Dark Hollow Farm

David and JoAnn Hayden's Dark Hollow Farm came away victorious in three of the four classes at the 90th annual Maryland Horse Breeders Association's Yearling Show held Sunday at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium. Dark Hollow Farm's colt by The Factor, co-bred and owned with Ellen Charles of Hillwood Stable, was awarded the grand champion trophy by this year's judge, longtime bloodstock agent Rick Abbot. The Haydens have now won 19 classes (solely or in partnership), since 1989 with grand champions in 2009 and 2014. A total of 59...

Editor's note: After 60 Minutes aired a segment called "Horse Racing Reform?" on its Sunday night broadcast, Dark Hollow Farm's JoAnn Hayden posted a letter she had written to 60 Minutes on her Facebook page and urging friends and racing industry members to do the same. She writes: "I have always felt proud and grateful to be part of Maryland's thoroughbred racing community. Over the past 50+ years my circle of friends, employees, trainers, and colleagues have been exemplary humans who have provided the best care for my horses and...

A Hillwood Stable homebred son of Bandbox was named grand champion of the 88th Maryland Horse Breeders' Association's Yearling Show, which was held at the Timonium Fairgrounds Sunday. The gray or roan colt is the third foal out of the Scrimshaw mare Dearie Be Good to win a class at the show--the colt's full-sister was reserve champion in 2018 and his half-sister by Great Notion was reserve champion in 2021. All are homebreds for Ellen Charles's Hillwood Stable, which also campaigned 2014 GIII General George H. winner Bandbox. Bandbox, who...

TIMONIUM, MD - Buyers had every right to expect competitive bidding during Monday's first session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale--with normal Maryland shoppers joined by bidders shut out at previous sales--and the arena did not disappoint. By the close of business Monday, 149 yearlings grossed $4,577,300. The average was $30,720 and the median was $20,000. During the sale's first session in 2020, 122 yearlings sold for a total of $2,983,600. The session average was $24,456, the median was $15,000, and the buy-back rate was 24.7%. "It was a...

TIMONIUM, MD - A yearling sale season punctuated by strong demand throughout the market makes a stop in Maryland when the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale begins its two-day run in Timonium Monday afternoon. With 200 yearlings catalogued, the abbreviated first session of the auction gets underway at 1 p.m. A further 314 yearlings are catalogued for the second session, which begins at 10 a.m. Tuesday. Ahead of the sale, a mixture of end-users, pinhookers and bloodstock agents were on the grounds on a balmy fall day at the Maryland...

The Maryland Racing Commission (MRC) voted unanimously  Wednesday to expand a race-day Lasix ban that began this year with 2-year-olds to include horses of any age competing in graded stakes starting in 2021. "A few months ago, the commission passed an emergency regulation restricting Lasix to any horse that's two years old for the next three years, as part of [a negotiated] agreement between the HBPA and The Stronach Group," J. Michael Hopkins, the MRC's executive director, explained prior to the vote during the Dec. 2 teleconference meeting. "Moving forward,...