Kip Elser | Horse Racing Free Tips

Q and A with Kip Elser

Longtime horseman Kip Elser recently announced he will be shifting his focus toward public and private bloodstock purchases, evaluations and racing stable management under the new banner of Kirkwood Equine Advisory. TDN sat down with Elser to offer a closer look at the upcoming changes.

TDN: We understand you did not open your training barn this year and will not be consigning at the 2023 2-year-old sales. You are obviously headed in a different direction. Can you discuss where your focus will be.

KE: Correct, we've measured the market as we always have and determined a strategic shift for Kirkwood is in order. My wife Helen and I decided that the timing was ideal do things a little differently. We are going to concentrate more on the buy side of the equation. We plan to continue to develop a clientele for whom to buy horses to race either individually or in partnership. Later in the year we intend to be purchasing yearlings and two-year-olds for clients to race. We will also continue our pinhooking partnerships, but I won't be preparing or presenting them myself. All in the name of identifying attractive opportunities for the benefit of our clients.

TDN: You have an incredible amount of experience in the racing industry; buying, selling and preparing horses all over the world. Talk with me about a bit about how your background as a consignor and lifelong horseman sets you apart as a buyer and advisor.

KE: I spent a 4 decades preparing 2-year-olds for the sales and racing. Good horses, brilliant horses, average horses. Oh, and some slow ones too. They all give you signs of what they are. Whether in the U. S., Europe, South Africa, New Zealand, or other stamps on the passport, I've tried to bring them along with the disciplined approach of, well you said it, a horseman.

TDN: With all that experience you probably know your way around a horse better than most. What do you look for in a horse that you're buying to race.?

KE: The most obvious is that they must show me they are capable of speed even if it is not a brilliant eighth of a mile. They have to be efficient and have the right attitude.

TDN: With all of the overseas business you have done over the years, can you talk with me a bit about the differences between the U. S. and say the European or South African or even the New Zealand market?

KE: In the UK and Europe your judgement has to be much more subjective since the breezing surfaces are not nearly as uniform as they are here. The South African market has had a more severe COVID setback than most and is really just getting started again. New Zealand is very different in that the horses breeze (quite often in pairs) in several different locations close to their home base and convene for the sale several weeks after they breeze. That is just a few differences for starters. An understanding these types of nuances has helped us uncover unique opportunities for our clients.

TDN: Our industry has not been short on controversy and people coming out of the woodwork to let the world know what needs to be improved. Talk with me about what IS. Going right in our sport right now.

KE: There are great developments in veterinary medicine being made all the time. We are making progress even if it is painfully slow in uniform regulation and enforcement. Aftercare is spreading a much wider net. Aftercare and accountability of our equine athletes after racing continues to make tremendous forward progress.

TDN: With all that you have accomplished over the years, both for your clients and customers, what is one of the biggest lessons you've learned in the business.

KE: Patience (though I'm still working on that) and that the little things matter, often more than we think.

TDN: You have played a role in the careers of some incredible horses. Can you tell us a few you are most proud of?

Mucho Gusto comes to mind as one of the more recent and relevant success stories. We believed the colt's value was significant and the early 2-year-old sale market just didn't reflect that view. We pivoted to a later-season sale and our conviction on behalf of our client was rewarded. The buyers were of course rewarded too with a Pegasus World Cup winner.

KE: Another one that was a lot of fun was Plum Pretty. Our friends, John and Elizabeth Fort, live right down the road from us in Camden, and John always pulls out a few of my horses at the sale to inspect. As a 2-year-old Plum Pretty was a bit of an ugly duckling to look at, but he had no trouble seeing her potential. I was as surprised as anyone when he bought her, because he never said a word about liking her that much, but it sure was fun and rewarding to watch the ride she took them on, winning the Kentucky Oaks and the Apple Blossom, among others.

TDN: This year is going to be much different for you than years past. What are you most looking forward to?

KE: What I am mainly looking forward to this year is the opportunity to go out and buy not just nice yearlings but also weanlings, broodmares and 2-year-olds for other people. Especially the 2-year-old sales that are coming up. For years as I have been preparing the 2-year-olds for the sales I have seen the qualities that have separated the good ones from the rest. It will be fun now to go out and buy some of those good ones.

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$400,000 Lemieux Provides Icing on Steady Fasig-Tipton Winter Sale

LEXINGTON, KY-The Fasig-Tipton Winter Mixed Sale went through its supplemental catalogue and into its addendum to finally find its top-priced offering when Lemieux (Nyquist) sold to Nice Guys Stable for $400,000 just hips before the auction concluded its two-day run Tuesday in Lexington with steady results.

“We saw a continuation of the marketplace that we experienced yesterday and that we saw in January and we saw in November, October, September and July,” Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. said at the sale's close Tuesday. “I think it's a very fair marketplace. I think that if you are trying to buy horses, the horses that you want to buy, you generally have to pay more than you wanted to. When you are selling horses, if you've got quality, you are probably getting around what you thought, maybe a little more. But there is no euphoria. If you are trying to sell on the lower end, it's tough. It's been tough the last 10 years. And the reality is that that's the marketplace. But if we had 50 more good ones to lead through in here right now, they'd be lined up in here to bid on them and buy them.”

Through two sessions, 402 head sold for $14,105,200. The average of $35,088 was down 12.3% from last year's figure, while the median of $15,000 was down 6.3%. With 65 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate was 13.9%. It was 11.5% a year ago.

An initial catalogue of 465 lots was bolstered by a supplemental catalogue of 121 head, to which was added eight additional entries in an addendum. Stakes-winner Lemieux sold seven hips from the end of the auction, with bloodstock agent John Williams making a final bid of $400,000 to acquire the 4-year-old filly on behalf of Nice Guys Stable.

The filly, whose half-sister Brilliant Cut (Speightstown) topped the 2022 Winter Mixed sale, was one of 15 horses to sell for $200,000 or over during the auction. Fourteen hit that mark in 2022.

“If you look at a global, or big picture standpoint, the ability to create liquidity helps every marketplace,” Browning said of the importance of being able to add horses with current form as supplements to a catalogue. “It allows people to turn assets into dollars and then hopefully reinvest those dollars into similar or like kind of assets along the way.”

Lemieux Keeps the Family Tradition Going

Stakes-winner Lemieux (Nyquist) (hip 588), whose half-sister Brilliant Cut (Speightstown) topped the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Winter Mixed Sale, brought the highest price of the 2023 renewal of the auction when selling for $400,000 to the bid of John Williams, acting as agent for Steve Spielman's Nice Guys Stables. The 4-year-old broodmare prospect was consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency.

“She is a lovely mare and quite a standout in this catalogue,” Williams said. “The man I bought her for is continuing to improve his broodmare band and this is the kind of filly that could do that.”

Racing for D J Stable and trainer Mark Casse, Lemieux won the 2021 Brethren Juvenile Fillies S. She won twice from 10 starts and earned $140,216 before RNA'ing for $300,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton November sale.

Lemieux is out of Polish a Diamond, a half-sister to multiple Grade I winner Diamondrella (GB) (Rock of Gibraltar {Ire}) and multiple Grade I placed Bonnie Blue Flag (Mineshaft), and from the family of Life is Good (Into Mischief). The 8-year-old mare produced a colt by Essential Quality last week.

Lemieux's half-sister, GI La Brea S. runner-up Brilliant Cut (Speightstown), sold for $750,000 to Katsumi Yoshida at last year's Winter Mixed Sale and was bred to Gun Runner in 2022 before being shipped to Japan last fall.

Williams said there was plenty of blue sky in the family.

“There are great possibilities with her dam being young and her half-sister being bred to the likes of Gun Runner,” he said. “Her dam had an Essential Quality just last week and the second dam is still active. And there is a pretty nice sire prospect under there. So she had a lot of things going for her. And she is by Nyquist, who we very much are still a fan of.”

Of the filly's sale-topping price tag, Williams said, “I thought we would have to spend that kind of money. The market says that that's what quality costs. Is she worth that? I'm so old school, I can't get my head around those kind of numbers. But that's the market and you have to adjust to it.”

Established in 2016, the Nice Guys Stables partnership spearheaded by Spielman has already had success on the racetrack, where their first horse, Piedi Bianchi (Overnalyze), took them to the Breeders' Cup in 2017, as well as in the pinhooking arena, where they sold an Arrogate filly for $1 million at the 2021 OBS April sale.

“One of the great things about Nice Guys Stables is that they are both commercial and he races,” Williams said. “So he will do both. And boy do we need those. Because it's about racing.”

Nice Guys Stables had graded success last fall when King Cause (Creative Cause) won the GIII Knickerbocker S. The gelding was sixth in last week's GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational.

“He's got 14 2-year-olds that he's breaking now,” Williams said of Spielman. “He's just a great young guy. And I think Nice Guys Stables has a terrific future if he keeps buying this kind of mare.”

Curlin Blessing Joins Repole Band

Curlin Blessing (Curlin) (hip 545) will be joining the broodmare band of Mike Repole after bloodstock agent Jacob West made a final bid of $230,000 to acquire the 4-year-old daughter of champion Indian Blessing (Indian Charlie).

“She's by a stallion that we've had a lot of luck with and she's out of a champion mare,” West said. “So it was pretty easy. She's by a champion out of a champion. She stood out here to us from a pedigree standpoint and a physical standpoint. Mike is trying to play the high-end breeding game a little bit now. So she was a mare that fit the bill.”

The broodmare prospect, who was consigned by Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa, was a two-time winner at Turf Paradise while racing for her owner/breeder Patti and Hal Earnhardt. The couple also bred and campaigned Indian Blessing, who was a five-time Grade I winner and was named champion 2-year-old filly in 2007 and champion female sprinter in 2008.

Of potential mating plans for Curlin Blessing, West said, “Eddie Rosen will decide who we will breed her to. My vote is Life is Good–that's what I hope we do. But it's 100% up to Ed. Mike will let Ed make that decision.”

Good Magic Filly Sets Early Pace

A short yearling by Good Magic (hip 350) led early returns during Tuesday's second session of the Fasig-Tipton Winter Mixed Sale when bringing a final bid of $225,000 from bloodstock agent Catherine Hudson, acting on behalf of Michael Sucher's Champion Equine. The bay was consigned by Vinery Sales.

“She was a gorgeous, leggy daughter of Good Magic, who has four horses on the Kentucky Derby trail,” Hudson said of the filly's appeal. “She just had a great outlook with a beautiful eye. Everything seemed great and I think there is some improvement in her. She seemed to get better as the days went by at the sales grounds. She showed a lot of class.”

The filly is out of Rich Love (Not For Love) and her half-sister Ruby Nell (Bolt d'Oro) topped last year's Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale when purchased by Spendthrift Farm for $1.2 million. The now 3-year-old debuted with a runner-up effort at Santa Anita Jan. 22.

“She was second with a bad trip,” Hudson said of the half-sister. “And she's breezed back. So we like that, too.”

Bred by Theta Holdings, the yearling RNA'd for $115,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton November sale. Her dam, carrying a full-sibling, sold for $140,000 at that same sale.

“I'm not quite sure what the client wants to do with her at this time, but we will just get her home and figure it out,” Hudson said.

Vinery Sales and Theta Holdings was responsible for another

yearling by Good Magic who sold for six figures Tuesday at Fasig-Tipton. The consignor/breeder duo sold a colt by the champion (hip 355) for $100,000 to Davant Latham. The dark bay had RNA'd for $70,000 at last year's Keeneland November sale.

Kirkwood Consignment Comes to a Close

South Carolina horseman Kip Elser, who has shifted his focus to public and private bloodstock purchases, evaluations and racing stable management, sent the final three horses through the ring under his Kirkwood consignment banner Tuesday at Fasig-Tipton.

“I feel excited to change leads and roll on down the stretch,” Elser said after watching his final horse go through the ring. “Sure, I will miss consigning. And I love training horses. But I have done it a long time and now it's time to change.”

Tuesday's offerings were bittersweet as two belonged to Elser's longtime friend and client, the late Steve Schwartz.

“It was emotional because Steve was a 25-year friend, client, and partner,” Elser said. “And he was just a wonderful guy. So of course there were some emotions, because were together for a long time.”

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Kirkwood Stables Now Kirkwood Equine Advisory

Kip Elser will be shifting his focus towards public and private bloodstock purchases, evaluations and racing stable management with his new brand, Kirkwood Equine Advisory, according to a press release distributed Thursday morning. Under this re-positioned business strategy, his Kirkwood Stables will transition to a consulting and advisory service role for clients with a particular focus on selecting young pinhooking and racing prospects, as well as horses of racing age.

“I've never been afraid to try doing things a bit differently,” said Elser. “That approach has allowed me to develop a keen ability to identify gaps in the market. I'm looking forward to the upcoming 2-year-old sales. I believe my years of experience selling will give me a leg up on the buying side. There is more information available than ever before to evaluate horses' potential and performance. The key is knowing how to weigh and evaluate that information to your advantage. I try to blend the art and the science with practical knowledge and common sense.”

Elser's Kirkwood Stables has long been a familiar name in the global juvenile Thoroughbred training and sales segment of the industry. For more than 40 years, Kirkwood's offerings have brought top bids at Calder, Barretts, Fasig-Tipton, and Keeneland, as well as overseas at Tattersalls in the U.K., New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Race Sale, and the Cape Thoroughbred Sales in South Africa. Graduates of Kirkwood include multiple Classic winners, Breeders' Cup Champions, and Eclipse Award recipients, as well as stakes and Graded stakes winners in the U.S. and abroad.

“Already this year we've made purchases on behalf of our clients on both sides of the globe, purchasing a lovely racing filly here in the U. S. at the Keeneland January Sale and a precocious young colt at the Cape Racing Sales Premier Yearling Sale in South Africa,” said Elser. “By taking a step back from training and consigning and expanding Kirkwood's menu of services in a few different directions, I will have the opportunity to leverage my depth of knowledge for my customers in new, and what I think will be successful ways.”

Throughout his career, Elser's approach has earned Kirkwood Stables a reputation as a trailblazer in an industry built upon tradition. Kirkwood has long created unique opportunities for clients by exploiting equine investment opportunities worldwide. It was the first major 2-year-old consigner to present drafts to the European market at Tattersalls and has acquired pinhook prospects at leading venues such as the Cape Premier Yearling Sale, Magic Millions sales in Australia, the New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sale and Arqana in France. More recently, Elser made widely positive headlines stateside by offering several two-year-old “gallop only” consignments at Fasig-Tipton's Gulfstream Sale from 2018 through 2021, opting to showcase the horses at a strong gallop rather than the more taxing traditional approach of an eighth or quarter mile breeze in the presale under tack shows.

While Kirkwood's consignment shingle will not hang at this year's 2-year-olds in training auctions, Elser will be there in a new capacity. He will be evaluating and shopping for racing prospects for his clients as he launches a new chapter in his career.

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More Than Ready Colt Sets Midlantic Bullet

TIMONIUM, MD – The under-tack show ahead of next week's Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale kicked off under sunny skies and unseasonably cool temperatures in the mid-50s at the Maryland State Fairgrounds Tuesday. A colt by More Than Ready turned in the day's fastest quarter-mile work, while a colt by Malibu Moon and a filly by Empire Maker shared the fastest furlong time.

Kip Elser's Kirkwood Stables sent out hip 166, a son of More Than Ready out of graded winner Separate Forest (Forestry) to work the quarter-mile bullet of :21 2/5 during the fifth of seven sets Tuesday. Elser purchased the colt for $75,000 as part of his Gulfstream Gallop pinhooking partnership at last year's Fasig-Tipton October. After galloping at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream under-tack show, the dark bay colt RNA'd for $115,000.

“He galloped well and I was surprised he didn't get more attention at Gulfstream,” Elser said. “We took him home, gave him three weeks in the paddock and galloped him and breezed him a couple of times. And that's all he did.”

Elser said of the colt, “He's like a lot of More Than Readys, he's not real big. But I have loved More Than Ready since the day I bet on him the day he broke his maiden at Keeneland for Todd [Pletcher]. And he's been good to me ever since. He's a remarkable sire–200+ stakes winners all over the world. He's been good for everybody that's ever been near him.”

Three years ago, Elser had success in the Midlantic sales ring with another colt who had RNA'd at a previous juvenile sale that spring. By Mucho Macho Man, the colt RNA'd for $55,000 at OBS March before working the quarter-mile bullet in :21 1/5 and selling for $625,000 to Michael Lund Petersen. Named Mucho Gusto, the handsome chestnut went on to win the 2020 GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational.

“They liked him better here,” Elser said of that 2018 result.

Asked if he thought the buyers might also like this colt by More Than Ready more in Timonium, Elser chuckled and said, “I'd imagine.”

The first 195 catalogued juveniles worked over seven sets, beginning at 8 a.m. and continuing until shortly before 3 p.m. Tuesday.

“This is always as a good a track as there is anywhere,” Elser said of conditions at the Timonium oval. “These guys are consistent. They do a great job. They care about it. One of the things that really helps–it makes for a slightly longer day–but cutting it off at 22 in every set so every horse gets a fresh racetrack. I'm a big fan of this racetrack and the crew that takes care of it and I always have been. Not just this year, but every year.”

During the day's first set, a colt by Malibu Moon (hip 164) worked the furlong in what would be the day's co-bullet :10 flat. Out of Seeking Atlantis (Seeking the Gold), the bay is a half-brother to Seeking Her Glory (Giant's Causeway). His second dam is multiple graded stakes winner Atlantic Ocean (Stormy Atlantic).

Bred by Castleton Lyons and Kilboy Estate, the juvenile RNA'd for $135,000 at the 2020 Keeneland January sale. He is consigned to the Midlantic sale by Eddie Woods.

“I was delighted with the work,” Woods said. “He's a big, stretchy horse. So for him to be able to do that around here is pretty good. He wasn't on his right lead, unfortunately, but the video still looks good. He just tries so hard. And he's coming off a mile track. So they have trouble adjusting to a little track like this and the leads some of the time.”

Woods continued, “I haven't had him that long. He came up from Bill Harrigan. Bill owns him in his partnership. They did a great job, as usual, getting him ready.”

Last year's Midlantic sale was pushed back to the end of June due to the pandemic and Woods did not offer a consignment at the 2020 auction. The Irishman admitted he was happy to be back in Timonium this year.

“All of the sales are important, just to keep our industry rotating, rolling along, and this is part of the rotation,” Woods said. “And this is a good sale because there are buyers who come here that don't go anywhere else. It's always been a good place to sell a nice horse, but then anywhere is a good place to sell a nice horse. They always find them. You look around, most of the top-end people, they attend all the sales. It's the other guys that kind of clean up, the locals come in and buy here. There are a lot of racetracks within a short commute of here, so hopefully they need product.”

Working during Tuesday's fourth set, a filly by Empire Maker (hip 109) shared the bullet furlong time of :10 flat. The bay is out of Pontiana (Deputy Minister)–a daughter of Grade I winner Shine Again (Wild Again)–and she is a half-sister to stakes-placed Addibel Lightning (Colonel John).

The juvenile was consigned by Kevin McKathan's McKathan Bros. Sales and was purchased for $125,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale.

The seventh and final session of Tuesday's under-tack show was delayed when hip 130 was injured and had to be pulled up on the backstretch following her work. The filly was taken off the track by horse ambulance.

The under-tack show continues through Thursday with sessions beginning each day at 8 a.m. The Midlantic sale will be held next Monday and Tuesday with bidding commencing both days at 11 a.m.

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