Tag: Dean Reeves

Frosted Colt Gets Grade I Off to a Fast Start at OBS

A colt by Frosted (hip 247) got Nellie and Chetley Breeden's new Grade I Investments consignment off to an auspicious start when he was one of four horses to earn the furlong bullet of :9 4/5 during the second session of the under-tack show for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training in Central Florida Wednesday.

Nellie Breeden is no stranger to the sales scene, having spent time as assistant trainer to her father, legendary pinhooker Jimmy Gladwell, as well as pinhooking through the Top Line Sales consignment of her brother, Jimbo and his wife Torie, but she did admit to some nerves as she and her husband sent out the first horse to work under their own banner.

“We've gotten horses ready for the sales previously and they've sold with my brother and sister-in-law, so [the colt] doing his job, we were prepared for that,” Breeden said. “But when he came down the lane and they said, 'Grade I Investments,' I think my heart was going to come out of my chest. I just wanted him to do a good job. I was so proud of him.”

While 10 horses worked in :9 4/5 during Tuesday's first session of the under-tack show, no horses broke :10 during Wednesday's first set. Hip 342, a filly by Brethren consigned by Goldencents Thoroughbreds, was first to hit the :9 4/5 mark during the day's second set and was followed just minutes later by Grade I Investments lone offering of the March sale.

“We knew he was fast. He had prepped well,” Breeden said. “Today it seemed like the track was maybe a tick off or something this morning. Going into it, we thought he would do :10 flat and then you hope for a :9 4/5. It sounds good leading into it, but then when he gets on the track, you think, 'Gosh, am I crazy? Can he really do it?' But we thought he was fast, so he did what he was supposed to do.”

Hip 247 is out of the unraced Ananda (Scat Daddy), a full-sister to multiple graded stakes winner Daddy Nose Best. A partnership of family members purchased the colt for $50,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale.

“The first thing we liked about him was his physical,” Breeden said of the colt's appeal as a yearling. “And that has stayed superior. The only thing that has changed is that Frosted has really gotten hot in the last eight weeks or so. That's really been in our favor, but as far as the colt, he has never had to take a day off. He's maintained his physique throughout the training, so he's just gotten stronger and stronger.”

Consigning was just the natural next step for the Breedens, who lease Two Springs Farm in Micanopy from Dean and Patti Reeves.

“I had previously been working under my dad and so we have been training the horses and then sending them over to Top Line,” Breeden said. “In the 2-year-old game, most people who train their horses, sell them. So we just thought it was a natural progression for us to take that step and showcase some of the horses that we train and try to bring them to the buyers.

“We were actually going to sell last year and then Mr. Reeves purchased the farm, so we started bringing that farm back to life and it was just too much of an undertaking to sell at the same time. This year, we had our wits about us and decided it was time to take the plunge.”

The current plan is to keep the consignment small, but Grade I Investments will have horses at the OBS April and June sales.

“We buy [yearlings] as a group,” Breeden said. “It's my brother, Raymond and his wife Megan and then my mom and dad and some of our other family has bought in on other horses that are going to other sales. But it is usually a group effort, which makes it a lot of fun. Chetley and I will get the opportunity to sell a few of those, but not all of the horses that we are pinhooking will sell with us. Some will go to Top Line as well. The horses that we own a majority of or a bigger piece of, we will sell. We don't intend to grow the consignment as a major source of income for us. It's more to showcase our horses and will be a more boutique style. That's our goal. Just to showcase our horses really well and bring them to the buyers.”

With just one horse in its inaugural consignment, things are off to a good start for Grade I Investments.

“Everyone asks, 'Are you nervous?'” Breeden said. “We've gotten horses ready for the sales for years, so honestly, that hasn't been the nerve-wracking part. The nerve-wracking part is, 'Do I have all of my paperwork in?' 'Do I have this?' Just the logistics of the sale, that's been the biggest learning curve so far.”

The couple has plenty of support right nearby on the OBS barn area should they need it.

“I am neighbors with my Uncle Robby [Harris from Harris Training Center] and my cousin J.R. [Boyd] from Brick City, so if I need something, they are right there to help,” Breeden said. “And of course Jimbo and Torie, any question I have, they are right on the spot to help out. It's really nice to have it be a family affair. It's been a good experience so far.”

The bullet furlong workers at OBS Wednesday also included: a filly by Mitole (hip 312, video) consigned by S B M Training and Sales; and a colt by War Front (hip 392, video) consigned by Kings Equine.

A colt by Bucchero (hip 406) turned in the fastest quarter-mile breeze of the day–and of the week so far– when working in :20 3/5 for Tom McCrocklin.

The under-tack show continues through Friday with sessions beginning each day at 8 a.m. The OBS March sale will be held next Monday through Wednesday and bidding commences at 11 a.m. each day.

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Gulfstream Stakes Winners to Target Pegasus World Cup

Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator) will be aimed at the Jan. 28 GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational after his victory in the GIII Harlan's Holiday S. Saturday at Gulfstream, while the Christophe Clement-trained stablemates City Man (Mucho Macho Man) and Decorated Invader (Declaration of War), first and second in the GII Fort Lauderdale S., will now target the Jan. 28 GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational.

Skippylongstocking won the 2022 GIII West Virginia Derby and was third in the GI Belmont S.

“He's getting better and he's filled out so much,” trainer Saffie Joseph said. “He exceeds all expectations. I never give him that much credit and he keeps delivering.”

Joseph said Skippylongstocking will be joined in the Pegasus by stablemate O'Connor (Chi) (Boboman), who finished fourth as the favorite in the Harlan's Holiday.

“He wears glue-on shoes and they actually separated where one shoe was half on and half off,” Joseph said of the Chilean Group 1 winner's trip in the Harlan's Holiday. “I think that could have been a hinderance. I'd rather lose a shoe than have one half on and half off.”

Also expected to move on to the Pegasus are Harlan's Holiday runner-up Pioneer of Medina (Pioneerof the Nile) and third-place finisher Simplification (Not This Time).

The Christophe Clement-trained stablemates City Man (Mucho Macho Man) and Decorated Invader (Declaration of War), first and second in the GII Fort Lauderdale S. at Gulfstream Park Saturday, will now be aimed at the Jan. 28 GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational.

Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and Peter and Patty Searles's City Man got a patient ride from jockey Joel Rosario to find room inside late and surged to a 1 1/2-length victory, while West Point Thoroughbreds, William Freeman, William Sandbrook and Cheryl Manning's Decorated Invader emerged from a three-way photo to get second by a neck.

“The two horses came back in good shape and looked good to me this morning,” Clement said Sunday. “We'll speak to the owners, but the idea would be to train them for the Pegasus.”

The 6-year-old City Man won the GIII Forbidden Apple S. at Saratoga last July and was second in the GIII Bernard Baruch H. before winning a pair of New York-bred stakes in the fall.

“He had some very good races [last] year and we just hope we can keep his form for one more race,” Clement said. “The idea is to run in the Pegasus then we'll pull the plug, send him to Ocala and give him a break afterward.”

Co-owner Dean Reeves, who also campaigned City Man's GI Breeders' Cup Classic-winning sire, was excited about City Man's performance.

“We were thrilled. It's just such a satisfying win and I'm just so proud of City Man and of course his stallion,” he said. “It's a double win for me.”

A three-time graded stakes winner, Decorated Invader had to overcome drawing the outermost post in a full field of 12 in the Fort Lauderdale, but was put into contention right away by jockey Tyler Gaffalione, pressing 34-1 longshot pacesetter Winfromwithin and was still there at the end.

“I thought he ran very well because he had the terrible post. It was very encouraging. Let's not forget he was a very nice 2-year-old. It took me a while to get his form back, but I loved the race yesterday,” Clement said. “As long as both horses are doing well and training well, hopefully we'll be able to run them in the Pegasus.”

Trainer Todd Pletcher said Colonel Liam (Liam's Map) would remain under consideration for the Pegasus Turf following his  sixth-place finish as the favorite in the Fort Lauderdale. Colonel Liam, who won the Pegasus Turf in 2021 and 2022, was making his first start Saturday since running ninth in the G1 Dubai Turf last March.

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Fireworks For Hard Spun Colt As Momentum Continues Into Fasig-Tipton NY-Bred Sale

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – The momentum from last week's record-setting Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Selected Yearlings Sale carried into the first of two sessions of the company's New York-bred Yearlings Sale in Saratoga Sunday night, with a colt by Hard Spun bringing a record-tying final bid of $600,000 from owner Al Gold.

“It was an outstanding session tonight,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. “It was a great start to the New York-bred sale. The place was full of people and full of energy again, just like it was for the selected sale. There was broad participation across the board. There was just very, very good trade and enthusiastic bidding. It's a tribute to the quality of the program. It continues to be unquestionably the best state-bred program in the world. The quality of the program increases each year, in terms of pedigree and presentation.”

A total of 64 yearlings sold Sunday for a gross of $6,900,000. The average was $107,813 and the median was $77,000. The buy-back rate was 23.8%.

During last year's opening session of the New York-bred sale, 62 horses grossed $6,497,500. The average was $104,798 and the median was $80,000. The buy-back rate was 24.4%.

Agent Joe Hardoon made the session's highest bid of $600,000 when he acquired the colt by Hard Spun from the Perrone Sales consignment. That figure matched the highest price for a colt at the sale which was set by a Pioneerof the Nile yearling in 2018. The auction's record price was set by a filly by Malibu Moon who sold for $775,000 in 2019.

The Fasig-Tipton New York-bred Yearlings Sale continues with a final session Monday. Bidding begins at noon.

Hard Spun Colt All Gold At Saratoga

Owner Al Gold, through bloodstock agent Joe Hardoon, went to a co-sales record $600,000 to acquire a colt by Hard Spun (hip 378) from the Perrone Sales Ltd. consignment late in Sunday's opening session of the Fasig-Tipton New York-bred Yearlings Sale.

“He is a big, beautiful chestnut colt with a lot of size and leg to him,” Hardoon said. “For how big he is, he was very light on his feet. He was a beautiful mover. It looks like he will be a nice two-turn horse. He was really everything we look for in a colt and he's a New York-bred on top of that.”

Gold has enjoyed top-level success this season with GI Arkansas Derby and GI Haskell S. winner Cyberknife (Gun Runner).

“When you have a horse like Cyberknife, you always have to try to find the next one,” Hardoon said. “Al has put so much into this game and he's waited so long for a horse like Cyberknife, we'd like to try to find the next one and not make him wait as long until he can get the next one.”

Consignor Jim Perrone watched the sale of the colt from the periphery of the auction stand while a pair of grooms stood in the ring doing a celebratory dance as the yearling's price continued to escalate.

Perrone was consigning the chestnut on behalf of his breeders, Bill and Jane Moriarty's Apache Farm.

“Bill and Jane Moriarty are unbelievable horse people,” Perrone said. “They are in Camden, South Carolina, they have a little farm. Their son has a farm in New York, it's called Apache Farm North. And Jane, she does everything herself. She foals them all herself. She brings them up there, they stay up here a while and then she brings them right back to Camden. She raises them and preps them. They are great people.”

The yearling, bred in partnership with Godolphin, is out of Passe (Dixie Union) and is a half-brother to the Apache-bred multiple stakes winner and multiple Grade I placed Wonder Gal (Tiz Wonderful).

“This colt has done everything right from day one,” Perrone said. “His name at the barn was 140 because he was 140 pounds when he was born. He was a monster, this guy.”

Of expectations for Sunday's sale, Perrone said, “We kind of felt like $300,000, in that vicinity, would be really good. The kind of people we had on him, we thought he would be ok. We never expected that. It was a great night for everyone.”

 

 

 

More Saratoga Magic for Reeveses

Dean and Patti Reeves, who made the highest bid at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Fall Sale last year, were back in action at the Humphrey S. Finney Pavilion Sunday, going to $370,000 to acquire a filly by Good Magic (hip 341).

“I loved her,” Patti Reeves said after signing the ticket on the yearling. “When I saw her, I thought she looked fabulous. They had her on the short list, but I hadn't seen them at all. When I saw her, I said, 'If you're going to get one, get that one.'”

The Reeveses have recently acquired a farm in Micanopy, Florida, which is managed by Nellie and Chetley Breeden, along with Jimmy Gladwell.

“She'll go down there and get in with the rest of them,” said Dean Reeves. “We will be able to get her started early and look forward to how she stands up to the rest of the crop.”

The couple warmed up for the sale with a dominating score by their Big Invasion (Declaration of War) in the Mahony S. at the racetrack across the street Sunday. Friday evening, their colt Senbei (Candy Ride {Arg}) was named 2021 New York-bred champion 2-year-old.

“We really are enjoying the New York program,” Dean Reeves said of their focus on Empire-breds. “We have been successful in it and we're having a good time with it. The incentives of the New York program, being able to get a lot of the money back out of the horse quickly up here in New York is really a big deal for us. It helps turn the money back over for us. It is an integral part of our stable, right now, New York-breds, whether it's here or at Keeneland or at the 2-year-old sales. If they happen to be New York-breds, that's an added incentive for us.”

Hip 341 was consigned by Vinery Sales on behalf of her breeder, Lere Visagie's Rockridge Stud. She is out of graded stakes winner Majestic Heat (Unusual Heat), a full-sister to Grade I placed Mensa Heat.

Visagie acquired the mare, with this foal in utero, for $130,000 at the 2020 Keeneland November sale after she was originally led out unsold.

“I didn't have a lot of expectations,” Visagie admitted, while accepting congratulations Sunday. “I knew I needed to sell the filly and I knew she was good. Obviously, I didn't expect any of this, but now I feel so much better about buying the mare.”

Visagie, who has around 12 mares, said circumstances helped make his six-figure purchase of Majestic Heat.

“I knew she was the best mare I could afford ever,” Visagie said. “Because of the circumstances–somewhat I have to thank COVID because there were not a lot of people there to buy her.”

Sunday's sale came just a day after champion Good Magic was represented by his first graded winner when his daughter Vegas Magic upset the GII Sorrento S. at Del Mar.

“The timing on this was as good as it gets,” Visagie said. “You just sit and enjoy and savor every minute. This is my highest sale. It's life-changing.”

 

 

 

Bolt d'Oro Sets Early Pace at New York Sale

A colt by Bolt d'Oro (hip 314) set the early pace during the first session of the Fasig-Tipton New York-bred Yearling sale in Saratoga when selling for $355,000 to the bid of bloodstock agent Gregory Martin. Martin signed for the ticket in the name of Jay Provenzano's Flying P Stable.

“He was just a gorgeous individual,” Martin said of the yearling's appeal. “He's put together really nicely and it looks like he will develop into a really nice horse. I love the Bolt d'Oros. He is an all-around beautiful animal.”

Flying P campaigns last year's GII Brooklyn S. winner Lone Rock (Majestic Warrior), as well as last year's GII Bernard Baruch H. winner Tell Your Daddy (Scat Daddy).

Martin admitted the team was almost at its limit with his final price tag.

“The market, I know, is going to be strong,” Martin said. “So we knew what our budget was going to be and we stayed very close to it.”

Consigned by Gainesway, the gray colt is out of Judge Lee (Street Cry {Ire}), a half-sister to multiple stakes winner Euro Platinum. The yearling was purchased by Carolyn Cannizzo's Willow Brook Stables for $120,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton New York Mixed Sale.

“He was a likeable horse,” Gainesway's Brian Graves said of the colt. “That was a little bit more than I thought we would get for him. He was vetted three or four times. I guess it's just a sign of the strength of the main sale and the carryover. Bolt d'Oro is doing well.”

Graves agreed with the sentiments of many horsemen on the grounds.

“I looked around at all the horses and I would say it is a really solid group of physicals,” he said. “It's a little stronger than what I've seen here in the past. Hopefully they all sell this well.”

 

 

 

Blue Chip Gets on the Board

Tom Grossman and wife Lisa D'Angelis, whose Blue Chip Farms is well known in the New York Harness-bred industry, made their biggest Thoroughbred yearling purchase Sunday in Saratoga, going to $350,000 to acquire a filly by freshman sire Oscar Performance (Kitten's Joy) (hip 392).

“This is the first big one that I bought as a yearling,” Grossman said. “I have bought some mares and bred and raced, but it's the first yearling that I really stepped up to buy. We want to play on the high end. I think we started there.”

Grossman continued, “We are New York breeders and we understand the value of the program. We breed quite a few Harness horses and have sold some Thoroughbreds well. We love the program, love the filly and love the team.”

 

 

 

Bloodstock agent Conor Foley of Oracle Bloodstock signed the ticket on the filly on behalf of Blue Chip Bloodstock, West Paces, and Flying Partners.

The yearling is out of Reachfortheheavens (Pulpit) and is a half-sister to Grade I winner Real Solution (Kitten's Joy) and graded-placed Ava's Kitten (Kitten's Joy). She was bred and consigned by Jonathan Thorne of Thorndale Farm, who purchased the mare for $100,000 at the 2018 Keeneland November Sale.

“She probably had the best pedigree and the best physical in the sale,” Foley said. “I thought she was exceptional. It was tough to find anything wrong with her. When they walk and act like that and have a pedigree like that, it gives you a lot of confidence. Oscar Performance's start helps a lot. She's a half to a Grade I winner. But even if she didn't have that kind of pedigree, she was still exceptional just as an individual.”

 

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Reeves On a Roll at Saratoga

Reeves Thoroughbred Racing is enjoying a tremendous summer at Saratoga as they sit near the top of the leading owners list midway through the notoriously competitive race meet. So far, they've celebrated in the winner's circle alongside three stakes winners and an impressive debut-winning juvenile.

Dean Reeves, a native of Atlanta and the co-owner of a commercial contracting company in Georgia, formed Reeves Thoroughbred Racing with his wife Patti in 2009. The couple has campaigned a long line of Grade I performers since.

Reeves was on the Oklahoma backstretch with a smile on his face and a coffee in his hand the morning after their latest victory this week.

“It's just been crazy,” he said of their success at Saratoga. “We got off to a tremendous start right on the first weekend and we thought wow, how can we keep it going?”

City Man (Mucho Macho Man) got the ball rolling for his owners on opening weekend at the Spa with his definitive victory in the GIII Forbidden Apple S. Trained by Christophe Clement and owned in partnership with Peter and Patty Searless, the 5-year-old New York-bred has earned at least one stakes victory every year since his juvenile season, but the Forbidden Apple marked his first graded stakes score.

The win was doubly special as City Man is a son of Reeves Thoroughbred Racing's 2013 GI Breeders' Cup Classic hero Mucho Macho Man.

“City Man is one of my favorite horses,” admitted Reeves. “We bought him as a 2-year-old and he has continued to get better and better. I think that right now, he's at the top of his game. He's a stunning individual and has really shown a lot of the talent that Mucho Macho Man can give them.”

Two days after Reeves got off the duck at Saratoga with City Man, Big Invasion (Declaration of War) replicated his stablemate's success with another Grade III score in the Quick Call S. The sophomore is on a brilliant win streak this year. After breaking his maiden at Gulfstream in February, he reeled off three straight stakes wins before he stepped up to graded company at Saratoga.

“Big Invasion seems to have a lot of talent,” Reeves said. “He is the kind of horse that looks like he can go five-and-a-half to seven furlongs. He seems to be able to go with whatever the pace is and then he still has that kick at the end. That makes him pretty dangerous.”

Earlier this week, Reeves went to the winner's circle with a third Saratoga stakes victor. Coming off a stakes win at Hawthorne, Isolate (Mark Valeski) led gate to wire to claim the Tale of the Cat S. by six lengths.

Reeves said he felt confident going into the race after watching the 4-year-old work four furlongs in :46 flat–best of 128–two weeks ago.

“He's been training really well,” he noted. “We needed to break well and Tyler [Gaffalione] got him out of the gate and into a great position. He had plenty left turning for home.”

Isolate's victory was cause for celebration on several accounts as it marked the 4,000th win for his trainer Tom Amoss.

“That was so special and so neat for it to be in a stakes race here at Saratoga,” Reeves said. “It couldn't have worked out any better. Tom has done a great job with Isolate and it was exciting to see him win.”

Reeves hopes that their hot streak continues as their stable's top performers prepare to return to the Saratoga starting gate.

This weekend, Big Invasion will compete in a field of seven in the five-and-a-half furlong Mahony S. on Sunday. If all goes well, Reeves said they have their eye on a trip to Keeneland for their turf sprinter this fall.

“We're really looking forward to the race on Sunday,” he said. “I think he'll be some good competition. Down the road, there are possibilities of a race at Keeneland that we would like to do prior to the Breeders' Cup. It's hard to take a 3-year-old in there against those really top horses, but we're going to play it by ear. I'm pretty confident in him.”

While Reeves was hoping to cheer on City Man in the GI Fourstardave H. this weekend, he said they opted to send the turf specialist to the Aug. 26 West Point H., where he will be defending his 2021 title.

“We were between a rock and a hard place,” Reeves explained. “We didn't have quite enough time to come back and catch [the Fourstardave]. The financially smart decision was to wait and run when we could give him more time for the West Point, which has a nice purse. As an owner I wanted to run in the Fourstardave, but fortunately Christophe and [assistant] Miguel have us in the right spot.”

Reeves said he makes a habit of relying on his trainers when it comes to mapping out his runners' racing schedules. He is quick to admit his bias as an owner and explained that his trainers remind him of the bigger picture when it comes to the bottom line.

“It helps us as owners to have trainers that are thinking about the dollars and cents,” he said. “Those types of trainers are helpful when they can just be honest with you about your stock. With Christophe, a lot of times as soon as we finish a race he has it in his head what he wants to do next. They really have thought through what they plan to do with each horse in order for it to be successful.”

Last summer, Reeves purchased a farm in Micanopy, Florida outside of Ocala. Managed by Nellie and Chetley Breeden along with Nellie's father Jimmy Gladwell, the farm allows Reeves to venture into acquiring future members of their racing stable as weanlings and overseeing their early days until they make it to training. Isolate, a $70,000 Keeneland November weanling, was one of their first purchases when they began focusing on shopping for weanlings.

Dean Reeves and Christophe Clement | Sarah Andrew

“I'm able to go in there and get a lot of value,” Reeves explained. “Patti and I come here to Saratoga for the New York-bred weanling sale. There's tremendous value and then we can put them in our program, get them to the farm and take our time with them. It gives us an advantage to really get to the horses earlier and see how they progress.”

“We've been involved in the New York-bred program for the last couple of years and that has really helped,” he added. “It's a great program. The purse money is there and we can go get some very nice New York-breds.”

As their racing stable continues to expand, so too has the number of people Reeves said are essential to its advancement.

“Our success has been because of a lot of people doing a lot hard work,” he emphasized. “We've won a lot of tremendous races, but the main thing is we're in it to have fun. Do we want to strive for those big races? Absolutely. Everyone is working hard and I think we'll have some more of those in our future.”

Winning the GI Breeders' Cup Classic with stable star Mucho Macho Man will always be an irreplaceable highlight for Reeves and his wife, but he said that there are a few races they still dream about.

“Patti wants to win the Arc de Triomphe and the Kentucky Derby, so I said, 'Okay, great. We'll put those two on the list and we'll try to win those.' We've been really blessed. The thing is, we're having a lot of fun. Win, lose or draw, we're enjoying it. It takes a team, and we've got a great one.”

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