California Thoroughbred Breeders Association

Don Valpredo. a longtime breeder and owner based in California, passed away Oct. 31 while on vacation overseas. He was 85. At one time or another, Valpredo was on the board of virtually every horse racing and breeding organization in California. From Bakersfield, California, he served as the chairman of the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association from 2014 to 2016 and served three consecutive one-year terms from 1986 to 1988 and remained on the board of that organization at the time of his passing. Valpredo was inducted into the California Thoroughbred...

Seminars, horse demonstrations, stallion viewings, prize giveaways and networking opportunities headline an ambitious agenda for the 2023 Autumn Equine Fair at Milky Way Farm in Temecula, California from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 14. Participation in the event is free for current and prospective horse owners and breeders. Sponsored by the California Thoroughbred Farm Managers Association and California Thoroughbred Breeders Association, the event will feature several 20-minute sessions led by professional speakers on a wide variety of topics, including horse health, feeding and nutrition, broodmare care, foal...

A son of Vronsky sold for $100,000 to top the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association Northern California Yearling and Horses of Racing Age Sale, which posted year-over-year result increases, the auction said in a release late Tuesday. With 114 yearlings sold, gross sales were $1,064,900 for an average of $9,260 and median price of $5,500. Last year, 105 yearlings sold for $871,100, an average of $8,296 and median price of $4,500. The average sales price for yearlings this year was 11.6 percent higher than last year. The sales topper, the first...

Grade I winner Fun to Dream (Arrogate) was crowned California-bred Horse of the Year at the CTBA Awards dinner held Monday night. The 4-year-old filly, who is out of the Maria's Mon mare Lutess, was bred by Connie Pageler and trainer Bob Baffert and is owned by Paegler and Natalie J. Baffert. The gray filly was also named Cal-bred champion 3-year-old filly and sprinter, and her dam was named Cal-bred broodmare of the year. "I did this, it was a crazy thing, I called Garrett O'Rourke at Juddmonte and I...

Last week, industry organizations announced the launch of the California Horse Power Coalition, a collaborative endeavor sold as something of a unified foghorn to extol the good word of the sport's economic and cultural impacts. The list of Coalition members reads like a who's who of California racing industry mainstays, including Del Mar, Santa Anita, the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC), the California Retirement Management Account (CARMA), the California Thoroughbred Breeders' Association (CTBA) and others. To discuss this new venture--along with a suite of other timely industry talking points--the TDN spoke with newly minted...

A Sir Prancealot colt brought $50,000 to top Wednesday's California Thoroughbred Breeders Association Northern California Yearling and Horses of Racing Age Sale at the Alameda County Fairgrounds. The colt, out of the Union Rags mare Root Beer Rag, was bred by Jeff Ganje, consigned by Checkmate Thoroughbreds and was purchased by Robert Jones of San Leandro. The highest-priced filly in the sale was by Vronsky, out of the Cyclotron mare Eden Mirelle, was bred by Ron Rand and Courtney Rand, consigned by Harris Farms, agent, and purchased by Andy Mathis...

The one-day California Thoroughbred Breeders Association (CTBA) Winter Mixed Sale, held Tuesday, Feb. 1, at Fairplex, closed with significant gains over the 2021 edition. A total of 113 horses were sold for gross sales of $1,298,407, with an average of $11,490 and a median of $5,200. At last year's Winter Mixed Sale, 73 horses were sold for a total of $575,100, an average of $7,878, and a median of $3,200. Le Vron James (Vronsky--Arousing, by Cee's Tizzy) sold for a session-topping $85,000. Bred by Harris Farms and Donald Valpredo, the...

A filly by Stanford topped Tuesday's California Thoroughbred Breeders Association Northern California Yearling Sale when selling for $45,000 to Robert Jones. Out of the Broken Vow mare Jeannie's Genie and bred by Michael Allen, she was consigned by Easterbrook Livestock. The highest-priced colt in the sale was by Vronsky and purchased by GCCI for $36,000. He is out of the Tizbud mare Just Lookn Again, was bred by West 12 Ranch, Inc. & Craig Allen and consigned by Hanson's River Ranch. The sale's average of $9,977 was nearly 40% higher...

George Krikorian's homebred Mucho Unusual (Mucho Macho Man), winner of last year's GI Rodeo Drive S., was named California-bred Horse of the Year for 2020 during Monday's annual awards presentation by the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association. The mare was also named the state's champion older female and turf horse. Other Cal-bred champions announced during Monday's teleconference were: Big Fish (Mr. Big) and Good With People (Curlin to Mischief) (tied for 2yo male); Governor Goteven (Govenor Charlie) (2yo female); El Tigre Terrible (Smiling Tiger) (3yo male); Warren's Showtime (Clubhouse Ride) (3yo...

A newly turned 2-year-old filly by Declaration of War topped Tuesday's California Thoroughbred Breeders' Association January Mixed Sale at the Hinds Pavilion in Fairplex when selling for $60,000 to O.J. Jauregui as agent for Highland Yard. Consigned by Adrian Gonzalez's Checkmate Thoroughbreds, the dark bay is out of Lemarchos (Lemon Drop Kid), a half-sister to Grade I winner Celestine (Scat Daddy). She sold for $9,000 at last year's Keeneland January sale and was acquired by Jose Zulaica's Valle Las Palmas for $5,500 at last year's Keeneland September Yearling Sale. In...