cronyism’: WHOA Advisory Board Says Horseracing Integrity And Safety Authority Will Flounder Without USADA

The Water Hay Oats Alliance (WHOA) is a grassroots movement of like-minded individuals who support the passage of federal legislation to prohibit the use of performance-enhancing drugs in the sport of horse racing. The appointment of an independent anti-doping program run by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) will resolve the problem of widespread drug use in American racing and put U.S. racing jurisdictions in step with international standards.

Doping destroys public confidence in racing, defrauds the betting fan, weakens the genetic pool, and, most importantly, puts the life and limb of our equine athletes and their jockeys at risk. It is obvious that after years of committee review and discussion, America's racing industry cannot police itself by eliminating the proliferation of performance-enhancing drugs in our sport, nor does it possess the power to adequately punish the purveyors of these drugs.

It was the summer of 2012…
Our original team of supporters had just returned from a trip to Washington, D.C., lobbying for drug and medication reform in U.S. racing. The legislation then was entitled The Interstate Horseracing Improvement Act of 2011 sponsored by Congressman Ed Whitfield (R-KY). It called to amend the Interstate Horseracing Act of 1978 (IHA). After that trip, it was obvious that the racing industry would never support those measures, so we began discussions with the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) to help address the intractable issue of doping in racing.

We decided that our individual voices would make a greater impact if we banded together under one umbrella, with one voice. It was crystal clear that our goal would be to find a way to put USADA in a place of independent management and oversight.

That was the beginning of the Water Hay Oats Alliance (WHOA). Over time, owners, breeders, trainers, jockeys, and industry professionals joined our ranks. We included racing fans and handicappers, partners in our sport. We included members of all racing disciplines: Thoroughbred, Standardbred, and Quarter Horse racing.

Since that time, USADA has played an integral role as a valued partner in efforts to pass the industry-shifting reform legislation that created HISA. USADA chief executive officer Travis Tygart and his team have shared their time and expertise, often at their own expense, educating countless individuals and racing industry groups about the importance of clean sport and what USADA's gold standard program could do to better racing.

Today, WHOA has grown from that handful of advocates to over 2,000 industry stakeholders: over 850 owners and breeders, 950 industry professionals, and a host of racing fans and handicappers.

Since that original bill, there have been five variations of legislation to address doping in horse racing. With each variation, WHOA's simple mission statement stood the test. As long as the legislation met our mission with the placement of USADA, WHOA supported it.

When the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act was passed in December 2020, we all celebrated. Our mission was complete. The legislation named USADA, an independent third party, as the entity to serve as “the anti-doping and medication control enforcement agency.”

But, not so fast…
In late December, negotiations between HISA and USADA stalled. The legislative compromise that WHOA supported – to put USADA in their rightful place with a five-year contract – has been aborted. HISA is looking for other options and interviewing other entities to fill USADA's place.

“What a shame. What a travesty. What are the insurmountable issues that would preclude a fivc-year contract between USADA and HISA?” asked international owner and breeder George Strawbridge.

“I was so disappointed to see the breakdown of talks between HISA and USADA. There is no other agency that will handle testing as thoroughly as USADA, we need to get them back to the table so they can clean up our sport.” said leading Classic trainer Graham Motion.

Michael Engleman, a horseman, and former international cyclist, lamented, “Like so many others across the world, I was extremely disappointed to read the news of HISA suspending talks with USADA. The reality is that for U.S. racing there is no legitimate and globally respected alternative to USADA. Anything less than USADA just shows that we are not serious about making honest and real change for what is best for racing, the racing fans and the horses we all love.”

Members of WHOA have reached out to both parties asking for an explanation of the stalemate and offering to help bridge the gap. To date, no light has been shed on the subject. The industry deserves to know what the issues are that caused the impasse. “Don't live in the problem, live in the solution.” In this case, without understanding the problem, we can't help find a solution.

WHOA's support of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act hinged on the fact that currently there is no other “entity that is nationally recognized as being a medication regulation agency equal in qualification to the United States Anti-Doping Agency.” We challenge HISA to find another agency that meets USADA's program criteria. THERE IS NONE.

“We need USADA now. Time is of the essence to put an end to doping in racing.” said Triple Crown winning jockey Steve Cauthen.

Members of WHOA do not feel that HISA has the expertise or luxury of time to build or piecemeal together an entity that would come close to doing what USADA does so well. It is a well-oiled machine. There is a level of trust that USADA stands its ground for what is right. It will not be swayed by outside parties. It is truly independent.

Owner, breeder Bill Casner believes that “without the years of expertise that USADA provides, HISA would basically be trying to reinvent the wheel. It will be floundering, trying to deal with the sophistication of the cheaters. We have to get USADA on board.”

WHOA will continue to endorse the independent turn-key program USADA brings to the table. Their scientists are respected at the highest levels. USADA's drug testing capabilities exceed that of any other agency in the field. They have been involved in drug testing, results management, and adjudication longer and at a higher level than any other organization. USADA utilizes advancing sciences to look for new performance-enhancing drugs to stay ahead of the cheater and uses data analysis to catch them and provide a fair process. USADA is a signatory to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), giving it access to the best global anti-doping practices and science.

“USADA's knowledge of drug testing exceeds that of any other agency in the field. They have been involved in drug testing longer and at a higher level than any other agency. There is a major difference between testing at the Olympic level than the NFL, for example.” said Barry Irwin of Team Valor.

“USADA has been at the heart of WHOA's efforts from the beginning. We all appreciate that changing a culture and a system will be challenging and expensive. But desperate times call for desperate measures.” said Staci Hancock, WHOA's managing member. “Racing's reputation and future depend on bold changes for the betterment of our sport and the health and well-being of our horses. USADA can give us that, putting an end to business as usual with broken systems and cronyism. We can't afford anything less.”

“I don't think the horse industry realizes the plight it is in, and it desperately needs the integrity of USADA to help shore up its sad reputation. Cheaters are still cheating, horses are still dying, and public perception is still worsening,” added Arthur Hancock of Stone Farm.

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‘Healthy Median And Low Buy-Back Rate’: Market Remains Strong During Keeneland’s Third Session

The bullish market continued into the third day of selling at Keeneland's November Breeding Stock Sale, which recorded strong trade throughout the session evidenced by double-digit increases in gross, average and median prices and a buy-back rate of less than 19 percent. Breeze Easy purchased both the session's $725,000 top-priced broodmare – the Grade 3-producing Unbridled's Song mare J. Quirk, in foal to Game Winner – and the $375,000 top-priced weanling – J. Quirk's filly by Gun Runner, who was next in the sale ring. Both horses were consigned by Denali Stud, agent.

On Friday, 242 horses sold for $38,134,000, an increase of 52.15 percent over the corresponding session of the 2020 November Sale when 196 horses grossed $25,063,000. The average of $157,579 rose 23.23 percent from last year's $127,872. The median of $140,000 was up 30.23 percent over $107,500.

Cumulatively at this year's November Sale, Keeneland has sold 586 horses for $126,634,000, for an average of $216,099 and a median of $160,000. Through the first three sessions of last year's auction, 521 horses sold for $102,528,000, for an average of $196,791 and a median of $125,000.

“Today was pretty spectacular from start to finish,” Keeneland Director of Sales Operations Cormac Breathnach said. “The median, which is more representative of the bulk of the market, was $140,000. That's about $40,000 more than last year and $30,000 more than 2019, which was a banner year, so we are really beginning to push on from those levels. The buy-back rate was under 19 percent. A healthy median and a low buy-back rate really indicate an active market. It was a brilliant day but not just at the top. It was a very strong day all the way through.”

“There is depth of competition for the mares, and that is really encouraging as we step forward,” Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy said. “As foal crops get a little lighter, we are seeing energized breeders. These are not people who are fleeting. These are professional, established breeders who are investing and being very determined for the future. I find that encouraging.”

J. Quirk, a 10-year-old mare from the family of Horse of the Year Tiznow, produced Lady Mystify, who scored an 18-length maiden victory at Santa Anita and in September captured the Remington Park Oaks (G3). Out of You're Beautiful, by Storm Cat, J. Quirk also is from the family of Grade 2 winners Budroyale and Tizdubai.

“We are going to race the filly,” Breeze Easy Managing Director Mike Hall said. “The mare has produced a lot of good physical horses that have also done well. We came for the mare and at the last minute decided to get the weanling. I was a little shocked on the price. I stopped several times.”

Bill Casner paid $460,000 for Summer Vacation, a 9-year-old half-sister to Grade 1 winners Creative Cause and Vexatious and Grade 2 winner Destin in foal to Twirling Candy. She is the dam of Grade 2-placed Ten for Ten. By Eskendereya out of Grade 1 winner Dream of Summer, by Siberian Summer, Summer Vacation was consigned by Hill 'n' Dale Sales Agency, agent.

“I've got a 3-year-old from the same family by Not This Time that was a good racehorse,” Casner said. “I love that page (for Summer Vacation), and this mare has had good production. In this market I would've liked to have gotten her for a little less, but the market will tell you what these horses are worth so I think it was fair enough on her.”

Grade 3 winner Orglandes (FR), who captured the Nov. 7 Zagora Stakes at Belmont Park, sold for $440,000 to Polo Green Stable, agent for Shimokobe Farm. Consigned as a racing or broodmare prospect by ELiTE, agent, the 5-year-old daughter of Le Havre in October was second in the Waya (G3) at Belmont. Orglandes, who is expected to remain in training, is out of the Dansili (GB) mare Influence and from the family of Group 2 winner Moiava (FR).

Andrew N. Warren went to $430,000 for Gale, a 4-year-old stakes-winning daughter of Tonalist carrying her first foal by Not This Time. Consigned by Gainesway, agent, she is out of stakes winner Windy Forecast, by Stormy Atlantic, and from the family of Grade 3 winners Thatlookonyerface and Lou Brissie.

Warren acquired four horses for $1.2 million to lead buyers during the session.

Gainesway, agent, was the leading consignor with sales of $5.31 million for 26 horses.

Curuzu, a 6-year-old winning daughter of Giant's Causeway in foal to Nyquist, was purchased by Benson Farm for $425,000. Indian Creek, agent, consigned the mare, a full sister to Grade 2 winner Chief Havoc whose dam is Grade 3 winner La Reina, by A.P. Indy. Curuzu also is from the family of champion Queena and Grade 1 winner Chic Shirine.

“She's one of the best (mares) I've seen today,” Benson Farm Manager David Shone said, “and she can obviously throw a good foal. Hopefully, she'll throw me a Nyquist that looks like that (Curuzu's weanling colt by Twirling Candy, who was the previous horse in the ring and sold for $200,000).”

Slimey, a 5-year-old stakes-placed daughter of Quality Road in foal to Uncle Mo, sold for $410,000 to Gage Hill II and Lane's End Farm. Consigned by Paramount Sales, agent, she is out of Argue, by Storm Cat, and is a full sister to stakes winner Quality Response. Slimey is from the family of European champion Rainbow View, Grade 1 winner No Matter What and Grade 2 winners Utley and E Dubai.

ELiTE, agent, also sold three mares for $400,000 apiece.

Magna Carta Bloodstock paid the amount for the 4-year-old Constitution mare Sevnteeneightysevn, a half-sister to Grade 1 winner and sire Great Hunter carrying her first foal by Kentucky Derby (G1) Presented by Woodford Reserve winner and Horse of the Year Authentic. Out of Grade 3 winner Zenith, by Roy, she also is from the family of Grade 3 winners Owendale and Promise Keeper.

Counterparty Risk (IRE), a 4-year-old daughter of Australia who won this year's Lambholm South Endeavour (G3), sold for $400,000 to David Lanigan, agent for Heider Family Racing. From the family of Group 2 winner Sarah Lynx (IRE) and Group 3 winners Steel Princess and Steel Prince, the daughter of the Acclamation mare Anklet was cataloged as a racing or broodmare prospect.

“We'll get her back into training and then make a decision on where she goes,” Lanigan said. “The plan is to run her next year. Depending on how that goes, a decision will be made (about whether she will join the broodmare band).”

The third mare consigned by ELiTE, agent, and sold for $400,000 was stakes winner New York Groove, a 4-year-old daughter of Verrazano carrying her first foal by Authentic. Woodford Thoroughbreds purchased New York Groove, who is from the family of Grade 3 winner Melhor Ainda. Her dam is Back Up Preacher, by Pulpit.

Woodford Thoroughbreds also acquired the fourth horse sold for $400,000, another mare carrying her first foal by Authentic. She was Mucho Amor, a stakes-winning 5-year-old daughter of Mucho Macho Man consigned by Paramount Sales, agent. The daughter of the Rock Hard Ten mare Raucous Lady is from the family of stakes winners John the Magician, Charming Ruckus and Smarter By the Day.

The November Sale continues Saturday with the first session of the two-day Book 3. The auction runs through Friday, Nov. 19 with all sessions beginning at 10 a.m. ET.

The final session on Nov. 19 will conclude with a single dedicated portion of horses of racing age following the conclusion of breeding stock. A total of 285 horses of racing age have been cataloged to the closing day and will follow the total of 148 head of breeding stock in the catalog.

Keeneland will accept supplements to the horses of racing age section through mid-November.

Click here for the online catalog for the horses of racing age in Session 10 of the November Sale. The entire auction is streamed live on Keeneland.com.

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