By Jessica Martini
A juvenile sales season which set records at each stop along the way, comes to a close with the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June Sale of 2-Year-Olds and Horses of Racing Age, which begins its three-day run Tuesday morning in Ocala.
OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski expects demand for 2-year-olds to remain high at the June sale.
“I think there is still demand for horses,” Wojciechowski said. “I think we saw that certainly in April [at the OBS Spring sale]. We heard from a lot of people who still had orders to fill and said they'd be back.”
The OBS Spring sale set records for gross, average and median and, while that April auction has turned into a powerhouse destination, the June sale has had its own renaissance over the last few years.
“The June sale is all grown up,” Wojciechowski said. “It was not always considered a stand alone sale. It was an afterthought sale for a number of years, but nowadays, June is a heck of a sale in its own right. Quality horses have come out of June every year. I think people appreciate that. And it seems, as the sales calendar has gotten later over time, some of these horses that need a little more time, that maybe aren't ready for March or April, can really showcase themselves at June and people are finding success with those horses.”
In 2021, 567 horses sold at the June sale for a gross of $24,626,450 and an average of $43,433–both highwater marks for the auction. The median was a record-tying $20,000.
“I try not to prognosticate things like that,” Wojciechowski said when asked if the sale's 2022 renewal could live up to those lofty figures. “I think we will have a good sale and we will be thankful, and the consignors will be thankful, if we get horses sold.”
The 2022 June sale has already eclipsed the 2021 renewal in one respect, with 1,131 juveniles catalogued this year, compared to 907 a year ago.
“I don't know that it is good or bad,” Wojciechowski said of the larger catalogue. “It is what it is. I am happy that the consignors have enough faith that the June sale is a place where they can market their horses.”
During last week's under-tack show, a pair of fillies shared the fastest furlong time of :9 4/5: hip 560, a daughter of Flatter consigned by Julie Davies (video); and hip 795, a filly by Irish War Cry consigned by Thorostock (video).
A filly by Army Mule (hip 437) turned in the week's fastest quarter-mile work of :20 2/5 for the Fast Horses consignment.
“I thought we got very lucky with the weather,” Wojciechowski said of the under-tack show. “It is Florida. It is hot in June, but we were able to dodge rainstorms and didn't really have any interruptions and we were able to get six consistent days in a row. They were hot, but they were consistent.”
The June sale begins Tuesday morning and continues through Thursday with bidding beginning each day at 10 a.m.
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