The Board of Directors of New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. (NYTB) held its first meeting of 2024 on Friday, Jan. 19. The newly seated board unanimously elected Dr. Scott Ahlschwede, D.V.M., to serve as Board President through 2026.

Current NYTB director Seth Gregory, owner of Innisfree Farm and Seth Gregory Bloodstock, was elected to the office of Vice President. The board also elected Lere Visagie, owner of Rockridge Stud, to serve as Secretary-Treasurer.

Dr. Ahlschwede is a shareholder veterinarian with Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital and owner of River Valley Farm. He has previously served as an NYTB director since 2016 and succeeds Thomas J. Gallo, III, managing partner of Dream Maker Racing Stable, Thomas J. Gallo, III Sales Agency, and owner of Blue Stone Farm, who previously served as NYTB President since 2015.

“On behalf of our board of directors and membership, I want to thank Tom for his leadership of NYTB and am thankful he will remain a part of the board with his institutional knowledge and experience,” said Dr. Ahlschwede. “As President, I want to ensure we continue to increase and promote the benefits of breeding and foaling in New York with our fellow stakeholders as we work to sustain the Thoroughbred industry in New York and nationwide.”

“I am proud of the work our organization has accomplished under my tenure as President. I look forward to continue working with Scott and our newly elected officers to ensure NYTB remains the unified voice of Thoroughbred breeders in the state,” said Gallo.

The 2024 NYTB Officers and Board of Directors for 2024 is as follows:

Officers:

• Dr. Scott Ahlschwede, D.V.M., shareholder with Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital and owner of River Valley Farm, President

• Seth Gregory, owner, Innisfree Farm and Seth Gregory Bloodstock, Vice President

• Lere Visagie, owner, Rockridge Stud, Secretary/Treasurer

Directors: H. James Bond, Rick Burke, Lois Engel, Thomas J. Gallo, III, Michael Lischin, Vivien Malloy, Jane McMahon, Mallory Mort

Directors Emeritus: Chester Broman, Suzie O'Cain, Joanne Nielsen

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The visit by students focused on the culmination of the breeding and racing industries and allowed for observation of the finished product during morning training and afternoon races. Students received a behind-the-scenes tour of the Oklahoma Training Track Saturday during training hours led by NYTB President Tom Gallo.

The group spent the afternoon at the races, with visits to the paddock, watching from the rooftop and helping the Backstretch Employee Service Team (B.E.S.T.) selected the “Best Turned Out Award” for the day.

“The NYTB, through Tom Gallo's leadership, provided SUNY Cobleskill students an experience at Saratoga Race Course that was second to none,” said Raymond Whelihan, SUNY Cobleskill Associate Professor in Animal Science who collaborated with Gallo to develop the program. “Time spent observing training at the Oklahoma track, lengthy discussion with a Hall of Fame trainer, comped racetrack entry and seats, a roof top view and the opportunity to enter the paddock and select the groom of the day. Every student was enthusiastic and appreciative. What a wonderful way to kick off the new Thoroughbred Industry course at SUNY Cobleskill.”

The pilot program is offered to 15-20 junior undergraduate students that have met prerequisites. The course, which runs from late August to early December, falls in line with the NYTB's goals to make outreach with upper-level science students majoring in equine studies and finding the next generation of the industry's workforce and leaders in racing and breeding.

“When I first introduced the idea of the NYTB educational seminars years ago, along with raising the standard of care and awareness for the general population of the New York breeders, my ultimate goal was to use these seminars for the education of young people who may be interested in coming into our industry,” Gallo said. “This could not have been done without the help of NYTB Executive Director Najja Thompson and our forward-thinking board members. With the help of my longtime friend, Ray Whelihan, we were able to put together a program which not only exposes these students to many different aspects of the horse industry in New York, but also allows them to gain college credits for their participation. These are seniors in college, and they have participated in the equine studies program for the length of their college career. This is a targeted-interested and engaged group of students, who hopefully will find one aspect of our industry interesting enough for them to enter with career expectations. I can't tell you how happy I am that this is finally happening.”

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In reference to yesterday's article about the Metropolitan Handicap not being on Memorial Day, when it was traditionally held, yes, I totally agree with you. I am very much a traditionalist also. However, you know what the trend is, right? The bean counters think that apparently big championship racing days generate the most handle. I guess that might be a trend for the future.

But that's not my issue with the article. You referred to this Memorial Day as “it will be just another day at the track”. Come on Bill!!

It's New York-bred Showcase Day, the biggest day of racing for New York-breds in the spring at beautiful Belmont Park. We showcase the best New York-breds in stake race after stake race. New York breeders spend a ton of money all over the country including Kentucky. We just passed a rule whereby you can buy a mare at any auction in Kentucky and other states, ship the mare back within 15 days and take advantage of everything the program has to offer. New York-breds race with up to a 30% advantage over non-New York-breds at New York tracks for some of the biggest purses in the country.

Times are tough. We went from an annual 50,000 foal crop nationally when I got into the business back in the 70s to around an 18,000 foal crop presently. Let's go easy on each other and try and be supportive of all the state programs, including New York's.
And go easy on me with all that ink in your barrel!

Respectfully,
Tom Gallo
President, New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc.

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Trained by Bruce Levine during his racing days, the son of Posse made 26 career starts throughout his five seasons of racing, compiling a record of 5-4-7 with earnings of $151,576. Upon retirement from racing, “Kid”, as he is affectionately known, became a track pony at NYRA, his friendly and easy-going personality making him a good candidate for assisting racehorses on the track.

When a back injury forced his retirement from pony work, Lisa Molloy's Re-Run Thoroughbred Retirement took in the gelding and provided him with a place to rehabilitate.

Tom Gallo, managing partner of Parting Glass Racing and now Dream Maker Racing, reached out to Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga (THS) after Kid Blast retired from pony work, suggesting the gelding's experience would allow him to excel as a therapy horse.

“Kid's personality was just perfect,” said Laura LaRue, the Director of Equine Care at Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga. “We got him in 2019 and he's got a big brother kind of personality. He flowed right into his role here and just wants to please everyone.”

A Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA) accredited not-for-profit organization, Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga was founded in 2018 with the mission of retraining retired thoroughbreds and standardbreds to become therapy horses for clients in partnership with ECS Psychological Services in Saratoga Springs.

Patients are taught equine husbandry at the organization's Lake Avenue farm, learning to problem solve and work through their emotions.

“Our clients typically spend time getting to know the horses on their first few visits,” LaRue said. “We'll ask them to catch and bring us a horse from the field and provide them with a halter and lead rope, but most do not know what those are or how to use them. Sometimes they will just entice them over with a piece of hay. This helps our patients learn how to figure things out for themselves and then down the road, we can have them do other things like lead the horses through obstacle courses. The horses challenge them to work through it.”

Kid Blast has proved popular on the farm, a gentle giant who can work in a variety of the program's activities.

“Kid does everything because he's amazing,” said LaRue “He's a very big, stoic and mellow horse and the herd leader in his paddock. Patients will spend time with him and groom him, take him for walks, and go through the obstacle courses. We made this thing we call the car wash. It's made of pool noodles and the goal is for the clients to guide the horses through it while the noodles brush up against them. Kid Blast has done it a million times and sometimes plants his feet and challenges them to make it through.

“We also have the clients build a corral where they use things like traffic cones and hula hoops to create a pen to lead the horse into,” LaRue added. “There's a lot of metaphors in it.”

As THS continues to see success in their programs, LaRue credits the emotional capacity of horses as the reason equine therapy can provide another level of support for patients along with traditional therapies.

“The horses are very good at reading emotions and are reactive in a way that is both challenging and comforting,” LaRue said. “They have a very good balance of what the client needs. They can do all this in a way that humans can't. We are setting the experience up but it's the horses who are doing all of the mental and emotional work.”

With many success stories to reflect on in the organization's three years, LaRue fondly recalled her favorite moment shared between Kid Blast and one of their clients.

“We had someone who was saying they were fine when they weren't, and in therapy it's kind of hard to turn that off sometimes,” LaRue said. “They were trying to place a halter on another horse and the horse kept walking away. The client was getting frustrated and you could tell that they were feeling like they wanted to give up. Kid walked up from behind and gave them a nudge on their back and placed his face in the halter for them. He reaches out when you need it. He takes good care of everyone.”

Now in his third career, Kid Blast is exemplary of the wide array of new jobs available to racehorses when their days on the track are over. LaRue emphasized that both thoroughbred and standardbred racehorses are favorable to work with in new settings because of how they are handled on the racetrack.

“Racehorses are exposed to things like the starting gate, noise, and crowds and they get used to it pretty quickly,” said LaRue. “Here on the farm, they aren't nervous around tractors or a tarp flapping around in the breeze. All of their exposure on the track made it a lot easier for them to transition here. It makes a big difference.”

NYRA and its horsemen are committed supporters of the TAA, which accredits, inspects, and awards grants to approved aftercare organizations using industry-wide funding.

Every owner competing at NYRA racetracks donates $10 per start to the TAA, helping to fund aftercare organizations that provide homes for retired racehorses. New York's horsemen also donate 1.5 percent of the purchase price of every horse claimed at a NYRA track to TAA and the New York
Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association's TAKE THE LEAD (TTL) program, which provides preliminary vet exams and treatment, as well as costs related to transportation and rehabilitation or retraining.

“The conversations have grown about aftercare over the last few years which is great,” said LaRue. “NYRA has a day at the races where they bring horses in from the TAA and educate fans to show them options for the racehorses after their careers. It's really important to continue to have the aftercare conversation and we are excited to be a part of it.”

For more information on Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga, visit https://thsaratoga.org/.

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Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, the daughter of Laoban asserted command down the backstretch, fending off a late rally from two-time winner Morning Matcha to win by 1 ¾ lengths. The win in the seven-furlong sprint for eligible state-sired juvenile fillies garnered a 68 Beyer.

Seidman said the victory was a sentimental one as she named the dam of Yo Cuz, Steve's Philly, after her late husband.

“When my husband passed, I named her Steve's Philly because my husband grew up in Philadelphia and went to school there. Because she was in memory of my husband, she meant a lot to me.” Seidman said. “Yo Cuz was born on the farm and that was the second foal. They said she got up right away and was looking around. She has a nice personality, and I was so excited to see her win convincingly.

“As a youngster, the mare was pretty feisty and this one was just as feisty,” Seidman added. “She'd be in the field and no one bumped her. She was bossy.”

Yo Cuz sold for $125,000 last May to Tom Gallo of Dream Maker Racing out of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale. Seidman credited consignor Hidden Brook Farm for doing a professional job with the filly during the sale.

“I kept her and this is the second foal,” Seidman said. “I put her in the 2-year-old sale and only galloped her, she did not breeze. Mark Roberts at Hidden Brook, who had her, is all for that and he did a great job with her. The mare has a good pedigree. She comes from the same family as Wonder Again. I was one of the partners in Laoban, so I bred her to Laoban.”

Seidman said she was happy Yo Cuz was purchased by well-respected connections.

“I was so excited because I really loved the connections. They're a good group,” Seidman said. “They supported the fact that she galloped, which is important to me as a breeder. I am very involved with aftercare. You take care of the horse first, that's how I am. They know Mark Roberts and Hidden Brook is a quality organization.

“I wanted to buy back into her, and I was with a group of people. I think we went up to about half of what she went for and bowed out,” Seidman added. “I felt that she was an excellent horse. She's a New York-bred and the New York program is amazing. If you're an owner, you get points, and if you're an owner-breeder and have a horse that wins, it helps because it's an expensive sport.”

One race prior to Yo Cuz capturing the NYSSS Fifth Avenue, Bold Journey, a 2-year-old half-brother to Grade 1-winner Americanrevolution, broke his maiden by 6 ¾ lengths going six furlongs.

An $80,000 purchase at the April Ocala Breeders' Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training, Bold Journey, bred in New York by Fred Hertrich and John Fielding, posted a runner-up debut effort in November at the Big A in the care of trainer Carlos Martin for Seidman Stables.

Wachtel Stable, Gary Barber, and Team Penney Racing bought into Bold Journey following the debut effort and the horse was transferred to the care of Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.

“It's really exciting. I bought his horse in April before Americanrevolution started doing well,” Seidman said. “They took their time with him [Americanrevolution] and we're going to the same thing with this guy. I don't like to rush my 2-year-olds. I got a call from the three other partners, very good people. We'll see how he does going forward. There are some nice races at Aqueduct.”

Bold Journey was bought at the OBS April Sale by McMahon and Hill Bloodstock.

“I use Mike McMahon as my stable manager and I have all my horses at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds,” Seidman said. “It's interesting because his mother Anne and I were in the same freshman class at Skidmore years ago. My husband has been gone for eight years, so I go to Mike for advice. When we try to buy or sell a horse, he's there for me.”

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Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, the Laoban bay, who entered from a debut fifth in a state-bred maiden special weight sprint on November 21 at the Big A, broke third and was hustled to the lead by returning rider Jose Ortiz from post 5 to mark the opening quarter-mile in :22.96.

Yo Cuz maintained her lead down the backstretch through an easy half-mile in :47.10, a length in front of Bank On Anna with Laochi stalking another length back in third under Eric Cancel.

Morning Matcha, the 8-5 morning-line favorite piloted by Kendrick Carmouche, settled last of-11 through the opening quarter-mile but was keen to follow the rallying Shigeko through the turn as Yo Cuz attempted to kick clear of the field.

Yo Cuz opened up a four-length lead over Laochi at the stretch call as Morning Matcha overtook Shigeko and powered into contention down the center of the track. A game and determined Morning Matcha continued to find more but there was no reeling in Yo Cuz, who crossed the wire 1 3/4-lengths in front in a final time of 1:25.34.

Ortiz said Yo Cuz was much improved at second asking after experiencing trouble at the gate on debut.

“She was squeezed out of there and she was very green, too,” Ortiz said of the first-out effort. “I just sat patiently and tried to teach her some stuff. I didn't want to rush her. She's a big filly and she closed well last time. I was very happy with the race. I knew second time she was going to be a lot better. I expected she was going to win a maiden; I didn't know she was going to run in here. I knew this race was going to be a little bit tougher, but she proved that she belongs.

“She was ready today. She broke well today and he [Mott] worked on what she needed – breaking better, which she did,” Ortiz added. “She broke very clean and when I went to take position and looked around me, nobody could keep up with me in the first quarter. So, when I took [the lead] I slowed it down nicely and she was very relaxed.”

Ortiz, a three-time winner on the card, continued a solid run of form after going 3-for-3 on Friday night at Remington Park Oklahoma City, Okla., winning the She's All In with Casual, the Trapeze with Optionality, and the Springboard Mile with Make It Big.

“When you ride good horses, this is what happens. You get more chances to win races,” Ortiz said. “I appreciate all the opportunities I have been getting with big owners and big trainers supporting my career. That's what it's all about. You have to have the horse to win.”

Tom Gallo, managing partner of Dream Maker Racing, said he always had high hopes for Yo Cuz.

“When we first gave Bill the horse, we had this race in mind,” Gallo said. “When I mentioned it to Bill, he looked at me and laughed a little bit because he had just got her. But then she started to breeze at Saratoga and was training really well. We wanted to get one race in her before this and she ran fifth about four weeks ago. She broke bad, trailed the field but then weaved her way between horses and galloped out past the leader. When we spoke to Jose Ortiz after the race, he said that he really liked the horse. It's nice to have continuity because he knew her.”

Gallo said the $125,000 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale purchase made a good first impression.

“The thing that stood out for us was that she was one of the few in that sale who galloped and didn't breeze,” Gallo said. “We like when people take time with their horses. The fact that she was a good size and came out of a good consignment [Hidden Brook] was appealing.”

Morning Matcha completed the exacta by five lengths over Laochi with Shigeko, Bank On Anna, Laoban's Legacy, She's a Big Deal, Alicia's Way, Howdyoumakeurmoney, Mrs. Banks, and Half Birthday rounding out the order of finish.

Carmouche said the slow-starting Morning Matcha, who maintained a perfect in-the-money record of 7-2-3-2, will not be hustled.

“She breaks a little slow and gets herself together, but you can't rush her,” Carmouche said. “She's going to pick up the bit when she wants. Today, we were just second best.”

Bred in New York by Seidman Stables, Yo Cuz, out of the Tale of Ekati mare Steve's Philly, banked $275,000 in victory while improving her record to 2-1-0-0. She paid $8.00 for a $2.00 win ticket.

Live racing resumes Sunday at the Big A with a nine-race card featuring the $100,000 Gravesend in Race 7 and the $125,000 Queens County in Race 8. First post is 12:20 p.m. Eastern.

America's Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the winter meet at Aqueduct Racetrack on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Aqueduct Racetrack, and the best way to bet every race of the winter meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.

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A total of 62 yearlings sold Sunday night for a gross of $6,497,500. The average was $104,798 and the median was $80,000.

“It was an outstanding opening night to the 2021 New York-bred sale,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. “I was thrilled to have the average over $100,000 tonight. It's one of those milestones that we are trying to achieve. Hopefully the strength will continue tomorrow.”

During the first session of the 2019 New York-bred sale, 66 horses sold for $5,972,500. The average was $90,492 and the median was $75,000.

With 20 horses reported not sold Sunday, the buy-back rate was 24.4%. The corresponding figure in 2019 was 32%.

“As encouraging, or more encouraging, it was a very reasonable RNA rate tonight for the New York-bred sale,” Browning said. “In the past we've talked many times about the higher-than-average RNA rate because there are so many opportunities for the owners and breeders of these horses to race given the purse structure in the state. The RNA rate tonight was certainly at an acceptable level. The momentum and enthusiasm from the selected sale continued tonight with a really strong marketplace with a diverse group of buyers.”

Sunday's session was topped by a filly by Uncle Mo who was consigned by Tom Gallo on behalf of her co-breeders and was purchased by Gallo for his Dream Maker Racing partnership. The yearling was one of nine to bring over $200,000.

“The market is fabulous,” Gallo said. “I think this market is strong with people coming out of the pandemic with all of this pent-up enthusiasm and people who didn't get to spend their money last year. And this is a neat market because it's a middle market. It's a meat-and-potatoes market. People can come here and buy a decent horse for $50,000, $70,000 or $100,000 or $150,000 and, with the purses the way they are, if you get just a consistent horse that places a couple of times, wins, places again, you're already up to $120,000 or $150,000 in earnings. You may not break even for everything, but at least you have cash flow coming back.”

The New York-bred Yearlings Sale continues Monday with a final session beginning at noon.

Uncle Mo Filly a Dream for Gallo

Tom Gallo was so impressed by a filly by Uncle Mo (hip 341) he was consigning for her co-breeders that he purchased her for his Dream Maker Racing partnership for a session-topping $495,000 Sunday at Fasig-Tipton.

“Dream Maker Racing is a racing partnership that I manage,” Gallo explained. “It's a group of people who bred her. All of the offspring are bred by Mia Gallo, Mary Kopley, Michael Newton and Elizabeth Weese–they are the ones who own the mare. We just set a price and if she didn't bring the price, we were just going to race her ourselves. But we have to sell it from the breeding partnership to the racing partnership.”

Of the yearling, Gallo said, “We loved the filly. We absolutely loved her. I've loved her since the day she was born. She is a monster. From when she was young, she just had a mind of her own. We raise them as weanlings and then we ship them down to raise them in Kentucky. After she was weaned, if you went up to her and she didn't want to be nice, she would come at you with ears pinned as a baby. And that's rare. So I always liked that because you have to be like that. Sometimes you have to be like that to be competitive and win races.”

Dream Maker Racing also campaigned the yearling's half-sister Satisfy (Candy Ride {Arg}), who was second in the 2018 Iroquois S. Like that filly, hip 341 will be trained by Bill Mott.

“Bill Mott has trained the whole family and he will be training her–he just doesn't know it yet,” Gallo said. “But he's done well with the family. We had the granddam, and we bred and raced the mother and now we are racing her babies. And we even have one of her daughters who just had a foal. So now we are on the fourth generation. And Bill is a breeder's trainer. He trains for people that race daughters of daughters. He is such an intelligent guy and he remembers the traits of the family. So it gives you a little bit of a jump start on the horse.”

Ingordo Stays Bullish on Accelerate

Lane's End's David Ingordo has made no secret of how much he has been impressed by offspring of the farm's first-crop sire Accelerate, and the bloodstock agent acquired another yearling by the GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner when going to $335,000 late in Sunday's first session of the Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearlings Sale.

“I was staying true to my TDN article where I said we would be trying to buy Accelerates,” Ingordo said with a smile after signing the ticket on hip 385. “We bought a beautiful colt in July and I saw this filly and she has got everything you'd want to have. I love her female family. She has the New York-bred to fall back on if we need it, but she looks like an open company horse. She is an excellent representation of what Accelerate is producing.”

The filly, who will be trained in California with John Sadler, is out of Delay of Game (Bernardini). The mare's half-sister is the dam of graded stakes winner Stanford (Malibu Moon) and multiple grade-placed Hedge Fund (Super Saver).

“They are like himself, really balanced individuals with a ton of class,” Ingordo said of what he is seeing in Accelerate's first crop of yearlings. “This filly oozed class. She's been by the ring all night and didn't turn a hair and came up here really well. Accelerate himself is a beautifully-balanced horse and this filly is just like him. She is out of a Bernardini mare. I couldn't get much more.”

Of the yearling's final price, Ingordo said, “She is a good horse and she costs what a good horse costs. She was expensive, but we loved her.”

The bay filly, consigned by St George Sales, was another success out of Delay of Game for Dan Hayden's EKQ Stables. Hayden purchased Delay of Game in foal to Street Sense for $90,000 at the 2017 Keeneland November sale. Her Street Sense filly sold for $260,000 at the 2019 Keeneland September sale and her Classic Empire colt sold for $310,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton October sale.

Army Mule Filly an Emotional Score for O'Neill

After watching his filly by Army Mule (hip 314) sell for $300,000 to Maverick Racing/Siena Farm Sunday night at Fasig-Tipton, Windylea Farm's Kip O'Neill dedicated the result to his late father and Windylea founder Philip O'Neill, who passed earlier this year. The yearling is out of Whispering Angel (Hard Spun), a mare the father-son team purchased for just $3,000 at the 2019 Keeneland January sale.

“This is for my dad,” O'Neill said. “He died in March. He and I bought that mare together. And when we bought her for $3,000, we looked at each other and said, 'What are we missing?' Obviously, we got lucky.”

The yearling was consigned by Francis and Barbara Vanlangendonck's Summerfield and while the team celebrated the successful sale in the back of the pavilion, Barbara Vanlangendonck explained with a broad smile, “He told me he had three horses and asked which one we wanted and we picked this one.”

Just four months after the O'Neills purchased Whispering Angel, her son Wells Bayou (Lookin At Lucky) won the GII Louisiana Derby.

“The mare is kind of our franchise mare,” O'Neill said of Whispering Angel. “She is a big, strapping Hard Spun mare and she was successful on the track. She only raced three times and she had some bone spurring, nothing major. So they decided to retire her and sell her. She had slipped a Kitten's Joy filly and that's probably how she slipped to us.”

Of the yearling, O'Neill said, “She's been very forward since she was born. She's been a beautiful filly. It took her a while for it to come together. It's a testament to our staff, they did a fabulous job getting her ready. We are thrilled with the connections that bought her. We wish them the best and we'll see where we go from there.”

Whispering Angel is currently in foal to Speightstown and has a full-brother to Wells Bayou by her side.

Windylea Farm has a broodmare band of 23 head.

“Our plan is to sell,” O'Neill said. “You've got to sell from the top and the middle. It's hard to sell from the bottom. So those we end up racing or finding a different career for.”

Hip 314 was the first Windylea horse to go through the ring at the New York-bred sale.

“Two more tonight and two tomorrow,” O'Neill said of the rest of the yearlings scheduled to sell in Saratoga. “If we better this, I'd be some shocked. She was the queen.”

Sunday night's result continued a strong week in Saratoga for yearlings from the first crop of GI Carter H. winner Army Mule. The Hill 'n' Dale stallion had a colt (hip 140) and filly (hip 148) sell for $400,000 during last week's Selected Yearling Sale.

Into Mischief Colt to Breeze Easy

While he had been in town earlier in the week, Breeze Easy's Mike Hall did his bidding Sunday night on the phone, going to $300,000 to acquire a colt by Into Mischief (hip 330) from the Winter Quarter Farm consignment.

“[Breeze Easy advisor] Tom McGreevey picked this horse out,” Hall said shortly after Fasig-Tipton's Anna Seitz signed the ticket on his behalf. “He's a nice, big, stout colt and well balanced. We just thought he was a good buy. He's a big colt who looks like he can go two turns.”

The bay colt is out of multiple stakes winner and graded-placed Akilina (Langfuhr) and is a half-brother to Japanese Group 1-placed Rieno Tesoro (Speightstown) and graded winner Governor Malibu (Malibu Moon). He was bred by Richard Leahy's Oak Bluff Stables.

“He was a really nice colt,” Winter Quarter's Don Robinson said. “I actually thought he would do better. But I am perfectly happy with what he brought. The mare has been really good. The family has been fantastic for us. I am perfectly happy and a really smart guy bought him, Tom McGreevey. He never wavered.”

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